As her place is too cold, she travels southwest, and finds herself in the kingdom of passion. She was told that Antonio is currently out of country, so she can walk around carelessly.

had actually migrated down south to Andalusia and was enjoying the outdoor markets stopping every now and then to chat with the vendors and buyers.

finds an adorable marzipan shoppe, and fascinates herself with the confectionery sold in there. It is not quite German, but marvellous nonetheless.

passes by said shop and has to do a double

take when he sees a familiar brunette, even if said brunette was no longer a man. He was hard to mix up. He gently eases the door open smiling at such a pleasant surprise. "Roderich? You look good~" he hums as

he turns her around and presses one kiss on each cheek before planting one on her lips pulling away with a wink. "You should have told me

you were coming~" He hums pleased.

converses with the shopkeeper in fluent Spanish, as she has been since married to Antonio. She should have kept her alert.... Who could imagine the person supposed to be out of country suddenly returns!?

"Ah- I did not expect that!" she turns abruptly and faces Antonio, flushing rosy red. Her voice was high-pitched and nervous. "What are you doing here, I thought you are at somewhere else!"

laughs at her nervousness. He pokes her nose. "So cute when you flush. I was out for a bit but I've been home or a while. Let me treat you to lunch~"

like she is following Antonio's tempo again. Why has that always been the case? "How did you figure out that was me?" She glances at her unusual outfit. That shouldn't give anyone a clue...

smiles. "I may act dumb but I was married to you. I can spot you kilometres away no mater your gender or clothes."

chuckles immediately. "May act dumb..." She has to cover her mouth to prevent showing more laughter. "You have been. Unfortunately."

pouts. "Don't be like that. I have some enlightening moments here and there." He has his arm around her and is guiding her out onto the streets.

the arm around her.... How expected of the Spaniard. She should also stop appearing surprised and gets her acts together. "It did not feel as changed here." She sighs, referencing her last visit... probably

four, five hundred years ago. "The same relaxing atmosphere."

smiles but it doesn't meet his eyes. "Five hundred years ago...there was a lot happening. I'm glad you think nothing has changed since then..." His smile shifts and he leads her into a small restaurant. "Are

you very hungry?"

doesn't take Antonio's words very seriously. "Oh? Not very hungry, but I can have a plate. My appetite has lowered ever since I turned into this body..." Though the appetite for sweet go up. That is concerning.

huns a bit as he pulls out her chair for her and orders then two coffees to start. He had been missing his daily doze of caffeine. "Both you and Eliza have changed genders and apparently Gregory as well. I

hope I'm lucky to avoid any change."

appreciate the coffee order. "Elisa changed back to normal a day or two ago. It was very temporal; I doubt mine would last very long." She plays with her hair a bit. "Yes, you shouldn't definitely not change."

hums as he takes in the aroma of his coffee and sips on it. "If it happens it happens. Nothing I can really do about it~"

chuckles. "Fine. I shall attend church services more often praying that nothing shall happen onto you. I would hate to deal with more irksome behaviour..." She is joking, of course.

laughs. "I don't think God could save me from all my sins." As much as he wished that were the case. "How's the coffee?"

"Vice versa." She has learnt not to ask for mercy nowadays. "The list is too long. Both of us." She flips through the menu casually. "I am ready to order. Are you?"

nods, he was just going to pick a random item from the menu. He was feeling adventurous even though he knew everything on it.

waves the waiter over. "Hmmmmm~. May we have some Jamón ibérico for tapas first? And then, Pescaíto frito... or Pringá, what do you think, Antonio? And a glass of Pedro Ximénez Jerez would be great." she loves

sherry a lot. Who cares if this is the middle of day.

laughs. "What the lady said. I was wanting tapas as well. Let's get both." He was hungry. "Tambien in sangria por favor~" He smiles at the waiter.

"Muchas gracias~" she smiles at the waiter as well as he takes his leave. "So? Where will you lead me to today?" She rests her head on her palm and tilts her head , letting her hair situate on one side.

(( una*** ))

leans back in his chair humming. "I was actually hoping to go horseback riding before you came." He smiles. "You can join me or I can reschedule for another time." He would leave out the part that they would

have to share the horse.

Ahh, great memories of horse riding. She remember the days of taming and training way too well-how her youth has passed."Where?I assume you wouldn't go for the now-touristic Royal stable."Probably countryside."

nods laughing. "Exactly...I was hoping to escape for a few days but with you here I can make it a day thing." The food is brought out and so is his sangria! Yahoo!

Great, her sherry too!Taking a sip just made her felt heavenly. Probably due to the alcohol as well."I did not know you need to escape. Anything happened?"She took a bite of the pescaito. As delicious as usual.

shrugs. "What hasn't happened. My economy is in ruins and all the intellectuals of my country are leaving....I also have many abandoned villages around the countryside..." He looks a little put off.

looks downcast upon hearing such words. That does not easily come out from a cheerful Spaniard's mouth. "Where is the optimistic man that I was accustomed to seeing," she places down her glass and pats his

hand gently with hers. It is true that the Austrian teases the other a lot about economy not performing, it feels the other way seeing the Spaniard looking depressed. "It will get better - that is certain. If

you do think taking a few days for escaping is necessary, by all means. I shall keep you company." She smiles.

gently squeezes her hand the corners of his lips curving upwards. "Should we pack you a bag on that case?"

"A bag? What are you referring to? I have my belongings in my car."

nods. "I was planning a three day trip...do you have enough?"

bites her lips. "Hmmmm... "I have enough for two days. I might need to buy the rest."

sips at his sangria a bit dazed and a bit pensively. "We are at a market."

"That is quite true. I will pick up some disposable ones." She meant some cheap clothing that she wouldn't wear anymore.

had no idea there was such a thing. He nods a bit at that partaking in the food since he was paying for it after all.

also begins savouring the food. She finds joy taking different food bit by bit, and very soon, the plates are empty, and her glass as well. Rosy pink flushes on her face, "That was splendid~" she exclaims.

laughs. "You can never go wrong with Spanish food."

"So, let's head out?" She takes the purse, not showing any intent to pay for the meal. Perhaps she might pay for something - later.

pulls out his very empty wallet and pays for the food with hat little he has left. There went his weekly supply of money but he doesn't seem at all bothered as he follows after her.

The clothing in this clothing is very Iberian instead - bright colours are everywhere. She soon finds a crimson satin dress that is only for 5 euros! What a bargain. She hands over the bill willingly.

turns over to Antonio. "I don't think I can wear this to ride a horse - at least, not in this century." There is no side saddle nowadays. "But I can for two days."

chuckles a bit. "Well, I forgot to mention you'd be riding with me."

"Riding with you... as in?" What? Did he just underestimate her wallet? "I can rent another horse."

didn't forget how cheap she can be. "I own only one horse but you can definitely rent one." He's amused by all this.

"Only one horse, hmmm. Riding together lowers the agility. I prefer not doing that..." She has been riding by herself most of the time anyways (when she was a he). "Let's get to the stables first and

we can discuss."

doubts it will be that expensive in this economy. "Sure sure~" He says as he gently guides her in a different direction towards the stables which were located on the outskirts of town.

"Have I been here?" She doesn't recall herself being here.... or she simply has a terrible memory. But the thought of meeting the origins of Lipizzan again makes her very excited.

shakes his head. "I don't think I've brought you here." He admits thinking about it. It doesn't take them long to make it to the stables before he's pullin away an heading towards his horse. "Sancho!!" He

exclaims as he goes over to pet his horse. He may have gotten distracted.

stands nearby the man and the horse, but does not approach them yet. She doesn't want the horse to be too scared of her presence. "A handsome horse. How old is he?"

reaches over to grab the brush as he gently brushes him. "Five years old."

"5 years old...." So that is 2008.... "Wait- how much did you purchase him for, if you don't mind me asking?" That was when economy started going down anyway.... And a horse is generally expensive.

flushes a bit. "Is it really that important?" He had really wanted a horse.

"No. Just curious. May I pat?" She cautiously walks over, looking for a carrot somewhere.

notices this and pulls out the carrot he had stored in his back pocket for Sancho. He gently eases it into her hand. "Si, of course. He's very docile so you don't have to worry about him."

"Thanks." She takes the carrot and makes it visible to Sancho, and slowly guiding him to eat it while having the other hand patting the horse. "Good boy- don't be hurry. Eat slow. "

watches her smiling softly. "How is the school? The one I opened up for you?"

"Ah, the school." She chuckles bitterly. "More of a tourist attracting location than an actual school, I am afraid. However, there have been new young recruits of both genders outside of Austria. I believe

that it is a fresh change." She doesn't really mind the enormous revenue generated from the shows, however.

would think she wouldn't mind that too much. "That is~ I'll have to come watch a show one of these days. So, did you want to rent a horse?"

"Better not. I believe that we can perform better than those trainees. Besides, the admission price is not as nice. I can try letting you in." She takes another glance at the horseback. "Hmmmmm... how much

would that be?

"

tries to calculate admittedly he'd never been very good at math. "Honestly, I think it might round up to four hundred euros for all three days since it'll be the full day."

to reconsider her decision. "How much is a single hotel room around this area?" Need to take that into consideration as well.

quirks a brow laughing. "Roderich...we're going to be camping. I wasn't thinking we'd be sleeping in hotels."

appears to be somewhat stricken.... oh right......... She hasn't dealt with female hygiene in an outdoor setting.. would that be alright? Would she not die from infection or something? She was a male after all.

"...Oh. Hmmm.... Well, I would rent another horse, then." She averts her eyes in embarrassment.

can't help but laugh a little louder. "I mean...if you really have an issue we can spend the night in hostels but I wasn't planning on going to any villages until it was really necessary."

Hostel sounds like an even worse idea."I think this will be fine,"she squeezes out a smile and prepares her wallet to rent the horse.It would be more convenient to ride the horse to escape in case she needs to.

nods as he takes her to the front to speak with stable master. She would be able to chose the horse of her wanting that way.

prefers a white mare who has better balance and stability rather than a regular horse with fast gallop. They are not racing today; speed is not necessary. She communicates with the stable master and found some

horse that she finds adorable. "Konstanze, your name is Konstanze." She smiles at pats her new mare.

| During that time Antonio pulled out Sancho and got him ready as he attached his side bags and mounted him trotting up to her waiting for her to settle herself. "You look happy." He smiles.

"It has been a while that I ride a horse," Anneliese swiftly mounts her new horse, then setting the helmet. She is that excited. "I do understand Elisa's feelings occasionally. The feeling of liberation."

hums as he presses the reigns to the side of Sancho's neck urging him to head in that direction also using the shift of his weight to direct him. "Riding a horse is a good feeling."

gently kicks the side of Konstanze to have her follow Sancho. It is much easier to control her than she imagined to be. "The breeze soothes one's emotions. Troubles seem to be minimal in comparison."

the feel of the wind against him when he's riding even if it isn't very fast. It reminds him of days that he enjoyed even through the hardship. He makes sure to keep at a pace that Roderich can keep up with

even if it didn't look like she was having that much trouble catching up.

Very soon, Anneliese catches up the Spaniard and rides in parallel. There were times that he had to ride 5 to 6 days nonstop to get to certain locations, but the times were over, and how they could

still ride horses in leisure felt like a blessing.

smiles at her. "Nice feeling, si?" He pats Sancho on the side of the neck earning a neigh from his stallion.

"Claro que sí~" She regrets slightly that she did not tie up her hair - the hair flying in the air often interferes with her vision. No wonder women usually tie pony tail nowadays...

goes for a while before he notices the sun slowly start descend and speeds up a bit to find a proper camping space.

doesn't bother catching up, as she finds the sunset magnificent and slows down to admire the scenery. "El imperio en el que nunca se pone el sol"... Watching Antonio chasing the sun was quite adorable as well.

does hear the bit of Spanish and quriks a brow glancing back at her. "Sabes que este imperio era el imperio de Arturo, si?" He says with a small smile nonetheless. His empire had been large but never like

Arthur's.

didn't expect Antonio to reply - she was just murmuring to herself. ""Y tuya también. Fue un gran imperio." She slowly catches up and finally returns to nearby Antonio's sight.

didn't expect Antonio to reply - she was just murmuring to herself. "Y el tuyo también. Fue un gran imperio." She slowly catches up and finally returns to nearby Antonio's sight.

looks a little serious for a second before he's all smiles again. "Si, eso es verdad...era grande pero no es el caso hoy. Y pienso que es mejor que nunca regresamos a el tiempo imperico."

"Well.... It was difficult for me to see you as you were not in Europe over half of the time. I would have been sick on the time on the ship commuting back and forth." She hums wistfully.

glances at her studying her for a bit. "Would you have rather I stayed in Europe longer and more often?"

to give it a better thought. "Hmm... It was not feasible. Besides, there was trade off- the glory you brought back might have compensated as Europe was too contained. What do you think?" She decides no to

reveal most of her opinion yet.

shrugs. "I went backrupt because of my pioneering." He didn't really like this subject. There were many things he wished he could forget. "Portugal, France and England and the Netherlands were also bringing

things back from exotic places."

"Don't tell me that you are regretting the decision to explore," she slows down as she notices the campsite is approaching. "I, for one, was enjoying the sugar you brought back." Among other things that

Antonio might have promised but failed. She did not care about them as much.

hums. "No, never regretting. I was just saying that I wasn't the only one bringing things back."

"Are you suggesting I should make all the them Habsburg as well," She is amused at the thought, but later shakes her hand. "It was not easy staying in Europe, Antonio. Housekeeping is an intricate task."

her a strange look. "Ah....no. Clearly, it was, I couldn't do a very good job after our marriage ended."

"-And as a result, no soul speaks German outside Europe," she shrugs and mounts off her horse. "It can't be helped." It would be a lie if she refuses to admit how bitter she gets for not owning any colonies.

"So- are we camping here?"

pulls the reigns on Sancho causing him to stop and jumping off. "Si! I'll set the fire. As for German, Roderich I have to speak German and I know Brazil pushes for his people to learn it because Ludwig is

so strong economically. That's something to be proud of...I can't even say that about my kids or siblings. We're all corrupt and modernizing states." He tries to comfort as he sets out firewood and works on

lighting the wood. He wasn't proud nor did he want to admit it. "Many of my kids still resent me." He was being open and serious with Roderich which wasn't something he did often with people.

snorts. "One day, Ludwig might end up passing out in the middle of autobahn since he works like a workaholic," Roderich is merciless as usual when it comes to criticising Ludwig, regardless of audience.

"There is also influence from Alfred - you could not intervene as much as you could after a certain point. Corruption is an universal human problem that none of us can get rid of - only by suppressing it.

Do not be too hard on yourself? You have been appearing rather desperate lately. Ludwig might have pushed you a lot, but you should focus on remaining yourself. There is a reason why Latin and Germanic culture

do not exactly much." She ties up Konstanze as well, helping Antonio setting up the fire.

laughs at that imagery. "I doubt Ludwig would let that happen." He nods a bit at the rest. Although, honestly, he felt as if if he had made his colonies stronger than Alfred wouldn't have been able to influence

them so strongly but that would be kept to himself. "Are you thirsty?" He changes the subject.

"He might. We'll see." She tries to find a large rock where she can rest for a bit. "What kind of drink do you have other than water?"

blows into the fire a bit to get it lively. "I brought some rum."

"Better than water." The climate is more drastic between day and night, and Anneliese feels the need to return to her horse for a coat. She retrieves her outerwear and returns to the fire, hovering her hands

over the flame with her outerwear draping casually on her back. "I begin to wonder if you have bought enough food for two people." She looks at Antonio in concern. "I can hunt, but..." She will need a rifle.

pulls the rum out and passes it to her. "We have enough food. I also was thinking of fishing when we got closer to the coast." He says as he pulls out more stuff to cook some meat for them.

"That is true - the meat might spoil..." They need to be more concerned about food safety since it doesn't seem like any hospitals are around... She takes over the meat and begins preparing them with the

condiment Antonio brought over. The fat cut of meat should suffice as oil, she notes to herself, taking a few sips of rum for the cup. How she loves her breath now. "We also need to set up the tent."

Glancing up at the sky, the dusk is approaching, and the stars are getting visible. It would be too late to set up the tent if the last beam of light has passed.