PeaceMaker

"Didn't sound that excited earlier…" Adia teased, her hand raising to Boris' head. Almost like she was going to strangle him. About a few inches before reaching his neck, her eyes looked to the person beside her, finally acknowledging his presence. She turned back to Boris, "and who is this, your highness?"

Falls flinched, immediately nodding his head in Adia's direction. "I am Marquess Falls Hane, the war advisor in the council."

Adis cocked her head to the side before nodding and bowing before him. "So sorry for my rude behavior, your grace. I apologize for not recognizing you sooner." She stood back up and locked eyes with him. 

Falls flinched. Her eyes were intense, piercing into his like lasers but they had this tone of… innocence that he couldn't understand. Right when he was just about getting slightly used to the intensity in her eyes, her gaze intensified sending shivers down his spine. 

Animosity. That was the look in her eyes. 

Her stance shifted, stepping a little bit in front of Boris, her eyes glared down at him. "Hane?" she asked, "the Hane I'm thinking of Boris?"

Boris looked down at Adia for a moment, a smile growing on his face "You cut your hair," he muttered, his hand raising to pat Adia on the head, "quite short this time, weren't you around the length of my hair the last time we saw? Now you look like you should be in the military."

"Just say that I look powerful, it isn't that hard," Adia rolled her eyes, her stance easing up, she still stood in front of Boris, "you look like you're in much need of a hair-tie, your highness."

"Powerful… is that the word?" Boris muttered teasingly, "a once time in a lifetime thing isn't it? When was the last time I saw you dressed so luxuriously?"

Adia touched her nose lightly with the wrist of her hand like she was hiding a blush. It was a habit she had grown despite knowing that even if she were to blush, it wouldn't show. "A compliment isn't that hard to say your highness," she retorted. 

Boris chuckled, his head nodding as if he were to agree with her comment. "You're right," his hand began to rise to her head again before Falls blinked and her hand was stopping Boris'. 

"Don't. You still need to maintain your… fake-princely figure in front of the council members," Adia interrupted, turning to Falls, "isn't that right, Marquess… Hanes."

Falls flinched at the way she pronounced the name. It sounded like she was forcing it out of her mouth, like it would have never left her tongue if it wasn't prompted like this. He thought about it for a moment before his eyes lit up, turning to lock with Adia's. 

"So sorry for the misunderstanding! I'm not like my name sugg-"

"I know," Adia replied, giving him a bright smile. 

"Huh?" Falls replied. 

"Boris' reply to my question proved that you weren't," she nodded her head. 

Falls stayed quiet for a moment, looking down at the ground before looking back up at Adia. "But he didn't say anything?"

"Exactly. If you were a threat, he would have given me some type of body motion or certain wordings to alert me. But he didn't," Adia shrugged, her eyes darting to glare at Boris, "instead he made fun of my hair."

Falls continued his walk quietly beside Adia and Boris, not sure how to reply to it. 

"I apologize if it's an unsightly sight, your grace. I know this hair isn't one that is seen on any girl in the palace," Adia bowed her head in Falls direction.

He immediately shook his head, replying with a gentle nod. "No, of course not. Anyone that his highness finds to be someone of trust will always be accepted by me," Falls replied, "and besides, you look beautiful in that style. You pull it off very nicely…"

"Adia,"

"...Lady Adia," Falls smiled. 

"No, just Adia. You don't have to use those terms with my name," Adia chuckled, "Afterall, I'm not of the… nobility range."

"It feels awkward if someone calls her Lady Adia," Boris interrupted, "it's like they're prompting her to behave in a way that is more graceful, elegant, young, and damsel-like. As you can see, that's not like her at all."

"Hey!" Adia yelled lightly, her eyebrows furrowing as she locked eyes with Boris, "you know very well that those princess dresses will never come within a foot of my body. They scare me with their big puffs and bounties of bows."

"You blame the dressmakers for that, not those who wear it, Adia," Boris rolled his eyes. 

"No, you blame the people who thought that would be an acceptable thing to wear on their body. How do they even move in that?" Adia muttered with a mocking tone 

"Obviously they wobble," Falls remarked, the words leaving his mouth before he could stop them.

Boris and Adia both turned to him with taken aback faces and he flinched. "I mean, not to disrespect of course b-"

"Like penguins," Adia mumbled, a grin forming on her face, "they wobble like penguins," she giggled, her pearly white sparkling as she laughed. She looked at Falls through squinted eyes, the smile on her face bright like a bulb in a  dark room. "You have a pretty good humor."

"As much as an old 26-year-old man like me can," Falls shrugged. 

Adia's eyebrows raised, "since when was 26 considered old?" she turned to Boris and smirked, "then in that case, wouldn't you be a middle-aged man your highness? And I would be just entering my middle ages?"

"Marquess Falls, you still have a lot more in your life. 26 is the prime age," Boris rolled his eyes at Adia, but grinned at Falls. "You still have a lot more in store."

"Right, so don't spend it all cooped up in one room like high highness does," Adia grinned. "You still have 4 years still 30 and I bet that young lady of yours is waiting for you at home every night."

"Oh… uh…" Falls muttered with a little chuckle, "in an alternate universe maybe."

"Ah.. rough subject," Adia smiled guiltily. 

"No not really," Falls shook his head. 

"The "prince" can always work on it for you of course if it is that much of a burden for you," Adia shrugged. She continued forward for a moment before realizing that Falls had paused along with Boris behind her. 

She exchanged glances with Boris and then Falls. A flash of recognition flashes her eyes and she immediately bowed her head. "I am so sorry your grace, I have overstepped," she apologized, "I must have gotten too comfortable in the conversation."

Falls stared at her for a moment before bursting into laughter. "I suppose he can help me with that if I asked, right your highness?" Falls chortled, turning to Boris, "I'll make sure to bring the question up to him the next time I feel lonely."

Adia peeked at Falls, taking in his smile before laughing nervously along. 

"You're very free-spirited," Falls chuckled. 

"Ah… sorry. I guess all those etiquette classes really can't cover my personality," Adia sighed, her wrist touching her nose lightly for a moment. 

"No, it did work. I wouldn't take them as a way to mask personalities but rather to just incorporate being more refined into your behaviors," Falls smiled, "I think you have that down pretty well."

Adia froze, looking at Boris' smile and Falls' grin, a bright smile growing on her face when she locked eyes with Falls. "Really?!" she exclaimed, her tone brightening as a dimple appeared on her cheeks. 

Falls flinched, being caused in her smile for a moment before nodding. 'That's pretty,' he thought to himself, 'she looked so lively there for a moment… It's like she has two personalities both of them being so captivating.'

He tilted his head to the side as he watched her giggle happily. But he knew which one he liked better. He glanced at her beautiful dark chocolate skin, his eyes drawn to her dimples. He looked up at Boris and spotted them on his own cheeks.

"Are you siblings?" he asked curiously, questions spilling out of him before he could verify them.

Boris shook his head. "No. But I definitely see her as my younger sister."

"She looks almost like a splitting image of you," Falls commented. 

"Do we?" Adia asked, her steps stopping as she walked to Boris' side and stood next to him, her eyes meeting Falls. 

He watched them for a moment. "Yes, you do. It's eerie really," he teased. He watched her chuckle and he smiled. There was a clear difference for him.