ultimately, inevitably

Sweet Hanako. She didn't feel very sweet, more so bitter. Sour enough to make you squint, your lips pulled taut. But she supposed she really hadn't seen the worst of what he was capable of, everyone had their secrets and actions they kept out of the light but she didn't think that quite applied to Chimera. He was brazen and shamless in his acts, but just because she hadn't seen it with her own eyes did not mean it didn't exist. The whole if a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound, line of thought.

She made a thoughtful sound at that, not disputing his words. Just considering, letting them sink in. Hanako sort of liked that he gave her food for thought, something to mentally chew on as a silence settled. Not uncomfortable as they settled, Chimera reclining so comfortably it hardly seemed as though he had a care in the world and yet Hanako remained upright, perhaps a little uptight even. Sitting proper and prim, like that would change a thing.

Hanako turned slightly, looking away through the density of the trees, only for her gaze to flicker back in his direction. Perhaps they were birds of a feather, in some way.

"Not really, no." Understatement of the year. The only one who seemed to care for her was her boy, Bas. And even then that came with a sense of betrayal, a reminder that love wasn't enough to be a good mother. That he needed more she simply couldn't provide.

And she'd been a liar if she hadn't thought at least once of just...doing it herself, you know? She was still pretty, she didn't think it would take much effort.