"Uh, Eli? Dep's waking up!"

Eli didn't think he'd ever abandoned his surveillance camera setup so fast in his life. Before Wheaty's mouth had even closed, Eli was through the doorway and in the cozy room they'd made as living space, which was little more than a television and an old red sofa squashed into the spare floor space in front of the kitchenette, but it served its purpose.

On that old red sofa was the main object of Eli's concern for the past several days. That Deputy... They'd been gone for the entire week, this time. Eli knew what had them silent over the radio, unreachable by everyone; the Whitetails, Fall's End, the prison down southeast — Hell, even Dutch hadn't been able to hail them.

At least they'd come out the other end alive, again. One of these days, Jacob's conditioning trials would claim them like the rest, as much as Eli hoped and needed that to not happen.

Eli rushed forward to the Deputy, who was beginning to stir and push themself up into a sitting position, despite how their eyes swam with dizziness and pain stiffened their figure. He replaced Wheaty's place at their side and reached out to set a firm, warm hand on their shoulder, encouraging them to recline again.

"Easy—Easy there, Hero," he soothed. "Take it slow. You've been under for a hell of a long time. Y'know, I wasn't so sure we'd see you again."

Behind his back, he signalled vaguely for Wheaty to bring a canteen — a bottle — something. The kid's footsteps faded.

The Deputy settled back just enough to assuage Eli's biggest concerns, but he kept his hand on their shoulder. He could hardly help it. He hated how easy it was for them to slip through his fingers all the time.

"Catch your breath, alright? The Wolf's Den is yours to crash in, for as long as you need. It's been rough out there lately, I know." A canteen was pushed into Eli's free hand with a hollow slosh. He offered it like clockwork to the Deputy lying supine before him. "Here. We'd have put you on a drip if we had the gear, but... you know. Take it. It'll clear some of that fog."