Azzazizz: Nope Nope Nope

I want my mother, Azzazizz thought as they emerged from the sewers. It was time to go back home and admit that he wasn't up to this. It had all seemed fun and exciting until the rats had come out of everywhere, and then they hadn't even been rats. They'd all been taken over by whatever that slime on the walls of the sewer was turning into. He was pretty sure they'd tried to infect him with it too. 

He'd done pretty well in the heat of the moment, he thought, but now that they were back up through the maintenance hatch and he had more time to think about it, he was shivering. It didn't help that he was back in his human form, which definitely seemed more prone to panicking. No, it was definitely time to go home. 

Mac put a hand on his shoulder. "A moment, my young friend," he said softly. Adonis and Zarathos didn't hear, and if Possum did then she chose to ignore it. 

Aziz -- he was currently answering to that, since his companions didn't seem to be quite capable of pronouncing his draconic name -- hesitated, then let Mac draw him back, a little further out of earshot. "You did well back there," said the Gith, his features still mostly hidden in the shadows of his hat and coat. "You could've left me for the rats, but you didn't. Could've just flown out of there, too, but you didn't."

Aziz knew the man could feel him shivering. "How are you so calm?" he asked quietly. Grandfather, even his voice was shivering. 

The investigator shrugged. "I just had my life saved by a dragon," he said. "A young one, to be sure, but a dragon nonetheless. Proud breed, dragons. Not all of 'em would've bothered with a nobody like me. It tends to steady the nerves, a thing like that. And you fought well: clever, resourceful."

Aziz felt himself steady. He had, hadn't he? Sure, his first attempt hadn't worked and the others had done a lot to destroy the not-rats-anymore, but he'd rallied and done other things. So maybe he could do this.

"Look, I'd worry if this hadn't scared you at all," Mac continued. "The rest of us, we've done this before. We're kind of used to it. We don't show it anymore, not the way you are now, even we've just experienced pants-wetting levels of terror."

Aziz snorted out something that half a laugh and half a sob. 

"But here's the thing: you're doing your panicking now, after the danger's passed. That's good. Shows you aren't foolhardy." Mac met his eyes, then nodded. "So I wanted you to know that I'm grateful to have you with us."

Aziz considered that for a long moment, then nodded back. "All right. Yes. I can do this. But... and be honest... do you have any of those mind tricks that would prevent nightmares?"