[His breath catches when she takes his shard, but this time at least, her hand feels warm, not the blighted biting cold of before. He meets her gaze, his heart hammering in his chest, knowing one misstep here could ruin things between them for good. For once, he needs to be sincere.]
I consider you a friend, Hayame. I trust you with my life, and I admire you. You're strong, and principled, and you're willing to fight for what you believe in, and to save your people, even if it means you have to bear unimaginable burdens on your own. I do admire that, but I also worry. If anything happened to you, I...
[His gaze falters. He's worried for all their fates here (some more than others, truthfully), and no amount of his usual confidence and bluster is present to mask that any more. But in particular he's worried for Hayame, for what might happen if she makes too many enemies while they're trapped here or after, and they all descend on her like a pack of wolves to tear her apart and crush her shard for good. She is, after all, much better at burning bridges than building them.
He prefers the opposite. Maybe he can help her.
He meets her gaze again, and this time, ebbing over the current of worry and dread he feels: that gentle, growing warmth she would have become familiar with from their communion, ever since they traded blood. A wellspring of affection, if she dared to hold his shard long enough to acknowledge it.]
I care about you. So I'd like it if you thought of me as yours, too.
no subject
I consider you a friend, Hayame. I trust you with my life, and I admire you. You're strong, and principled, and you're willing to fight for what you believe in, and to save your people, even if it means you have to bear unimaginable burdens on your own. I do admire that, but I also worry. If anything happened to you, I...
[His gaze falters. He's worried for all their fates here (some more than others, truthfully), and no amount of his usual confidence and bluster is present to mask that any more. But in particular he's worried for Hayame, for what might happen if she makes too many enemies while they're trapped here or after, and they all descend on her like a pack of wolves to tear her apart and crush her shard for good. She is, after all, much better at burning bridges than building them.
He prefers the opposite. Maybe he can help her.
He meets her gaze again, and this time, ebbing over the current of worry and dread he feels: that gentle, growing warmth she would have become familiar with from their communion, ever since they traded blood. A wellspring of affection, if she dared to hold his shard long enough to acknowledge it.]
I care about you. So I'd like it if you thought of me as yours, too.