[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/necCR92.png[/img][/center][hr][sub][color=darkorange]Location:[/color] Guard Tower[/sub][hr][hr]

[color=darkorange]“And you find this acceptable?”[/color] Elio cocked his head to the side. His eyes sharpened, even as his smile remained on his face. [color=darkorange]“All this [i]fucking up?[/i]”[/color] he asked, gesturing towards her with a lazy wave of his hand. [color=darkorange]“Better yet, fucking up and then lamenting to the world about it?”[/color]

[i][color=darkorange]Come on Darling, have some dignity.[/color][/i]

Elio took a breath, ignoring all the questions she’d asked him, all the information she’d demanded. It wasn’t like it’d help her [i]do her job,[/i] anyway, or stop her from embarrassing herself with her own insecurities. He looked back out over Dawnhaven. Tiny, busy bodies cluttered the streets, the ebb and flow of directionless crowd control. His patience was wearing thin. The second he’d seen her passed out he’d figured she wouldn’t have anything useful for him. Screw it. He was already pretty sure Zeph was alive, and he was getting tired of wasting energy looking for him, when he’d probably just fucked off to find some fun of his own. 

Elio turned back to the guard, firelight eyes drifting over her. He took in the nervous way she shifted her feet, how her eyes measured the distance between him and her shield. 

[color=darkorange]“You’re green.”[/color] The observation was as blunt as it was bored. [color=darkorange]“Unfortunately for you, it’s winter and the growing season’s passed.”[/color] Elio huffed out a breath of air that might’ve been a laugh. The small cloud billowed and dissipated, as his eyes watched her. [color=darkorange]“But I guess I feel bad for you, that you’ve got Hale as a partner,”[/color] he said with a cheeky smile that was anything but sympathetic. [color=darkorange]“So you can have this for free.”[/color] Elio pushed himself off of the post, standing to his full height again. His arms unfolded slowly, a hand raising as he began to count off on his fingers one by one. [color=darkorange]“A feral attacked. The princess is missing. Abel, one of your more reliable guardsmen, is dead. Town’s on lockdown. Culprit’s still loose.”[/color] Each new statement brought him another step closer to her, until he was close enough to pick apart the individual freckles on her face in the flickering firelight. He raised an eyebrow as he looked down at her, hand still aloft. Elio wiggled his fingers slightly. 

[color=darkorange]“Best get to work,”[/color] he said, voice low. His hand dropped slowly, lest she get even jumpier than she already was. [color=darkorange]“Before someone pulls you like a weed.”[/color] He spent another moment looking at her, with her slate grey eyes. His smile widened.

Elio stepped away, turning back towards the ladder.

[color=darkorange]“You find Hale and he’s not dead, tell him Elio’s gonna kick his ass.”[/color]

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[sub][color=darkorange]Interactions:[/color] Charlotte Hawthorne [@SpicyMeatball][/sub]