- I see. We can make sure there's always someone with him, at least.

The shrine is looking quite nice. It is well lit and has a reading nook and the altar has engravings and little figurines demonstrating different swordfighting stances. 

It was also previously set up to be a smaller, more intimate meeting-room, so the original furniture - some of which is still in place - consists more of cozy upholstered armchairs than of large boardroom meeting-tables. 

Leareth eases Vanyel down into one of the armchairs and brings a footstool over. One of his Healers is already there, with blankets and pillows, and they can make Vanyel comfortable.

Nayoki arrives halfway through this. 

:Leareth -?: 

:Honestly I do not know much more than you do, but - here...: And he opens his shields to her, showing her his memories of the last few minutes. 

WOW. It's...not literally the first time ever that Leareth has done that, with her, but it took years of working together before he was ever willing to, even with extensive negotiations, and - 

- honestly Nayoki is not sure how to feel about how he's changed after being apparently selected as some kind of special representative of Iomedae??? 

She has a look anyway, though. 

...And also a look at Vanyel's mind. 

:...Oh. Oh no: 

:I know:

Leareth perches on the arm of Vanyel's chair. "Vanyel. Can you - there was something you wished to say to me...?" 

He's so tired. That's the predominant feeling Vanyel is having, even though Leareth's presence apparently also makes him feel less tired and calmer and - like he's not alone except that he knows that's a LIE and everyone who's ever cared about him and claimed to promise to stay has LEFT - 

He swallows hard. "You - need to be very careful in working with Valdemar. The Companions - it's not their fault, please, don't blame them for it - but they - it hurts them, to, to think about how, about - all the ways that Iomedae is trying to fix the world and the gods here are not. And - I think it can be–" 

(internal screaming, which leaks through a little despite Vanyel's best efforts) 

"- I think if you're very careful and so are they, Valdemar could still help with Iftel. But - please - don't just hurt them more for no reason..." 

:Rovira? I - fear I am not very skilled at...comforting people in distress...what should I say?: 

We're proud of you for telling us, we can take over from here, we'll look out for Yfandes and anyone else who has been, uh, injured, by this, is there anything else we should know -

"Vanyel, I, we, are very proud of you for...having the courage to come here, and tell us about this -" 

Leareth repeats the rest of the script provided. It's very helpful. 

He also takes Vanyel's hand, which is probably not a thing he would have done before having been made a paladin, but he feels like it might help. 

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah why do people keep WANTING and NEEDING things from him - he's already been declared bad and awful and useless because Yfandes left and walked away and, and, and– 

"....Ummm, you - should be aware, it - the Heralds will, er, will - probably have a complicated response. To– to the fact that - the Companions - Yfandes - because I left...." 

He's shaking like a leaf now, but he pushes ahead.

"Leareth. They - hate you - they don't trust you and they don't trust me because I - respect you, and–"

Vanyel's eyes briefly turn to the other person who he's assuming is here representing Iomedae, "- and I think that's spreading onto - not trusting your people and your god. I, I know it's not fair, but - it might help you more in, in achieving your goals if - you kept that in mind and - distanced yourselves from Leareth...?"

"We can't lie," Rovira says, not exactly sadly. "Not in negotiations with a prospective ally, not even - indirectly, through careful implications designed to deceive without any spell catching them..."

"...I mean, I - think I understand that? But - honestly that's mostly because of, of having - spent over a decade talking to Leareth in my dreams. Because that's–  all right, not how he thinks now–"

Vanyel cuts himself off, shakes his head in an apologetic way, "- er, I mean, not how he thought when he - was talking to me the past decade... I - sorry - I'm trying to explain something here but I don't know if I'm making sense -?" 

:Did you follow what he was trying to communicate there: Leareth sends to Rovira. :Because I am not sure that I did: 

"You understand Law, because Leareth has always understood Law?" Rovira says.

Gaaaaaaah why are they asking him questions which are genuinely interesting, when all Vanyel wants to do is to get this conversation OVER WITH so that he has no further todo items and can die already - 

- it is, however, genuinely interesting? And also someone - Leareth? (...Vanyel is just going to set aside and ignore all the implications of that, and replace it with a generic someone) - is squeezing his hand, which seems like encouragement to say more things - 

"...I think Leareth taught me something, and I - don't know how much it corresponds to what your world means by 'Law'? I - don't think I understand the thing Golarion means, although - I mean, you must know our first contact was with Cheliax and they're also incredibly horrible....?" 

"They are!" Rovira says immediately. "They're horrible. So I'd really like Valdemar to talk to us instead. But we can't do that by suggesting that Leareth isn't playing a key role in establishing the Church in Velgarth, since he is. We can - try to avoid pushing any sore points, though. I'll do a Sending to warn them."

"You should probably do that." 

Vanyel is trying to think through all the implications, there, but he keeps getting dragged off track into the bottomless pit of pain and emptiness and - 'Lendel where are you why did you leave why aren't you here...? 

"...Leareth? Sorry, do you - have better questions - I, I'm trying to think of them but I -?" 

Leareth squeezes Vanyel's arm. 

"You should rest. I think we know the essentials, now - we can talk about the details later." 

- No. They can't. Because Vanyel is hanging on by a thread, here, and as soon as they're done asking him the endless questions - as soon as Leareth knows enough to not make stupid decisions–

–well, Vanyel already knows how he's planning to kill himself.

"- I told Randi," he forces out through the tight lump in his throat. "I - told him - about, about Aroden - being alive -"   

Leareth goes very still. 

(Rovira, he's assuming, doesn't know about that particular tidbit - though of course it's not Vanyel's fault for assuming, especially not given his current state...) 

Rovira indeed looks extremely confused and alarmed!

Oh no. 

"- Thank you for telling us," Leareth says. "Vanyel, it is - all right - I am here, I will - make sure that we take into account everything that you have told us. ...We may have more questions in a little while. But - you can rest for a moment, now. I am right here. I promise that, that - everything will be all right."

And - since this seems like the least awkward way of doing this given their current surroundings - Leareth lifts Vanyel up and slips down into the armchair and re-settles Vanyel in his lap. 

(He is really hoping that his addition about how they might have more questions soon will make it LESS likely that Vanyel will try to kill himself.) 

(...Which, probably, Vanyel has less destructive methods for than a Final Strike. If it's a Final Strike then Leareth will die, and - they're most of the way to setting up an immediate Resurrection - but if it were Vanyel then it would surely require the 9th circle version and THAT isn't set up yet, for the obvious reason that it's stupidly expense and would risk revealing all of Aroden's plans to another god -) 

Vanyel allows himself to be shifted onto - whoever's lap that is, who cares - and he closes his eyes and drifts away.