Weird! Well, she's working really hard. (And when she's done enough conversing and scarfed down enough of her food, she'll want to excuse herself and get back to it.)

Yes, yes, definitely. 

Well. That leaves the two of them.

"The servants wanted to know if they should be updating you on her studies and activities beforehand. I said I'd ask. Didn't know whether you'd prefer the extra information, or whether you'd rather just ask her."

"I think I'd rather hear it from her? I guess they should tell me if she's actually doing terribly or something, since she wouldn't be volunteering it."

Nod. "I'll tell them. - I'm not worried about her studies, but - there could be other things to be concerned about, I guess."

"Yeah." Sigh. 

"I thought about some stuff today."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. About some of the things you said."

She should have planned this beforehand, but she didn't. She'll have to be careful, now, to do what he would like her to. Have to make sure not to include any warnings, or any hesitation, or anything that looks like an attempt to prevent him from hurting her. She has to be very earnest about this, very undivided.

"I understand that I have a responsibility to offer you whatever you need from me. I want to fulfill that responsibility. I want to make things easier for you. I may need - direction, at times, about how best to do that. But I'm going to do my best, from now on, to do whatever you ask of me."

He looks - confused, mostly, at first. 

"Thank you?" he says after a second, mostly because it'd be awful to not acknowledge what seems to be something important to her. "I - know you're trying. I think you're wonderful. And I'm - trying too."

Nod. "Okay. I just - wanted to have that said."

"I do think it'll get easier, for what it's worth. Right now - we're miserable, I keep thinking about - dead people - instead of doing my job - we need the heir - it won't always be this hard."

It's probably going to get harder, actually, but she isn't going to make any attempt to defend herself and therefore isn't going to have a hard time not contradicting him.

"Yeah. That makes sense."

"Ready to go to bed?"

"Yeah. - uh, also I wrote another letter for Fazil, if you could deliver that. That's the only other thing."

"Sure." He takes it. Flags someone down to get them to take it to Fazil. "So I don't forget."

"Yeah. Thank you. M'ready now."

He snuggles her. "I think Verita's going to be okay."

No thanks to her.

"Yeah.

"I was thinking maybe I could cast my spell before you cast euphoric tranquility, this time. The duration's longer, so it should make it easier not to panic when euphoric tranquility wears off, right?"

"Oh, huh. That's a good idea." Squeeze.

Snuggle. She doesn't really like the snuggles, but he's going to want her to be as affectionate as she can be, so.

"Do you want anything?"

"I'd try if you were up for it but I wasn't expecting you to be."

"I could do it tonight."

"Okay." He kisses her.

She can kiss him back. She can be open and affectionate and go along with whatever he wants to happen, and not worry about how anything makes her feel. She doesn't have anyone to protect anymore.