The way his gaze occasionally shifted away from her own was not lost to her. It was nothing particularly special, as it was common among humans, especially those considered to be commoners. They tended to view themselves as being of lesser importance than those of higher standing, so they rarely made prolonged and uninterrupted eye contact with those of a higher standing, such as herself. Even among those of a similar social standing, though, they still often became uncomfortable under a relentless gaze.<br/><br/>The same could not be said for Ariella, however. It was probably due in part to her status, as those born of royal blood were expected to command respect. They did not prostrate themselves before others, nor did they squirm under the pressure of an unrelenting gaze. Beyond this, however, she tended to be very curious and when something or someone managed to grab her attention, she tended to focus on them with an intensity that others might find uncomfortable.<br/><br/>In any case, despite this trait of his being one that was more specific to humans than vampires, it did not remove any suspicion she may or may not have held. It was nice, though, to have someone listen to her not because she was the princess and they had to, but because they were at least moderately interested in what she had to say. At least, that was what she thought, anyways.<br/><br/>When he spoke again, answering her question, she listened with the same rapt attention, although unlike him, her gaze remained fixed on him as he spoke. It was interesting that he spoke of the religion of the vampires with such familiarity—a clue, perhaps—suggesting that it should be considered in relation to the treaty. That was not common knowledge among your average commoner, although it was not outside of the realm of possibilities that a human who spent time traveling would have picked up such knowledge along the way.<br/><br/>Had she not been so accustomed to exercising restraint and self-control, she might have reacted when he once again stepped closer to her, stopping just within arm’s reach. She swallowed back any feelings that stirred at his closeness, although her heart beat just a little faster despite herself. It was an unfortunate physical reaction to certain situations, but one that typically would not have revealed any change, as humans were not attuned to heart such faint sounds as a heart beating.<br/><br/>He continued, pointing out the opposing view held by most humans, while allowing that not all humans believed such things, just as she imagined that not all vampires believed in the other. “Fair enough. The important things never come easy, or when we want them to, do they?” she mused, “And a process involving imperfect creatures can never hope to be perfect.”<br/><br/>She couldn’t help but feel a tad bit disappointed when he suggested that he should be on his way. She finally shifted her gaze away from him and up towards the sky, where the faintest hint of soft pink and orange light could be seen creeping up on the horizon. She pursed her lips just a little, deciding to keep any further comments to herself.<br/><br/>“Very well, then,” she replied softly. It was probably for the best, anyways. She should probably get back before anyone realized that she was missing. And besides, she was engaged to be married, albeit or political purposes; it was probably best not to tempt fate. He was intriguing, intelligent, and attractive, but it didn’t matter. There was little point in indulging in what she could not have, right?<br/><br/>Her deep purple gaze fell on him once again, lingering for a moment before she spun on her heels, turning to leave. “It was nice to meet you, Valor,” she told him honestly before she began to walk away. “Perhaps we will meet again someday,” she added, smiling lightly to herself as she lifted a hand to wave over her shoulder. It was a hope she knew she shouldn’t have, but one that found its way into her heart, nonetheless.<br/><br/>She kept her pace casual as she head back the way she had come, soon disappearing in the shadows of the trees. She walked along the treeline for a short time before finding her usual spot to climb over the wall and leap down into the courtyard. She slipped through the shadows of the courtyard, which slowly grew longer as the faint pink and orange light of dawn slowly grew brighter.<br/><br/>She was careful to glance around and ensure that she would not be seen by any guards or servants before she slipped out of the shadows and scaled up the side of the building to the upper floor, jumping over to land on the balcony with a graceful tumble. She stood up to her full height, squaring her shoulders and smiling to herself before she headed into her room, closing the balcony doors behind her.  If nothing else, it had certainly been an eventful morning.<br/><br/>She was grateful to have made it back with plenty of time to spare, as the servants likely would not disturb her for at least a little longer. That gave her a little time to sit and decompress, to process what had happened before anyone tried to drag her into something she didn't particularly want to do. She flopped down on the bed, staring at the ceiling with a small smile on her face as she considered her brief encounter, entertaining the thoughts she knew she should dismiss.