[ Bastien expected more of a protest, half-consciously. Which is conscious enough that the absence of one makes him faintly smile, pleased to have been listened to. To have been offered an explanation instead of a denial. It’s enough. ]

Yes. I wouldn’t think it was cruelty.

[ Only, as he said, the way things are.

But he knows he’s asking a lot. By, who comes to the defense of the people he loves with sneers and interminable grudges, having to listen to one say something even mildly critical of another—miserable, Bastien imagines. He strokes his goatee with his thumb and tries to make up for it: ]

And it is a small thing. She is also fun, witty, terrifyingly clever, beautiful, passionate, charming company, and she loves you so much.