RP:An Awkward Triangle
Tyler is a bit out of mind when his eyelids peel apart. He's staring at the ceiling in the small room within Kelay Tavern. The sounds from down stairs are non-existent and as a rare treat, the chirp of the birds in the way take their place. Tilting his head to the right he finds the wood elf has kept her word, she hasn't left him. Allowing just a few seconds to savor the warm embrace of the bed the man picks himself up with a yawn to kick his heels off the edge of the bed. Rubbing at his eyes before gathering his thoughts. He checks over his shoulder to spy on Skylei before getting off of the bed and moving toward the small bathroom that he'd only recently began using. Once inside he turns the water from the bath on long enough to wash his face and hair before moving back into the room and changing into a pair of clean rags to take out for the day.
Skylei rolls over as soon as she feels the weight of the human lift from the bed to look in the direction in which he had gone. He disappears briefly into the bathroom but Skylei keeps watching for his return. She can scarcely believe that she is still here, with him, but she expects that was just another poor decision made under the influence of vodka. And speaking of vodka, the poor half-elf’s head is pounding and she’s feeling more than a little sorry for herself. Reaching for one of the glasses of water that rest on the bedside cabinet, Skylei sits up for long enough to take a large gulp before Tyler returns to the room. In spite of the fact she is now upright, Skylei doesn’t bother to get out of the bed yet. Rather she pulls the covers up closer to her chin to keep in the warmth. If he caught her eye at any point; hers are following him around the room, then she would simply offer a sleepy smile and a light greeting, “Good morning.”
Tyler is finishing getting dressed when he glances over to the bed to find Skylei staring at him. He returns a smile, "Good morning." he states in a pleasant voice, clearly more rested than the woman. Pulling his satchel free from the back of the chair he places it on the night stand and opens it. He pulls open the drawer to stuff some bandages, tape, gauze and his last bottle of water inside along side the two glowing ember blood stones. He fastens the large button on the bag and tosses it over his shoulder before taking a rest at the bed side. His hand moves to rest on Skylei's leg. He doesn't apologize for his breakdown last night, in fact, he hopes the booze had aided the woman to completely forget that bit, instead he provides an offer. "I'm going to check on Emi, would you like to come with me? It's just down the road and into the Sage a bit... Where I was sleeping before I found you here."
Skylei doesn’t move from the bed quite yet, indeed she’d be happy to simply roll over and sleep off her hangover for another hour whilst the noise from the tavern below is minimal. Then he asks her if she wants to go out and check on some woman named ‘Emi’ with him. Hold the phone. Some woman? There’s another woman? Already!? HOW?! She’d only been gone for a matter of days to reobtain that damn amulet and already he’d found some hoebag to hook up with. Nice, thanks Tyler. Skylei feels as though she might vomit up the contents of her stomach and this definitely isn’t a side effect of the vodka. Calm down, she tells herself, she could just be a friend, a nobody of any consequence. He had kissed her the night before, she remembers that clearly through her vodka haze. And she thinks she knows Tyler well enough to say that he won’t be playing the field; that’s just not him. Most of all she is forced to fight her gut reaction to declare Tyler hers. He doesn’t belong to her, not any more. Was she really so stupid to think she had any claim over the man? She attempts to keep her voice neutral and free from all confrontation. It’s hard, but she just about manages, though the light and airy tone that she manages to produce in the place of confrontational anger would suggest to anyone that truly knows Sky well enough that she is not happy, “Who’s Emi?” Already, as she asks the question Skylei’s feet have found the floor and she wanders round the room, looking for water to tame her hair and considering changing into another fresh set of clothes. Most of all she looks for somewhere but Tyler to cast her eyes. She doesn’t want him to see the look of betrayal that is so hard to hide.
Tyler watches Skylei jump from his side to scurry around the room. He believes to find a hint of emotion in her voice. Perhaps he is only over thinking it and thus presses the thought away. Left leg is placed over the right so that his wrists can lay rest across his shin. "She's a friend I met the other night when I went out for a walk. I don't know why, but for some reason I decided to venture up to the caves and found her there. She was -literally- living in the cave. I brought her back here to clean her up and give her somewhere to stay for the night. Then I showed her my place in the sage and offered her refuge there over the dirty ol' mines." He is factual and to the point. He omits that he had indeed developed a bit of affection for the girl, that he had seen her nude, kissed her and even provided a set of Skylei's clothes for her to wear. After all, what good would it do either of them?
“Oh.” That’s all she gives in response to his story. Skylei continues to move around the room. First she disappears into the bathroom, the sound of water suggesting that she is engaging in hygienic procedures. As she reappears, her hair is flattened into a single neat braid and her face is red having been scrubbed with cold water until the half-breed felt closer to awake. Then she goes to put on a fresh set of clothes. Finally she looks for shoes, “Did I have a second pair of shoes here?” A seemingly harmless question and one that Sky cannot remember the answer to. Her first pair are of course residing in a bog somewhere outside Gualon. Gods forbid, Tyler had given away a pair of her shoes… Before he would have time to answer Skylei utters a second response, (“Never mind, I’ll go barefoot.”), shrugs and curses, remembering the pain in her shoulder. After relocating the bandage for her shoulder and deftly tying it, she picks up her bow and hooks it onto her back, “Let’s go and see the silly girl who thinks she can live in a mine then.”
Tyler doesn't remember giving Emilia any shoes, and was ready to confess that he had in fact given her some of Skylei's clothing but the woman seemed eager to move. Tyler simply nods as he picks himself up off the bed and moves to the door, opening it to allow Skylei first exit. As they exit the tavern, Tyler does well to ignore the few patrons and head right into the way. Outside, he takes a second to stretch and enjoy the sunshine before tugging on Sky's arm and nodding to the west. "This way." He sets off.
Skylei takes the door when it’s offered to her by Tyler. She pauses by the door ensuring that he locks the room before they leave before leading him down the stairs and through the bar. She tries not to catch the eyes of any of the limited clientele that morning (drunks, gamblers and idiots) and attempts not to breath in the sticky smell of sweat and spilt ale. Urgh. If she wasn’t already feeling nauseated at the thought of this ‘Emi’, she certainly feels vomitus now. Skylei mutters a complaint as he tugs on her arm about feeling more than a little tender, and if he didn’t mind so terribly could he please be careful with her. She clearly doesn’t object all that much because within moments, she’s slid her hand into his, whether he’s willing to take it or not and is talking about drow, “If you see any of the dark elves, I swear to the gods Tyler, you will have to kill them. These,” She pulls her hand from his for a second to gesture to the prominently pointed ears and clearly elven lines of her face, “are more than enough to get me killed. And I can’t shoot. Promise you’ll protect me?”
Tyler takes Skylei's hand without a second thought. Interlocking their fingers while they move down the way. As she speaks of the dark elves, he's smiling. All too familiar with navigating the forest during the occupation and having to ease Emilia of the same fears. "Don't worry, Sky, I've got it." The duo eventually reach the breaking point in the way and Tyler turns to head into the Sage forest with Skylei still in hand. They travel in silence, stopping every few minutes to listen to the woods for sounds of battle. "Odd." He mutters to himself. The usual sound of the Minotaurs off in the distance isn't heard. Perhaps they had wiped out the occupation? Doubtful. But that doesn't stop the man from hoping. Eventually, they come to the tree that Tyler calls his home. Hidden away high in the branches is a single hammock, covered by brush. If you squint hard enough you can just barely make out pieces of rope gripping supplies that dangle toward the earth below. He releases her hand and whispers, "Be right back." The man begins climbing the tree at a rapid rate. The limbs all lining up flawlessly for the next grab. But, when he reaches his peak the man is let down. "No..." He groans. Emilia isn't here. He grits his teeth and looks down to Skylei, shaking his head before beginning his descent. His boots hit the forest floor with a thud. "She isn't here." He says, a hint of depression in his voice. "She must've went off for some errands or something... Let's head back to the tavern. We'll try again later." Taking hold of Skylei's hand once more he turns to begin their exit from the forest.
Skylei is beyond nervous when Tyler leaves her alone on the forest floor to shimmy up a tree. Her two usual forms of attack and defense (shoot a bow, climb a tree) are not currently manageable. The few moments that Tyler is away turn into centuries in her mind and the half-elf plays all manner of horrible scenarios in her mind. Oh god, she’s going get torn apart by drow. But then Tyler returns looking forlorn, stating that Emi was nowhere to be seen. Maybe she’s been torn apart by drow, the half-elf thinks, before callously adding a ‘good’ to the thought. Skylei’s not a mean girl, not deep down honest! As if to emphasise the point she would smile to the human and only voice sweet (untrue) thoughts, “I’m sure she’s fine. Probably just errands, like you said. It’s early in the morning and I’m sure she’s got a lot to do. Like find somewhere to live” She squeezes his hand comfortingly.
Tyler and Skylei break the treeline back onto Kelay Way. The human biting at the inside of his lip. 'Where the hell is she?' He has a sick feeling in his stomach. Emilia hadn't promised she'd stick around, but Tyler was more than hopeful that she would. Still carrying a heavy posture he releases a heavy sigh. Maybe he'd just misjudged their relationship. Maybe she didn't care. Hand in hand, the human and half-elf move back towards the Kelay tavern. The man unwilling to speak unless spoken too.
Skylei doesn’t feel the need to speak. She’s already counting her victories against this faceless other woman that she doesn’t know anything about, never mind the nature of her relationship with Tyler. Ah, the female mind is truly a thing of great beauty (and evil). Every so often she would squeeze his hand lightly and look up to his face attempting to read the emotions that play out on his face. Disappointment is clear, but there’s something else that Skylei lacks the social nuances to understand. Whatever, as far as she’s concerned the scoreboard reads; Skylei: 1 – Emi: 0. So she thinks…
Emilia had indeed spent the night sleeping where Tyler had left her in the tree to keep her promise to the man, but her internal clock had her up before the sun had even thought to rise into the sky. Awake she gathered her bow and arrow, she'd left her pack at the tavern when he was so eager to show her this place, she climbed down the tree to the forest floor. Careful travels lead her off to where she gathered a new set of clothes that fit her, plaid button down shirt with denim jeans tucked into her leather boots, then had the clothes loaned washed and dried. Folded neatly in a stack the curly haired blonde walked along Kelay way toward the tavern so that she could return that which wasn't hers. She had no idea Ty was serious about keeping her away from trouble and out to look for her now that the sun was up.
Tyler would fake a smile every time Skylei squeezed his hand. The man trying to present himself to be in an alright mood though his mind was still racing. As they come closer to the tavern his eyes would narrow to observe the back of a passerby. Her posture and hair would never be Emilia's ally if she tried to blend in. Speeding up he starts to pull Skylei with him but remembers her complaints of how quickly he had tucked her, so instead he releases her hand and rushes roughly ten feet ahead so that he can place his palm on Emilia's shoulders. He doesn't speak, he instead aims to spin her around and stare at her with a frantic look, eyes crossing to ensure no new injury has fallen upon the woman.
Skylei doesn’t see Emilia as anyone special. Just another person up running errands in Kelay. Whatever. Then Tyler drops her hand in favour of running over to the pretty blonde woman that Skylei can only assume is the mysterious ‘Emi’. Burn. To her the drop of her hand on the sight of the other woman screams two things. He doesn’t want Emilia to see the two of them holding hands (fair enough, it’s not as though they’re a couple anymore) and, worse in her mind, that he favours the pretty human over her. With a tinge of bitterness the half-elf admits it’s not hard to see why. After a cursory glance even she can admit that, in a beauty contest (and likely personality contest too), Emilia would win all the prizes when pitted against Sky. Still, Skylei is a child of elven blood and it would be ungracious to let any of these thoughts play out on her face. Setting her lips in a firm line and crossing her arms as best she can when one is in a sling, Skylei lets Emi and Tyler have what she has deemed a lovers reunion. Screw them both. Screw them both to all four corners of hell and let drow rip them apart and rats feast on their innards. That, and concentrate on not vomiting up the vodka that stirs in her stomach. Smile and don’t vomit, Skylei. That’s all you have to do.
Emilia reacted as soon as Tyler laid a hand on her shoulder. He didn't have to spin her around as she pivioted herself while taking a hold of his hand. If he didn't pull his hand back he'd find his arm twisted into a painful angle, but one that wouldn't caused true injury to him. Her other hand almost dropped the pile of Sky's clothing. As soon as her bright blue eyes landed on the man she appologized, "Sorry, Sir!" If she'd had his arm twisted she would also let that go. For Sky she would get the full country-farm girl accent of the human. The carmel gaze of the man would find that most injuries he'd already knew about hidden by the long sleeves and pants, but there were some new minor cuts to her freckled cheeks. Climbing down a tree in the dark isn't the easiest. And the bandages of her hand he'd patched up were soaked with fresh blood having split the injury open again. "I was just bringing these back..." She said as she shoved the stack of clean folded items at him. A curious glance past him to look at Sky for just a moment before returning attention to the man.
Tyler is caught off guard as Emilia twists his arm, "Shit!" he cries out just in time for her to release him. He begins rubbing at his wrist as she apologizes. "No, no, it's OK." He says though his voice is trailing. He's already spotted the injuries across her visage and it takes everything he has to bite his tongue and not lash out in questioning over them. As she thrusts the clothes in his direction he would take them in hand, "Oh, thanks." He moans. Turning back to Skylei he reaches out to take her hand and present her to Emilia, only the half-elf has already turned hostile and her arms are crossed. Instead he extends an open palm to Skylei and looks back to Emilia. "This is my friend, Skylei. She's the one who's paid for the room in the tavern." He grins and turns to introduce the human to Skylei. "And this is Emi, the cave girl I told you about." He turns the clothes in his hand over to examine them. "I'd almost forgotten, I let her borrow some of your clothes seeing as hers were covered in blood. I hope you don't mind." He looks to Skylei with a careful stare, he's worried now that she may lash out. Why was she acting so strange? Had he stepped on her toes without knowing? He turns back to Emilia and smiles. "Well, I'm just happy your all right... I checked the tree for you, and well... you weren't there." He carries a bit of a scowl now. Disappointment laced in his voice. "You didn't have any issues, did you?"
Hello rage, it’s been a while since Skylei made your acquaintance. That stack of clothes that now rests in Tyler’s arms… that stack of clothes belong to her! In spite of the elven desire to appear dignified and graceful in front of this woman, Skylei lips literally fall into an ‘O’ shape in shock and disgust. So, whilst she’d be off arguing with her best friend in order to obtain Tyler’s only valuable possession he’d been spending time with this woman and lending her Skylei’s clothes. Nice. Proper classy, Tyler. Screw your explanation. Buy her a new shirt, don’t put her in the one that belongs to your (kind of) ex-fiancée! Pulling her lips shut, she attempts to reassert that dignified poise she had earlier possessed but fails horribly. Her eyes literally resemble storm clouds and it’s a miracle she manages to keep herself calm enough to avoid setting her own hands alight in fury. Still she keeps her distance. She doesn’t even step forward when Tyler introduces her to the farm girl, she certainly doesn’t offer her hand. She does speak though, in a careful restrained tone, offering the title that only ever appears in elven company, or when her position feels threatened. “It’s Sky. Skylei Lucindio, last of the line and daughter of Nasurate.” From the way she says it, it’s clear that the two humans are meant to realise that this is a big deal. The Lucindio’s are an ancient pure-blood (so ironic coming from a half-breed…) elven line, after all. Assert your social dominance and you’ll feel better; even if you make everyone else feel like crap. As for Tyler, she quite simply whips the clothes out of his hands. It’s the non-verbal ‘screw you’ all round then, whilst her eyes flash venomously. Tread carefully, Tyler.
Emilia had never felt so confused and awkward before. Have you ever danced with a lion? A lion in a cage? That is exactly how Emilia felt at this very moment. Tyler was the cage keeping her from running from Skylei who was the lion. Those bright blue eyes held a flash of nerves as they rested upon the half-elf as she very well asserted her higher social standing when correcting her name. Oh, what did that mean she was supposed to call her? Sky or Skylei? With her hands empty now she folded one over her chest, taking a light hold of her other arm just below the elbow while her other hand took a nervous hold of her denim pants. The qustion poised by Ty had gone into the wind. She could understand his fusteration with her and she could see the fusteration Sky had with her. "I am very sorry, Miss." Emi said in small tones before casting a nervous glance to Tyler, "I...should get going now, Sir."
Tyler seems genuinely confused as Skylei presents herself in such a 'formal' manner and snatches the clothes form his hand. A raised brow is offered as he ponders if perhaps the vodka is still effecting her this long after drinking. His licks his lips in thought before turning to face Emilia who'd just apologized to the woman. He see's her taking a shaken stance, scared to be jumped at by Skylei be it verbally or physically. He glances to Skylei once more to confirm his assumption. The tension surrounding the trio is great and the weight is pressing down on the male standing before them. His next action isn't what most would expect from Tyler. At least, not his former self. The usually timid human who would simply choose to run away and hide, or perhaps lie in defense of himself selects a far different path. Caramel eyes lock with Skylei's storming greys. His hand is raised and placed gently on Emilia's back as he takes a stand by her side. "Well, miss Lucindio, if you don't mind, we simple minded strays will be on our way. We'd hate to take anymore of your time or cause you any distress" His expression is just as upset as Skylei's. He hadn't thought of any issue that could arise by introducing the two. Hell, why was Skylei upset in the first place? His teeth grit as memories from last night flood over him. 'The lost soul', he thinks before speaking to Emilia. "I'll take you back to the tree and look at those fresh ones." He nods to her face. "I brought some supplies to re-bandage as needed." He offers Skylei another look, "If you've any time for humans, I'd be happy to speak to you later, when you've come down off your pedestal." With that, he would begin escorting Emilia away, back toward the tree, if she chose to stay with him.
If Skylei’s a lion hunting for a kill in the form of Emilia, that would make Tyler the lion tamer. In this extended metaphor, Emilia is the favoured animal of the lion tamer when the two are in the same vicinity; the one that receives the care, attention and food. Sky-Lion, in a fit of desperation and jealousy therefore toys with Emilia in desperate hope of stealing some of the attention back. It’s not a great analogy. The point is, Skylei is beyond jealousy. Skylei simply waves her hand dismissively at Emilia’s apology; she has no need to make the woman fear her. She’s simply offered her her name, admittedly, in a rather rude way. Still, come on Emilia, Skylei’s not a lion and she’s (probably) not going to rip you limb for limb. She’s not much bigger than you and she’s got a broken shoulder; she’s definitely not a physical threat today. There’s no need to basically cower in fear. Of course, hellfire bitch rage never wins anyone any favours, certainly not when the person at which it is directed is a ‘damsel in distress’; Sky really should have learnt this by now. And so Tyler’s reaction is completely understandable… to everyone but her. Tyler weighs Skylei against Emilia and (unsurprisingly) finds the former lacking. If Skylei needed another reminder that this Tyler is not her former fiancé, that does it. It’s like a kick to the heart, a stab in the back and a punch to the face all in a single blow. Skylei nearly chokes. Then she feels a vile swirl of her stomach, she never knew that words could physically make you sick to your stomach but it seems they can. She moves quicker than Tyler can and, before he and Emilia can take more than three paces, Sky is in front of them blocking his (purposefully his – Emilia’s already proved, in the face of minimal confrontation, that she’s easily bent) way. Attempting to balance the clothes in her hand under her injured arm she would hold out her free hand, palm upturned and make a quiet and seemingly polite request, “I need the key to the room. I’ll leave it at the bar when I’m done.” Her eyes don’t meet his and she certainly doesn’t look at the blonde. Either she’s attempting to conceal that burning hellfire bitch rage, or she’s hiding something else.
Emilia wasn’t afraid of the other woman even if she wasn’t with a broken shoulder. She was nervous about the scene they were causing out on Kelay Way so early in the morning in front of the tavern and nervous about destroying the relationship that was already founded between the man and this woman here. Calm blue eyes rested on the half-elf for some times. It was almost a blank stare while she barely heard what Tyler was saying to her. Within that head of hers she was trying beyond to figure out why this other lady was so upset. She didn’t seem like a mental person nor did she like a mean person normally, but one can’t judge a book based upon the cover. When Ty moved to change their direction back toward the tree-house of his Emi came back into the reality that was around her. Three blinks as the words from the other woman sank in even though they were not meant for her, but Tyler. Pulling free from the hold he had on her she stepped slightly between the two of them before he could put the key into her open waiting hand. There it was, that spark of human attitude and her stubbornness shining through the otherwise timidness, “Look, Miss. I have no idea what bug crawled up your rear and died or got your panties in a twist, but this foolish attitude of yours needs to end. Now. Between Tyler and I there is nothing beyond a meeting of fate. I am not here to step on any toes, just return something that wasn’t mine. Grow up.” She’d snapped a bit rudely and later she would end up apologizing for it. Then she took a step back, “You two figure out what your problem is.” Was the last she had to say before turning and walking off down the way away from the two toward the west.
Tyler is left standing in front of Skylei alone as Emilia makes her retreat. The man hadn't even reached for the key, and is now left with a dumb founded stare locked with Skylei. He takes a slow deep inhale before shaking his head slowly. He digs in his pocket and pulls out the small silver key, placing it gently in Skylei's hand. "Just keep it..." He then also moves past Skylei, moving in the direction of Emilia but not chasing after her. He only moves the few hundred feet needed before branching off into the woods again, heading towards his hammock among the wild life. Much like the half-elf, the human felt sick. In part, for Skylei's abrupt rude behavior, but also for Emilia's proclamation that there was nothing between the two of them. "Idiot." He mutters beneath his breath as he etches through the forest. How could he forget that he was but a blank slate living in Tyler's body? His assumption had proven right. Neither of the woman truly cared about him. Emilia stated so openly, while Skylei... Wait, why had she gotten angry? 'The flesh', he recalls. 'It's just the skin, the suit... It's not you...'. The man is left alone amongst the great Sage as he nears his tree. The odd silence still ever present. Either way, he'd be long out of sight of the duo by now.
Skylei has no idea what she has done to prompt such an outrage from Emilia. She thought she’d been being polite and she really did only want the key! Skylei clearly has A LOT to learn about the intricacies of social interaction before she tries anything like this again. At the sound of Emilia’s tirade, Sky’s head had snapped up from the ground and… was that the start of a tear forming in the corner of the half-elf’s eye? Was Skylei really staring at the ground and refusing to make eye contact because she was crying… over this? Surely not. This is Skylei Lucindio, the girl who’s quite literally been through hell and back in her years in Hollow and even in the last week. Skylei weeps over what is important; death, physical agony and mental torture. Emilia’s presence falls into none of the above. What in the name of Sven is going on? As Tyler thrusts the key she had so politely requested into her hands the half-elf stares down at the metal. When she looks up, he’s gone. Her fingers wrap tightly around it, her body physically shakes and heavy, hot tears force their way through her bubble of self-control. Skylei Lucindio is standing on Kelay Way, holding a key, a pile of clothes and crying in a way not dissimilar to the way she had cried when she believed Tyler was dead. She simply stands and stares blankly, fighting back huge shuddering sobs. What the hell does she do now? Her hand opens to reveal the room key, although the half-elf quickly decides that is not where she wants to be. At the end of the day the key in her hand was not the thing she actually wanted, was it?