He exhales slowly. It's been months, but he still remembers it: the sinking inevitability like a cinderblock around his ankle, every day that passed another day that he had failed to find a way out—but he had known even then that there was no escaping from the plan. Not really. And Goro had been the same, apparently, if this was their fucking plan. Goro's life, bright and precious, and they were willing to stake it on this... this entire series of long shots.

Ren knows he doesn't exactly hold the moral high ground on the issue of plans to protect Goro that November. But something about it still gets to him.

He closes his eyes and presses his forehead against Goro's. "What then? What was the point of keeping her Palace around?"