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Chapter Text

While he had some idea of what working among psychics would be like, poor Sebastian Jones was blissfully unaware of what to expect when he signed up to help run the new foodery of Whispering Rock Psychic Summer Camp.

To start off, he had just gone through the main gate when a random squirrel exploded into bloodied chunks, scaring him into hiding behind the military grade jeep as he heard the “Sorry!” in the distance.

He remained there for a long while, too scared that he would be next, only leaving his spot when he heard the low, hungry growl.

The low, hungry growl of the giant ass bear he never realized was there until its foaming jaws materialized, as if out of thin air, right next to him.

With a horrified scream, he jumped to his feet and bolted up the hill, barely making it up halfway when he felt the hard grip around his abdomen, panicking as he was dragged through the air back to the bear, who had a front paw pointed right at him while its face scrunched as if in focus.

Sebastian struggled and screamed, too scared to summon the willpower to make the beast release him, the bear maintaining its focus as he was brought closer and closer to its open maw.

Until the bear suddenly let go, Sebastian just sitting there watching as the bear was lifted in the air as he was, the animal thrashing its paws as it roared in fear.

“Bear is no match for Mikhail,” said the strong Russian accent from behind him.

But Sebastian had no time to thank his savior, fear compelling him to get up and continuing to haul ass up the hill to the cabin-like building ahead, never stopping for anything.

Except for the man walking right in front of him, Sebastian too scared to stop himself before they collided against each other.

At first, he couldn’t see a thing, his vision returning in a dizzy and disjointed fashion before settling back to normal, allowing him to see the mildly annoyed scowl from a man with short black hair and orange tinted glasses.

A man he was lying right on top of.

“Crap!” Sebastian yelled as he quickly got himself off the man, standing a few feet back with his hands waving frantically in the air in panic.

“I’m so sorry, sir! I, you see, there was a bear-a psychic bear, if I may add-that could’ve eaten me if I didn’t run like holy hell, but I didn’t mean to do, well, that…”

Sebastian kept on and on with the frantic excuses as the man stood himself back up, dusting the dirt off his dark green suit without as much as giving Sebastian a glare, or any other kind of look for that matter. When he did, he simply looked the younger man up and down, his annoyance replaced with a stoic kind of neutrality.

“You’re Sebastian Jones, are you not?” he simply said.

“Uh, yeah,” Sebastian said. “And how’d you know that?”

Even with the stoic demeanor and concealing eyewear, Sebastian could imagine the man’s eye roll.

“Really, Mr. Jones? You come to a camp for psychics and ask how I know who you are.”

“Oh, right. Heh. That was a stupid question, huh?”

God damn it. One minute in and you already made yourself a fool in front of the psychics.

“Don’t kick yourself like that,” the man said. “If it makes you feel better, the staff talked on and on about you the moment your resume was approved, the slip of a name included.”

“Huh. That makes sense, I guess.”

“Attention campers!” a voice then boomed from the loudspeakers, almost like a drill sergeant barking out orders. “Today is the arrival of our newest staff member! While he may be nothing like us, I expect you’ll all treat him as if he were. Anyone who dares to say otherwise report to my office, ASAP! Also, the new foodery is expected to open within two days. And…shoot! Why did I forget this…”

The speakers broadcasted the faint noise of someone flipping through papers, as if they were searching for something they forgot.

“Aw, there it is! The new guy is also named Sebastian Jones. That’ll be all for today’s camp report!”

With that the speakers let out an ear piercing screech before going silent.

“You’re the new guy, huh? Then again, with how you let that bear almost eat you…” then said the Russian accent behind him, Sebastian turning to find a boy, no younger than fourteen, approaching him. “But thankfully for you, bears are no match for Mikhail.”

“Are all the animals here psychic?” Sebastian asked nervously.

“More or less. And you haven’t even met the pyrokinetic cougars.”

“Wait, the pyro what now?”

But the boy was already sprinting off, leaving him to stand there to process his words.

They never mentioned THAT in the pamphlet.

“They never do, if only because they assume you can handle yourself against them,” the man said. “Not like I’m saying you’re incapable of handling yourself.”

“Saying that after I nearly got my ass eaten by that telekinetic bear,” Sebastian told him. “And do you often invade people’s thoughts?”

“Not like you have any psionic shielding to begin with,” he just said, in a rather ominous manner. “Or that your thoughts are a little…sporadic, to say.”

“Not my fault I can’t help but think a lot.”

Crap! I wished I brought that tinfoil hat like Six said. But as long as you don’t think anything too revealing, like your win- Goddamn it, Sebastian! Don’t think about THAT!

“Think about what?”

And congrats. You did the thought equivalent of saying too much!

“Oh. Uh, I…I should probably find that foodery now.”

Sebastian walked past the man without another word or glance, about to head right when he heard,

“It’s to your left.”

Sebastian went in the other direction.

“But before you leave.”

Sebastian stopped and turned back to him. “Yeah?”

“Watch where you’re going next time.”

Sebastian nodded. “Solid advice.”

***

The upstairs apartment that came with the foodery building wasn’t much, and it was an odd mishmash of cottage and woodland furniture and aesthetics, but it would do in the safe and stable housing department.

Up until the summer was over and he needed to find another place to live.

But he can worry about that later, as after the chaos of today, he could use a nap.

He plopped himself on the torn up sofa, too tired to make the otherwise short trip to the bedroom, settling in for a long slumber before having to figure out what to do from here.

And finding out how long he would survive in a place such as this.

Chapter Text

Before this place could be considered open for business, he had some prepping to do.

Lots of prepping to do, that is.

From checking the food stock provided before he even got here, seeing if the appliances-especially the brand new, paid from his employer’s pocket candy machine-even worked, figuring out this week’s menu, the list could go on and on. 

At least he could do this in peace and quiet, as much as it often put him on edge.

And he couldn’t help but wonder where the other counselors were at, as he haven’t really gotten the chance to-

“Hey! That’s my ball!”

“Not anymore!”

Peering out the window, Sebastian watched what he recognized was the childhood bullying equivalent of monkey in the middle-two kids were tossing a violet colored ball between, while in the middle was a shorter kid wearing tinfoil hat ran back and forth, feebly trying to intercept it.

“Please! Give it back!”

“Okay,” said the taller one with the orange afro. “If you can climb!”

After catching the ball from the kid with the big ears, he tossed it into the nearest tree, him and his sidekick with the big ears laughing as the kid in the tinfoil hat cried out for his toy.

“Good luck getting that back, loser!” said the orange afro kid.

“Yeah!” the big ear kid added, laughing as he and his partner left the scene.

All while the kid in the tinfoil hat sat down to stare at his ball, a few sniffles escaping him before erupting into full blown cries.

At this point Sebastian couldn’t take it, abandoning his work to rush outside and approach the now loudly crying child, Sebastian’s heart dropping when he saw the tears pouring down his face.

“Hey, what happened?” he asked with concern.

“My ball is stuck in that tree!” the kid cried, pointing to the ball trapped in the branches. “I want to get it down myself, but I can’t without removing my special hat!” he added, pointing to the tinfoil cap on his head.

“And why’s that, if that’s okay for me to ask?”

“I barely have control of my powers. If I remove this hat, I risk blowing up someone’s head. Again.”

Sebastian gave an uneasy look.

“And I don’t want to blow your head up like I did to that squirrel this morning.”

Oh. So that’s what it was. EUGH! But I can’t blame the poor kid.

“Or that guy in that town on the way here. Or my fifth babysitter. Or-“

“How about I get it for you?” Sebastian then offered, wanting to spare himself  of the boy’s nonchalant description of his accidental death count.

“Y-you will, sir?” the boy asked hopefully. “Nobody’s ever done that for me before.”

Sebastian didn’t know how to react to that, so he settled on a reassuring smile.

“No biggie. But…hmm…that tree might not be safe for me to climb…”

And he wasn’t entirely wrong, the tree looking so thin it might buckle under his otherwise light weight.

“But I think I got an idea…”

“And what’s that?” the kid asked.

“Look!” Sebastian said while pointing in no direction in particular. “A bunch of squirrels!”

“Where?!”

With the kid distracted, Sebastian made sure there was no one else looking before unfurling his silver wings, letting them fight their way out of his sweatshirt before launching himself up, quickly grabbing the ball from its place before landing back down softly, hoping it wasn’t loud enough to get the kid’s attention.

“I don’t see any squirrels, mister,” the kid said, head turning back and forth but never towards Sebastian.

“If you look hard enough, you might find them,” Sebastian said, pulling his wings back in time for the kid to turn around.

“Are you sure you saw them? Because I’m not- Hey! You got it!”

Sebastian knelt down to hand the toy to the smiling boy.

“But, how’d you do it?”

“Let’s just say I have a few tricks up my sleeve,” Sebastian said playfully. “But if anyone else gives you crap like that again, let me know.”

“Thanks, mister…who are you again?”

“Sebastian. What about you?”

“Dogen, mister Sebastian.”

“You can just call me Sebastian. Anyway, I need to get back to my work.”

Sebastian stepped away, about to enter the foodery when he heard the patter of feet climbing up the steps behind him.

Quickly turning, Sebastian sighed in relief when he saw it was just Dogen.

“Oh, hey again. Is there something else you need?”

Dogen said nothing, just staring up to him with a smile.

“Um, okay…If it’s about the foodery, I’m afraid it won’t be open for another couple of days. Inventory and all that boring adult stuff, you know.”

Dogen said nothing, his stare empty but face still smiling.

“I’ll be heading inside now. If you need me, just yell or something.”

He headed inside and quickly locked the door, feeling weirded out by that encounter.

“Weird,” he said aloud. “How weirder can this place get?”

***

It took him until midnight, but he did it. He had finally mastered the candy making machine and made a successful batch of candies and lollipops…along with the ten imperfect or outright inedible batches.

While it might not be enough, they would do for now. Then again, he wondered if this would make his employers reconsider the “no experience required” part of the job description. But considering his “special” status-and invoking Six’s connection with him-was what got him the job in the first place, probably not.

He hadn’t realized he dozed off at some point, or that he was lying right on top of a batch laid across the work table, until he was jolted awake by the frantic knocking, flinging himself out of his chair with all kinds of candies stuck to his shirt and face.

“Oh. Great.” He plucked off a few of the hard candies clinging onto his face. “I’ll deal with this later.”

Rushing to the front door, grabbing his sweatshirt off the coat rack to pull on first, Sebastian looked out the door’s tiny window to find a tall- very tall-woman in a bright and preppy dress of practically every kind of neon color. As if sensing his presence, she waved with one hand, the other holding a basket of…something.

Out of curiosity, but also a bit of caution, he slowly opened the door, not expecting to be greeted with a peppy and enthusiastic,

“Hello, darling! Sorry for coming this late, but you know how hectic the first day of camp can be.”

“And, uh, who are you?” he asked.

“Oh, right. Silly me.” She held out a hand, Sebastian taking it only for her to shake hard enough to make his arm wave like a noodle. “I’m Camilla Vodello. But you can call me Milla. I’m one of the counselors here. I’m sure you’ve heard of me?” she added with a wink.

“Um, I don’t think so?”

“Oh. But that’s alright. I don’t expect for you to know everybody’s names by now, and on your first day, no less. But I do know that you already met Sasha.”

“Who?” 

“You know. Black hair, orange glasses, green suit…”

Sebastian didn’t need the rest of her list, as he instantly recalled the man he bumped into earlier that day, and how he matched her description a little too well. 

“Oh. Heh. I hope I didn’t piss him off too much.”

“Don’t worry yourself, darling. Besides, it’s not like him to hold grudges. But do be careful of the wildlife here the next time you find yourself in the campground’s wilderness.”

“Will do. Hopefully.”

“And is that a lollipop?” she then asked, pointing to the candy in question he hadn’t realized was stuck in his silver hair.

“Well look at that. How did you get there?” He attempted to tug it out the long strands, stopping when it became clear he couldn’t remove it without scalping himself. “As you can see, sleeping on the job is never a good idea.”

She giggled at that. “I guess I’ll let you get back to it. But first, take these.”

She handed him the basket, Sebastian having to carry it with both arms from its surprisingly heavy weight.

“Just a little something I’ve spent most of the day working on, as a very special welcome gift. And a popular dessert back in Brazil. I hope you like them.”

“Why, thank you.”

“Well, I better get going. I hope you have a good night.”

“You too.”

Sebastian was about to head back in when she added,

“And silly me. I forgot to tell you Dogen said hi. And yes, I heard what you did to help him. And that Bobby and Benny are in need of talking to. But that can wait until I start the first levitation class of the year.”

“Yeah. He’s…interesting, but a good kid. Anywho, I should really head off to bed.”

“And I won’t keep you from doing so. Goodnight, darling.”

Trying not to blush at being called that for the third time in one conversation, Sebastian headed back inside, placing the basket on his worktable, curious as to what he got, especially since it's been…well, forever since anyone had given him a gift.

Opening it up, he was surprised to find a clear plastic box stuffed to the brim with brigadeiros covered in rainbow sprinkles.

But since he wasn’t hungry, he decided to store them in his apartment’s fridge in case he decided to have them for his morning breakfast.

And after getting what candies were still stuck off him, and having to cut the lollipop where it got stuck in his hair, he decided to sleep the remainder of the night away on the bed, feeling himself relax more he closed his eyes for a long night of sleep.

***

“Hello? Anyone?”

He wandered the narrow tunnel of dark stone, nothing else but himself and his voice echoing off the ragged walls.

“Hello?” he repeated, once again hearing nothing but the sound of his own voice. “Hello?”

He then spotted a purple light in the distance. A faint light, but still enough to stand out in the darkness.

With no other options he ran, the light growing bigger and brighter the closer he was getting towards it.

He did not know if it was a way out, a lighting fixture, or something else all together, but he did not care. There was something in here, and that’s all that mattered to him.

The light was closer, close enough for him to make out the crystal-like surface surrounding the flickering purple light in its center.

He slowed down before he could crash into it, taking on a slow walk as he gazed upon the crystalline structure in awe, the light seeming to intensify with his every step.

Even as it grew stronger, powerful, bright enough to be blinding, Sebastian did not stop, as if whatever this is was trying to draw him closer.

Close enough to allow him to place a hand on its surface, taking in the smooth, glass-like texture of it all before the light suddenly flashed, his vision overtaken by a screen of violet as a searing pain pounded in his head, forcing him to close his eyes with a pained scream.

***

He awakened to the pounding in his head and the scream escaping his throat, flinging himself up to find he was still in his room, and not…whatever that place was.

“What…what…was THAT?” he asked himself. 

But his thoughts were diverted by the ringing of his alarm clock, the time reading 6:30 a.m.

“Right in time, at least.”

Waiting for the last of the pounding to pass, he made the slow trek out of his room and into the kitchen, only to remember how he hadn’t gotten his own fridge stocked yet.

Brigaderios it is, then.

“Attention! All campers and counselors-and the new guy-report to the mess hall for breakfast!” shouted the announcement so loud it sounded as if Sebastian were standing outside to listen. “You’ll need all the energy you can get before basic braining today at noon! Followed by…crap, where did I put today’s announcements?!”

Sweet, free breakfast!

After pulling on a more presentable set of clothes, even if it still fitted his “thrift store chic” look as he called it, Sebastian made his way to the mess hall, hoping to get a quick meal and get back to work without any interruptions.

And to let himself ponder more about that strange dream, especially that strange, purple crystal…

Chapter Text

It was difficult to see anything, if at all, through the sea of campers that filled up the main lodge’s dining area.

Let alone dodge the plates and food and bent spoons flying as if out of their own accord.

“How many times do I have to tell ya?! No TK-ing during meal time!” screamed the loudspeakers, not like it did anything to calm the racket. “Well, I tried.”

Sebastian ducked and dodged silverware and apples as he made his way over to the main counter, the elderly cook too busy working at the stove to pay mind to the chaos going on in the dining area.

“Oh, you must be the new guy,” the cook said without as much as giving him a look. “And if I were to guess right, I’d say you’d like some…pancakes?”

“Um, yes?”

“Coming right up!”

As he watched the chef cook with inhuman speed, and with a touch of theatrical flair, Sebastian couldn’t help but wonder if he'd seen that man’s face before.

While he felt this was probably just a coincidence, the way the cook looked, spoke, regarded him with those tired eyes, reminded him of the man who initially approached him with the job.

He couldn’t remember the name, or was probably never given a name, the man promised him the job, on the condition of Sebastian agreeing to be put under some kind of “protective custody” during the entire duration of the summer. At least it was better than what they had in mind when Six caved in and accepted that same man’s offer to join the-

“Ready and served!”

Sebastian was pulled from his thoughts by sweet smell of pancakes in front of him.

Pancakes speckled with tiny dots of blue and brown.

“Why not make this first day special than with my signature chocolate chip and blueberry pancakes. An old family recipe too.”

“Um, thank you.”

Sebastian picked up his plate, about to leave when he heard the chef say in a near whisper,

“And don’t worry about her . She’s in good hands with us, same as you are in this camp.”

“Excuse me?” he said, but when he turned, the chef wasn’t at the stove, or anywhere in that kitchen, really.

“What in the hell?” he muttered, hoping nobody heard him swear around the children.

But too hungry to dig any deeper, or to remark again on how weird this place was, Sebastian walked off with his delicious smelling plate of food in tow.

It seemed that every table and seat was taken, Sebastian considering eating outside, just like he did back in highschool.

“Hey! Over here, darling!”

Sebastian looked around, almost losing the shout in the sea of voices when he spotted Milla in the distance, waving her arm from the small table tucked away from the rest of the dining area.

Holding back another blush at being called “Darling,” he hurriedly went over, careful not to spill his pancakes, to take a spot right next to her.

“Oh! I see you got the chef special. A personal favorite of mine.”

“Does the cook always do this for staff?” he asked.

“Only once in a good while, assuming the camp supplies are actually delivered on time.”

“At least my place, except the personal fridge, are stocked. If it counts.”

“I was told you didn’t have much the moment you were approved, so we did our best to prepare until you got here. Even if it meant splitting the camp’s total food supply to stretch the budget.”

Sebastian couldn’t help but regard her with confusion. “Does this camp have issues with budgeting, if you don’t mind me asking that. Am I even allowed to ask?”

“Not on this kind of scale, but yes.”

Sebastian held back a flinch at the unexpected voice, his nerves only calming when he saw the familiar green suit of Sasha appear from his left before the man himself took the other seat next to Milla. 

“And as a Whispering Rock member of staff, you are allowed to ask us questions, with some exceptions, considering you aren’t a Psychonaut like us.”

“There you are, darling,” Milla greeted before pecking a kiss on Sasha’s cheek, getting a small sliver of a smile from the otherwise stoic face.

Welp. There goes my chance.

Milla giggled at him, Sebastian not understanding why until he remembered the whole unguarded thoughts thing.

“Uh, I can explain…not…”

Please don’t think anything weird about me! I swear I forgot about the-

“I know you didn’t mean to, as much as I think it's cute of you to think, you know ,” she said while giving him a wink. “But don’t feel bad about it. Sometimes, folks just can’t help but think aloud. Kind of like when two people in a conversation are talking so loud, you can hear it from another room.”

“Heh. That’s a relief,” Sebastian said with an uncertain kind of nervousness in his voice, especially as he glanced at Sasha.

“Uh, no hard feelings?”

“It’s fine,” he simply said. “Not the first time I’ve heard someone’s admiration of Milla, telepathically or otherwise.”

“What can I say? Everybody wants me. But Sasha here isn’t without his fair share of admirers,” Milla added playfully.

“Not like I pay mind to such things. And not when I’m already in a relationship.”

Sebastian nodded in understanding, deciding to end this conversation by taking a bite of his pancakes.

Until they suddenly exploded into a million chunks, startling Sebastian out of his chair.

“Sorry!” he could make out Dogen’s voice from the overlapping chatter.

When the fear that overcame him came to pass, Sebastian sat back to stare at his plate with a sigh, like this wasn’t the first time such a thing happened to him.

“Well, there goes my breakfast.”

“Not on my watch, darling,” Milla announced as she got up and hovered over to the main counter.

“Hey, wait! What do I owe you!” Sebastian called out, but she was already too far to hear him.

“Nothing?” Sasha said. “And why ask?”

“Oh, uh, it’s nothing,” Sebastian said, Sasha not convinced of his answer. “Well, it’s not like I’m used to stuff like this, if that answers your question.”

“Not? Used to?”

Sebastian considered making a bolt out the lodge’s back door when Milla returned, a brand new stack of chocolate chip and blueberry pancakes placed before him, with the unexpected addition of bacon.

“I almost had to fight the cook to get these added,” Milla said. “But I hope they’ll be enough, considering the day ahead of you.”

Sebastian stared at his plate, unsure of what to say about all…this.

“Thank you,” was what he did tell her.

“And if you need anything else, just tell me,” Milla said.

“I can also be of assistance, should you require it,” Sasha added. 

Sebastian nodded and immediately dug into his stack of pancakes.

***

“Hello? Hello!”

Sebastian had to cease filling up the current display case to answer the door, questioning who in the hell could be knocking this frantically when he already put out several signs the place wouldn’t be open until tomorrow. 

He peered through the door window, finding no one yet hearing a voice continuing on nonetheless.

“Hello!” they said, almost sounding as if they were lower than he assumed.

Opening the door, looking down to find a short woman with a hunchback, her white hair wild and uneven as with her taste in clothing.

Including the oven mitt on her hand that would’ve hit his leg if she had failed to notice the door was now open.

“Oh my gosh! I’m so sorry, mister Sebastian!” came her fast and scared apology from her now cowering from.

And he thought he was the one with chronic nervousness.

“It’s fine, you’re fine,” he tried reassuring, not expecting to be on the opposite end of reassurance. “I just, well, wasn’t really expecting anyone right now.”

She dared to lift her head up to look at him.

“Oh. Right. About that. I’ve been meaning to ask for something.”

“And that is?”

“Well…uh…I was wondering…if you were…in need of some…assistance?”

Sebastian didn’t know how to react other than let out a confused “Uh…”

“I…I mean, I think I got most of this covered,” he finally got out.

“Oh gosh! I’m so sorry for taking up your-”

“Unless you know how to work a stove,” Sebastian added. “I mean, this place won’t support itself on hard candies and lollipops alone.”

“R-r-really?” she asked more hopefully. “And yes, I know a few things about cooking. Baking. Baking cakes and cupcakes, mostly, if you think that counts.”

“It does. And welcome aboard.”

Sheegor tilted her head like a confused puppy.

“Sorry. I mean, you’re hired.”

“Wh-why, thank you, mister Sebastian!”

“Please, it's just Sebastian,” he said, wondering if formalities are something of a norm in this place. “But what about you?”

“Huh?” she said with a head tilt.

“Your name, I mean. Sorry.”

“Oh, it’s Sheegor, mist- Sebastian.”

Sebastian simply nodded at that, as much as he was curious about such a name.

Letting her in, the short woman waddled her way past empty shelves and dining tables, taking in the old but cozy space with quiet “oohs.”

“Everything you’ll need is in the kitchen. And don’t worry about any mistakes, as this is more of a test run today. Besides, I really need to figure out what to do with my edible defects before I start on anything else.”

Sheegor nodded. “Sure, I suppose.” 

Sheegor hobbled over to the kitchen door, stopping to glance at Sebastian as if seeking approval.

“Go on. You’re allowed.”

She nodded and headed inside, allowing Sebastian to focus on his other tasks.

It was a long while of cleaning and disposing of the ruined candy batches and so many other things he didn’t expect to be doing, like this building was neglected until he showed up, but he managed to get a quarter of what he needed done before sitting at the nearest table for a break.

And right in time for Sheegor to leave the kitchen, holding a platter of plain chocolate cupcakes that she placed in front of him.

“I-I hope these will do. B-but maybe you can try them first? And if you don’t like them I can make something else.”

“Um, sure.”

He grabbed one cupcake and took a small bite, a satisfied smile forming across his face as he savored the rich flavor.

“Well?” Sheegor said nervously.

He nodded his head. “These are perfect.”

“Y-you think so?”

“Of course I do. And if you’re able to make a few more batches-“

She was already hobbling her way back to the kitchen, eliciting sounds of cheer as she did so.

“Okay then. Just don’t go too crazy! We probably won’t even need much!”

***

He stopped keeping track after a while, but Sebastian was relieved when he and Sheegor got half of the work done, as much as they gave it their absolute all.

But then again, not even the power of two was enough for the task.

“Not perfect, but close enough,” Sebastian simply said, Sheegor too busy stocking the display case of cupcakes to hear him at first.

“And tada! Would this be enough?”

Sebastian turned to answer, not expecting for Sheegor to actually fill the display cases all the way to the brim.

“Holy crap…” he muttered. “Uh, I mean, yeah. You did a good job. With everything today,” he added.

Sheegor smiled and let out a happy squeal.

“Thank you! Thank you! This is more fun than being cramped down in that lab all day.”

Sebastian froze up. “Lab? What…l-l-lab” he asked more nervously.

“You don’t know of Sasha’s secret lab? Out in the old GPC area? I mean, it’s supposed to be a secret lab, but you know, with how much Sasha invites campers to participate in his experiments and all…”

No matter how much he focused, her words became gibberish echos in Sebastian’s ears, his vision swirling as a swirled and cloudy haze, everything too bright and overwhelming and distant, the air too hard to breathe in, his lungs aching and heart beating too fast and he felt like he could fall-

“Are you alright?”

Like the crashing weight of a semi hitting the deer caught in its headlights, everything came back to Sebastian like a hard hitting crash, nearly hitting the floor if it weren’t for Sheegor rushing over to catch him the moment he lost balance.

“Oh my gosh! What happened?!”

“I…ugh…my head…” 

Sheegor helped him sit down on the floor, sitting across from him herself with his hand held by one of her oven mitts for gloves.

They remained like this for a long time, until Sebastian was the first to speak.

“Um, thanks. I needed that.”

“No problem mis- Sebastian. And sorry if I scared you.”

“You’re fine. It’s…nothing for you to worry about.”

Sheegor didn’t seem certain of his answer, but nodded anyway.

“And, wait, what time is it?

Sheegor glances briefly at the nearest clock. “Eight fifteen?”

“Crap.”

“Is there something wrong?”

Sebastian sighed. “No. It’s just…I didn’t think it would be this long. How about we call it a day?”

“Um, okay.”

Sheegor was about to make her leave when Sebastian said,

“I don’t really have much yet, but here.”

Her eyes went wide as he handed her a bag of hard candies, Sheegor holding it in her hands as if in utter disbelief.

“Wh-what?” she was muttering. “Why?”

“Well, you worked your ass off, didn’t you? You earned it.”

Sheegor looked at him, as if she didn’t know what to make of this, going as far as to hand him the baggie back.

“Please. I insist.”

Even with her uncertainty, Sheegor was happier than he’d ever seen her at the treat in her hands.

“Why, thank you! I hope I can help out more tomorrow, if you require my help, of course.”

“I wouldn’t mind the help. If you’re able.”

“Well, I might have to reschedule my time with Sasha first. But I think he wouldn’t mind either.”

“So, you work with him or something? But why help me?”

“Well, I'm his assistant, and it's technically my day off today, but I get stir crazy if I do nothing for too long. So I go around offering help to anyone in camp who needs it. But none of them ever paid me, or gave me a treat like this.”

Sebastian didn’t know what to say, or what to think, about it, but he gave a small nod.

“Well, I better get going. It’s feeding time for Mr. Pokeylope!”

Sheegor quickly hobbled out before Sebastian gave a response, leaving him standing there with a lot to think about.

Especially the part about the secret lab and experiments, and done by one of his own coworkers no less.

Don’t panic, dude. Just keep your powers under wraps and everything will be fine…hopefully.