Very loosely based on Palm and Smolder? Like, I re-read the DoD prologue and started writing this?

I SWEAR THERE WILL NOT BE ANY SECRET CHILD. Like I said, loosely based. Also this will be spilt into multiple parts because this is longgg.

—

"When you're king, you need to know all your subjects. Even the ones here in the castle." King Abdel told his eldest son, "Today, instead of working, you are going to observe and ask people in the palace what their life is like."

Crown Prince Amir Fadlan nodded, feeling a little confused. He'd talked to some of the maids and guards, but they're were so many jobs in the castle, how was he supposed to get through all of them?

Thankfully, he was given an alphabetical list. At the top of the lists we're cooks. He navigated his way to the kitchens.

When he opened the door, he was shocked to see a huge room with hundreds for cooks, bustling around. Some were carrying food to other cooks, some were stirring stuff, and others were ordering people around.

People really spent this much time cooking for his family? There were only five of them. He thought they would be around 10 people who worked in the kitchens. Not this many.

The cooks who noticed him bowed or curtsied. Amie smiled and waved back. He asked them about their jobs, and what work was like. He questioned them on whether anything could be improved, and things they liked. After he did that, he walked around surveying more people.

As he neared the back of the room, someone caught his eye. It was a girl, couldn't have been more than 18 years old with a green hijab and brown skin and eyes.

Something caused Amir's feet to walk in her direction. She was making some sort of soup.

When she noticed him, she dipped into a curtsy. "What brings you here, Your Highness?"

"I'm surveying the jobs in the palace," Amir replied, "The kitchens are my first stop."

"And you didn't realize how many people would be here?" she asked. Was that a note of resentment in her voice?

"Yeah," Amir said, ignoring it. He looked down at her soup. "That looks good. What are you making?"

"Lentil soup. It's for your dinner."

"Dinner? You're already making dinner?" He had just finished breakfast!

The girl looked up at him. "Yes, dinner," she replied, "It's the third meal of the day. Typically eaten at night."

Amir raised and eyebrow. "You know I can have you put in the dungeon for sarcasm, right?" He asked, "What's your name?"

"Samirah. And you won't throw me in the dungeon. Then there won't be anyone to make your lentil soup, Your Highness."

It wasn't even that funny, and yet Amir burst out laughing. "You don't have to call me Your Highness. I'm Amir Fadlan."

"Trust me, I know," Samirah said.

"Now, is they're anything you dislike about this job, maybe want to change about it?"

Samirah paused, her lips pressed together. Then she said, "The Head Cook kinda sucks. Her name is Gunilla and she hates me."

"Why?"

She asked, "Why is the Crown Prince interested in knowing everything about my life?"

Amir puffed his cheeks. "I'm just asking. I should know who has good character. You seem like someone who does."

"Please stop flirting with me."

"I'm not flirting with you! You know what? Fine, I'm going to ask someone else about the kitchens. Someone with less sarcasm. But I will be eating the lentil soup tonight." He winked at her and walked over to another cook.

Samirah watched him walk away. "Definitely flirting." she said to herself.

Later that day, after Amir talked to the guards, maids, seamstresses, servants and so many other jobs, he entered the hall for dinner. Already sitting at the table was his sister, Princess Giaa, his mom, Queen Larisaa, and of course his father, King Abdel. Where was his brother?

"I'm here, I'm here!" a voice of an exhausted teenage boy said as he ran into the hall and took the spot Amir was about to take with a smirk back at him. "I got busy racing in the courtyard with Hassan. Sorry!"

Amir glanced at Rayan and took a seat next to him. Rayan and Giaa were talking, just as they always were when they were together. Sometimes Amir wished he didn't have such an age gap with his them, so he could have the kind of sibling relationship his brother and sister had.

"I took notes on everyone in the palace," Amir said, handing the clipboard to his mother, "The guards need more people to join them."

The appetizers started, and Amir looked around the table until he found the lentil soup and started serving himself. Samirah was going to be so pissed when he told her tomorrow.

Wait, why did he think he was going back there tomorrow?

The king started talking about the kingdom. "Amir, tomorrow you will tell me what the palace staff said,"

"Ok,"

For some reason, the first problem he felt like they needed to fix was survey the Head Cook.

—

Alex and Samirah were arguing.

"He kept flirting with you!" Alex said

"He wasn't flirting, he was here to talk." Samirah replied, ignoring how she literally pointed out Amir was flirting with her.

"He talked to you like, 3 times longer than any other cook there." she pointed to the door, where the kitchens were.

"You're stupid." Samirah told her sister.

"I'm just saying, it's not a good idea for a cook to be talking to the prince." Alex warned, "You never know how it'll end."

—

Part 2 to this will be out in 2 weeks because next week will be my first request,  suggested by brilliant_light

If you guys figured out which character represents which character, put it here

See you guys next week!