The loneliness of the ever deepening nights trapped within the lagoon's boundaries had taken a toll on her willpower. While she plodded around during the hours of daylight and appeared whole, the darkness of the nights without him was all consuming. The painted woman's mind was enraptured with an endless film of varying movies. In one scenario Jaskier would swoop valiantly in like the knight she originally believed of him. The next haunting images would depict a wasted lifetime left to ruin, with Anne reverting back to bones before completing her lifecycle as a cloud of dust blown away upon the unrelenting wind. There were moments within her despair that she thought she felt his presence, yet she knew the absurdity of such assumptions were folly. If Jaskier had been near, then surely he would have approached her in reassurance of the love declared not long ago. In his absence she remained on the mend physically - now showing a physique somewhat resembling a woman with only the slight outline of underlying bones. Yet the knowledge that he knew her whereabouts and chose to remain at a distance has worn heavily upon her already tattered soul. If I were his golden woman, would he have come for me?

As she stands before Tyr in an eerie limbo awaiting her fate, a rustling close behind commands a quick turn of her refined head. Her amber eyes widen in disbelief as the air inconceivably vacuums itself from her chest to effectively render her speechless. After all this time, he has arrived. She listens to his words in bewilderment. She has languished away what felt the equivalent of hundreds of days while being consumed with warring idolizations of Jaskier. Yet here he stands, preparing for the possibility of impending blows, only to offer forth innocent children. Her gaze clouds as her white hot fury - the uneasy boiling she has felt within her chest throughout the duration of her captivity - finally surpasses the levy walls she had erected for containment.

Surprisingly she is the one that closes the gap between herself and the buckskin brindle she has longed for endlessly, but it is her rage that propels her forth. She finds herself between the two brutes as her eyes dart from Tyr to Jaskier before settling on the latter. "Why give your children - your future with her - for someone you left to flounder in the wake of your destruction?" Her words cut her to the bone as she states them, for she knows they will fall upon him like a heavy blow. For this reason, she approaches him briefly, resting her velvet muzzle upon his neck. "I want nothing more than to be with you, beloved. But I must raise the question - is the cost too great? If you wish for a peaceful life with your children, I will stay." Her last sentence is a painful whisper, yet her words are raw and truthful. For you, I would do anything. She lingers within his warmth as the urge to remain beside him overwhelms her. She turns back to face Tyr while remaining within reach of Jaskier - she will allow him to close the gap this time.

As Tyr accepts the offer laid before him, she closes her amber eyes in silent regret. She does not want festering wounds between herself and Jaskier. The looming fear that the loss of his children will drive a wedge between the duo weighs heavily upon her shoulders. The next words spoken by looming gargantuan do bring a sliver of hope - perhaps Jaskier's offspring will be the catalysts for lasting change. A soft sigh riddled with worry and resignation comes forth from her lips. She accepts, for now, that she is but a pawn upon the chessboard of men to be stolen and traded as they deem fit.