2nd of December, M.E. 754

The Founder's Day Festival is in the two months or so, and it promises to be an enormously special event. Noctis is reluctant to attend, but I know it's because he will be attending in an official capacity. Afterwards, he intends to have his own gathering (as promised) and I'm sure he'll enjoy that much more.

Aleya accompanied me today to be fitted for my attire for the evening—personally commissioned, as the event is likely to be important in some way or another for Noctis. I, as his advisor, must dress the part. I had to try it on for fit, and I felt oddly self-conscious standing in the mirror, Aleya watching me. I caught her smiling, and she gave her opinion. She quite likes it. She called me 'handsome', which I must admit did create a feeling of self-satisfaction.

It was then that the saleswoman approached and asked her if she would like to retrieve her gown.

An awkward silence ensued. I'd never thought to invite her. Why wouldn't I? She's done nearly half the work this year. She has every right to attend. Even if that weren't true, I've certainly the option for a plus-one.

Before she could explain she was not attending, I filled in nicely that her gown was elsewhere. And when we were alone, I promptly invited her to come along.

I'll never forget her dusting at the shoulders of my jacket, pulling the lapel staunchly, looking my wardrobe over as she politely declined. She simply felt unwelcome and uncomfortable, I suppose, though she'd never admit it.

I even offered to pay for her evening gown myself, but she refused outright. No, I suppose she'd never accept such charity, even if she did desire to be there.

I've left the invitation open. Let us hope she changes her mind. I'm sure Noct would love to see her there.

15th of December, M.E. 754

Gladio's wound is now fully healed, although the scar will probably remain throughout his life. As I've mentioned before, however, he hardly minds.

Prompto has been doing very nicely in his training. His accuracy with a gun is somewhat unbelievable, almost as if his brain has been hard-wired to find an accurate target. As to the rest of his combat skills, I suppose we'll have to wait and see. He lacks confidence in himself, which could either be extremely helpful, or could potentially get us all killed.

Aleya continues to keep her distance. She of course is always available and eager to help when needed. Strangely enough, she acts like her old self when we are in the office alone. Upon stepping outside the office doorway, though, she morphs into a strictly-professional, withdrawn, and quiet person. It's confusing. My only thought is perhaps she's heard the rumors that are traveling around about the two of us and has decided to keep a respectable distance.

She's pushing herself too hard. The injuries continue. She seems to be exhausted.

What can I do? She is an adult, and I'm hardly her keeper. Whatever she's working through, she'll have to work through it alone.

21st of December, M.E. 754

There was a bit of a commotion early this morning. I was alerted by Crownsguard security that there was a Glaive demanding to speak to me, causing quite the scene outside. Once I learned of his name, I allowed him an audience immediately, although I truthfully had no idea what to expect.

I've had hardly any interaction with Aleya's brother since she started working for me. From the way she described his personality, I assumed him to be rather roguish. From his height and build, I knew him to be a formidable warrior. So my apprehension was understandable when he came barreling in to my office.

Thankfully, he had better sense than to attack. But I could tell he probably wanted to.

He had just arrived to Insomnia; Back from the warfront. He had seen Aleya's injuries and had learned of her training. He held me responsible, somehow, for her decision to train in the Crownsguard. Furthermore, he wanted to know why I hadn't done something about it. I assured him I had tried, that her injuries were just as distressing to me, and that I also felt she should not be doing something so reckless. However, I am not her keeper. What she chooses to do in her spare time must be her decision, and hers alone.

I thought the man would lose his mind. Thankfully, his sister showed up and had a private word with him. After that, I didn't see him anymore.

The regrettable fact of the whole incident is that Aleya felt extremely guilty. She apologized profusely to me and seemed too embarrassed to interact with me for the rest of the day. I know something of guilt and embarrassment, myself. Though I told her brother I had nothing to do with this whole affair, I don't truly believe it. I could stop her. I could simply order her to cease and desist.

I won't do it, though. Aleya's will is her own. For me to force her to do something against her will—wouldn't I be no better than a tyrant?

Things have become far more complicated since I've made her acquaintance, and yet far easier as well. She is, as always, an ambiguous enigma that I quite possibly will never be able to see through.

8th of January, M.E 755

Noct has caught cold. It seems relatively minor, but as ever, everyone in the castle has an apex of anxiety when a member of the royal family takes ill. I am no exception. I have been nurse-maiding him all day. It hasn't been so bad, mind you. We rarely have time to spend the entire day together, as we did when we were children. We played games—both of with and nonsense—and we watched movies. I made various hot liquids for him to drink. I even conjured up a soup this afternoon, although I can't say I did it alone.

I asked Aleya to stay home, to take rest. Quite frankly, I'm unsure if she's trying to be a martyr of sorts or if that gloriously sharp wit of hers somehow expires when it comes to awareness of herself. In any case, I was ignored. She tended to the normal book keeping and reports so that I could care for our young heir. She popped her head in at the kitchens around noon, however, and happened to espy me preparing my ingredients for the soup.

We spent well over an hour shoulder-to-shoulder, or back-to-back, minding the stove and all of the ingredients. During the process, I noticed a few skeptical glances from the Crownstaff that passed by or entered the room, but I did my utmost to distract my assistant from noticing. I do hope I succeeded.

She's apparently lacking in concern for her brother's feelings regarding our association.

Last evening when I dropped her off at her home, he was livid. He wondered why she was out so late, why hasn't she answered her phone, and questions such as these. And then he seemed to notice whom she had traveled with—the same person whose jacket she was still swaddled with. And then, the venom was unleashed upon me. What right did I have to keep her out of doors so late into the evening? Why did I insist on working her so hard? Did I not have a conscience?...and so on and so forth.

He's no fan of mine, but the feeling is decidedly mutual. If he weren't such a crime deterrent at Aleya's home, I'd have no use for him at all. I do hope he isn't always so domineering. It's hard to believe my assistant would put up with such an attitude, but one can never tell.

If I ever hear of mistreatment, I will be most displeased.

I suppose now it's best to get sleep, as I'm sure I'll be busy tending to his Highness again tomorrow.

18th of January, M.E. 755

After well over a week, our heir is completely mended; Not even so much as a stuffed nose. I'm afraid I can't say the same. The nurse was bound to catch ill, I suppose. I'm not the only one. Gladio, Prompto, his maid, my Uncle, and of course, my dear assistant—we are all feeling the effects.

No meetings scheduled for this week. They've all been cancelled. With the rapid spread of this illness, we can't afford his Majesty to take ill. Due to the toll the wall has taken on him, we are unsure he'd survive the experience.

No one dares say a word to Noct of the danger—not even myself. Per his Majesty's orders, Noctis is to live as carefree a life as possible, as long as he is able.

Something tells me that the end of his carefree days is drawing nearer and nearer.

25th of January, M.E. 755

We're finally all on the mend, and Noctis has decided we should all go out to dinner to celebrate. It's fine with me. I've had enough of homemade soups and porridge to last a lifetime.

There are some things to be thankful for. His Majesty never took ill, and the effects of this cold seem to have dissipated within the Citadel walls. Life can go back to normal. 'Normal' of course means Aleya and myself working double and triple shifts to get caught up. Life goes back to normal for Noct as well. His days of video games are over. He's now required to go back to training, meeting debriefings, and work at the sushi restaurant. I'm sure he'll be sulking again within the next two days or so…

26th of January, M.E. 755

Exhausted. Positively, absolutely, verifiably exhausted.

Aleya is, too. Though I'm guilty she's so tired, I'm desperately fortunate to have had her by my side today. There would have been no possible way to get our tasks done otherwise; There was far too much to catch up on after our collective leave of absences.

Looking back, I was reluctant to have an assistant. Now, I thank the stars I found her.