IC Inbox: In the Night

[worthallthis]

[There is no message for the voice inbox. Just a beep.]

Comments

[arsarcanum]

[ Long pause on this one. ]

I'll come over after I drop her off
i'll go home when i wake up

[worthallthis]

okay

Tell me if you want me to be upstairs when you get here

[Because sometimes Soldat isn't the only one who needs privacy, they're sure.]

[arsarcanum]

i think i want other people there but i'm really tired
is that weird that I want other people around even though i'm just gonna fall asleep

[worthallthis]

No. I can't sleep in an empty house. I'll be in the kitchen when you get there

[arsarcanum]

okay
thank you



And here comes a knock at the door. Hey, soldier, someone at the door for ya.

[worthallthis]

Soldat opens the door and greets him with a cup of cocoa. There are blankets and the pillow Sora likes to hug on the couch, folded up neatly for him. Drink you cocoa first, though, pal.

[arsarcanum]

He will gratefully take that cocoa in both hands after he takes off his nice coat and toes off his boots, putting them both to the side. It's nice and warm in here. He'll nod to the soldier in thanks and just plop on the couch, sipping at his cocoa and staring into space. The cold and the time between his last message and now seems to have taken care of his feelings. He just seems very tired. If the soldier leaves, he'll just roll right onto his side and fall asleep, to be quite honest.

[worthallthis]

If Sora makes an attempt at talking, Soldat will make themselves available, but if all he seems to want to do is sit and drink cocoa, and sleep, Soldat will keep themselves busy in the kitchen to keep an eye on him.

Once Sora does lay down, they'll head upstairs to their own room. Home, moving around a bit, but not right in the kid's face.

[arsarcanum]

Maybe, on some very similar night in the future, Sora will turn around and call to the soldier so they can talk a bit, see if he can pick their brain for one thing or another, or just to work through the things that whirl around in his head, caught under pieces of mental furniture, stuck in the rafters. There's quite a bit of it, after all. For all the knowledge he lacks, he does tend to fill the space with other things. It can get a bit crowded, he finds, if he keeps it all to himself.

But the soldier said he'd done everything he could. Sora's a simple creature. That was enough catharsis for him. So he'll feel around for a coaster or some other small thing to set his empty cup on (definitely not a book, he thinks Aziraphale would flip), lay down with his blanket and pillow (yes, the one he likes to hug - thank you, soldier), and close his eyes. He feels like he could probably sleep forever here. He would if he could.

[worthallthis]

On their way past to the stairs, once Sora has curled up and closed his eyes, Soldat hesitates just a moment by the couch, bends enough to stroke Sora's hair twice, then hastily continues to their room. Comforting touch is hard, but they're working on it.