Where there's a will, there's a Rei.

Bones. Marrow. Skull. She could remember those names. It was long since they were used to refer to her. They were just names that held no meaning, just tied to a single skill she displayed just one time. Bubbles, was likely, not that different.

"She didn't tell me anything." She would saw, raising a brow. Was it something confidential, or something just for them? Was it between him and the Mizukage, or just him and Hana? It was hard to draw lines like those. Moments between business and pleasure. But as it unfolded, Rei started to see the bigger picture. "It was something that slipped out. I suppose my own nervousness around her put her more on edge, and with it, that name." It was like the same when Engetsu insisted on calling Rei "Mommy" even after their child was grown up. Though, something kept to themselves in the privacy of-

"I'll be honest." She looked down at the treats, now reaching for a plain sugar cookie. "I would like to minimize my interactions with Hana at all means necessary. All my reports will be written and delivered to her. I just don't want to be more involved with her than I absolutely need to." The cookie fixed between her teeth, they growing pointed for a moment before snapping the cookie in half to be eaten. The treat lowered as her lips met, hiding her chewed meal.

"So, from this point on, you can expect me to avoid Hana, unless she requests something of me." She looked at her plate, moving it back to her as the crumbs fell onto the table. She would set the cookie down to lift the drink to her lips. "I really don't want to spend any more time with a Kaguya than I need to." She would say, only to smile at the end of it, almost chuckling.

"Though, it turns out you might not be the only half-Kaguya anymore." She exhaled through her nose, a sharp breath like a withheld laughter. "So, trust I have no real desire to intrude on your life, other than staying updated on your skills and progress."

Strength: B || Constitution: D(C)|| Stamina: C || Speed: B ||
Coordination: B+ || Intelligence: C || Perception: B
110/110 Chakra

Even his request, would be rather impossible. It wasn't her choice to have her son attached to quite literally the most important person in the village. It would be just unrealistic to cut off all contact. At that point, she might as well move to a different country. But to abandon her country, and her vows, would be heresy. And to leave her son, that was out of the question. But, to minimize all contact, to allow him to separate the pieces of his personal life until he could figure things out, she could do that. She only hoped her son would not make a mess of things. If he was planning something evil, well, then Rei would have an entirely different problem on her hands.

"Don't" She would reply, almost as quickly as his words came out. "Don't thank me. It's a mother's responsibility to take care of her young, no matter the cost." her voice rather trailed off, thinking of the young girl.

"Chigetsu, I have a question to ask of you." She didn't want to intrude on where he drew his lines, but still, she wanted to know where things stood. There was no reason to ask his father if he was just-

"I have been considering having my students move in here." She would speak, her eyes falling onto the treats, only to have a single rat scurry into the room. A maid not that far behind. A rodent wearing a similar black leather harness as Rei had for her sword. He would head directly towards Rei, and she would do nothing else but wave at it to come foward.

"I don't intend to touch your things. Your items will be completely left alone." The gray and brown rat would leap, and Rei would pick it up to set it in her lap. Her hand covered in honey being licked off by the rodent. "Is this okay with you?"

Strength: B || Constitution: D(C)|| Stamina: C || Speed: B ||
Coordination: B+ || Intelligence: C || Perception: B
110/110 Chakra

Like everything, if she held onto it long enough. It turned to shit. Her parents. Her siblings. Her family. Her dreams. Her joy. Her freedom. Her husband. Her life. And now, her relationship with her son. If she left things as they were, instead of trying to force what she was actively trying to repair, it would have worked itself out. He came to her for a reason. She should have left it at that. Simple pleasantries, a small conversation and send him on his way. But she wasn't that kind of person. She had to get involved. She wanted to fix so much, but didn't know how. Now, a find lunch with her son was turned into fewer and fewer words. She had not just pushed him into a corner, but shoved him into a box tucked away in the darkest and furthest corner of where he wanted to be. Every time she apologized, or tried to work something out, she was breaking what was left. Soon, if she continued, she would be alone. She would have no son, she would no husband. She would have the students she called her pupils as her own stand in children. But even so, she would die a teacher, and not a mother. Ah, but that was the life of a shinobi. Family wasn't really ever an option for her.

In a way she settled. She settled her fangs and filed them to squared shaped teeth as if to not threaten the company. She bathed in clean water instead of blood, no longer needind to hide her own scent. She wore dress shirts rather than tattered robes that just did the job. She married a man, because that's what was needed to produce a son. She settled into this life, when it was the last thing she ever wanted. But now, she had given birth to Chigetsu, and watched him turn from a boy into a young man. A young man, who with every word that spilled from her lips, went further and further away from her. He was just within reach, but if she extended her hand, just one more time... she would risk losing him.

And that was the last thing she wanted.

He was just as broken as she was. She just wanted to give him the things she wished her own parents gave her. But she knew now, he wasn't like her. He wasn't like his father either. He had pieces of the both of them, each half fighting over what the child would become. A boy who wanted to be a man, and a boy who simply wanted to make his parents proud. Someone who ran from his family's traditions, yet returned to them. He was an enigma, and with that in sight, Rei understood how little she really had in common with his father. She settled. Because she had nothing else to lose. But now, she had everything to lose.

Hand continued to lightly stroke the rat, its tongue hanging out as she continued to clean up after Rei. Peeking over the table every few moments only to rest back down. The sounds of three more heard down the hall, only to have the three stop in the doorway, all standing to sniff, before walking off at a slower pace. All of their coats with different patterns, but all wore the same harnesses.

". . . right. Of course." she would say, leaning back in her chair, her face pulling a dull look as her eyes fell upon the rat. All she could think about now, was the cat. "Forgive my question then." A half smile, appearing for a moment, but fleeting thusafter.

She couldn't reach out.

She knew she would lose him.

Strength: B || Constitution: D(C)|| Stamina: C || Speed: B ||
Coordination: B+ || Intelligence: C || Perception: B
110/110 Chakra

Since she was born, everything was taken away from her. Her bits of freedom, creativity, her friends, her ideas, her family, and almost her life. It was natural for her to hold onto the things she cherish, almost suffocating them with her attention and care. Somethings had gotten buried under the affection of others, her puppets hidden deep within the house to remain unused. Her son was no different. She had reached out, held on for dear life and clutched him close. She tried to make him stronger so she could believe she didn't need to protect him, but deep down, it was a feeling that would never fleet. But still, she knew when it was time to stop. Holding onto people wasn't like objects. People, often the tighter you held them, the farther they would run. Trinkets and treasures could be locked away for safekeeping, but not people. You could, but was that love? Was it love to bind them to a cold dark room, giving them a little more than needed to survive so they could live to the next day? That wasn't love, it was torture, perhaps even pity. To pity the man that was his father was-

"I think she would be very proud regardless." She would say, staring blankly at him only to shake her gaze to look over her treats again. "And you're welcome, Chigetsu. Any time." She waved the older maid to come forth. "I'll have Caitlyn wrap up some of the treats and you can take them home. I trust you still know the way out. Until then, my son."

There was nothing more to be said.

Her soul died a little more each time she watched him leave.

Strength: B || Constitution: D(C)|| Stamina: C || Speed: B ||
Coordination: B+ || Intelligence: C || Perception: B
110/110 Chakra