Chapter Text
”Could you tell me what happened on that day?”
Silence. Deafening silence.
This first session so far was… painfully dry. The psychiatrist was trying his hardest to get something out of his client, but she wouldn’t budge much. Maybe he should’ve accounted for the fact that he would be counseling a kid.
…
Hjärp has had a rough past with kids, always skipping them as potential clients for his session because he found them to be so… annoying. The youth in Hunliny these days are so rebellious, always complaining about things that really shouldn't be a problem, and generally being a nuisance to everyone else with their ridiculous behavior, so why do THEY need therapy!? It’s the fucking people they pester every single day that need therapy, for fuck’s sake. At least, that’s what he believes is the case. Hjärp just can’t stand to be around kids because they are simply a hassle to look after.
How did he end up here anyways?
Well, prior to this week’s session, the client’s caretaker, Cann, came in looking for someone to counsel them. She looked so desperate coming in when she came speed-walking to the front desk for somebody, more desperate than any usual visitor , like it was some medical emergency that needed immediate attention. Hjärp had listened in from behind the desk, working away at his computer as his coworker Carmel, who was the head secretary, attended to this desperate parent’s request. Cann was rambling a lot about her child’s condition as she messingly presented her documents to Carmel, much to Carmel’s amusement. Hjärp eventually accepted to take Cann’s child in as his client later that day, but was reluctant until he actually went over this client’s history in his office.
…
Oh FUCK!! This is RINNY’S daughter, Nappy?! Rinny, the fucking serial murderer that was finally convicted after hiding in public all this time, charged on countless counts of murder, trafficking, bribery, illegal distribution of firearms, illegal possession of-.. well, the list goes on. Hjärp’s jaw dropped as he scrolled through Nappy’s history, then Rinny’s. Eh, why be surprised? The kid looks exactly like Rinny, but I guess that kind of flew over Hjärp’s head the first time. Reading over the police report on Nappy, she was described as “mentally unstable, sustaining injuries all over her body, and incredibly jumpy when approached.” Carmel was standing behind Hjärp as his shocked face was glued to the screen, a chuckle emanating from behind Hjärp as Carmel commented on the matter before walking back to his post.
>>
CAR: “Wow dude, that’s totes wild.”
>>
You know, Hjärp didn’t think he would be dealing with something like this. It kind of felt like some big capital case he was handling. Himself, with the daughter of a world-renowned serial killer and masochist? Sadist? He doesn’t want to think about it right now..
…
Shit!! While lost in thought, Hjärp had completely forgotten he was still in this therapy session. How long has it been since he asked that question earlier? 5 minutes? Wow.. and Nappy still hasn’t responded. Hjärp looks up from the clipboard, pretending as if he were reading the entire time to get a look at his client, Nappy, who held her head in her hands, slumped over and sulking.
Nappy was literally a carbon copy of that bitch, donning the same exact facial and body features, along with a familiar pink bow that Nappy donned on the back of her head. The only real difference being Nappy actually seemed to have a sense of fashion. Instead of that ragged old blue cloth that Rinny wore every single day of her life, Nappy wore a sort of.. pink-ish lavender version of it. Still, her resemblance to her mother was terrifying, and Hjärp had to take a moment to process the fact that he’s literally assessing the child of a murderer. Goodness, he can’t believe it, it’s like he could get famous off of something like this, but why would he? She’s just a kid with problems, serious problems; why even think-
”… I was just in my room ..”
A soft, whimpering voice cracked through, interrupting Hjärp’s train of thought as he perked towards Nappy’s watery eyes, which wavered away from any eye contact. Silence broken at last.
>>
NAP: “… I was.. with my toys.. then.. Mama..”
>>
Nappy couldn’t even finish before beginning to break down right there on the gray leather couch she laid on. Hugging her legs, she sobbed uncontrollably, shutting her eyes and turning away from Hjärp as he took more notes. He didn’t want to just come over and give the kid a hug, he barely even knew her, so he instead stays in his seat and makes some points to himself about the event. It’s gonna be a slow process, he thought to himself, but that can be said with all kinds of therapy. It’s a slow, but hopefully fulfilling process that will prove to help in the long run.
Hjärp continued to sit there for several minutes, watching Nappy break down on the couch, still hugging her legs and laying on her side as her tears stained the couch. At least it was something to fill the silence, but it felt wrong for him to just sit there and watch a kid cry. I mean, for once, this kid is crying for a perfectly valid reason, not like those hooligans who cry over some stupid video game or whatever Hjärp is stereotyping children these days to be doing in his head.
The crying grew quieter and quieter, lessening down to an excessive period of sniffling and hiccuping from Nappy. That’s one way to cry, Hjärp thinks. FUCK, DON’T JUDGE A FUCKING KID FOR HOW THEY CRY, ESPECIALLY ONE LIKE NAPPY!! Hmph.. he tends to think so much that it’s a genuine distraction to him in his line of work, so he tried to block out any kind of external thoughts from entering his mind, focusing entirely on Nappy. Maybe he can actually do his job right at this very moment. Hjärp opened his mouth to speak.
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HJÄ: “.. Nappy, we don’t have to talk about this now if you don’t want to, okay?”
>>
He softened his voice to a quiet, reassuring tone. Hjärp’s strong German accent usually made him sound a bit intimidating, and he acknowledged such, so he had to get down to a comfortable level. He just found it a little difficult to word things that would be way for a kid to understand since he’s only dealt with adult clients in the past. Hopefully his client right now will understand. Hjärp set his clipboard aside, thinking he’s jotted down enough. That shit gets so tiring anyways, why don’t they just install some tape recorder to record the sessions so he can just write them later? Like seriously, it-.. NO, no external thoughts, full focus, remember! Hjärp pinched himself to snap himself back into focus with Nappy, and he watched as Nappy just laid there, chest rising and lowering at a rhythmic pace.
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HJÄ: “We can instead talk about.. maybe your favorite toys, instead? What kinds of toys, or err, cartoons are you into?”
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Nappy was still for a few seconds, before responding, turning in Hjärp’s direction, her eyes still shut with tears drying on her face, clothes, and the couch.
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NAP: “.. Animals. I like.. toy animals a lot. Especially little bug ones..”
>>
There, just a hint of enthusiasm in her frail voice was enough to motivate Hjärp into continuing to talk with her. Gosh, he didn’t even think a question as silly as that would work anyways. Nappy began to wipe her tears, although quite apathetically.
>>
HJÄ: “What kind of bugs are your favorite, Nappy?”
NAP: “…Cay-terpillars.. cat… caterpillars.”
HJÄ: “Any reason why they’re your favorite?”
NAP: “…Cute..”
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With each response, Nappy always took a few seconds before speaking, which Hjärp assumes to be attributed to her PTSD, which, I mean.. that’s what she has, surely! It’s what her doctor put in her analytics when he had looked through Nappy’s information prior to the session. Speaking of doctors.. wasn’t Nappy injured?
Holy shit, he didn’t even notice the injuries on Nappy until now. Some sort of cognitive or visual bias seemed to have completely blocked out the bloodied head bandages and bruises over her body. Nice to know she got medical treatment, but for fuck’s sake, a 7 year old? Well, gosh, if he-
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NAP: “Mister?.. sir..?”
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Oops.. Hjärp popped his head down from dozing off into his happy little world of thought to meet Nappy’s eyes for the first time this whole session. He’s really gotta work on his focus, because this is just ridiculo-…
Oh.
That’s so heartbreaking. Hjärp looked into Nappy’s eyes. They were big, gleaming with sadness but also with some emotionless feeling behind them. They seemed to shine in this bleak, brown room that they both sat in. Colorless, devoid of sunlight, but Nappy’s eyes looked like they were both dead and glowing at the same time.
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HJÄ: “Ah, I’m sorry Nappy, did you say something earlier?”
NAP: “.. I said if you had any.. favorite toys that you have too!..”
HJÄ: “Hah, well, I really liked action figures, especially superheroes like Batman!! ”
NAP: “What’s a batman?”
HJÄ: “Oh, you don’t know? He was really popular in my time, I thought your generation would have heard of it too, I think he still remains mainstream through several adaptations.”
NAP: “..Huh? I don’t know what that means.”
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Right.. no huge vocabulary. Gotta try a different approach, Hjärp.
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HJÄ: “I mean like.. I thought someone as young as you would still know Batman since he’s.. still very known these days!”
NAP: “I don’t.”
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Yowch, Nappy responded quite coldly there, but it’s whatever.
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HJÄ: Hm, what did you like to do besides play with toys then? Maybe you had games you liked?”
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Nappy’s neutral expression quickly turned into a frown, and then she began whimpering again, looking down to the couch. Oohhh shit.
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HJÄ: “Ah! Was that a bad thing to ask?! I’m so sorry Nappy.”
Nappy sniffles, lifting her head back up to meet Hjärp’s eyes.
NAP: “My favorite game.. was hide and seek.. with Mama..”
>>
..He can’t believe she could still call her Mama. He might just address that, actually. Isn’t she under new care? Eh, later, or some day.
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HJÄ: “..Uhm, any other games?”
NAP: “I played catch with Dada…”
>>
Nappy was starting to tear up again, and Hjärp couldn’t help but get out his chair, getting on his knees in front of Nappy to hug her for comfort. He didn’t care that this was kind of against his own policy, but he couldn’t just sit there and let a kid break down a second time without doing a single thing. Nappy immediately hugged back, soaking Hjärp’s sleek blue suit with her tears, hugging him tightly like he was some guardian angel. He understood this reaction, as he read about how her father Mangy was found dead at the scene, killed by Rinny, and Nappy had to witness it. This isn’t usual psychiatrist behavior, but he can make exceptions, he guesses.
Hjärp’s wool was fluffy, soft, and comforting for Nappy to sink into, and she was crying her heart out as the sheep Malino silently patted her back as an extra gesture of comfort. The fluffy wool reminded Nappy of her blanket, one of the few things that brought her joy. Hjärp kneeled there for at least 3 minutes, holding this soft embrace with Nappy until he pulled away, a bit dazed as he placed his hands on Nappy’s shoulders.
>>
HJÄ: “Do you feel better now?”
NAP: “Yeah.. mister..”
HJÄ: “Oh, you can just call me Hjärp. Sorry I haven’t introduced myself earl-”
NAP: “Hee-yarp what?”
HJÄ: “-Uh, yeah, basically. Hee-yarp.”
NAP: “That’s a funny name.”
>>
Nappy chuckled. This surprised Hjärp, especially since it’s really for something that isn’t funny to him. However, it felt nice to hear Nappy laugh after this whole ordeal. Maybe this first session wasn’t so bad after all. Hjärp chuckled a bit too, before responding to her.
>>
HJÄ: “Well, it’s normal to me. I’m not exactly native to- I mean.. I’m not from Hunliny originally, I moved here a few years ago from another place called Sweetlen, if you know what that is.”
NAP: “That sounds like a kingdom! Like.. a castle, a big scary one!”
HJÄ: “It isn’t a kingdom, silly! Just another place like Hunliny, but.. different!-”
>>
A sudden knock on the door interrupted Hjärp and startled them both. Nappy’s expression grew a bit anxious as Hjärp got on his feet and went towards the door, opening it slowly.
“Hjärp? Nappy? Are you two okay in there?”
It was Cann, a yellow-pink cat Malino who took custody of Nappy as her adoptive mother after Rinny was imprisoned. She had been in the waiting room the entire.. say, hour or so? She set up the appointment for this session a week ago, and was very happy to have brought Nappy to a licensed professional. Cann stood there, rubbing the side of her arm. She looked anxious.
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HJÄ: “My apologies, ma’am. Me and your daughter were just.. engaging in a nice chat, you see. Sorry for the delay- overtime, I mean.”
CAN: “Oh! Is that so? Okay, that’s really great to hear then! Sorry I came off a bit.. overprotective? I just get a bit anxious when things aren’t usually done by a set time.
HJÄ: “No worries, it was my fault going over the required duration of the session. I will try my best not to let it happen again.”
CAN: “Okay, well, it’s 3:08 now, so come on Nappy dear! There’s spaghetti waiting for us at home!.. Oh, and say bye to Hjärp!!”
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Cann happily spoke to Nappy, who was awkwardly standing in the background. She slowly walked over, a shallow look in her eyes as she stood by Cann’s side. Hjärp noticed the look, but didn’t think much of it. Nappy gave Hjärp a shy wave, cracking just a tiny smile.
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HJÄ: “If it isn’t too much trouble, may I have your phone number, ma’am? I unfortunately have some paperwork due soon so I can’t share any information regarding this session at the moment.”
CAN: ”Oh! Sure, here you go! I’d love to know how it went!”
>>
Cann pulls her phone out her purse, handing it over to Hjärp as he inputs his number in as a new contact for Cann. He couldn’t help but notice her background was a photo of some dog Malino, perhaps her lover? Eh, he isn’t going to dig into it, but he thought it was cute.
Hjärp handed her phone back to her, and watched the two make their way out the building. He took a long sigh, leaving the room and making his way to his work office, taking a seat at his computer and pulling up a document that needed filling. He stretched his arms, trying to process that entire session as he went to take a swig from his water bottle. Hjärp doesn’t have any other sessions today, so he’s free for the next 2 hours.
Guess it’s the perfect time to finish filling out this document to send to the higher ups.
Or.. he could just relax too! Hjärp hesitated, looking at the huge document he has to fill. It’s a tax document, almost overdue, and he has until tonight to finish it, but he figures he has time later to do it anyways. So, he turns off his computer and rolls back a bit in his office chair.
Hjärp pulls out his phone in the meantime.