All Hail the Shifter King
Title: In This Together
Word Count: 487
Crossposted here at runaway-tales
Note: Just a short and sweet entry to finish up a trio of prompts - Escalated, Behave, and this one.
The two men fell amazingly quiet - small miracles, she assumed - until she lifted her hands from Ryder's back and, satisfied that she'd done a better job closing the wounds than the human doctors had, rose to her feet and swiped the dead grass from her knees. Ryder stood as well, retrieving his half-empty glass of scotch and bringing it to Eli, slapping the crystal tumbler down so hard the base cracked into a spiderweb.
"Thanks for the drink," he said in a dead, cold voice, and climbed over the wall to head back toward the house. Rebekah intercepted him halfway across the patio, catching his arm and bringing him to a halt.
"Ryder," she said softly, refusing to let go when he tried to tug his arm away. "Stay, please. You're not well and -"
"I'm fine," he told her, leveling a glare on her. "Let go."
"Let me talk some sense into him," she said, ignoring his order. "It's been a stressful time for all of us. I'm sure we can settle this." When he tried to pull away again, this time more forcefully, she tightened her grip until it was vice-like and reached up with her free hand to cup the side of his face. "Please," she said.
She didn't know if it was her words or the calming energies in her touch - the latter not entirely unintentional - but a small bit of emotion flickered back into Ryder's face, and after a moment's pause he sighed and gently removed her hand from his face, kissing her palm before he pulled her into a hug.
"Keep him out of trouble," he said quietly. She nodded against his chest. "All these years and he's still got the common sense of a child." She laughed a little at this, and felt him kiss the top of her head. "You know how to find me if things get rough?"
"I do," she said. He hummed at this, still holding her, and she smiled a little at how it felt so familiar and comfortable even though it had been decades since they'd been this close. "What about Katrina?" she asked hesitantly.
"I'm taking her with me."
"Are you sure you -"
"I promised her I'd get her home," he said. "What happens until then doesn't matter."
"Merrick will hunt you," she said softly, pulling back so she could look him in the face. "You don't honestly believe it's just us he's after."
Ryder fell quiet again, looking past her to Eli's still form sitting on the garden wall, and a sadness washed briefly across his features before he turned his attention to her again.
"We'll deal with that when the time comes," he told her, and tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear before he turned toward the kitchen door. "Tell that idiot we're still in this together," he said, and vanished into the house.
Word Count: 487
Crossposted here at runaway-tales
Note: Just a short and sweet entry to finish up a trio of prompts - Escalated, Behave, and this one.
The two men fell amazingly quiet - small miracles, she assumed - until she lifted her hands from Ryder's back and, satisfied that she'd done a better job closing the wounds than the human doctors had, rose to her feet and swiped the dead grass from her knees. Ryder stood as well, retrieving his half-empty glass of scotch and bringing it to Eli, slapping the crystal tumbler down so hard the base cracked into a spiderweb.
"Thanks for the drink," he said in a dead, cold voice, and climbed over the wall to head back toward the house. Rebekah intercepted him halfway across the patio, catching his arm and bringing him to a halt.
"Ryder," she said softly, refusing to let go when he tried to tug his arm away. "Stay, please. You're not well and -"
"I'm fine," he told her, leveling a glare on her. "Let go."
"Let me talk some sense into him," she said, ignoring his order. "It's been a stressful time for all of us. I'm sure we can settle this." When he tried to pull away again, this time more forcefully, she tightened her grip until it was vice-like and reached up with her free hand to cup the side of his face. "Please," she said.
She didn't know if it was her words or the calming energies in her touch - the latter not entirely unintentional - but a small bit of emotion flickered back into Ryder's face, and after a moment's pause he sighed and gently removed her hand from his face, kissing her palm before he pulled her into a hug.
"Keep him out of trouble," he said quietly. She nodded against his chest. "All these years and he's still got the common sense of a child." She laughed a little at this, and felt him kiss the top of her head. "You know how to find me if things get rough?"
"I do," she said. He hummed at this, still holding her, and she smiled a little at how it felt so familiar and comfortable even though it had been decades since they'd been this close. "What about Katrina?" she asked hesitantly.
"I'm taking her with me."
"Are you sure you -"
"I promised her I'd get her home," he said. "What happens until then doesn't matter."
"Merrick will hunt you," she said softly, pulling back so she could look him in the face. "You don't honestly believe it's just us he's after."
Ryder fell quiet again, looking past her to Eli's still form sitting on the garden wall, and a sadness washed briefly across his features before he turned his attention to her again.
"We'll deal with that when the time comes," he told her, and tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear before he turned toward the kitchen door. "Tell that idiot we're still in this together," he said, and vanished into the house.