"You were wrong," he replies, after a long moment of silence. "About who - and what - I was thinking of when I told you it was a terrible idea to go after her."
His shoulders hike up a little, almost defensively. "There's something you didn't know."
That manages to pierce through the self-loathing, if only a little. It still stings, of course (yet another thing he was wrong about in the end, and yes, it was one of the worst ideas he's ever had), but his curiosity manages to get the best of him.
"It was the reason I received this blessing." His voice is sharp and bitter, and despite his best efforts, still pained. "I did it for love, of course. Someone I wanted to protect, going so far as to exchange our places, to spare him the pain..."
He shrugs. "And, well, look at how I've turned out. There's a lesson in that, don't you think?"
Avery stares at Ekkehardt for a long moment, and then his shoulders drop as he laughs without an ounce of humor. To think the two of them would have something in common... He's not sure if it makes him feel better, but it sure is something.
What a hell of a pair they were.
"Yes... I guess there is. Being the good guy only gets you screwed in the end. At least the villains get to have fun."
"I suppose that's one thing you could take away from it, yes." He sits, finding he's looking for something to lean on.
"At least we won't be disturbed here. After the last time we had a large amount of unwelcome visitors, I took precautions. It'll be hard to even recognise this place exists, much less intrude upon it."
"It's almost a shame, really. I wouldn't have minded tearing a few of those visitors apart. Something, something, dinner and a show." He shrugs and wears a faint smile, amused at his own lack of wit.
"But then again, I suppose I can't blame you for getting tired of saving me so often. The act of being a 'hero's' hero must be too ironic to bear."
"I just don't want them to get any ideas and try anything more high-powered," he grumbles, sinking into his chair a little. "Not everything revolves around you. I'd like to keep this place intact and not swarming with would-be saviors - surely that's worth the inconvenience."
He finds he doesn't mind making sure Avery is safe, though he wishes it was less often, on the whole.
"Saviors..." he practically spits out the word. "Ugh. I'll give you a point there." Reluctantly, but a point nonetheless. If someone walks up to him and tells him he needed saving from Ekkehardt of all people, he thinks he'd be sick to his stomach.
"We are going to need to let one or two in from time to time though. I might be able to get by on the souls of... I don't know, squirrels or something, but the thought of it just sounds pathetic."
Ekkehardt waves a hand as if to say I've thought of that. "I've protected the ruins, not the forest around it," he replies. "So your hunting grounds are free game for unwary travelers to wander into. And if you want a vacation, you can always go further afield."
"Do as you like," Ekkehardt says, straightening up, leaning on the table he's seated at. "Though it occurs to me that we haven't exactly explored the full range of your powers, so there's yet more to learn about how you work. Perhaps, in time, you can add your own little touches to this forest."
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His shoulders hike up a little, almost defensively. "There's something you didn't know."
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"What do you mean? It wasn't him?
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He shrugs. "And, well, look at how I've turned out. There's a lesson in that, don't you think?"
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What a hell of a pair they were.
"Yes... I guess there is. Being the good guy only gets you screwed in the end. At least the villains get to have fun."
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"At least we won't be disturbed here. After the last time we had a large amount of unwelcome visitors, I took precautions. It'll be hard to even recognise this place exists, much less intrude upon it."
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"But then again, I suppose I can't blame you for getting tired of saving me so often. The act of being a 'hero's' hero must be too ironic to bear."
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He finds he doesn't mind making sure Avery is safe, though he wishes it was less often, on the whole.
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"We are going to need to let one or two in from time to time though. I might be able to get by on the souls of... I don't know, squirrels or something, but the thought of it just sounds pathetic."
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"Sometimes I forget you're the expert on this whole 'villainy' thing. Hope you don't mind me taking notes."
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