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Asriel's brow twitched. Though she did not care much for this insolent fool, why did she care so much on what he might've thought of her? She couldn't tell what he was thinking, probably insulting her perhaps, and it bothered her to the point where she dared to give him a small glance. She caught his eye and negated eye contact, staring at the surface of the small table before them. For the split second she had given him a look, she had looked at his fair face. It did not hold any creases of hardship, nothing flawing his porcelain face. He was beautiful. Asriel blushed but shook her head gently, not liking to think such thoughts. Besides, he called her mute. How rude.

The double doors opened slowly and in entered a short, old man followed by a tall, gawkier one. The shorter man bowed before the two and introduced himself as a scribe and his royal document writer. With them came several pieces of paper, one of which was a long draft in delicate letters. The treaty. It was on adorned paper and held the seal of both kingdoms. Her grandfather had already signed it and the other signature on the other side was probably that man's father, the current Demetrian king. After reading the treaty in full, Asriel didn't make much sense of it. It was filled with complicated rules and details, all of which Asriel didn't understand. The only thing she did understand was that the thin line that crossed the bottom of the page was where she was supposed to sign. The blank stared at her, as if insulting her. Asriel hesitated, unsure of signing it and looked to the man besides her to sign first.

Asriel remained silent for awhile until she stood. Although her voice was a timid one at the moment, her stature held one of a strong will. She opened her mouth again, much more confidently than that of moments before. "Are you to leave your wife the first day she arrives to this poorly constructed castle? How disasteful. However, I didn't expect much from you anyways, much less manners, so I guessed that I'd be only married to you in name only," she paused, pacing past him. She turned then, looking behind her shoulder. Her timidness that she gained formerly had now dissapeared and the true Asriel began to shine. "I think I'll excuse myself first so you can go enjoy your hunt. I'll find the room myself," she remarked and left the parlor, stepping out into the hall.
After a moment, she walked down a hall. She had never walked in a castle freely before. The few times she was walking in the castle were but a few short minutes. But now, as long as she stayed here, she could wander the halls for hours. However, it also meant she had no real sense of direction on quickly got lost.

Asriel stared at him for a moment, eying the scars on his broad back. He must've went through a lot. She stared at the ceiling and sighed before she too rolled over. She was unused to this, sleeping in a fancy bed, sleeping with another person much less a man. She found herself blushing again and covered her face with the blanket. She fell into a troubled sleep, finding that she was dreaming again.

Where was she? She didn't know. She looked at her hands; they weren't small anymore. She looked down at her legs; they were long. She was back to regular it seemed, no longer the child she was in her day dream. Yet, she was shrouded in darkness, underwater. For a moment, she hadn't thought about breathing as the water chilled her to the bone. Then she lost it and began choking, drowning in the dark, black water. She was frightened, faces beckoning her to die, surrounding her with whispers of death. They mentioned how hated she was, how she was living a meaningless life. And in the end, Asriel truly wanted to give up struggling and die in this seemingly bottomless pool of water. That was, until a hand brought her up. She thought it was her mother who saved her, who'd be adorned in white and gold and an angelic face smiling upon her with bliss. She was pulled up into the surface, coughing up water and trying to intake air before she noticed the figure above her.
"Mother," her voice reverbrated, rippling through her dream. And yet, the figure stood. She couldn't get a good look at her face since the sun shone brightly behind them, blinding Asriel and bringing her to tears. Who was this again? Soaking, Asriel shivered, trying to get up yet her body could only move in slow motion as the figure began to back up and run away from her. Asriel reached forward, wanting desperately not to be left alone. It was her mother, she knew it, taunting her by leaving her alone in this cruel world. "Wait!" The figure dissapeared and Asriel was left under the persimmon tree on the hill alone. Asriel began to sob.
"Asriel," a voice called to her in an enchanting tone. Asriel turned her head, tears still brimming in her eyes. "Alister?" It awfully looked like the man who was currently sleeping next to her. Yet his face was blurred and the dream grew fuzzy. The last she could make out was the hand outstretched before her, beckoning her to take it.

"Disgusting," Asriel woke with the word still stuck in her tongue. The sun shone brightly through the window. She wiped her face with her hand, now remembering where she was. She was in Demetria, in bed with that imbecile. Asriel yawned, her eyes adjusting as she looked about the room. She slid out of the bed, stretching and went to the window. Her dream...She gave a sigh; her mind was playing tricks with her. And at the end of it, the memory of it plagued her, wanting her to throw up. She turned then and looked towards the bed where her husband was supposed to be sleeping.

Finding the bed empty, she felt a tad of dissapointment. Why? She didn't know. Slowly, her eyes went back to the window until movement below her caught her attention. She leaned forward, her head tapping the glass as she watched Alister with a hawk. Caressing its breast, Alister actually looked peaceful and serene with the bird, a new light of him. She watched him for a second, admiring the scene before shaking her head.
Asriel straightened herself, turning to the dresser and quickly dressed herself out of her night gown. She released her hair from its binds that were her braid and let it cascade down her back in a wavy pattern. Asriel then decided she wanted to explore the castle today, to have the freedom of walking the halls on her own accord. Yet, breakfast was first and Asriel felt herself getting slightly hungry. She left the room, closing the door with a soft click and sped down the hall. She had asked a maid yesterday to tell her how to get to the dining hall from the bedroom, Asriel faintly remembering all the turns and doors to go through.
Maids had given her odd looks and she attracted many stares as she headed towards the dining hall. Asriel felt a tad self conscious, curious as to why she had received many looks yet proceeded with a profound confidence, entering a large room with a dining room table. Asriel felt out of place here, unsure of how to proceed until a maid, nervous as ever, addressed Asriel. "Umm...M..Milady..If you...w..would..t.take a seat...Y.your meal would be served...shortly," she murmured, bowing and ran off. Asriel frowned yet seated herself. Many people here seemed to be unused to foreigners, she assumed. She was the first real southerner to step foot in the royal castle, the first Eurekan in a couple hundred years to be able to stand in Demetrian lands without getting stabbed. Asriel sighed and scratched her arm. These clothes, which were given to her by the seamstresses and tailors here at the castle, were uncomforable, itchy and heavy for her liking, She was unused to such clothes; Eurekan clothes were much lighter and airy, much brighter and detailed than the dark clothes of Demetria. She cupped her face in her hand as she waited at the end of the table. She gave a long sigh. It wasn't like she missed her country; a country in which her grandfather who hated her ruled. No, not quite homesick for the room she was locked up in for all her life. She shook her head. No, it was different here. She had free will. The prospect of touring the castle seemed to lift her bad mood from earlier in the morning.