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[indent][indent][indent][color=gray][sub][right][color=dc143c][b]Location:[/b][/color] City Streets - City of Thorinn, Aetheria[/right][/sub][/color]
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Rael's shouting brought him to a halt. Before he'd turned around he knew she wanted to catch up to him. Couldn't say why- she'd shown a remarkable ability to not care about other people. [color=dc143c]"Don't follow me!"[/color] Graves yelled back as he spun around. He wasn't in the mood. Wasn't in the mood to talk, or be talked at, or chewed out for his lack of [i]manners[/i]. Anger still flowed through his veins, burning and raging like a wildfire. If he'd thought removing himself from the situation would cool him down, he'd been wrong.

But Rael didn't listen- [i]typical[/i]- and came trapezing out of the tavern's second floor to run after him. Graves had half a mind to just keep walking. He didn't. He stood there, letting his choler rise with the volume of his voice.

[color=dc143c]"Are you deaf or do you just enjoy pissin' me off?"[/color]

[color=#A84B5E]"What's your frickin' problem, tank-for-brains?"[/color]

He'd spun back around before she had two words out and kept walking. Walking with long, purposeful strides in the vague direction he knew his destination to be. It was a place he'd walked by a handful of times, maybe, but Graves rarely got lost. Tracking people down was how he'd made a name for himself, after all.

[color=A84B5E]"I leave you for five minutes and Benkei starts shit with you? What the hell?"[/color]

Her questions went unanswered for more than a minute. They just went on walking together through the crowded city streets, with Graves barreling his way through anyone stupid enough to not move aside. He still wasn't calming down. His blood pressure was through the roof. [color=dc143c]"I started the shit. S'what I do."[/color] Graves snarled. [color=dc143c]"His arrogant, self-righteous, hypocrite-of-a-brother was talkin' out one side of his mouth about teamwork n' unity n' all this other shit, and outta the other he was talkin' about abandoning Kalie 'cause she's- she's [i]normal[/i]."[/color]

Just verbalizing everything that was banging around inside his skull was enough to reheat the fire. He wasn't even trying to keep it under control at this point; he didn't care who heard him yelling. He didn't care that people were looking at him like some kinda freak. It'd all been too much. Everything. All of it was just building and building on top of each other like a tower of misery up to the heavens and Graves couldn't take it anymore.

[color=dc143c]"'Cause all this scares her. 'Cause everything that's goin' on is too much. 'Cause unlike most'a our gang of losers, fuck-ups and loners, she actually has somethin' to lose."[/color] He turned his head to look at Rael over his shoulder. [color=dc143c]"Same reason you yelled at her, really."[/color]

[color=A84B5E]"I yelled at her because..."[/color] She paused, looking at the ground for a moment. [color=A84B5E]"...because she was being annoying. Don't even know why. I snapped."[/color]

[color=dc143c]"Can't stand her either. That RP shit's for kids and dorks."[/color]

She sighed audibly as she rose her hand to her face as if she had a migraine.

[color=A84B5E]"It was... I dunno. Maybe Alja is right about me. Whatever. Not like I'd abandon anyone because they are annoying. Does Kazuki really want to ditch the weak members like that?"[/color]

He echoed Rael's sigh and slowed in his walk. [color=dc143c]"I dunno. I dunno what he wants, and I didn't give him time to explain. Said a lot of shit I shouldn't have and now the group's...done. Ain't something you come back from. Better off on my own, anyway."[/color]

[color=A84B5E]"How lame. Giving up that easily."[/color]

[color=dc143c]"Didn't take you for the kumbaya type."[/color]

She rolled her eyes as she moved her hand from her face, [color=A84B5E]"Never took you for the coward type."[/color]

That hit a nerve.

[color=A84B5E]"What's going to happen to those morons without us?"[/color]

And that drove it home.

[color=dc143c]"God, you sound just like-"[/color] He threw up his hands and gave a frustrated groan. [color=dc143c]"-They're probably gonna charge off the nearest cliff like a pack of lemmings."[/color]

She smiled, [color=A84B5E]"People like us aren't supposed to be the likeable ones. If you weren't busy being so upset you'd see that. We've got a different job."[/color]

They stopped walking. [color=dc143c]"You're a pain in my ass, I hope you know that."[/color]

[color=A84B5E]"Yeah."[/color] She moved closer looking up at him as she did so, forcing absolute eye contact. [color=A84B5E]"So what're you gonna do about it?"[/color]

Not one to back down from a challenge, Graves held his ground, bending his knees to get down to her level. After a beat of glaring at her he stood back up. [color=dc143c]"Still not over the ale thing- Imma get you back for it later. For now, there's work to be done."[/color]
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