The day passed quickly. They spent most of their time either searching among the various wares in the stores, or simply walking through the city. Amelia tried to get Zel to try on a short sleeved tunic, but that wasn=t about to happen in this millineum. AI=d have better luck getting you to wear black than you would getting me to wear short sleeves.@ AAw, come on! Just this once!@ ANot even if you were L-Sama herself.@ AOoohh! You=re so mean sometimes.@ She tried to look angry, but she couldn=t suppress her smile for very long. She thought it was funny when he protested so much. She would sometimes hold shirts up to him just to tease him. They were having a great time. Well, most of the time. Zel felt very nervous about walking with her. Everyone in the kingdom knew who she was, so of course she drew attention by just being present. And this meant that he was getting extra attention. Which he didn=t like at all. Amelia didn=t notice this until they stopped to sit on a bench in the town square. The day had already passed and the sun was setting. Amelia leaned back and stretched out her legs, when she noticed Zel looking around out of the corners of his eyes. AWhat are you looking at?@ A...nothing.@ She looked around and noticed that people quickly turned their heads when she faced them. The people were staring at him as they passed by. No wonder he seemed disturbed. AZelgadis, don=t worry about them.@ He turned towards her. AWhat do you mean?@ AThese people are bothering you, aren=t they? You think that they=re staring at you.@ AWhat do you mean Athink@ they=re staring? They are. There=s no question about it. They think I don=t notice, but I can see perfectly clear.@ ABut...can=t you just ignore them? Maybe they just think you=re interesting.@ AInteresting? Give me a break! Even you said I was creepy and suspicious looking when you first saw me.@ This was true. She couldn=t deny it. AI know, but it wasn=t just because of how you look. I mean...you broke in through a window and slashed five or six guys in half! That was kind of a new experience for me. I had never seen violence like that before, and I was...I was scared of you.@ She looked away from him at the ground. Zel had never thought of it like that. It made perfect sense. She had been kept in the palace of a peaceful nation for her whole life, and she had the former ultimate pacifist for a father. And he had been a killer since his transformation. He stopped looking at her. He couldn=t find anything to say, so he just stared at the sunset. Finally, she raised her head back up to look at him. ADoes it bother you when I look at you?@ ANo.@ AThen why does it bother you if others look at you?@ ABecause I know that they=re just looking at me like a freak show. They want to know why their princess is associating with a monster. They don=t care about me.@ His words were cold and bitter. They made her sad. She reached over and put her hand to his face. He flinched at her touch, but then she gently moved his face towards her. AZelgadis, you are not a monster...or a freak show. I know you look different from other people, but that doesn=t mean anything. You=re a wonderful person, and the only one who is really convinced that you are a monster is yourself. Can=t you see that?@ He couldn=t move. She had him frozen with her touch. She kept her hand on the side of his face to make sure he didn=t turn away. He became even more afraid when he thought that people might be watching right now. However, his fear was soon washed away as the clouds broke loose with rain.