Biting his tongue in surprise as Zelos stands and declares his goodnight, Lloyd pushes back whatever it was he was going to say and instead decides to nod. "Yeah. Yeah, you get to sleep," he says, grabbing his own pack, "we should rest up. Long day ahead of us."
Lloyd pulls out the bedroll, standing and placing it down on the ground a few feet away from the fire, straightening it out before taking off his tunic and slipping into the sleeping back, pulling the cover-up to his but neglecting to zip up the side, should he have to get up in a hurry. It's all familiar, all instinct, at this point. In the academy, there were days where they'd go on travel exercises, be forced to figure out how to live outside of comfort while the instructors watched. Lloyd always excelled at those before all else.
All ready for bed, Lloyd stares back up at the sky, blinking slowly against the starry night. He's not sleepy even though exhaustion rings heavy in his bones, though he's sore all over. He's not even sure he's capable of sleeping as it stands, not with how his mind races, equal parts excited and scared and hopeful and stressed. This journey means a new life, means freedom, means second chances, and all Lloyd can think about is how it could go wrong - how he might've already done wrong, and how no matter what, he refuses to let this burn up in flames.
"Goodnight," Lloyd says aloud, closing his eyes and willing sleep to come to him, even though he knows it won't come easy.
-
The next day is rather quiet, walking without much talk and with much caution. It's very similar to the first day of their travels, actually, with Lloyd walking about a foot or two ahead of Zelos as they continue making distance between themselves and the manor. Zelos follows along, of course, and he seems just as alert as Lloyd is after they manage to find some breakfast in the form of a rabbit that Lloyd slaughters as mercifully as possible. It's obvious that the redhead is thinking hard about something, however, and no matter how badly Lloyd wants to ask about it, he keeps his mouth shut, knowing it better to give Zelos space until they get closer.
So he keeps leading them, keeps following his map and compass and any passing signs, focusing on being an accurate navigator rather than attempting to strike up a conversation that would go nowhere. At some point, Lloyd looks back to check on the redhead behind him, catching him deep in thought, sharp eyes focused on the road in front. The sunlight coming from the dimming sunset reflects bright against his hair, and Lloyd is stricken with just how eye-catching Zelos is, in the most literal sense. It occurs to him here that Zelos can be easily described, easily spotted, and easily identified. There's not too much he can do about that, but...
Sunset fades into twilight, which turns into night. They set up camp again, and once again end up lapsing into silence, Zelos deciding to try and sleep as soon as they're able. Once again left alone, hoping for sleep, Lloyd attempts to come up with ways to easily disguise Zelos past a cloak, or even find any ways to throw off the description of him that's bound to come from the capital. Nothing much comes to mind. In fact, nothing comes to mind until the following morning, when his dagger glints in his eyes as he relights the fire to cook breakfast on.
After they eat, and before Zelos packs up his things, Lloyd approaches him. What he means to ask is both sudden and unusual, so Lloyd's at a bit of a loss on how to ask it, but he figures some context would do them well, first. "Zelos," he calls out, grabbing the man's attention, before taking a deep breath. "Okay, well. I've been thinking. We're not too far out from the next town on our map, and we'll need to restock on a few things - chances are, we'll hit that town today. And, while I don't think we have to worry about people recognizing you just yet, it's never bad to be safe over sorry. You're... Describable. You have unique features, things people can catch easy and remember. Should someone see you, chances are, they'd be able to remember what you looked like."
The same can't really be said for Lloyd. While his red eyes are deeply unusual and tend to gain him some sideways looks, he's rather normal looking. Brown, almost red short hair and dark skin are nothing new around these parts. Zelos is all pale skin, bright ruby hair, and lilac eyes. He stands out like a sore thumb, and while that may have worked out for him before, it does nothing for keeping a low profile. The most either of them can do about this is toss off any possible description even just a little.
"Knights give off information for potential captures and rescues beginning with a physical description. If they said they were looking for someone with long red hair, and somebody saw you with, say, short hair, then it would cause just enough confusion for someone to pass you off as someone different." Lloyd pauses, lets Zelos take in what he's trying to get across, and picks up the sheathed dagger he has yet to put away. He feels bad asking what he's about to ask, knowing that Zelos won't exactly be happy about it, knowing that he takes some comfort from playing with it and being able to use it as a sort of distraction.
"I think, because of that, that it might be wise to cut your hair. But this is entirely your decision. If not, we can just find a way to hide it otherwise."
here we GO
Lloyd pulls out the bedroll, standing and placing it down on the ground a few feet away from the fire, straightening it out before taking off his tunic and slipping into the sleeping back, pulling the cover-up to his but neglecting to zip up the side, should he have to get up in a hurry. It's all familiar, all instinct, at this point. In the academy, there were days where they'd go on travel exercises, be forced to figure out how to live outside of comfort while the instructors watched. Lloyd always excelled at those before all else.
All ready for bed, Lloyd stares back up at the sky, blinking slowly against the starry night. He's not sleepy even though exhaustion rings heavy in his bones, though he's sore all over. He's not even sure he's capable of sleeping as it stands, not with how his mind races, equal parts excited and scared and hopeful and stressed. This journey means a new life, means freedom, means second chances, and all Lloyd can think about is how it could go wrong - how he might've already done wrong, and how no matter what, he refuses to let this burn up in flames.
"Goodnight," Lloyd says aloud, closing his eyes and willing sleep to come to him, even though he knows it won't come easy.
The next day is rather quiet, walking without much talk and with much caution. It's very similar to the first day of their travels, actually, with Lloyd walking about a foot or two ahead of Zelos as they continue making distance between themselves and the manor. Zelos follows along, of course, and he seems just as alert as Lloyd is after they manage to find some breakfast in the form of a rabbit that Lloyd slaughters as mercifully as possible. It's obvious that the redhead is thinking hard about something, however, and no matter how badly Lloyd wants to ask about it, he keeps his mouth shut, knowing it better to give Zelos space until they get closer.
So he keeps leading them, keeps following his map and compass and any passing signs, focusing on being an accurate navigator rather than attempting to strike up a conversation that would go nowhere. At some point, Lloyd looks back to check on the redhead behind him, catching him deep in thought, sharp eyes focused on the road in front. The sunlight coming from the dimming sunset reflects bright against his hair, and Lloyd is stricken with just how eye-catching Zelos is, in the most literal sense. It occurs to him here that Zelos can be easily described, easily spotted, and easily identified. There's not too much he can do about that, but...
Sunset fades into twilight, which turns into night. They set up camp again, and once again end up lapsing into silence, Zelos deciding to try and sleep as soon as they're able. Once again left alone, hoping for sleep, Lloyd attempts to come up with ways to easily disguise Zelos past a cloak, or even find any ways to throw off the description of him that's bound to come from the capital. Nothing much comes to mind. In fact, nothing comes to mind until the following morning, when his dagger glints in his eyes as he relights the fire to cook breakfast on.
After they eat, and before Zelos packs up his things, Lloyd approaches him. What he means to ask is both sudden and unusual, so Lloyd's at a bit of a loss on how to ask it, but he figures some context would do them well, first. "Zelos," he calls out, grabbing the man's attention, before taking a deep breath. "Okay, well. I've been thinking. We're not too far out from the next town on our map, and we'll need to restock on a few things - chances are, we'll hit that town today. And, while I don't think we have to worry about people recognizing you just yet, it's never bad to be safe over sorry. You're... Describable. You have unique features, things people can catch easy and remember. Should someone see you, chances are, they'd be able to remember what you looked like."
The same can't really be said for Lloyd. While his red eyes are deeply unusual and tend to gain him some sideways looks, he's rather normal looking. Brown, almost red short hair and dark skin are nothing new around these parts. Zelos is all pale skin, bright ruby hair, and lilac eyes. He stands out like a sore thumb, and while that may have worked out for him before, it does nothing for keeping a low profile. The most either of them can do about this is toss off any possible description even just a little.
"Knights give off information for potential captures and rescues beginning with a physical description. If they said they were looking for someone with long red hair, and somebody saw you with, say, short hair, then it would cause just enough confusion for someone to pass you off as someone different." Lloyd pauses, lets Zelos take in what he's trying to get across, and picks up the sheathed dagger he has yet to put away. He feels bad asking what he's about to ask, knowing that Zelos won't exactly be happy about it, knowing that he takes some comfort from playing with it and being able to use it as a sort of distraction.
"I think, because of that, that it might be wise to cut your hair. But this is entirely your decision. If not, we can just find a way to hide it otherwise."