[ At the time, it had felt right - or, at least, right enough. As she told Jaune, she doesn't regret going after Cinder. If nothing else, it had distracted her long enough for everyone else to flee. That Nora and Jaune are here, unharmed, alive... Pyrrha's honestly glad. What might have happened if she hadn't intervened?
Maybe something bad. To everyone.
Or, maybe - nothing. Nothing would have happened. She may have thrown her life away for nothing, died alone and scared, gasping for breath.
She'll never know at this point. Pyrrha puts the thoughts out of her head, focusing as best she can on what Nora is saying, not what she herself is extrapolating from her friend's words. ]
I suppose we don't.
[ Surprise! Nora is the wisest member of JNPR. ]
I asked Jaune if he'd ever forgive me and he said he didn't know. [ ... ] I didn't... think that meant he hated me so much.
[Ugh. Nora's brows furrow and her mouth sets in a worried, almost grim line. Jaune can be difficult to deal with sometimes, she knows, but never this difficult, that forgiving Pyrrha is suddenly so uncertain for him. She wants to scratch her head or throw up her hands in exasperation, but right now she just wants to hold Pyrrha tightly. Because if Jaune won't, the gal pal will.
For a moment, she remains silent, gathering her thoughts.]
I don't think he hates you. [Or so Nora hopes. Her tone is steady, and gentle.] I think he's still...really hung up on what happened to you, and doesn't know what else to do with how he feels.
[Jaune can be really dumb with these kinds of things. Nora is about 90% sure that Jaune's regrets and anger toward himself were now being projected through how he acted around and spoke to Pyrrha.]
Which, really, is pretty dumb, because you're here now and we have another chance to...be together, and stuff.
[ The crux of the matter lies in what Pyrrha is unwilling to admit, not wanting Nora to hear Jaune at his worst. She had asked about her mother and he had thrown it back into her face, hurting her so badly she could barely string a sentence together. You don't do that to a person you don't hate. And then there's Nora, caught in the middle, likely as sad as the rest of them but being strong in spite of it - well, it certainly puts Pyrrha to shame.
She sits up, swipes at her eyes so they're dry.
Together, Nora says.
Well, not really. Even with her presence, their team is still fractured, and breaking further apart with each passing second. Nora must feel like she was holding the world together with her fingertips. ]
[The "I'm sorry" does create a hint of a smile tugging at Nora's lips. Though many things have changed with the chunk of Team JNPR currently here in Empatheias, some things remain the same. She manages to grin ruefully.]
It's nothing I can't handle. [Nora shrugs.] Besides, what are friends for?
[ A bit calmer now, she returns to leaning on Nora. Well wrung out from her burst of torrential emotion, she's a little drained, content to let someone support her, even if it's uninvited. ]
[Nora drapes one arm over Pyrrha's shoulder. Man, her teammates are so tall. She laughs softly.]
Stay as long as you need to. You feel better now, right?
[So does she, truth be told. She also feels better about what they had done to Pyrrha's weapons; perhaps it was not the best course of action, but at the time, it felt like it, it happened, and there was nothing left for them to do about that except move forward from it.
Many times, that was all that was left. To keep moving forward.]
[ To be fair, Pyrrha doesn't know than Ren is now of height with her! Hopefully soon, she'll see his growth spurt for herself.
Regardless, as Nora feels better, they both do. A bit worn out from her crying jag, she swipes at the drying skin under her eyes without opening them, clearing off any last bits of streaky tear residue from her face. There's a faint sniffle, but it's a remnant of what was, and bitten off by a somewhat embarrassed chortle. ]
Thank you, Nora. -- I'm really glad you're here with us.
[ She's sure she said it before, but there's no harm in repeating it. ]
[Nora winks. It's true. She pats Pyrrha's shoulder while keeping her arm where it is. And Nora bets that Pyrrha would be glad to see Ren too, if he ever arrived - and possibly notice how he's grown inside and out.
But Nora is not going to stop at being a literal crying shoulder for her friend. Oh, she has so much more in mind.]
How 'bout...I get you a handkerchief, a cold drink, and maybe a day out in the town?
[ She definitely needs to wipe her stupid face and re-hydrate. As for a day on the town, well - she hardly feels fit for human interaction or even showing her face in public right now.
Admitting it would involve saying no to Nora, which Pyrrha is utterly unwilling to do right now. ]
Alright.
[ Letting out a breath, she finally makes an effort to disentangle from Nora's embrace. ]
That sounds wonderful. [ Beat. ] How about we find a bakery and taste-test everything?
[Nora stands up and walks over to her dresser to look for a handkerchief...or at least, a small towel. But she does find a pale pink handkerchief, which she hands over to Pyrrha.]
Well, a bakery should have cold drinks, so...sounds like a plan. [Anything that involves both food and friends is always a good plan, to Nora.]
Besides, I haven't been to all the bakeries here yet!
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Maybe something bad. To everyone.
Or, maybe - nothing. Nothing would have happened. She may have thrown her life away for nothing, died alone and scared, gasping for breath.
She'll never know at this point. Pyrrha puts the thoughts out of her head, focusing as best she can on what Nora is saying, not what she herself is extrapolating from her friend's words. ]
I suppose we don't.
[ Surprise! Nora is the wisest member of JNPR. ]
I asked Jaune if he'd ever forgive me and he said he didn't know. [ ... ] I didn't... think that meant he hated me so much.
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For a moment, she remains silent, gathering her thoughts.]
I don't think he hates you. [Or so Nora hopes. Her tone is steady, and gentle.] I think he's still...really hung up on what happened to you, and doesn't know what else to do with how he feels.
[Jaune can be really dumb with these kinds of things. Nora is about 90% sure that Jaune's regrets and anger toward himself were now being projected through how he acted around and spoke to Pyrrha.]
Which, really, is pretty dumb, because you're here now and we have another chance to...be together, and stuff.
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She sits up, swipes at her eyes so they're dry.
Together, Nora says.
Well, not really. Even with her presence, their team is still fractured, and breaking further apart with each passing second. Nora must feel like she was holding the world together with her fingertips. ]
I'm sorry.
[ There it is! ]
We haven't exactly put you in a good position.
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It's nothing I can't handle. [Nora shrugs.] Besides, what are friends for?
[For counseling rocky relationships, apparently.]
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[ A bit calmer now, she returns to leaning on Nora. Well wrung out from her burst of torrential emotion, she's a little drained, content to let someone support her, even if it's uninvited. ]
... Can you stay here for a little while?
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[Nora drapes one arm over Pyrrha's shoulder. Man, her teammates are so tall. She laughs softly.]
Stay as long as you need to. You feel better now, right?
[So does she, truth be told. She also feels better about what they had done to Pyrrha's weapons; perhaps it was not the best course of action, but at the time, it felt like it, it happened, and there was nothing left for them to do about that except move forward from it.
Many times, that was all that was left. To keep moving forward.]
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[ To be fair, Pyrrha doesn't know than Ren is now of height with her! Hopefully soon, she'll see his growth spurt for herself.
Regardless, as Nora feels better, they both do. A bit worn out from her crying jag, she swipes at the drying skin under her eyes without opening them, clearing off any last bits of streaky tear residue from her face. There's a faint sniffle, but it's a remnant of what was, and bitten off by a somewhat embarrassed chortle. ]
Thank you, Nora. -- I'm really glad you're here with us.
[ She's sure she said it before, but there's no harm in repeating it. ]
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[Nora winks. It's true. She pats Pyrrha's shoulder while keeping her arm where it is. And Nora bets that Pyrrha would be glad to see Ren too, if he ever arrived - and possibly notice how he's grown inside and out.
But Nora is not going to stop at being a literal crying shoulder for her friend. Oh, she has so much more in mind.]
How 'bout...I get you a handkerchief, a cold drink, and maybe a day out in the town?
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Admitting it would involve saying no to Nora, which Pyrrha is utterly unwilling to do right now. ]
Alright.
[ Letting out a breath, she finally makes an effort to disentangle from Nora's embrace. ]
That sounds wonderful. [ Beat. ] How about we find a bakery and taste-test everything?
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Well, a bakery should have cold drinks, so...sounds like a plan. [Anything that involves both food and friends is always a good plan, to Nora.]
Besides, I haven't been to all the bakeries here yet!