The Phantom Assassin hadn't shown up for two days and Huskar was getting really nervous. She hadn't said anything about a job or something, but she had never done that before anyway. She had never told him when she would come or when she would have to leave. She had just shown up and had always only said when she had to leave the moment she had gotten ready to do so. She herself had probably always had a plan but she had never told him about it. Huskar hadn't minded, until now.
He didn't know where she was, didn't know what she was doing. For all he knew she could be dead, killed in a job, in a battle, in an accident. He hated it. But there was nothing he could do. If he showed up at the domicile of the Veiled Sisters he wouldn't get any information. As if the sisters would tell him anything.
Huskar stared into the setting sun. Two whole days without any sign from her. And he was helpless. When she finally showed up another two days later, Huskar was already half crazy. He hadn't slept, he hadn't eaten, he had even thought about taking the drugs from the Shadow Priest again.
He felt her presence the moment she appeared and he couldn't help it, he rushed forward to hug her. He pressed her as close as possible without crushing her and buried his face in her neck, inhaling deeply. She was alive, she was here and he was so relieved he could've wept. He didn't but he wasn't able to let her go, either. After a few moments the Assassin relaxed in his hold. Then she did something Huskar would never have expected: She put one arm around him and one hand on his neck, her fingers stroking over his skin while she hummed an almost inaudible tone. Satisfied, that was what it sounded like. At ease. And a bit happy. It wasn't the fact that she touched him, she had done that a few times by now, but the way she touched him. Huskar's breath caught at the unexpected tenderness of the moment.
"It's alright, you can let go of me now." But the Assassin didn't sound annoyed or upset. Rather a little amused and still satisfied.
"I don't want to. You were gone four whole days, please let me hug you just a bit more." Huskar felt raw and vulnerable. It wasn't easy for him to ask this but he couldn't release her yet. He had fucking missed her!
She didn't comment on it, she simply stayed where she was, slowly petting Huskar while he hugged her. And the tension left his body. All of a sudden, he was tired. Bone-deep tired. It was only logical, he hadn't slept in days and now that the reason for his insomnia was gone his body shut down. He didn't remember anything after that.
When he woke up, he was alone. But there was a bowl of something to eat next to his bed and some water. There was also a small note, pinned to the wood of his small desk. With a knife. Huskar shook his head as he pulled the knife out. That was absolutely unnecessary, now he had a cut in his table. Maybe that was some assassin habit.
See you later.
That was all the note said. Huskar snorted. Not that he had expected more, but it sounded so much like the Assassin. It was nice of her to leave a note, though. Surprising and nice.
The food in the bowl was strange. It was unidentifiable but it wasn't the worst the troll had ever eaten. He wondered if she had made it out of the stuff he had in his kitchen but he wasn't sure.
Full and finally not tired anymore, Huskar even smiled as he stepped outside of his house.
"Thank you for leaving me a note." He smiled at the Assassin, who had just appeared at the edge of his garden.
The Phantom Assassin nodded. "You asked me to, and it isn't that hard."
"I did?" He couldn't remember.
"Yesterday, before you passed out. You said it was very important to you."
The Warrior tried to recall it. He also tried to recall if he had said anything else, but couldn't. He sighed.
"I understand it." The Assassin drew closer, her gaze very focussed on him. "If you were gone without telling me where you went and how long you'd be gone I'd hunt you down." There was an intensity to her words, as well as to her expression, that astounded Huskar. He tried to remember from before, when he had thought sensing her was his imagination. It had always been there, the feeling of her being around. Even when he had changed places, it had never been gone for long. He couldn't remember if he had sensed her every day or not. But even so, it wouldn't be remarkable. She was the Phantom Assassin, it probably took her no effort at all to track him down.
Fascinating however was that she let him see that much about herself. The words as well as the way she pinned him with her eyes.
She stood right in front of him, so close that he could see the tiny freckles on her nose. He didn't dare move or say anything. She was so beautiful, her eyes bright and this determined set to her jaw. It was the only thing that changed on her features, from expressionless to determined. It was never there during a battle, as if it was no challenge to fight. It was there now and Huskar wondered if it was a challenge for her to be his mate, to be around him, to talk and interact or if it was something else. He forgot his train of thought when she pressed her hand against his cheek.
She slowly shifted it to his neck. For a moment, she didn't move. Then she fisted her fingers into his hair, while she grabbed his belt with her other hand, locking him in place. It wasn't because her hold was strong but because she obviously didn't want him to move. So he wouldn't.
The Phantom Assassin was almost as tall as him, though it was because he never stood up straight.
They stared into each other's eyes, neither doing anything.
Touching her and being touched by her wasn't new anymore. They did so often enough, before the Assassin left or when she arrived. But so far it had only been hugs. Nice, long hugs but nothing more. This was different though and Huskar became slightly nervous. He wanted to put his hands on her, to feel her against his fingers but he didn't dare move. Too many times she had vanished out of his hold. She was like some skittish animal, not because she was afraid of him but probably because she wasn't used to any kind of intimacy. As soon as she decided it was enough, she was gone. So she was in charge, completely and always.
It wasn't a problem for Huskar, not in general. It was just that this, waiting for the Phantom Assassin to do something, anything, without the slightest idea of what might come, was driving him crazy. His body was too tense, his heart beat way too fast and he was getting slightly light-headed from it all. And then, it wasn't the worst of feelings. It was fascinating to feel that way, just because his mate stood in front of him, not even doing anything at all.
When she leaned closer, his mind went blank. When her lips brushed against his, his whole body felt as if it burst into flames. He hadn't expected it, was never sure what to expect from her.
Her lips were astonishingly soft as they pressed more insistently against his. Huskar couldn't hold back. Her looped one arm around her lower back to bring her closer. And thank the gods she didn't push him away. Instead she sighed almost inaudibly before her tongue flicked against his lower lip.
Huskar couldn't think, he was overwhelmed with pleasure. To be touched by his soulmate, he had never known anything could be this amazing and wonderful. It was still a simple kiss! He began to shake all over. The Assassin pulled back, but only a little. "What is wrong?"
"Nothing." Not really. It was just too much, he guessed. After all this time without her, after he had thought he'd be forever without her, it was simply too much. "I…" He wouldn't say it. Not now. It was too soon, but it was there, in his head and on hits tongue, and the shaking only intensified. His whole body trembled and he pressed his eyes shut to concentrate on it, to make it stop. When he opened them again, the Assassin was looking at him, a tiny crease between her brows.
"I love you." The words burst out though he didn't want it. He grimaced, couldn't take them back now that he had blurted them out like some idiot. Fuck.
But the Assassin was still there, in his arms. She said nothing for a long moment, but then she kissed him. Soft and tender, her kiss as well as her touch. And Huskar thought he could feel her response. It could be his imagination, but he was sure it was there, her love for him. In the way she pressed closer, in the way her fingers moved over his body, in the way her mouth opened to his. It was there in the fact she came to him every day, that she spent time with him though she wasn't supposed to, that she touched him and let him touch her even though she wasn't used to physical contact. It was enough, and though the shaking didn't completely go away, Huskar felt lighter. His heart was lighter now that he had told her what he felt.
They stopped kissing, their foreheads pressed together, their bodies touching. Huskar had his eyes closed to savour the sensation.
"I have to go." The Assassin stroked through his hair one more time before she slowly pulled out of his arms. No sudden vanishing this time. For a moment she stood there, staring at him. She was beautiful and dangerous and nothing about her hinted at her having just necked with him. "My name is Mortred." Then she was gone.
Fucking shit, she had given him her name. A Veiled Sister, a creature without a name so they were all the same, identical and unidentifiable. Assassins all alike, shadows that killed with precision.
Huskar grinned from ear to ear. And he couldn't stop for the remainder of the day. To have her name, it was the highest of honours. It was a sign of her trust. It was the best gift she could've ever given him.