reset my patient violence along both lines of a pathway higher
Ghost is entering the base gym at 3 AM when he hears a solid thump, followed by a grunt and swearing coming from the obstacle course area.
"Fuck!... Fuck this…!"
Ghost stops in his tracks, looking over the area, confused. He decides to investigate the sound, thinking either someone's in trouble, or there's someone who isn't supposed to be there. He slowly makes his way to the obstacle training course.
"What in the bloody hell was that?" He whispered to himself under his breath.
As he approaches closer, he sees that it's Artemis, Task Force 141's medic.
"Fuck this! How the hell am I gonna keep up with them?!" She grumbles, unaware of Ghost's presence.
Simon freezes upon realizing who it is, the freezing overcome by surprise when he connects that it's Artemis, and that it's 3 AM.
'What is she doing here?' He thinks to himself. He slides his mask off, waiting to see if she'll notice him standing there.
"Arrrggghhh!" She groans as she kicks one of the obstacles. "I'm never gonna fucking get it!!"
His lips curl into a smile, he's trying not to laugh as he's watching her.
"Artemis?" Simon asks, trying to get her attention. Has she still not seen him?
She turns around at the sound of her name. "Simon!... I… I didn't think anyone else would be here at this hour. What are you doing up?" Her eyes are wide, and her face flushes, mildly embarrassed at getting caught.
He smiles, walking up to her. "I couldn't sleep. What are you doing here, anyway?" He asks as he comes to a stop in front of her.
He's slightly curious, but he doesn't want to push her because something doesn't add up. Her eyes are wide, like she's been caught, which she has. It's 3 AM for God's sake. But, he can't make assumptions.
"Umm…" She stutters, embarrassed at the situation. "I've been trying to work more on the obstacle course, because I feel like I can't keep up with the team on the field… I… I just need more training… But… It's embarrassing to do it when others are watching…"
Simon's eyebrows furrow in thought. "It's barely past 3 AM, shouldn't you be sleeping? It's a good thing you're taking the initiative, but shouldn't a full night's sleep be more important? You need it if you wanna be at 100% for your duties when the time comes." He says, trying not to sound like he's talking down to her, but more like he actually cares about her well-being. He's a little worried if he's being honest.
"Yes, but… I just… I worry about being the weak link… I know my primary job is being the team's medic, but I don't want people to have to worry about me on the field… y'know?" She tries to explain.
Simon nods, understanding her reasoning. She doesn't want to be the weak link, and she wants to be prepared. Makes sense. Everyone has to be on the top of their game when the Task Force works together. "I see your point, but I can assure you, love, no one thinks you're the weak link. We're all a team here, we all care about each other. It's okay, we're not going to let anything happen to you, alright? That includes during missions, we'll keep you safe. I'll keep you safe." He says, trying to lift her spirits.
"Alright," Artemis sniffles. "Sorry for bothering you."
Simon shakes his head. "You aren't bothering me. I'm glad you care enough and are motivated enough to try. I truly appreciate it." He says, smiling softly.
"I'd prefer it if you kept to a normal sleep schedule though. I don't want you to burn yourself out." He adds, gently taking her hand and squeezing it. He just doesn't want her to push herself too hard.
Artemis nods, squeezing his hand back, and taking a step closer to him.
He wraps his arms around her shoulders. She needed this, and he knew it.
"How about you stop for tonight… You've done plenty to prove yourself, right? I mean, you've just ran the course a dozen times on your own. You're clearly prepared." He says gently.
"How...how did you know I've run it a dozen times? How long have you been standing there?" She whispers curiously.
His brows furrow, thinking. "I uh… I've been watching… I guess." He says, sounding rather guilty. "Only to make sure you were okay. I didn't want to interrupt. I hope I didn't make you uncomfortable.” He says, looking a bit worried.
“No, sweetheart, you never make me uncomfortable.” Artemis says, as she leans her head on Simon’s shoulder.
He chuckled softly, feeling relief at knowing that him observing her didn’t make her uncomfortable. “Alright, well, let’s go get you some rest, yeah? You need it. That’s a lot of training.” He says, hugging her tighter.
“Okay.” She yawns.
Her yawning signals that she really is tired, and that it’s definitely a good idea for her to go sleep. Simons nods, leading them to her barracks room.
“Did anyone notice you come out here?” He asks, holding her hand as they walked down the hall.
“I don’t think so. I’ve…been sneaking to the training room the past couple of nights…and I don’t think anyone has noticed…” She says hesitantly.
Simon turns to her, a look of shock across his face. ‘She’s been doing this for multiple nights?!’ “You’ve been sneaking to the training room? For multiple nights?! Artemis!!” Simon whisper-yells at her, shocked that tonight wasn’t the first time she’d been doing this.
This was incredibly unsafe to be doing, especially alone. Sleep deprivation combined with intense training could be a recipe for disaster.
“Why didn't you tell me, or anyone else?” Simon asked, notes of concern sounding in his voice.
Artemis’ eyes started to water at Simon’s raised tone. “Because I need to be better…” She says in a small voice.
He sighs, feeling mildly upset. He didn't want her to be upset. He wrapped his arms around her, trying to provide some comfort. “Oh sweetheart, you are good enough…” He says, rubbing gentle circles into her back. “But you’re pushing yourself too hard.”
He hates seeing her cry, he hates seeing her cry and watching her feel like she isn’t worthy, even though she absolutely is.
“Come on, try to get some sleep. Later we can talk, I’ll make you hot chocolate, the way you like it, and you can tell me more about what’s worrying you. For now, try to get some rest.” He offers softly.
“Ok.” Artemis sniffles. “I’m sorry.”
“You don’t have to apologize, love. I understand.” Simon whispers, as he presses a firm kiss to her head. “You’ll be okay. I promise.”
A/N: Thanks for reading! Likes, reblogs, and feedback are appreciated!
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Vent and small announcement
Howdy guys, okay I'm just gonna jump straight into it just to sum it up, and say I'm going to take a weeeee break from the Psychonauts fandom for a bit. If you want to know why you can hit the read more
I can't really explain it but I've been getting a weird... "vibe"??? Or a feeling of some kind from the fandom for a good while now, and it's starting to get pretty bad now. I'm taking this chance to take a break from it so I don't completely lose my love for the series because I really do love these games.
This probably just the thing that happens to me with new fandoms, when it comes to the difference between fanon and canon for me. I think it could be just the huge difference between the two and its giving me whiplash (not literally) or something. Anyways, it makes me feel icky I guess.
It's funny though, because I've had a similar situation with the Bendy fandom a looong time ago, so this isnt anything new. Only it was the other way around. I was so obsessed with my fanon versions of the characters, that when I would go back to the original material, I'd feel weird about how different they were. I actually took a break from that one too and that's when I started really getting into the Zelda franchise.
Of course I then had a similar situation with the Zelda fandom, and then I went back to Bendy.... This is just a phase I have with all fandoms I become part of.
Its just my "Everything MUST be as CLOSE to CANON as humanly POSSIBLE" and my "OH but it'd be soooo cool if they were (insert headcanon) or they had (insert random detail)!" Mindsets battling it out and it tends to give me burnout A LOT and really stresses me out (for some.... reason...)
Its actually one of the reasons why I can never stick with a design for certain characters and why said designs are constantly changing. On the bright side this will give me a chance to expand my Zelda AU that I've wanted to do for a while!
It isn't a big deal, I'll still probably interact with some Psychonauts stuff, and you can still ask about aus and what not, but yeah. Just thought you should know!
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