"I don't understand."

It's taken her a while to get to this point. But she takes her giant pile of petals and lifts it up high into the air on a series of light tiles until a good breeze catches them. She turns her head to watch them float away and toward the ocean like a school of skyfish. It's beautiful like few things can be. But then that moment ends and it's back to work, and she busies herself with digging more of the sweet smelling things out of the gutters, where she can be a little closer to Adila while they both work. She doesn't want to be shouting right now.

"I can think of a lot of reasons why you should hate me. Or dislike me, at least. I've seen the way your detective friend looks at me when he thinks I'm not paying attention. And you're... not like that. You're the one who left her home to arrest me, and yet you were the first of anyone to tell me they'd help me get my home back. You're the only one to promise that sight unseen. Not even Rita promised that, and she and I are..." Alina pauses awkwardly, and sighs.

"All I keep thinking about is you in the sky, after we destroyed the Slaugh. With all those awful wounds, I... I'm so sorry Adila. I was so insensitive. I go on and on about my missing lights, but if this is how I treat my friends, then I don't deserve them. So I just, I wanted to ask you why you said what you did. If there's something that you want, I want to help you get it. And if there's nothing, then I don't know what to do. I can't put you through that again. Not you. You're as warm and caring and bright as any of my sisters. I'm sorry if it's uncomfortable, I promise I won't make you talk for the entire rest of the day. But what will you do? What do you want?"