October kept an eye on both Iliana and the hallway around them as they walked, in case anyone unexpected came upon them. As the small glance, a familiar one at the point, he moved to step beside her and though still staying alert, he turned more of his focus to his Queen. A small smile lifted his lips and he nodded as she thanked him. She didn't have to thank anyone, but she has always been thoughtful and generous to others.

"I will always be nothing but honest with you. I hope you always know that, Iliana," he replied, his voice quiet enough to only be heard between the two of them.

The way he said her name had her glancing at him side long. A faint coloring in her cheeks though that could’ve been due to her being sick just moments before. Maybe she should have corrected him… Cassian would’ve. Augustus didn’t care when she reminded him. But October said it… with respect.

“You see and hear things… more than me at times.” Their footsteps almost seemed louder than their voices. “After the address… after the heat in the room… while I was sick, had you heard anything… about what happened? About how we were spared? About Oriana? Or Remiel…” guilt made her gut twist at the thought of him.

October followed suit as he kept his voice quiet, below even a whisper as he kept their conversation private. His memory of the whole encounter was a vivid one that he had relived many times over since that day. Though what it was that spared them was most prevalent in his mind. He didn't start there though. "Oriana and any other gifted was taken to the dungeons, that you already know. Oriana is no longer around. I worry about Remiel. He was not pleased by the way he was treated after all he'd done to benefit the crown and being treated like a criminal-"

October was perhaps being too loose with his own opinion rather than sticking only to facts. Maybe his time spend with the Queen had caused him to be too casual with her. He hoped that the reality was that they had built a trust and comfort in one other and that she knew he wouldn't say anything unless he really felt it to be true. "-like any other gifted, was quite harmful to whatever relationship had been built with him and his family. To be clear, I do not currently fear retribution from him, only that he may not be as eager to assist in the future."

"I was less privy on what happened with Florina, though she's been out for a while so I can only assume that she proved to not be a threat. Besides the loss of Oriana, only Remiel was physically harmed in the attack that started with the Eldouir. As far as how you and I were spared..." his cast her a long and thoughtful look before continuing.

"I've been thinking about that a lot. There was a moment where- well it seemed as if some kind of barrier came between us that was barely visible. It was...iridescent, not unlike a dragonfly's wings. I've been asking around, looking more into the kinds of magic that we knew were in that room at the time and-" he sighed, a look as if he'd failed. "I found nothing on record. I wonder if- forgive me if this is too forward, your majesty, but well, your mother...she was gifted was she not? Given that it was only you and I who were surrounded by that field-" his look was apologetic, hoping she wouldn't take some kind of offence. "I think- I think it might have come from you, my Queen..."

Surprise flickered in her face. Oriana wasn’t around anymore? She knew of Elena being held in Arynn Frey… but Oriana… her face almost seemed to fall for just a moment before she composed herself. “Has she… passed?” She remembered the look on Remiel’s face…

She looked down at the stones just in front of them, counting her steps before she crossed over the line between them as they walked. “I fear he will not help either,” a small confession between two who valued one another’s thoughts. And more so, she feared that her sending aide… would make him push the kingdom further away. “I want the guards we promised sent there, as well as supplies.” She murmured softly.

Then October went on to explain what happened. His thoughts and then— “no,” she breathed it more than she said it. Her face visibly paling. Her mother… she didn’t want to be like her. Had always pushed away so many… she turned to him, her eyes wide and pleading. Because she had felt it that day, something different and new… “I… I am twenty-three,” As if her age said she was too old for something to appear. “I—“ it was just like her aunt’s gift… Adelaide. She had wanted to be like her… so beautiful… confident. But she had been taken from Iliana. They had never found her. Just like her mother.

“If I was….” Her eyes searching… would he leave? Would they all slap a collar on her?

"Forgive me, I misspoke," he continued about Oriana. "I meant to say that she is the only one still being held in a cell, awaiting whatever fate may befall her for her actions. I only meant she is not currently around to potentially cause more trouble," he corrected.

He nodded when she said she wanted guards and supplies sent to Remiel's farm. It wasn't his duty to do those things but if she asked he would make sure to do what he could to ensure it happened. "I'm sure he'll appreciate that." He hoped so anyway. Having an influential gifted ally could still be a significant benefit.

He listened as she tried to wrap her mind around the idea that she might be gifted. October had already had time to mull over the possible outcomes if this was true but it was brand new information for her and he didn't want to rush her processing it.

"If you are then it would not change my opinion of you," he said, looking into her soft eyes with determination and a type of affection in his own. He cared about her. Perhaps more than he should but he couldn't change the way he felt. "If you are...then you could do even more for gifted rights than you are doing now. Yes, it's a scary prospect but it could be the moment you've been waiting for to make true change. No one would dare try to collar you. You can be your own advocate. You can be the proof that people need to show that being gifted doesn't automatically mean you are dangerous. Iliana- Your Majesty, you could be the most important catalyst for change in this issue that has been plaguing Lorendale for decades."

Maybe it was relief that flickered through her face… but it was masked quickly by the heaviness of what that now meant for them. Oriana still being held… “Good. I will have to speak with the King to see if his Huntsman wishes to be there.” She was the one who had been most hurt from the situation. And with her being from another kingdom, it wasn’t easy to call for her.

But the next moment was swept up in the whirlwind of a possibility. Gifted. A gifted queen, who didn’t even know it herself. Bile might have been what was rising in her thoat, burning it as it went. Wouldn’t be a surprise if she did start dry heaving. But she choked it back and met October’s gaze with relief and shock mixed in her gaze.

The way he spoke her name was so intimate that her cheeks flared and her gaze dropped for a moment. But she recovered and met his gaze once more as he pressed on. “What… what if they hate me more for it?” And her children… color drained from her face. “What if they come after my sons?” She wasn’t sure when but her hand flew to her stomach and she grasped the material there. The unknown little one in her stomach. “My children?” She hadn’t seen any signs of magic on either of them and yet here she was. “I need… I need Florina Bellerose.” She had been the gifted who said she could sense magic…

October didn't answer her first question about people's hate because as soon as she mentioned her children his whole demeanor seemed to change. His eyes grew more stern, his stance more rigid, and there was a serious look of determination and promise on his face. "I can assure you that your children will be safe. I would die before I let anything happen to them, you have my word on that." With how much duty and honor had always been prevalent in his role as her guard, it would be clear that what he said would be something she could rely on. He'd guard them personally at all hours of the day if he had to in order to keep those sweet boys safe from harm.

He nodded when she said she needed Florina. "Do you want me to go and get her now?" he inquired.

The look that came over October was almost intimidating. Yet she knew it was not something directed at her. Rather it was directed at the idea of a threat coming for her children. Instead it brought her comfort, unyielding comfort that she had someone like October around them.

They neared her room, and she directed them just within the room, door cracked for accountability but private enough as the other guards took up their positions and October looked over her room. “Would you be open to protecting us in a different capacity?” She asked, watching him closely.

They stepped into her room in a way they had on occasion before when conversation needed to be more private. He'd spent countless hours standing outside of this room but only a little time actually within it's walls. He furrowed his brow, unsure what she was getting at with her question. "What do you mean?" he inquired.

Iliana seemed to do her own scan of the room before she looked up to him. “I do not trust that Lord Mikaels’ will show.” She stated it plainly. At one point, she had truly trusted the man. But with the address, with him being asked for, with him abandoning his post as he nor his aide had been seen in weeks, she was wanting to move forward. “Nor do I believe that he should speak on behalf of me after those flyers.” She didn’t talk at a volume that would be heard outside of her room, even with the slight crack to the door.

It was not unheard of for a guard to be posted within her room for safety. It wouldn’t raise flags to the others either, especially now that just about any room she was to take up any sort of private life within was usually looked over thoroughly before she’d be allowed alone if asked. “If I asked that you help protect us,” not just her, but her children as well, “but from the position of Military Advisor, would you?”

October had once been good friends with Simon. They had trained together as kids and October had even been part of the Haas legion before he’d taken on this position. However, time and circumstance had lead him and his once friend apart. Not with any hard feelings, just natural distance.

Still, her request came with conflicting feelings and not only about taking the position from someone he was once close to. He looked towards the window thoughtfully before turning back to her.

“I will be honest in that I am hesitant to leave you and your children in the hands of another guard. The position of advisor would mean I can’t be here in person for you as often. I will also admit that it has been a long time since I had a lesson on military strategy when my career has taken a much more narrow focus,” he explained. “However, that being said, I would do anything and go anywhere you asked me to, Iliana. If I am your preferred choice for military advisor then I will accept it and spend my time doing everything possible to do it well.”

Iliana wanted to worry her lip, her tongue even darted to wet it for a moment. This was different than asking anyone else to take on a role. He was probably her best guard. No, he was her best guard. Her most trusted one. Which made this all the more difficult. “I need those I can trust around me.” She said her thoughts out loud. “I find those to be few now a days, and I know that as my guard, your duty is to be silent, to hide secrets, and ultimately…” she couldn’t say it aloud. But they both knew. At the end of it all, he was expected to die for her.

“I want you to think on it.” She tucked a few curls behind her ear. “And not just because I ask you. But truly, think on what this would mean,” her green eyes steady on him. “You’d have a voice in a whole new way, you would have a freedom that you don’t have now.” One he didn’t get at her side now. “I would gladly keep you at my side, if that is truly where you wish to be.” Iliana knew she shouldn’t have been offering options. But this was October.

“Whether you take it or not, Lord Mikaels will not return to my cabinet.” She wasn’t sure if she said it so he knew, or for her to voice it herself.

It was a challenging choice to make for so many reasons but one that October intended to take seriously. He nodded in understanding as she confirmed that regardless of his choice that Simon would not be in the position any longer. "I do not want to take this choice lightly, My Queen. Let me think on it tonight and I promise to have an answer for you in the morning." He did recognize that she was actually giving him a choice in the matter, which was significant to him as well. They parted ways, giving her time to rest, and October mulled over his choice without a break, only grabbing a few hours of sleep that night.

---

The next morning he was ready to give his answer as soon as she was ready to hear it. "I know this is a valuable role to fill with someone you know you can trust, especially in this particularly trying time. I still don't know if I'm ultimately the best person for the job but I do know I'll put everything I have into it. I can agree to take on the role for the time being, taking those responsibilities until a better person for the job can be found. Does that sound like a reasonable course of action?" he asked.