Aelia giggled nervously at Ava's joke but her eyes stayed on the floor. Sometimes, she wished that she wasn't the princess, actually, correction, Lia wanted nothing more than to be a regular civillian. A very un-princess like thought but she couldn't get it out of her head. Snapping herself out of it, Lia hopped up with a smile, her dress swishing around her feet. "Let's go then!" Aelia beamed and skipped over to the door, waving to the tailor as she opened the door, waiting patiently for Ava before following her into the crowd.

Now this was something she'd never get used to, the big crowd that stopped for no one. Within moments she was sucked up by the wave, and although she fought against it, the crowd was like the ocean, swallowing her up. One hand held firmly on her money pouch, although she could always get more later, she didn't want it getting caught up in the crowd at the moment. Speaking of which, Ava's white hair grew more and more distant by the second, and Lia began to grow nervous, what if she lost her entirely? With one big shove she was closer to Ava, but not quite close enough, she could just barely reach Ava's hand... Without thinking about it, Lia lunged for the other woman's hand, and once she had it, held on firmly.

Lia didn't even recognize that there might be anything disconcerting about this whole thing. In fact, she was looking about nervously, biting her lower lip as she clung to Ava's hand for dear life.

Ava looked down at Lia for a brief second, surprise registering over her face, but it was gone in a flash. She gave their joined hands what she hoped was a comforting squeeze, and continued to forge a path for them through the crowd. Ava wasn't afraid to use her pointy elbows to get her way, and was just as fast to dodge someone else's rougher attempts to make their way through the crowd.

Throughout all of this, Ava made sure Lia was close, and that their hands did not separate. She also made sure no one shoved the other girl around.

Eventually, Ava nudged them out of the swarm and into a less crowded path, "It'll be easier to go this way to the jewelers. It is a bit longer, but we won't have to worry about getting shoved around." Ava scanned Lia critically, "You okay? Did you get roughed up at all?"

The warmth of Ava's hand reassured Aelia, and drove away the panic that had quickly risen when she'd thought she was going to lose Ava. In the sea of people, Lia focused solely on her hand in Ava's, ignoring the pressure of warm bodies all around. How did one get used to such hustle and bustle? How did one become an expert at navigating the waves of them like Ava had? Aelia wasn't sure, and doubted that with the way her life was going that she'd ever find out the secret.

Once Ava tugged them out of the crowd, Lia felt the building pressure in her chest release, and she caught a breath of fresh air. Relief flooded through he veins, and she finally relaxed. the adrenaline that had surged through her veins at the thought of losing Ava to the crowd left her hands trembling a little. It wasn't uncommon for her to shake randomly, something to do with her being a half breed and left drifting between two realms. Regardless, situations that her brain perceived as tense or stressful often left her shaking, even if she wasn't harmed or really scared in any way.

"I'm okay, I was more worried about losing you than anything else," Aelia gave Ava a small smile before continuing. "Thank you for getting us out of there, this way looks a lot better." Lia looked surprisingly steady, though her hand trembled slightly, still interlocked with Ava's.

Ava gave Lia's hand a squeeze, but did not make any move to separate. Ava wasn't one for small talk or mindless chatter, so the silence never felt awkward or overwhelming for her. However, this silence felt more... peaceful... than other times. Like it was natural, almost.

-

get to jeweler plz.??

Yup

~

Aelia was pretty dumbfounded by the fact that Ava wouldn't let go of her hand, but she didn't quite mind. The peaceful silence that followed put a soft grin on her face as she looked about. The city had seemed so much smaller from the safety of her palace windows, out here, it was like a whole new world.

When they arrived at the jeweler's, Lia's smile immediately grew larger. Her large blue eyes caught on every single dazzling gem and she bounced lightly on the balls of her feet. She'd always had a love for anything shiny, her father often referred to her as a ferret, due to her tendency to stare at anything shiny for far too long. It had gotten her in trouble on numerous occassions during feasts where it seemed like she'd been staring at some pompous Lady or Lord who hadn't realized that she'd been entranced by their sparkly jewels, not their poor makeup.

Ava giggled lightly and let go of Lia's hand to let her go look at anything she wanted to. Looking around, Ava accidentally met eyes with someone who was staring at her. He was frowning, and as Ava looked at him, she caught his eyes going from her to Lia.

Ava wanted to roll her eyes, but she restrained. There was nothing wrong or odd about two girls holding hands in Ava's mind, but in some... well, it was better to just ignore him, and be cautious moving around.

Aelia was completely oblivious to the man's staring as she darted about. It seemed she had found herself in her own element, amongst shiny jewels and gems of all colors and sizes. She was absolutely entranced by all of it, and her beaming smile never really left her face as she bounced from one display to the next. Lia conversed softly with a pleasant looking woman, who's sparkly appearance had immediately caught Aelia's attention. After heavily complimenting the older woman on her beautiful jewlery, she skipped back over to Ava.

"Does anything catch your eye?" The question seemed innocent enough, but she was really trying to see if she could perhaps buy something for Ava, as both a thank you and an actual gift in general.

Ava shook her head softly, "Not really. I more enjoy seeing you happy," Her grin was gentle, and Ava bumped her shoulder against Lia's, "You pick out stuff that you like. Don't worry about me."

...

It was interesting to watch how fascinated Lia became with the trinkets and jewelry that Ava herself really had no taste for. She personally preferred plants or elegant glass-work. The only jewelry that she really ever wore was her necklace - which was more a sign of her status in the witching world than decoration - and her piercings (which were an impulsive move that Ava couldn't find herself to regret).

Aelia's cheeks colored pink at Ava's words, but she quickly pushed down the rising butterflies in her stomach. "Oh.. okay! But if you see anything you like, anything at all, please let me know. I have to repay you for allowing me to drag you all around town somehow." Lia's smile practically lit up the whole room, in fact, she seemed to sparkle just as much as the jewelery did when she was happy.

Ava sent Lia a kind smile as she firmly shook her head, "It was no problem at all, Lia. Don't worry about it - just get yourself something pretty."

Shuffling back out of the more crowded area, Ava watched as Lia looked over the goods the jeweler was selling. He was definitely a talented man, and his genuine grin as people complimented his work was certainly a good sight to see.