She feels Reiner trembling in her arms and isn't sure whether or not she's started doing so herself. she doesn't know how long the two Braun cousins stay like that, arms wrapped around each other, both trying to contain their tears and doing a pretty so-so job of it. But she's determined to stay there as long as she needs to. She feels Reiner give her a squeeze and before her speaks, some part of her can tell. If only for today and if only in the smallest way, she thinks she's gotten through to him.
When he gives her a word of ascent, she manages a little smile. Then, she bumps her forehead against his briefly. She doesn't let go of him yet. She wants to just....spend one more moment like this. Holding him not because she's trying to pull him out of the spiral of his own guilt, but just because...she kind of missed her cousin since she arrived at Nightwake, and she wants to hold onto him.
"Okay," she says back. She thinks about telling him he doesn't have to apologize, but she keeps it to herself.
She has no idea how to tell Reiner all of the things that happen in his future. She doesn't know how she's going to explain to him that everything they were raised to believe was lies and the war they were fighting had been wrong and pointless and had nearly destroyed the entire world. She didn't know how they were going to deal with all of the people that Reiner had betrayed and fought to the death and not yet been forced to make peace with being here at the same time as him.
But it didn't matter. She would figure it out. They would figure it out. Right now, all she wanted was to try. Try and prevent the deeply damaged young man next to her, hanging by a thread though he may be, from becoming the completely broken man she saw in Eren's memories. Was that even possible? Jean seemed to think that if you went back to your world, you lost your memories of Nightwake. So maybe it wasn't even possible. She didn't care. She still wanted to try.
And for now, that meant leaving this place. So she finally lets go of Reiner and takes his hand in hers. Her smile is a little shaky, but, it's there. It's there for him. She gestures to the portal in front of them.
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When he gives her a word of ascent, she manages a little smile. Then, she bumps her forehead against his briefly. She doesn't let go of him yet. She wants to just....spend one more moment like this. Holding him not because she's trying to pull him out of the spiral of his own guilt, but just because...she kind of missed her cousin since she arrived at Nightwake, and she wants to hold onto him.
"Okay," she says back. She thinks about telling him he doesn't have to apologize, but she keeps it to herself.
She has no idea how to tell Reiner all of the things that happen in his future. She doesn't know how she's going to explain to him that everything they were raised to believe was lies and the war they were fighting had been wrong and pointless and had nearly destroyed the entire world. She didn't know how they were going to deal with all of the people that Reiner had betrayed and fought to the death and not yet been forced to make peace with being here at the same time as him.
But it didn't matter. She would figure it out. They would figure it out. Right now, all she wanted was to try. Try and prevent the deeply damaged young man next to her, hanging by a thread though he may be, from becoming the completely broken man she saw in Eren's memories. Was that even possible? Jean seemed to think that if you went back to your world, you lost your memories of Nightwake. So maybe it wasn't even possible. She didn't care. She still wanted to try.
And for now, that meant leaving this place. So she finally lets go of Reiner and takes his hand in hers. Her smile is a little shaky, but, it's there. It's there for him. She gestures to the portal in front of them.
"Let's get outta here."
One foot in front of the other.