All Hail the Shifter King
Title: Pancakes
Word Count: 378
Crossposted here at runaway_tales
Author's Note: I had to keep with tradition and have Eli make pancakes, like every other character that is based on the same person (who happens to make, hands down, the best pancakes I've ever had). I also decided to show a bit of Eli's serious side, here. He tends to be the happier, more companionable one to balance out Ryder's piss and vinegar, but obviously he can't be that way all the time.
She was so preoccupied with watching a pair of small squirrel-like creatures play on the bird bath that she nearly jumped out of her skin when Eli set a plate of pancakes in front of her. Though she'd been near-sick all morning with anxiety, the mouthwatering scent of the berry and fresh mint toppings was enough to make even her uneasy stomach rumble ravenously.
"You need to eat something," Eli said quietly, handing her a fork. She hesitated before taking it, staring up at his unreadable expression.
"I thought you were done helping me," she mentioned. It took all of her self-control to not spear the stack of pancakes and shove them into her mouth like a barbarian - instead, she portioned off a small forkfull and chewed it thoughtfully.
"We'll call it a reward for good behavior," he said, lowering himself with a wince into the seat beside her. When he didn't say anything else, she decided to abandon any semblance of civility and stuffed her mouth, relishing the first thing she'd had to eat in almost twenty-four hours. After she'd scraped her plate clean, she leaned back with a sign of contentment.
"Thank you," she said.
"You're welcome," came his flat reply.
"How..." She paused when he glanced over at her. "How is Becca?"
"Resting."
"Is she going to be okay?"
"She should be." He shifted in his chair, rubbed his bandaged shoulder. "Thank you," he added. "For what you did."
For a moment she wasn't certain she'd heard correctly - not after how he'd screamed at her the night before - and a flush crept into her cheeks at the unexpected gratitude. Clearing her throat, she looked down at her lap.
"She would have done the same for me," she murmured awkwardly.
"I know. Which is why I feel I've been..." He paused, thinking. "... unnecessarily hard on you," he finished. "She was so adamant that we go back for you and Gavin that it felt very natural to blame you for what happened."
"And now?"
"Now I realize that you were not the catalyst for this conflict," he told her. "Nevertheless, you're very much involved now. You and Gavin both."
"Great. How do we get uninvolved?"
"That's exactly what we need to discuss."
Word Count: 378
Crossposted here at runaway_tales
Author's Note: I had to keep with tradition and have Eli make pancakes, like every other character that is based on the same person (who happens to make, hands down, the best pancakes I've ever had). I also decided to show a bit of Eli's serious side, here. He tends to be the happier, more companionable one to balance out Ryder's piss and vinegar, but obviously he can't be that way all the time.
She was so preoccupied with watching a pair of small squirrel-like creatures play on the bird bath that she nearly jumped out of her skin when Eli set a plate of pancakes in front of her. Though she'd been near-sick all morning with anxiety, the mouthwatering scent of the berry and fresh mint toppings was enough to make even her uneasy stomach rumble ravenously.
"You need to eat something," Eli said quietly, handing her a fork. She hesitated before taking it, staring up at his unreadable expression.
"I thought you were done helping me," she mentioned. It took all of her self-control to not spear the stack of pancakes and shove them into her mouth like a barbarian - instead, she portioned off a small forkfull and chewed it thoughtfully.
"We'll call it a reward for good behavior," he said, lowering himself with a wince into the seat beside her. When he didn't say anything else, she decided to abandon any semblance of civility and stuffed her mouth, relishing the first thing she'd had to eat in almost twenty-four hours. After she'd scraped her plate clean, she leaned back with a sign of contentment.
"Thank you," she said.
"You're welcome," came his flat reply.
"How..." She paused when he glanced over at her. "How is Becca?"
"Resting."
"Is she going to be okay?"
"She should be." He shifted in his chair, rubbed his bandaged shoulder. "Thank you," he added. "For what you did."
For a moment she wasn't certain she'd heard correctly - not after how he'd screamed at her the night before - and a flush crept into her cheeks at the unexpected gratitude. Clearing her throat, she looked down at her lap.
"She would have done the same for me," she murmured awkwardly.
"I know. Which is why I feel I've been..." He paused, thinking. "... unnecessarily hard on you," he finished. "She was so adamant that we go back for you and Gavin that it felt very natural to blame you for what happened."
"And now?"
"Now I realize that you were not the catalyst for this conflict," he told her. "Nevertheless, you're very much involved now. You and Gavin both."
"Great. How do we get uninvolved?"
"That's exactly what we need to discuss."