rustandglass·:

“Liss, you could turn into a 100ft fire-breathing purple penguin that destroys cities and I wouldn’t give a flying fuck so long as you were safe,” Cael answered with a small laugh.

If anything, it did go some way to explaining a few things, especially some of her behaviour and noises in the bedroom, but even that had been a turn on for Cael at the time, so why should it bother him now?

Her relief was nearly palpable as she sank against him once more. The sound of his heart beating and the assurances that her lack of humanity didn’t bother him doing more to make her feel better than anything else had in months. 

“I didn’t mean to scare you…Dev took my phone and then Tal has had me on strict bed rest and it’s been a mess.”

rustandglass·:

Maybe he already knew on subconscious level, or maybe not, but what was clear was that he wasn’t as surprised as he probably should have been, even though there was a small pause that was accompanied by a frown, but only for a moment before the look of relief returned.

“I don’t care what you are as long as you’re not dead,” he sighed, shaking his head.

“All I know is that I lost you once and I’d rather die than let that happen again, so whatever else is just fucking fine with me, okay?”

“So, it doesn’t bother you that I turn into a literal jaguar?” 

She needed to be sure, needed to know that the whole thing wouldn’t make him run before she could relax. It would be easier for him to back out now than to find out down the road and leave her. 

rustandglass·:

Cael looked confused by what she meant. What difference did silver mean? A bullet was a bullet to him, regardless of what it was made from.

“You shouldn’t have gotten hurt in the first place, Liss.”

He wouldn’t tell her that he’d spent months at the bottom of a bottle after it happened. Even without the guilt Devin had placed on him, losing Lissa from his life had hurt more than he ever expected it to, and it wasn’t until then that he realised just how attached he’d gotten to her.

“Yeah, but there are people that don’t think things like me and Dev should be allowed to live.”

There was a bitterness to the words, a near desperate need for validation. It made some shifters turn violent, but it depressed her more than anything. Afterall, she had never hurt anyone before. 

“Cael, I’m not…I’m not exactly human.”

rustandglass·:

As tight as he held her, he was still mindful to be careful, not sure what sort of lasting injuries she had after all this time. No wonder Devin had blamed him for it if it had left her with permanent problems.

“I thought you were dead,” he whined, unable to hide how overcome by emotion he was. “After what your brother told me, I thought… And then you called me and I heard your voice, and it was like hearing a ghost. I’m sorry for everything. I should have protected you better.”

Lissa finally pulled back enough to look at him, needing him to understand completely that none of this was his fault. The fact that hunters had survived wasn’t a surprise. They were trained to survive dangerous situations. It had just been bad luck that one had figured her out so easily. 

“It was silver, Cael. Had it been just a normal bullet, I’d have been fine,” she explained, trying to find a way to ease him into things. After all, she had never actually told him what she was. 

rustandglass·:

“It’s not your fault. None of this was your fault,” he promised, his voice cracking with emotion as his own tears finally broke through.

He held on to Lissa like he was afraid to let go of her again, trying so hard to overcome the pain he’d felt in thinking she was dead with the relief that he’d found her again and he wouldn’t leave her side again, no matter if Devin approved or not.

“I love you, Lissa. I’ll never leave you again. I promise.”

Lissa buried her face in the crook of his neck and inhaled his scent. He smelled like home and happiness and she couldn’t help but whimper a little. The physical pain and her recovery had been nothing compared to the emptiness she felt deep into her bones. 

“I love you too,” she all but whispered, the words muffled against his neck. She didn’t care though, there was no way she was pulling back right now.

rustandglass·:

“You’re not hallucinatin’, Liss. I’m here.”

Both of them looked worn out in the worst way, but Cael didn’t care. For months, he’d been blaming himself for what happened, thinking that he’d been responsible for her death, and he was still a little reluctant to believe he wasn’t the one hallucinating or losing his mind.

There was only a moments hesitation before he was moving toward her, wanting to prove they were both real and solid, and catch hold of her so that she didn’t have to hold up her own weight when she was clearly struggling to do so.

Where he might have hesitated, she did not. Instead, she practically collapsed against him, arms winding around him as tightly as she could manage in her still weakened state. The thought that him being her would lead to a fight with her brother was the farthest from her mind, but they both knew it was going to happen. 

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” she mumbled, knowing he had had to go the entire time wondering if she had even survived thanks to her asshole brother. 

rustandglass·:

@ofviolentdeath 

The phonecall had been like a punch in th gut after so long thinking Lissa was gone, but it was so good to hear her voice, even though she sounded exhausted. It didn’t matter to him that he was probably the last person Devin would ever want to see again. Cael needed to see Lissa even if it was just the once and he got his ass handed to him for it.

It was the sound of his bike that had woken her and, for a moment, she thought she had dreamed it. Honestly, it wouldn’t have been the first time. But his scent was there, faint through the doors and space, but it was there.

Stumbling out of the bed, she made it to the door, wobbly and half hugging the walls. She hadn’t expected him to show up, especially not so fast. Of course, the moment she opened the door and actually saw him there, she started to cry. 

“You’re here..Really here. I’m not dreaming or hallucinating, right?”