[ Would he believe her, she wonders, if she told him that she's only learned the concept of relying on others within the past five hundred years? And even then... she is not an expert on relying on others in any sense. Or confiding in them.

But she has learned what friendship is and what love is. And she's come to respect both of those human constructs as... not constructs as all, but very real, and very true things that exist within the world. They are things that she respects, things that she wants to have for herself. ]

Likewise, I forgive you... I'll tell you when you're wrong, when you're doing something wrong-- like pushing others away, those that want to help you. [ Also, she wants to call him out with trying to guide the conversation away from him! When this isn't about her at all! This is all about his heart! So she's not going to even to acknowledge that he suspects she is hurting. ]

But I'll also forgive you for that, because I know it's difficult.

[ She withdraws her hand, and now she's completely separated from him. ] I suppose we're at a stand-still, huh? We already said we would protect each other.