The crone listened, not interrupting. She just curled up to him and listened. Her hand now and then would touch his jaw or his neck or his chest. Her movements weren't quick or erratic. They were slow, deliberate, careful. Just a reminder that he was not alone.
"No, there will not, but there will be another. There will be time, you know this as well as I. You will find another if you want. But, he will not be coming back. Not for a very long time if he does." She tried to send him soft comforting feelings, not to overtake those of sadness and loss he felt, but to show that she supported him. She had accepted him, chosen him, given herself to him.
"We could ask the City for him, but I highly doubt the City could or would give him back as he was. I do not believe that is in its power."