The King fought every day. Rafaela didn't fight any physical battles, Leif and the King's other Security Team members would have died before they let that happen, whether she wanted them to or not. But she fought. She struggled to move against millions.
Brendan Aldrich supported her without even a trace of disagreement, unless she asked him directly. Even better, in her mind, when she took the time to ask he never evaded her questions. Somehow they had built up enough trust in each other, that even when they argued fiercely over exactly what 'the King's' goals and tactics should be on a given problem, Rafaela felt supported.