The truth was a blade slipped gently between his ribs, made all the sharper because she was right to be upset at the choices that he had made. He inclined his head deeply in acknowledgment of her pain before meeting her clear blue eyes again as she continued to bare her heart, taking in each word with the respect that they were due. For a moment they were not sitting in the peaceful security of Halo's Citadel but were instead back in a basement in the Hollowed Grounds, with the violet wolves at the door.
And that single, simple word settled across his shoulders, heavier than the ocean at the bottom of the Maw.
"But I did," he admitted slowly, not looking away as he studied Evie's face across from him, aware of the cost of his honesty but unwilling to lie to his dearest friend, even if it would be the last time he was allowed to call her that even in his thoughts. "Act without thinking. Not beyond the moment. Maea..." He paused, a sea of complications in the name that lingered on his lips that ended with a quiet sigh. "It was... reaction. Hope. That the presence of a leader at her side would make the Reaper pause. That she would be less likely to kill a King than an Ambassador, and risk war before they were ready for it." His fingers tightened around the mug and then relaxed slowly as he consciously forced them to cradle the porcelain. "And at the time, uncertainty. Because I did not know if she intended to remove Caido's leaders at once. Regardless of Maea's actions." Hindsight was perfect, after all. It was easy to see his mistakes in retrospect, once the adrenaline had faded and everyone knew that Dahlia had come to make a political point rather than remove obstacles from the Void's path.
And that single, simple word settled across his shoulders, heavier than the ocean at the bottom of the Maw.
"But I did," he admitted slowly, not looking away as he studied Evie's face across from him, aware of the cost of his honesty but unwilling to lie to his dearest friend, even if it would be the last time he was allowed to call her that even in his thoughts. "Act without thinking. Not beyond the moment. Maea..." He paused, a sea of complications in the name that lingered on his lips that ended with a quiet sigh. "It was... reaction. Hope. That the presence of a leader at her side would make the Reaper pause. That she would be less likely to kill a King than an Ambassador, and risk war before they were ready for it." His fingers tightened around the mug and then relaxed slowly as he consciously forced them to cradle the porcelain. "And at the time, uncertainty. Because I did not know if she intended to remove Caido's leaders at once. Regardless of Maea's actions." Hindsight was perfect, after all. It was easy to see his mistakes in retrospect, once the adrenaline had faded and everyone knew that Dahlia had come to make a political point rather than remove obstacles from the Void's path.
