[ It registers, somewhere in the back of Ben's mind, how insistent Pratt is that he's not seeing things, that his perception of reality is true and accurate. Ben knows that kind of desperation well enough to recognize it at once. So many years of Klaus talking about the ghosts - Ben and others - and not being believed, despite everything. Somewhere along the line, for some reason, a person, or many people, had not believed Pratt when he told them about what was happening. They'd doubted him and made him doubt himself a little maybe.
But there is no time to address any of that, sensitively or otherwise, because right now Ben just needs to keep them both alive. He feels a rush of relief when Pratt listens to him and runs away. Finally, someone doing what Ben asks, doing the smart and safe thing. Except Ben's nightmare is not, in fact, himself. He isn't afraid of being attacked with his own powers - he's terrified of losing control of them and using them to hurt good people, innocent people, people he cares about.
So that shadowy version of Ben has no interest in letting Pratt get away. It untangles itself and goes pelting after Pratt. Fear and adrenaline make Ben think and run quickly; he closes the portal in his own stomach so he can move faster and slips ahead, not looking back at that hollow, vicious version of himself. It's only by seconds that he beats it to the room Pratt has run into, to look for weapons. Ben slams the door, buying them seconds, and then he wordlessly grabs Pratt's arm and pulls him along, the wolf in tow, just making a break for it, running without any thought to where he is going, just away from it, somewhere safe.
He only stops when he sees a heavy-looking door, hauls it open to see some kind of small storage facility for labeled samples - it must be part of some lab or other. Not ideal, but big enough for him and Pratt and the wolf, but the door is serious business, so Ben wordlessly gestures and half-shoves all three of them inside and slams the door shut. Then he leans his back against the door, out of breath and wincing from the lingering pain, but they're all here, all whole. That's enough for right now. ]
sorry this took ages!
But there is no time to address any of that, sensitively or otherwise, because right now Ben just needs to keep them both alive. He feels a rush of relief when Pratt listens to him and runs away. Finally, someone doing what Ben asks, doing the smart and safe thing. Except Ben's nightmare is not, in fact, himself. He isn't afraid of being attacked with his own powers - he's terrified of losing control of them and using them to hurt good people, innocent people, people he cares about.
So that shadowy version of Ben has no interest in letting Pratt get away. It untangles itself and goes pelting after Pratt. Fear and adrenaline make Ben think and run quickly; he closes the portal in his own stomach so he can move faster and slips ahead, not looking back at that hollow, vicious version of himself. It's only by seconds that he beats it to the room Pratt has run into, to look for weapons. Ben slams the door, buying them seconds, and then he wordlessly grabs Pratt's arm and pulls him along, the wolf in tow, just making a break for it, running without any thought to where he is going, just away from it, somewhere safe.
He only stops when he sees a heavy-looking door, hauls it open to see some kind of small storage facility for labeled samples - it must be part of some lab or other. Not ideal, but big enough for him and Pratt and the wolf, but the door is serious business, so Ben wordlessly gestures and half-shoves all three of them inside and slams the door shut. Then he leans his back against the door, out of breath and wincing from the lingering pain, but they're all here, all whole. That's enough for right now. ]