53 Kind Of Adorable (1/2)
She realized her head was in Ash's lap and that his hand rested protectively on her shoulder. Mortification flooded through her when she thought about everything that happened before she fell asleep.
The kiss. The hugging. The crying. All of it. She buried her face in her hands but he didn't seem to notice.
Ruby cautiously twisted her neck to peek at him and saw that he had dozed off with his head against the tree trunk. She very gingerly lifted his hand off of her and got up, kneeling a few inches above the ground while stretching out her arms and wings.
She had been too tired to think much about it before but it truly was amazing that Ash seemed to at least have a vague idea what her powers entailed and didn't want to use them beyond the extent of their deal. She had always been so terrified of someone finding out the truth but there had been no need with him.
There had been genuine anger on her behalf in his eyes when he found out what Flint and Lily tried to do to her. He said she was amazing, among other nice things she had never heard before.
Those words would have been easier to dismiss as flattery if he hadn't also dropped his revenge plan in order to keep her safe. After hearing his horrific story of loss Ruby realized how important that was to him.
She didn't know anything about vampire politics and had never been a proponent of violence but she could tell how much avenging his loved ones mattered to his peace of mind. And he was willing to drop that for her sake.
If Ash truly planned to abuse her powers, there was no way he would put a stop to something so important to him. Originally their association was only because of their deal but he said that could be dealt with later; right now his only concern was protecting her.
No one had cared about Ruby this much since she lost her parents. And then he said they should go 'home' and got all flustered when he tried to explain himself. He didn't get flustered.
That had been kind of adorable. Vampires were sort of like the dark version of elves in terms of appearance (long straight hair, lean bodies, and sharp features) and neither race was what one would consider 'cute.' A better term would be 'elegant.'
But Ash was definitely cute because of the way he behaved sometimes. The contrast between his actions and his appearance was cute in a way she couldn't fully explain.
And he wasn't only cute. He was surprisingly considerate, funny, and interesting to talk to. Ruby enjoyed being around him in a way she didn't with anyone else…but that didn't mean she could trust him with the full truth.
Going home with him now was her best option but that didn't mean it was a permanent solution. She needed to be alone if she ever wanted to be able to take off her glamour and live freely.
It really was a shame. Ash had some nice land and a beautiful garden in progress thanks to their (mostly her) hard work. With the right modern modifications the castle could be a great place to live.