Kaylum exchanged glances with Xiomara. “No,” he replied, turning to Nik. “Did I look like I was busy?”
He stood up, ruffling his wings before addressing his bodyguard. “Just keep watch from above,” he said, and she obliged with a nod of her head and twitch of her ears. She launched into air, and Kay shifted to human form, brushing off any grass sticking to his clothes.
“So, what would you like to speak with me about, prince? Is it what I think it is?”
"I suppose not, but I never know for sure." he said in response to the first question, looking over at Kaylum as the other shifted into human form. "It is not a request for marriage, if you are worried about that." he shifted his cane slightly, considering his next words. "It is only a request to speak with you for a bit and get to know each other better. The negotiations are…well, you know what they're doing, and it might help if we were able to speak to each other." sure, the monarchs did most of the negotiating, but if the princes were on friendly terms it might help.
Kay smirked, rather intrigued by the fact he mystified Nikolas on some level. Running his fingers through his dreadlocks, he flicked away more grass, making a hmph of satisfaction when the other man dissuaded his hunches.
“I agree.” He brought all of his dreadlocks over his shoulder, then relaxed. “Anything to prevent a marriage, eh?” He smirked again, shaking his head.
Nik let out a quiet laugh. "I would prefer not to marry someone I hardly know, no." he replied, running a hand through his hair and studying Kaylum for a moment. "Shall we sit down, or would you prefer to stand the entire time?" he did not care which they did, though he rather preferred to sit because of his leg.
Kaylum shrugged, then dropped down to the ground again in reply. He crossed his legs, and for a moment just wanted to wait for Nik to start speaking, but eventually he decided to start this conversation like the last. “So… how are you?” He asked.
Nik sat down as well, taking just a moment longer than Kaylum to do so. "I am well, and you?" he replied, giving Kaylum a quick smile. This was awkward territory for both of them, he knew, and the best way to handle it was to approach things carefully. At least they both wanted to be cordial about things.
“I am well,” Kay replied evenly. He would think that he would be more anxious, though. His parents definitely suspect something going on between them, but perhaps Kay being more relaxed about it put off any suspicions for now. Xiomara was right (again), perhaps having a one-on-one conversation with Nikolas was what he needed.
"Good." Nik said, thinking for a moment to try and figure out what to say. "So…what do you do? Outside of…whatevre you were doing when I got here?" hobbies. Hobbies were probably a good place to start, right? He hoped so, anyways. Otherwise, he did not know what to talk about, where to steer the conversation.
Easy enough question. Kaylum shifted his legs around as he said, “I must admit that the activities I often engage in aren’t very social ones. Usually I just read or take flights. Other times I spend time with Xiomara, and we do things with each other. How about you? I only ever see you in the training ring.” Among other places, but those were times outside of my body.
"I read, or play cards with my guards." he replied with a shrug. "I…training and fighting are part of who I am." he did not mention against whom that fighting had been done, but knew Kaylum would know anyway. "For a while, all I was able to do was sit in my bed and read while I recovered."
Kaylum nodded knowingly, the corners of his lips curling upwards. “My mother and father would never want me to train or fight in combat. They insisted that I be a peaceful prince, but I know they just don’t want their only heir to die.” He pursed lips, curious about something. “What kind of books do you read? Are they any different than the ones we have in Tesh?”
He laughed faintly. "Yes, well, hopefully you at least know how to defend yourself." he replied, blinking at Kaylum. At the question about books, he shrugged. "I would not know, I have not read any books from Tesh to compare to." he ran a hand through his hair.
“Oh, it’s the old ‘levitate you into the air’ thing except I actually break your bones,” he replied, waving his hand, still smiling. Even if his parents forced him to stick with his wits, instinct, and powers, it wasn’t a bad arsenal.
Kay shrugged back. “Well, just tell me what you do read, then I’ll tell you what I read, and we’ll see if it’s any different.”
"I see." he replied, and then considered the book question for a moment. "Mm. I read a lot of different things. Military history and tactics, fiction, history, things like that. What about you?" he studied the other prince calmly.
“Ahh,” Kay nodded. “We have books like those. But I like to read fiction mostly, sometimes fairy tales, myths, and legends. I have books from many other dragon shifter nations, but I find that ones from Xihar interest me the most.”
For a moment he got lost in his own words, thinking of the places where he liked their books and literature. Xihar was home to the ice and snow dragons, residing in some of the tallest and coldest mountains ranges in the world. It’s often said that they are the best storytellers, so Kaylum’s opinion wasn’t exactly unique.
He nodded slightly. "I…cannot think if I have ever read anything from Xihar." he said, shaking his head just a little bit. "My apologies." he studied Kaylum again. He had heard of Xihar before, but as far as he could remember, mhad never read anything from that country.
…. Unique among dragon shifters, anyway. He waved the other prince off. “Oh, no need. I didn’t expect you to. They are quite good though, I think…” he stopped himself from saying you would enjoy them. Would a human even enjoy shifter literature? “Well, I think so,” he amended awkwardly.
Nik nodded faintly. "When I get home again, I shall look in our library and see if we have any from Xihar." he said, wanting to understand Kaylum better, but knowing they had none of those books with them, as he had not brought many books and neither had his father."
Kay raised an eyebrow. “Oh, alright.” He didn’t think Nik would say that. “And… do you know if you have any books from other human kingdoms?”
"With me right now? Or in the library back home?" he replied, cocking his head faintly at Kaylum, not quite sure whst the other prince meant by that, but quite willing to answer it once the other man clarified what he meant. "Because the answer is yes to both."
“Oh, I just meant in general,” Kaylum shrugged. “Just wondering if maybe there was a particular kingdom who’s literature you’re partial to.”
"Oh, no, not really. I mean, obviously I am partial to my own country's literature, but outside of my country, I do not really have a preferred place of origin for my books, no." he replied, shaking his head a little.
“I see.” He pursed his lips, then sighed, searching for a change of topic. He remembered Nik’s strange soul, but also remembered that now wouldn’t be a good time to talk about that. It would lead to many more questions that Kay didn’t think he was ready for. Maybe the Kevran prince would have heard of psychic dragons who could astral project, but even among the common Tesh people it was more myth than fact. He fell silent.
Nik stretched faintly, looking at Kay quietly. He didn't quite know what to say now; perhaps that was his fault, for beginning the conversation without a clear picture of where it would go.
Kay met his gaze for a moment, then looked away. He decided to circle back to something they previously talked about.
“Since I couldn’t fight in battle or do anything of the sort, I would often read instead.” He wetted his lips. “Educate myself on diplomacy, strategy, and politics. I didn’t really enjoy it, but I was… frustrated, I think. That I couldn’t really play my part in the war the way I thought I would. So I… found an alternative.”