Caspian nodded appreciatively when Iris said he could talk to her too. He knew he could, but he was still getting used to the idea of relying on anyone else in general—in an emotional sense, specifically. Even though he’d lived his whole life with servants who would wait on him hand and foot, he’d never had a confidante to whom he could go if he was ever struggling with something. He was supposed to be able to handle his own personal problems by himself, since he was supposed to be the next king. His father had made it very clear that it was expected of him. Because of that, he’d subconsciously gotten used to keeping quiet when something was bothering him. He truly did want to take Iris up on her offer, but he was still figuring out how to do it.

When she assured him that they would probably find a place to take shelter before dusk, he was relieved. [color=#b97703]“I can handle an hour,”[/color] he said as he stepped over a lengthy root that protruded from the ground beneath his feet. After the ridiculously long day they’d had, he would have preferred to stop sooner, but he wasn’t going to give up on sleeping inside a building just because he was a little sore. When they got to the next district, he could rest for as long as he wanted anyway. Now that they were no longer in any rush to get to the capital, they didn’t have to leave at the crack of dawn to keep going. He could actually sleep in for once. The thought was enticing enough to propel him forward as they followed the road at the edge of the woods.

Her following suggestion brought a smile to his lips. In retrospect, it was kind of funny that they didn’t know any of the minor but obvious details about each other. He didn’t usually talk about things like his favorite color though. The media in the capital already published information about his tastes in absurd articles like “Are You Compatible Enough to be a Princess?” or “Going to a Ball? Wear THIS to Get the Prince to Notice You!” By now, he was sure that practically every high born in Aspiria knew all the answers to the questions people generally asked each other on a first date.

[color=#b97703]“It’s red, if you were wondering,”[/color] he chuckled, casting her an amused look. [color=#b97703]“What’s yours?”[/color] Although it was new to him, he found it kind of fun to talk to her about his likes and dislikes. For a moment, he wasn’t the crown prince of the country; he was just a man getting to know a woman. Her next suggestion caught him by surprise though, and he blinked as she requested to hear some embarrassing stories.

[color=#b97703]“What if you don’t remember any?”[/color] he objected, letting go of her hand to poke her teasingly in the side. [color=#b97703]“It won’t be fair if you hear about all the stupid things I’ve done and don’t give me anything in return. Why should I make an ass of myself when you might get off scot-free?”[/color]