Upon hearing Feanulde call after him, Veep tensed. Dammit. His throwaway line to get away from the others has provoked an unexpected response. He forced the smile back onto his face and turned to face the approaching Elf.

[color=39b54a]You say you've checked them all already? But I wanna check it again. Our lives rely on these contraptions after all.[/color]

[color=6ecff6]Yes, they do,[/color] Fey huffed. [color=6ecff6]Which is why I have already checked them thoroughly. I do, in fact, know what I am doing, and have had far more access to them than most of the personnel on this team[/color]. She didn't go quite as far as stating it outright, but it didn't take an expert in body language to know that she felt offended by the insinuation that the equipment could possibly need another check.

Veep faltered under the penetrating gaze upon him.
[color=39b54a]I... I mean.... I didn't mean..." He sighed. "Ok look, I'll level with you. I wasn't actually gonna check the equipment, I was just using that as an excuse to be on my own.[/color]

The elf rolled her eyes in response. [color=6ecff6]Well, then you should say what you mean. Both of us have already wasted far more time and effort than necessary on this conversation,[/color] she says irritably. [color=6ecff6]It's not as if solitude is some sort of special privilege.[/color]

A surge of irrational anger surged through him.
[color=39b54a]Well nobody told you to come over and start berating me just for wanting to apparently check the damned equipment! Now, since that's apparently unnecessary, I'll go get a drink. I suggest you don't follow me.[/color]

Without waiting for a response, Veep turned and headed towards the canteen area. The anger quickly giving way to regret. He'd lost his temper, and with such little provocation. What hope did he have to keep it under control when faced with the Totality forces? He had a feeling Feanulde wasn't gonna take what he said lying down either. He braced himself for whatever would happen next.

Fortunately for Veep's nerves, Feanulde's reply was rather understated compared with his expectation. The elf stiffened, and looked as if she might launch into some sort of tirade. . . but the energy in it faded almost as quickly as it had appeared, replaced with muttering under her breath about "inefficiency" and a halfhearted complaint about his lack of gratitude that a human likely wouldn't have caught at all. She started toward the MAS bay despite her own insistence that all was fine with their equipment, already trying to put the encounter out of her mind.