It was warm here, reminded Hanako of the baths nestled within the mountains the Armada called home. She hadn't even gone far in, had realised that venturing in too deep and lingering too long could be dangerous. And danger was...something she couldn't quite stomach at the moment, maybe out of cowardice or self-preservation. She couldn't quite tell, nor did it really matter in the end, she supposed. But it was nice, the dark wasn't too dark and as she settled near the opening of the cavern she was fairly sure someone would sneak up on her from behind. That would mean they'd have to have already been within the cave and thus had to deal with temperatures that could make even the sternest wolf feel sick. But from where she laid, all curled up like a crispy croissant, she could see the night sky and its stars, vast and endless like a canvas that kept on going.

Dalila had left. She'd gone back to the lands where they'd stayed while he was recovering to oversee those that had stayed behind. It bothered the giant man. Bothered him quite a bit. He didn't like being without Dalila, but she had been worried and it had been her choice. He let her go, but he felt uneasy. Like a part of himself had been ripped away. What better way to come to terms with his queen leaving than by distracting himself with useless tasks?

Shiny things. Jewels and gems. They were highly valued and could be traded for things that were more practical and useful. Chimera knew that such things tended to form in deep caves and he just so happened to know where there was one. The river of liquid rock housed such finery deeper in, but he'd been told it was difficult to breathe within for long. That was why he had gone alone and hadn't taken another wolf with him. The danger would all be on his head and he wouldn't be responsible for the safety of another. Besides, being alone felt better than being sulky and moping in front of everyone.

Surprised, he was, when the black and white behemoth moved towards the mouth of the cave and saw a body laying there. Mismatched ears flicked forward and Chimera almost growled his displeasure, but above the scent of heat and sulfur came the feminine scent of someone that he knew. Black toed paws took him forward, his big frame parting from the shadows to bring himself into plain sight. He was still a distance away, but even from here something seemed amiss. "Hanako?" He questioned the woman. Their last meeting had been amicable. He had no reason to believe that this one wouldn't be the same.

"Chimera Klein"

It didn't take a lot to get Hanako's heart racing right now. She'd thought she had her wits about her, had her ears pricked up and everything, listening out for approaching footfalls. But maybe he'd been too quiet, silent as a shadow on his large, dark paws. Or maybe she'd gotten too distracted by the stars, by the lighter thoughts that flicked through her mind. Either way the end result was still the same, she sucked in an alarmed breath at the sound of someone saying her name. Not calling or looking, no she'd been found. She went stiff, the battered remains of her tail tucking in between her legs as she found herself feeling ice cold despite the warmth radiating out into the world behind her. It was too much too soon and- There was no fight or flight, only freeze. That was the only defence mechanism she had that was working right now.

Except was it really needed? She blinked slowly, realising that whilst the voice wasn't overly familiar it was one she'd heard before. Someone she'd spoken to. And taking a moment to look at him grounded that thought into reality, allowing her legs to unstiffen a little, allow her legs to unfurl from her chest a little.

"Oh. Chimera." She said.

The brute stood tall as he looked towards Hanako, calling her name in questioning tone. His voice seemed to cause a strange reaction in the koi-marked fae and his ears swiveled towards the alarmed breath. The giants brows knit together as he watched the visceral response to the sound of his purring baritones. Chimera held himself still, allowing the woman space and time to react. She was like a spooked animal; fear driving her mind and actions. He gave her a moment to collect herself, simply standing still and watching. Finally, her posture loosened and, with the realization of who he was, the spotted fae began to speak.

Something in her voice spoke of being broken down, dragged through the mud, and left for dead. Maybe it wasn't just the voice, it seemed to actually be in her whole demeanor. Mismatched eyes, only one seeing, narrowed slightly as he looked her over, attempting to find what he had missed. The woman was usually bubbly, talkative and somewhat flirty. This was entirely different from her norm. Taking a slow step forward, the brute decided to take the direct route. “Hanako? What happened?” One huge, black toed paw reaches out to gently tip Hana's muzzle upwards, bringing her gaze to meet his own. Though she had healed some, he could see the mess of her face and, as his gaze moved along her smaller frame, the signs of prior damage were bare for all to see.

"Chimera Klein"

What happened? Ah, a lot really. More than she'd been able to say, questions echoed in her mind: who did this? why? and why wouldn't she talk about it? Hanako sighed softly, wondering why Chimera didn't have that look of pity in his eye, like most did when they looked at her? It made her feel twisted inside, a knot pulled so tight it was starting to fray the individual strings, cause them to snap under pressure, the strain of it all. It was easier to say she didn't know, when in reality she sort of did.

"Ah. I messed up." Brush brush brush, right under the rug. "How is Fenmyre?" She asked instead, wholly out of the loop when it came down to most things, honestly. There had been those altars and strange happenings that came with them but after that...it was hard to say.

The woman reacted simply to his question and, since she wasn't a wolf of his, he wouldn't pry. He would only ask, "Does Azure know?" If the bear-pawed brute was anything like Chimera, he should be hunting down the perpetrators to extract payment from their hides. When Dalila had been wronged, the King of Fenmyre had taken the life of the one that had done it. Those that had done this to Hanako deserved no less.

As the Koi fae asked of Fenmyre, Chimera's dual-toned gaze narrowed slightly and he replied in kind, "I messed up." With his response, he was showing her just how weak her own reply to his question had been, though he was pretty sure that she was aware of that. Once his point was made, the giant man sighed and shook his great head lightly. "Gone. It's all gone." The illness that had laid him low during The Long Night had returned to wreak havoc on him again. Rather than risk the possibility of illness and leaving his home vulnerable, Chimera had chosen to give it all up so that a safe home could be guaranteed for his family.

"It's probably not safe for you to be out here alone." The things that had happened to Dalila and some of the Hallows wolves were horrid and, if a wolf came along that wanted to take advantage of her, Chi doubted that Hanako could put up much of a fight in her current state. He didn't think that she was one of the idiot females who thought her life was over just because she was a little less pretty, but he didn't know her all that well.

"Chimera"

Hanako shrugged, weak and half-hearted, like everything she did these days. "If he does, he doesn't care. He left me. He's just gone now."

He'd just faded away, made it clear where he stood. And no one seemed to mind, the gap he left behind wasn't one the others were eager to try to fill. In their eyes family stood just as strong with or without him in the picture. And yet it seemed there were two screw-ups out here tonight, Hanako frowned softly, wondering how it had all worked out this way. How could it be so easy to just lose it all? Had everything always been built on such shaky foundations? The one choice Hana had been forced to make and look at how it had all ended, badly, worse than she could have thought possible. The only friends she had were dead or far away, too far to know how poorly things had gone.

She sighed softly, quiet and thinking for a moment. She didn't really feel safe anywhere any more, but she was mostly certain Chimera wouldn't maul her. Unless she said something to deserve it.

"Probably." She agreed, a hint of a smile playing on her pale lips. "I'm not sure anyone is stupid enough to pick a fight with you though."