“Saw what?” he asked, but his voice was devoid of amusement. He wanted to offer her a comforting smile, but couldn’t quite manage it at the moment. She was in pain, wobbly on her feet, and it was all his fault. He was supposed to be a protector to those he loved, and disdainful to outright aggressive to strangers.
When she spoke of going home, his heart pinched painfully. home she said, as through their shared den was no longer that to her. It hurt, but he would not keep her here. If she felt safer away from him, then he would help her move and keep his distance. Whatever she needed. She deserved that.
When she tripped, he was there in an instant, trying to keep her from taking further damage. He had failed to stop her first tumble, so now he was on the lookout for exactly this. As his nose touched her, he saw her turn aggressive, smelled her fur, and her teeth snapped in open air. His instinct as a fighter had him back peddling and getting room before it really registered that it was Zee attacking him.
“No, Zee, I am.” he whispered, keeping the gained distance between them. “I’m so sorry. I… I knew that I had night terrors, and I should have told you. Warned you. This is all my fault, and you have suffered for my idiocy” he whispered. He had tried to keep her in her bed, but he had never told her why
Bloodletter
