Elizabeth
She kept the shock from her face with practiced effort, schooling it into open interest lacking any judgement. Elizabeth was quickly realizing the deep-seated beliefs Maea held, using anything and everything to rationalize her own distaste for bloodlust and killing. If she had to guess, the Ancient would prefer to never eat meat again, wasting away to stone. It was quite a conundrum, considering she sat before her, obviously not a statue.
It was going to take a lot of time and in-depth conversations to fully understand Maea's self-loathing, but Elizabeth began with their analogy. "The problem with that comparison is that animals - and people - are driven by more than basic desires. They are just that - the bare minimum. When a tiger is given a choice between a friend (deer or not) and a creature with which they have no connection, they will always choose the later. Why is that? Because although they know their friend is technically food, they have an emotional bond with them. As humans, imagine how much stronger that relationship is." Analogies were something that would always have fallacies and loopholes, however, for some, they helped them navigate the world, giving it reference and comparison to understand.
That wouldn't be the case when it came to whatever emotions plagued Maea when she ate. Humming, the therapist took a bite of her croissant, trying to separate the feelings from the facts. "Is it wrong to enjoy food? It sustains the body and makes us feel healthy and strong. We don't have to find joy in the means or methods, but we can't blame our body's reaction to having its needs met, just as we can't control the relief when we drink a glass of water in the desert." Not that an Ancient would mind the heat, yet the comparison stood. The real question was, where was the 'pleasure' coming from?
Taking a slow, contemplative sip of her tea, Elizabeth let her eyes fall over her companion. There was no malice or cunning in her observation, just calm inquisition to help Maea explore whatever it was she thought she believed about bloodlust and Ancients. "I wonder, if there was a little Ancient girl sitting before you - asking the same questions - what would you say? Would you call her an 'abomination' for existing?" She set her tea down, giving her full attention to hear what she might say, to know how deep the self-hatred went.
It was going to take a lot of time and in-depth conversations to fully understand Maea's self-loathing, but Elizabeth began with their analogy. "The problem with that comparison is that animals - and people - are driven by more than basic desires. They are just that - the bare minimum. When a tiger is given a choice between a friend (deer or not) and a creature with which they have no connection, they will always choose the later. Why is that? Because although they know their friend is technically food, they have an emotional bond with them. As humans, imagine how much stronger that relationship is." Analogies were something that would always have fallacies and loopholes, however, for some, they helped them navigate the world, giving it reference and comparison to understand.
That wouldn't be the case when it came to whatever emotions plagued Maea when she ate. Humming, the therapist took a bite of her croissant, trying to separate the feelings from the facts. "Is it wrong to enjoy food? It sustains the body and makes us feel healthy and strong. We don't have to find joy in the means or methods, but we can't blame our body's reaction to having its needs met, just as we can't control the relief when we drink a glass of water in the desert." Not that an Ancient would mind the heat, yet the comparison stood. The real question was, where was the 'pleasure' coming from?
Taking a slow, contemplative sip of her tea, Elizabeth let her eyes fall over her companion. There was no malice or cunning in her observation, just calm inquisition to help Maea explore whatever it was she thought she believed about bloodlust and Ancients. "I wonder, if there was a little Ancient girl sitting before you - asking the same questions - what would you say? Would you call her an 'abomination' for existing?" She set her tea down, giving her full attention to hear what she might say, to know how deep the self-hatred went.
Dive into the sea of thought,
and find there pearls beyond price.
and find there pearls beyond price.
