Didâ€¦ Yes, he did hear what he thought heâ€™d heard. Did that mean she wanted him to? How would that look! Things like this only happened in the vids. Not in real life. Yet, heâ€™d been given permission, such as it were. He might have done it too, if he hadnâ€™t been stunned enough to just stare at her. It occurred to him that maybe he shouldnâ€™t be staring so obviously at her while she was undressing.<br/><br/>Until she started talking again. Picking up some thread of conversation he barely remembered right away.<br/><br/>She finally answered the question heâ€™d asked her. It seemed weeks ago that heâ€™d snapped that question at her to provoke some kind of response. Anything that would give him some kind of clue. A clue to what though? Now it let him know she was human. Dread, unease, and vague confusion took the place of his pure joy at still existing.<br/><br/>Was she trying to make him feel bad? Had she given up? Could he ever know what she was trying to do?<br/><br/>â€œWhat am I supposed to do? Should I just drop you off on some convenient little rock? Ignore all sense of morality and let you go back to breaking the laws? You saved my life Zilah.â€ Quen pushed the bottle into her hands without missing a beat. â€œBut is my life worth the amount of damage youâ€™ve done to other peoples? One good action does not, cannot exempt you from a lifetime of bad ones.â€ And if he did just do that, what kind of life would he have anyway? His career, the thing that heâ€™d worked so hard for since he was just a boy, would be taken away. If he didnâ€™tâ€¦ if he did his job, followed orders like he was supposed to, sheâ€™d be tortured for information and put to death. That was no more right than the things sheâ€™d done. Was it?<br/><br/>He already missed the days when things were simple.<br/><br/>Despite the fact that his words were angrily pensive, he also picked her up without so much as a warning. It surprised him because he hadnâ€™t meant anything but to carry her, unsteady as she looked, to somewhere he could stitch her up without her bleeding all over his bed. Now he did want to kiss her, so that someone could share his delight at still breathing.<br/><br/>So he did.<br/><br/>Once.<br/><br/>Quen kissed her on the corner of her mouth and laughed. The laugh was forced, but somewhat pleased. â€œKeep drinking. Leave some for me though,â€ he said as if it wasnâ€™t even important. â€œIâ€™m going to sew you up now. Maybe your mouth too, while Iâ€™m at it.â€