artistinexile

[he waits until Aerith leaves, before bringing his hands into view. They're shaking]

Thank you for coming so quickly.

[ And Florian will reach out then, take those hands with his own, steady them as he looks into Thrawn's eyes. There's no influence other than his own voice but it is steady and firm. ]

Breathe.

All is not lost. You are not in this alone.

[he obeys. It's a direct order; those are what he can manage best, during times like these]

[slowly, his hands cease their shaking. He squeezes Florian's hands once, in gratitude, before withdrawing his own back to himself]

Aerith began to cry again, very suddenly. I do not know what I said or did that caused her such emotional distress, but it would grow worse the longer I spoke.

I am sorry. I understand you do not wish to be brought into these matters as they are happening.

[ A firm headshake. ]

That is precisely when I prefer to be brought in: before or during. That's when I can be the most effective. My frustrations were in coming in afterwards, at the end, when there was little I could do.

I hope she will see it that way, and not as an ambush into a private conversation.

I could see no other option available.

[ He glances towards the door. ]

She's well aware of your difficulties. And she and I have an accord. Nor did she seem surprised to see me.

She just needed a moment to collect herself.

It did not seem that way to me.

[he settles down but uneasily so, as lost as he usually is when sitting in a room devoid of art, culture, and needed context]

There are things we've discussed that make me believe it is so. She'll return when she's ready.

For now, I'd like you to tell me what happened.

[a short nod; he will have to trust Florian knows best in this. Thrawn stares at - or rather, through - Florian as he recounts his version of the last ten minutes]

Aerith requested we meet in person to speak - she made no mention of what topic - and suggested the library's study room.

She instructed me to relax, that this was an apology and not a lecture. She expressed that she was sorry for allowing contact between us to cease. I acknowledged that the fault lay with me: that I had, as you said, broken her heart, and that any lapse in friendship or communication was similarly my burden to bear. I attempted to explain that I had no wish to hurt her further.

Aerith reiterated that I had hurt her, but that our friendship was still in existence, unless I did not wish it.

This was a relief and a worry to hear: I explained my fear that hurting her again would be an inevitability, so I made a similar suggestion regarding my project limitations. Since my failure with the alarms was part of what caused her distress, I could allow her to direct and use my skills. In this way I hoped to convey that I still wished to provide assistance in keeping her safe, but without overstepping personal boundaries.

This is where the conversation began to turn. She expressed a desire not to use me and further elaborated that I was hurting her and myself at this very moment.

This is where I became initially confused. You and I have had conversations where I have told you that I am happiest when I can be put to use. I told Aerith a similar sentiment, but she reacted negatively and claimed my words meant I saw myself as an object, and prior experience made those words carry a negative connotation. But they are how I prefer to describe myself and what I need to be happy - as you have claimed it is what you desire. This too was met with negative emotion: evidently I am not to use these words to describe myself unless I have her permission?

She asked if I had sought clarity in why I had hurt her in the first place: I said that I was in the process of it, but that Doctor Sheehan had been working on establishing rapport first and foremost. Alarmingly, she began to talk about our friendship in the past tense and that she did not wish for it to end: she asked me why I had not asked her a question, but I do not know what she wished me to ask her.

That was when she began to cry once again. I realized that speaking likely would make matters worse. She followed with a series of semi-connected sentences regarding her apology to me for hurting me - and it was not hurt I feel, but alarm first and foremost - and that she did not wish our friendship to end, and this was her attempt to talk the matter through.

I reached out to you discretely in order to save this before it had the potential to grow worse, and attempted to explain your sudden appearance as a desire to seek understanding in how I have hurt her.

Again, that seemed to make matters worse; Aerith did not like my choice of words, or perhaps the generality of it. Perhaps she wishes for a more specific apology. That is when you entered.

[ Florian, silently, starts assembling a PowerPoint presentation inside his own head on 'How to Friendship 101'. And he breathes out. ]

We'll take it a piece at a time.

First: 'any lapse in friendship or communication was similarly my burden to bear'.

Incorrect. By that logic, any lapse in safety protocols was never yours to concern yourself with.

To tell someone that is to take away their agency to act in the situation and to insinuate that you do not believe that they care about the situation, despite any relationship being maintained from two ends.

It also, by extension, treats the relationship and communication as a 'burden', which could be seen to be implying that she thinks having a relationship with you is a burden, which can be hurtful when that isn't something she said or meant to convey. She can feel hurt and upset that you misunderstood her the same way you are hurt and upset when others misunderstand you.

Edited 2025-04-02 16:07 (UTC)

That does not make sense. I was acknowledging that I too could have broken the silence between us, as you indicated I should the last time we spoke.

That was not my intention at all.

I didn't think it was. But while you were clear right now, you assumed too much responsibility as you originally phrased it. Admitting you could have reached out too, or that you hadn't made it easy for her is one thing, but assuming the whole of the burden sends a different message.

[a tense silence. Finally Thrawn murmurs]

I understand. Please continue.

[ Florian nods, and there is empathy in his eyes for Thrawn. He understands this is not an exact science. ]

'I explained my fear that hurting her again would be an inevitability, so I made a similar suggestion regarding my project limitations. '

If you could explain precisely what you mean by that? I want to be sure I understand the potential nuances.

[this is so painful. He makes a note to record all future correspondence]

Yes.

Simply that because I am still learning what will hurt her and more importantly, that I should care more about that than her continued safety, I know I will make the occasional slip up, especially when it comes to ship works. Therefore I wished her to take the lead, especially when it comes to her own greenhouse revitalization projects. I know my designs on this ship and my desire to not wait for her input is a key driver to her unhappiness- therefore I was suggesting she take the lead to put me at any project she so chose.

[ Ah. There we go. He nods. ]

I see.

So... in a smaller way, you've made the same mistake with her as you have in some respect made in the larger scope of your choices: your priority of her safety took precedence over her decision. She had said that she regarded your friendship, a partnership of equal partners in maintaining the relationship, to still stand. Thus, she was telling you that she accepts that potential risk of your mistakes which might hurt her while also expecting you, as a friend and someone interested in maintaining the relationship with effort, to work on improving.

By insisting she take the lead, you are changing the relationship without her consent or desire, and instead of proposing a situation where you both work in tandem, as she desires you to do, an equal partnership where you build something together, you simply reversed your positions to where she would make decisions and you would just follow along. This is an unbalanced situation, one that is usually found between superior and subordinate, as opposed to a friendship.

[ A turn of his hand. ]

For example: if two people were working on building a house together, an equal partnership includes the two of them considering the needs of the house together, planning out the logistics together, dividing the work between them together according to each one's needs and wants and working through any disagreements together, before finding the materials and beginning to work.

Originally, you both had considered the needs together, but at some point you went off on your own to go through the rest of those steps without allowing her to take part, because you didn't realize the value that she placed on sharing the work and determinations throughout with you. What you are proposing would have have her doing all of that planning without you, and merely telling you what to do as she decides it when it comes to implementation.

...which doesn't remedy the situation. Because she has two primary goals: accomplishing the work, yes, but the second goal, which she holds just as important, is to do this with you. She enjoys the process and she wishes to enjoy it with you.

I insisted on nothing. Merely suggested it. She was free to say no and I would have respected her choice.

Each time I interact with Aerith, I find a new way to insult or hurt her. I don’t see why she would wish to enjoy anything. She was certainly not enjoying this conversation.

Edited 2025-04-02 20:09 (UTC)

But by suggesting it, it implied that you hadn't understood or heard what she was harmed by.

And I think the problem is just that you're in a bit of a spiral about this.

[ He gives Thrawn a faint smile, hopefully encouraging. ]

I'm going to give you two phrases. I'd like you to use them when you find yourself stuck. The first?

"What does that look like to you in practice?"

If someone says 'I want this' or 'I'd like this' or 'I still want to keep our friendship', seek clarity on what those words mean to them in practice. You also indicate that you are interested in their priorities and listening to them while you're working through things. It will give you examples to decide if that's something that sounds like it will work for you or not.

And the second?

"Is my understanding correct?"

To be used after giving a rundown of how you view the situation, or what you think the problem is. Use it before proposing a solution.

...and feel free to use both of them multiple times.

"What would that look like in practice?" Their answer baffles you. Try and summarize. "Is my understanding correct?" If they say yes? Good. If not, prompt them for more. Then. "What does that look like in practice?" And repeat as needed.

[ He considers telling him he can shift the language a little, not to necessarily repeat them verbatim, but then he decides that's 202 and they aren't there yet. ]

Sound reasonable?

Edited 2025-04-02 20:48 (UTC)

[his shoulders drop with significant relief; Thrawn is extremely pleased to have a script, some way of communicating better even if it’s only parroting Florian’s words. He commits the sentences to memory easily, nodding once]

Yes. Thank you.

[ ...he's not opposed to a bit of scripting. Sometimes, it's necessary.

He nods. ]

Of course. Let me know how it goes, and we can make adjustments as needed.

[ A breath out. ]

Shall I see if Aerith is prepared to return?

[ He looks back to Thrawn. ]

She feels very strongly about you, treasures her relationship with you despite the difficulties. She knows that at your core, you are someone greatly worth knowing who enriches her life. These difficulties are painful, but she's wise and thoughtful and thus, she knows that as long as you are trying, you are worth these efforts to her.

Your desire not to hurt her is laudable. But she clearly deems you worthy of a little pain, as many people are.

She is an exceptional person. If what you say is true - and I suspect it is - I will apologize for not allowing her the agency to be hurt.

Thank you, Florian.

[ He nods. ]

Of course. I am always at your disposal. Well, whenever I'm awake, anyways.

Of course.

I am prepared - you may call her back.

All right.

[ And he pulls out the communicator. ]

Aerith? We've finished up if you don't mind coming back.

On my way.

[She'd come back from Florian's room, and knock quietly on the doorframe to let them know she arrived.]

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