[Words that describe feeling — or the state of possessing them — slip through more and more often. It’s especially difficult for him to knowingly avoid them, still swimming in the wake of a failure that has the whole of the Circle reacting to it in ways to help them cope. Everyday he’s unravelling by small degrees, and everyday he tries to desperately gather up the thread to keep him whole — keep himself a machine, unbroken, adhering to his initial design.

Yet today? The images of a crumbling city, a world cracking under the pressure of their shortcomings, makes him not even want to bother. Only cling to the hopeful words he can manage to spout, and her agreement to them. There’s balance there to be found, if they can both believe in it.]

Exactly. It’s easy for our focus to be compromised for now — and understandable, too — but let’s not allow it to affect us for too long. I don’t want to resign myself to more failures just because I’ve experienced one.

[At her question, though, he pauses briefly.]

I’ve spoken to Hank. He isn’t taking it well. That’s… unsurprising to me.