all this pressure it's a weight on my shoulder

SUNJATA

the flood

so put your faith in the devil and the deep blue sea
put your trust in the light that you cannot see

Oh, he could talk to Nate about getting something to help him sleep. But there’s a part of him that doesn’t want to make Nate worry more than he already has been. But ever since the Ascended had come back and the visions had waned from him not being stuck solely in his mind, he’s been better, happier, a bit softer. But when its dark again, things start to crowd in, and he can’t keep drinking it away.

So he drifts toward the clinic, knowing that Nate’s off today, breezing through the door of it and clicking it behind him. “Vai, you in?” He rumbles out, moving into the center of the waiting area and leaning against the front desk, a gift in his pocket that he’d acquired back in the Grounds, a gift of many, but a promise he’d made and intended to start giving back with it.

there's a darkness up ahead
i will see you where the shadow ends

"I hope I'm in, otherwise people who visit the clinic are going to struggle a bit!" Vai sounds cheerful, even if her voice is echoing a little where she's in one of the other rooms. She appears in the reception area a moment later, grinning and moving behind the desk on purpose as though Sunjata is merely another visitor and she the resident medic. "And what can I do for you today, Governor?" she asks, tilting her head to him. Compared to the Flood, Vai looks positively cheerful, though it's true that Sunjata has looked better lately than in a while. Not that the witch would know very much about that, given how busy they've all been and how much the governor has been holed away in his new home. "I would have thought any ailment you have might be looked at eagerly by your husband." She grins. vervain well i'll rest my eyes and i'll let the earth breathe

SUNJATA

the flood

so put your faith in the devil and the deep blue sea
put your trust in the light that you cannot see

“Oh thank the gods.” Sunjata rumbles with a quiet hum of laughter, leaning against the desk as Vai steps behind it, steel eyes surprisingly bright despite the bags beneath them. And he shoots her an amused grin. “One thing, mostly.” He begins, pausing to shake his head slightly at her own grin. “It’s uh… I didn’t want to worry him more than he already has been.” Broad shoulders rise and fall in a shrug.

“I was hoping to just get something to help me sleep through the night that isn’t drinking the evening away.” his head tilts a bit, steel eyes lingering on Vai with a half grin, the honesty peeking through though he doesn’t quite tell her the reasoning just yet. At least, not in a waiting room of all places. “And before I forget, this is for you.” He pulls out a box and sets it on the desk in front of her, leaning back to watch her open it.

Inside, she’d find a golden necklace that at first glance almost appears to be a charm necklace of sorts, but the jewel in the center can be opened – things like herbs or liquids could be placed within. Something that seemed to scream the Witch when he’d spied it in the Grounds. And he had made her a promise to get her something, even if it was just one of the first of many.

there's a darkness up ahead
i will see you where the shadow ends

Vai's eyebrows raise at that, the witch still smiling but straightening up, at least seeming to take things a touch more seriously than before. As Sunjata explains she seems to understand, at least, the way he looks making a touch more sense now. She's about to lead them back into the clinic, to one of the examination rooms, but then he's offering her out a box and she is too taken aback to refuse it. Upon opening it her blue eyes widen - Vai is still wearing the rune bracelet he'd gotten for her and she grins broadly and reaches over to give him a gentle push to the shoulder. "Sunny," she breathes, shaking her head to him and closing the box again, before leaning over the counter to press a motherly kiss to his cheek. "You shouldn't have. It's beautiful, thank you. Now come on, let's take a look at you and we'll get you sleeping soundly again - without a drink." vervain well i'll rest my eyes and i'll let the earth breathe

SUNJATA

the flood

so put your faith in the devil and the deep blue sea
put your trust in the light that you cannot see

“Mhm?” He asks initially, a crooked smile crossing his face as she calls him Sunny and pushes his shoulder before she’s leaning against the desk to press a motherly kiss against his cheek. “It’s just the first of many.” He tells her as he’s following her to the exam room, keeping mostly quiet until the door has clicked shut behind them. When it does, Sunjata sinks onto one of the tables, mulling over where to start.

Why not just dive in? “I keep seeing these… Visions of my father. Gets worse at night lately, and no matter how much I tell myself it isn’t real it just keeps happening. I was a bit of a mess while Nate was gone. Better now, but… I’d like to actually sleep rather than blacking myself out.” Tattooed shoulders shrug with that, head tilting slightly as he looks back up at Vai.

there's a darkness up ahead
i will see you where the shadow ends

"It's unnecessary. But thank you." Vai smiles over her shoulder at him, placing the necklace down on a counter as they step into the examination room. When Sunjata closes the door it tells the witch all she really needs to know, and she's already moving to the cupboards to get down a few ingredients to mix together when the Flood starts to speak. It's the talk of visions that piques her attention, Vai leaving the medicine for a few moments so she can turn back to Sunjata where he's perched on the table. "I saw my daughter, Ashe," she says with a soft, sad smile. "A lot of people have been seeing things this season, I think. But I can understand that seeing your father isn't going to give you pleasant memories." She draws up a stool to sit with him, giving his knee a gentle pat. "I'm glad you came to see me. All of this has probably started feeding itself in a cycle, Sunjata, though I'm sure you know that." Wanting to furiously to deny the visions, drinking himself into a restless sleep, waking up tired and stressed and hungover and starting it all over again. "When was the last time you had one of those visions?" vervain well i'll rest my eyes and i'll let the earth breathe

SUNJATA

the flood

so put your faith in the devil and the deep blue sea
put your trust in the light that you cannot see

“You said to pick you up something nice in the Grounds for keeping an eye on Torchline for me.” Sunjata retorts, amusement clearly in his voice. But they’re in the room, the door shut, just the two of them for him to offer his admission. She messes around in the cupboards and he can’t help but have his free hand rub around his wrist as he speaks, pausing and drawing silent as she speaks up as well.

There’s a nod, a few heartbeats of silence, before he continues. “I know a lot of people have been seeing things. I’m just being paranoid.” He sighs, reaching up to run a hand through his hair, to chew on the inside of his cheek. “And yes, I do know that.” He agrees, not taking any of it personally but simply understanding as his gaze lifts to her after she pats his knee.

“I saw one a couple of days ago. It’s slowed down since Nate’s gotten back but while he was gone it was almost daily.” A muscle feathers in his jaw, his head tilting as he sighs. “Sometimes it’s just… Off in the distance, other times he’s right there, and all I can think of is the shit I went through because of him in Korofi and it closes me off.” He ends up disassociating in that moment, waiting for everything to disappear from reach.

there's a darkness up ahead
i will see you where the shadow ends

"I don't think you're being paranoid at all," Vai says earnestly, smiling up at him gently. "It's not paranoia when once upon a time, you really did have to live through that. You're just hypervigilant for something that hurt you badly when you were young. That's smart, not paranoid." It still won't help him sleep, though, and so Vai rises to her feet again to get to work. She bustles over to the counter where she's placed her ingredients, starting to mix something up for the Flood to help him sleep. Nodding, it makes sense for the visions to lessen with Nate's reappearance; the Ascended provides a tether and a routine to Sunjata when he starts to drift away. Still, Vai pauses in what she's doing as she's reminded of a rainy day on the beach, when the governor had told her just one small part about what his father had put him through. Her jaw clenching. "I'm so sorry all that happened to you," she says quietly. vervain well i'll rest my eyes and i'll let the earth breathe

SUNJATA

the flood

so put your faith in the devil and the deep blue sea
put your trust in the light that you cannot see

One thing Vai is very good at, is making sure that Sunjata realizes a lot of things. A lot of things that he’d likely brush off, and has in the past, when it comes to his paranoia as well as what all he’d gone through growing up. He is hypervigilant now, but he’s not so sure that it’s considered smart when he’s jumping at nearly every shadow, when he goes to look at his reflection and he sees the steel to his own gaze that matches the one his father bore so well.

But he nods, watching as she goes to the counter, to mix something up for him. “It’s only been since I arrived here that I didn’t really have to worry about him so much.” He admits quietly, all of those 25 years spent worrying and worrying, even when he thought he’d broken away. If he was still there… There was a chance he’d have been grabbed again. And then what?

He doesn’t realize he’s been wringing his hands until she clenches her jaw and apologizes, and Sunjata isn’t sure what to say back. He can’t say that it’s okay, because he knows it wasn’t okay. So he settles on something else instead, his gaze drifting to the floor of the exam room as he considers it. “It’s not your fault.”

there's a darkness up ahead
i will see you where the shadow ends

"I'm not surprised you're still getting used to it. That isn't long at all." Vai closes her eyes for a second, inhaling deeply and letting it go again, before finishing up with the medicine she's preparing for Sunjata. She taps it into a small jar - it's now a fine, sage green powder, enough that it will dissolve easily - and screws a cap on it. "It's not your fault either, you know," she reminds him, as she has undoubtedly done before, turning to stand before him again at the examination table. "Here. Take a pinch of this in a glass of brandy, rum, whatever your choice. It will make things worse to just cut out the drinking altogether, so this way it will still feel like routine, at least." Vai smiles up at him. "Is it just having an effect on your sleep?" Call it a hunch, but the witch has a hunch that the governor's concentration might not be what it ought to be right now either. vervain well i'll rest my eyes and i'll let the earth breathe

SUNJATA

the flood

so put your faith in the devil and the deep blue sea
put your trust in the light that you cannot see

No, it really isn’t long at all. All he can do is offer a quiet sigh of agreement, a hand reaching up to run through the short crop of hair there, before it falls and his eyes land on Vervain again just in time for him to look away once more at her reminder. He swallows a bit hard, still trying to get used to that particular idea, and he grumbles some sort of ‘I know’ though he isn’t sure if she hears it or not.

He once again looks at her as she stands before him, the medicine in a jar, already prepared and ready. He does manage a brief ghost of a smile at that, not having to cut it out completely. “That does make it much easier.” He agrees, a softer rumble before her words bring in that cold feeling inside him again. “I… No, it’s just worse at night.” He tells her, never wanting to straight up lie to her. He’s glad he shut the door earlier.

And now he fights to keep himself from closing off from her, that edge to his mind wanting nothing more than to draw in on himself, despite how much he refrains, his pulse a quick beating thing in his veins. “It’s affecting everything. I’ve just thrown myself into work to keep myself distracted.” A quieter admission, head lowering slightly, shoulders dropping in a hint of defeat.

there's a darkness up ahead
i will see you where the shadow ends

It's like watching someone try not to cave in on themselves, Vai frowning sadly and setting the jar down on the table next to Sunjata, so she can step forward and wrap her arms around him suddenly. "Hey, it's okay," she murmurs. "I asked so I can try to help, not to judge you. I think you're doing a lot better than anyone has any right to expect of you, under the circumstances. You're not by yourself, though, okay? It's what a council is for." Sunjata probably can't see it by now, but Vai's smile is audible. "Leafchange will be over soon, and all of this ghost shit will be over. Before you know it, it'll have been weeks since you've seen anything that doesn't belong, and you can get back to your usual tricks. I much prefer it when I'm icing a burn or bandaging a cut, anyway" vervain well i'll rest my eyes and i'll let the earth breathe

SUNJATA

the flood

so put your faith in the devil and the deep blue sea
put your trust in the light that you cannot see

He still isn’t used to the hugging, as much as he should be by now. Especially as his heart thunders in his chest and Vai’s wrapping his arms around him, the Flood ducks his head a bit, an almost flinch that’s shifted into an attempt to cover it up as his arms slip out from where they rested on his lap to wrap around her too, to press his cheek against her shoulder. “I know.” He murmurs, the sound muffled slightly. The only problem is that if he deals out what needs to be done and he finishes his, what’s left to distract him?

She continues on and he can almost hear the smile in her words. He wishes it soothed him more than it does as he buries his face into her shoulder a bit more. “I hope so. It’s exhausting.” He offers with a quiet huff, an attempt at a laugh though it fails. “It’s exhausting Nate which is worse because at least I can sleep. I feel bad about it.” And he hates that the Ascended has to be around for all of it, the fact he can’t simply just turn off for a time. But that was how it was.

there's a darkness up ahead
i will see you where the shadow ends

"I bet," Vai says softly about it all; about the exhaustion from Sunjata and from Nate, about the guilt that comes from it as a result. She tilts her head against the Flood's, a sad frown on her face. If she could take it all away for him, she'd do it in a heartbeat. "Well, think of this as a way to help Nate as well. Hopefully, anyway. Maybe you could do something nice for him too, as a way to make it up to him?" It's hard to keep lighthearted about any of this, but she refuses to buckle to it for Sunjata's sake. "If you like, you can take a break in this room while I'm working. Have some of that medicine and get some sleep for an hour or two. I bet you'll feel better." It might break the cycle, if nothing else. "I'll only be a room away at most, and anyone who has to come in has to go through me, so you won't be disturbed." vervain well i'll rest my eyes and i'll let the earth breathe