shadowofpride | Empatheias IC Inbox

[However much Jade tries to remain pleasant, Pride's oppressive nature doesn't relent.]

She is not here. What business do you have with her? [He's purposely not mentioning how long she's been gone.]

Is that so...

[There's a trace of doubt in his words, even if all evidence thus far seems to prove that Pride isn't deceiving him. Even so, intent is a whole different story, and he finds himself wondering why she isn't home, and if Pride anything had to do it.]

...my business with her is between the two of us. If she hasn't seen fit to share it with you, I don't see why I should be any more forthcoming about it.

[Jade is still smiling, but the air around him chills slightly, lending a none too comfortable air around him and the guard, who chooses to back away that moment and excuse himself, saying he'll be at the front should there be a need for him.]

More importantly, why isn't she here?

[Jade might have the sense of something creeping beneath him. Dark tendrils were brushing against his boots, not taking Jade's responses very well. And something about the way he remain calm was unsettling.]

And why should I answer that question? Where she is, is not your business.

[Jade feels it, alright. And he doesn't like it one bit. But again, he gives no indication of discomfort, only letting a few harmless sparks crackle from beneath his feet as a warning of sorts should Pride decide to throw caution to the wind.]

It is my business if we've made plans to meet today and she doesn't show up.

[It takes all of his control to keep his tone level. The oppressive air about them isn't letting up after all, and Jade isn't exactly in the best emotional state to not let such things affect him.]

...Is there a reason why you're unable to answer what I feel is a simple question?

[The shadows seem to be laughing at something amusing. Mouths form within the shadows as they give Jade a toothy grin.]

Perhaps she didn't want to have anything to do with you today. [At all.]

I'm not obligated to tell you anything, especially when I don't know what your intentions are with Eleanor.

[You know one other thing that Jade doesn't like? The sound of that. But he laughs along anyway, if only to cover up how it's picking at the edges of his fraying calm.]

I would think that should be obvious.

[Friendly, he thinks in his mind, only partly aware of how their outings might've been looking to other people. But he'll let Pride chew on that, especially when the other hasn't been giving satisfying answers to his own questions.]

At whose behest does she not want anything to do with me today, I wonder? [He's no longer able to keep the accusation off his tone. The sparks around his feet, though still harmless, act up again, as if a nonverbal warning regarding the true state of his calm.] She certainly didn't give that impression in our past get-togethers.

[If Pride had anything to do at all with Eleanor's disappearance, there would be hell to pay. And that'd be an understatement.]

[The shadows only shift slightly from the sparks, receding from the burst of light it creates and then creeps back towards Jade.]

If I knew I wouldn't tell you. To be honest, I was under the impression she had been with you Mister Four-eyes.

[At any rate, he wasn't expecting the shadows to recede, though he makes a mental note of that as Pride gives him a response that goes against his current assumption--one that causes the now unintentional electrical discharge and his slowly mounting tension to disappear in a small pop due to his surprise.

It does cross his mind that Pride might have been messing with him, but against the possibility that Pride might've been honest about things, there's barely any salt to that hypothetical. One he's quick to weigh before delivering a response of his own.]

"Jade" is what people usually call me.

[There's a brief pause as he considers this exchange thus far, and what it means in terms of Eleanor's disappearance.]

Selim Bradley... no, Pride. [The smile finally disappears from Jade's face, replaced by a frown as he furrows his brows in worry.] I was under a similar impression, except for the fact that I thought she's with you.

[He cups a hand to his chin as he racks his brain for the other scenarios he's put on the backburner, though not without a wary eye towards Pride's shadows.]

Usually, the most logical conclusion for this one is that the person's gone back to their world, however, I've been getting some unusual interference when I try to contact her through telepathy, which is why I don't think that's the case. [He closes his eyes, letting out a heavy sigh.] And now that I think on it, it's quite different from the one I've sensed around this house. There are some similarities, but it's not quite it.

[Pride was quiet, with only the sounds of the shadows shifting about indicating he was still present. She wasn't with this man? The concern on Jade's face was telling him may not be lying.] ...Of course not. Her name would have been on the wall.

[Should have researched harder Jade. Still, this doesn't sit well with Pride, because neither of them knew where Eleanor was, and she had been gone for a day already. What should he do with Jade? Sending him away wouldn't stop him from looking in places he shouldn't. Should he just utilize that somehow for his own purpose? Eyes narrow within the shadows.] I have been unable to reach her since yesterday.

As I have.

[While he found it unusual, it's something he decided to attribute to busy times, and since he isn't the type to push for a reply given this matter, he didn't assume the worst case scenario. At least until this day rolled in and lent a more ominous air to those messages with no reply.]

What other places have you checked besides the wall?

[It was to be his next destination should his hunch about Mrs. Bradley's state of being in this world prove wrong, but Pride already saved him the trouble, so no need to double the effort for that.]

Nearly all of Verens. There are few places my shadows cannot reach afterall. [The shadows seem to be closing in all around Jade, even moreso than they already were. Clearly his prideful nature was showing.]

I've been to every place she would regularly visit and haven't found any indication she had been to them.

[Jade doesn't flinch at the shadows moving around as such, more absorbed with the implications of Pride's words.]

...Have you asked any of the townspeople or shopkeepers with regard to her whereabouts? And what of the places your shadows can't reach?

...A few. Not many are willing to speak with me. Those I have spoken with have not seen her. [Considering what he had down to the locals of this world, it's understandable they're hesitant to say anything to him.]

They are locations inaccessible to Eleanor, I assure you. [He's being vague, not wanting to openly discuss his blind spots to Jade.]

[Well, there goes his not-so-subtle attempt to wheedle that particular bit of information from Pride. Not like Jade didn't have a few clues of his own, like the way the shadows withdrew from his earlier spark show.]

I will go and speak to those you haven't, then.

[Even though part of him knew it may be a pointless undertaking, there's no denying a chance, no matter how slim it might be. Plus, it's still got to be better than standing around and wringing his hands around Pride.]

Could you give me a rundown of the places where you haven't asked around yet?

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