𝐀 𝐑𝐨𝐲𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐆𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐝// OxO // OPEN

Farah sighed quietly with relief. She only worked under one person – other than Adrien as the king, obviously – and if he had heard her speaking that way… Farah didn't even want to think about it. "Yes, well… I still shouldn't have said those things," she murmured.

HIs question made her perk up again, and Farah was grateful for the change in their discussion topic. "I don't see anything wrong with it, but on most laws your father made, he consulted the council first."

Farah laughed shortly. "Most of them would agree with that point of view, yes. You may forego the typical procedure and write the law then. But it would be so funny to watch them debate it when it doesn't matter and you already have your mind made up."

The woman hesitantly glanced at the door, then lowered her voice before she spoke again. "But Adrien, you have to do something about this war. It's getting out of hand, and the consequences are beginning to take effect. The longer we drag this out, the worse it will be for the kingdom as a whole. Think of your people. How will it look passing an education law in the middle of a war?"

Farah let her eyes fall downward. "Yes, I know," she acknowledged quietly. "You're not a fighter, Adrien. That much I've figured out." She lifted her eyes to his and arched her eyebrows with a playful smirk. "It wasn't that hard to anyway."

She pushed away from the wall and stood in front of him as he sat. "But I am. And even I don't see how this war is going us any good. Not that war does good in the first place, but we're not even close to winning. Latharia isn't either. There's no benefit for anyone. It's a loose-loose battle we're fighting. I just don't understand how some of the councilmen can't see that…

"But that's beside the point. You're the king now! You can introduce a treaty or some kind of a peaceful arrangement for the conflict. It's your duty to do what's best for your people, and right now, what's best is ending this godsforsaken war!"

"If they refuse, they're out of their minds," Farah countered, shaking her head. "A trade deal is just what we need. That's an excellent idea."

She smiled knowingly at him. "You're going to be a brilliant king, Adrien. Your father was a decent one, but he'd occasionally make rash decisions. You've got your wits about you."

Farah arched her eyebrows in amusement. "I'm only being honest," she stated, laughing a bit at how flustered he got. At how flustered she'd made him. "There's no need to thank me."

She returned his smile. "Brilliant," she remarked. "If you need my help with any of it, you know where to find me."

"Good night," she replied, returning his small wave with her own. "You know me; I'll be there." Once his door was shut, Farah turned and headed the short distance down the hall to her own quarters. She changed out of her military garb into a distinctly more feminine nightgown, and she let her hair down out of its strict, elegant updo. A soft sigh passed her lips as she took in her appearance with her long hair finally let down. Her window was open, and it drifted around her in the breeze. Farah hurriedly went over to her window and shut it.

After a few more moments of getting herself ready, for bed, the young woman laid down and closed her eyes, relaxing for the first time since she'd woken up.

The sun rose outside her window sooner rather than later, and Farah sighed at the sight of it. "Good morning," she muttered to no one and slipped out from beneath her sheets. The day didn't call for much, potentially a council meeting, but that was yet to be decided. She dressed in a white, tunic-like shirt, dark dress pants, and boots before tending to her hair with a wide array of products.

Once she was finished, her hair in an elegant but inherently severe updo, she strode down the hall and knocked on the king's door. "Your Majesty? It's Farah."

Farah entered and shut the door behind her. "Sorry I'm a bit late, I–" She stopped talking when she took in Adrien still in his dress clothes from the day before.

The woman crossed her arms and arched her eyebrows. "I take it back. You're not even ready yet."

Farah rolled her eyes. "It's part of training," she insisted. Even though he went behind his foldable wall, the woman still turned her back to him out of respect. "You could have told me to wait and changed before I came in here," she added.

When she heard the footsteps that indicated he was finished, she turned and arched her eyebrows at him. "Marrying your sister?" she asked, her accent making the question even more amusing when she asked it. "Good Lord, please don't."

"She was more than a mess," Farah muttered, a snarl biting at her words. She remembered the princess well, perhaps better than most. After all, she'd served as the princess's guard before being reassigned to Adrien.

Her eyes widened as she realized what she said and how she'd said it. "My apologies," she said quickly, dipping her head down to hide the embarrassed flush on her cheeks. Sometimes, she let her words get ahead of her.

Memories Farah had longed to forget were pulled to the front of her mind. She shook her head, having an adverse reaction from Adrien's. "She isn't worth another second of our thoughts. Now, if you don't mind, we have more pressing matters to attend to."

Farah approached him and read his writing over his shoulder. "Don't you think that's a bit of a loophole?" she asked, pointing to the last part of what he wrote. "Until each child is able to read and to write fluently. That's the bare minimum, Adrien. Imagine how the people who disagree with this law will be able to avoid doing anything substantial."

Farah pursed her lips in thought. "Perhaps instead write… a full, quality education of at least… a certain years. I'm not sure how long would be customary. That's up for you to decide."

She studied the rest of his wording. "Everything else looks right."

Farah read it again and nodded. "Good, that sounds right. And what of a peace treaty? Ending the war with Latharia. There must be some kind of foreseeable end."

Farah arched her eyebrows and looked back down at him. "Please, you're asking me how to start the ending of a war I've been trained for years to fight in?" She shook her head and sighed. "I have no idea… Is there a protocol for these kinds of things?"