The princes both followed him out.

“That’s not very polite, you know. You should ask permission to leave our presence,” Alexis scolded him.

“I’m ever so sorry, your highness Prince Alexis. I’ll remember next time.”

“This little sheep has courage! Make sure you escort him to the grounds, brother, we wouldn’t want him to lose his way.”

With that the Crown Prince ambled off down the corridor, leaving Markus to follow Alexis. He trusted that the prince knew where he was going, but when they reached a staircase leading upwards it became clear that they were not heading for the doors at all. When Markus stopped and queried this, Alexis laughed and said he thought they should celebrate the completion of his apprenticeship.

“There’s no ball today, you know, or any other festivities,” Markus pointed out.

“Which is precisely why we can’t use our usual drawing room.”

But no matter how much he asked, Alexis would not tell him where they were going. He continued to lead him along corridors and up staircases until Markus was well and truly lost, then at last they entered a room at the end of a staircase. It was a large and magnificent room, all draped in purple, with a desk and cupboards and shelves full of books. He noticed a hanging sheet separating one corner of the room and realised that this must be the prince’s private rooms.

“You may leave now, George,” the prince said to a servant Markus hadn’t even noticed was there. “Have the rest of the day off.” The man, who was probably twice the prince’s age, bowed, expressed his gratitude, and left quietly.

Alexis said something else, but Markus wasn’t listening. He had just noticed the windows. All he could see from here was sky, but they would surely have a fantastic view of the gardens. He rushed over, and saw that the view was indeed breath-taking. The trees and hedges and walls were so small from up here, and he could see beyond the grounds to a scattering of houses, and beyond them to forests and hills in the far distance.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” There was a hint of pride in Alexis’ voice. “This room has some of the best windows in the palace, in my opinion.”

“I don’t suppose you’d fancy doing a trade?”

“Somehow I don’t think my father would allow it. But any time you want to come back up here, just ask. Also, if you have business in the palace, you should come and find me first, rather than bothering my brother.”

“He seemed happy enough to help, and I thought he was rather nice.”

“He just has too much time on his hands,” Alexis said, sounding slightly irritated.

“On a different note, I didn’t know you talked to Isabelle.”

“Well, I do pass her a lot, but mostly we only greet each other. I’d hate to distract her from her job.”

“You don’t seem very concerned when you take up my time.”

“Yes, well… That’s different.” He stared out of the window for a brief moment, then changed the subject. “That was a very interesting piece of topiary you made. I should have known the lopsided one was yours. It matches your dancing.”

“I’ll have you know that was deliberate. And perhaps you think so little of my dancing because you’ve never understood the steps yourself.”

“Shall we see?” the prince challenged. He took Markus’ hand and pulled him away from the window.

“It’s not really the time of day for dancing.”

“Morning, afternoon, or night; I’d dance with you anytime.”

Dancing in that tower room, just the two of them, with no music and no sense of what time it was, Markus understood what he meant. They danced slowly so neither of them tired, talking of many things, and they only stopped when a knock at the door summoned Alexis for dinner.

Alexis declared that he would see Markus into the grounds first, so they were soon hurrying down staircases and along corridors – the same ones as before or others, Markus could not tell. They passed the Crown Prince, who called after them, “Taking the long route to the exit, were you?”

They reached a small side door out of the palace, and Markus stepped outside. Alexis stood still in the doorway. He looked as if he wanted to say something, but then he pulled Markus towards him with his hand on his waist, as if to start dancing again, held him there for a second, then kissed him gently.

After a long moment, Markus pulled away. “You’re wanted in the dining hall,” he said quietly.

“I’m not particularly hungry.”

“Next lesson in being a prince: princes should always eat, whether they’re hungry or not. You need energy for all your princely duties.”

“I’ll go if you let me kiss you again.”

In reply, Markus leant forward and kissed him very briefly, then turned and began making his way home. He looked back just once, and saw Alexis still standing in the doorway, watching him leave.