Demaias glanced at the palace again, his eyes landing on a curtained window of his father's bedroom. "Fair enough, I suppose." The king wouldn't be very happy about this interaction. "Allow me to give you a little tour, at the least? The garden is one of my favorite places, you know."
Fio hesitated again. It would be rude to say no…but also rude to encroach on his time… He bit his lip. "I…I guess so." he said slowly. "If you're sure about that."
Demaias made a motion for Fio to follow him as he turned to the path that led back to the gazebo. He usually had an issue with being around others during his cooldown time, but he had to be courteous to the palace's new addition.
Fio frowned a little bit, following Demaias. He clenched his jaw and fought down another wave of sickness as they passed another of the trophies. He just hoped that he wouldn't look and see that Demais was wearing something from a mystical animal.
Demaias stepped into the gazebo and took a few more cookies from the abandoned tray. He still intended to let Fio take half of the sandwich if the boy's stomach started bothering him again, so he kept it wrapped carefully in a separate napkin. "Have you gotten a good look around the palace, yet, Fio?" He asked.
Fio shook his head, sitting down and wrapping his arms around himself. He still felt a little sick, but there weren't any trophies inside the gazebo, as far as he could tell. He had no idea why the sight of the trophies made him feel so sick. He just knew it did. "I just got here today." He replied. "So I don't really know my way around yet."
"Well, after we've seen the rest of the garden, would you like me to show you around?" Demaias tilted his head a little, motion to the palace.
Fio blinked, then shrugged. "I…suppose that would be nice. If you're sure." He said. "I don't want to distract you from anything important."
"I didn't have much planned for the next hour or so." Demaias said, shaking his head, "I would be happy to help a new member of the palace's family, noble or otherwise." He grinned kindly and swept his hand toward the path in front of the gazebo.
Fio nodded a little bit, and got up, heading to the front of the gazebo. He steeled himself to walk through the gardens, swallowing hard and pushing down the wave of nausea that overwhelmed him at the sight of the Trophies. He swallowed again, running a hand through his dark hair, glancing over at Demaias.
Taking the lead, Demaias went on down the smooth stone path, which was lined with shrubs and white and gold roses. The golden flowers were taken from a village the king's guard had located a while back, but at least they looked nice, unlike most of the mystic-related decorations found throughout the palace grounds. He wondered what Fio thought of the king's "trophies."
"These golden roses are from an old magic village my father's men found during the Eradication, somewhere in the northern territories. They used to have magical properties but it went away once they were taken from their native land. A shame, I suppose, but they're still pretty."
Fio's jaw clenched a little bit, and he nodded. "Yeah." He echoed simply, not wanting to argue with the prince. That they might be far more beautiful in their home, the way they were supposed to be. Not here in a garden they didn't belong in. And what did your father do to the people that lived there? He took a deep breath.
The path gradually turned right, curving around a pond. Lily pads floated idly on the glistening water, colorful frogs and small birds lounged here and there, and some high-growing plants breached the surface. Demaias stopped and looked over the pond, grinning as he watched dark shapes dart around just beneath the water. "Those fish in there were found in a crystal cavern behind an abandoned town." He informed absentmindedly. "They aren't magical, as far as anyone knows, but I hear they are rather fragile and that it was difficult to transport them here without them all dying. A few did, poor things, but the ones that survived were bred once they got used to their new home and are thriving now."
Fio nodded a little bit. He looked down at the pond, taking a deep breath. "And why was the town abandoned?" he finally asked, eyes flickering. Was it filled with people with magical inclinations, that your father decided needed to die? Was it inhabited by dragons in human form? He swallowed, running a hand through his hair.
"I don't know," Demaias said with a subtle shrug. "I was never privy to that information, but it's likely because the people fled." He glanced at Fio and tilted his head, silently worrying about the uneasy look on his face. If he was bothered by the pond for some reason, Demaias thought they should move on. "Come; let me show you the flower patch."
Fio nodded, and followed Demaias. He was realizing just how hard this was going to be, being in this place, surrounded by all these Trophies. No way could the King ever have been right about this. Does everyone feel so sick at the sight of these trophies? He wondered. He sighed softly.
Demaias led the way around the pond until the path forked. He went left, and they soon came to a white, flower-covered wooden arch that led into what seemed like a mini-garden on the outskirts of the main garden. There was no stone path here, but the flowers were parted in deliberate patterns to make a couple clear ways to the center, where a tall oak tree stood just behind a white bench.
"Now, this is my favorite spot in the garden. Nothing in here was stolen from anywhere else." The prince said, careful of his words.
Fio relaxed a little bit at that, then realized that he should guard his reactions better. Especially in front of the prince. Otherwise, he could be labeled as a magic sympathizer, and be thrown in jail. He swallowed, thinking of the magic abilities he hid, the ones that the king would execute him for in a heartbeat.
Demaias tilted his head at Fio again, raising his brow. "You seem to like this area more than the rest of the garden, Fio. Why is that?" He asked. "The patch is quite lovely but were the other things you saw not so beautiful?"
Fio blinked. "Oh. I uhm…" he gave a hesitant smile. "It's just been a long day, and I'm tired, your highness." he replied, looking around. "I've never been anywhere like this before." he ran a hand through his black hair, unable to focus on Demaias.
"Mm, I understand." Demaias nodded as he put a hand against the wooden arch and watched Fio. "Well, I do hope you enjoy living here. Now, would you like to see the rest of the garden or shall we go inside?"
Fio took a deep breath. "Whichever you would prefer." He replied after a moment. He sighed softly. "I don't really have a preference."
"Then inside we go." Demaias decided. He patted Fio's shoulder, turning to leave the mini garden and head back around the pond. "Aside from Caius, how many of the palace's residents have you met so far?"
"You, and Lord Harn." He replied after a moment, following after the prince. "I have not met anyone else yet." I'm not sure whether or not to be glad about that. He swallowed, running his hands through his hair in a nervous habit.
"So you haven't met the king, yet? That should be fun." There was a bit of sarcasm in his voice; he's heard that his father was rather intimidating and cold upon first meeting, so Demaias was hoping Fio wouldn't mess up once they met in person. The king may have approved the young man's residency, but he could still change his mind if Fio didn't meet his "standards."
Fio raised his eyebrows a bit. "Uhm. No, I haven't." He knew that the king's armor had been created from a dragon's skin that the king had killed. Knew that the king and all his elite guard wore such armor, spoils from the Devastation. He swallowed at the thought of facing that. "I'm…not looking forward to it."
Demaias glanced at Fio, part of him taking offense that he would be anything less than excited about such an event. "Really? I mean, I understand it can be a bit nerve-racking to meet a king but most would be raving at the thought. Why are you 'not looking forward to it'?"
"Ah…" He shrugged. "I don't have good manners, I guess, and I don't want to like…say the wrong thing? I'm a country bumpkin from the North, your highness, I'm not exactly…court material." He shrugged again, looking down at his scuffed, muddy boots.
"Hm." Demaias followed Fio's gaze to the boots, then took in the rest of his not-so-formal outfit. "Well, court material or not it is still required for you to meet him. We can ask Lady Viera to fit you for some more formal attire, and she may even help you with your manners."
Fio blinked a little bit. "Er…yes, I realize that. And…there's no need for that, I…I have other clothes that will work better, perhaps, these are the ones I traveled in." He said quickly. "There's no need to burden someone else."