Aria
She sipped her cocoa, slowly and carefully so as not to burn herself on the warm beverage, and made a contented sound. It was different, richer and more chocolatey, but it was so good too. "Mmm well we can talk about it later, back at the digs for the night, or at home. Either way, we've got lots of exploration ahead of us."

His 3 word question had her chuckling, and she led him across the street and back onto the Bridge. "Sounds good... This way, babe." She paused for the view again, at the middle, snuggled in against his side as she looked downriver this time, seeing the way the city seemed to form around the Thames. After a few minutes of gazing, though, she continued on, to the ticket gate for the Tower.

Pao
Rhys followed, sipping carefully and much enjoying the cocoa; as promised, it was different but still just as good as the other, more easily obtainable kind they bonded over in Siberia. When they paused for the view he happily let her snuggle in as much as she liked, his attention fairly split between her and the gorgeous view of the city.

His drink was still warm by the time they got to the ticket counter, and he gently nudged her. "Are drinks allowed inside or do we have to chug this?" Since it'd be a shame to toss it, after all...even if it meant he'd burn his tongue and throat in the process.

Aria
She shrugged and looked for a sign. "Looks like we can take it inside the gate, but we can't take it in the building." The Tower, despite it's name, was a Tower with smaller buildings around it and a good size Curtain Wall. "So we can drink inside, see the famed Ravens, and all, then go into the actual buildings" She looked at the ticket prices and blinked. It was 'With or Without Donation.' She blinked more and found herself wondering what the 'donation' was all about.

"Do you want the audio guide, babe?" She asked, noticing that was a bit extra. She was fine without it, but if he wanted it, she'd be fine with that.

Pao
"Oh, nice," he said, still sipping as he looked over the signs and other things posted around to gather some information for himself. It was easier to rely on her, but he could read easily enough if the stuff was right in his face, as well. He sipped some more as they hovered about the ticket gate to figure out what they wanted out of the tour.

"Nah, I think I'm good," he answered her question, still sipping. Luckily he was able to savor the flavor despite seemingly rushing to finish the cocoa. "And are we supposed to donate something...?" He nodded at the listed prices, eyes narrowed as he tried to figure it out on his own.

Aria
"I think... if you pay the 'donation' price, a portion of the tickets go to some fund or other. Otherwise, it's just the cost of the ticket. Personally, since I don't know where that fund goes, I vote the lower priced regular ticket. It doesn't seem to make a difference in what we have access to." She shrugged some, eying the board a little more, then giving up and just shrugging.

She continued to drinking her cocoa, not feeling a rush at the moment. Once they got the tickets and got inside the wall, she might hurry up a bit, but right now, they were once again in a line.

Lines were the bane of her existance, but at least she had a warm boyfriend to cuddle.

Pao
"Lower price it is," he chuckled before leaning down to kiss her temple. He didn't feel the need to donate to any cause, particularly because he'd already given up a normal life for Deus's cause. "Savin' cash is good."

He sipped his cocoa as the line inched along. By the time they were next he was all done and wrapped around her again, hands resting at her waist and chin atop her head. Lines really weren't so bad when he had a girlfriend to snuggle up to.

Aria
She laughed and nodded in agreement about saving cash. Given their backgrounds, she had a suspicion neither of them were ever likely to be very wasteful with money. They were both too aware of what that could do in an emergency.

When her cup was finished, he was already wrapped around her, making her feel safe and warm once again. When they got to the ticket booth, she said "Two regular tickets, please." And waited for the total, leaving back against him, smiling like someone lost in how happy they were.

Pao
When the total came Rhys didn't hesitate to hand over his debit card again, taking the tickets along his card and receipt before they stepped aside. "Back piece saving," was all he said as he pocketed his card and the receipt before handing her, her ticket.

For the sake of ease of walking he just took her hand as they walked through the gate, content to just have her by his side. He took in everything around them with a rather neutral expression, if only because he wasn't familiar with any of it at all. Glancing over at Seren, he blinked. "Too late for that audio guide?"

Aria
She laughed up at him, in a loving and grateful way, and leaned up to kiss his cheek while she took her ticket from him. She happily followed him in, hand tucked into his larger one. She was marveling at the ancient buildings, amazed that people could build things that would last so very long.

His question had her refocusing and looking around curiously. "Hmm...." She finally spotted a small stand for renting the audio guides, and pointed. "They're probably aware people might realize they want them after all."

Pao
"Nice," he murmured, a sheepish blush creeping up on his cheeks. It wasn't a secret that he wasn't the academic sort, but it being made so obvious was still a little embarassing for him. He walked them over, quickly getting hold of his guide before turning back to her.

"Didya wanna share?"

Aria
She leaned up at the blush and pulled him into a kiss, not letting him go for a moment. She leaned against him, though, as they walked, and murmured "I didn't expect you to know about this stuff. I mostly don't, and I'm the nerd, remember?" She leaned her head against his shoulder. "It's not like they go in depth, sadly, in this stuff in American schools."

When he offered to share, she gave him a bright smile, and nodded.

Pao
He handed her the other ear piece and slipped his into one ear, still a bit embarassed but not as much now. Her presence and words had a rather comforting effect on him, and he was grateful that she didn't care so much that he needed the bit of help.

"Even if they did I didn't retain any of it. Work kinda took up all my attention, y'know?"

Aria
She popped the ear piece in her ear, her arm sliding around him. She noticed plenty of people, even British people, using the guide, and she discreetly pointed it out to him, hoping he'd feel even less embarrassed when he realized he was not at all outside of the normal here.

"Indeed. It's not your fault either way. You can find it out now, with me, while seeing the places it happened. I bet it sticks better."

Pao
He had to smile at her effort, and even stopped walking so he could lean down and give her a kiss, soft and loving however brief. "Thanks, baby," he said quietly, then kissed her again, still briefly, before draping his arm over her shoulders and keeping her close as they continued. "Let's hope it does."

With the guide now in use he felt more involved in the tour, seeing the various ancient buildings and actually appreciating it all a little bit more. It also kind of just felt like a nice stroll with Seren, which added to his enjoyment.

Aria
She kissed him back, both times, and murmured "Anytime, love." She wanted him to enjoy this, not feel awkward or embarrassed by his lack of knowledge. As they walked together, she was quite happy to stay close, snuggled into him, her eyes looking around the place. It was a fascinating building, with so much going on.

After the main tour was over, and they'd even gone through the room with all the Royal Jewels and ancient royal armors and things, they emerged back into the wide courtyard, near the Execution Gate. She found herself looking at it curiously for a long moment, then glanced up at him. "D'you think any of the old legends about ghosts here might be true?"

Pao
The longer the tour went the more his embarrassment faded until it was gone by the time they got back out in the courtyard. At her question he glanced around, curious to see if there were any shadows moving and lingering about this particular area.

"Maybe," was all he could say when he saw none. "Wouldn't be surprised if they flickered through here now and again, but not enough to cause problems that we need to fix."

Aria
She laughed and shrugged a bit. "Probably for the best, really... Can you imagine trying to deal with that in the middle of a place as touristy as this? But I just was musing more casually. Not thinking about work, beyond the knowledge our workplace gives us regarding such things... Just curiousity."

She sighed a little, and stretched, then said "Wanna go see the Ravens? There's a legend about them... Supposedly, if the Ravens, specifically more then six, leave the Tower, both the Kingdom and the Tower will fall."

Pao
Rhys smirked and nodded. "I know, my filter is kinda just..always around work now, I guess." He pulled her in for a little hug, wondering in passing when he started taking Deus work so seriously. He spent a lot of his time oroginally questioning the significance of what they did, but perhaps the gruelling daily work in Mexico sort of just forced him to stop so he could deal with things without the added stress of questioning...

At her question about the ravens he nodded, genuinely intrigued by the legend she mentioned. "Lead the way, babe. So what's the story behind the legend?"

Aria
She laughed softly and hugs him tight. "I mean, it's sort of always in my head, now, since it's how we live, but I am trying to ya know... leave work at work, since we're on leave." She wasn't going to forget her duty, or let things get out of hand, but as long as she could avoid it, she was here to be a tourist, take a few days to relax. She hoped he could do that too, because they deserved some time to pretend to be just normal people in love, and on vacation.

She blinked a little, then said "I'm not actually sure how it came about? I just know the legend, which is what I just said. I know that supposedly one of the old Kings made it illegal to harm them, and set up a part of the Guard specifically to protect and care for them... And those laws are still in place today. They have a Ravenmaster, even."

Pao
He nodded, smile soft. "I'll try to keep work off my mind too," he said, leaning down for a little kiss. "Just you and me and the city sights 'til we get back." He walked alongside her, happily holding her close as he pushed work out of his head.

"'Ravenmaster' sounds like a bad-a** title," he said with a little smirk. He would have compared it to his title at Deus, but promise to keep work off his mind kept him from commenting in that vein. "So you said what would cause the tower to fall? And it's never happened before?"

Aria
"Yeah..." She said, sounding happy at his agreement to her goal for their vacation. This was them time. She snuggled against him, sharing the warmth as they approached where the Ravens were currently hanging out, waiting for their food.

"Ahaha yeah it kind of does... But it's basically the guy who's job it is to feed and tend the Ravens. Still, they're tough birds, huge enough to put an eye out or take a finger with those beaks if they decide they don't like you, so I have to assume the Ravenmaster is some one who's earned their trust." She found herself thinking about how she'd earned Rhys' trust, and wondered how... While thanking the universe she had.

Pao
Pretty soon he found himself staring down the area where all the ravens were, and he gave an impressed whistle at the sight. "Definitely don't see that everyday," he said, quietly adding, "seen freakier s**t, but not many things as cool as this."

He rolled the thought about earning trust in his mind, wondering what it was that got him to out his guard down enough with Seren that they wound up together. He'd always been careful...but regardless, he was glad he'd let her in. The thought had him give her a squeeze, smiling as he leaned down for a kiss, soft and sweet and not at all paying any mind to anyone else around them.

Aria
She laughed softly and nods at his words, thinking of giant lobsters made of water and black greasy clouds. "I like ravens and crows, honestly. They're fascinating, and supposed to be very smart." She watched one of them hop closer, eye them and decide they're not interesting, then hop off.

She blinked in surprise at the kiss, and hugged him as she kissed back, not sure what prompted it but more then happy to have the kiss. "I love you, babe." She said after the kiss was broken.

Pao
"Mm, love you, too," he replied, gaze as loving as always as he looked into her eyes. Sometimes he felt those words weren't enough for him to just say, which was probably why he always tried extra hard for her. And if she noticed or not didn't really matter much, as long as he was sure that she felt loved...

Once his attention was back on the ravens, he nodded. "They are cool. Still like eagles more, I think, but ravens are cool, for sure. Isn't a flock of 'em called a murder or something?"

Aria
She smiled up at him, always feeling so warm and loved at his words and his expression. He never left her feeling like she needed to question if he meant it, his words and actions making how he felt very clear to her. She noticed how much he seemed to do for her, and it lit a fire inside of her to do the same for him, because at this point in her life, he was the center of her world.

She glanced back at the ravens and chuckled. "That's crows. A murder of crows. It's a conspiracy of ravens, I believe." She leaned her head back on his shoulder again, one of her hands going to twine fingers with his.

Pao
"Crows," he repeated, eyes narrowed. "Not a fan, but better than pigeons. Least they don't s**t everywhere, all day, every day." He was, of course, speaking from horrid experiences because of pigeons in the city. Her fingers twining with his calmed him down some, and he let it go.

"Still, a conspiracy of ravens sounds bad-a**. Plotting whose eyes to gouge out with their beaks or something." The morbid side of his sense of humor peeked out a bit, another thing he picked up while at Deus. "Sneaking bastards." He said all this while smirking, amused by the sight of the birds that were clearly disinterested in them.

Aria
"You don't like crows?" She asked, in a curious tone. She liked all of the corvids, though she preferred ravens. "Is there a reason?" She grinned at the comment on pigeons. "You just don't appreciate squab." She paused, then in an honest tone added "Nor do I, to be fair. I've never had it, though it's supposed to be fairly good, if fatty. Still, seems like a lot of effort for the size of the bird."

His comments on ravens had her laughing her head off, and shaking it at him, in an amused way. "All right, you've clearly had enough time with the ravens, love, you're getting disturbing for a place with kids wandering around." She didn't mind the morbid humor, but she noticed some nearby parents giving them a black look, and didn't want to deal with harrassment or otherwise. "C'mon, let's go get dinner, babe."

She was about to lead him away, then added "Unless you wanted a photo of the ravens or something."

Pao
"Seen a murder of crows," he waggled his brows at being able to use the term, smiling, "attack a kid once. They're also loud. And I could swear the ones near my old apartment hated me." His tone was serious and suspicious, and his eyes narrowed, which carried over to what he said next. "And no, only birds I eat are chicken and duck." He was a foodie, but not so much an exotic food explorer.

Her laugh had him pull a smile back on, though, and at her words he glanced around and noticed the parents as well so he nodded. "Picture, then dinner," he said, pulling his phone out again. After taking a snap of them and a very photogenic raven that seemed it was posing, photobomb style, they carried on.

With a smirk as he handed his phone to her he repeated, "Sneaking bastards."

Aria
Her eyes went wide at the idea of crows attacking children. "I didn't know they did that. I've never seen them attack kids before, but we didn't have a big flock in town, so..." She frowned at the idea that they hated him, and just hugged him tight. "I don't know why they'd hate you, the ridiculous birds. And... yeah I've never had squab, nor duck." She had no idea if she'd try squab if they offered it, but she did know she had no desire to make it.

She grinned at his response, and then smiled for the camera, snuggled right up to him, happy to allow him all the photos he wanted. She took the phone to look at the photo and threw her head back, laughing at his comment and the 'photobomber' they'd been joined by. She smiled, shook her head and returned the phone before leading him, fingers twined with his, out of the Tower's walls and through the maze of London City streets.

After a good half an hour, she led them in the door of a classic pub, and got them a table for two.