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“She could use a bath as well.” The green witch said gently, and I had to agree. Kasha’s white nightgown was now stained red and sticking to her in patches where the blood of my victims had dried on her. If I was being honest, I needed a shower too. I was completely covered in every bodily fluid imaginable, and it was already starting to congeal.
“Alright, let’s go to her room. If she changes back once we free her, she’s going to want all her shit.” I murmured. I stood up and cradled Kasha against me as I did so. Meredith and Raven exchanged another look, but I ignored them.
I knew I had to let her go eventually, but I was going to wait until the last possible second to do so.
Jeremy, Dossidian and Conrad hung back as we made our way into the East Wing. I watched Kasha silently observe our surroundings as we walked, her large brandy eyes taking in the thundering waterfalls in the main intersection.
Once we were in her room, Meredith held her arms out, but didn’t try to approach me. She was waiting for me to come to her, and I appreciated it. Every single instinct was screaming at me to protect, defend. It wasn’t logical. It was a compulsive need.
Kasha looked up at me and cocked her head to the side. She reached up and touched her tiny fingers to the stubble on my chin and I closed my eyes, doing my best to let go of the coil of anxiety that had wrapped itself around my heart.
After a moment, I opened my eyes and looked down at her.
“Meredith is going to check you over and make sure you’re alright, Okay?” I asked her and she frowned at me, before nodding. I let out a relieved sigh and stepped forward, forcing myself to hand Kasha to the green witch.
“Careful,” I growled, as Meredith adjusted her grip on her, and the witch gave me an amused smile.
“I swear to the goddess I will not hurt her, Rycon.”
I ran a hand through my hair, which had become tacky with all of the blood.
“Fuck, I know, I know. I don’t know why I’m being such a dick.” I sighed, forcing myself to step away.
Meredith gave me a teasing smile. “Actually, for once, you’re not being a dick. You’re being a little overprotective but that’s okay. It’s kind of cute, actually.” She smirked, and I scowled at her.
“I am not being cute.” I snapped.
Raven grinned at me devilishly, before punching me in the shoulder. “You’re being pretty cute.” She chimed in, exchanging a mischievous smile with Meredith who sat Kasha on the bed before kneeling down to examine her.
“Whatever, just… pay attention to what you’re doing. She has a scrape there.” I pointed to a cut on her knee as Meredith ran her hands gently over Kasha’s little legs, making sure they bent without any pain. She glanced at me before healing the small wound with a gentle brush of her fingers. I felt myself relax slightly as the cut disappeared.
“Stop hovering,” Meredith laughed.
“Why don’t you go take a shower, Rycon. We’ll finish her exam and give her a bath. Then when you come back you can hold her hand while we sever the bond.” Raven suggested. What she said made sense. Kasha probably wouldn’t want me here while they gave her a bath anyway. I wanted her to have privacy. But the thought of letting her out of my sight was physically painful.
What the fuck was going on with me?
I rolled my shoulders and shook my head again, attempting to snap myself out of it.
“Fine.” I said. I reached out and squeezed Kasha’s tiny hand reassuringly. She looked up at me with those giant eyes, her little brow furrowing. “I’ll be right back.” I promised her, and her eyes welled up with tears, melting away the small amount of resolve I had managed to build up. I was about to scoop her up again when Raven swooped in with a giant smile on her face. Kasha jumped, startled at Raven’s sudden appearance but Raven just laughed.
“That smile is creepy as fuck.” I commented dryly. Raven stuck her tongue out at me, and Kasha giggled. The sound of her laugh nearly took me to my knees. If she could laugh like that, maybe she was going to be okay.
“What? You didn’t miss me?” Raven asked, poking her gently in the side as Meredith moved on to check her arms. She bent them gently to make sure they were working as they should. “Rycon stinks, he needs to shower. He’ll be right back. You can hang out with me and Mer while he’s gone.” Raven promised, and Kasha smiled sheepishly back at her.
Raven waved me off and I scoffed at the ‘Rycon stinks’ comment, it’s not like Raven smelled any better. She was covered in just as much gore as I was. Regardless, I forced myself to leave while Kasha was distracted and smiling.
Rycon
Itook the world’s quickest shower, hosing off my armor while I was at it. I slid back into the restructium once I was satisfied that I had gotten most of the blood off before heading back to Kasha’s room.
Raven was sitting at the small table in the center of the room that held all the tiny jars of sand and dirt that Kasha had collected in her travels, examining each one with a sad smile on her face. I didn’t see Meredith or Kasha and I panicked. I could smell her catnip scent, so I knew she was nearby, but I needed eyes on her.
“Relax.” Raven said, gesturing to the roughed-out hole in the wall that led to the ensuite. “Meredith’s just cleaning her up, they’ll be out in a minute.” She eyed me up and down, frowning. “Going somewhere?”
I frowned. “No… why?”
“You’re still wearing your armor.” She pointed out.
