[This sort of care, this concern... makes her glad to be a person again. Simply herself, nothing more. Among the people whom she loves, whose laughter and warmth are her world.]

My circumstances were very different, for a very long time. [Her fingers curl, unconsciously, in front of her chest. Just a thoughtful gesture.] I haven't lived like this in longer than I think you can imagine. And inside of me there is a core of exhaustion, one furious and dismayed that I have been denied the rest I've craved for so long. But over that, eclipsing that, rests a joy and a warmth in simply living again that I cannot deny, nor would I want to.