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Alister was so hopeful on the fact that things could change for the better and people would just change their minds over matters that they've stood by their whole life. It was why Asriel seemed to be so fond of him. Asriel knew simply that she could never be fit for the respect and love of her grandfather, much less her people. That man, well, he was far from forgiveness even if it meant dying without giving a penny to her. It wasn't that Asriel felt unmotivated to try, no, it was simply because a boulder only changes for two reasons: when the water hits the boulder continuously for centuries until it is that of a pebble or when an unstoppable object strikes the boulder. a boulder is immovable, set in its ways. Asriel had thought gradually the man could change but that'd take eternity for him to turn the leaf. Besides, Asriel had already tried several different methods to win her grandfather's approval, all of them failing. And the last time some powerful force struck her grandfather was the death of Asriel's mother and after that, her grandfather hardened and solidified. But with Alister's words, though unbelievable they may have seemed, made Asriel feel a little better in facing her grandfather. At least she didn't have to do it alone.

Cameron laughed again, yes, completely drunk already in a thirty minute timespan. "Pshaw. What kind of conversation involves the princess being that close to your face?~" He laughed again and fell over, making a fool out of himself. Asriel didn't look at him. What was she thinking trying to approach Alister in that sort of manner? She refused to believe it was out of love. Maybe it was out of gratitude? Timing? Lust? No! Asriel shook her head of such thoughts, knowing very well that what she was about to do meant nothing. She would forget she was even trying to do such a thing. Yes, that calmed Asriel down a bit. Finally, though, Cameron decided to pass out right then and there. Asriel sighed. "You're going to have to forgive him. Though he might appear like a dope, he is very kind." She lowered her eyes. Yes, though Cameron was so irritatingly present, he was the first person to show her such kindness, the man who gave her the pocket knife for protection. It was funny really. She didn't expect Cameron to be such a character. Her hand, mindlessly, wafted over her pocket, where the knife sat, as she thought.
However, Asriel knew it best to snap out of it and strided over to the couch where she felt Cameron's forehead before pulling him off the couch. She tried lifting him, pulling his arm over her shoulder. "You should rest. You're...still sick... I'm going to put Cameron in his room," she muttered, finally forcing the now half-conscious Cameron onto her, him leaning close to her body for support, as she, with some difficulty, managed to reach the double doors, open them, and slipped out.

Asriel turned with a frazzled look on her face. She combed a hand through her pinkish hair and sighed. The room was quiet, however, and she didn't find Alister resting on the bed like she had mentioned but instead at the window. She watched him quietly, his face not pained but content looking, happy in his thoughts. What might've he have been thinking? Asriel edged over to him before she silently stood by his side. "I've always seen the ocean from afar... I've never really been to the seaside," she said in a soft tone, closing her eyes when a slight breeze blew by. It smelled of salt and aromas from the city near. She stood quiet after awhile, looking out the window like Alister did before her smile widened and she glanced at Alister. "How about it?" She offered, a look of slyness in her blue eyes, as she turned on her heel and ran into the closet. Their luggage, though Asriel didn't have much, was already set up. She came back out, cloaks in hand. She gave a playful grin, holding the larger of the two up and waving it a bit before tossing it to him. "We'll go through the courtyard and then to the side gate, we won't be seen then."

Asriel had hung the long fabric around her shoulders, giving Alister a look of longing to be outside.

Textbooks, local novels, maps, and merely looking out the window for years have served well for her memory. Asriel, though she hadn't personally walked the streets of Eureka's capital, Bodhum, she had a general idea of the streets. She took quickly to hooding herself and walked forward, glancing at Alister who looked as enticed by the idea of an outing as she. The air was to be humid if it hadn't been for the slight sea breeze. However, most of the time, it was just very hot. Glad that the sun decided to go easy today, Asriel took a measured pace through a main street. Women flapped their fabrics outside their two story houses while their daughters swept and the children played. Fathers and sons worked hard, lifting jugs of milk from the fields and vendors with baskets of beets and other such varieties of fruits and vegetables that created an array of color. Canopies shaded stands selling shells or jewelry. Asriel was wary of her surroundings making sure not to get lost. Unlike the castle, she knew her way well to get to the coasts. She saw the path everyday for ten years of her life. She paused, looking around before making a left.
"Eureka is very different from Demetria. But the people, though the culture is different, are generally the same," she commented. She continued to walk until a vendor caught her eye. Mangos. The woman at the stand was selling them, just ripened, for a lovely price. The woman's daughter was behind her, sitting on a crate with shiny and sheen clothing revealing her mid section, small medallions clinging to the purple and green fabric. Her skin was tattooed in henna, intricately marking her body. Only when Asriel moved closer did she see the girl's round face and dark eyes, her hair pulled up in a pony tail. She was pretty. Asriel stopped a foot away from the stand, the mother giving a large smile. "Cheap mangos. Very sweet and look at the color." The woman held up a couple in which Asriel inspected.
The young girl hopped off the crate, her jewelry and the medallions on her clothing jingling, as she eyed the taller of the two, Alister, before flirtasiously giving him the eye before looking at her mother. "I have work," she murmured in a small voice and strutted off, her movements very fluid and dance-like. Asriel watched her a little before returning to the fruit, ending up taking only one. After leaving the stand, she looked to Alister. "You want some?" She asked softly.

Asriel cut the mango with her pocket knife , careful of her fingers and handed a slice to Alister. She licked her lips of the sticky sweetness of the fruit, letting the silence settle between the little space between them before trying to guess what Alister was thinking. At last, she looked straight ahead. "That girl that was looking at you...She was very pretty, wasn't she?" Her voice gradually lowered itself. She didn't look at Alister's reaction to her question. "She has to be...Her mother doesn't make a lot of money...They are a family of gypsies so they aren't popular with their neighbors. Her daughter is a belly dancer. It's a good time to take up the art...since all the soldiers have come home." Asriel licked her fingers, mango juice now making a mess on her hand.
"These parts were especially hit hard in the war, partly because they are the capital's people. My grandfather raised taxes on them for the war to make up for the lost ground since Eureka was losing the war. But, adding up the numbers now...I wonder where all the money went..." She let her mind ramble. Eventually, though, the buildings grew shorter and lesser apart, and the beach came into view. Asriel licked her lips again and glanced at Alister. "The beach. Wanna go to the water? I feel all icky having mango stuff on my fingers and face," she murmured.

[ Ha, I'm leaving hints here and there... ]

"Hey!" Asriel was pulled forward by the excited Alister who seemed to disregard her plee to let go. It was hard to run on the sand by with Alister sprinting like child to meet the water's edge, she could help but try. Her hood flew off her head, whipping her pink hair around and Alister's too. And for a moment, Asriel could enjoy herself a little. Alister seemed to forget who he was for a minute and exciting pull off his shoes and feel up the water. Asriel laughed, watching him before slipping off her own shoes and went to the water, her toes wiggling in the cool sand. The experience was pleasurable. Asriel bend the wash her hands in the water as it came nearer to her before standing. Alister couldn't go swimming, with what that healing gash at his side. She went a little deeper so that the water covered her ankles. It was refreshing and new, an experience she was glad to have with Alister who too felt the same.

"Alister!" She turned and looked at him, her face light, as she waded back to him. She showed him a sea shell, nothing special in particular, but found it pretty, having not found a sea shell out in the ocean before. "It was a good idea to come here. Before..." She stopped herself, glancing at him to see if he caught her hesitation. He most likely did so she tried to be natural about it. "Before we go back to Demetria. All there is are cliffs and rivers and forests there. But they don't have this!" Asriel turned around, waving her arms about as she looked about the frothing water and the tide forever cycling.
[ Thinking about Alister running around in the water like a 3 year old made me kind of laugh. ]

Asriel gave a content smile, happier in the fact that Alister was enjoying it than she was. It grew silent, as it naturally did, as Asriel stood there in contemplation. She looked up at Alister's face, seeing his refreshed expression before holding his hand. However, happy moments never do last long.

Ships crossed the horizon, black dots moving slowly to the east. Black smoke billowed out of their tops. Though Asriel couldn't really see much of them as she squinted, she could tell they were foreign. "Hey, Alister, what do you suppose they are?" She murmured questionably. She took a step forward, trying to get a better look and let go of Alister's hand momentarily. "I think...They look a lot like--"

And then the ringing came. It was an annoying sound, something at first low until it came to high pitched sound, reverbrating and resonating into Asriel's head. She covered her ears, despite it all being in her head, and crouched, trying the make the ringing stop. It was loud in her ears, her head pounding as she stood there. She gave a wail, the sound reaching a newer peak. Eventually, Alister too would hear this high-pitched sound in his head, threatening to never stop. It was painful, making Asriel gag as the sound continued until it stopped suddenly. By that time, Asriel was on her knees, trying to catch her breath. The sound was sickening, hardly anything Asriel wanted to experience again. She would look behind her to see Alister's noise wear off as well, growing ever so softly quiet. Asriel gasped and wiped her mouth, standing. "W..w...what..." She couldn't speak and took a couple more breaths before returning to Alister's side, confusion on her face. "What was that?!"