Dearg-Due. Advisor. Assassin.
Tae and Ale are a packaged deal. No one can remember a time when the two of them weren't joined at the hip, weren't madly in love. It would be nauseating if it weren't so weirdly sincere. Before Neva took over the court, the pair served as spies for her husband. The two are loyal to the court, first and foremost, and not to the ruler, so when Neva killed her way to the top, they had no problem supporting her, unlike much of her husband's former regime. She saw their potential and moved them from spies into their current roles, and she's been happy with their performance ever since.
Half water fae/half jinni. Whatever Neva needs him to be. Primarily an advisor.
Rafi and Ryu are also in love. And they hate each other. They would die for each other, kill to protect each other, and sometimes? They want to kill each other. It's complicated and messy and there's a lot of respect, but also a lot of frustration. No one really knows why they keep getting back together, at least not since their daughter has grown up.
Neva doesn't care about whatever nonsense is happening between the two of them and doesn't bother to keep track of whether they're on or off at the moment. (In fact, she didn't bother asking before giving them their daughter.) What she does know is that Rafi is the person most loyal to her out of the entire court. Because despite being only half jinni, he was still bound to a lamp, and he'd found himself trapped with a particularly nasty master. And she tricked the man into wishing him free, freeing him from the situation and the lamp in one go. She asked for nothing. He owes her everything. Ryu's loyalty, despite their weird dynamic, comes with Rafi's. She doesn't think the kitsune trusts her, but he's loyal and insightful and she's glad to have both of them on her side.
