[no she rightfully should not, except he hears that and realizes that she has a point and also decides it means shutting down that conversation entirely. time to shove all of that elsewhere, goodbye.]
...right. I know. No more worrying about it. It'll be fine no matter what or how long it takes.
No, that's... Bottling it up isn't good, either. [ because she doesn't think he can actually just stop worrying. but 'don't worry about it' and 'don't keep it to yourself' aren't leaving a lot of middle ground, are they... ]
... I just... Don't know what to tell you. I can't help you figure things out, because I don't get how things work where you're from. [ which frustrates her. ]
But you're real. I'm sure of that much. And it will be fine, because you say it will.
[ she's thumbing over the blue stone again. ]
... Even if I don't know what to say, I still want you to be able to tell me what's on your mind.
[you know how sometimes when you're in a weird and somewhat depressive mood you'll hear the voice of someone familiar? currently, he's here and he's listening and he suddenly hears riku saying "pull it together, sora" and it's a strange sort of experience.
bottling it up isn't good at all, but nevertheless he also recognizes that it's hard to talk about solely because it's hard to understand.]
I don't know if I'm really asking for answers. I just...[just?] It'll be fine because the others aren't giving up, and now that I know what I know I have to keep searching myself.
[...] I don't think I've made this a secret since the beginning, but I want to go home. I just know that I can't because we're still not done yet.
[ that he's not looking for answers? or that he wants to go home? she sets the stone down for a moment, not quite ready to put it in her pocket where she won't be able to see it, but freeing up her hand so she can hold both of his. ]
You're just... Not done yet. You're not giving up, and neither are your friends.
[ he told her to remind her if he forgot. she definitely doesn't think he has - and she hates to give that kind of a reminder? it's exhausting. but she also thinks that... if it were her, it might help to hear someone else say it. ]
Gotta keep moving forward. That's how you get home.
[he will let her take both of his hands except he's immediately tightening his grip like he's afraid she'll pull back. or maybe he's worried he'll glitch and disappear.]
Yeah...every step is one step closer. [and it's tiring, even if he doesn't want to complain. they have tomorrow to get through still so worrying about the after of that can and should wait a little.
Sure we did. Do you really think people would've worked together the way we did today back when we first started? We've made a lot of progress with each other.
Moving forward doesn't always have to be outrunning danger, Clem. Sometimes it's just taking the next step to the next adventure, or it's strengthening the bonds with the people you've come to know and knowing they'll help you later.
[the game has taught him to be more realistic about his optimism, if anything, so she says that and it kind of makes it even more of a reality. it's probably a good thing she has both of his hands because he continues to hold them instead of doing anything remotely useful.]
...yeah. I'm going to miss you a lot, too. It feels weird knowing I won't wake up Monday and be able to find you so easily. [it's not a never, but a reiteration.] But it won't be long before I find you again. So don't give up, okay?
["don't give up on me" is really what he means, but he won't say that out loud either.]
[ believing in someone and giving up on them aren't antithetical concepts to clem. maybe it doesn't make sense to other people, but she can believe in him... and that they won't see each other again.
but she wants to believe they will - enough that she doesn't bring her realism into it, for now. ]
[that's good, honestly, because it's what he has to hold onto and refuses to let go of for the time being. even if she doesn't totally believe it, the silence and lack of an argument is enough for him.
it's why he also gives up on words for the time being to dip his head forward for a brief kiss. clementine started this and now he's decided that signs of affection are helpful when he can't fully express everything.]
Until then...just think about what I said about dreams.
[ she wants them to be able to talk to each other about things, but at the same time there are a lot of things that it's easier to not talk about. not to prevent a fight or to deny that they both feel different, complicated ways about it, but... because they both just already know that.
that's what clementine thinks. words aren't going to work as a good reassurance - but touch does. holding hands or kissing is soothing.
her smiles tonight are pretty weak, but she tries. ]
I will. [ maybe not actually dream big, but. think about it? it's fine. it's enough. she leans forward to give him another kiss, just as brief. ] I'll think about you a lot.
[at least they seem to be in sync that way, because for every fleeting thought there's a moment he debates talking about things before he decides the more appropriate answer is to return the kiss again. they're just going to do this now.]
Good. And I'll think about everything I want to show you as soon as I'm back. Maybe we'll have a reason for you to wear that dress again someday.
[not that he has any particular attachment to it, but it's more the idea of giving her something nice because he's still hung up on that. "I wanted to show you something beautiful."]
Hmm...Beast's castle has a lot of ground we didn't cover. And it's not really a castle but Radiant Garden's nice. It's where Kairi's from, and some of the others, too.
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I mean I thought it was just that simple and that it was all over, but now that we know what we know about here, I have to wonder.
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... You won't figure it out any faster by worrying about it.
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...right. I know. No more worrying about it. It'll be fine no matter what or how long it takes.
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No, that's... Bottling it up isn't good, either. [ because she doesn't think he can actually just stop worrying. but 'don't worry about it' and 'don't keep it to yourself' aren't leaving a lot of middle ground, are they... ]
... I just... Don't know what to tell you. I can't help you figure things out, because I don't get how things work where you're from. [ which frustrates her. ]
But you're real. I'm sure of that much. And it will be fine, because you say it will.
[ she's thumbing over the blue stone again. ]
... Even if I don't know what to say, I still want you to be able to tell me what's on your mind.
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bottling it up isn't good at all, but nevertheless he also recognizes that it's hard to talk about solely because it's hard to understand.]
I don't know if I'm really asking for answers. I just...[just?] It'll be fine because the others aren't giving up, and now that I know what I know I have to keep searching myself.
[...] I don't think I've made this a secret since the beginning, but I want to go home. I just know that I can't because we're still not done yet.
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[ that he's not looking for answers? or that he wants to go home? she sets the stone down for a moment, not quite ready to put it in her pocket where she won't be able to see it, but freeing up her hand so she can hold both of his. ]
You're just... Not done yet. You're not giving up, and neither are your friends.
[ he told her to remind her if he forgot. she definitely doesn't think he has - and she hates to give that kind of a reminder? it's exhausting. but she also thinks that... if it were her, it might help to hear someone else say it. ]
Gotta keep moving forward. That's how you get home.
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Yeah...every step is one step closer. [and it's tiring, even if he doesn't want to complain. they have tomorrow to get through still so worrying about the after of that can and should wait a little.
...but she's right, the reminder helps anyway.]
We moved forward a lot today, didn't we.
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... Did we?
[ she thinks they answered a bunch of silly questions, mostly? ]
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I just thought it felt more like we were just playing a game together instead of doing anything important. Hard to think of that as moving forward.
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...every step I take from here is going to be a step forward to coming back. I promise.
[it's "I'm not leaving you longer than I have to" and "I have to keep going" in the same sentence.]
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[ it wasn't a trick question. she has a hard time with optimism, so realistic promises like that are easier to swallow, honestly. ]
I'll... I'll miss you. You know that, right? A lot.
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...yeah. I'm going to miss you a lot, too. It feels weird knowing I won't wake up Monday and be able to find you so easily. [it's not a never, but a reiteration.] But it won't be long before I find you again. So don't give up, okay?
["don't give up on me" is really what he means, but he won't say that out loud either.]
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[ believing in someone and giving up on them aren't antithetical concepts to clem. maybe it doesn't make sense to other people, but she can believe in him... and that they won't see each other again.
but she wants to believe they will - enough that she doesn't bring her realism into it, for now. ]
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it's why he also gives up on words for the time being to dip his head forward for a brief kiss. clementine started this and now he's decided that signs of affection are helpful when he can't fully express everything.]
Until then...just think about what I said about dreams.
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that's what clementine thinks. words aren't going to work as a good reassurance - but touch does. holding hands or kissing is soothing.
her smiles tonight are pretty weak, but she tries. ]
I will. [ maybe not actually dream big, but. think about it? it's fine. it's enough. she leans forward to give him another kiss, just as brief. ] I'll think about you a lot.
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Good. And I'll think about everything I want to show you as soon as I'm back. Maybe we'll have a reason for you to wear that dress again someday.
[not that he has any particular attachment to it, but it's more the idea of giving her something nice because he's still hung up on that. "I wanted to show you something beautiful."]
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so, just for a little. ]
Yeah - we'll uh. Throw a big fancy party at the school when you show up. I'll wear it for that.
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And if that doesn't work, I'll take you to another castle. A really nice one. You'd love them.
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