As soon as that first teardrop fell, the atmosphere around their entire interaction seemed to fall apart. Klavier jerked suddenly in realization. Was Nigredo... crying?! He was CRYING! What...?!
All straight, professional facades instantly evaporated, and the elder man was in utter shock. Then barely contained panic. He had no idea what to do, what to say! He hadn't the slightest clue how to handle an upset child. Heck, he didn't even know what he had done to warrant this kind of reaction! He thought he'd been reassuring, verifying that just because he was born for a certain reason didn't mean he was obligated to follow that path.
Everyone expected him to say something different? What was that supposed to mean?! Was Klavier treating Nigredo too much like a person and not so much as a child? He might not have that great a sense of personal identity and defiance yet. Maybe saying something against what his 'parents' told him was... mentally frustrating? Argh, who knew?! Klavier didn't know anything about child psychology. All he knew was he wanted Nigredo to stop crying. Now.
Klavier glanced around quickly to be sure no one was looking at this and misinterpreting what was happening (again). He held up both hands, waving them slightly in a bit of a frantic gesture. He still looked somewhere between concerned and scared. "W-Wait! I didn't mean to say anything to upset you! Honestly! I-I don't..." Damn. What was he supposed to say? "I-I'm sorry. I'm sorry! I'm not expecting any specific answers! You don't even have to answer if you don't want to! It's okay! Really!"
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All straight, professional facades instantly evaporated, and the elder man was in utter shock. Then barely contained panic. He had no idea what to do, what to say! He hadn't the slightest clue how to handle an upset child. Heck, he didn't even know what he had done to warrant this kind of reaction! He thought he'd been reassuring, verifying that just because he was born for a certain reason didn't mean he was obligated to follow that path.
Everyone expected him to say something different? What was that supposed to mean?! Was Klavier treating Nigredo too much like a person and not so much as a child? He might not have that great a sense of personal identity and defiance yet. Maybe saying something against what his 'parents' told him was... mentally frustrating? Argh, who knew?! Klavier didn't know anything about child psychology. All he knew was he wanted Nigredo to stop crying. Now.
Klavier glanced around quickly to be sure no one was looking at this and misinterpreting what was happening (again). He held up both hands, waving them slightly in a bit of a frantic gesture. He still looked somewhere between concerned and scared. "W-Wait! I didn't mean to say anything to upset you! Honestly! I-I don't..." Damn. What was he supposed to say? "I-I'm sorry. I'm sorry! I'm not expecting any specific answers! You don't even have to answer if you don't want to! It's okay! Really!"
Just please stop crying!