RP:Confessions

Forest

Tyler :: Deep in the forest of Kelay, beneath the shining sun of Hollow sat a lone figure propped firmly against a tree. A topless man layered in bandages and covered in malicious burns across his torso. This figure, was Tyler of Kelay, the human illusionist who to be quite blunt has had one hell of a week. The human hissed through gritted teeth as he peeled back some dried skin on his left arm. Once the flesh was free from it's hold, Tyler held a very small vial of spring water over the afflicted area and allowed the cool liquid to splash down causing his breathing to become erratic and his eyes to squeeze tightly together. Capping the vial the male proceeded to wrap his arm with a torn shirt as it would seem his supply of first aid had finally ceased. Letting his head fall back against the bark of the tree he allowed a stressed whimper to escape while an idle tear fell down his cheek, a very soft spoken "ow" presented to himself. Allowing a moment to pass before picking his head back up Tyler reached to his open bag and pulled out a unique long black and blue piece of linen that held rips and tears. He gripped the garment tightly and sighed before letting his head painfully slap against the bark of the tree in defeat which in turn caused another self-pitied "ow" to escape.

Skylei is on her way back from Larket when she hears a soft sound permeate the trees. Fearing that it would be the squads of Drow that lurked the forests searching for any remaining wood elves, she had climbed into the highest bower she could reach and had hidden herself from sight as best she could. Listening with the blessed hearing of Elven kin, it had quickly become clear to her that it was not the sound of Drow but instead the sound of a man in pain. Shimmying back down the tree the half-elf would dodge trees and bushes, weaving her way through the greenery, until she comes across Tyler. The sight would physically stun her. She stands perfectly still, mouth gaping wide as she drinks in the ungodly sight that lies before her. He appears worse than she could have ever imagined. Before she is able to speak, the half-elf would raise a hand and sweep her hair off her face, mouth still open. The ranger, by comparison looks almost respectable. She is clean, freshly dressed and the only evidence of the previous exploits the two have faced is the bruises across her body; though they are mostly hidden from Tyler's sight. Sky's visage of shock remains, as she makes her way closer to the male and crouches to the floor beside him. Her vocal chords remain stunned and her mouth remains wide; such a state of silence is rarely inspired in the Halfling.

Tyler feels his ears perk at the sound of footsteps, although frightened the man is in no shape to run so he slowly raises his head from its resting point and allows his right eye to peel open as he turns to face the newcomer. He would come to full attention as he recognized the wood elf before him. His caramel gaze weakened but full of fear as he tries to casually tuck the fabric in his hands by his side. He clears his throat not once but twice as Skylei approaches though much like the woman before him, Tyler cannot find his voice. A few odd noises come from his mouth as he attempts to formulate a sentence but ultimately fails. Instead his head drops to face his lap as his shoulders begin to convulse. He pulls his knees up and wraps his arms around them burrowing his head into them. It had been a few days since he last saw his only friend and now he was here hiding his face from her. He couldn't figure out how to explain what had happened. He didn't want anyone to know that he was participating in the tournament, yet he couldn't find a way to explain his absence, that is, if she even cared. Truth be told, Skylei had been stuck in Tyler's mind since the night outside of temple. He wanted nothing more than to see her again and perhaps spend time with her as they had a few nights ago. Though now he is presented with the opportunity to toss his arms around the wood elf in an embrace and spill out what he had been feeling yet all he could do was cower. His face hidden from view the illusionist bit his lip in frustration. He hated this. He hated not knowing what to do or say. The struggle in his mind grew stronger as he shuffled his feet amongst the leaves. He was broken. Nearly dead and was unable to seek any help outside of his own inexperience. A few moments would pass and Tyler would try once more to speak, though all that can be heard is eventually a sigh of giving up.

Skylei moves from her crouching position to sitting, so that she is alongside and of the same height as her friend. Silence prevails as she desperately tries to find something to say, some way to express what horror has bubbled up inside of her at the sight of her friend so horribly beaten and burned. And still she draws a blank. Furthermore, she wants to berate him again for leaving with no explanation of where he might be going. But that feeling was too complex to express, even in her own mind, never mind aloud. Gods, does Sky wish to speak; to articulate something, anything! But her words stick in her throat and all that tumbles forth from her mouth is empty breath. As seems to be so oft the situation with Tyler, all that Skylei can offer him is her physical comfort where her words fail. An arm would reach out and rest ever so lightly upon his back. So conscious of his injuries, she daren't rest it upon him any harder in case she causes him any pain. Her head would rest upon his, pressing her cheek into his hair in a desperate attempt to find some comfort in this situation. So touched is the half-elf, by the painfulness of this situation, that tears roll forth from her own steel eyes and fall to the ground before them. Silence prevails for a good few minutes before the female would finally find her voice, "Talk to me?"

Tyler closed his eyes as Skylei pressed her head to his. He couldn't help but smile at the feeling of her touch, but the feeling was short lived as the stress continued to take over him. His head still tucked away the male began to shiver and his teeth chattered. He swallowed the lump in his throat and finally managed to get out three easy words; "I missed you". His voice was in shambles. A grown man sat before the elf and yet he had the emotionally stability of an eleven year old child. He was ashamed to be seen like this in front of Skylei, it was why he hadn't returned to the tavern in a few nights instead opting to stay in the woods while he tried to mend his own wounds until he could pass them off for just another thieving incident. The irony managed to strike him as he sat coiled before her, the idiot tried to hide from a Wood Elf... In the woods. The point remained, as the duo sat beneath the burning sun in a blurred mix of emotions Tyler had been caught. He took advantage of the silence to try and develop a story to tell Skylei if she asked of his wounds. He finally managed to stop himself from shedding any tears and turned his head to face away from Skylei as he tried to wipe them away without her seeing. Finally building the strength to rise he leaned back onto the tree but still couldn't bring himself to make eye contact with her, his eyes would remain locked to his torn sandals. He now waited patiently. He waited for her to berate him, to call him a bastard and then up and leave. He wouldn't mind. Her anger, disappointment or any other negative feedback was still acknowledgment to his existence, something he managed to not take for granted.

Skylei :: The feelings that are uprooted within the half-elf's subconscious at Tyler's words throw Skylei into some tumultuous confusion. Forcing those feelings from her conscious mind for the time being, the half-elf chooses the most obviously benign response she can think of, "I know." It was cruel, in a way, not to express the fact that she too felt the same way as he, but Sky is not able to reconcile these emotions with her words. She had noticed his absence; that much was undeniable. She had spent hours lurking in the body of the tavern, waiting for the human to grace her life with his presence. But it had gone unfulfilled and she couldn't understand why. Had Tyler not understood her reprimand the last time they had met? Friends, if that was what they were, don't go gallivanting off without stating when they will return. She doesn't stand when he does, instead she just looks upon him with reproachful eyes, praying that he will lift his to reach her own. But her own stormy eyes go ungraced by his caramel hues and she remains disappointed. So she ploughs forth with her interrogation regardless, "Where have you been?" Much as she seeks to keep her tone neutral, there is an upset that cannot be disguised. Tyler was bound to realise how she felt.

Tyler heard her words and felt his stomach turn. They hurt. However, he pressed himself to ignore the statement and simply took another deep breath to aid in calming himself. It was then that the question he had been dreading arose. Seconds began to tick away as he let silence cover the two of them. His mind shouted for him to tell her the truth. 'She deserves to know.', 'She is here.', 'Tell her.', 'Show her.', '-Trust her-.'. His thoughts attacked him without mercy yet Tyler managed to keep his features from betraying him. His left hand twitched as he prepared to play out the scene of his fight with Mythayus', he was going to fill Skylei in on the entire ordeal. But then it hit him, 'I know', her words rang violently in his head and the human would bite the inside of his lip as his hand went limp and motionless. Skylei didn't mean for the words to come off as they had but Tyler couldn't process logical thought. He felt hurt and decided that perhaps it was best if he kept the truth to himself. Running his tongue in a quick swipe across his lips the human managed to speak in a much more firm tone than before; "Gamorg". His continued to rest his body against the tree and even pulled to lock his gaze with Skylei's own. "I traveled to Gamorg to look for work... I didn't have any coin to get back so I tried to take the funds off of an Ogre's shop stand. He caught me. He and his friends gave me a beating and then cut me loose." Tyler's voice was far to firm to be believed. It wasn't like him, without the aid of alcohol to speak as if he were a normal person. His voice was clear and determined. He was lying to Skylei's face and he was hit with instant regret but her own words continued to play in his mind causing him to stall and not correct his actions.

Skylei :: Gamorg?! Why would a person in their sane mind go to Gamorg? The city of the ogres wasn't exactly reputed for being the most welcoming, never mind renowned for its job opportunities. Still, Tyler's voice held enough conviction that Sky didn't think for a second that he might have lied to her. Why would he? She thought he trusted her - naïve fool that she was. As his eyes met hers she would pulls her own away and back down to the forest floor, suddenly unwilling to meet his gaze. As he finished his tirade of lies, Sky would let out a deep sigh, "If you need work there are plenty of places better than Gamorg. Cenril, for Sven's sake! Or if you insist on travelling further afield then why not Chartsend?" The half-elf would gesture aimlessly into the east in the general direction of Chartsend, "I live there. I could have housed you, helped you find work. There is a tournament there currently and with all the competitors and spectators the city is said to crawling. Had I known you were that desperate for employ I would have taken you there myself." Sadness and desperation permeate her words. The Halfling, who always had a laugh dancing on the edge of her lips, was the epitome of sadness; a deflated balloon, a whipped puppy. She didn't understand why the cloud of misery had descended upon her, but it had.

Tyler was hit with regret as he noticed Skylei had believed his lies. His eyes softening as he took a moment to collect himself. It was the mention of 'Chartsend' that caused the man offer a choke of thin air. She lived there?! She knew about the tournament?! Tyler felt sick suddenly and had to suppress the urge to puke. Desperate to change the subject he readied himself to go on about some nonsense but it was at this moment that he noticed the severity of Skylei's emotions. He found himself stuck between a rock and a hard place. He couldn't seem to break his sight from Skylei. His own emotions tugging at him from every angle pleading with the human to do the right thing. But this is where he was lost, what was the right thing? If he told her the truth, would she even care? He ran his right palm against his stomach and felt only linen bandages before allowing a finger tip to idly trace the wild design across what exposed flesh existed caused by Mythayus' lightning blast. Things began to click and the human felt nothing but hate for himself. With a heavy chest the human opened his mouth once more to speak; "I lied.". He now sat with his eyes glued to the ground once more. He couldn't do this. Skylei was the only person in four months to speak to him as a friend and even then, he felt so much more for her. He decided that if he was going to screw things up, he would do them trying to do the right thing as opposed to the wrong. It was odd really, caring about someone. It was new to Tyler and he wasn't sure he liked it. But clearly it meant something to him as he began to question his sanity for confessing the truth to Skylei when she had clearly bought his story.

Skylei would raise her gaze from the ground at Tyler's admission of lying. There is a cacophony of emotions that explode inside the half-elf at this moment. She is immediately angry, with him for lying and for her for believing such a stupid lie. Of course it wasn't true? As she had thought earlier, no man in his right mind would travel over to Gamorg in search of work. Secondly, she is confused. Why would he lie to her? What reason could he possibly have for lying? And what in Sven's name had he done to obtain all of those injuries? Hands would brush through her dark hair, idly pulling knots loose from the lengths. The final thing she feels is relief. She might be confused and angry, but Tyler has cared enough about her to admit the truth. He had put himself on the line, and in clear firing range of any and all of Skylei's emotions, all to admit that he had not been truthful. All of these emotions play out visibly on Sky's face, clear for Tyler to see. When she does finally reach the point of clarity her visage is pulled into one devoid of emotion. "What did happen then?" This time she hits the mark right with her tone. It is soft, welcoming and lacking accusation. "I just want to know."

Tyler had moved his eyes back up to Skylei's and kept them locked while she went through her own whirlwind of emotions. The human giving her a look filled with apologetic, caring and upset vibes. As she asked what honestly happened he once again questioned if he was doing the right thing, though after a moments time had passed he moved to reach into his pocket and pulled out a folded up piece of paper, unfolding it the male dropped the paper to the ground in front of her. It was an advertisement for the tournament that had been posted in the Kelay Tavern. "I'm very aware of the tournament..." His voice almost a whisper as Tyler holds his right hand by his side and hovers it above the ground, the familiar blue specks of mana falling like snow from his hand to form a scene. The illusion manifests itself into a replay of a Chartsend fight. One of the contenders was a large, behemoth of a man donning heavy armor and a bastards sword while the other a much smaller man garbed in a traditional ninja suit with a blue detailing and a mask to match that covered his mouth from sight. The scene plays out showing various actions including the ninja replicating himself, slicing the opponents leg, the armored man transforming into a dragon and summoning a storm, the ninja bending water and being struck by a blast of lightning from the scaled monster. As the scene concludes the mana falls to the ground and vanishes as Tyler reaches to his side and pulls out the torn black cloth and lays it before him then reaching back into his bag he reveals the blue face mask and places it beside the suit. The male then reaches to begin unwinding the bandage wrapped around his torso and drops it to the ground revealing a massive cut from three large claws and an outrageous pattern all across him from where the lightning had struck him spot on. He remained silent as he awaited Skylei to piece together the evidence.

Skylei had not been expecting that. As the human drops the paper to the forest floor, the half-elf would lower her gaze and scan the writing. As soon as she sees it, she knows the hand in which it is written and realises before she reaches the end of the announcement what the piece of paper is advertising. Still, even with the explicit evidence before her, Sky refuses to accept that this could be possible. Even the illusionary scene before her that continues to confirm her expectations is watched with sceptical eyes. Perhaps it is another lie. Sky would attempt to rationalise to herself that Tyler had lied to her before and thus could lie again. As for his illusions, that is all they are - illusions. There could be no reality in this. It is a joke, and he is having her on; that is the only logical explanation, right? But then he pulls the garb from the bag and the bandages from his body… The pieces of the puzzle fall completely into place and the half-elf can no longer deny what is smacking her right in the face. Shock is all that is written on her face and the gormless expression returns. She does not speak; even if she had wanted to, she would not have been able to.

Tyler finds Skylei's lack of speech uneasy and he begins to regret his decision to show her the truth, however, he continues to argue with himself that this was the right thing. He places his focus entirely on the Wood Elf and continues to speak in a soft tone; "I need the coin. It's more than enough to last me until I can find an honest place to live." The sun had begun to set and the all too familiar cool breeze began to rush through the forest. Tyler really wasn't looking forward to sleeping out in the forest again. He had nearly frozen the past two nights since he had left his cloak with Skylei outside of the temple he had been using his torn suit as a blanket. He reached out to Skylei and would attempt to place his hand on hers if she would have it. "You're the only soul that knows I'm participating in this tournament. I can't explain it but I feel like I have an advantage when the other warriors don't know it's... well, me under the mask." He offers a light laugh for the first time in days, "Sky... I won." The human was still coming to terms with the fact that he had made it past the first round of the tournament. Winning alone was a surprise but against a dragon? He couldn't help but feel a bit of pride as he smiled to himself before allowing it to fade so that he could continue speaking. "Please. Don't tell anyone."

Skylei rests her head in her hands. It is too much to take in. Tyler, her sweet, soft spoken, protective friend fighting against a dragon? And not just a dragon, but that behemoth she had witnessed in Tyler's illusion, clad in armour and wielding a sword that Sky swore could cut her apart in a second. She feels sick at the thought. And yet he had won. She meant no insult to Tyler, but she could not believe it. It takes her a good few minutes for her to raise her head from her hands and let her eyes meet his. Voice is weak and feeble, as though she is speaking to him from another place, "Tyler." That is all she can croak out for now, her mouth having gone dry with fear for his life. And yet she must remember that he had not died, he stood before her alive and victorious. Another few moments passed, "I can't believe it. I… I just can't..." She is flummoxed and needs a few seconds to collect herself, "Gods know you didn't need to do that for coin! I could've…" trailing off again, the half-elf realises the flaw in this argument. She cannot feasibly support him forever. Much as she would have liked to, she doubted he would have allowed her too.

Tyler felt a smile crack across his face as he saw Skylei go into distress. The male was able to read her clearly for the first time, she cared about him, at least enough to not want him dead and well, it was a start. At her statements he could only begin to laugh to himself a bit before wincing in pain at the now exposed claw marks on his stomach. His head was wild with thoughts as usual, however, for once they tended to be on the brighter side of things. "Skylei. It's what I have to do. I'm tired of robbing people. These, these, these combatants don't know that I'm an illusionist." He points to the mask and then to his arrow wound. "It's what gives me the advantage. I can do this if I try hard enough but I sure as hell can't do it if they know what I am, remember, huh?" He asks as he holds up his right arm and tries to flex before pushing at the non-existent muscle. He chuckled again and felt himself swell with emotions. The moon was rising higher now and the Wood Elf's features were brought out well in the lunar light. Tyler seemed to get lost as he stared at her with a smile. He felt so much better despite her worries. "Look... Skylei. The other night at the temple..." Tyler stables himself and takes a deep breath before wrapping his arms around himself. "I told you pretty much everything that there is to know about me and even now, I'm still not sure why." The human sighed and bit at his tongue. "Actually... that's another lie. I do know why. At least, I think I do. I'm not entirely sure because I haven't felt this way before nor ever been presented the opportunity too but... well... Skylei. I care about you. I care about you a lot." Tyler raised his hand to his face and rubbed with his palm trying to put together what he was saying. "I mean, I haven't stopped thinking about you since the night we met. Ev-even during the fight with-with that-that thing the only thing I thought about was you. Sure, it was what the hell I was going to say to you when I saw you again but it was you. I've never thought about anyone but myself in my entire life." Tyler leaned toward the half blood and shook his head lightly. "I'm not ready to die when I'm with you." The final sentence was the best way Tyler could piece together the puzzle in his head. He sat staring at Skylei and waited her reaction. His social anxiety beginning to return as the moments passed.

Skylei can't understand why Tyler is suddenly so calm now that her entire mind has been thrown into disarray. She breathes slowly and deeply through her nose in a desperate attempt to bring her heart rate back down to a normal speed and dispel the feeling of nausea that is trying to force its way up from her stomach and burst forth from her mouth. Eventually, Sky reaches the point where she is again calm enough to talk with Tyler. "Gods know I'm proud of you. I can't believe how brave you are… I mean you're," A hand would gesture at Tyler's form, "And he was so big. He could have cut you in half. And then what would I do?" Her face flushes a bright shade of red at this point. "I… I…" A single hand would rise to her face and she would bury her forehead in her palm. Gods, why was it so hard just to talk to him. He had managed to get over that feeling of perpetual nervousness that seemed to surround the two whenever they met, so why couldn't she? "I don't want you to die." She would finally whisper, her voice cracking as she did. It wasn't much compared to what he had offered, but if Tyler could read behind the words and feel the emotion behind them, he would know there was a great deal more than just wanting Tyler's life to remain intact being exressed here.

Tyler watches Skylei with great intent as she spoke, the mans caramel eyes locked into her own even when she shifted to avert his gaze. As she spoke he would offer a smirk and at the sight of her blushing along with the compliments he couldn't help but turn red in the face as well. As her final words are offered, Tyler didn't seem to be offended. No, the fully grown, socially crippled illusionist who was playing a game entirely way to far out of his league actually seemed to, for once, understand something that wasn't laid out in front of him in stone. The smile remained as he slowly leaned closer to Skylei, hesitated for a moment and then leaned in the rest of the way and placed a soft kiss on her cheek. He stopped to savor the moment and even tilted his head to rest on the side of her own. He decided it was best to not say anything as he was one to stop while ahead in social interactions. Finally building up the ability to pull away he reached to the torn suit, mask and paper and began packing them into his bag along with vial of water from earlier. Fastening his bag he then struggled for a moment to get to his feet. "I really need to see a healer." He half-joked as he fell against the tree for support. "The sticks aren't much for bag support either." Truth be told, he had no idea where he was going. He could go to his room and sleep with the risk of the wounds getting infected, or he could try to find a healer, or he could just... well... do anything else he wanted. The pain was catching up with him and it honestly was a miracle the man hadn't bled out or something along those lines under his own care. He offered the skies an admiring gaze before looking back down to Skylei; "You'll stay with me tonight, won't you?"

Skylei :: As he places that kiss upon her cheek, Sky would close her eyes for that brief moment. It was over as soon as it had begun, but even so she enjoyed it greatly. Of course, that wasn't something to be vocalised, but should he look on her face in the moments after she would see that she was still the charming hue of red and that a smile had made rise upon her lips. She didn't move, even when he moved away to pack his things away. At the talk of a healer, Sky is pulled from whatever world she is currently residing in and back into reality. Opening her eyes wide, she would pass judgement upon his wounds with her crude medical knowledge. Her voice took on a more forthright tone. Whatever moment the two had shared had passed now and the half-elf is back to her cheerful and sensible self "Aye, you need to see a healer and soon preferably. I can't have you falling down dead on me now." Sky would offer her companion a wink, "And, given you won your last bout, you're going to need to be in peak condition for the next fight, aye?" But then he asks if she will stay the night and she cannot help but blush again. It could be taken as a completely innocent comment - hadn't she spent two nights with him already? But even so, the blush takes hold of her cheeks. Trying to shake this off, the half-elf tries to make his comment into a joke between friends, "Aye, of course. I'll sit by your bed and watch over you like your guardian angel. Lucky thing."

Tyler smirks at Skylei's joke and is a bit taken by surprise at her sudden interest in his next fight. As he fastens his bag to him tightly he looks at the bandages he had taken off that now reside on the ground in a filthy mess and decides it best not to put them back on. "Next fight... yay." he states with little enthusiasm but a smile. "Oh, um, I forgot to mention. You said you live in Chartsend... I've met a couple of those people. I don't know their names. Erm... a bard lady, some big scary guy who is in the tournament and a drow. A nice lot, I mean, I've managed to speak to them but I haven't told them my name." Tyler locks his eyes with Skylei's once more. "Let's keep it that way, yeah?" He take a moment to find his balance as he involuntarily rocks back and forth with a light head. He extends his hand in hopes that Skylei will take it muttering beneath his breath about the long walk home.

Skylei would raise a brow as she tries to puzzle out who these people might be. It takes her a few seconds but the first two come to her, though as Sky does not ever associate with drow she cannot say who he might be. Taking his hand, Sky would begin, "Raphaline? The bard. She's a red-head, of my kin and one of the best darn players in the land? You could do much worse than acquaint with her, if it is her." Pausing briefly, Sky would point to her second finger indicating that she is moving on to the next of the trio, "Then the tall man is Collin. Collin Eliason. He commands the troops of Chartsend and…" Sky pulled her face into a twisted grimace highlighting her conflicting feelings about Eliason, "he's not a bad man. Not at heart. But he makes stupid choice and doesn't think about people's feelings and I don't like that about him." The half-elf would shrug her shoulders, "There is no need why they would need to know who you are. I… I haven't exactly spoken about you to anyone." Blushing again, Sky would blurt out, "It's like you're my little secret and I don't want anyone to know, in case you find someone more interesting than me…"

Tyler listens to the detailing of the two patrons of Chartsend and he nods in agreement. "That sounds about like them. The bard, she's nice and all but you know... Erm... Well, I have issues speaking to people." At her remark about him finding someone else he replies "That's as likely as you kissing and Ogre." He didn't look to her face to see her reaction to his comment but instead went on about the bard. "I ran into them just before my fight and have seen the bard since. They haven't asked my name and I've managed to get out of there before they ask to much." Tyler points to his black eye that had slowly been fading away. "I wore make up during my battle to cover this in case one of them happened to be watching. As for associating with the bard, apart from my high anxiety, I don't want them knowing who I am. Behind the mask, I mean. Word spreads like wild fire in Hollow. If that... Collin? Collin. Collin fellow found out all my tricks were, well, tricks and I had to fight him I'd be finished. Have you seen then guy?" Tyler shutters at the thought of actually having to fight Eliason.

Skylei would have to fight to stop herself from snorting at the idea of Collin and Tyler squaring up in a fight. The juxtaposition of the two was too funny and Skylei cannot hold in her laugher. It is real laughter of mirth, perhaps the first real laughter that Tyler has heard from Sky in all the time they've known each other. Once she manages to get her giggles under control Sky would offer a reply, "Aye, but should that happen, I know enough about Collin Eliason to give you by far the upper hand. He's got a soft spot for the girls of this land. I know two of the ones he's enchanted with his dashing good looks, though I can't say I see what they do." Sky would squeeze Tyler's hand with her own as she said this; was she trying to reassure him? Perhaps. "Anyway, he has the most terrible hero complex and he simply cannot resist rescuing anyone who might be in need." Sky would shrug, "Either way, he's an idiot. I'd like to see someone punch him in the face."

Tyler would arch a brow at Skylei, still a bit surprised to see her so interested in his potential fights and eager to help him. As she squeezed his hand he would return the motion and rub his thumb across her skin as they began walking towards Kelay. "I don't think a punch from me would do much good. Of course, I don't think I've ever really tried. Who knows, I might surprise myself." Tyler began replaying the fight with Mythayus in his head once more, rethinking his tactics and how they worked. Perhaps Skylei could be of use, after all, Tyler knew nothing about his first opponent and still managed to win. If he knew more about who he was going against he might be able to use it to his advantage with his illusions. "Of course, all of this is assuming he makes it through the first round."

Skylei likes people. And she likes to talk about people. Besides, if any of the seemingly useless information that she had garnered about any of the locals could be of any use to Tyler then she was happy to share it. Her own thumb would run across the back of his hand as the two walked. She liked the comfort that it brought her to feel his thumb running across her skin and if she could offer him the same comfort then she would be grateful to provide it. "Maybe I'll punch him then. But away from the fighting. He's supposed to be helping me with a project, but I'm still not entirely sure of his intentions." The half-elf would shrug her shoulders and lean in closer to Tyler, "I don't care about him, anyway. I care about you." She would look away from Tyler again, still embarrassed by every bold statement she made, though she knows full well she will not be rejected.

Tyler felt his face go hot at Skylei's statement, a smile spreading as he could only let out a small laugh. His hand giving hers another squeeze in a show of affection and appreciation for her kind words. As the two trekked through the forest Tyler caught himself looking off into the darkness more than once due to the sound of some type of animal or another sprinting away from the sound of the two. The chilled breeze that swept across the forest floor caused the fresh wound on his torso to sting as his body numbed to the cold. "A project, hmm?" A hint of jealousy could be detected as would be expected with a man who'd never experienced, well, anything before. He decides to joke; "Well, as long this isn't all a ruse and you're just trying to sell me out to your giant of a friend up there, then I think his intentions couldn't be too bad." He would offer the Wood Elf a grin as a clear sign that he was only kidding and had no true suspicion of some malicious intent. As they walked he would glance up to the moon and the stars, back down to Skylei, ahead of them and then back to the sky. Despite her making the statement a few minutes prior Tyler finally whispers under his breath, low enough to where Skylei might not even catch it; "I care about you too. A lot." He muttered this with his head turned to the heavens.

Skylei would laugh a little at the idea of her and Eliason plotting together in any way shape or form. Sarcastically she would interject, "Aye, I'm just biding my time and working out how much gold I can get for information about you." The half-elf would sigh and squeeze Tyler's hand again, "Or it could simply be to do with my love of dwarven runes and he is going to be my test subject. I don't care much if I set him alight, though I doubt the locals will be much impressed if I set Chartsend on fire…" Sky's doubt in her own abilities can be heard as her joke falls a little flat. His hand is squeezed again for comfort, and the half-elf would lift her other hand to push her windswept hair from her face. Though they are walking alongside each other, the half-elf presses herself closer into Tyler's side. Perhaps she is cold, or perhaps she simply wants to walk a little closer to her companion.

Tyler found the humor in her jokes and offered a light hearted laugh. "Runes, huh? I've fooled around a bit with enchanted items that held runic markings but I don't know too much about them." Taking note of her approach, Tyler adjusts his bag to rest on the side opposite of her with his free hand and gives her as much space as she sees fit to come closer to him. "Y'know, I haven't really spoken to him but he was there when I met the Bard and the Drow. He spoke with the woman and while he seemed extremely stale and uptight, he didn't seem like a bad guy. What makes you dislike him so much?" At this inquiry the duo would finally break the treeline of the forest and step onto Kelay Way. The tavern could be seen in this distance to the west as well as some citizens of Kelay. As per custom, the mana specks would rise from the ground as Tyler and Skylei walked slowly venturing up the duos bodies covering them in heavy steel plate mail as they walked. This was the first time Tyler had opted to cloak Skylei as well, she would notice no difference in her weight and despite holding hands with Tyler her posture to those outside of the two of them would appear upright and battle ready.

Skylei :: As the two step out onto Kelay Way, and the illusionary armour begins to materialise around her, Skylei would shrug. After this shrug she would pause for a few moments to examine her new cloaking. She would nod in approval, before turning back to the questions in hand, "I have a friend. Joss, she's another bard. She's a sweet girl, wouldn't hurt a fly. And he hurt her. I've never seen a girl cry that much before." Sky almost shudders at the memory. Elven sensibility ran through her veins and the half-elf had found the emotional outpouring incredibly strange and difficult to deal with, "So I hate him on her behalf." It seemed daft when she spoke it aloud, but she could only hope that Tyler would excuse her strange behaviour. "He's not bad. I know that. But he can't just go around making people feel so small and insignificant." She would stay close to Tyler as the two carried on walking.

Tyler didn't quite understand the frustration Skylei would have with Eliason over someone else's affairs with him. The simple reason for that being that in twenty-one years of existence, Skylei was the only person Tyler ever shared any type of relationship with. He grew up being ignored by both family and "friends" and never managed to experience emotions or loyalties to a close one. He knew better than to question her motives as it wasn't his field of experience. Instead, he decided to let the woman hate the man. What good would it do to defend a potential opponent? Either way, he spoke on Joss' behalf, "I'm sorry to hear that about your friend. If Eli... Elas... Whatever the hell his name is makes it to the second round and we face off, I'll be sure to get a hit in for her." The two passed some odd people on the way to the tavern. A couple of vampires who were offering rather thirsty looks, a dwarven bum who smelled rather disgusting and a hobbit who was rambling on about the great war of the fish. Whatever that was. Tyler had begun to consider Raphaline's suggestion that he rent a room in Chartsend instead but as they grew closer to the Kelay Tavern he couldn't shake the "home" feeling. Minutes would pass as the two arrived to the tavern though Tyler would stop outside of the door first and look to Skylei. "Before we go in here. I wanted to... I want to..." Tyler sighed from frustration and would wave his hand allowing the conjured armor to fall from both the Wood Elf and himself, he then quickly leaned down and placed a kiss softly on Skylei's lips. "Thank you." He says while observing her for a quick moment before looking to the sky once more and then making his way into the tavern hoping she would follow.

Kelay Tavern

Skylei pushes her way through the tavern doors and enters the tavern just behind Tyler. There is a smile on her face and her cheeks are flushed, possibly from the chill of the wind and possibly from her shy embarrassment at what has just occurred on the doorstep of the tavern. She wouldn't let the human get too far ahead of her, speeding her pace up so that she would draw level and could slip her left hand into his right. This wasn't easy, what with it being a Friday evening in Kelay Tavern and the place being full of the usual crowd of drunken louts and imbeciles, and having to dodge the tables and chairs but Sky manages to do so. Looking over the shoulder next to her companion she would smile up at him, though she says nothing.

Tyler allows his hand to grip Skylei's tightly as he turns to face her for just long enough to offer a smile before turning back to the crowd. The topless man embarrassed by showing his face to the crowd with his entire body beaten. In the heat of the moment, he had forgotten to shield himself with an illusion. Pressing his way through the crowd as anxiety started to get the best of him he did his best to keep Skylei further away from the filthy people than himself. As they reached the stairs he would allow her to go first and follow closely behind. Reaching the third door on the left the human digs through his bag for a moment and pulls out the key. Opening the door he would allow Skylei to enter first before casting one last annoyed glance to the crowd below. Moving into the room he shuts and locks the door behind him. The noise of the tavern is dampened but still ever present and Tyler takes a deep breath of relief as he moves to the table and is happy to find his room hasn't been ransacked in his absence. He grabs some bandages and begins wrapping his torso back up which proves difficult due to his still wounded shoulder. As he winces he speaks to Skylei; "You wouldn't happen to, ah, shh... You wouldn't know any healers first hand do you? I'd really like to get this taken care of tomorrow if possible."

Skylei is a lot more relaxed as the two walk through the tavern. There are probably several reasons for this. Most obviously she is not semi-naked and equally she does not seem to suffer from the same kind of social anxiety as her companion. Finally, the half-elf actually occasionally enjoys the company of the drunken imbeciles that Tyler seems so keen to protect her from. Though, looking at the two it would be clear that, at this point, it was more likely to be Sky doing the protecting. She would lead the way up the stairs before moving out of the way to allow Tyler to unlock the room, before he permits her to enter before her. She would make a beeline for the battered old chair, flopping down into it. The chair would creak beneath her weight and the half-elf would turn her head to look upon the human tending to his wounds, "Not off the top of my head. The vast majority of those I knew have moved from these lands." Sky would sigh and reach into her pockets for the salve she had used to tend his wounds days earlier, "For now, this will serve a purpose. My only other thought is Raphaline. She healed a cut on my head once, though it was fairly superficial. Still, she is better than naught."

Tyler shakes his head at the recommendation of the bard. "No. I can't get too close to her until the tournament is over. I'll have to find someone else." He snags the salve from Skylei and and continues to patch himself up with the expected grunts, moans and hisses that come along with fresh wounds from a lightning strike, dragons claws and an arrow to the shoulder. Once he's finished patching himself up he hands the salve back to Skylei and slowly lowers himself onto his bed. Laying his head back it begins to pound from the noise of the patrons down stairs though his eyes get heavy. The exhaustion of sleeping in the woods the past few nights catching up with him. His eyes close as he is finally able to relax for the first time in ages. "You're free to go get a drink or something. I'll be fine up here I think. Unless I bleed out of course." He jokes about his condition but he still feels horrible. He feels sleep taunting him with it's sweet embrace. "Just... Just don't leave me alone tonight." He pleads with her. Still accepting the fact that she knew everything, he felt relief knowing he wasn't alone in his suicidal quest. "I mean, that is if you don't mind... I mean." Tyler suffered from social anxiety but mixed with a bag of emotions and a long list of reasons to be exhausted he had started to make less sense though his pleads for Skylei's company were honest and hopeful.

Skylei would reach forward and ruffle his hair affectionately. It felt like a strange kind of compromise between a cold pat on the arm and a full on embrace. And she daren't do that. Having seen him patch up his wounds, Sky is only too aware of what a state the male has managed to get himself into what with a tournament and a crazy half-elf shooting him with an arrow. Withdrawing her arm, the half-elf would try to get as comfy on the chair as was possible. Finding the least uncomfortable position she could the half-elf would kick off her boots onto the floor. If this was not a clear enough sign that she was not intending to leave him alone she added, "Nay, I'd better stay. Y'know Mesthak gets pretty angry when his tenants just die in the beds inconsiderately. I'll stay and watch over you; make sure that doesn't happen." She would lean back in the chair, "And you should get some sleep now."

Tyler :: Despite the burning pain all across his body, the human would force himself to turn on his side and move over towards the wall a bit. He offers Skylei a look and then glances to the spot on the bed beside him. "You don't have to sleep in that crude old thing." He nods to the spot beside him. "No funny business, honest." He chuckles at the very though. He would likely have a panic attack long before they got anywhere. Before should could accept or refuse the offer he would lay his head on the pillow and wince once more at the burns across his arm before exhaling and gritting his teeth to let the moment pass. His caramel gaze then falling upon the Wood Elf until she made her choice.

Skylei would raise a brow at the human's suggestion. Tempting as it was to sleep in a bed rather than the rubbish chair on which she currently resided, Sky cannot bear the thought of sleeping on the bed besides him and then, in the night, rolling over and hitting him in one of his injuries. And likely she would; the half-elf had never been a particularly sound sleeper. "Nay, you need your space. And your rest. And you wouldn't get either." She would gesture to the chair at this point, "Besides, it's comfier than it looks." She's lying and they both know it. But she's lying out of affection for Tyler and that makes it okay, right?

Tyler is disappointed with Skylei's choice but offers no retaliation, instead, he simply keeps his eyes locked on her for a few minutes longer before he cannot keep his eyes open any longer. The sound of glass, drunks and music providing some much needed white noise to the illusionist as he manages to slip into a heavy sleep within a matter of moments.