06 -- text

[biwinning]

[LOCKED TO: VANADI]
2o not iin the mood for thii2 2o not iin the FUCKIING mood for thii2.
hey a22hole.
we have 2hiit two dii2cu22.
namely your 2tatu2 wiith my kii2me2ii2.


[OPEN TO ALL (delayed, after conversation with Vanadi)]

2o ii don't normally do thii2 but hey guy2 2up.
who want2 two fiight a pii22ed off p2ychiic.
don't raii2e your hand2 all at once.
ii need two burn off thii2 energy.
come on iit'll be fun ii'm liike a fiinal bo22 level of diiffiiculty.
braggiing riight2 for two week2 iif you wiin.

Comments

[Video - Private]

[biwinning]

... I jutht want to thtop thinking about thomething. Fighting thomeone ith eathietht.

[Video - Private]

[feel_nevermore]

[She knows what you mean, Sollux. Sparring is a good way for her to deal with frustrations or things she doesn't want to think about.]

The training grounds, then. In ten minutes.

[At least Raven won't ask him questions. Unless he decides he wants to talk about what bothers him.]

[Video - Private] => [action?]

[biwinning]

Okay, sure.

Action!

[feel_nevermore]

[Raven nods and ends the feed.

When Sollux arrives on the training grounds, he'll find Raven sitting on a crate, eyes closed, in her usual meditation posture.]

[biwinning]

[ Yeah that meditation thing? Not something trolls ever do.]

That looksth like a really uncomfy way to thleep.

[feel_nevermore]

[Raven keeps quiet for a few seconds before she opens her eyes.]

That would be because I ain't sleeping. It's called 'meditating'.

[And she gets back to her feet and onto the floor.]

[biwinning]

What'th that mean.

[feel_nevermore]

Basically it's a mental technique technique that allows you to have better control over your own emotions.

[biwinning]

... Doeth it actually work?

[Because wow, if he learned how to do that...]

[feel_nevermore]

[Azar... Why do people keep asking her that? If it didn't work, why would she keep doing it, huh?

Still Sollux truly looks like he had a rough day. So he gets an honest straightforward answer instead of the sarcastic reply she would usually had given.]

Some days better than others but yes, it does.

[biwinning]

Ith it... thomething you can teach? Becauthe we wouldn't even have to fight if I could jutht... not feel tho frustrated all the time.

[feel_nevermore]

[Raven pauses, eyeing him. That's not something she expected. That he'd be interested in learning.]

If you think you can stay calm and quiet long enough, I could try.

[The answer might not sound quite enthusiastic but coming from Raven, it's already a lot.]

Also you'll be a much more interesting sparring partner for me if you're focused than if you let your anger and frustrations blind you.

[biwinning]

I can. I thwear.

[Or at least he really wants to. Whether or not he can remains to be determined.]

[feel_nevermore]

Alright. Wanna start now?

[biwinning]

Yeth. Tho do I have to...

[And he tries to cross his legs, like what she's doing.]

...Okay, what do I do?

[feel_nevermore]

[She closes her eyes.] Close your eyes. Take deep breaths. Try to clear your mind of all thoughts. Focus on yourself, on your energy, on your emotions.

[biwinning]

[He closes his eyes too, hands on his knees, and takes a few deep breaths. He gets to about thirty seconds, before he opens his eyes again.]

It's not working.

[feel_nevermore]

[Raven rolls her eyes under her close eyelids.] You gotta try a bit harder than that if you want it to work.

[biwinning]

Ith there like a thecret pathword to make it work better or thomething??

[feel_nevermore]

[And this happens to be not as silly a question as one might think.] Actually you can use a mantra to help you focus. It works pretty well for me.

You know what a mantra is, right?

[biwinning]

It'th thomething you thay over and over again, but I don't think any of my old favoritesth like "Shut up" or "Make it thtop" are going to work.

[feel_nevermore]

Probably not. If only because that'd remind you of the problem instead of helping you clear your mind.

What about a word or a name you like? Or just a simple sound?

[biwinning]

Uhm.

Buzz?

Like beesth. I raithe beesth.

[feel_nevermore]

[Now that might get annoying after a while... But she can't afford discouraging him by telling him that. He's trying. And if she concentrates enough she should be able to ignore the noise. She's had to ignore more annoying noises than that after all. Like BB's voice for instance.]

Yeah, why not. Whatever works for you.

[biwinning]

Alright. I'll try again.

[He closes his eyes, and tries to relax, quietly whispering 'buzz' to himself. It seems to ... be working?]