Figure out what went wrong

“What the fuck was that?” you ask, startled.

“I panicked, okay?” grouses Pearl. “You said I have to keep you out of trouble - but you were already getting yourself into too much trouble!"

“That..." you remember with Yutong. Even if what you wanted to do with Pearl doesn't count, what you did with Yutong certainly did "... why try and strangle me, though? Couldn't you just talk me?”

Pearl rubs her temples. “I already tried talking to you, Chase. You didn't listen. And I wasn't trying to - I wanted to cover your mouth to keep you from talking more,” she says. "Of course I know what your dumbass actually meant by 'keep you out of trouble' was to keep you safe. That's the problem.”

“How's that a problem? I misspoke, so what?” you say, confused.

Pearl smacks your arm. “So?! The only option I had was to attack you!" she exclaims. "The way you twisted my guidance into a pretzel, I had to tell you when you didn't use your powers the way you meant to. Once I told you to claim my loyalty to protect yourself, there was a good chance you'd take my advice. So, I figured if I didn’t stop you before you took my loyalty, it'd be too late. Nobody’d get a better chance to stop you than me.”

The logic makes sense, but it sends your head spinning. “How’s that guidance?!”

“Well you weren’t going to listen to words, so,“ Pearl smacks her elbow, “kinetic guidance. Again. Sorry. But my hands were tied. You won't listen and you obviously don't want actual brakes, you just want to keep me around to feel better about using your powers.”

This is your fault. You groan.

Inadvertently, your actions and pattern of behavior **** Pearl into attacking you. What if you'd phrased your claim differently? Would you never realize you screwed it up? What if you didn't put the clause in of her telling you if something was wrong? What if Pearl waited for a better time to strike, and stabbed you in your sleep when you couldn't respond?

“This is exactly what I meant when I said I needed someone to pump the brakes,” you say, feeling tired. “If say the wrong words, I step on a landmine and blow myself up.”

“Then you can't be making claims by yourself anymore, if that's what you really want,” says Pearl, automatically. “You're a terrible at taking people's advice. You leap first and ask questions later. But being an experiential learner doesn't work with this."

"What are you suggesting?"

"They need two keys for the missile silos," says Pearl. "You have the only key and it's too much. Inject glacial bureaucracy into this mess.”

That… didn't sound like a half bad idea.

"If I pull back on your loyalty and guidance, and put in that idea,” you say, “can we go back to being friends? Or are you going to attack me again?”

Pearl frowns and folds her arms, thinking. “If you’re not a danger to the whole world, or me, then no,” she says. “Well... no more than usual, anyway.”

If that's what it takes. You don't want to give up your powers, but you don't want to lose Pearl either.

“Okay fine. I… hereby give Pearl Nowak veto power over when I use my powers. She has to green light before anything goes through.”

A powerful vibration shakes the air, pulsing outward from Pearl like the shockwave. It dissipates in the blink of an eye.

You're unsure what just happened. “Did that... work?”

Pearl examines herself. "I think so. You just said it, right? It has to be. Try claiming something."

"I claim this house," you say, picking the first thing that occurs to you.

When you say the words, a sense of... incompleteness lingers in the back of your mind.

"Yeah right you do," says Pearl, snorting. Then her eyes widen. "Chase, it actually worked."

"How can you be sure?" you ask, worried.

"Because it sounded dumb when you said that," says Pearl, smiling. "Before when you made claims, however dumb they were, it felt like gravity. Whatever you said was just fact." Her smile fades. "Now... I give permission for Chase's claim."

You feel no different, but Pearl jumps in surprise.

"Holy shit. This really is your house. Let's give it back before anybody notices."

You do so, but it requires Pearl's go-ahead before the house leaves your custody.

You pull Pearl into a celebratory hug. "It worked!"

Instead of looking happy, though, Pearl looks glum.

"What's wrong?" you ask, perplexed. "Now you can stop me from being irresponsible or whatever."

“I’ve got the fate of the world resting on my shoulders is what's wrong," says Pearl, shaken. "I'm 18. I just graduated high school. I spend more time surfing the internet than doing homework. I'm not cut out for this. Maybe I'm more responsible than you, but that's not saying much."