[ She's thought about that a lot in fact, but she still doesn't have a concrete answer. Thanks to the totality of the mask her mother wore, Gray feels almost as though she didn't know her mother well — except as someone who loved her daughter, and tried to fight for her in her own desperate way. ]

I think I'd apologize. I'm certain she could see I was afraid of her. It must have hurt her, no matter how sure she was that she was doing the right thing.

[ Despite living with Gray and the other villagers, she must have been lonely in her secrecy as much as Gray was lonely in her isolation. Gray would have liked to take her away to London to show her the good things in the world, the same as Gray's mentor once did for her.

She looks over at Mordred to see her flopped on the ground. Gray hasn't interacted with many children, but Mordred's fidgetiness makes her think of one. ]

How about your mother? If she showed up here someday, would you want to talk to her?