"Oh, I should've- it's not like everybody becomes a ghost when they die. I probably should have led with that."
This conversation is not going in the way he expected at all, and Ben hadn't really braced himself for anything this metaphysical. Still, he can see that Patch is grappling with a lot of Big Questions and he rushes to clarify a few things, lest she get the wrong idea.
"Detective Patch, I get it if you don't want to... walk down those avenues, but honestly, I don't feel like me being around invalidates any way of thinking about life and death or- if you were maybe religious, or stuff like that. Other than... if you were thinking death was the absolute end, do not pass go, no such thing as the afterlife. In which case, yeah, that one's off the table. But everything else, it's just - a couple new questions, maybe some different questions. Nothing all that drastic."
Ben really does believe that's true. His face is earnest and a little concerned, now, and he laces his hands together in his lap. He thinks about saying something about how he and his siblings were already breaking all the previous rules about life and death, what with the spontaneous fatherless births and all, but he changes his mind. That would probably only be stirring things up and making them worse. Best to leave it be unless she asks anything else.
Her reasons for not letting herself get the benefit of talking about stuff are... to be honest, not great, to Ben's mind. A little furrow forms between his dark brows.
"Well. The way I see it, you've got some options. You can decide not talk to me, because you realized you don't want to, and that's cool. You can decide to talk to me, and that it's none of Diego's business, and that's fine, too. I appreciate what you're saying, but I'm comfortable with keeping things from Diego. You won't be driving a wedge, or anything. Or, option three is, you can decide to talk to me, and then tell me what is and isn't okay to pass along to Diego, if that would be easier for you."
Ben's head tilts to the side a little. All these years of trying to coach Klaus into better life choices has left him with an inclination towards giving advice, whether or not someone has asked for it. It's also left him primed to see avoidance, and he's wondering if Patch is a self-abnegating saint, or if she is maybe using Diego's fragility as an excuse to avoid confronting her death. Either option is a little concerning.
"Mostly, I kinda hope you'll make that call based on your needs, and not only on Digeo's hypothetical feelings."
And then, because he doesn't want Patch feeling pressured into giving an answer right away (hopefully she'll think it over and consider herself a little bit more in the process), he goes on immediately to ask:
"I'm guessing nobody's... talked to you about who it was that killed you, and what they were doing, and the whole story. If... you'd like some context, I could tell you?"
no subject
This conversation is not going in the way he expected at all, and Ben hadn't really braced himself for anything this metaphysical. Still, he can see that Patch is grappling with a lot of Big Questions and he rushes to clarify a few things, lest she get the wrong idea.
"Detective Patch, I get it if you don't want to... walk down those avenues, but honestly, I don't feel like me being around invalidates any way of thinking about life and death or- if you were maybe religious, or stuff like that. Other than... if you were thinking death was the absolute end, do not pass go, no such thing as the afterlife. In which case, yeah, that one's off the table. But everything else, it's just - a couple new questions, maybe some different questions. Nothing all that drastic."
Ben really does believe that's true. His face is earnest and a little concerned, now, and he laces his hands together in his lap. He thinks about saying something about how he and his siblings were already breaking all the previous rules about life and death, what with the spontaneous fatherless births and all, but he changes his mind. That would probably only be stirring things up and making them worse. Best to leave it be unless she asks anything else.
Her reasons for not letting herself get the benefit of talking about stuff are... to be honest, not great, to Ben's mind. A little furrow forms between his dark brows.
"Well. The way I see it, you've got some options. You can decide not talk to me, because you realized you don't want to, and that's cool. You can decide to talk to me, and that it's none of Diego's business, and that's fine, too. I appreciate what you're saying, but I'm comfortable with keeping things from Diego. You won't be driving a wedge, or anything. Or, option three is, you can decide to talk to me, and then tell me what is and isn't okay to pass along to Diego, if that would be easier for you."
Ben's head tilts to the side a little. All these years of trying to coach Klaus into better life choices has left him with an inclination towards giving advice, whether or not someone has asked for it. It's also left him primed to see avoidance, and he's wondering if Patch is a self-abnegating saint, or if she is maybe using Diego's fragility as an excuse to avoid confronting her death. Either option is a little concerning.
"Mostly, I kinda hope you'll make that call based on your needs, and not only on Digeo's hypothetical feelings."
And then, because he doesn't want Patch feeling pressured into giving an answer right away (hopefully she'll think it over and consider herself a little bit more in the process), he goes on immediately to ask:
"I'm guessing nobody's... talked to you about who it was that killed you, and what they were doing, and the whole story. If... you'd like some context, I could tell you?"