Lotus - with Ariel beside him, decided to proceed up to all the markets on the street and ask them all sorts of questions about the way the world works, to their dismay they were mostly met with looks of confusion and rightly so, after all, it is pretty weird to ask everyone how the world works, Ariel followed him quietly not knowing how to tell him that what he was doing was hopeless without hurting his feelings.
standing idle at the end of the street
Ariel did nothing but tap her feet in frustration, they were getting nowhere, they had a goal but had no idea where to go or how to get to it. "we are getting nowhere, and what are you doing anyways"
"what does it look like I'm doing?",
she took a deep inhalation of the balmy air and sighed dramatically. "Ariel listen, I have no clue what to do, I usually just go with the flow of life anyways so I'm not the type of person to plan things out so if you have any problems with that…",
"then what?" she interjected with an indignant look
"then we can go separate ways I guess, but this is a lot for me, powers I don't understand at all, people I don't understand, and opponents I never thought I would ever encounter". Ariel didn't immediately respond instead she looked at the ground beneath her with a regretful look, needless to say, she was feeling a similar way to Lotus since this had all been new to her also, truth be told 'I assumed because he was a man, he could handle everything, Ariel showed a more a grievous expression as her thoughts spiralled down feeding her guilt 'he didn't show he was struggling so I didn't think he was' however, this look of regret gave Lotus a dreadful feeling of shame within him.
He shook his head in the disappointment of himself and followed that by wiping off his poignant attitude and nodding his head sternly as if agreeing with something within himself, the wind strongly swaying in the dusk only increased the hopeful atmosphere, straightening his back and puffing out his chest "right I know what to do" he said.
"you do?!" her eyes lit up
"Yes just watch"
he continued walking towards the last market on the street that he avoided simply because it looked tattered and warn out, moreover the shrines and weirdly shaped candles gave off a creepy vibe.
"Wait we aren't going over there are we!"
"don't be scared, c'mon, we've faced a dragon," he said with a confident tone, this vivacious attitude did well to quell any anxieties Ariel had. As the duo approached closer they could see a man in a broken-down impecunious gown, he seemed fairly old but his vigorous green eyes deceived that perspective.
"Hello, good sir don't mean to bother you-",
"ooo no bother at all young man, truth be told I haven't had a customer in quite some time, you've made my day," said the old man while smiling wryly, his voice croaky and adenoidal leaving Lotus and Ariel to smile awkwardly in reply.
"Do you guys by any chance know any caverns or places to sleep in?"
"Ahhh may I indulge the couple in some lovely candles" he presented some strangely shaped candles from under his table,
"I'm afraid sir that we would be unable to afford anything since we aren't from here and have no money at all" Ariel chimed in standing behind Lotus
"oh nooo, where must the lovely couple be from!" The strange glint in this old man's eyes made Lotus feel a sense of unease but nonetheless, he replied "We probably aren't even from this world we-" before Lotus could finish his sentence Ariel gave Lotus a grievous pinch on his back, he sufficed it as a warning to not say so much of there business.
"Sorry sir I misspoke, but we are from far from here, and so really require a place to rest and regroup ourselves" he continued feeling a peculiar connection to the man in front of him, the energy inside of him shook, but he dismissed the thoughts rather quickly. "I see, if that is the case young man there should be a place called 'Christophe's inn' at the end of the next road, tell them Christopher sent you, and give the owner this for me would you" the old man handed him a strange looking candle, well all of them were strange but this one more so, a strange dark black pillar candle with a hole in its centre. Naturally, Lotus didn't voice his thoughts and thanked the man before they made their way to the inn.
"hmph he called us a couple, we aren't a couple" Ariel crossed her arms