save your fears for tomorrow

you are such a soft and messy thing, nobody knows how to take care of you

"Where I am from, kingdoms were far more important. Wanderers had little incentive to be untethered, as the wilds were far more dangerous, and allegiance more important. Here, you can travel between lands without being questioned or stopped. Live where you desire without ever speaking to a ruler to request to." Aside from perhaps the Sidhe Village itself, but even that is slowly becoming more and more open to the world. "As such, politics were far more complicated and involved. I knew all my people by face and name, I worked to improve their lives directly. Aided where I could. Protected them directly against invasion, theft, and challenges. War was waged between kingdoms more often than an outward force or godlike creatures. And Deimos and I were always on the frontlines." It's difficult to find words for the differences between Helovia and Caido, but Hotaru does her best. Weaving a tapestry of bold strokes so that Juniper may see the vast differences instead of focusing on the details.

The woman's tapered sigh and unfinished thought has Hotaru feeling a rare surge of empathy. She does not envy the ways Juniper is surely torn between how she feels on the war and the expectations of her people, who have suffered the most at the hands of the Ascended. "I think it stands the best chance to, if that is any comfort," Hotaru murmurs sincerely. Halo may parade itself as a neutral area, but the Greatwood's firm and unwavering stance allows them to somehow be more so in Ru's eyes.