"I'm sure. As you know, I am just Like This."

He'll help with the food if convenient, or just continue reviewing some dungeon reports idly if not.

Haru assigns him to chop an onion. "I wonder if all things considered it's better to have a backlash that is also a way you already are or not."

"Backlashes are too individual to generalize that I think."

"Yeah, you're probably right."

Onion is chopped.

"All's well that ends well. I think I know how to cope, sort of, because of the like this... Ness. I sometimes speculate 'what if I had his or her backlash instead', but... It doesn't feel that productive."

"Mine can manifest as something sort of like yours sometimes. I assume it's worse when it's the primary symptom instead of a, like, rationalization." Onions go in the pan and sizzle.

"I don't think you've seen me really backlashed yet."

"...should we have some kind of emergency plan for if you get that way and refuse to see anybody?"

"...Probably. Uh- You needing me for your own backlash reduction, me having something on the schedule that I committed to so I have to suck it up and cope-"

"Do those work as well if they're - contrived in response to an emergency?"

"I don't know. I... Might not be very talky if I get that bad?"

This onion is getting VERY CHOPPED.

"I did manage to do IT work during awakening... I think mostly out of spite or to prove something, in the moment... It was very 'everything is obviously ruined forever but I can at least do this and make it very slightly less'."

"All right. We should have some kind of plan for if you get into a state where you can't, like, call for help, though. - I think that's enough onion." He takes the additional onion and adds it to the pan.

"I sort of feel like, if there is an explicit checklist I'm supposed to follow, I can probably manage that under backlash? Especially if I think I'm talking to an automated system. Maybe post it up on every wall in my new place."

"Yeah, that could work. Maybe there could be some kind of status you can update instead of having to send an email, if that's easier."

"There should probably also be something that... A hard limit I can't override, like, if Teddy completely vanishes for 48 hours send help."

"Yeah, that's more what I had in mind in the first place. - if I ever go from acting really clingy and chatty to no longer bothering with making conversation and didn't get any guiding in between, that's a danger sign, and if I'm still talky but what I'm saying sounds like I don't believe you exist, that is too, and I would want you to insist."

"...Yeah. I think I'd more - not bother to drink water or go see a doctor, than actively-"

"I don't know if I would get to the point of, uh, actively, or not. My parents didn't leave me alone between the two of them the entire week I was awakening and I was pulling really hard into a shape that doesn't have that problem. Considering what my backlash is I don't think I need a 48 hour grace period, bother me immediately if you are the least bit concerned. That's kind of a long time to not drink water, though? If that is a thing you might do?"

"Twenty-four then. Or like. Thirty. To cover varying waking up time."

He will interrupt food prep for a hug.

Hug. "I don't plan to push that hard, but, you know, dungeons, and a lot of my power is reactive and it could sneak up on me."

"That's what happened to Wendy the other day even!! It happens!!"

"Yup. Hence emergency plans. It is among the reasons I intend to continue to live with Ren till I can live with someone else besides just Cricket, he might fumble a phone in an emergency and also I have no idea what a monstercat's lifespan is."

"So, some sort of automated check-in for me where I have to press a button once a day. Also a 'my status' thing I can set that probably nobody will ever actually look at and don't disabuse me of this willful ignorance. General policy of- Framing things to me as 'Haru is getting guiding out of this and that's why he's here' and 'there is a policy in place here, we agreed to a rule about this you signed up for it, go along with the rule Teddy'. And for you, I should be mindful of sudden quiet when you are otherwise normally backlashed."

"Right. I don't think I would ever actively resist guiding but the bad thing I can fall into is solipsism and if you don't exist you can't guide me, is the idea."

"Well, if I don't exist, then touching me to check can't do any harm... Gonna text my agent about this so he can look into checkin stuff."