travailler | Empatheias Inbox

[ The worst part is that he can kind of guess where Elphelt's mind is going with this without knowing the specifics. Why is she always like this!! ]

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... ]

[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?

Of course I have!

[ 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 did that, once.

[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?

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.

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