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Robyn chuckled with Rylen for a moment, but her expression quickly sobered when he brought up Selene. Not that he could see it behind the shades, but her eyes shifted to the side, looking away, as she sighed. "I...'course she is, Ry...but that fight was a fluke, he knocked-"

She was interrupted by movement near the door, and as she looked past Rylen, the vixen broke into what was probably the widest and most genuine smile the half-wolf would have ever seen on her. "Celas!"

Only the metal rails on the bed shifting as she moved, reminding her of where she was, prevented her from leaping up and hugging the white-haired fighter. As it was, her tail waved from its spot on the bed, and her ears perked up. "What are you doing here? I thought you were busy!"

The fact she was almost completely ignoring Rylen would probably not be lost on either of them.

Oh it was not lost on Rylen. He had his rage face on!

>:[

Maybe on the inside, at least. Outwardly, Rylen just cocked an eyebrow at the fox girl's sudden change in mood, and he gave the white-haired man who inspired it an odd look.

Who the hell is this now? He wondered, though he realized he had no reason to really worry for Robyn's sake. Unless she greeted her most dangerous enemies with the most glee and happiness he had ever seen out of her.

Rylen turned his attention back to Robyn, and he was barely able to make out the unmistakable swish of her tail that reflected her feelings for this man. He could almost, almost feel his face soften in a knowing smirk. Of course he really just kept a calloused expression on his face, but still...

He could not blame Robyn if she was particularly close to this man, even though Rylen had never seen him before. After all, he had a significant other at the moment that Robyn had not even properly met yet. It had been a long time since he and Robyn had seen each other before the tournament, after all.

Not really the type to butt in or bother to introduce himself (or try to make friends), Rylen shifted back a bit as if melding in with the background, content to wait and discover more about this mysterious individual in Robyn's life.

Edit:

But the other man was nice enough to introduce himself first. Still a bit unsure of the story between the two of them, Rylen simply nodded his head and offered a curt response.

"Name's Rylen. Yeah, you could say we're friends." He said bluntly. He did not want to get in the way of such a tender reunion, after all. Plus seeing Robyn like this was just far too good.

"A pleasure to meet you, Rylen," Celas said with a brief smile, inclining his head. He had yet to meet Robyn's friends so meeting Rylen was a small pleasure. He should have guessed they were friends, given Rylen's animal features.

Still... there was a coldness in his eyes, so deep and unattached to the expression on his face that Celas himself seemed unaware of it. Despite Celas' warmth, a distant part of him was sizing Rylen up, measuring him, weighing him.

And then the moment was gone. Celas pulled a chair up beside Robyn's bed in sat down. Her words were greeted with a warm smile. "I've missed you too, Robyn. I'm sorry I couldn't be here sooner." He had taken some time to hunt down some clues as toward his past, ask around for the man who seemed connected to them, but had found nothing.

He reached over the side of the bed to take Robyn's hand. "Hm... you don't seem too injured. In fact, you're looking rather.... hip?" He cocked his head, unsure of the word, and gestured toward Robyn's stylish sunglasses.

Celas nodded slightly. He didn't indicate how much of her fight he had seen - if any - but he did not press her for information, either. "I see. That was kind of him." The flicker of distaste in the depths of his eyes were at odds with the concern on his face and in his voice. "Are you all right? I understand that the healers here are quite skilled to be able to return a fighter to the field so quickly, but still..."

[Time paradox; I'll label any posts for this timeframe as "Round 3" and any posts for the conversation with Shinji as "Round 2" to avoid confusion.]

[Round 3]

In one of the small rooms reserved for patients, Deitric reclined in an austere, steel chair, forgoing the bed the orderly had told him to lay down on before leaving him to his own devices after a quick dose of pain-killers. He hated the beds in hospitals and medical centers; they smelled of anti-septics and were as comfortable as a slab of stone. Less so, really - he could think of caves he'd slept in that had had more comfortable bedding.

The tribesman's ruined leather jacket sat along the back of the chair. Around the arms and chest it looked as if someone had taken a grinder to it and shredded the material, and there were holes where the metal decorations had burnt off. The poor, threadbare remains of his gloves sat on a table nearby, along with his weapons, what was left of his bandanna (not much), and the protective leather chaps he wore over his jeans. Appearance wise, his clothing had suffered much worse than he had.

Dressed in a singed pair of jeans and sleeveless shirt, the tribesman looked less imposing than he did on the television, all black leather, spikes, studs and swinging fists. Now, he was just a man. The skin of his face and arms looked seared, and some of the skin was black and cracked along the left side of his jaw. Black char marks dotted his arms and shoulders where the metal had burnt through the leather and singed his flesh. His entire left arm was covered from shoulder to wrist in an intricate, archaic looking tattoo; its beginnings and endings were impossible to discern. His hair was short and uneven where it had been burnt. He bet he looked worse than he felt, if that were possible.

The entire room smelled like a smokehouse, like it was being used to smoke-cure food or something.

Deitric gnawed idly on a small candy bar the orderly had given him to help him gain some energy back. It must have been past its expiration date; he could have chewed on the back of the chair he was sitting on and have better luck. But food was food, so he resigned himself to worrying off bits and pieces of the candy bar until he a healer came in.

Robyn waved her hand, chuckling slightly. "I'm fine, really. They do as much as they can, and the curse does the rest." It was odd that she referred to something beneficial as a "curse", but it was more just how she always named it. If anything, it should be said as a proper noun, first letter capitalized and all that.

The fox girl snorted. " 'Course, it doesn't help when they don't want to listen. You'd think they'd get it in their thick, educated skulls that when I tell them "no sedatives", I'm not saying it 'cause I'm tryin' to be brave or somethin'." What was it with doctors and trying to ease her pain? She could handle it, and it was a small price to pay in order to keep Selene under control.

She sighed, knowing he was only worrying about her well-being. Her eyes softened, and she squeezed his hand lightly. "Really, I'm fine, Celas." Her ears wiggled. "Couple days, I'll be good as new!"

Ordinarily, she wouldn't have held herself back from giving her boyfriend a quick reassuring kiss, even with someone else around. Unfortunately, Rylen wasn't just "someone else", and she held herself back, not out of consideration for Rylen's awkwardness, but for the fact she didn't want to give him any more dirt than he'd already accumulated on her with this little stint.

[Round 3]

Deitric turned in his chair to find himself face to face with Sey. He was a little surprised; most healers were more clinical, less friendly. He offered a faint smile, but immediately regretted it. Even with the pain medication, any facial expression sent a twinge of pain lancing through his skin.

"Yes, I'm Deitric," he affirmed, turning himself around in the chair to face her, holding his hand out for a handshake. He would have stood up, but every time he picked himself up to greet a white mage or doctor, they shushed him back into his chair or bed. Despite his battered appearance, he looked relaxed enough. Perhaps it was a combination of the medication and the presence that came from her medallion. More likely, it was because the adrenaline of combat had faded an hour or two prior, and now he was just too tired to be anything other than calm.

"It's nice to meet you, Seyumi," he continued laxly, looking up at her. "No, I'm not - at least, it's never bothered me before," the tribesman explained uncertainly. Truth be told, his understanding of magic was tenuous, at the very least, but he'd never suffered an adverse reaction from it.

Celas smiled and returned the squeeze. "I'm glad to hear. I'll speak with the doctors and reiterate the fact that sedatives are a bad idea. One can hope that your last match was the closest call you have this tournament." Celas stood and leaned over to kiss Robyn's forehead. She might want to refrain from showing too much affection in front of Rylen but Celas was unaware of what bond they might share. Even so, it was a fairly chaste kiss.

"Get some rest - you'll need your strength. I'll be watching." He turned toward Rylen and gave another slight bow. "Rylen - a pleasure to meet you." With one last smile to Robyn and a swish of his coat, he headed toward the door.