IC Inbox

[empathicfault]

"Will Graham here. Leave a message."

[Open for text/audio/action/whatever.]

Comments

[cactusy]

This happened, like, two weeks in, yeah? I'm a little annoyed you didn't clear things up with me in the meantime, but I'm not personally betrayed or whatever. It happened, it's not exactly unexpected in wardening, and we'll deal with it.

Do you wanna talk to them before you talk to me about it, or after?

[empathicfault]

It was more like two days. I knew people would want me in for therapy, so... [ He tried to get ahead of it, as it were. ]

I can talk to them first. But I'll do whichever you prefer.

[cactusy]

I'm not interested in compliant Will Graham who'll do whichever I prefer right now. Which do you want to do, and why?

[empathicfault]

[ He takes in a breath and sighs it out. ]

I'd like to get this over with, personally. Before I lose this feeling of shame that I earned and I start emulating people I'd rather not, again. Before I let the whispers of how to smooth this over crawl into my brain.

[cactusy]

I get that. And you worrying about that makes me want to be there. But I still want to know whether or not you'd prefer that, or whether you'd prefer to do it alone.

[empathicfault]

Oh. Uh...I do think they'd probably accept it more as fact if they know that both you and Kiryu are also aware of me manipulating things. I don't know if it'll fix anything, but that might mean they'd give Malcolm more consideration.

So I'd prefer if you were there.

[cactusy]

Well, that makes things easy. Okay, set it up and we'll do it.

[Pause.]

And, uh-- we can talk about what I would've said if you'd said you didn't want me there, if you want.

[Them both wanting the same thing does make things easier this time, but she's under no illusions that that will always be the case - and she knows he has experience with his wants ultimately not mattering in the face of someone else's.]

[empathicfault]

...ah.

[ He thought she'd been giving him a choice. But that wasn't what she'd said, was it? ]

Sure. Were you expecting me to say no? That I'd rather try it alone?

[cactusy]

I wasn't expecting anything. But I don't want you to think that if you'd said no, I would've said "too bad, so sad, I'm coming anyway", that's all.

[empathicfault]

Oh. Really? I thought you were noting that just now, so I'd know I--

[ All right, he's confusing himself, now. He clears his throat. ]

Forget it. Just thought you were pulling a Jack Crawford on me, that's all. -which, for the record, is basically "too bad, so sad." What would you have said?

[cactusy]

I figured you would, which is why I kinda wanted to talk about the hypothetical.

I would have asked why. I would have listened. If I thought the explanation was a good one, I would have said, okay, go do it and we'll talk about it after. If I thought the explanation was crap I would've told you I thought it was crap, and told you why I thought it was crap, and given you a chance to respond. It would have been a really annoying amount of talking.

[empathicfault]

[ That last bit surprises a chuckle out of Will. ]

Yeah, most likely. Okay. Thanks for letting me know. I'll go...set some meetings up, then.

[cactusy]

Okay. I'll see you when I see you.