Nathaniel let go when instructed, and only because he'd been instructed to do so. He was frozen in place on the ground aside from his shaking, and he looked up at Zedd meekly from where he stood. "S-Sorry, sir…" He said weakly, wrapping his wings around himself as a sort of shield.
Depression and Choccy Milk (OXO with Caustic)
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Zedd moved to the side to sit down in the grass. He moved his wings a little as one might roll their wrists. He then cast a half-lidded glance at Nathaniel. He was shaking like crazy. "You're stuttering again… What's bothering you now?" Zeddicus questioned, quite confused. Was it the other kids? That he could understand, and they would leave if that was the issue.
"U-Um… I… I haven't flown since I got shot down, sir…" Nathaniel replied weakly, still very pale. "I suspect that this reaction is a result of that… erm… that experience, sir…" He hesitated before slowly lowering himself onto the grass, not feeling stable enough to remain standing at the moment.
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Again, had Zeddicus been drinking something, he would have choked at the statement. "Hold on a minute, shot down?! What the f-" He caught himself, noting the stares of a few of the others around. He was not about to get beaten up by a gang of angry mothers.
"Who in the hell would shoot down a kid?!" Zedd angrily whispered.
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(Nathaniel: i got shot lol so i'm traumatized lol)
(Zedd: excuse me what the fuck???)
"Oh… I thought I told you. Last year, I was flying and a duck hunter or something mistook me for a bird. He shot my wing." Nathaniel pointed to a hole in the joint of his left wing. "And I landed on my back. My wings were crushed upon impact and they couldn't fix them. I-I haven't been able to fly since." Nathaniel rubbed at his eyes, trying his best not to cry.
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"We met only hours ago, buddy. There was no need for you to have told me until now," Zedd reassured him. He set his head in his hands for a moment before looking back at the boy beside him. He seemed to be crying. Oh shit, how does one stop a kid from crying???
"We don't have to fly again on the way back, okay?" Zedd attempted, hoping that would help.
Nathaniel nodded shakily and kept rubbing at his teary eyes, drawing in a few wavering breaths. "I'm… I-I'm just being s… s-stupid, aren't I?" He asked, hiccuping a bit. "An angel afraid of flying… I'm s-so pathetic…" He choked on his words and coughed a bit. "W-What kind of angel is scared of flying? What kind of angel can't take care of himself? What… why… why am I so weak…?" He sobbed quietly, hyperventilating to try and force himself to get back under control.
(Zedd: Huh. A child. Must be optimistic and annoying all the time
Nathaniel: I've been twaumatized :D)
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(More like:)
(Zedd: Ugh children, always whining and crying or extremely hyper and annoying. No thank)
(Ooft)
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At this point, Zeddicus had had enough. He moved to kneel in front of Nathaniel, having the boy's face in his hands. "Stop that. I don't know how old you are, but you're obviously just a kid. You have several years to learn how to care for yourself. It's not supposed to happen this early," he stated. His hands were now wet from the salty tears Nathaniel was crying, so he wiped his palms quickly on his pant legs. "You're scared from a past experience. We call that trauma. It's not something that can be fixed quickly either, so calm down. Deep breaths, and when you're ready you can go play."
Wait, since when did I get all of this knowledge on consoling someone?
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(Also Zedd: but if it's Nathaniel, then he's fine and I'll kill anyone who touches him-)
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(I gotta go sleep so I can school later)
Nathaniel hiccuped a bit as he looked up at Zedd. He rubbed at his eyes again and forced himself to take deep breaths as instructed. His heart was racing and he was still shaking, but he gradually calmed down after a few minutes. He seemed a bit tired after he'd stopped crying, but that was to be expected. He looked up at Zedd again and fidgeted nervously.
(Aa goodnight)
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"What?" Zeddicus asked, confused. He didn't know what else Nathaniel wanted from him. He wasn't good with people in general and didn't read body language well unless it was violent. "You don't need my permission to go play on the playground," he added after a moment.
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(Ok now I go lol)
(Lmao okay)
Nathaniel wasn't exactly in the mood to play, but he went off anyways, figuring that Zedd wanted to be left alone. After a while of sitting alone, he encountered other kids, and that wasn't particularly pleasant. They started pulling on his wings despite his protests, and they kept pestering him with questions he really didn't want to answer. The way they were pulling on his wings hurt since they didn't extend properly anymore. Tears stung his eyes and he eventually retreated into a tree so that they'd leave him alone. The problem with that plan was that he was now stuck and didn't want to bother Zedd to help him get down.
(No one:
Zedd: You have PTSD? Hmm. Walk it off and go play, buckaroo
Nathaniel: :'D yes sir)
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(Nobody:)
(Zedd: I've known Nathaniel for an hour and a half, but if anything happened to him I would kill everyone in this room and then myself.)
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(Nobody:)
(Zedd: I've known Nathaniel for an hour and a half, but if anything happened to him I would kill everyone in this room and then myself.)
(Can confirm that this is accurate.)
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(No one:
Zedd: You have PTSD? Hmm. Walk it off and go play, buckaroo
Nathaniel: :'D yes sir)
(I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU TO STOP MAKING HIM SEEM SO MEAN QWQ)
(HE'S GRUMPY BUT NOT HEARTLESS)
(Lmao)
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(Lmao okay)
Nathaniel wasn't exactly in the mood to play, but he went off anyways, figuring that Zedd wanted to be left alone. After a while of sitting alone, he encountered other kids, and that wasn't particularly pleasant. They started pulling on his wings despite his protests, and they kept pestering him with questions he really didn't want to answer. The way they were pulling on his wings hurt since they didn't extend properly anymore. Tears stung his eyes and he eventually retreated into a tree so that they'd leave him alone. The problem with that plan was that he was now stuck and didn't want to bother Zedd to help him get down.
Zeddicus hadn't fully been paying attention until he noticed a blur of white in the corner of his vision. Focusing, he watched Nathaniel run off. He waited a moment before realizing he wasn't playing any sort of game. Sighing, he stood up from his spot and walked in the direction he had seen the small boy run off in. He better not have left the park. He wouldn't leave to go live on the streets again, would he?
Not seeing the small boy anywhere, Zedd's shoulders fell. He really was bad at this, wasn't he? "Goddamn it," he cursed, kicking the base of a large tree. It stung, but he didn't let out a hiss of pain, rather biting the inside of his cheek quite hard.
When Zeddicus kicked the tree, Nathaniel lost his balance and fell out. "W-Woah!" He hit the ground hard and was dazed. He had a sizeable gash on one leg and a few scrapes scattered elsewhere on his body. "Nngh…" He stirred a bit, pushing himself up with trembling arms.
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"Oh fuck- shit, agh! Are you okay?" Zedd asked, kneeling down on the ground again. His knees were bound to get tired at this point. Looking at the poor boy at his feet, the man shook his head. "Nevermind, don't answer that. You look almost like the way I found you, of course you're not okay…" This was another first. Zeddicus hardly ever rambled. "How did this happen?"
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(concerned dad has finally come)
(Yeet)
"I-I'm okay, I'm okay…" Nathaniel winced and forced himself up into a sitting position. He looked down at his bleeding leg and sighed. "The other kids kept pulling on my wings and asking me to fly and asking me why I have wings and why they look weird and stuff… I went up into the tree so I could hide."
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(precious)