No place in Paradise - [o]

[MADALYN *]

She couldn't believe she had done it again.

Hard wood met the center of her forehead as she repeatedly, albeit lightly, banged her head onto her door. Why? Why why why did this always happen to her? I mean, what did she have to do? Writes notes all over herself so as not to forget? Her boss alone was already frustrated with her for constantly forgetting things, so he couldn't possibly imagine what it was like to get locked out of her own home at least once a month. Madalyn gave a breathy sigh, hand still placed hopefully upon the doorknob despite the fact that she knew she wasn't going to get in that way. Closing off the honey-brown hues of her irises behind her lids for a moment, she contemplated on which way she should get in this time. There was a side window she kept unlocked for occasions such as these, and there was a way to get onto the roof, but seeing as the place she lived in somewhat resembled an apartment complex, she had no idea who's home she might end up invading on accident. So, she guessed it was the window. Growling in frustration she drew back, giving the god forsaken door one last angry clock before turning and hopping down the stairs to go around the side of the building.

She didn't like getting in this way, mostly because it was uncomfortable as well as difficult, and everyone who walked by thought that she was breaking and entering into her own home. Which was actually kind of true. The window was high off the ground, just about 4 inches above her head. Dragging a crate from the back of the alley (though she had no idea where it had originally come from, let alone what was inside of it) and pushed it under the window sill. Clambering up on top of it she started trying to work her nails under the window, trying to pry it open and lift it up so she could get inside. How embarrassing, the last thing she needed was someone running up to her again, threatening to call to law enforcement if she didn't come down from there and stop that. It annoyed her to no end, but she knew the people were just trying to be helpful. If she saw someone doing what she was, she probably would react in the same fashion. Probably.

Please don't do this. The window was jammed. Mother fucking jammed. Her lip curled back in a raging snarl, hand balling into a fist as she prepared to punch a hole right through the glass. But, stopped herself at the last minute. Heaving a thick breath from her mouth she slumped against the side of the building. Jeez. What was she going to do now?

A raindrop landed on the tip of her nose.

Now she was really starting to think that the universe made her the butt of its every joke. Ha Ha, you're the only ones laughing though.

[Desgevell]

What a show.

The lieutenant smirked as he leaned against the side of another building, watching the woman as she tried to climb into a window, one obviously stuck. It was the soft banging that had piqued his interest as he patrolled the city streets—well, “patrol” was more of a word to make himself feel more important on his stroll of boredom—and now he didn’t know what to make of her. The tanned-looking follower struggled with the window, growling at her failure and then slumping against the building resignedly, indicating that he had nothing else to snicker at and that he should get a move on, let her deal with her issues.

But something made Desgevell pause as he prepared to walk onward. She couldn’t be a thief; none would dare to make that much noise even if thieves were common throughout the land. Either a friend of hers had shut her out, or this was her home and she was somehow unable to get into it. Was it his job to help her out? Probably not. Did he want to? Probably not. Would he try, in as condescending a manner as possible? Hell yes.

“Having troubles, Miss?”

His deep voice called out from the shadows as he stepped forward, not blinking when a raindrop coursed down his slightly crooked nose. He stepped over to the side of the building she leaned, defeated, against. One arm, tan yet streaked with paler pink scars, reached out to brace himself against the brickwork as he regarded her. She was a fair amount smaller and younger than him, nice-looking, yet not remarkable. It was the faint muscles in her arms that interested him more than the luxurious black hair or soft mahogany eyes.

“My name’s Vell,” the man said on impulse, and just as impulsively ran his hand through his auburn hair before rubbing a bit of dirt off his cheek. His tone had changed from its original arrogant, asshole roots and was branching out into a charming one, fit with a small one-sided smirk. He wasn’t flirting, yet at least, but it sometimes helped in the long run to offer a bit of diplomacy and friendliness. That was what his mentor had taught him. For some reason it was much easier with women; men were too much fun to pummel into the ground while the ladies responded slightly more to his battle-scarred charm.

“If it’s someone else locking you out, I could shove their nose into their skull for you. Other than that, I’m not much help, I’m afraid.” He grinned roguishly. “I’m only good at smashing things.”

[MADALYN *]

The dark-skinned woman hadn't been aware that she had been being watched, only catching sight of the burly man standing at the opening of the alley when her head rolled to the side in order to get a better look at where she would most likely spending the duration of the approaching storm. Instantly, despite his fairly charming smile, her eyes narrowed boldly, obviously wary of him. Who the hell was this guy? He kind of looked familiar, but she couldn't quite place where she had seen him before. Imagine that. In a moments notice her expression shifted to being placid instead of brooding and forlorn, ignoring the fact that she was still locked out and this guy had probably watched the whole display of her trying to pry open the window. God, and she thought it had been embarrassing before without anyone watching her. Maybe it had just been the idea of being watched that got to her. They do say be careful what you wish for.

“Having troubles, Miss?”

The rain began to increase its tempo, several droplets falling down on her arms and being soaked into her thick, black hair. She glanced up at the window almost automatically, silently telling him to piece it together. Of course she needed help, but was she going to give in to his charms and ask for it? Of course not. "Thanks. But I've got it covered," She assured, standing back up on the box and towering over him, eying him like a hawk from above. Talk about broad and beefy. To say the least, he was probably more intimidating than a rabid bear, and let me tell you, those things were fucking scary when they went nuts. Turning her sights back onto the window, she tried once more to pry it open, the sides giving a faint screech of protest as it gave in a slid up just a tad. Just enough for her to slip a slender hand under and try pushing again. Great. This this was just ASKING to be replaced.

"Vell, huh?" she grunted between intervals of rest and wrestling with the window. The defined muscle in her arms flexed as she tried one more time, the rain now coming down in dusty sheets and beginning to seep through her clothing. Gah. Cold. After a few more tries and raises the gap to the point of being able to fit a fairly large rock through, she gave up, looking at him from slightly over her shoulder. "Madalyn. Nice to meet you... I guess." she hadn't exactly asked for an introduction, but he seemed charming enough, unless he was really a creep under that suave demeanor. Ick. Hopefully not.

"So, what do you want then? If you're looking for a way to get out of the rain, you are welcome to come inside when I-" while she had been talking, she had slipped her hand under the window again, slamming up hard with the butt of her palms, surprised to see it come up several inches. Yes! She could fit through that! Deciding not to finish her sentence, she heaved herself up onto the edge and slid inside, sighing with relief and absently pulling the sticky, wet clothes from her form. Flicking on a alight or two, she returned to the window, gesturing down to the box, though she was sure he was tall enough to reach the window without it. "Come on, you're getting wet," she pointed out, allowing her eyes to move over his broad frame once more before drawing her head inside. If he decided he was going to take advantage of her, she wasn't afraid. She could take him... hopefully.

[Desgevell]

Almost as soon as had he been seen he was being scrutinized suspiciously, and he couldn’t exactly blame the woman for her initial wariness. Shady men appeared all over the place, and he definitely didn’t have a trustworthy face. Something about scars etched into almost every square inch of your skin was off-putting to people.

He couldn’t imagine why.

Desgevell smirked slightly, an expression that did not much help his image in this case, but her demeanor appeared to grow more docile. She told him that she “had it covered” and stepped back onto the crate she had used to reach the window in the first place. Glancing up at her brown eyes, he smirked once more, in a “whatever you say” fashion. With the rain pouring down on both of them, she worked the window up a crack and glanced over her shoulder at him. “Madalyn,” she responded to his introduction. “Nice to meet you… I guess.”

The broad-shouldered man uttered a low laugh before she forced the window up, effectively interrupting the wry retort he had begun to deliver. His mouth a tight line, he watched her wriggle into the window after telling him that he could come in. That hadn’t exactly been the invitation that he had expected, but maybe he could get something out of this. Nothing that would be seen as excessively morally wrong, but he was bored, and a conversation that annoyed her would be better than walking away now.

That, and the rain was getting pretty heavy. Cold drops slid down his cheeks, flattening his auburn hair to his skull as well. His shirt was drenched and tight against his body. Quite uncomfortable.

“Come on, you’re getting wet.” Her pretty head popped out of the window as she gestured toward the box, inviting him in. He could see the flicker of some candles when she disappeared from sight again. With nothing else to really do, he sighed and stepped over to the crate. Not sure it would support his weight, he shoved it to the side and then hefted himself up to the window. Fitting his slightly bulky body through was quite a challenge, but once he got the angle of his shoulders right, the rest slid right in. He staggered rather unceremoniously to the floor.

“Thanks for your hospitality, Madalyn,” Vell said in a polite voice reserved for irritating the hell out of people, before tacking on, “I guess.” He smirked and glanced around at the house, not trying to appear to be analyzing it too much, because that might be seen as creepy. With one sweep of his hazel eyes, he looked back to her face. “Windows the new doors now or something? A lieutenant is too detached from society to keep up with the trends.”