They were happy. After all, they had a long, wiry finger in their mouth they were allowed to gently nibble and nurse on, and a strong, gentle hand pressing down on their face... Warmth, softness, control, safety... A slick trail  of saliva on their lips, collecting into a cool puddle on the soft, fresh-smelling sweater under their cheek.. The person holding them was arguing with someone... or berating them. It didn't matter though.. A few sentence fragments reached their consciousness, but were given over to oblivion soon as their forehead and nose was gently, rhythmically touched again and again. Who the other person was, or what they were saying in response just didn't register at all. It wasn't important... The only important things were the gentle finger in their mouth for their tongue to play with, the heartbeat under their ear to listen to, and the scent of clean clothing to sniff...

'Difficult?! They practically melted in my arms.' 'What? I mean yes, but no!' 'That's not denial, that's neglect.' 'Maybe you should have some of yours revoked.' 'I'll talk to their case worker, you go submit to correction.'

A strong, deliberate pressure on their forehead, and a single order. 'Blank for me.'