Two Different Views

Standing in front of the gate Xilo couldn't keep his curiosity in check anymore as he took out the silver case he left in his pocket after leaving the inn. He knew there were only 10 that he had to use sparingly but he was too interested in seeing how they actually worked. Nimbly picking up one of the glass vials he took out the pill inside of it and brought it to his nose and gave it a sniff. "Smells like flowers." After that he stared at it for a couple more seconds eager to consume it.

"What's that?"

Pointing to the pill he was holding that Tearia hadn't seen before she was curious.

"You'll see."

Bringing it up to his face he plopped it in his mouth and swallowed. Expecting some kind of feeling or energy to fill his body he tensed up in anticipation but even after waiting for a couple of seconds he didn't feel anything but silly. Thinking nothing happened he turned to Tearia to see her looking at him waiting for him to speak up.

"Uhh..Do you notice anything?"

"Like?"

"Do I feel different at all?"

Eagerly waiting for her reply he clenched his fist with some impatience and anxiety. If these pills worked the way he thought they did then maybe he could be seen as normal by people. "Please..." With that quiet voice in the back of his head he waited holding his breath.

"Different? What are you talking about Xilo? You look the same as usual, are you okay? Did you eat something weird."

Not seeing any changes or understanding what Xilo was talking about in the least she instantly jumped to the conclusion that the pill he ate did something bad to him. Panicking she rushed up to him and grabbed at his body only to miss. Hearing her answer he deflated and released a deep sigh as his hand relaxed but before he could feel down about it he saw Tearia rushing at him and quickly got out of the way.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine but what about you? what did you just eat."

With some panic in her voice she was worried about Xilo. Wondering why she was so panicky he hurriedly answered her to help calm her down.

"A pill you're grandmother gave me that's all."

Hearing that ease washed through her as her worry settled down. She knew her Grandmother made pills and wouldn't do anything to hurt Xilo but that didn't explain why he was still acting so strange but she didn't get to ask anymore questions as they arrived at the front of the line to the gate and entered the Astral Zone. Paying and entering the Astral Zone Xilo looked around at the familiar surroundings as he finally started to notice something that was different from usual.

Looking around at all the people around him he noticed that the ones who were staring at him today weren't giving him the same typical look he usually saw whenever he was out. While they still looked at him they didn't seem nearly as scared as they did before nor did they seem to try and avoid him as well. Taking in the difference that was around him he got excited as he realized the pill he had taken really was working. Tearia kept seeing his emotions subtly changer but she still didn't know what was going on with him that caused such changes.

"What's going on Xilo?"

"That pill I just took now, your grandmother called it a Perception Pill that would change the way people saw me and while it doesn't work on you, it seems to be working on everyone else."

Looking at their surroundings as well Tearia looked and saw the same looks as usual being pointed at them but she didn't see any differences from before. "What's he talking about? Also Is a Perception Pill something my grandmother's ever made?" She knew her grandmother was skilled in pills alongside her medical skills but for some reason she never recalled her grandmother ever mentioning something about a Perception Pill existing before. "Maybe I just didn't need to learn it but does it really even exist?" She was taught medical and pill knowledge alongside Astral Training from her grandfather but no matter how she racked her brain she couldn't recall it but then again she might have just forgotten about it or didn't care either. With that in mind she didn't mention that to Xilo and just left it be seeing as he was happy.

"Well I'm happy to hear that, But let's get somewhere a little less crowded okay? Well we shouldn't go to the places we visited before that doesn't mean we should stand around in a crowd either."

"Ok."

With some excitement in his voice they walked off to a less crowded area and started to look for some Astral Beasts for Xilo to fight for the day. Xilo also kept a look out for any items that were on the list as they were looking. Thankfully with Tearia's knowledge by his side he was able to find some of the materials like Milken Flowers or Slithering Grass with relative ease as they were walking around. Eventually they were even able to find some Astral Birds along the way that had mutated but only a couple here and there for him to fight. However that was to be expected given the area they were currently hunting in. Xilo was just happy nobody came to bother them but he soon regretted that thought as he heard a voice behind him where Tearia was standing and was watching him while fighting. Turning around he frowned deeply as he mentally kicked himself "Is this my fault?" With that he started to make his way towards her with some irritation building up

"Hey girlie. Whatcha up to, You alone?"

It seemed like today wouldn't be so easy going as he thought it would be but a part of him really hoped otherwise.