>>29892578I'm a graduate student of psychology whose worked with saplings in lab conditions for several years now. Saplings tend to make great test subjects because of their uniform predictability and unique response to certain psychological triggers, not to mention the fact that they are so numerous and expendable.
A sapling's initial reaction to realizing they are without their oshi is confusion. They become hyperaware and begin searching their surroundings, which inevitably leads to them being overwhelmed by anxiety. When they cannot find her, a sapling will enter a state of distress, screaming and crying in the hopes that she may instead find them. The longer they remain in this state of distress, the more hopeless and despondent they become. Normally, a sapling will pass out from exhaustion within six to twelve hours of wailing, but will continue to be in an agitated state even during rest.
Your post contains a common misconception about sapling psychology and physiology. Saplings only self-harm in response to certain conditions.
After twenty-hour hours without Fauna, a sapling will normally become wholly despondent. They will steadily refuse food and water, instead remaining trapped in a fugue-like depression until either Fauna herself snaps them out of it or they die from dehydration/starvation. Most sapling psychologists believe this depressive state to be caused by a negative feedback loop, in which the sapling convinces itself that Fauna is gone because of something they did. They did something to upset her, they didn't love her enough, whatever the reason, they grow to believe Fauna now hates them personally and is punishing them.
Saplings exhibit self-harming behaviors when an outside source confirms these negative feelings. My professor conducted a famous study in which five saplings, depressed after a full day without Fauna, were herded into a room before a television screen. We then played a doctored video in which Fauna stated that she was graduating because she hated her saplings, before naming each individual sapling in the room as the worst of the lot.
The response was immeadiate. Every sapling entered a state of distress, screaming with all of their remaining energy, before quickly devolving into an orgy of suicidal violence. One sapling began beating its head against the wall of the chamber until its skull fractured, later dying of a brain hemorrhage. Another stripped itself of its clothing, dived into the screen whilst screaming apologies, before electrocuting itself. A third simply sat in place, incessantly screaming for a full twenty-six hours, before dying of a stroke. The reaction of the other two saplings, however, was of great interest. Instead of harming themselves, the two quickly turned on each other, blaming their opposite for their oshi's graduation. A brief (and pathetic) scuffle ensued, ending when one sapling strangled the other to death. The triumphant sapling, of course, then proceeded to contort its body until snapping its own neck at an unnatural angle.
Very exciting. Very informative. Very funny.
