Round One. Start! [PRIVATE]

"Perhaps not my supporters would look upon me so callously, but my detractors?"

He'd pose that question in jest, returning the cheeky comment. Surely they was speaking in exaggerated but there was a grain of truth to both their words. Vastime was not so callous to treat their king as sub-par if he chose to not showcase grandiose items. But it was also true that the subtlety of their society which require some lever of presentation. In the eyes of his detractors those who wished to circumvent his rule, implace their own, or simply elevate themselves striking him was ever the tempting option.

He was not simply a man or king, but a public entity forever beholded to his people and ideals.

In his moment of thoughtful haze he hadn't registered how quickly the woman's soft hand had grasped his callous one. Hundred upon hundred days of warfare had caused them to scar and heal various times, no healing factor or body could replace those thin lines. It was a stark contrast to her own, she who had the luxury to relax. She who had fought a war many years ago, but now could rest. That could play games.

Instinctual he tensed a foreign feeling, both pleasant and unpleasant assaulting his senses. A memory which was bittersweet had temporary overtaken his mind before returning his focus back to the woman, his callous fingers only briefly tightening as their hands slipped away. Only to be replaced by a more intimate gesture.

One might think his first reaction would be to settle into it or softly explain how it would be improper regarding public perception. But those where not the things which took his mind, but a sharp painful reminder in his chest. A flaming reminder which caused his eyes to close and his head to shake.

"I suppose I will have to."

Perhaps it was spite which had made him say those words, in order to cast former feelings into oblivion. Perhaps it was his subtle way of accepting the touch of another. But whatever his reasons he'd settle into a stride with her, her arm around his waist.

"My favorite place.. It's not too far, I hope you enjoy it as I will."

Their walk would begin then, in the evening light of the Capital city. Perhaps it was something about the evening which always appealed to the King, the way the city softened under the sun hazy lights. The cobblestone roads which had been fixed countless times, the pedastrations seeking to make themselves get to their loved ones. It was that time of day when Desmond was not king of Vastime to his people but another walker on the streets, and Nelliel was simply some girl.

It would only be for some moments they would walk in silence, before Hayden would speak again.

"I love all of this."

There was such an overwhelming need to say those words, that something deep within the male had to make him profess that. As hazel eyes seemed to gaze as the many buildings lacing the streets, the men and women rushing about. The vendors which tried to sell their goods, it made his heart swell enough to cause a smile and shine in his eyes far too easy to notice. Within Nelliel's arm was a man who truly, deeply, loved something so profoundly that it took precedence before everything.

Maybe that was why he had attracted Abalia to his side, why he had tamed the beast known as Atlas, and found friendship among the wayward sons and daughters of the world. It gives him something to focus on other than himself and all his faults, faults which he can't help but over examine.

"I don't think anything quite takes my breath away like this city... save for maybe a few things."

His hazel eyes would break their focus to focus on her, now that they stopped at a crosswalk waiting for it to turn green.