Through our contract, I've been able to give him moments of peace, by his own admission. It's natural to reach for the things that bring you such things, isn't it?

[of course, she's hardly going to stop there. A hand cups his cheek and he allows it, the ambient fuzz of everything fading away a little. The reality is... surprising, perhaps.

In those eyes, in this man who has witnessed so much, is fear. Regret. He would never change the things that he's done, but in so doing, the prospect of having something, lasting or not.]

I... [how long has it been? He'd rarely felt the need for it, deliberately chosen not to dwell on it all... it stalls him a moment, before he exhales a soft, wry laugh.] in the way of which you speak... it was well before our first meeting. I have rarely felt the need to pursue such a thing, given my role before.

[but it stings, clearly. To think back on it and know all the compounding reasons he's chosen not to pursue it when the tug did arise... to know that he's still intending to do the same damn thing now...]