He wasn't a mirage.
He was warm and real and here.
"Oh, god," I said, and flung myself at him.
He grunted as my weight hit him, then laughed softly and held me as fiercely as I held him. "It's good to see you, too," he said softly, his words whispering past my right ear. "You gave us quite a scare, you know."
I snorted softly and drew back a little, my gaze scanning his features. He was pale, and thin, and deep in his warm brown eyes something more than human burned, but none of that mattered right now. He was awake, he was aware, and most important of all, he seemed to have come back to us whole.
"When did you wake up?"
"About the same time that Azriel dragged you half-dead out of that hellhole you were stuck in." He gave me a weary smile and flicked my chin lightly. It still hurt, so the wound hadn't completely healed.
"It was touch and go for a while there, you know. Our reaper tried to heal you, but it didn't fully hold. You were out for days, and he was like a bear with a sore head. And the depth of his concern scared the hell out of us."
Why wouldn't the healing hold? I glanced around the room, half expecting an answer, even though I knew he wasn't near. "Where is he?"
Tao shrugged. "He said something about needing to inform Hunter that the task was done."
Oh fuck, I thought, and hoped like hell the "informing" didn't involve violence. We didn't need Hunter or the council as enemies right now. I took a deep, somewhat calming breath, and my stomach rumbled again.
Tao laughed. "Sounds like you'd better get something into that belly of yours."
"Only if you do the same." I scanned him critically. "You, my lad, need to put on some weight."
He grimaced. "Ilianna's been feeding me like a horse for days, and with little effect. The new me, I'm afraid, will probably remain razor thin."
I hesitated, then said softly, "How is the new you?"