Lionstar understands that reluctance, especially given the cultural fraught-ness around mind-gifts with the Haighlei. 

”It is not a permanent change,” he tries to reassure Sakshemar. “Merely in the moment you are projecting, and it only will shift emotions, not beliefs or other structure. I...do not mind...if you were to practice with me.”

(He’s slightly uncomfortable with it, but he strongly values the prospect of having an ally with well-harnessed Projective Empathy. It may well come in handy.)

"Shift emotions can do things," he says. "Emotion is—part of person. But—if you not mind, if you think I should... some time maybe," he reluctantly agrees.

Lionstar doesn’t want to push too hard. “I think it is important, it is ill-advised to leave a strong Gift uncontrolled, but not urgent. When you feel ready. We might discuss and agree in advance what emotion to use, so we are both prepared.”

He nods slowly. Still hesitant, but willing to consider the practical implications and let them inform his decisionmaking. "Yes. Good plan."

In the meantime, it’s been a long day and they can settle down for the night. Lionstar can offer to take the first watch tonight, if Sakshemar would like. (Lionstar is concerned that Sakshemar is consistently getting short-shifted on sleep.)

Sakshemar accepts this offer. He sleeps very soundly when he does.

There’s enough meat that they really don’t need to hunt again for a couple of days, although it might be nice to supplement with some local edible plants, if Sakshemar knows of any. (The former Lionstar, unfortunately, was woefully unprepared there as well, and his memory-traces are fading anyway.)

His knowledge there is sketchier, but he does recognize a few things. These berries are very tasty, and those roots are not much fun by themselves but make an excellent addition to stews.

They will be adequately fed!

Lionstar mentions in the least pressuring way he can manage that he is still available if Sakshemar would like to practice Empathy.

And he sighs and nods. This is not something he's looking forward to, but it is important.

"What should I try send?"

Lionstar would like to pick an option that will be minimally uncomfortable for both Sakshemar and himself. “We start with something simple and positive,” he suggests. “Perhaps just calm-and-reassurance. I...can think of an upsetting subject. And see if you can counteract it.”

It won’t be hard at all to get himself feeling on edge, and if Sakshemar can fight that, it’ll be both easy to notice and an impressive show of control. 

”You are good at being reassuring,” he adds.

...he smiles, pleased, at the compliment.

"We can do that," he agrees.

“Please allow me about a minute to, er, prepare.” Lionstar sits down on a rock under their mossy overhang, closes his eyes, and lets his thoughts slide back to Urtho. Really, it takes less effort than keeping them away.

grief - pain - anger - no - 

For a moment Sakshemar is just concentrating, with no visible result, sitting a few feet away and staring intently at the ground between them.

And then—

Calm.

A sense of peace and stillness, rolling over him like a wave. The feeling that everything is going to be all right, that he has time and space to rest. Comfort, safety, quiet contentment.

Sakshemar's projection is very strong. Detailed, too. It's not just a generic wash of reassuringness; it's a specific emotion, a specific experience, rich and real and alive. This is what okayness feels like to Sakshemar.

It’s not real, Lionstar reminds himself - it’s just an emotion, Sakshemar is changing his head and not the world. Still, it feels... Relief. Not giving up, not setting down the burdens he made a pact with himself to near until he can fix it, but...metaphorically, he can sit down a moment, share that weight. His eyes are prickling, not from pain, but from the cessation of it.

He puts his head down on his knees, and basks in it for what feels like a very long time. 

He holds it longer than he meant to, because Lionstar so obviously needs it.

But eventually, his concentration frays, and the projection fades.

Lionstar blinks and sits up.

“That was...good,” he says. “Power, control, sophistication - Sakshemar, that was incredible! You have a great talent here.”

He pauses, takes a deep breath, and steels himself. “After you rest, I think we ought practice some less pleasant emotions. Offensive uses; fear, despair. Someday you - we - may be in a situation where this Gift is a necessary weapon. It would be well to have tried it before, and I do not mind.” 

Lionstar's assessment of his talent makes him smile again. "Emotions are... easy to understand," he says. "I good by them. At. I am good at them."

He hesitates a little at Lionstar's suggestion, though. "I don't want... yes, good to know how to use as weapon, but..." Another momentary struggle with vocabulary. "Knife or spear, can make blunt, practice safe. Emotion weapon not so. Don't want to hurt you."

Lionstar smiles; he isn’t sure why but he likes hearing Sakshemar admit that he’s good at something.

He looks his friend in the eye, earnest. “Sakshemar, you will not cause harm that cannot be undone. Emotions are fleeting, and you have just more than proven that you can do reassurance well. We might...arrange a signal, such that if it is too much, I will indicate this and you can switch to calming.” He bows his head. “I wish for you to know your full capabilities. And I trust you, with this.”

He hesitates a moment longer, but then nods. "If you sure."

Lionstar is more nervous than he’s trying to let on, but he does think it’s important.

He leans over and picks up a hand-sized stone. “Here. If I drop this, it means I need you to stop. You can also use your judgement and stop if I seem...not okay.” He smiles crookedly. “I am not so fragile, so do not worry. Start smaller, maybe, but do not be afraid to push.”

He nods, at first tentative, then again more firmly.

"I try send fear," he says. "Ready?"

“Ready.”

And—

Dread. Sick, creeping dread, a wrongness in the world, not just the primal awareness of a threat but the feeling that something about this situation is fundamentally not okay. A burning need to respond, to gain control of the situation, to do something, anything to make the bad thing go away, and a helpless certainty that there is nothing to be done, that he has exhausted all the options and the only thing left is to sit here and feel this.

It’s such an alien emotion, at first, that he doesn’t even think to resist, and then the awful helpless feeling-of-certain-doom has its grip on him and he can’t - there was something - can’t...

There’s a stone in his hand (and he needs to react, somehow, anything, to fight off the wrongbadwrong but he’s paralyzed under the crushing despair) and the stone is still in his hand and it was for something but he can’t, he can’t remember- 

A mental image of stars flashes and - not me, wrong, other - and he remembers, just long enough to let the stone fall from nerveless fingers.