If she sent him a special, little smile, no one said anything about it. Lady Shirayuki, the only Friend of the Crown, and the prince have something warm that slowly grew over the years, like a flame cared for all these years. It started out very small, and then slowly took shape into something very unlike their rather rough beginnings. It's as smooth and seemingly as delicate as glass.
When a little giggle from her met something Prince Raji had told her, a kind of warmth seemed to fill the air. Perhaps there was really something extra special from the strained beginnings to the awkward friendship to the love that now blooms between them.
Something had shifted on one of her many visits over here, and the awkwardness of her first visit back to Tanbarun after being appointed Court Herbalist in Clarines had long since faded. Instead a steady warmth seemed to flourish between them as they talked as naturally as if they'd always been this close. Prince Raji guiding his friend through the castle that she was likely becoming quite familiar with.
That special spark to the prince's eyes, the casual gentleness to his words, the humility that she'd practically embedded into his skin so long ago were clear signs that there was something special about their bond. If Prince Raji stared a moment too long, Lady Shirayuki said nothing about it.
A change had passed over this castle so easily, that it really was getting hard to think that the past wasn't really just a nightmare with the only highlight being the woman with the bright red hair at their crown prince's side. As beautiful green eyes met the dark eyes of their prince, it seemed as if somehow there was so much more to the story that began so terribly a while ago.
Prince Raji seemed with every smile to have finally received his happy ending, and to have become a much better man all for it. She had taught him so much, that no one really knew what to feel other than relief and joy as they watched their prince, who was rapidly on his way to becoming a much better king than they'd ever anticipated.
It had all started with a young woman with bright red hair and vibrant green eyes that used to be a Tanbarun citizen and now lived farther away than the castle wished she did.