Despite

Despite lick-smack-snap, despite sticky-tacky-sweet, despite red and white spirals on peppermint discs, despite green glinting gumdrops, despite chocolate-glazed fingers sucked just clean enough to grab one more sweet thing, she listened, tonguing goo from a tooth: no woodland twitter, no underbrush rustle, no buzzing of bees who always lingered near the honey back home; so, despite licorice-lined windows, despite candied fruit shutters, despite lollipop doorknobs, despite rainbow-hued jellybeans along the eves, she plucked one last chocolate drop from the cottage, told Hansel to stop, told him to come home, told everyone who missed him ever after how hard she tried.