"So you think he's past this?"

Charity stood at attention in front the King's desk, where as Monique lounged in one of the chairs, lying back with one of her legs over the arm of the chair. Charity nodded and smiled in agreement. Monique shrugged, "Seems so." She stared off into the distance. The king dropped the report. He stared from one to the other than said, "Okay. Charity, sit down. And-" he peered at Monique, "Monica?" She shook her head, "Monique now." The king nodded, "Right. Monique." He paused, "Sit the hell up. My wife has been given me enough complaints lately and I don't need someone walking in while you sit like that!" Monique let out a sigh and dropped her leg to sit up in the chair. She overly exaggerated her body language to try and appear super cheerful and innocent looking.

"Gosh willikers, my lord. Is this acceptable?"

Charity sat down in the other chair in front of the kings desk and carefully smoothed out her skirt, deliberately not looking at Monique. The king slammed his hand down on his desk, "ENOUGH!" He rubbed the bridge of his forehead, "I depend on you two. There are more important things you could be working on, but I have you two baby sitting Reed for a reason. However, even I can tell the two of you have been having some sort of... tension building between the two of you. You both worked fine in the past, so what gives?"

The king pointed at Monique, "You could have handed this off to any on your underlings and you chose to handle it yourself, so that had better not be a problem." Charity sighed, "Maybe it would be best if we just dropped this topic." Monique glared at Charity, "You'd say that." The king clapped his hands once, "STOP." Both were quiet, "Someone just say it. Whatever it is."

Monique sighed and let her head fall forward into her hands. Charity looked at Monique then back at the king, "Fine. Reed isn't... normal." The king looked at Charity with a flat look, "You don't say." Charity rolled her eyes, "I mean, for a... what now? Didn't he turn 16?" Monique looked up, "Last week. Apparently he didn't even remember it was his birthday. None of us noticed either. Thing is, he didn't care." She smiled softly, "Would have been nice to have a chance to get him a gift." Charity interrupted Monique's musings, "What I mean is, he might be only sixteen, but he acts like he's six then he acts like he's sixty. His maturity level shifts constantly. He likes me a great deal... as a friend. He treats me with a great deal of respect and while I have pushed things with him to test his tolerance, he..."

Monique sighed, "I want him so bad."

The king's eyes grew wide as he looked at Monique, "Excuse me?" Charity pointed at Monique, "That. He's... he didn't grow up in this world. I'm telling you, I know what the saintess keeps saying, but I'm telling you, he just does NOT see the world like any man I know. His view on women and commoners and nobility are... its indescribable." The king looked puzzled, "So he's... respectful of women and commoners. We already knew this."

Monique shook her head, "No. You have no idea. I know nobles who respect commoners, but they are still AWARE they are nobles. I know men who treat women well, but they still know women are... women." Charity nods, "He just flat out doesn't see a difference in class, seeing everyone strictly on merit. However, when it comes to women, he is... I... hard to explain." Monique jumped in, "All women, regardless of social standings are ladies to him. Whore, saintess, young, old, whatever, he treats them all the same, like they are all ladies. Ironically, he'll put up with any amount of physical abuse from a woman, but when he gets angry he-" She seemed at a loss to explain.

Charity nodded in agreement, "Physically he treats women as inferior, but in so much as he wants to protect and take care of them, but when it comes to discussions or arguments, he treats women as... men. Which can get fairly offensive at times, but when you get to know him, you know it's just he is treating you the way he wants to be treated." The king shrugged, "Okay... I think I'm getting it." Monique shook her head, "No. You don't. Sorry, boss, but the truth is, you're one of the nicest guys I know, and you never looked down on me for being a woman, but sometimes you are very condescending." Charity nodded in agreement.

The king looked a little concerned, "I... did not intend to condescend to you, ever. You two have been with me for years."

Charity smiled and giggled, "It's not like that. You are just... like every other man in this country. It's hard to explain. It's something you would never notice, especially being the king. I think the reason why you are different is all that time spent on the battlefield. It gave you a different perspective on people." Monique pointed at Charity, "What she said." She then hooked a thumb over her shoulder, "Reed... none of it is there. I mean... NONE of it. He's..." She frowned and looked at Charity, "Help me out." Charity shrugged, "I can't explain it either. It's... relaxing around him. He isn't constantly staring at my chest. I've never had a man look at me, call me a friend, and actually mean it."

Monique glumly hung her head, "Which is the problem."

The king stared from one to the other than to Monique, "Wait... do... you love him?" Monique didn't say anything, just staring at the floor. The king leaned back into his chair, and stroked his mustache, "Uh-oh." Monique sighed heavily, "Nothing to worry about. He doesn't love me back. In fact, he's shot me down so many times it isn't funny. It sort of hurts a girl's pride considering how hard I tried. He's pining for his dead, ex-wife that he lived with in a dream existence."

The King nodded, "I remember that. I didn't understand half of what he was raving about at the time, but it was clear he had some sort of relationship and it went bad because... I think he went insane?" The king shrugged, "Honestly he kept spouting words I never heard before so it was hard to follow it at times." Charity nodded, "I think that is the correct way to explain it. He went crazy for a while and it cost him his wife and child, then they died before he could get them back. Then he woke up. I think." She shrugged, "Regardless. It's a weak spot." Monique sat up, "Yeah. It's why the whole incident with Bethany had him so rattled. The very idea of a child, especially a girl, getting hurt because of him, directly or indirectly, incapacitated him. I also think this is why he's avoiding romance in general."

Charity sighed, "The freshman dance incident didn't help."

The King slowly turned to stare off into the distance, "So... Arranging a marriage for him, or forcing him into a betrothal would be...?" Charity and Monique both spoke in unison, "Bad." The king nodded, "Damn it. I was hoping to find some way of further tie him down. If he has no roots here, he won't feel the need to stay here after I'm gone." Monique shrugged, "I'd offer to drug him up and get him in bed, except..." She looked off to the side with an embarrassed expression. Charity glared at Monique, "Except it didn't work." She looked at the king, "Apparently he is resistant to poisons which includes aphrodisiacs and can drink Monique under the table."

The king raised one eyebrow very... very high.

Monique looked back at the King, "Oh, don't give me that! You know I have a thing for younger men. On top of that he..." She closed her eyes, and smiled as she hugged herself, "He makes you feel safe and protected and like no matter what happens, if he cares about you he'll tear down the stars if that's what it takes." She sighed then let her arms drop, "He's the first man I have ever met that I actually respect, who respects me in turn, and he has absolutely NO INTEREST IN ME!" She grabbed a throw pillow from the chair she was sitting in, covered her face, and screamed into it.

Both Charity and the king stared at Monique with surprised expressions as they listened to her extended muffled scream. Monique dropped the pillow into her lap, "Oh. If you force him into a marriage, and it isn't me-" She smiled and continued in a pleasant voice, "I'll kill whoever you pair him up with."

The King let out a low, "Uhhh..."

Monique shrugged and smirked, "Just letting you know. If he picks someone, I won't stand in his way, but if you arrange a political marriage, it had better be me." The king stared at her. She continued, "Oh c'mon! How long have I been working for you? I've earned this." Charity looked at Monique with her head tilted to the side, "This... isn't like you." Monique shrugged, "The last man I met who treated me like he does was..." She looked at the king, "You." She looked dejected, "And damn if you aren't old as hell." The king snorted, "Harrumph." then lost the indignity to his voice, "We're been through a lot. The war-"

Charity cut the king off, "Is over." Her face looked stern and impassive.

The king stared at Charity for a long moment before he smiled softly and nodded, "The war is over." He looked at Monique, "You've done so much for me and the kingdom. I consider you more than a friend. If it actually comes down to ordering him into a marriage for political reasons, I promise you, you're top of the list." Monique smiled sadly, "Thanks... but don't do it. I don't know if he would accept it, and I know that... I don't want him resenting me."

Charity stared at Monique, "A man actually earned your respect?" She looked at the King, "I'm scared."

The king laughed and smiled. The two former members of his war band fell back into their usual pattern of playful bickering. As he listened to them his thoughts drifted back to the banter that they had as they would gather around a campfire at night. He thought about the war, and the ones who never made it back.

There was a part of him that wanted his shape shifting friend to always remain the ever mercurial, 'nobody gonna hold me down', free spirit she had always been. Part of him was angry that Reed would dare to steal her heart because he could never be good enough. The other part of him was angry that Reed apparently didn't even care and that he should be grateful she would even consider him.

~One more sign I'm getting old.~

This thought would weigh heavily on his mind in the coming year.