"Something for Roland, of course," he says. "Not a rose, that's too obvious -- and he's no rose anyway. I was thinking a cactus flower. Something unconventional."

Roland is a lot of things, but a traditional symbol of beauty and love is not one of them.

"And then snapdragon for Terezi... and foxglove for the Initiate. I know it seems strange to want him on my skin after what he did, but whatever kind of person he was, he was a big part of my life. It will serve as a reminder to be more cautious in future."

He isn't sure where she stands on that particular issue, so it's safer to keep up the face of the friend betrayed for now. And even if she is more rebellious than most Capitolites, her office no doubt has cameras.