It was true neither were dependable. Echidna was a lonesome kind of creature but only when she felt overwhelmed by pain. It was different for him, he wanted other people, which wasn’t something she minded all that much. Animals by their nature were inclined to take different partners and why would she deny a base instinct. In truth, it was never he fact he tried his luck with other people, more that she wanted to make sure out of herd of his lovers she was at the top of the tier. It was a dominance thing, perhaps a pride thing but that felt like a stretch. What did she really have to be prideful about anyway? She knew in her own world, being dependable was sometimes a hard thing to do, it was a conscious effort.

She thinks about all the things that have brought them here and some of them were so stupid, on both their parts. Her reactions to some situations was too dramatic, she’ll blame the teenage hormones for most of that. It took a while to get them out of her system and get her back to normal again. She’s had a long time to think about it all and really, it hadn’t been worth it. If he asked her about it, she would blame fear – mostly that he would leave her for someone else and the mortal embarrassment that would inflict on her. Yeah, she’d also be heartbroken, but to be something unwanted is extremely tough for Echidna for some reason or another. It pricks at some part of her that is wild and untamed.

His little smile doesn’t go unnoticed and she lifts an eyebrow, wants to tease him about it. There was still something soft in her towards him, after all of this, and she couldn’t hold it inside sometimes. But she keeps talking about what he is, what he might want just the same as she does these days – it’d never been a dream she felt she could have before. Now? Well, it was possible if she wanted it bad enough. After she pauses, he tells her it’s too bad neither are dependable and he’s smirking in that way she knows is only half ice. He’s thinking too much. Echidna bites the inside of her jaw and thinks it over for a minute.

We don’t have a good record, she says flatly. It was true, obviously. They were creatures of habit and selfishness. They couldn’t be bothered to be dependable when neither was open to compromise, when neither could bend and could only break. I never stopped loving you though and as unstable, undependable I can be that never changed. How I feel is the same as it ever was and I keep trying to tell you and it’s like you don’t even want to listen. Echidna draws in a deep breath and she looks at him, her dark eyes trailing across his face and down along his chest where the necklace rests.

If nothing mattered, if life sucked and would be ripped out of their hands – she growls under her breath and looks away from him. I know you don’t trust me and you probably don’t trust yourself either but I’m right here. Don’t you remember all the good times? All the reasons why you said I was your mate and I said you were mine? That just doesn’t go away –

You talk about how your happiness is fleeting, we’re not dependable, how everything always leaves you – I’m right here. I’ve been here over and over and over. More than anyone else has even tried.

She clenches her jaw then, sits back with her legs crossed. He could say whatever he wanted to about it now, how he felt about her constantly showing up at his door.