“There was only-!”

She’s too slow. Gods above and gods below, she’s too slow to stop herself. She clamps her mouth shut, and buries all further words in a muffled screech of objection. Her entire face burns, but so what? You won’t get anything more out of her, do you hear her?! You don’t know anything, Pei! You [i]can’t[/i] know anything! And whatever you [i]think[/i] you know, it’s wrong, and you’ll never be able to prove any of it! (And there was only the one musician, dammit!)

Hey! No! What! Wrong! Don’t you dare! Don’t you go confusing Lotus’ pretty little head with rumors and slander! You can’t! That’s, no! Not allowed! 

“What? No, she doesn’t, she’s [i]fine.[/i] She’s [i]good.[/i] We’re just, it’s been, a time, and, shut up?” This can’t be how it ends. Why does she get to barge into her life, whenever she likes, and mess everything up? Come to think of it, what the hell was she even doing here in the first place? On that thin strand of hope, her spirit rallies. “‘Sides, don’t you have ‘important priestessly duties’ or whatever to get back to? Don’t remember any big temples in this part of the Kingdoms.”