"Ryuu! Ryuu! We've done it!"

Shirayuki couldn't resist squeezing her superior's hands as she jumped up and down in excitement. She laughed, apple red hair bouncing as she danced. Ryuu returned her smile with a small one of his own, clumsily stepping over his own feet as he tried to keep up with her.

"Oh? What's going on in here?"

Garack Gazelt wore am amused grin on her face as she watched her adorable subordinates celebrate. At the sound of the head pharmacist's voice, Shirayuki let go of Ryuu's hands, and the boy carefully picked up an object from the table. He held the object to Garack as Shirayuki turned to her with a bright smile.

"Good afternoon, Head Pharmacist!" she greeted with enthusiasm. "The test was successful!"

"I knew I could count on you two," Garack smiled, taking the object from Ryuu's hand. "Leave your report on my desk once you've cleaned up here."

She paused for a moment before adding, "You and Ryuu can have the rest of the day off once you've submitted the report to me. Thanks for your hard work."

"Yes, ma'am!"

Once Garack had left, Shirayuki began clearing the worktable, organizing files back into their folders. Ryuu emptied vials of liquids and cleaned up stray herbs and plants. He was quiet and meticulous in his own unique way, arranging the clean vials and extra herbs in a way that maximized efficiency and accessibility. Shirayuki neatly shelved the reference texts they'd used in their latest project and set aside the notes they'd taken to be made into a report for the head pharmacist. She hummed as she flitted back and forth from the shelves and the worktable, filling the room with a comfortable atmosphere.

"Shirayuki-san."

Shirayuki turned to the boy, who held a basket with a cloth cover in his arms. He blushed and held out the basket to her, looking away in embarrassment.

"Since we made so many, I thought you'd like to have some," he said softly. "You can give them to the prince."

"Thank you, Ryuu," Shirayuki smiled, bending down to his eye level. "I'll accept them gladly."

Ryuu nodded in agreement, his shyness taking over. Shirayuki accepted the basket and bid him farewell. As she exited the pharmacy, she spotted a familiar face.

"Hello, Mistress," Obi greeted. "What's that you have there?"

"Good afternoon, Obi," she replied. "It's a gift for everyone."

"Ho? And what's in the basket, Little Miss?" Obi asked, cocking his head in curiosity.

"It's a secret," she grinned. "Do you know where Zen is?"

"Master is probably in his office diligently filling out his paperwork right now," Obi answered. "It seems His Majesty has been giving the Master more work lately."

Shirayuki and Obi made a short detour to the east wing so Shirayuki could change out of her uniform before heading toward Zen's office. Upon their arrival, they found Zen methodically reading through his paperwork, an aura of doom emanating from him. Mitsuhide and Kiki were going over their own work at their desks as his ever faithful close aides.

"Good afternoon, Shirayuki," Kiki said. "Are you done with work for today?"

"Yes, the head pharmacist gave Ryuu and me the rest of the day off," Shirayuki replied with a smile.

"What, no hello for me?" Obi joked. "I'm deeply hurt, Miss Kiki."

Kiki ignored Obi's antics and turned to Zen, who hadn't seemed to notice the pair's entrance.

"Zen. Shirayuki and Obi are here," she announced.

"Am I seeing things, or is Shirayuki here?" he murmured, eyes still glued to his desk.

"You haven't even looked at me, but yes, I'm here," Shirayuki responded, laughing as she remembered a similar conversation they'd had when she first came to the castle.

Zen's head snapped up, eyes widening as he registered Shirayuki's presence. Mitsuhide laughed, making a remark about how familiar the conversation was. Naturally, Obi wanted to know what had happened in the past, since he couldn't recall a time where something similar had happened.

"Anyway," Shirayuki began. "I came by because I wanted to share these with you all."

Pulling back the cloth cover on the basket, six bright red apples revealed themselves. Shirayuki reached in and held one up for the occupants of the room to see. The color of the fruit was rivaled only by the color of her hair.

"Ryuu and I just finished making them," she explained. "If you aren't too busy, then I was hoping we could find a place to enjoy them together?"

Zen gave a hopeful stare to Mitsuhide, who relented with a smile and nodded.

"All right," Zen agreed. "Just give me a moment to finish this, and then we can all take a break."

"We'll go on ahead then, Zen," Kiki said, standing up from her desk. She grabbed Mitsuhide by the arm and marched out the door, Obi trailing behind her.

"Eh? Hold on, wait—" Zen started, only to be answered by the sight of the door shutting.

Shirayuki stood awkwardly by the door, unsure if she should start a conversation or let Zen finish his work. Zen sighed and gave Shirayuki an apologetic look.

"Sorry, Shirayuki. It'll take a few minutes for me to finish this, so it may be a little boring," he said.

"It's fine, it's fine," she replied, waving away his concern. "I like seeing the Zen that works hard for his country."

Shirayuki smiled at Zen, causing his face to redden, and he used a hand to cover his face in embarrassment. She was always so straightforward and honest, but she would catch him off guard every now and then.

When he finally put down his pen, he stood up and walked over to Shirayuki, who had seated herself on one of the sofas near the door. She smiled up at him, and his heart fluttered.

"Shall we go?" he asked, holding out a hand.

Shirayuki nodded and let Zen pull her to her feet. As they exited the room, Zen took the basket from her, though it took slight persuasion to make her relinquish it to him. It wasn't that heavy.

"So, what's so special about these apples?" he asked.

"Ryuu and I found a way to add medicinal properties to apple trees," she explained. "These apples will help reduce fever and cold symptoms. The bark from the tree can be used to alleviate soreness and stiffness."

Zen whistled in awe. He had known that Shirayuki's medicines were effective, but to accomplish this was no small feat.

"How long did it take?" he asked, lifting the cloth and peering into the basket.

"We've been adding a special fertilizer to an apple tree for about a month. We used medicinal plants in the fertilizer," Shirayuki replied. With a wry smile, she added, "The head pharmacist liked to check in on our 'poison apples' whenever she saw us."

"Poison apples, huh?" Zen mused. "That brings me back."

Shirayuki's eyes widened, realizing what she had just said.

"That's not what these apples are though, Zen!" she exclaimed, startling him with her outburst. "I mean, they technically are poison apples, but that's not what they really are!"

Zen stared at her in surprise before laughing at her flustered expression. Her face clouded with confusion as he grinned.

"I know, I know," he assured her. "The poisons produced by plants are often used in medicines for humans, right?"

Shirayuki blushed, realizing how frantic she was.

"Oh. Well, yes," she replied. "How did you know that?"

This time, it was Zen's turn to blush.

"Uh, well, I," he began, face reddening. "I might have studied a bit on medicinal plants after you came to Clarines."

Touched by his confession, Shirayuki smiled at him. Dazzled by her smile, Zen didn't notice that the apple basket had disappeared from his arm as well. When he realized what had happened, Shirayuki was always two steps in front of him, waving to Mitsuhide, Kiki, and Obi, who stood under a tree in one of the castle courtyards. The apple basket hung from her arm. She approached them cheerfully, striking up a conversation with Mitsuhide.

Zen smiled as he watched her interact with his aides and personal knight. Shirayuki had come to his country with nothing but her own self and her determination, but yet she was living and working in the castle as if she'd been there all her life. If it weren't for Prince Raji's persistence, she would have never come to be in the castle.

He had never appreciated poison apples more.

Thank you for reading, and please leave a review below! :)