Andie took a deep breath. A swirl of emotions were running through her head, too fast for her to really process them. This probably should have bothered her, but, again, none of it was really registering - so she just kind of felt a bit lightheaded. Alright, deep breaths. One thought at a time. Her mom had taught her a trick for times like these, one she’d taught herself when her parents had pushed her too hard… which had been often. Luckily, as awful as Andie’s maternal grandparents had been, they were right about one thing - the Katz family thrived under pressure.

Of course, as far as Andie’s mom was concerned - she and her children were about as much Katzes as her husband was. But as proud as Kay was to be a McClyde, that intense drive and focus had been the one thing she’d gotten from her parents that was worth keeping. As soon as Andie had shown an affinity for that way of thinking, Kay became determined to pass that gift down… without the trauma that she’d gotten alongside it - to do what her parents either couldn’t do, or didn’t bother trying to do.

Andie was equally determined to inherit it.

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So, step one, when everything just “wouldn’t stop feeling so much and so hard”, stop whatever you’re doing. Don’t let people rush you. If they yell and berate you, ignore it. A good choice is better than a fast choice. Flush out all the thoughts and just breathe. Collect yourself. You needed all of yourself to do anything useful, so when you lose track of your own mind, and your thoughts get tangled, just throw it all out and “go back to the start of the page.” Go through what you know again, one sentence at a time. Breathe. You can’t accomplish anything if you break or panic.

Alright, Andie was calm again. She could identify five distinct emotions. Hopeful that Dyllan had overcome his trauma. Anxious that he’d gotten hurt in the fight. Excited and curious about the strength and nature of Dyllan’s new abilities. Then, the most important one, the one that needed attending to first: she was worried because she’d gotten separated from her friends when the mindscape reassembled itself, and now she was shut in one of the many new bunkers.

Alright. That settled it. Andie knew how she felt, and now she knew what to do. She needed to find a way to break free that didn’t involve any actual breaking. This was Dyllan’s mindscape after all, and she’d rather not blow through one of the many walls they’d gone through so much effort to fix.