ic I Know What You Did Last Summer

[Electra]

"They're from Earth Prime, right?" Erin shrugged. "They aren't ever going to understand, not completely. They think they know because their world has been in danger so many times, they think they understand hard times and hard choices. But they've always won. Maybe it took huge sacrifices and maybe it was right at the last minute, but they always pull it out of the fire. Its not until you lose that you really understand. You and I see things differently because we lost our whole worlds, and we got stuck into situations where there were no good choices, just different kinds of bad. And if you get out of it, you'd do just about anything to keep it from happening again."

 

She ran a hand through her auburn hair and stared out at nothing. "And I'm grateful my friends don't understand, I hope they never have to, because I love them. But it means that people like us are the ones who have to adjust to their shiny world, even if it chafes. You're not really lying to them if you tell them an edited truth that they can live with. Tell them it won't happen again, and hope like hell that it's really true, that you never come up against another situation where there's no other choice."

[Raveled]

Tona’s mind went down dark, depressing paths as she tried to absorb Wander’s words. She imagined living the rest of her life with Sam and Mali and Cerys, keeping this part of her separate from them, lying to them for however long she lived. It drained her, like all the energy she would have to spend through her entire life maintaining this lie was being taken from her right here and now. She had no idea how she was supposed to do it; she had not idea if she could do it. Tona was not a crafty person, she was not good at deception or fabrication. She doubted that she would be able to keep a secret like that from Sam, at least, for very long.

Still, Wander was the Brave and Tona didn’t want to contradict her. Maybe she was even right, but in any case Tona felt like she didn’t have any fight left in her. “I have to get back to my apartment,†she said quietly. “I have to… wake up my roommate.†It was a poor lie, but Tona didn’t have the energy to think up a better one. She just wanted to get away from this conversation and stop thinking about it.

[Electra]

Erin sighed, stuffing her hands into the pocket of her sweatshirt. That had gone about as well as she probably should've expected. She really wasn't cut out for the mentoring thing. And honestly she didn't know if she was right and Tona just didn't want to believe it, or if maybe there was something wrong with Erin herself that she couldn't just share everything she was and had been with her friends. She couldn't tell if she'd been any consolation at all. "Yeah, I'd better get going too, got work in a little while. I'll come back and pick up the book some other time. It was good talking to you again, take care of yourself."