I'm Sorry! (unboundbydeath) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2018-05-01 16:27:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, diana prince (wonder woman), pyrrha nikos |
Who: Pyrrha and Diana
What: Dreams of PvP
When: A day or two before dreaming of the fall of beacon
Where: Diana’s
Status: complete
Rating: PG-13 for pain and suffering
She’d tried to think about the Maiden thing, like Ozpin and Qrow had asked, but even her conversation with Jaune hadn’t helped. If anything, his denseness had made it worse. It wasn’t his fault, but how could he understand? How could anyone understand.
So when she’d gone into the one on one, she’d already known what she’d choose. The only choice that mattered. The right one.
And then it had all gone wrong. Penny, oh she hadn’t been prepared for that, for what happened. The wiring wrapping around her, that terrible tearing sound…The body piecemeal on the ground.
Pyrrha woke up screaming.
Diana’s dreams were somewhat moving again. She’d at least come out of superhero exile and saved the people at the courthouse. But she’d seen the effect that Superman’s death had had on the world. Which seemed to give her more reason to step out of the shadows, though she was still reluctant to do so.
She had her emotional scars, but Bruce had become an unlikely ally. And after the mess with Doomsday? Diana knew she couldn’t just continue to sit by and do nothing.
However, Pyrrha’s scream jolted her from sleep. Instantly awake and alert, Diana leapt out of bed, grabbed her sword and ran to Pyrrha’s room. She paused to actually open the door instead of breaking it down.
“What is it? What’s wrong?” She asked. Her hair was a tangled mane, but she was clothed in a tank top and boxer shorts. Her sword was clutched in her right hand, though she saw no immediate threat of someone having broken in.
Pyrrha sat up in bed, tears in her emerald eyes and streaking down her face. “No, oh god no. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry!”
She hadn’t noticed Diana yet, hadn’t heard her. She was still there in the arena, staring at Penny’s body. It didn’t matter that the girl wasn’t human. That she was some kind of robot. She’d been alive. “I didn’t know, I’m so sorry.”
Frowning a bit and knowing there wasn’t a physical threat, Diana set her sword down against the wall before she carefully moved towards Pyrrha’s bed. “Pyrrha, what is wrong?” She asked. It certainly seemed that Pyrrha was still mentally in her dream, or at least she was assuming this was a dream-related thing and not some new Orange County thing happening. As such, Diana didn’t want to startle her friend.
“Pyrrha, can you hear me?” She asked, speaking a little louder, wondering if it would break through to her friend.
Diana’s voice got through to her, a little bit. She turned her head to see her. Her hands were shaking. There was no blood on them but there might as well be. “Penny. Her name was Penny. I killed her.”
Frowning, Diana moved to sit beside Pyrrha on the bed. She reached out, setting a comforting hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry,” she said gently. “Do you want to talk about what happened?” She left it open for if Pyrrha wanted to talk, and she also left it open for Pyrrha to hug her if she wanted, or needed, to.
Nodding, Pyrrha leaned into Diana’s hand. “Penny. She was a student from another academy, and my opponent in the one vee one for the finals of the tournament. Everything just…. went wrong. I used my polarity to defend myself from her attack but it was…”
She shuddered, feeling sick. “She wasn’t human. She was a robot. But that doesn’t matter, she was still a person, but she was a robot and my powers tore her apart.”
Listening to Pyrrha talk, Diana slid her arm around Pyrrha’s shoulders, pulling her close to better comfort her. She frowned a bit as she listened. “I am so sorry, Pyrrha. You didn’t know that that would’ve happened when you used your powers, but of course it does not make it any less traumatic.”
“I’ve never...I couldn’t…” Pyrrha rubbed at her eyes. “She was a person.”
She’d never killed anyone before. Grimm didn’t count. Pyrrha had never even fought another person before outside of training, demonstrations or tournaments. That was a different sort of thing and logically she’d known she might eventually go up against bandits, and might eventually have to kill one, but that logic didn’t apply when it was something like this. An accident. Another student. A friend. Oh god, Ruby... Ruby would be devastated.
Diana pulled Pyrrha into a full hug, gently rubbing her back. Despite appearances and the intense fighting she’d done in her dreams to this point, Diana had actually only killed a handful of people, and all of them had been on the beach of Themyscira when the Germans brought war to her home.
“It was not your fault. You didn’t know. If you had, you would not have used your power.”
Pyrrha couldn’t find the words to describe what she’d seen. Penny’s weapons, so many of them. She’d all but panicked. And Pyrrha didn’t panic. To be fair she’d been stressed before the fight. But that only made everything worse.
She leaned into the hug. “I’m a huntress, I’m supposed to protect people.”
Diana gently rubbed Pyrrha’s back. “You do protect people, Pyrrha. What happened was a tragic accident, not something you willfully did.” Sometimes people died despite what anyone might be able to do about it. Even in a tournament like the one Pyrrha described.
“I know. I just… can’t stop thinking about it. Seeing it. The whole world saw it.” It had been bad enough what happened with Yang, and when she’d be thinking more clearly she might make the connection between Yang seeing herself be attacked, and she seeing way more swords than there should have been. But that would be later.
“And the sound.”
“It is still fresh. It will ease with time.” It may not necessarily make it okay eventually, but it wouldn’t be as upsetting. She gently stroked Pyrrha’s hair. “Did you know her well?” If she did, maybe it would help to talk about her. Such things didn’t always help, of course, but Diana could at least try.
“Not as well as I’d like.” Pyrrha sniffled. “She was a student from another school, visiting for the tournament. Ruby knew her better. But she was always friendly and cheerful, and seemed to really enjoy… living.”
“It is difficult to find people who are friendly and cheerful and enjoy living. Though she at least had a life, and she had friends who will remember her. It is not always easy to hear, but she will live on in your heart, in Ruby’s heart, and everyone else’s who knew her. She is not truly gone so long as you hold to that.” Diana said gently. She was still grappling with that herself in regards to Steve and her aunt in her dreams, but it did help to know that she carried their memories with her wherever she went.
Closing her eyes, Pyrrha nodded, leaning into Diana a little longer before she straightened. “Thank you. You’re right. You just.. don’t expect someone to die like that.”
It was still her fault, but she did feel better.
“No, you don’t. But you are welcome.” Diana said with a little hopeful smile. “Would you like anything? Tea? Baklava?” Or anything else, Diana would be happy to make something. Besides, comfort food tended to help after a dream like that.
“Tea.” Pyrrha nodded again, wondering how Ruby could stand to even look at her. “Tea sounds really comforting right now.”