"You said she fought through a terrible illness. That takes a lot of determination. And perhaps, and I hate to admit this, I've been a lot of work for you too," Destino acknowledged, eyes turning away from the blaziken. "Even if you've only known me for a short amount of time, you've been trying to get me on board with the prophecy stuff, no matter how much I've resisted."
Hope saw Destino with new eyes. They were truly being honest. She could appreciate that. Hope gazed towards the starry sky. "If I don't do it," started Hope, the sense of responsibility filling her voice," I know the world will perish. You're not going to try - that’s clear to me - so I need to put in twice the amount of work to get you to do what you need to do."
Hope gave a wry laugh. Of course Destino would think that. They'd never worked a day in their life so what would they understand about responsibility and duty?
Hope went on, "That's what needs to happen. I have to give one-hundred percent at all times. If I don't, my kingdom will lose faith in me. At least that's what my dad says. Our family already has a poor reputation from my grandfather. If we want to build it back up we need to give our everything to the kingdom."
Hope turned to Destino, narrowing her eyes at them. A sharpness came into her tone.
"I can't slack off and neither can you. My mom fought until the very end. She gave everything she had. And I want to make her proud by putting in my all too. My dad knows what's best for this kingdom and if it means constantly flitting from event to event without a break, then that's what I'll do. If i have to miss out on lunch because my subjects demand my attention, then that's what's going to happen."
Destino couldn't believe what they were hearing. Their mouth hung open slightly. Surely Hope should understand how important it was to rest. Though judging by the snippets of conversation Destino had heard between Hope and her dad, the absolutely atrocious eyebags that drooped under her eyelids and the rumble that erupted from her stomach when they'd seen her earlier, Hope clearly needed a lesson in relaxation. Luckily, Destino was an expert.
Destino knew they were going to regret saying this but they didn't want to deal with Hope's irritable attitude anymore. With an annoyed tone, Destino gestured towards themself, "I'll put some more effort into my training tomorrow. However, you need to take a break. Give yourself some time to rest and actually eat something. If I never took a break, I would look atrocious. I could never do that to myself."
"How can I if my schedule doesn't allow it?"
"Make it allow it then. You're the princess of this stupid kingdom. You've got free reign to do this type of shit. I take breaks all the time and, when it comes to actually doing what I need to do, I can do them without exhausting myself. You can't live your life a vigoroth about to evolve. You want me to put in effort tomorrow? You've gotta give yourself a break."
Hope's eyes paused on Destino's face. No hint of a joke or any sarcasm present. They wanted her to take a break. Destino didn't seem like the type to care about others so why were they insisting on this? Still, she did have to admit that the absol had a point - she was exhausted. She did need to take it a little easier. Perhaps the pressure of knowing the prophecy was real and still having to put time into her daily duties was getting to her a little.
"...fine," Hope acquiesced, "I accept your terms. But I'll be checking back with Farris to see if you do."
"I will. I was gonna say let's shake on it," Destino gestured towards Hope's shoulders, "but you don't have the means to actually cement this little deal."