Hey, Sara!  I'm back in Montpelier.  I have a busy schedule of being sat on while in a roomful of recovering strangers.  It's definitely not as good as getting guided by you, but.  Guiding is guiding, you know?

Yes :) 

I'm still in Chicago, my flight was for tonight. I might delay it some to help Wendy with her power testing, though. 

I need to get back home for school, but I'm free on Tuesdays, Fridays, and weekends, surveys permitting. I could come visit and sit with strangers with you? 

I would love that!  I think I've worked with every professional guide in the area, and it's enough to zero me out, I shouldn't complain.  It's just not real compatibility.  I would love to - maybe Bill can figure out a way to set up a healing silo on your job sites, so I can return the favor efficiently?

Tim rubs his eyes.  All of your downtime could be used for healing.  "Thanks, Carol.  Feel lousy having it pointed out to me, every time I'm relaxing, I could be taking a month off someone's recovery."  Wait, am I being pushy about it?  I might be pushy.

If you want to, that is, and if the logistics work out.

In Chicago, Sara is smiling to herself.

I have a silo à Québec

My contracts usually include teleport assistance, so I can be back home as soon as the survey is done

You're welcome to come along if you like, though. It can be quite interesting, if you find geology interesting. And can stand the thought that the land you're walking on may be a mine soon.

I don't work with the worst kind of mining companies, though. No open pit mines, good filtration, no offloading mercury into the rivers, things like that.

Okay, that would be kind of cool.  Would it be efficient?  I don't think so.  Unless her backlash is bad.  So much better when you can text, you've got an excuse if it takes you a minute to phrase something. or think something through.  Slow is smooth, smooth is fast.  Several minutes later, Tim has composed a text.

I hadn't really thought about strip-mining before.  It's not like I was ever going to be able to do something about it, right?  And I'd be a hypocrite if I insisted on organic free trade mines.  But it makes a lot of sense for you to be concerned, you've got the leverage to make sure it's fast.  The only thing I can do with my power, apart from dungeons, is just use it as much as possible.  I wouldn't mind going with you sometime, I would hate to see you stuck in a mine while convinced the air is poison.  That sounds like a very personalized Hell for you.

Okay.  I've left the option open to go without committing myself to compromising my healing schedule.  I do need days off, if I do nothing but hang out in a healing silo all day I'll go absolutely nuts.  Maybe the confluence will be a good excuse to skip.  Wait.  No, I can't afford to think like that.  If I think of healing as an obligation, I'll start to resent it, and I can't afford to do that.  Ugh.  Maybe the confluence will be an opportunity to stretch my legs.

I'm careful about my backlash, don't worry. Most of the time my surveys are above-ground, seeking useful mineral veins below me. I almost never need a more detailed sense than I can handle over an afternoon. 

It wouldn't cost much more to have my post-survey port moved to Montpelier, you know. Maybe we could get the best of both worlds that way? 

That would be fantastic!  And you're so much better than my usual professional partners, I bet I could get my throughput so much better.  It's hard to balance training my abilities while actually using them.

Since Sinkhole left, anyway.  Wait, you've made this professional.  That's good, but you can't only be professional, you have to like your partner.  And the best way to be interesting is to show interest in others.

I got so distracted by the thought of getting good guiding that I forgot to ask!  What are you studying for?  Most espers don't really bother, myself included.  It's kind of admirable that you're getting an actual education.

Tim isn't upset at his turn of events, but realizing he wouldn't need to constantly pick up certifications was a bit discombobulating.  And a relief.  Mostly a relief, though.

I'm studying architecture and urban design! It's only a little related to my power - I can sense structural issues at higher granularity, and I can make excellent models :) - but I've wanted to be an architect since I was small. I want to design things that will last, and make an impact on how we build cities. Our architecture could be so much more environmentally friendly if we just put some effort in, we could reduce the climate island effect so much with only a few changes! 

There's a pause before she sends another text.

Sorry, I'm rambling. Is there anything you'd study if you had the time? I can only imagine how difficult it would be with your backlash. Mine leaves me exhausted enough, without actually being exhaustion. But if you did? 

Well, I had planned to be a paramedic.  It’s just really satisfying when you see someone you helped on call walking around Shaw’s because of what you did.  I had thought about becoming a doctor or a nurse, but it feels less personal.  And I’m not really cut out for being a doctor anyway.  In English, they say “C’s get degrees”, but C’s don’t get you into medical school.

But when you think about it, I’m just a glorified paramedic who sometimes rescues sharks.  Or kidnaps them, maybe.

Sharks? 

I suppose being sat on while people heal isn't as personal, but at least you will have dungeon rescues to make up for that? 

Oh, it was this dumb little pool dungeon.  It was trying to isolate people, but it wasn’t big enough - let me show you a still from.  The moving picture camera?  I forget the word.  And to look it up would be to cheat.

Tim attaches a photo of an older couple, crossing the Tiny Shark Pool Dungeon, their faces carefully blurred out.

I even got to fish for them!

Attached is a video of Tim sticking his hand in a pool, only to have a shark lunge out and chomp it.  The shark is unceremoniously dumped in a five gallon bucket.  The hand is untouched afterward, although the video shows Tim carefully checking for damage.

Vidéo, silly! 

That dungeon is also silly!

And then, after the video:

Aw, they're so cute! Even if they are a little bitey :)

I heard about the monster zoo in Ontario, did they go there? Or was there a good one closer?

Ah, one of the ones you thought was a false friend.  It was a true friend.  Of course.

Thank you for reminding me!  The last I checked, the scientists were hoping to induce them to mate in a lab.  I have been promised that I could visit them.  If you would like to see them, I am sure that I would be allowed a plus one.  I was also promised the first tooth, if the teeth do regrow like normal sharks.

I'd love to visit the tiny sharks! After the Confluence, maybe.

I hate to be a bummer, but about the Confluence? You're doing dungeons during it, of course, and last I heard Wendy wants to do some small ones at least. I can see if I can get slots with my teleporter for emergency guiding, but either way we'll need to work out some transportation... 

Especially if they need me somewhere, though then I might be able to get in on whoever is managing teleports there. 

I'm actually not sure I had a question in there ^.^' this is something for Evelyn and William isn't it. 

Okay.  Time to be an adult who can use his words.  She seems reasonable.  But then, so did Sinkhole, and Sinkhole wasn’t even wrong.  She was just - well, we wanted different things.

No, it’s really important that we be on the same page.  You’re being smart about making sure that we’re on the same page, especially if we’re going to be partners.

Communication is really important.  Maman would always watch these telenovelas, and I never want to wind up like a couple on them.  I’m uniquely positioned to help people, and I want to do it as much as possible.

When I’m in the healing silo, I try to get guided constantly.  The matches I’ve had have all been pretty meh, but every minute of “meh” guiding is an hour of natural healing, we think.  I don’t want to promise guiding monogamy.  I am not currently intimate with anyone, and I’m not ready for it right now.

Please don’t think less of me for this.

She takes a little time to read and consider this seriously. 

That's alright with me.

And then she has to pause, so she can word this properly. 

I won't ask for sexual intimacy if you don't want it, though I'm okay with it within certain limits if we take the time to discuss it first. As for guiding monogamy, of course not! It wouldn't even really be feasible unless we moved closer together, nevermind the question of Wendy. 

There's another brief pause, and then:

Though I suppose guiding monogamy isn't an 'of course not' for some people. Assuming we all make sure to be tested regularly if it becomes relevant at some point, I don't mind at all. 

Immediately:

Oh, good.

A few minutes later.

I really had hoped that you would agree, but many espers only have one or perhaps two partners.  I don’t have any problems with guiding monogamy, of course, for other people.  It just doesn’t - logistically work.  I can’t ask anyone to stay glued to my side for eight hours a day.  It would drive anyone mad.

I need to talk to her about it, too.  But she seems skittish.  I don’t want to scare her off by talking about serious business right away.  I got to know you a little better while she was napping.  Poor thing, she was so tired.

Yes, I hope she takes time to recover properly before digging into everything. Even you have had a few months, right? I think she said it had only been four days since her hellweek!

Please don't stop using professional guides on my account! It seems like your healing is really important to you, even besides how important it is for the people you help. I wouldn't forgive myself for standing in the way of that. 

I'll probably keep seeing my current partner from time to time until he moves away. After that- well, it'll be up to our agents to work out the details, but hopefully I can be ported to you or Wendy at least some of the time. I've been having trouble finding even decently compatible partners at home. 

I agree, she definitely need to decompress.  Maybe we should prioritize inviting her over to hang out. Not even for powers testing, just to be around people who understand Hell Week.  Maybe that’s too forward.

You getting guiding is perfectly fine by me.  I’m usually available, in case you need emergency guiding, anytime I’m not in a dungeon.  But guiding is lifesaving medical care, especially for ones like yours.  I wouldn’t forgive myself if I kept someone from getting guided.

Whew.  That went well.  Tim goes flop.

Let's make sure there's no need to forgive ourselves, then. 

I can talk to her about it this afternoon? I'll let you know how it goes.

I would like that.  Sorry if I killed the mood with the serious talk, I probably sounded very…I don’t remember the word.  Earnest, perhaps?  I need to remember to smile, too.

Hey, I started it! I should be the one apologizing, if there's anything to apologize for. Anyway, earnest is good, I think, for this sort of thing.

How about we try to get the mood back, though?

What do you do when you're not healing people or rescuing tiny sharks? Or while you're doing that, I guess. My power is too mentally taxing to knit or make beads or anything at the same time, but that might not be the same for you. 

Well, I do a lot of training.  Apart from dungeoneering training…  I like jiujutsu, though it’s hard to get genuinely good sports about it, though.  Esper body, reflexes, and I sometimes cheat without thinking about it.  I go hunting, it’s very relaxing.  I never played many video games as a kid, but I’ve gotten into horror games since awakening.  It’s mental self-defence, I get pretty tired.  Can’t train forever, you know?

Maybe you could teach someone? Someone you're getting used to your powers, so they can stand more even with you. Oh, maybe you could work with some people from the response teams in your area! I guess it might be less of a fun hobby, then, though. 

My grandfather used to take me hunting when I was younger. He ran a few trap lines in the reserve where he and nookhom lived, too, and he'd take me out to check them. I've probably forgotten more than half what I learned, though. 

Most of the video games I play are civilization and city builders ^.^' I'm sure you can guess why.

I might have a hunch or two.  Maybe we could go sometime, or just go hiking.  The mountains are spectacular in Fall, maybe work will wrap up in time.  Or we could go snowshoeing, it’s really magical at night.  Have you ever been to a darkness preserve?