Essence users went through their own variation of shock, compared to normal people whose souls had not been magically reinforced. Following the trauma, essence users gained a grace period where their minds were stabilised by their souls. It was a defence mechanism that gave them a chance to seize a critical moment and escape their circumstances.
The price of all this was that once the grace period had passed, their souls would enter a recovery state. Their powers were negatively affected and their mental state crashed, leaving them both fragile and vulnerable. Jason had experienced this himself, and it was not long into the first leg of their return to Australia that Farrah experienced that crash for herself.
Jason knew that there was little he could do for her at the moment, other than keep her safe. He didn’t disembark when the plane stopped to refuel, remaining outside the sleeping cabin like a loyal guard dog. Only once he got her somewhere that she truly felt secure could she set out on the long path to recovery.
What that would look like, Jason was unsure. He didn’t have access to experienced professionals like Arabelle or Carlos, the priest of the Healer that had helped him. He snorted a laugh at the irony of him, of all people, being disappointed at the lack of a priest.
Jason didn’t bother waiting for the flight to land in Australia, portalling directly off the plane with a blank-faced Farrah. The interior of the houseboat managed to rouse a reaction as she looked around at the white and sunset colours of the cloud-stuff. He could sense the presence of his sister and her family but didn’t announce his presence when he arrived in an empty cabin.
“Cloud house?”
“Yep,” Jason said. “I won Emir’s little contest.”
“You met Emir?”
“Sure did,” Jason said. “We have a lot to catch up on. I’m sorry I won’t be able to help you as well as Arabelle would.”
“Rufus’s mother? How much did I miss?”
“I can’t wait to tell you all about it,” Jason said. “Let’s get you settled in a room, and I’ll make us some…”
Jason glanced through the window at the bright blue sky. His phone had been lost in the plane explosion and after jetting across the world and back, he didn’t even know what time it was.
“…lunch?” he guessed, based on the day outside.
Now that Farrah was secure, Jason's next concern was her recovery. Even if he found a local trauma counsellor he could trust, the circumstances made it very tricky. Anyone who already knew about magic would still have a lot of catch-up to do and would come from one of the local magical powers. Jason didn't trust the Network or the Cabal to not view Farrah as an opportunity rather than a victim, even if they did have the qualified staff.
Jason could find an unaffiliated specialist himself, but there was no way to help Farrah properly without inducting that person into the secrets of magic and alternate universes. That would cause problems with traumatising his new trauma counsellor and he needed someone who could help her with the culture shock.
In many ways, Jason himself was the best choice to help her. He had some relevant experiences, but that did not make him the equal of the people who had helped him through those experiences. He did not want to mess Farrah up more than she already was.
In the end, he decided to compromise. He would reach out to the Network and ask their healer, Gladys, for potential options. First, he would need a new phone.
“Uncle Jason!”
The moment Jason appeared in the houseboat’s galley, his niece apparently confused the concepts of hugging and rugby tackles as she launched herself in his direction. He stood solid as a wall as she crashed into him, ruffling her hair affectionately.
“Uncle Jason…” she complained, straightening it with her fingers. He chuckled as he looked to her mother making lunch. Ian walked in from outside, holding the book he was reading. Ian greeted him with a welcoming smile, while Erika gave him a scolding look.
“You have a lot of explaining to do,” she told Jason. “Like what’s going on with those sunglasses.”
“Jet lag,” Jason lied. “I’ll tell you all about my trip later. You know, it’s sometimes eerie how much you look like Mum when you’re cranky.”
“You do kind of look like Nanna,” Emi said, examining her mother’s face.
Erika’s nostrils flared and her eyes went wide.
“Now you really look like Nanna,” Emi said as her father held laughter back with tightly pressed lips.
“Explanations will have to wait a couple of days,” Jason said. “I promised the men in black I’d stopped randomly telling people stuff before they enter into a secrecy agreement.”
“Since when do you have any respect for authority?” Erika asked.
“I’m always conscientious and respectful,” he lied, moving around the kitchen counter to catch his sister in a hug. She didn't return it, so as not to get food stains on his clothes from her hands as she mixed spices.
“Once Emi goes off to play with Shade,” he whispered to her.
“Suffice to say,” Jason continued in a normal voice, “that a friend of mine was in need of help, and I helped her.”
“This is a mysterious magic friend?” Erika asked.
“Yes, although that requires its own explanation. I’ll make sure you’re up to speed before she’s ready to start meeting people. She’s in a rough way, right now, so don’t expect her to pop out and say hi. I'd appreciate if you could knock some food up for her, though. She doesn't, strictly speaking, need to eat, but she could use the comfort in comfort food.”
“She’s here?” Erika asked.
“It’s a she?” Ian asked as he sat his book on the counter and Jason glanced at the cover.
“The Shipping News,” he read from the cover. “I didn't like it.”
“No?” Ian said. “I’m quite enjoying it.”
“It’s a problem of expectations,” Jason said. “From what I saw people saying on the internet, I was anticipating more ships.”
“You know, you left Mum, Kaito and Amy in quite an uproar,” Erika said as Jason washed his hands to assist Erika. “Letting them in on it and then running off to Europe.”
“I know I need to talk to them,” Jason said, “but I have my own priorities right now.”
“They’re coming around this afternoon,” Erika said. “I could have warned you if you had a phone. Why do you not have a phone again?”
“I left it on the plane,” Jason said as he started chopping vegetables. “You could have told Shade. Actually, Shade could have told me.”
“Your instructions were to respect their privacy and only inform you if their activities put them in danger,” Shade’s voice came from Erika’s shadow.
“You know, I don’t love the constant surveillance,” Erika said.
“Non-negotiable,” Jason said, the usual joviality in his voice displaced by a hard edge that made them all turn their heads to him. Erika and Ian shared a glance. Jason kept chopping vegetables, seeming not to notice.
“Your knife skills are coming along,” Erika said, watching Jason's hands move in a blur.
“The advantage of superhuman reflexes.”
“Uncle Jason,” Emi said, “is it fun being a superhero? I bet it’s lots of fun.”
“I’m not a superhero, Moppet.”