It slots something into place, something Lan Wangji never knew needed guidance to its home until now. He thinks of Hebona, of how protective she was of Claudius, and he thinks of the world in which Claudius had no fantastical avian companion, only poison, by which to protect himself and Gertrude. "His brother is alive," he says. "And he asked me to tell you something." He wants to do that something justice; he frowns faintly as he recalls the specifics. "About Rielle. He killed her mother, because she would have had her child imprisoned, tortured, and executed. Claudius told me that when it was done, Rielle said he had made her unafraid of the future for the first time." He finds Claudius' elbow and squeezes it, a fortifying grip or a proud one. "And he told me that you are braver than he is, despite the people who call him a hero for his deeds."