HOTARU
Automatically her eyes flicker to the ink that is barely visible to her between the shadows of the firelight and the concealment of his collar. An interesting rule, though she can understand the controlling force of it even if it's frankly ridiculous to her. That he had rejected such notions and come out better - rebellious, triumphant in his found happiness - fits with the strong personality she knows him to currently have. Things may change swiftly and unfairly, but from her side of the table, much has remained the same. Silence settles comfortably once more, and she lets it linger a little longer this time as she soaks in every nuanced word. "People I've found here, people who are like family to me, I have watched die in previous world's as well." In no way does she intends to make it about her, or to reveal Deimos' secret. But it's important to her point. "I can't say if rebirth will be a pattern for her, if she'll be reformed and given a third chance away from here. And nothing I say can do anything to take away that pain of not knowing and not being by her side if she does, and I won't try. It will ebb and flow as time goes on." Fingertips trace the grain of the table, circling whorls and lines as she gazes at him. "Anyone who tells you otherwise is frankly an idiot. Time heals all things, but the pace will differ for each person. And you carry her physically in your tattoos, and in your love and your memories." Spoken with a frank honesty that smooths over the normal romantic notions some of the phrases may have once had.
"She sounds like an amazing woman. And amazing things are not easily forgotten or relinquished." Her eyes tighten, mouth thinning with the grief she carries herself. "So if the bottle helps, or talking helps...I can't say I know everything or that I will be the perfect comfort for you. I have lost my beloved, my children, and the pain gets easier but it never goes away. But we can share in that misery when you need." Heterochromic eyes lift to find the steel across the table. Gives a wry grin that speaks of many years of loss, and of finding a way forward no matter the count. "But I'll also be here to kick your ass when it's called for. As she would have wanted." Tough love that Lusea probably would have been even tougher about. But he is more than her friend, if that were not reason enough to force him to get his shit together after moments of weakness. He's her partner of sorts in the Advocates, and the silver bracelet still hangs on her wrist.
I am a breathtaking mosaic
of all the battles I've won
of all the battles I've won
