[Oh … OK, that makes a lot more sense. It’s not Ren himself that was the cause for Akechi’s spikes of fear, but what he was offering. It’s not hard to see where he misread the signals.]
Not a coward at all. Someone who’s been hurt over and over and doesn’t want to get hurt again. I just thought - the way that dream started - [with the violent stabbing] - you were afraid I’d hurt you like everyone else has. I don’t want that.
[Ren feels a bit stupid for not figuring that out until it was pointed out to him. It’s an uncomfortable truth to accept, but he accepts it all the same.]
You’re a lot less deranged than you used to be, you know.
[Ah yes, there he goes using humor to ease the tension. His trusty default tactic. It’s only part joke, though - Ren can never forget the absolutely broken way Akechi laughed and screamed in the engine room.]
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Not a coward at all. Someone who’s been hurt over and over and doesn’t want to get hurt again. I just thought - the way that dream started - [with the violent stabbing] - you were afraid I’d hurt you like everyone else has. I don’t want that.
[Ren feels a bit stupid for not figuring that out until it was pointed out to him. It’s an uncomfortable truth to accept, but he accepts it all the same.]
You’re a lot less deranged than you used to be, you know.
[Ah yes, there he goes using humor to ease the tension. His trusty default tactic. It’s only part joke, though - Ren can never forget the absolutely broken way Akechi laughed and screamed in the engine room.]