Rob: There is a certain amount of respect being thrown around, yes.
Proginoskes: Pterry is right. For that to happen, the characters really would have to get away from me.
...and by 'the characters', I mean the native, non-SI ones. I'm sure as heck not going to do anything about that... or if I did, I wouldn't tell.
**********
"Tre!" She looked back, saw me trying to catch up, and slowed down a bit. "Yes, Imma?"
"I... I wanted to apologize to you. For what happened yesterday!" That stare of hers is a bit intimidating. Can't she tone it down a bit?
"Apologize?" A hint of bewilderment entered her tone, and she tilted her head to one side. "Why would you need to apologize?"
I snorted. "I saw the recordings, Tre. I know what I did yesterday." I looked down at the floor, continuing in a quieter tone. "I could've killed you."
The two of us walked a bit further, the silence around us heavy.
"Imma." I looked back up and over, meeting Tre's gaze. "Did you kill me?"
Befuddled, I shook my head.
"Then what do you have to apologize for? You weren't in control of yourself, so why would I blame you for what happened?" She paused for a second. "For that matter, why should you blame yourself? You caused no permanent harm."
I chewed that over for a few quiet seconds. I could've been stronger... not blanked out like that, not gone mad... but what would that have gotten me? If I hadn't broken then, they would've tried something else. With the flick of a mental switch, my eyes became bright gold, all my senses sharpening beyond anything I'd known before. I made a fist, squeezing with all the strength I'd been given, until I started to feel pain and see stress warnings in the corners of my eyes. They would've kept on trying, doing more and more each time, until it happened. Would I have killed her the second time? What about the third?
My train of thought was interrupted by an uncharacteristically soft voice. "If you had killed me, I wouldn't have blamed you.
Part of what I said to you yesterday was true. You were fighting like a human. I did want to kill you when we first met. I did change my mind, the day of your rebirth.
I was ordered to say the rest of it, and to do so with scorn and derision.
...If I hadn't been under those orders, I would not have done so."
I was actually touched by that. That may be the closest she's ever gotten to saying 'I'm sorry.' There's only one thing I can really say to that. Matching her softer tone, I replied, "Understood... and accepted."
At this point, Tre regained some of her usual intensity. "Training will continue as usual tomorrow morning. Do not be late." She then marched off, showing no sign of the conversation we'd just had.
I didn't sleep well at all that night... not that I need to, any longer. Realizing just why that was didn't help the problem.
My Unitarian Jihad Name is: Brother Atom Bomb of Courteous Debate. Get yours.
I've been writing a bit.
Proginoskes: Pterry is right. For that to happen, the characters really would have to get away from me.
...and by 'the characters', I mean the native, non-SI ones. I'm sure as heck not going to do anything about that... or if I did, I wouldn't tell.
**********
"Tre!" She looked back, saw me trying to catch up, and slowed down a bit. "Yes, Imma?"
"I... I wanted to apologize to you. For what happened yesterday!" That stare of hers is a bit intimidating. Can't she tone it down a bit?
"Apologize?" A hint of bewilderment entered her tone, and she tilted her head to one side. "Why would you need to apologize?"
I snorted. "I saw the recordings, Tre. I know what I did yesterday." I looked down at the floor, continuing in a quieter tone. "I could've killed you."
The two of us walked a bit further, the silence around us heavy.
"Imma." I looked back up and over, meeting Tre's gaze. "Did you kill me?"
Befuddled, I shook my head.
"Then what do you have to apologize for? You weren't in control of yourself, so why would I blame you for what happened?" She paused for a second. "For that matter, why should you blame yourself? You caused no permanent harm."
I chewed that over for a few quiet seconds. I could've been stronger... not blanked out like that, not gone mad... but what would that have gotten me? If I hadn't broken then, they would've tried something else. With the flick of a mental switch, my eyes became bright gold, all my senses sharpening beyond anything I'd known before. I made a fist, squeezing with all the strength I'd been given, until I started to feel pain and see stress warnings in the corners of my eyes. They would've kept on trying, doing more and more each time, until it happened. Would I have killed her the second time? What about the third?
My train of thought was interrupted by an uncharacteristically soft voice. "If you had killed me, I wouldn't have blamed you.
Part of what I said to you yesterday was true. You were fighting like a human. I did want to kill you when we first met. I did change my mind, the day of your rebirth.
I was ordered to say the rest of it, and to do so with scorn and derision.
...If I hadn't been under those orders, I would not have done so."
I was actually touched by that. That may be the closest she's ever gotten to saying 'I'm sorry.' There's only one thing I can really say to that. Matching her softer tone, I replied, "Understood... and accepted."
At this point, Tre regained some of her usual intensity. "Training will continue as usual tomorrow morning. Do not be late." She then marched off, showing no sign of the conversation we'd just had.
I didn't sleep well at all that night... not that I need to, any longer. Realizing just why that was didn't help the problem.
My Unitarian Jihad Name is: Brother Atom Bomb of Courteous Debate. Get yours.
I've been writing a bit.