I could feel her feeling upset, and when I found her, she was cornered by someone trying to talk to her. She didn't want to talk, so I helped her make some excuses, since she wouldn't do it on her own.

[He shrugs. It was done out of possessiveness and the desire for her to stop stinging him, but it was still an attempt to help on his end.]

And she ran away when I told her to stand up for herself. What am I supposed to do with that?