He yelps when whatever that was cracks up his arm, yanking his hand up, throwing his arm into the air. He's halfway turned even before he feels the hand on his shoulder honestly, but then he's face to face with... a child?

A child who looks so absolutely awful, entirely uncared for. His chest hurts just looking at them, and he completely abandons whatever is going on under the ground, pushing himself up out of the crack so he's sitting on the opposite side from them.

"Hey there, kit'a," he says with this gentle smile, leaning towards them so they know he's truly interested in them. He wants this kid to not run away before he finds out where they're supposed to be.

"What are you doing out here?"