"Hey, Asbel? Can I ask you something?"
Asbel turned around, and saw Cheria standing behind him. "Sure," he replied. "What is it?"
Cheria took a quick look at the door to the room. Everyone else was asleep by now, but she seemed worried, like she was afraid of being overheard. "Actually, let's go somewhere else first," she suggested.
Asbel didn't really understand what the problem was, but he followed her outside anyway. The streets of Gralesyde were almost empty at this time of night, and the sound of the wind was the only thing keeping it from being completely quiet. "So…what did you want to ask?" said Asbel.
Cheria looked down, and shifted her feet a little before she spoke. "I noticed something about Richard the other day," she said, quietly. "Was his left eye always red?"
"You noticed that too?" replied Asbel.
"Yeah. It's weird. I feel like I would have noticed if it had been like that when we were kids."
She frowned. "But maybe his eyes were always two different colors. I don't know."
Asbel thought about it for a moment. He didn't usually notice little details like that, so he couldn't say for sure whether anything had changed. "They must've been," he concluded. "I can't say for sure, but it's not like people's eyes just change color."
Cheria sighed. "I guess. Maybe I was overthinking it."
She didn't seem satisfied with that answer, but when she spoke again, it was to change the topic. "It's really late. We should probably go to bed," she said.
"Yeah, good idea."
The next day was mostly spent traveling. It was warm, and the road was dusty and dry. As they walked, Asbel caught up to Richard, who was walking ahead of everyone else. "Hey, Richard?" he asked.
At first, the prince didn't seem to notice him. He kept walking as if nothing had happened. "Richard?" Asbel repeated, louder this time.
Richard turned around. "Yes?"
"Can I ask you a weird question?"
"Depends what it is."
Asbel paused for a moment. "What's up with your eyes?" he asked.
Suddenly, Richard stopped walking. Asbel and everyone else stopped behind him. "What about them?" asked Richard.
There was an edge to his voice that hadn't been there before. Asbel was startled, but he continued anyway. "Um…the left one's red," he said. "Was it always like that?"
Richard frowned, and Asbel swore he saw the eye in question flash for a split second. "What kind of question is that?" Richard snapped.
"I just…it's unusual, and I couldn't remember if…"
Asbel stopped talking. "Never mind."
Richard frowned. "Yes, they were always like that," he answered. "Now let's keep going. We're almost at the fortress, and we don't have time to waste with any more stupid questions."
With that, he kept walking, leaving Asbel behind him. Asbel stood still for a moment before continuing after him. He'd barely started walking before Pascal caught up to him. "What the heck did you ask him?" she asked.
"Nothing important," replied Asbel.
"Well, whatever it was, he didn't seem very happy about it," Pascal noted. "Probably best not to bring it up again."
She continued on ahead of him, and Asbel followed. The more he thought about it, though, the less sense it made. Why did the question make Richard so upset? And why was it that whenever he thought back to meeting Richard when they were kids, he pictured a face with two brown eyes?
It was a long walk out of Ghardia, and by the time they reached the ship, Asbel was about ready to pass out. He hadn't really had time to process things until they were all safe, but once the ship took off, it all hit him at once.
Sophie was alive. That was good. Richard was safe – that was also good. And Lambda…
The being was dormant, just like he said he would be, but Asbel could still feel the weight of his presence in his mind. It was a little uncomfortable, and more than a little frightening. But he'd managed to convince Lambda to accept him, and that in itself was a huge victory. He wasn't sure when Lambda would wake up, but when the time came, he'd do everything he could to show him a world worth preserving. And maybe – maybe – they really would become friends.
Asbel walked over to the window, expecting to catch a glimpse of the stars outside. The view was indeed there, and with it, a faint reflection of his own face.
That was the first time he'd seen his reflection since they'd entered the place, and immediately, he noticed his eyes. The one on the right was the same blue it had always been, but the one on the left had turned violet. He stared at the window for a little while, shocked. Then, a slight smile appeared on his face. Now he understood.