[ Matt sighs, a soft, pleased breath, as Liem leans his head on him.

He's not happy, of course, but feeling Liem's touch brings a sense of comfort. It makes him feel like he's actually doing something good for him. His arm slips down around Liem's waist, following his shift closer, and his palm rubs gently at Liem's side: up to his ribs, down to his hip. It strikes Matt as strange how easy this feels--his missing hand isn't really a hindrance at all, not with Liem drawn up against his right side. He guesses you always end up with awkwardly placed arms in bed. ]

We can find out more than what they tell us. [ Matt's been frustrated by this very thing himself, but saying it to Liem, he finds he believes it. ] I did that--when I saw the Innocence. There are things out there that are bigger than them. Bigger than all of us. [ He turns his head, his nose nearly brushing Liem's temple. ] I know it's hard. These times are always hard. The scriptures I know talk about it as a moral decay ... they say it like, thinking of duty and social order like a bull that starts off with four legs, then loses one, then finally only has one left. It's hard to stand like that.

But I'm still going to try.