Levi hadn't thought anything of Adi letting go of his hand, and agreed with her that the Eastern kingdom was very different. Each of the kingdoms though differed from the other and each seemed to have happy subjects living about in it. Though suppose to someone who had never stepped outside of their house without a watchful eye; everything could seem very different. She hoped though that she liked the North and South kingdom just as much as she liked the Eastern kingdom.
Then she mentioned meat, and he felt his stomach give a small growl noise and he gave a sheepish look when she asked what he ate, "Well if I am some where they doesn't have its own meat supply, or anything close to it, I tend to eat the wild life. Like squirrels, rabbits, birds and so on," he replied with a small shrug. That sounded just as bad as he thought it was and he gave a small cringe, "Its not terrible; I can get by. What about you? Do you want a pastry at all or any of their baked goods?" Trying to get the spotlight off of him and his very strange eating habits.
At least it wasn't as weird now to be open with her about being a carnivore. Before it was kinda strange because normal humans don't live off of only meat and could ingest other means of food like plants or fruits. Also, he was kinda excited to hunt again now that he could be a dragon again. It was so much easier to hunt when one wasn't a two-legged ape and could actually be quiet and stirke.
The thought of Levi eating squirrels or rabbits or other creatures like that did surprise her for a moment, but then she remembered he was a dragon- he had to eat somehow. She just hadn't ever thought about his diet much before, but it definitely made sense. Adi actually felt a little guilty that there weren't as plentiful options for his eating style. Most of the meat in the kingdoms were not as common as the plants, veggies and fruits that occupied the streets.
Thinking for a moment, she bit her lip and looked back towards the pastries. They did look awfully delicious and she hadn't eaten since noon the day before, so her stomach was growling. "Yeah, actually, I think I will get one," she said after a moment. It didn't take the man behind the stand to greet her and she smiled back graciously. He was very kind- talking and telling her a little about the pastries him and his family make themselves. The eastern kingdom truly was one of the most welcoming areas she had been to.
Giving a small wave and a goodbye smile, Adi moved back towards Levi so they could continue moving. "Where can we go so you can eat? I can wait somewhere while you go out and hunt- eat my pastry and all. Then maybe we could look around the rest of the kingdom, everyone seems so nice," she said with a smile.
His carniverous diet was some what inconvient at times. With many of the kingdoms not specializing in meat products, so far the only place with a good amount off meat was the Western kingdom and the North, and honestly hunting would be much easier now than it was before. Hunting on two legs with hands was the hardest thing he has ever had to do for food; human teeth and hands where such bothersome equipment.
Levi stood back as Adi went about getting a pastry, listening vaguely to their conversation about the man, his family and their business. Then smiled when she re-joined him with her new found pastry and then asked about where he could go for food. Levi honestly hadn't thought about it and the mention of food made his stomach growl, placing a hand on his stomach before giving a small hum in thought.
"I usually hunt in the forest, less eyes on me and more prey but I can definitely find something in the moorland," he replied back with a small shrug, "Sometimes my diet can be quite inconvient when it comes to hunting in the Southern and Eastern kingdom. But I do agree, they are quite kind people here. They are known for their hospitality, I think the meanest kingdom is the Southern kingdom. They're so stuck up sometimes,"
"Well I don't want to risk anyone seeing," Adi said quietly. Although she would never think different of Levi, especially now that she knew his true being, she did grow up in a royal family. She knew that dragons had a bad reputation for hurting and tearing villages apart. While she couldn't ever imagine Levi ever doing such a thing, she didn't want word to spread to the kings and queens of the kingdoms that there was a dragon near their land. It would cause worry and fear, which was one of the worst emotions to act on. She didn't want to risk him getting hurt, especially by her own family.
"We can go near where we came back. I can sit and wait for you on the edge so we are more out of sight," she offered softly. "I don't want someone to see you and cause any trouble. Besides I'm sure there's more for your diet than there is here," she said with a chuckle. "And it would be nice to sit down and eat. Enjoy the quiet. It's been a long couple of days," she admitted, wrapping her pastry in a napkin and tucking it in her front dress pocket.
Moving around so they could head towards wherever he needed to go to hunt, she followed beside him and kept an eye out for the Queen and her daughters, still hoping she wouldn't recognize her if she was seen. She didn't need to get caught so soon— or at all. Once they got where she would sit and wait for him, Adi sat on the grass and propped herself up on a tree. Pulling her pastry out, she began to think about their next plans. They could stay here awhile. She could work for some more money and they could do well, but since there wasn't a large area for him to hunt it wouldn't be a great long term solution.
Suppose she was right about being seen; it would be best not to be seen he supposed. Though thus far not many have been able to see a dragon, let alone know what one looked like if it sat on them. Regardless; Adi had a point and he agreed to it without much objection. Leading them out of the small kingdom and out onto the moorland, hoping to get as close to the forest as possible which was quite a walk.
Once close enough to the forests' edge, Levi watched her sit down against a tree to wait for him and he gave this smile. She was truly an amazing being wasn't she? So non-judgemental of himself, his dragon ways and overall their expierences together. It was truly something of a dream. Then the long-haired man easily slipped into the long bodied creature of the dragon. Crawling along the ground into the forest beyond it. Now narrowing in on the scents of little woodland creatures.
The pine scent of birds, oak of squirrels and heather of rabbits. Following each trail with a low grumble noise, before he stopped moving. Crouching lower to the ground he spotted the rarity of a white tail deer. Normally larger prey was found in the North or South, hardly here in the West or East, so for a deer to be so far from home was definitely abormal though welcomed nonetheless.
Levi steady his breathing, flicking his tail slightly before lunging as the deer hopped by him. Swiftly killing it with a crack of its' neck, and deemed it satifactory enough to hold him over for the night. A whole deer would certainly keep the belly full for longer than a night, but he hadn't eaten all day as well. With the flying, waterfall and such he needed the energy boost. So, Levi headed back over to where Adi waited for him; staying in the shadow of the tree but dropped down the deer so they could eat together. Or so, he hoped they could and it wouldn't be too weird for her to see an animal eat raw animals or something.
Adi didn't pay much attention once Levi left her side and wondered into the forest with his dragon self. She leaned her back against the rough bark of the tree trunk and fumbled through her bag to find a journal she had brought with her. Writing away about their adventures this far and nibbling on her pastry to savor the delicious taste, the brunette thought about telling him the truth. The last thing she was afraid of was him judging her. He was too kind to ever do that, but something still held Adi back.
She hadn't ever really had friends her age that weren't set up in the castle, and they only wanted to be her friend because of what her title was, not who she was. She didn't want him to think of her any differently, and she didn't want him to back out of their escape in fear of getting in trouble. She wouldn't let anything bad happen to him, she promised herself that.
She only knew him for a few weeks but it felt like forever. She never wanted to see him hurt and she hoped their friendship would last forever. She didn't want her royalty to ruin that. If everything went well, he would never need to know anyway, right?
Fumbling to put her journal away when she heard movement behind her, she relaxed a little to see Levi. "Hey," she said softly, watching him drop the deer down to eat. She had to admit that it was a little weird to sit with a dragon by the woods while she ate a pastry and her friend ate a raw animal, but she would much prefer this over being in the castle any day.
Once they were finished eating, Adi put her book away and pulled out a canister of water that she had brought and refilled when they were at the river. Taking a drink, she saved some for Levi and waited for him to finish so they could head back towards town. It was still mid afternoon so there was plenty of time to explore most of the kingdom and hopefully find some odd jobs for awhile and a place to sleep at night.
Levi settled down happily to eat with Adi, though instead of taking bites he more so ate the thing whole like a cat would. He didn't have the ability to chew in his dragon form due to his carnivorous diet and the way his jaw was structured. Then looked to Adi as she nibbled on her pastry and laid his head down, giving a gentle purring noise at her. Enjoying her company, enjoying the last few days. Humans where strange but yet Adi had this pull to her.
Ever since they had met, he felt so drawn to her. She became one of his best friends in life, and he has lived a long life thus far. Levi then shifted back to his human self and went to sit beside her with a smile on his face, "I feel very full; deer are super rare around here and I'm so glad to have found one. Didn't realize how hungry I was," he started and leaned back on his hands, looking at her. This odd emotion surfacing in his chest.
Warm, attracted with this pulling senstation. Levi furrowed his brows outwardly and sat up to put a hand to his chest for a moment before the emotion passed. That was odd, but yet Levi found he didn't hate it. Definitely something new for him and he looked back to Adi, "Sorry, I shouldn't have eaten it in one sitting thats for sure,"
Adi stayed quiet, her mind running loose of the possibility of telling Levi the truth. What he would think or do. If they sent out a party to search would he turn her in? Would he treat her differently or ask more of her? Feeling his body brush against her as he sat back beside her, she smiled a little and offered him the remainder of the water. "The pastry was so delicious. One of the best I've ever tasted," she said gently, leaning her head back against the tree.
Feeling his tension all of a sudden and his eyes on her, Adi turned her head and gave him a confused look. "Are you okay?" She asked, worried as his hand moved to his chest. She had not ever dealt with someone with health issues, but she knew grabbing at his chest likely didn't mean anything good. They were so far out that she wouldn't be able to get help back quickly — if she didn't get lost, and she definitely was too weak to carry him.
Her shoulders visibly relaxed as he did and he seemed to not be as uncomfortable as a moment before. "Don't do that, you had me afraid you were dying," she nudged his shoulder but offered him a small smile. "But yeah, it was a lot. Just don't puke on me and we'll be okay," she said chuckling.
"We could hang out here for a bit if you want. I'm excited to see the rest of the kingdom but we could always go later when it's less crowded. I'm sure you could use a recovery nap and it would be nice to just sit since we walked so much yesterday and this morning," Adi said, shrugging a bit at the thought.
"I am not dying I assure you, that'd be a whole other issue as I am like 300 years old at this point in time," he started out with and gave a light chuckle, agreeing to not puking on her. He didn't feel queezy, just this odd warm sensation in his chest, a faster heart rate and like- bugs in the stomach or something. Maybe the deer had bugs in it? Levi wasn't sure, but he was sure he definitely wasn't going to die. So far nothing could kill him and he tended to keep it that way. Though that pull towards Adi didn't fully fade and became a background emotion more like- there but not fully present at the moment.
Adi suggested they sit and rest, and the idea was enticing. They did walk a lot, jumped from a waterfall and he flew more than he had in a few years- perhaps some rest will do them both some good. Taking the water from her, Levi took a few sips from it before handing it back as to not drink all of it, "I wouldn't mind resting; we have been traveling a lot and I think I need time to adjust to flying again. I feel very tired from that- it's been a while," He agreed with her and rested his head back against the tree as well. Looking up at the tree tops as they fluttered with the wind, birds coming and going, a peaceful sound of just nature exisitng.
"I am glad we did this, Adi," Levi remarked quietly, "I am glad to have made a friend in you, and that I was able to give you a taste of freedom," He gave a smile with a light chuckle, but that odd emotion came back. Like friend wasn't the right word for it anymore; but what else could there be? Levi pushed it aside mentally and just hoped it'd go away.
Adi's eyes widen as he mentioned how old he was and chuckled with him. She supposed she didn't truly know how long dragons lived- there was quite a bit she needed to learn about him still. "You didn't tell me my closest friend was as old as my great-great-great-great-great grandparents," she joked, leaning her body back against the tree and shifted her bottom to get more comfortable.
Silence settled between them for a few moments, her eyes fluttering shut and her ears opened wider to listen to the world around them. Aside from their soft breathing, all she heard was the birds singing and the rustling of the wind in the tree limbs. It was peaceful. Her shoulders relaxed the tension they usually held and she breathed deeply, sighing out a soft breath of refreshing air. This is what peace felt like- and she loved it.
Her eyes peeled open when she heard Levi's voice again, this time soft and hardly above the sound of nature. She smiled softly and closed her eyes again, moving her head over to rest against his shoulder. "Me too," Adi said simply, relaxing her body against him and settling into a peaceful and well needed rest.
"You know there is a lot you don't know yet about me, and I am very excited to tell you about your 5 times great grandparents time period," he mused back to her with a chuckle. To be fair, he was considered young amongst his pack. His parents late litter would be the youngest of the group, consisting of three boys or well suppose Levis' younger brothers as well. Thoug now that Adi knew about himself, he found it exciting to share it with her. Share the part of him that was most important to him and something humans never got the chance to see; perhaps she could be the first human to do so. Learn dragon history, life, and so forth to pass it on. He'd like that a lot.
The silence was peaceful; nothing but the wind in the branches and birds tweeting nearby. It was calm, quiet and something Levi had greatly missed. Cities where so loud sometimes and it was nice to share this with her. In such a short time, Adi had become someone so important to him, and he wasn't sure he'd ever be able to let it go. He so badly wanted to take her to his family, show her so much of the world and just see that smile on her face every single day. Adi made Levi so..happy to say the least. In time there wasn't a second he didn't think about her, care about her or want to give her the whole world. It was kind of insane, and he felt very- strange.
Feeling her head on his shoulder, Levi looked down at her and gave a slight smile. She had a sweet face when she rested, and he shifted slightly to make her rest more comfortable. Looking out at the forest, humming to himself and idly found Adis' hand to trace circles on softly. A peaceful scene for such a long journey.
"I really can't wait to learn everything else there is to know about you," Adelaide said sincerely. She had grown close in their friendship and she valued him in her life. Each moment they spent together, each new conversation urged her to ask more questions and wonder more things about him and his life. It wasn't only because he was her first true friend outside of the castle or a dragon or decades old, but because she felt this pulling towards him- drawing her to want to know everything about him.
Making herself comfortable up against him, her shoulders relaxed and she eased into the comfort of her friend. Such a strange word, but she didn't know what else to call him. Soon her eyes were fluttered shut and she was dozing off with the peace. She didn't nap long and she hardly napped at all. Every time she started to doze off she would slowly wake back up- she just fell into a peaceful rest while she leaned against him and the tree while she let her mind go to ease. After all the travel and new news and worries, it was well needed.
"If we want to stay here awhile we should probably find somewhere to make some money and somewhere to sleep," she said after awhile, lifting her head off of him. Her cheek was cold where his shoulder had been. "I'd like to see the other kingdoms still.. maybe we could just stay awhile. Explore more, make some money, rest up for a week or so. Is there anything outside of the kingdoms?" She asked, occurring to her that she hadn't ever heard anyone speak about land outside the four kingdoms. If there was, a 300 year old dragon would surely be the one to know since he could and may have flown above and seen the land.
The rest was short lived, feeling her lift her head off his shoulder and Levi had the chance to turn to look at her rather than out of the corner of his eye. Suppose she was right; they could stay awhile. Though he did have a slight worry about that of the Western kingdom coming after them. Adi had expressed they would be followed after all when her family realized she was gone; so wouldn't it be better to keep moving rather than staying in one spot for too long? Money, a place to sleep and such was ideal, but perhaps when they where further away from Adis' home would be a better idea to stay in one place for a moment.
Then Adi asked about what lie outside the four kingdoms. Now that was a excellent question; Levi himself lived outside the kingdoms and had seen a bit of what was out there. Though they never traveled far to really see what was there. "Well to the south theres the ocean; the Black Ocean. It is a very deep ocean, made of salt water and it has very dark waters; hence the name," He started thinking about it, it had been a while since he saw the outside of the kingdoms, "Then to the North is my home; the Winterwyn Mountains. They stretch about 100 miles in every direction and nearly surround the North kingdom. The West kingdom doesn't have a very exciting outside, there is an abyss that cuts it off from the Imperial Caverns. Its a system of caves that use to be for minning but have since been abandonded. Then the Eastern kingdom has a desert outside of it; no one really goes there because its very unhabital and dangerous to be in,"
He remembered when his family had been stuck in the desert for a few days. It got so cold at night, so many dangerous animals lived there and there was no water for miles on end. Not even an oasis was in the desert and he didn't know how long it stretched for. The other places though he recalled where interesting. They gave way to a time before the kingdoms; the caverns having paintings from the first settlers in its walls, the mountains of his home and the ocean that seemed to be endless. Levi wasn't sure why lied beyond them, but he hoped other civilizations lived there. To think of it, the kingdoms where kind of cut off from any other humans that might be nearby. Surrounded by caverns, an ocean, a desert and a mountain range that no person dared go past without certain death, "What lays beyond those though, I'm unsure. This has been my home for centuries, and who knows; maybe there is more kingdoms or human civlization outside the four kingdoms," Levi smiled and gave a small shrug.
Adi picked up on the slight hesitation about staying, but he didn't say anything so she figured they could figure it out later. Even for just a night or two to save a little money and rest before moving again. She didn't realize how tiring traveling could be, especially on foot. Even if he was a dragon, there was a lot they couldn't fly in risk of being seen, so they still had a lot of foot left to go.
The dark haired girl listened eagerly as he told her about the outskirts of the four kingdoms. Just the four kingdoms sounded wonderful but the more he spoke, the more she wanted to see it all. An ocean, a desert, mountains— it all sounded beautiful.
Her mind tried to imagine what it would all be like. The warm water of the ocean, sand between her toes. The waves crashing against the shore and the sound of the wind lifting the waters. It was something out of a story book, nothing she had ever witnessed with her own eyes. "I'd love to see outside of the kingdoms. Maybe one day we could wonder out," she said with a smile, imagining the other outskirts.
Levi gave a grin at her excited wording; he would love to show her that of the outside as well. It was a place of mystery and magic to say the least, and being away from the kingdoms could do someone some good. Not having to keep up apperances and seeing other people not from the kingdoms; it wa slike a breath of fresh air sometimes being outside of them. Though suppose they should head back into the kingdom for the night and hope they had enough funds or find a nice enough person to take them in.
The dragon went to get up from the ground, his butt now falling asleep, and offered his hand to her with a bright smile, "Shall we head back into town? It is getting late and hopefully we can find a place warm to stay for the night," he spoke and then gave a small yawn afterwards. They had a lot of traveling to do for the most part, mostly on foot to get away from the Eastern and Western kingdoms, and they would need as much rest as possible. Also, sitting out here any longer would be too dangerous of a place because of the creatures that came out at night. Night in the forest wasn't exactly safe in the Eastern kingdom, and he wanted to make sure that Adi stayed safe.
Taking the extended hand offered to her, Adi pushed herself up off of the ground and wipes at the dirt and leaves sticking to her clothing. "We probably should before it gets too dark," she said, slinging her bag over her shoulder and smiling as he yawned. Her eyes scanned over his face, admiring his jaw line and shy dimples. She hadn't ever really paid too much attention to his appearance, but now found herself in awe of his beauty and aura. She was lucky to befriend someone like him.
Turning her gaze away so she wouldn't be caught spying, Adi smiled softly to herself and walked forward towards where they had came. She asked more questions about outside the kingdoms, especially his home. He seemed to really love it and wondered if he'd want to go back now that he had his dragon form again.
A small sting in heart hurt at the thought of him leaving her. A family of dragons may not be so opening to a human, especially if only one could communicate with her. His home may mean losing him, but it wasn't something she worried about now. She was just happy to be traveling with him for the time being.
Once they got near the town she saw that it was much less crowded with the sun beginning to set. "Why don't you go ask a few people around there about a place to stay, I'll check in these buildings," Adi suggested, pointing towards a bar and a few other hole in the wall stores. Even if they could work for the evening to earn a nights stay or they could afford something for the night. Adi had brought money to last them, but it would eventually run out if they didn't try working at times too.
After talking to a couple people, Adi opened the bar door and looked around. It seemed much busier than the one they had gone to before. The music was louder and there were plenty of people to fill the chairs and booths, all talking and laughing loudly. Moving her way through the crowd in hopes of them having or knowing of a room her and Levi could stay for the night, she put on a smile and hoped her charm would help them out.
A few minutes later she was happy to work out a deal on a room above the bar with just the basic necessities- a bed, a bathroom, a sink and a fridge. She'd pay a third of the cost as long as they agreed to help out a little at the bar for their stay. Happily agreeing and paying for the night, Adi left the bar to find Levi and tell him.
Following behind her as they walk; he sort of went into a trail of his own thoughts. Thinking about where to go next, what to do next, and what the future could possibly hold. Looking to Adi, he was a few paces behind her, he gave a small tilt of his head. The human he had grown so fond of, and that unexplained feeling started to bloom once more in his chest. A heart started to race, and his cheeks grew slightly warm as he looked at her. The way her hair swayed when she walked, her arms just swaying ever so slightly with her pace; Adi was the most wonderful creature Levi had ever met. A brilliant and beautiful human; though these thoughts only caused his heart to pound more and he looked at the ground as they walked.
Snapping out of it when she spoke about spilting up. Levi willed his cheeks to go away and gave a small nod; sounded like a plan to him. Though his lucky wouldn't be as helpful to say the least. Levi had entered in a larger building, a bigger and filled with more people. It looked like a bar, but it also had a play area for children near the back so perhaps more like a resturant. Unfortunately they had no available rooming and weren't looking for extra help. He gave his thanks and went to head out when something stopped him; making him take a few steps back just to be sure he saw that correctly.
A piece of parchment was hung up on a corkboard and it had a sketch drawing on it. A reward of some sorts plastered on the bottom and the name Adelaide Rae McCall just above the amount of money reuqested for her. Levi furrowed his brow in confusion and went to take the paper down to read it over. It was a missing persons poster, posted by the King and Queen of hte Western kingdom? The confusion furthered and he looked up from the paper, was this the family she spoke about? The controlling and overbearing ones? Levi folded the paper, heading out of the bar and spotted Adi also coming from the same direction. His gaze now looking her up and down in this sort of confused/hurt across his face, "Before you say anything, I suppose now it is time for me to question you about your family life," Levi pulled the paper from his pocket and handed it to her, "Starting with; were you ever going to tell me?"
The brunette was excited to tell Levi about the room she had managed to get for them. It was the first time she had done something on her own. She felt like it was a huge step in becoming this independent woman who had escaped her home life and was determined to do something good for herself. Spotting him across the street, a smile happily jumped to her cheeks and she moved closer to him, missing his confused and hurt face due to her excitement.
Her mouth opened to tell him, but she was cut off by his own voice. Her eyes sulked a little, never hearing him speak that way before, watching his face and suddenly seeing the confusion. She tilted her head, but his next words shocked her. They hadn't talked much about her family, mostly because she didn't want to, but now he was asking her suddenly and in a very upset tone. Her eyes darted to the paper he held up for her and she instinctively snatched it away to hide her face, looking down at her name plastered across the missing persons sign.
She was at loss for words. She had only left the night before, not even missing for twenty-four hours yet. She knew that this would come but not this soon. How had word spread so quickly? Her stomach was doing backflips and she looked around the darkening city with only the street lights on, feeling that all eyes were plastered on her. It was right out of a nightmare. Adi felt like minutes had passed before she could say anything- not even sure what to say.
Levi had questions and she knew he deserved answers, but now that her face was on a missing person's sign it wouldn't be long before people began to recognize her and the money reward was enough for anyone to snatch her and trade her for the wealth.
Would Levi want the same thing? To take her back and get the money and then be on his way to his old life with his family now that he had his dragon back? Or maybe he just wouldn't want to get caught with a runaway princess, which she would understand.
Whatever happened, she knew she couldn't waste time trying to explain things to him, not right now in the middle of the city. Even if it was dark and only a few people were left on the sidewalks, she couldn't risk being forced back to the life she ran from.
"I can't be here right now," Adi said, snapping out of her trance and stuffing the paper in her satchel. "I'm sorry that I didn't tell you but I didn't have a choice," she said, pulling a bandana around her head to help hide her face a little. "If I had told you who I was would you have still volunteered to leave with me?" She asked, looking back at the friend she had grown to cherish.
"I didn't want you to look at me the way you are now," she said, eyes glancing over his face. "I knew if I told you that things would change between us. Things always change," she mumbled, turning away from him to look around the city. She supposed it was a wasted few dollars on the room since she needed to leave now. Even waiting until morning would be too risky.
Levi was more hurt at the aspect that Adi had been lying to him- or well semi-lying. Suppose the family being overly controlling and hateful was true, but she had kept the fact that she was a princess from him. Of course it wouldn't have changed a thing as Levi cherished her as a person- not some prized or delicate object. Watching her go into a trance as she looked at the paper and waited patiently for her to say something, anything really, to make sense of it all. Why she had lied in the first place or what this would mean for them now?
He blinked at her question, offended at such an underlying accusation, "Of course I would have; I would've been more prepared that was for sure," Levi stated back, his voice coming out harsher than intended and he gave a small sigh, "I have been honest with you this entire time we've known each other and 'no other choice' isn't a good reasont to not tell me. Nothing would change either; it's insane to think that I didn't befriend you or not. You're my best friend, princess or not doesn't change who you are as a human being," Levi watched her hide her face, looking around in paranoid fear, before putting a hand on her back to lead her between two buildings. Some place that was more quiet and hidden from the world.
Then he seemed to realize something, "You really think I wouldn't like you for you? that regardless of who you where, I'd never wanna talk you from your horrible life with your family for something better? Adelaide, it is like you never trusted me at all or even know me at all," Levis' voice had a strain to it; he was genuinely upset. That Adi would even think that her status as a princess would ever deter him in anyway. He meant it when he said he would've still left with her, and might've even been more prepared for this kind of thing if she had been honest with him. The dragon rubbed at an eye and looked down at the ground, "We-..We should head to the room, it's less open and we'll be safe for the night at least,"
The harsh words shocked Adi a little. Despite her worries, she hadn't ever expected his voice to become harsh about the situation. She couldn't say she blamed him- she should have told him who she was long before, but after awhile of hiding the secret she didn't know how to bring it up. She never wanted him to find out like this though.
His sigh and then softer words eased a slight tension in her shoulder. Although she was still paranoid that talking about it would draw attention to them from the few on the street still, her eyes glanced back towards him as he called her his best friend. Maybe it was unspoken before and she secretly knew, hearing the words brought a softness to her heart she didn't know she needed.
His hand guided her in between two buildings and she breathed a bit easier as they secluded themselves, but his next words hurt to hear as his voice strained. Of course she trusted him, st least as much as she could. As much as he wanted to understand or said he did, Adi knew he couldn't understand fully because he didn't grow up the way she did.
When she made friends with children growing up things were great until their parents found out she was a princess. While some of them didn't want her around them because of some ruling her parents had made, most of them wanted to use her to gain popularity or title. As she got older it was rare for her to find and keep a true friend. Once people knew who she was, Adi became a pawn for them. She had grown to care so much for Levi that she didn't want to risk it being the same. Even if she trusted him, it was hard to believe he would be different.
Adi would have told him- truly, she knew that the time would come and she would before people of her kingdom figured it out and rumors spread. But when they decided to run away she knew that he may not want to go with a princess who would be hunted. Helping her run away, knowing she was a princess would put him in danger. She hoped that him not knowing would make sure he stayed safe, but she realized know that it wouldn't matter. It wasn't fair of her to keep this secret, especially when it did impact him.
Adelaide knew that waiting until morning wouldn't be very smart. Daylight meant that people could see her face clearly and she was more likely to get caught leaving the kingdom. However, staying in the middle of the town talking about this didn't seem like quite a smart idea either, so she gave a small nod at his words. "We can go through the back door and up the stairs," she said, holding up a key. She hurried to get up to the room, more paranoid than necessary in the late evening, but she was too worried about getting caught- mostly what it would mean if Levi was caught with her.
Once they were inside the small room, she flipped a light on and made sure he shut the door behind them before Adi slipped her coat off and sat it on the bed in the middle of the room. Looking around, it wasn't much of anything. It had a single bed in the middle of the room, a small closet that was propped open, a bedside table with a lamp, a small two chair kitchen table beside the window and what appeared to be a bathroom and sink closed off by a door on the other side of the room. She hadn't said anything, still thinking about his words and how to respond.
"I do trust you, and I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I should have," Adi said. "But you have to realize that I have been a princess my entire life. I have lost every friendship and relationship I've ever cared about when they find out about who I am. I wasn't ready to lose you." The brunette sighed softly and sat her bag down beside her coat. "It doesn't matter how much I trust you, power and money and titles change people. I've watched it happen my entire life," she said. "I care about you much more than I ever have my family. You're my best friend. I didn't know what to expect. I was scared. I'm sorry."
