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"Um... Mi - mister Boole?" Another one of the office goons - Jason, he thinks - hesitantly peeks into Dogen's cubical, fingers drumming on a white wall. Dogen hates that sound. It hums in his head next to the heavy cloud of his own power, so he pulls down on his hat and his hidden psychoisolation bonnet and grunts a little. Jason nervously continues, "The, uh, cooler's acting up again."
Dogen sighs and stands from his chair. Despite his small stature, his anxious coworker flinches as he walks past him. Jason follows close behind him, wringing his hands the whole time. If it weren't for the bonnet, Dogen would be hearing every loud, nervous thought.
Jason points it out from a decent distance, "Th - there."
Dogen pauses in front of the cooler in question. The water inside is rocking violently back and forth, practically boiling at the sides of the plastic tank. The angrily foaming water is accompanied by a low rumble somewhere in the back of his head, and a sharp hiss from the agitated cooler. This happened before, too, a few years back.
"It's that time of the year again," Dogen mumbles to no one but himself. Jason, to his credit, doesn't ask him to repeat that. Dogen tiredly glances up at him and nods, tucking his hands in his pockets. "Don't worry. I'll take care of it."
"You - you will?" Jason asks, still wringing his hands so tightly he might start just peeling the skin off his knuckles. Dogen nods. Jason lets out a long, harrowed sigh, smiling a little. "Thanks."
"Sure." Dogen shrugs. Then he heads off right past the cooler, out of the office bay, and into the Motherlobe proper.
He passes through the atrium without incident and slips into the hallway of the senior agents' quarters, lucky that Raz's is the first on the right. The water in the fishtank in the hall is bubbling, pushing against the glass with clear fingers. It paces the length of the tank like a tiger in a cage. The fish inside are simply strung along with the current, wide eyed and idly drifting.
Dogen politely knocks on the door. No one answers. He politely lets himself in anyway.
Raz's office is empty and in complete disarray. Collectibles and books and a gifted bottle of homebrewed beer have all been rattled from the shelves and strewn across the floor, the little flowerboxes around the indoor pond overturned and spilling dirt. It looks like a hurricane's passed through here. Looking out across the pond and to the quarry outside, it looks like one might actually have.
As Dogen crosses the little wood platforms on the indoor pond, watery hands reach up to claw at his ankles. Yet when they manage to get ahold of him, they don't do anything more than tug on his shoelaces. They're angry and scared, but they pretty much leave him alone.
Dogen stands out on the balcony and the wind is cold, blowing sharply. He pulls his hat down over his ears, burying his hands a little deeper in his pockets. Out past the railing of the balcony is a bubble of water, supported on a similar platform rising out of the lake. A steep fall waits on every side, and the water below looks just as angry as the water behind.
"Hey, Raz?" Dogen calls over the wind and the rushing water. No one answers. He cups his hands over his mouth and calls again, a little louder this time, "I'm gonna come over there. Is that okay?"
No one answers.
Suddenly, the howling wind falls silent. Out of the churning water below a hand reaches out, bigger than the others from the pond before. Instead of grabbing for him it simply sits there, waiting at the railing like a snake perched to strike. They stare at each other for a long moment before the hand opens up like a flower, extending a flat palm to him. Dogen climbs over the railing and into the waiting hand.
Ahead of him another hand appears. He carefully makes his way through the air above the quarry and isn't afraid of falling, not even once. The little path of open hands carries him all the way to the ball of water suspended in the air, and Dogen reaches out and parts the water as if it were a curtain.
Raz is inside it, curled in on himself. His back is to Dogen and his knees are pulled up to his chest, and a shaking hand runs through his hair. His shoulders shudder with each uneven breath he takes. The water makes a little platform beneath him and makes a little curtain around him, bottles him up and hides him away.
Dogen steps inside the bubble. The curtain closes behind him. Gently, he asks, "Do you wanna talk about it?"
Raz weakly shakes his head, ducking his face further into his knees. Dogen carefully walks around the taller man and stands beside him, close to the edge of the watery platform.
"Think I could sit here?" He asks. Raz hesitantly nods his head, still hidden in his little ball, all tangled up in his own limbs. Dogen crosses his legs on the water beneath him and finds it surprisingly stable. He takes a seat next to Raz and sits there, silent.
Around this time, Raz usually takes a few days leave and heads out to see his family. There's no denying he doesn't deserve that time - he's done so much in so little time, spent so much of that time devoted to others. This time of the year is a dark cloud that he usually weathers with those who can prop him up best, keep the storm from swallowing him.
He must not have gone this year. Dogen knows Raz well enough to know that his grandmother's death weighs on him just as much as her life.
So he sits there beside him, watching him bury his head in his knees, watching his shoulders shake. Dogen opens his arms in invitation, weakly prodding Raz's mind. The taller man slowly unfurls, spreading his arms wide, and shakily closes around him. He slumps over Dogen's smaller body and Dogen idly pats his back, resting his chin up on Raz's shoulder.
The shaking starts to subside. Raz's wiry arms clutch him tightly, anchoring him back to reality. He sniffles and pulls back a quivering lip, his face reddened, eyes swollen. The water slowly peels away around them, letting in the cold air and the distantly warm afternoon sun.
"It's okay." Dogen murmurs. Raz crumples over him a little further, now fallen quiet. Dogen tilts his head into Raz's neck a little bit. "You wanna head back inside? I can help you clean up if you want."
"...Sure," Raz swallows, clearing his throat. He stands slowly and ahead of him the water rises to meet the platform, making a little bridge back to the balcony. He sheepishly looks down. "Thanks, Dogen."
"Don't mention it." Dogen laces his fingers in Raz's, gives his hand a squeeze. He starts off on the watery path and Raz follows close behind. "I'll make you some tea. Gramps sent me a bunch of honey I don't know what to do with."
"That sounds nice." Raz manages. Dogen doesn't look back to see the small smile on his face, but the happiness starts to leak out and radiate off of him, piercing even his isolation bonnet. He sniffles, wiping his face, "Lili brought a home blend of hers last time she came to visit."
"Gram sent honey cakes, too." Dogen adds. He hops off the balcony railing and Raz steps down to the solid ground below. The water disappears back into the lake behind them. Dogen smiles to himself. "It'll be a little tea party."
It's been a while since they were together. He'd better make the most of it.