[ Boa knows he should be surprised. This should be a game-changing confession. This should change everything about how he sees Mitsuru.

And it doesn't.

It's not that he had known, precisely. He hadn't, not this way. Mitsuru's vague admission about considering to simply let himself die in camp was still... different. Still on a level that Boa could relate to. He hadn't considered this outside of camp. No... more than that... even after he knew the source of Mitsuru's desperation, even after they spoke of Aya... he still hadn't really thought about a Mitsuru before magic. It seemed so far past... as far in the past as a Boa before the Snake Pit, a Boa who saw no harm in going there in the first place.

Boa swallows as well. For a moment, he doesn't know what to say. He's not shocked, not disappointed either... It's just heavy. A weight on his chest. ]

Mitsuru...

[ A softly spoken name, just to break the silence. I would have liked to... To a Boa of the past it would be a disappointment. It would take the air out of his lungs and make him question his own will for survival and yet... all he can think is 'so what? what does that even change now?'. ]

You're still the most amazing person I know.

[ It changes nothing. ]

You... I thought I'd never have anything or anyone ever again when I died, but you...

[ His voice fails him, talking about his death, and he just grabs Mitsuru's hands instead. ]