Errand closed Sweet Dreams, Fellow Insomniacs

"'Insomnia' is just another word for talking to the demons in your head."

It took a bit for instinct to take over and smother the laughter so he could breathe. He was left heaving, eerily silent and hunched over with his hair covering his features. His face had abruptly become blank, eyes glazed as his thoughts chewed on each other, trying to devour the other so they were at the forefront of his demented brain. He swallowed, tongue darting out to lap the beads of blood that had welled up from his cracked lips that had been split in the fit.

The sounds were still loud, his fingers twitched, body jerking occasionally if a particularly startling noise reared its head. The familiar feeling of caked blood on his face slowly hauled him back to reality, and he looked up, eyes dull, though his pupils still looked slit from the tension raking him emotionally and physically. Slowly he straightened, mind looking out auditory sensations. He was forced to focus on his other senses instead, and his eyes drifted over to the owl.

The raven tilted his head, examining it with a detached curiosity.

He looked at the nurse, who he knew from a previous visit to the hospital wing when Hisoka had taken over for the day. His gaze was half-lidded as he eyed the bandages, growing wary. he always got twitchy around adults.

Guarded, he held out his hands, eyes sharpening with the sense of caution a starved predator had when observing a human. The nurse had 'treated' him before with no ill effects, but his instinctive terror that he always carried around wasn't so easily dissuaded.

Whenever the nurse finished, he'd jerk his hands back, critically examining the bandages with the assessment one would have from using the medicinal wraps commonly. Warily satisfied with what he saw, he turned away, ears ringing with exhaustion.

His eyes scanned the crowd, and for a while... he just sat there, staring into the distance as he retreated into his mindscape to assess the damage.

His eyes seemed to glaze over, and in his mind's eye, he observed that the labyrinth his mindscape was made up of was crumbling, falling apart... and a black hole had appeared in the sky, already having grasped some rubble with its tendrils of gravity.

Inwardly sighing, he started doing damage control.

On the outside, he looked hollowed out, as if having become a porcelain doll riddled with fissures he called scars.

A husk of what he was moments before.

They say mood swings can be a symptom of sleep deprivation... one of many Selim experienced on a daily basis.

So really, this was nothing new.

Actions: Retreating into himself. Magically transforming into a doll via disassociation. Doing mental damage control. Generally being very unpredictable, he's not laughing like a maniac anymore though, so... there's that.

Kazuo watched as Brumby settled in, looking for the usual signs of tension that people tended to exhibit when they were concerned. Subtle signs most people didn’t even realize they were showing that gave him insight. Adults always felt the need to hide the truth from children so Kazuo had learned to watch for the other signs, as his mother had taught him. Brumby’s relaxed yet supportive position, the calmness about him and in his voice gave no indicators that the adult might be downplaying Selim’s condition nor dismissing it. The way the nurse frowned showed his concern for Selim’s well-being yet he simply waited for the boy to wind his way down through whatever mental maze he was trapped in.

Kazuo’s gaze shifted to Chiadovini when the Astronomy Professor addressed them, eyes widening at his contribution. “I believe that it is a case much more deeply set than you believe; anxiety or panic-ridden affliction aside.” Kazuo also believed it to be much more serious than just an anxiety attack but it wasn’t as if he could get Selim to talk about it. The older boy was as evasive as they came. But he remembered the day they met, the shifting masks, the different faces. “Yes…” Kazuo drew his legs up, wrapping his arms around them and resting his chin on his knees. “Brumby-sensei, why are we able to heal broken bones but not broken minds? And how can so many of you-” He meant the adults, of course. The Professors who must surely have seen the signs that were so plain on Selim’s face - the dark circles, the aversion to people, the shifts in personality - yet did nothing. “Choose to ignore it? Why does the school have no one to help with this kind of thing?”

He fell silent as Selim’s laughter finally ceased and the older boy seemed to regain some kind of composure, though the blankness of Selim’s features made him wonder if this was an improvement. Yet slowly Selim seemed to recognize where he was and though it shouldn’t have been reassuring, the wariness in Selim’s gaze when he spotted Brumby gave Kazuo some relief. Thankfully, Selim let the nurse deal with the cuts on his hands yet as soon as Brumby was done, Selim’s mind seemed to sink inward once again.

Kazuo watched him, lips pressed in a thin line, feeling helpless. What could he do for this broken child that the adults couldn’t - or wouldn’t- do? He had thought bringing Selim here could help, that if Selim could just talk to someone with more knowledge, the boy could perhaps find a path to stability. Yet he had been so very wrong, had made things so much worse. Regret was not a feeling he was acquainted with and he did not like it. It was bitter, it twisted his stomach and made his chest tight.

“Would it be better for us to leave?” He asked Brumby quietly.

Outfit Reducio Interacting with: @Selim Faust @Kelsey Brumby Mentioning: @Leonardo Chiadovini Action: Staying with Selim and asking pointed questions

Stats Stamina 5 Evasion 7 Strength 5 Wisdom 6 Arcane Power 6 Accuracy 6 Abilities Perfectionist

Katrina swayed ever so slightly, almost as if a gentle nudge would topple her over. If one to were look close, they would see slight tremors each time someone made too loud of a noise against the quiet. She was clenching her jaw, doing all she could to ensure the tears that were threatening to fall didn’t. It was just a dream. It wasn’t real. It didn’t happen. Boomerang continued to rub against Katrina’s ankles. He always knew when something was wrong with her. Katrina crossed her arms against her stomach, less in an aggressive way and more in a defensive or uncertain way.

Katrina didn’t hear him approach rather than feel it. The uncertain aura that seemed to follow the Astronomy professor much like a few other students. She knew she might have the ability to brush it off and assure Professor Chaidovini that she was fine, just like she always did, but now was an opportunity that she might just find help. His voice was soft, an open ended question. Katrina couldn’t quite bring herself to meet his gaze.

“Nightmares,” She said softly, although her words were not soft out of respect for others, but more in lack of energy, “If I were to say they weren’t usually this bad I would be lying,” In a roundabout way, Katrina was being as honest as she could. Years of doubt and lack of trust made it hard to be straightforward with someone she didn’t know. “I guess some of it is validated by what’s happened to me, but no one should be afraid to sleep,” Katrina shivered slightly recalling the dream. It had been a mix of her parent’s death, the school balls, her kidnapping, and the train crash. The paranoia she experienced was mostly validated, but she wasn’t coping as well as most, and it had come to a point that it was now disrupting others.

Katrina shifted her weight from one side to another. “I guess I just don’t want to admit I’m not okay since there are so many other students that actually need help,” The honest truth was surprising to hear said aloud. “Its one reason I came here today I suppose. A part of me was hoping to find some sort of perfect answer,” Katrina bit her lip. “I don’t know why I’m saying all of this,”

@Leonardo Chiadovini

After he bandaged up Hisoka's hand, he pulled it away suddenly, looking at it carefully. Regardless of what was going on in his mind, he seemed to calm down and disassociate after that. For the moment, he wasn't lashing out and hurting himself, which was a relief. He could stick around and watch him for a while, probably walk with him back to his dorms for as far as he could go when he was ready to move. Rest was certainly his current suggestion, he seemed sleep deprived for sure. Probably why he was here.

He didn't expect little Kazuo's contribution though, but once he piped up, Kels' face would pull into a line sadly. It was not the first time someone had asked him something like that, but it hurt more coming from a tiny little kid. It wasn't like he would be able to give an answer that would be satisfying, the world of adults was, frankly, even more messy and confusing than the one Kazuo currently found himself in. As far as Kels could figure, human kind was a wildly out of control species with more problems than time to fix them. He tried to focus more on the small picture, on helping everyone that was right in front of him, but there were still laws and procedures he had to follow. How was he supposed to answer this time?

"Magic can change the mind, bits and pieces. Jes' like medicine could. It don't solve everything though." Kels' voice was a lot more quiet and serious than usual, a rare occasion. "But I ain't choosing to ignore it. I can't do nothin' without his family's permission. As'a kid he needs 'em to help, get 'em resources, therapists, tools to cope. I'm not allowed to jes' make that choice for him."

The answer had somber notes to it, it was far from the only issue with the healthcare system, everything boiled down to bureaucracy. If he started grabbing psychiatrist specialists off of his own dime and took over custody of this 12-year-old, he'd be fired in a second, maybe even barred from future practice. It was more helpful to sit with him if he needed it, or bandage his hand when he hurt it. Of course, with this being the second time he found Hisoka in such a state, it wasn't going to be long before he had to do something, but shipping him to Mungo's hardly seemed like a 'solution', it was just the only action that was actually in his power to dictate.

"Yeh, let's get 'im to bed, hopefully." He replied to Kazuo's question, starting to get up. Sleep was essential to a healthy mind and body, even more than magic. He could have stopped by the hospital and administered a few potions that would help, but he knew Hisoka hated potions. Best to let his own body do some of the healing itself, if possible.

Terrible Presence in effect.
| Aura of Unease Present |

There were several things Leonardo regretted about this night, the first and foremost of which being that he had decided to host this event in the first place. Who was he to be coping with attending to children? Who was he to be pretending that he even remotely knew how to be a ‘guardian’ figure. In a sense, the Seer was blessed that Brumby had been at the scene in the first place, because Leonardo would have been of little to no effect to the situation which had unfolded in his own tower. Leonardo did not call Macbeth back to him just yet, and even if he had, the speech owl would have not left the nurse’s side of its own volition. For the time being, Leonardo would be without his constant companion; an unsettlingly lonesome feeling.

Selim had quieted, which Leonardo supposed to be better than his former hysterical state. Something had either clicked, resolved, or shattered in the young duplicate; a typical person did not suddenly change face so quickly as what had occured. It would be a matter of time until the results of such an outburst were confirmed. Though Leonardo did not hear the conversation between Selim’s comrade and Brumby, the Seer found himself musing over the sudden change, an ever-growing wellspring of curiosity taking the place of any other feeling that he had had for the boy before. Something intriguing. Something... quite different.

But now, Leonardo’s attention had to be returned to the girl, who claimed of nightmares and experiences; fear to sleep and fear of dreams. Seeking a resolution to these feelings, the reason for her coming tonight.

Another test of ‘guidance’ on the Seer’s behalf.

“There is no such thing as a perfect resolution, otherwise this world would not be in the state it is today.” He closed his eyes, tapping the snake’s head of his cane quietly. “The discord is what makes the world whole. It lets us appreciate the small resolutions; the diminished seventh resolved to its five-seven counterpart.” He opened an eye, looking at the misty face of the girl again. “Each movement of the composition different, each requiring resolution, but never entirely coming to its close. There will always be dishevelment and discord to be heard. It is what you change, what you make out of the existing chord which truly matters.”

Leonardo opened both his eyes, fixing the girl with and unblinking stare. “The mind speaks when it feels it must, though I feel you are being quite vague.” The Seer glanced about the room again, his grey eyes flicking from wall to wall impatiently. “You speak of nightmares, of alleged events; events which I would know nothing of unless they were shared.” A pause as he reconsidered his words. “That is not to say anything should be disclosed me. On the contrary, perhaps these things are to be reasoned and rationalized with on one’s own.” Things which were of utmost secrecy to oneself were just that: secret. To violate the integrity, the importance of thought and memory was an abhorred crime in the Seer’s mind, and affair he felt he should have no council with.

Once again, the Seer found himself discomforted by the affairs going on around him, a desire to walk away and leave the situation behind him. His fingers tapped a bit faster on his cane. “I do not teach ways to fight your demons. That is an inner battle. My job is to make sure that there is a way to prepare a student to face them if needed. Provide closure, not resolution.” A hesitation. “I suppose I did promise that I would offer council on sleep regulation to anyone who desired it.” It was a slight musing on his own behalf. “I give no ‘perfect’ answer. I may not give an answer, but I am capable of departing knowledge... if that is what you desire.”

Reducio

@Katrina Walker, @Selim Faust, @Kazuo Shimada, & @Kelsey Brumby