"Just have to put my boots on." She assured, smothering another yawn with her hand. "I've been up for an hour and I'm still yawning. It's an epidemic." She muttered, mostly to herself, as she stepped back into the room, leaving the door open.
He leaned on the doorframe, watching her after quickly scanning the room. Cin has certainly gone out of her way to set the two of us up… he mentally grumbled. When he caught her words, he chuckled. "You look tired," he commented. "Not get much sleep?"
"I never really do. I just need some fresh air to wake up." She said, shaking her head as she sat on the edge of the bed to pull on her boots. Despite having just been braided, her hair was already once again falling in her face.
"Then it's a good thing I came along," Rhydar joked with a half smile. He folded his arms over his chest, patiently waiting. He couldn't help but noticed how easily they talked compared to when they first had met. He also noticed just how…at ease…she seemed to be around him, at least as of late. He had noticed that she was usually shying away from people and closing herself off.
"Definitely." She agreed, lacing up her boot before slipping on the next one. She finished up quickly before standing, brushing her hair back out of her face as she crossed the room, slipping out into the hall. "I'll admit, I was considering going and visiting Danzing today."
"I'm sure he'd appreciate your company," he said as he trailed after her, once again giving her some space. "Who knows? Maybe he'll even let you ride him today. Or maybe not, and we'll have to find you a temporary horse until that magical day arrives," he mused with a half smile.
"I can definitely try." She nodded, slowing her pace to match his. "Did I miss anything too exciting last night?" She asked, looking over at him with an eyebrow raised. It was half a joke, but if he had an answer, she wouldn't mind it.
"Besides my mother pulling a Cinthia and ripping me to shreds with her words?" he asked jokingly, then shrugged. "Nah, at least none that I know of. I didn't go back to the ball after I left you. I actually went to this pond outside of the palace to have some time to myself."
"A wise decision." She shook her head, huffing a laugh. "The one highlight of that night, before the lightning bugs, was the strawberries. I can't imagine it got any better." Instead of fiddling with her sleeves, she seemed to have turned to fiddling with the ring.
He snorted. "So you're a strawberry gal? There's an orchard around here where we get those strawberries. I can take you there sometime to pick your own, if you want," he offered, looking down at the ring that she was playing with. She's still wearing it…
She blinked a few times, her face lighting up. "A fruit gal in general, but yes. You'd really be willing to take me?" It was the same smile she'd had when she first saw the strawberries at the ball, the bright one that almost seemed to make her glow.
He stared at her smile for perhaps a little too long. He cleared his throat and nodded. "Of course I am," he said, "Anything to get out of here," he then added with a playful wink. Gods, that smile.
She huffed a laugh, shaking her head. "Well, when you get some free time, we'll have to go. Gods, I haven't been berry picking in forever." She tilted her head as she thought, trying to remember when the last time actually had been, her nose scrunching up.
"You haven't done much in forever," he commented curiously with a tilted head, then caught himself. "Ah, at least from what little I've gathered. I'm not really the best at…" He trailed off, not really knowing where he was going with that. "Actually, just forget I opened my mouth," he grumbled.
She blinked, a bit surprised he'd even payed enough attention to note that. "You…aren't wrong. Things happened, and I haven't exactly had a lot of time to do things I used to." She said, shrugging a shoulder. It was as close to the truth as she could offer.
"Fair enough," he said, accepting that snippet of truth from her with a nod. He wasn't hurt that she was being vague. Everyone had their secrets, and obviously something had happened that she didn't want to talk about, if her reaction to touch was any indication.
"When was the last time you went berry picking?" She asked, playfully raising an eyebrow as she looked up at him. Her hands returned to her pockets, fingers brushing the photo. It never brought the comfort she was hoping for, had stopped doing that a while ago, but it was the main way she remembered the faces of her family.
He smirked down at her, his eyes sparkling with amusement. "Never." He never really had a reason to, but he at least paid attention enough to know where it was. Now, he guessed, he actually had a reason to go berry picking.
((Sksksksk aaaawwww
"Never?" She made a face, looking slightly surprised. "Well, now we definitely have to go." She decided with a nod, before shaking her head. "I can't believe you've never been berry picking."
"Hey, I'm a prince, remember? Supposed to be all tough and manly—a knight in shining armor, there to protect his precious princess." He scrunched his nose at the very thought of being like the typical prince, sparring with the guards and going on hunting parties.
"I don't think metal armor would suit you very well, to start." She pointed out, raising an eyebrow in amusement as she looked up at him. "Though I have to say, I like this Prince better than the one you're describing right now."
He opened his mouth to say something sarcastic, but nothing came out. He closed his mouth and rubbed the back of his neck, eyes darting to the side. "Doubtful," he finally manages to mutter. "I'm more of a bandit than anything."
"Whatever you are, it's better than the alternative you offered." She said simply, giving him a small smile. "The other option tends to be all around unpleasant." She added, wrinkling her nose with a small laugh.
He chuckled. "Isn't that the truth. Well, at least someone thinks a troublesome thief is better than a noble prince." He cocked his head to the side with an amused smile. "Though, I'm not sure that says anything good about that someone," he joked.
She pretended to consider that, a small smile affixed to her face. "Hmm…you might be right about that. But I can't quite bring myself to care." She shook her head, shoulders shaking with her usual silent laughter.