LU 32 - Tori 2

"You have no right to judge me when all I've done is what it takes to survive." 
Tori watches Echo as they relax, studying them with fascination until a familiar figure walks by. "Is that... Thornberry?" Echo runs out of the café to confront the scientist, which quickly dissolves into a loud argument with Echo threatening to call the cops. Thornberry insults Echo and their mom (two birds, one stone), making them draw their knife. "What did you say?" In a gust of air and a whirlwind of feathers, Tori runs in front of Thornberry as Echo swings their blade, takes the hit, and dies in front of the others. Thornberry yells at Echo until they run away just as Tori revives. "I- I'm alive..?" The scientist comforts Tori, explaining that some people have three lives and telling the bird that Echo killed him. After a few minutes, Tori wanders away, lost in thought. This isn't fair. What made me more deserving of these extra lives than they were? The bird finds himself at the base of a cliff, looking up at Echo as they close their eyes and step off the ledge. Tori quickly places water beneath them, saving Echo's life.
"Don't throw your life away like this." The two of them talk, Tori telling Echo that no one deserves to die, not even Thornberry and that he deserves to rot for the rest of his life instead. Echo explains to the bird that keeping the scientist contained is impossible, seeing as he escaped prison in less than a day. The two continue talking for a few minutes before Tori's thirst for quick revenge gets the better of him. "Goodbye, Echo." Tori sets Echo on fire and buries them, begging his late partner to forgive him until the sound of burning stops. Thornberry emerges from the shadows, revealing that he's been there the whole time and asking Tori what he meant when the bird said Thornberry deserved to rot. Tori slaps the scientist, telling him that he's a monster. "We are more similar than you may want to believe." Tori tells Thornberry that they are not the same, that he only did what he had to in order to survive, and that he has already accepted his fate. Thornberry tells the bird that the people of this world will forget him after he dies, while the doctor's legacy will ensure that no one forgets who he is. "We could've been good friends, Bird." Thornberry pockets a few seeds from Echo's remains before bidding farewell to Tori as he flies away. "The beings of this realm have no right to judge me the way they do you. When I die for my third time, I will go home; and there will be my partner. And there, we will be judged together."