Rose was startled by his tone. "I never said you were stupid," she said defensively. She pulled away from where she had been snuggling to look at him in confusion. "I don't mean to be negative; just realistic. At this moment in time, I'm barely capable of flying my broom let alone pull of some maneuver to get me out of the line of fire."
She hadn't expected his outburst, but she wasn't surprised that he tried to push his own issues away which only made her more upset. "Well, I'm tired of dealing with my problems!" she snapped, pulling away completely. "I know I have problems. I'm working on them and I know it is taking longer than I thought, but I'm trying!"
Shaking her head at him, Rose said, "Don't patronize me; I know I've been neglecting you and I shouldn't have. I'm sorry. I fix it; make it right. Please let me fix it." She supposed the brief fit of anger she felt was better than sadness; at least it meant she was able to feel other emotions.
"Your problems are my problems," she said with a softer tone. "We're a doubles team and we need each other. It doesn't work if either one of us is willing to correct the mistakes we've made. I know a lot of it has to do with my depression and I swear to you, I'm trying to get better. It's just taking more time than I thought."
Moving closer to him again, she begged, "Please, just talk to me. Tell me what you need from me."