Tolio had valiantly been fighting off the anger that simmered just below the tenuous layer of his original thoughts. He would never strike a woman first, though he did not doubt any woman's fighting abilities and therefore had no problem fighting them. The thought of even wanting to hurt Phaedra made him feel physically ill. But as she shouted at him his ears pinned back against his head and he rose to his full height, towering above her in stature even if they stood a full four paces away from each other. Danger glowed in his eyes, warning her silently, but she only continued to shout at him. However when she spoke of him being unable to protect her he snapped. Rearing up and slamming his hooves into the ground as he roared at her. "Unable to protect you?! I cannot see the future! You expect me to know the exact moment you are in trouble?! I can protect you! I am a warrior whether you choose to see that or not!" He was just so angry! How dare she say he couldn't protect her?! He could have taken on Leander the best to his abilities, but how could he have when she was miles away?!

Heat was spreading, taking over their conversation as their anger built between the two of them. She may not have been yelling but he was, and didn't give a damn in that moment. "How the hell was I supposed to know Faelene was with Leander?! She's my sister! I don't go prying into her love life!" Voice spitting out more than yelling this time, telling Phaedra that she was on dangerous ground, insulting Faelene even subtly. "I wasn't cooing over her! We were checking each other for injuries because we had just sparred!" Wondering why he had to defend himself over this. Why in the world did Phaedra care if he was standing close to another mare? Especially one that he considered a close sister?

However her calling Faelene a bitch was too much and his head lowered in a menacing manner, daring her to say it again. "Faelene is no bitch! She doesn't control what Leander does, how can she when we are at complete opposite ends of Helovia?! And how was I supposed to know you did it for me?! You should have talked to me damn it!" Tolio hadn't once asked her to make room for Faelene or Leander. He knew that Faelene was staying in the Basin, so it would have been useless anyways!

The words that came out low and hissing however, were ones he could never have prepared for. His face fell in devastation and his head flung up as if startled, taking a few steps back. Agony came over his visage before it hardened in anger and ice. He wouldn't let her see how much it hurt him, stifling the tears. "I let her cast you away as you say because you had ripped my heart out and stomped on it cheerfully. Even if I had wanted you to stay, I was hardly in the state to speak at all! There's a thing called shock Phaedra, you should look into it." Words cutting and sharp, eyes the same. Refusing to tremble in her presence. He wouldn't give her that satisfaction. "I don't know what your problem is Phaedra, but you are not the pretty little sister I met on the beach. You've changed. Into a wicked, bratty, sneaky, manipulative person. Whether or not I'm your brother I'll love you. You can say all the mean and nasty words you want, right here. Call me a coward, a bastard, weak. Throw it at me, Phaedra! Come on, don't you want to prove a point?!" Voice back to a bellow, puffing up as large as he could get and stalking towards her a few steps.

"I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE FUCK I DID!" Yelling it at her, pissed and hurt beyond belief. Hooves slamming the ground in anger, forcing himself to take a few steps back away from her. Tolio refused to strike her, though he was sure she did not feel the same. Mercury eyes flashed with hundreds of emotions. And a sudden realization came to him. This isn't you, Tolio. Anger slipped away to show horror at the anger he had felt towards someone he loved so dearly. Quickly moving backwards away from her, knowing what he did was very wrong. Voice slipping to a lower decibel, tone sad and defeated. "You are blind, Phaedra. You won't see that there was no way I could have protected you, simply because I wasn't there and didn't know what was transpiring. I love Faelene, you cannot change that. But I love her as a sister, and only as a sister. If she chooses to love Leander, then that is her choice. I will support her because that is what a brother does. I knew her long before you, but that doesn't mean I love her more. I let her cast you away because you had hurt me, and I was too shocked to speak much less say anything of value because you had destroyed my emotions in a few moments. I was cuddled with her because we were taking stock of injuries. Weren't you and I in a similar position on the beach when we first met? You need to open your eyes, Phaedra, because I never asked you to make room for Faelene and Leander in the Grey. If you would have actually talked to me, let me know of these things, I would have gone with you to meet Leander. I would have let you know that Faelene is far too loyal to leave the Basin." He was going to spell it out for her whether she liked it or not, even if his eyes were stubbornly moist.

Sighing, his chest trembled as he forced himself to take a deep breath and clench his eyes shut. "However, I won't make you take all the blame. I should have tried harder to say something when Faelene made you leave. I should have sought you out earlier. Yes, I should have protected you from Leander, but I couldn't have known where you were or that you were in danger. It's partially on me, I admit that. But sitting here and yelling at each other in our anger isn't going to solve anything. I shouldn't have done it in the first place." Eyes opening once more to lock with Phaedra's. Giving her one last choice.

"You have two choices. You can continue to hate me, and I will continue to love you and wish things had been different. Or you can see what I'm trying to show you, and maybe we can actually talk instead of scream. I want to fix things, Phaedra, but I can't do that unless you let me. I'll admit to being wrong, but you have to as well. It was all a matter of misunderstandings and miscommunication. I don't know why you hate Faelene so much, but I won't push it out of you. It'll probably only end in more screaming anyways." Shaking his head and sighing, retreating from her slowly. Eyes betraying him, sadly showing that he believed quite fully that Phaedra would choose to hate him and fly away with her companion. Tolio didn't believe she would be able to talk it over, not because she was incapable but because he had the worst luck in the world and the Gods had clearly declared that he was not allowed to be happy. "I am saddened to say that I expect you to leave. There's nothing but me to keep you, and you've made it quite clear that you hate me. Whatever you choose, I'll always love you, whether you want my love or not." With those final words he lowered his head and turned to bare his right side to her, unable to watch her leave if that was the choice she made.