I've been thinking about that...not a wish, but about being one year older. It was 2187 when I came here, then I had my first birthday here...but I went home for two days and it was still 2187 when I came back...
So am I two or am I one? Did I re-do my first birthday? I have enough to deal without the space-time continuum making me question my age. It's important for a woman in the dating scene, you know?!
[A pause.]
Oh. I wished to find love this year. I don't know if I got the number of candles on my cake right, though.
Ugh, yeah, it's... best not to think about the timey-wimey stuff. That's how I get by, anyway...
[ He knows exactly about her confusion, and it's something he's been wondering about as well. Some of his friends are counting their birthdays, but Jaune? He'd rather not complicate things for them. ]
And... you can't wish for love! Actually, you shouldn't wish for anything that you can't achieve on your own. If you wanna find love, Elphelt... you gotta make it your goal, then work towards it.
[When it's your tenth, twentieth, or ten thousandth birthday, it isn't such a big deal. But when it is one hundred percent of your birthdays, then it is more difficult to not think about.]
...If it were that easy. "You cannot love". Just like any other order, it isn't that easy to disobey.
Yeah? How's that gonna stop anyone from loving you, though?
[ Jaune is fairly sure that Elphelt already loves a lot of people in her life, too, but maybe he should approach this from an angle Elphelt might comprehend, he thinks... ]
...sayyy, what if... I ordered you to find love and happiness?
[ Though, he'd much prefer if she made that choice on her own. ]
[She puffs out her cheeks and furrows her brow. If Jaune could just give her orders to make her do something, then...]
--Wouldn't that be weird? If you could override Mother's programming like that, then I would listen to everything you would ask me to do. You could get me to do your chores, feed you snacks, and...and...and...
[The mental image that follows is too inappropriate to describe. Jaune, keep your hands to yourself when in Elphelt's imagination.]
[Now SHE'S thinking about her b-zone. This is getting weird! Jaune, is this what you think of when you think 'Elphelt'?]
Y-Yes, I know!
[Think about cupcakes and puppies and cold showers and anything not lewd, Elphelt! Thank goodness that is gone just as quickly as it popped up--no thanks to Jaune or imaginary!Jaune.]
I...know. I have disobeyed before, but it is not easy. Have you ever had something that...every part of you tells you something, no matter whether you believe it or agree with it, and you just...can't resist?
[ He hasn't opened up about Pyrrha in a while, but he thinks he can relate to what she's trying to say. For Elphelt's sake, he might have to recall an unpleasant memory. ]
Pyrrha and I... we... we had our difficulties here. Things were complicated at first, so we set rules for each other. [ They'll be friends, they said. No romance, they said. ] After we broke them a bunch of times, we agreed not to speak with each other.
... In the end, we barely lasted a week. We tried, but it only made us wanna be together even more, you know?
[ So much wasted time, though... ]
Orders are one thing, but the heart wants what it wants. Why shouldn't you listen to yours?
I was at my wedding. I was there, flirting with my fiance. It was all an act, mind you. I was doing nothing but following my programming, an invader trying to fit into the world I was sent to infiltrate. At some point my...my womanhood was overwhelmed and I...snapped. Mother's plan, my programming, the rule "never fall in love"--I suddenly questioned everything. So, I rebelled against Mother, because I did not want to be part of that.
[Elphelt grips the sides of her head as though she were coming down with a sudden, powerful headache.]
But running away from her? Sabotaging a secret base? Laying out her entire plan to the king? Saving my friends? Helping them come up with a plan for stopping Mother?
ALL of it was EXACTLY what she wanted! Even when I thought I was rebelling, I was doing what she wanted! No matter what reasons I had for what I did, it turned out to be part of what she programmed into me. How can I listen to my heart when I can't trust it?
You've been through a lot, Elphelt... I understand why you can't trust yourself after all that. To be honest, I'm not even sure if I could...
[ He wishes he could say something that would make everything alright, but he knows that this is something that it's going to take some time. Elphelt needs to learn to trust herself at her own pace, but he'll be here to help her through it no matter how long it takes. ]
I think... you made a choice back then, and it might have worked in your mother's favour, but it was still your choice. What you want for yourself isn't wrong, you know. Trust me on that.
no subject
So am I two or am I one? Did I re-do my first birthday? I have enough to deal without the space-time continuum making me question my age. It's important for a woman in the dating scene, you know?!
[A pause.]
Oh. I wished to find love this year. I don't know if I got the number of candles on my cake right, though.
no subject
[ He knows exactly about her confusion, and it's something he's been wondering about as well. Some of his friends are counting their birthdays, but Jaune? He'd rather not complicate things for them. ]
And... you can't wish for love! Actually, you shouldn't wish for anything that you can't achieve on your own. If you wanna find love, Elphelt... you gotta make it your goal, then work towards it.
no subject
...If it were that easy. "You cannot love". Just like any other order, it isn't that easy to disobey.
no subject
[ Jaune is fairly sure that Elphelt already loves a lot of people in her life, too, but maybe he should approach this from an angle Elphelt might comprehend, he thinks... ]
...sayyy, what if... I ordered you to find love and happiness?
[ Though, he'd much prefer if she made that choice on her own. ]
no subject
[She puffs out her cheeks and furrows her brow. If Jaune could just give her orders to make her do something, then...]
--Wouldn't that be weird? If you could override Mother's programming like that, then I would listen to everything you would ask me to do. You could get me to do your chores, feed you snacks, and...and...and...
[The mental image that follows is too inappropriate to describe. Jaune, keep your hands to yourself when in Elphelt's imagination.]
no subject
OKAY, but maybe stop imagining it before you start projecting it in MY head!
[ He didn't ask for telepathy porn!! ... But now he wonders what she's imagining. Is it B-Zone related? NO, abort! ]
L-Look, just do what makes you happy! Rules are meant to be broken and programs are meant to be... unprogrammed. What am I even saying?
[ HE'S TRYING TO HELP... ]
no subject
Y-Yes, I know!
[Think about cupcakes and puppies and cold showers and anything not lewd, Elphelt! Thank goodness that is gone just as quickly as it popped up--no thanks to Jaune or imaginary!Jaune.]
I...know. I have disobeyed before, but it is not easy. Have you ever had something that...every part of you tells you something, no matter whether you believe it or agree with it, and you just...can't resist?
no subject
[ He hasn't opened up about Pyrrha in a while, but he thinks he can relate to what she's trying to say. For Elphelt's sake, he might have to recall an unpleasant memory. ]
Pyrrha and I... we... we had our difficulties here. Things were complicated at first, so we set rules for each other. [ They'll be friends, they said. No romance, they said. ] After we broke them a bunch of times, we agreed not to speak with each other.
... In the end, we barely lasted a week. We tried, but it only made us wanna be together even more, you know?
[ So much wasted time, though... ]
Orders are one thing, but the heart wants what it wants. Why shouldn't you listen to yours?
no subject
[A pause.]
I was at my wedding. I was there, flirting with my fiance. It was all an act, mind you. I was doing nothing but following my programming, an invader trying to fit into the world I was sent to infiltrate. At some point my...my womanhood was overwhelmed and I...snapped. Mother's plan, my programming, the rule "never fall in love"--I suddenly questioned everything. So, I rebelled against Mother, because I did not want to be part of that.
[Elphelt grips the sides of her head as though she were coming down with a sudden, powerful headache.]
But running away from her? Sabotaging a secret base? Laying out her entire plan to the king? Saving my friends? Helping them come up with a plan for stopping Mother?
ALL of it was EXACTLY what she wanted! Even when I thought I was rebelling, I was doing what she wanted! No matter what reasons I had for what I did, it turned out to be part of what she programmed into me. How can I listen to my heart when I can't trust it?
no subject
[ He wishes he could say something that would make everything alright, but he knows that this is something that it's going to take some time. Elphelt needs to learn to trust herself at her own pace, but he'll be here to help her through it no matter how long it takes. ]
I think... you made a choice back then, and it might have worked in your mother's favour, but it was still your choice. What you want for yourself isn't wrong, you know. Trust me on that.