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[empathicfault]

"Will Graham here. Leave a message."

[Open for text/audio/action/whatever.]

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Re: About a week after losing Katie Slape

[empathicfault]

When Will opens the door, he just stares as the dogs run in. And then he breaks out into a laugh.

"Is this your way of telling me I need to take a break?" Expertly done, if so. He likely would've argued otherwise. As it is, he's sniffing the air and stepping out into their little private oasis.

Re: About a week after losing Katie Slape

[abrightboy]

Malcolm steps out behind him, Sunshine’s cage in hand, closing the door behind himself to lean back on it, watching Will.

“It’s… not really about a break, per se. It’s about… taking care of yourself at all. You haven’t been doing any art, you haven’t been using your helmet… as far as I can tell, you haven’t been coming here. The whole Barge is tense. On edge. You’ve been absorbing it without opening any of the valves that release it. I’m not going to analyze you and attempt to tell you why, but… I am going to apologize, because it took me embarrassingly long to notice.”

Several days. Days.

“Anyway, something about this house… the forest… the river… it lets you release other people’s garbage. And we can stay here for a week and get you back there in time to work on the last couple shed walls this afternoon, if you want.”

Re: About a week after losing Katie Slape

[empathicfault]

"...ah." The humor in his expression dies down as he inwardly searches and finds it has been several days. And it's not like he didn't know he was doing it, but he was just- well. Things needed to be done, or at least that was his convenient excuse.

"John, he asked me if I wanted to go hunt in his world, and I...I told him I wasn't sure if I wanted to see my emotions with the clarity that would bring," he admits. He takes Sunshine's cage from Malcolm and puts it on her stand here in the cabin.

He pulls Malcolm into his arms and hugs him close as he continues. "You don't need to apologize. I don't know how long I would've tried to make that work. Months?" His chuckle is a little bitter this time. "I'm sorry. I thought I'd gotten past this...and I never want to make you worry."

Re: About a week after losing Katie Slape

[abrightboy]

Malcolm kisses his jaw.

“I don’t want you to apologize. I just want to help you be well.” His body relaxes a little in Will’s arms. “I got you pastries,” he murmurs. “Those ones you like. And there’s hot coffee.”