#Imagine having to explain that to your kids...

[evilminji]

And like? What are they going to DO? This is clearly getting the trigger happy circles raring to go. But? It's not a "punch it" problem so much as "gently corral the wandering sheep with swords" problem. The KID clearly isn't responsible. He's just the focal point. And frankly?

They could do a LOT worse then "good kid, trying his best, has no idea what to do with his new found army of fanatically loyal skeletons". He's LAW ABIDING. Has a strong moral code. Even BATMAN isn't worried. (A lie, Batman is always worried. Batman has Bat Anxiety. He just doesn't think this is a problem YET and hopes it never will be.)

So like? Can they buy him a ranch or something? Move the skeletons AWAY from city centers? Idiots keep attacking the soilders. And no amount of explaining "don't DO that. You WILL lose. Possibly your life." Deters them! Ffs, GOVERMENT idiots are making noises about attacking the soilders!

That would be a catastrophically bad idea.

What the kid NEEDS? Is a nice, soothing, low stress environment. Where he can get governance and ethics lessons, finish his college degree, and keep his new friends out of trouble. He's already made it clear he has no interest in USING them for anything. Short of planetary defense? Let the kid relax with a smoothie!

(And like? Imagine THAT? The Glowing Skeleton ranch. Middle of nowhere. With the Nice Young Man and his army of the damned. They'll help you plow the fields! Not too bright, those skeletons. But they clearly mean well. They'll hold your yarn for hours while you knit. Listen while you talk. Play tea party.

The Justice League just needs them to, you know, not go a wandering. And yeah, folks can get that. They look pretty spooky. You get used to it. John borrows some to stock shelves, ever since he threw out his back. Helped me find my keys!)

Cause I mean? If SUPERMAN and WONDER WOMAN ask? And the Nice Young Man "seems polite"? Isn't it the right thing to do? He's just trying to keep his Skeletons out of trouble! Whole lot of responsibility for someone so young. It must be like having a crowd of toddlers!

Fic prompt #23

Dpxdc

Did you have in mind a plot where the protagonist goes back in time to save the future? What if Danny had become the King of Ghosts, but due to various problems in his human life, he had a rough time adjusting to his new social position? Despite this, Danny is deeply loved by his subjects—especially the skeleton army, who adore him after suffering under the tyranny of Pariah Dark. So, what if the army traveled back in time to serve Danny and free him from his human problems?

The Justice League is very concerned about the mysterious appearance of skeletons that seem to be obeying a teenager.

[archiepudding]

Estranged Until You [Chapter 1]

Pairing: Oikawa x Fem!Reader (Minors do not interact)

Warnings: 18+, accidental pregnancy, swearing

Summary: It’s been six years, and you finally come face to face with the man who changed your life forver.

Word count: 2.8k

Had it not been for the children surrounding you, your choice of vocabulary would have been far more colourful. It was the hottest day of the year so far, and of course, you had forgotten your purse - no chance of a cold drink or an ice cream to take the edge off. The air was thick, and sweat clung to your skin like an unwelcome second layer. On the plus side, at least it had saved you money. But try explaining that to an overheated, and occasionally bratty, six-year-old.

The sun blazed overhead as you sat slumped on a park bench, its rays pressing down like a heavy blanket. You had reached into your bag and pulled out a bottle of water, taking a long swig. The liquid was disappointingly warm, but it had been better than nothing.

“MUMMY!”

You turned to see your son clutching a red ball, his face matching the shade from the heat. His eyes had sparkled with excitement. “Can we play?”

You sighed. “Mummy’s tired, sweetie…”

“Pleeaaseee!”

You knew that tone - not only had it meant there was no getting out of it, but if you had even tried, you would never have heard the end of it. With a groan, you slung your bag over your shoulder.

“Okay, okay.”

The game started lighthearted, laughter filling the air as you tossed the ball back and forth. But soon, his throws had grown stronger. You knew exactly where he got it from, but usually it only took a couple of reminders to temper him again.

“Sweetie, be careful. The ball’s going to hit someone if you aren’t -”

Before you could even finish, your son had launched the ball straight at your face. You were barely able to dodge, your heart skipping a beat as you whip your head to the side. That kid had an arm on him, but as you turned, your stomach dropped.

The ball had travelled through the air and landed perfectly in the lap of an unsuspecting man on a nearby bench. More specifically, you had been sure it had hit him directly in the groin. The man hunched over immediately, letting out a strangled wheeze. His friend, on the other hand, had completely lost it and doubled over in a fit of laughter, confirming your suspicion. 

You stood frozen. Shit.

“Hoshi L/n!” You jog over to the commotion, heart pounding.

“I’m so sorry! He doesn’t always understand when to stop,” you blurt out, shooting an apologetic look at the poor man still hunched over in pain. He’s broad-shouldered with tanned skin, short brown hair slightly tousled from the impact.

A familiar voice cuts through your mortification.

“Y/n?”

Your stomach flipped as the horror of the moment eased when the voice behind you offered a hand of relief. You turn towards it.

“Iwaizumi. Hi!”

“What are you doing here?” he asked, brows raised.

You wiped the sweat from your forehead, suddenly feeling like leaving the house for a peaceful afternoon was a terrible idea. “I thought I’d take Hoshi out for some fresh air since the weather’s so nice,” you replied, though at this point, staying in might have been less stressful.

Before you could say more, the man who was hunched over in pain had finally straightened up with a wince.

“You never said you had a new lady friend, Iwa-cha -”

Double shit.

You were turned away from him, but you knew who it was, and your blood ran cold. Moments ago, that would have been a relief from the burning heat of the day, but given who had been behind you, you were sure that the second you turned around, you would have been walking straight into the heat of Hell itself.

Slowly, you turned, your breath catching in your throat as your eyes had locked onto his. The realisation had hit both of you at the same time.

“Y/n?”

You said nothing.

This had been worse than you could have ever imagined. If awkward was the puddle of sweat collecting at the base of your back, then this encounter was the goddam heatwave. 

“You two know each other?” Iwaizumi asked, glancing between you both.

Your stomach had dropped. Oikawa had rubbed the back of his neck, looking just as stunned as you felt.

“Shit. You look…” His voice had trailed off as his eyes slowly raked up and down your body.

The scrutiny made your skin prickle - not because you weren’t used to being checked out, but because it had been him. With anyone else, you might have rolled your eyes or even laughed it off, but the way he was looking at you, like he had been seeing something he wasn’t sure he should, had made you feel too exposed… too raw.

Oikawa cleared his throat, dragging his gaze back up to meet yours. “How long has it been?”

You still hadn’t answered. Maybe you were still screaming internally, or had it escaped? At this point, you couldn’t tell from the worried expressions the boys were sharing.

Then it had hit you. 

You hadn’t actually done anything. 

Your body had betrayed you. Every muscle locked into place, shoulders tense, arms stiff at your sides. No matter how many times you had practised this moment in your head, no matter how calm and collected you prepared yourself to be, you realised it never mattered.

Because nothing could prepare you to be face-to-face with Oikawa again.

“I know things weren’t left on the best of terms,” he had laughed, but it had felt wrong. Everyone had felt the tension crackling in the air. “But you look like you’ve seen a -”

Iwaizumi hadn’t seemed impressed, and with a small roll of his eyes, he had nudged Oikawa’s arm - not hard, but enough to shut him up. 

“Sorry, since when do you two -”

“Mummy!”

NO.

“I found a worm!”

And just like that, the universe had officially outdone itself.

The light of your life, the one thing that had kept you going through everything, had suddenly become the one thing you desperately wished the ground would swallow whole. Hoshi came sprinting up to you, his little legs kicking up dust, his mucky hands proudly holding out a pale, yet well-fed worm like it was some kind of treasure.

Oikawa practically teleported out of the way, letting out a high-pitched noise somewhere between a yelp and a full-on scream. “Put that down!”

Hoshi had pouted, clearly unimpressed by the reaction, but obeyed nonetheless, dropping the worm with a dramatic huff.

“Give me your hands,” you sighed, already pulling out a pack of wet wipes. As you wiped the mud from his tiny fingers, you felt the two sets of eyes burning into you, but you chose to focus on Hoshi and the very common routine of cleaning up his endlessly mud-stained hands. Once you were finished, you stood up and gently nudged Hoshi forward.

“Go play with your friends, sweetie.”

Hoshi ran off blissfully unaware of the absolute catastrophe he had just unknowingly caused, his only worry being the final glance he gave the poor worm wriggling on the scorching tarmac. You had turned back to the boys. Iwaizumi's agitated expression seemed to have softened, amusement flickering in his eyes at the interaction with your little boy, clearly unaware of the full extent of the situation that had just unravelled. Oikawa, on the other hand, had looked like he would have rather been hit with that ball again than face the reality of what he had just witnessed. And in that moment, you saw the man from six years ago. The bravado was gone from his tone, stripped away by the realisation, but his eyes - there was once again something different about them that you couldn’t quite place.

“You’ve got a kid?”

You felt your composure slip, and your throat tightened. “I’m sorry, please excuse me.” Your voice was barely above a whisper as you turned on your heel, desperate to escape. You were free for only a couple of seconds before your arm was pulled back.

You whirled around, stumbling to the side as Oikawa kept a firm grip on you. It wasn’t harsh, but he was not letting you go. Your footing slipped, but he steadied you with ease, and after you regained your balance, you realised he had pulled you off the main path. A couple of benches sat to your right, but they were empty and offered no assistance. No one was going to rescue you from this conversation.

His eyes burned into yours as they searched for secrets you werem’t ready to tell. “Is he mine?”

Your breath caught in your throat. You said nothing.

Oikawa’s chest rose and fell with uneven breaths, and his fingers twitched slightly against your arm. “Y/n,” he tried again, voice lower this time, he was no longer asking for an answer. “Don’t do this. Just answer me. Is. He. Mine?”

Your silence said everything. 

His grip lingered just a second too long before he let go, stepping back like he didn’t trust himself to be that close to you. His hands had curled into fists at his sides before he ran one through his hair and laughed. It was bitter, humourless.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” His voice wavered, anger creeping in, “All these years. Do you know what you’ve done?”

You had blinked. Once. Twice.

“What I’ve done?” Your voice was quiet, but the fury laced within made Oikawa’s eyes snap back to yours. 

He tensed his jaw. “You should have told me.”

You let out a sharp, bitter laugh. “Told you? Told you?” You shook your head. “You told me to get rid of him, Oikawa. You didn’t want us.” Your voice had risen now. “You told me an abortion was for the best, that it would ruin our lives. And now you dare to stand here and act like you mourned him?”

Oikawa flinched, his scrunched brows faltering for the first time. His lips had parted like he had wanted to say something, but nothing had come out. Not that you wanted to hear anything else.

You inhaled sharply to steady your voice. “I got myself into this, right? You made your choice back then. And I made mine.”

He took a step forward, hands shaking slightly as he had gestured toward you. “I was scared, Y/n! I thought -” He had stopped himself. “I thought I was doing the right -”

You don’t process the words being said before Hoshi materialised out of nowhere and launched himself forward, his tiny hands flinging something straight into Oikawa’s face. Time slowed, and you watched the horror contort Oikawa’s features, sheer disgust twisting his expression as a splatter of mud and, to your absolute horror, what could only be the same worm he was forced to drop earlier, had smeared across his cheek.

Oikawa had frozen.

Then, absolute chaos.

A borderline inhuman noise ripped from his throat as he staggered backwards, flailing wildly, desperately trying to wipe the unwelcome creepy-crawly from his skin. He had slapped at his face like he had been fighting for his life, legs nearly giving out beneath him. And for the first time that day, you hadn’t felt like running.

Well, you had - but not out of shame. Watching the Toru Oikawa - the permanent thorn in your side - freak out over a little worm like it had been trying to assassinate him? That had almost been worth staying for. Almost. But unfortunately, you were now the only adult there.

“Hoshi! Let’s go!” you said between restrained laughter, scooping up his tiny, triumphant hand before dragging him down the street. As much as you had enjoyed that moment, you knew better than to push your luck, and when it came to Oikawa, luck was never on your side.

It had cooled down significantly since the day, but the heat of everything that happened still burned through you. You stood in the kitchen, your good friend Ushijima washing the dishes from the evening meal. The rhythmic clatter of plates and running water filled the silence, a small comfort in an otherwise chaotic day. You always appreciated his help, but tonight, after everything, you appreciated it even more.

You sat at the table, a half-finished word puzzle in front of you, your pen tapping absently against your cheek. You weren’t even reading the clues anymore, your brain too sluggish to process anything as it played the day's events on repeat. It must have caught Ushijima’s attention.

“You’ve been quiet. And you’ve hardly started your puzzle.” He threw the tea towel over his shoulder, leaning against the counter. “What’s happened?”

You shifted from one leg to the other, eyes flickering to the once well-used kitchen that now looked pristine. The mess Hoshi had made earlier while "helping" you prepare dinner had been wiped away, and yet, something about the perfect cleanliness sank within your stomach. You turned, heading for the cupboard, intent on grabbing a cloth to clean the stove - anything to keep occupied.

But before you could start, you walked straight into what felt like a brick wall.

“You’re avoiding again,” he stated, unmoving.

“Am not.”

The cloth was plucked from your hand before you could even start scrubbing.

“Yes, you are.”

You huffed, reaching to snatch it back, but he lifted his arm just enough that it was completely out of reach. You weren’t tiny, but against the mountain of a man in front of you, there was no contest. Normally, you had the patience to play this little dance, but today? Today had drained you to your core. You exhaled heavily, rubbing your face with both hands before finally muttering, “Oikawa’s back. And he knows.”

Ushijima didn’t react-not visibly, anyway. His robotic mannerisms didn’t allow for things like shock or outrage to compute in real time. Instead, he lowered his arm, silently handing back the cloth. 

You never had to explain much to Ushijima. Ever since you started working at the gym where he trained, he’d always been easy to be around - uncomplicated. Life was hard raising a child on your own, but every day he made things just a little easier. He’d clean up messes that weren’t his, leave snacks where you could find them, and refill your water before you even noticed it was low. Back then, you’d wondered if it could be more, if maybe having someone strong and quiet to lean on meant something deeper. That maybe, just maybe, he could be that presence. But over time, you realised that wasn’t what your story was meant to be. It never stopped you from appreciating everything he did for you, and with every day, you grew to love him like family.

You twirled the material between your fingers, mouth dropping slightly, before a firm knock rattled through the house.

“I’ll get it,” Ushijima said, already moving.

You barely nodded, forcing yourself to focus on the stove instead, scrubbing at an already spotless surface with an intensity that perfectly matched the frustration still simmering inside you. Maybe if you just kept wiping, if you just kept your hands busy - 

“Y/n.” Ushijima’s voice cut through the room.

You turned toward him, barely taking a step before he blocked your view of the door. His expression, as ever, remained unreadable. “Oikawa says he’s here for you.”

It felt like something cold slithered down your spine. Hell had followed you home. The heat of it curled in the pit of your stomach, spreading through your limbs like a sickness. Your eyes darted behind Ushijima, but the space beyond him was empty.

“Did you shut the door on him?” you asked, a little perplexed and maybe a little amused.

“No.”

“Did you welcome him in?”

“No.”

You sighed, closing your eyes for a brief moment. Of course, he hadn’t. Ushijima followed the rules. If you hadn’t explicitly told him to let Oikawa in, he wouldn’t.

“Do you mind seeing to Hoshi?” you asked.

He nodded once and walked away, leaving you alone to face what felt like an inevitable storm. How did he even get your address?

You turned toward the door, suddenly hyper-aware of how unsteady your legs felt beneath you as each step forward felt heavier than the last. Oikawa stood there, hands shoved deep into his trouser pockets. His expression was more than readable, his body tense, shoulders squared. 

He was pissed. 

And you couldn't blame him. But you also couldn't be bothered with his antics - not now. If you were being honest with yourself? Not ever.

“We need to talk,” he demanded.

You swallowed, gripping the doorframe just a little tighter, because if this day hadn’t already killed you off, this conversation was going to surely put you in the ground.

[Prologue]

[foxxieskies]

The way Ein is treated in PDH S2 is genuinely so frustrating as someone who loves to pick apart characters and their mindsets.

This first section is built on speculation, but I feel like it’s heavily implied that the all-werewolf school he transferred from was very traditional in the way they handled pack politics and daily life. Sniffing people upon first meeting, strict adherence to werewolf rules and customs, how confused and/or uncomfortable he gets when things are settled in a more “human” manner, etc. Like how the fuck is he meant to know things don’t work that way there…? They keep throwing curveball after curveball at him and getting mad when he doesn’t react like everyone else. And it’s not like any of the other werewolves were gonna explain to him how things work at their school considering they all hate him, and Aphmau can’t help with that either because she’s absolutely fucking clueless about the culture she’s shoved herself into and doesn’t bother explaining to him why she leads the way she does outside of “this is how I do things!”. He suddenly went from a very rigid form of the pack system to this weird, mixed-up version, not to mention suddenly going from an all-werewolf school to one with students of all kinds of different races(?) with no adjustment period. Moving schools is already a difficult process for kids but I can only imagine something like that would make it a million times harder. Especially with no support from your peers.

Also I’m sorry but I do not feel fucking bad for Dottie, Daniel, and Rylan having to pick one of them to be the omega. Love them but they didn’t give two shits about bullying and isolating the omega until it got turned around on them and they realized it wasn’t fun being harassed. Maybe I’m just a petty bitch but if I was in Ein’s position and I could get back at someone who bullied me by putting them in my place I would do it too. “Oh well he went too far with it!” I don’t fucking care! He is a 15 year old child who suddenly went from being hated and harassed by his entire community to being in charge of all of them within a day. Obviously it’s going to get to his head. OBVIOUSLY he’s going to do stupid shit because he feels suddenly untouchable. I’m not going to blame a child for not being mature enough to responsibly lead an entire group of like a hundred other children or handle his emotions properly!

Anyway, proceeding to show Aaron keeping his role as omega instead of picking one of those three to make Ein look like an unreasonable asshole was also just an insane thing to witness cuz how on gods green earth was he supposed to know he could do that. The teacher’s reaction in the flashback shows plain as day that that is not something that’s happened before and it’s not like he told Aphmau or Ein they were allowed to do that so how the fuck was he supposed to know that was possible. And it’s not like he was even in the wrong for picking an Omega in the first place because he was LITERALLY TOLD TO. “Oh it’s different bc those three are pups! They can’t defend themselves!” and yet the weakest members of the pack are ALWAYS candidates to be the Omega? You can’t tell us werewolf rules and then expect us to think Ein is in the wrong for adhering to them, that’s fucking stupid.

And, a little bit of a tangent, the fact that the scene of Ein telling Kai he can’t compete to be the werewolf alpha is framed in a way to make it seem like EIN is the one in the wrong is actually fucking bonkers. Kai is not apart of that culture. He has no fucking right trying to insert himself in their politics let alone LEAD them. Ein was completely justified in telling him to fuck off no matter his intentions. Sorry not sorry.

And, love Jess to bits, not trying to come for her, but the entire “Ein was manipulating Aphmau all along” twist was fucking stupid. It relies almost entirely on you watching Emerald Secret alongside it in order for it to not be obviously out of left field. And I’m sorry but if you need to watch an entirely different series for your twist to work, it fucking sucks. The only actual hint toward it is the other wolves being weirded by him but even then it’s implied that’s because he’s 1. A transfer from a different pack and 2. The omega??? So it’s like okay what else do we have. Him finding Aphmau being the alpha as a human weird? Okay well that’s not a hint either cuz it literally IS weird considering she is not apart of their culture. Him insisting Kai can’t compete to become the alpha? Also not a hint because YEAH THATS FUCKING CRAZY???? Not to mention there is no 15yo on this planet who is that good at manipulation. Sorry but it’s true. I think the plot would’ve worked a lot better if they’d gone the “power corrupts’ route instead of the “secret evil master manipulator” route. But yk we can’t have TOO many people sympathizing with our villain, or else they might realize a grown man coming back to beat up this high school sophomore is fucked up! Speaking of.

The fact that we, as the audience, are supposed to see Aaron, a grown man, sneaking into the school in a stolen uniform, beating the shit out of this 15yo child because he tried to sabotage his relationship with another 15yo (which like, technically a dick move but also get away from that little girl), and then throwing one of the kids who is SHOWN to have bullied Ein out with him to make it look like he did it, and view that as a GOOD THING is actually horrific. Aaron gets a pass for this and all the other weird or straight up awful shit he does but god forbid Ein step one foot out of line or else he’ll suffer the narrative’s wrath!

And then he gets manipulated and exploited by a literal demon from hell and somehow he is still the devil! Yeah man! Whatever!

Anyways, rant over. I hate this series and this fandom for the way they treat Ein and refuse to see the nuance in his character.

[depends-on-the-sellsword]

Imagine being Tywin Lannister when Tyrion returns from his vale adventure. Your least favorite kid got kidnapped and probably killed so you have to go to war about it for the family or something even though you hated his ass anyway. but then the shithead just shows back up with 3000 bearded guys carrying axes and the grubbiest looking man you have ever seen in your life and doesn't explain how he did it and you really don't care. Because now you have to go fight a teenager and his dog in open battle

[candleangel3]

tails and charmy should interact more i think they'd have a hysterical dynamic. sure them being friends is very cute but what if they had like... a strained dynamic

like. tails is the smart mature kid and charmy is the worlds most bitchiest toddler. their personalities clash like a car crash. a housefire has the same exact chemistry as their dynamic. charmy would annoy tails so much that he ages like 20 yrs everytime charmy gets within eight feet of him. i can imagine charmy going around tails's house/workshop picking up random shit like "what does this do? what does this do? what's this?? can i touch your tails?? why are your ears so big????? what's th--" and it makes tails want to DIE. it doesn't help that charmy has a habit of literally popping up out of thin air like a fucking fnaf 2 jumpscare so tails has to constantly keep looking over his shoulder like he owes the mafia money or some shit

charmy would call tails a dork, a dweeb, a pointdexter, etc etc 24/7 and tails cant do a damn thing about it because he has to be the mature older kid. everytime tails is asked (READ: FORCED) to have a playdate/help babysit charmy and cream he has to put up with dumb shit like listening to charmy explain how to get out of paying taxes or listening to cream cry because tails refused to play dress up with her and cheese. hell. hell on earth. at this point tails wishes that shadow had kicked him in the back of the head a little harder the last time they scrapped because laying comatose in a hospital sounds way better than having to listen to two little kids whine and yap constantly

as someone who's the oldest sister of two younger boys... little boys tend to beef over the DUMBEST shit ever. charmy would tell cream that Earth birds are actually government spy drones implemented by G.U.N and tails is like "no they aren't????" and charmy's just "SHUT UP FOX BOY U DONT KNOW WHAT UR TALKING ABOUT!!" and it starts a huge argument. the fallout was catastrophic. but it's fine they made up in like three days lol

[mqsoreshi]

Sleepy Bat part 3

Step 4: Medicine

Jason had to make a little stop to recover from step three. He was a bit tired, his toes still hurt, his face itched, and he was starting to feel hungry. Alfred offered him a short rest–and some of his favorite snacks—while the butler prepared lunch.

“How has the mission gone so far, Master Jason?” asked Alfred.

“I left my team watching over Batman.” The kid was adorably serious, as if a very important mission was underway. “But there’s a field report I need to bring to them. So I’d better get to work quickly.”

“I can imagine, sir,” Alfred replied. “I’ll prepare your favorite energy-preserving provisions to help carry on your duty.”

“I’d like that. Thanks, Alfred!”

Jason was forced to wash his market-covered hands before eating the peanut butter and jam sandwiches Alfred had made for him. He headed back to his room while munching, looking for his notebook—forgetting he had left it on the breakfast bar.

He looked out the window, distracted, watching how the gray clouds threatened with rain that night, as had been a normality the last weeks. His eyes followed the trail of a butterfly that rested on one of the many flowers that grew on the manor’s garden. Then, fueled by the sugar in the jam, more ideas started to bloom in his mind.

Alfred was focused on the tomato soup he was cooking when he suddenly heard the rush of a little bird who had opened and shut the manor’s front door abruptly. Holding the ladle in his hand, Alfred called out:

“Master Jason! I hope I don’t have to remind you to wear your coat if you’re going out!”

Three seconds later, a little hand appeared through the door, snatched a red coat from the rack, and vanished again. Alfred sighed, chuckling.

Outside, the red-hooded robin wandered around.

“Where did I see it?” he muttered to himself.

Barely ten minutes later, Jason burst through the door again, disorderly holding a few flowers. He struggled to release himself from the coat as fast as he could.

“What’s that, may I ask?” Alfred inquired.

“Natural medicine,” answered Jason. “I heard Bruce fought a girl named Poison Ivy who can control plants. And I haven’t seen these flowers in the garden before. So maybe she grew them to help him.”

Alfred opened his mouth to say something, but he didn’t have the heart to explain the latest addition to the manor’s garden done by himself. Jason’s eyes were too innocent for disappointment. So instead, Alfred simply smiled.

“Do you know where the red poison medicine is?” Jason asked, tossing his coat.

“Do you mean the cough syrup?” Alfred answered.

“Yeah. The one that tastes like cherry and smells like rubber. Maybe the natural medicine won’t be enough.”

“Um… I already gave Master Bruce the dose he needs. There’s no need to give him more.”

“And what if his body turned fast like the Flash’s and the effect wore off?”

“Master Jason,” Alfred raised an eyebrow. “I assure you I’ve got it cover. You can trust me.”

Jason sighed, a little frustrated, but he didn’t insist. Instead, he took more supplies for his crusade.

.

.

.

A couple of hours after, Bruce’s nightstand was filled with a glass of orange juice (for vitamin C), crackers (for vitamin H—according to Jason: ‘H’ for hungry), the flowers from outside as natural medicine, and a note with drawings:

“Bruce:

You’re sick but I’m taking care of you.

You’re almost healed.

Don’t die.

Jason :)”

There were several other notes written in messy colors, reporting how the mission had gone so far. However, there was no trace of the little vigilante. The toy soldiers and the actions figures missed his presence. They had no new orders to follow.

The night was starting to fall, and the clouds covered the moon. Rain seemed very likely. But that was exactly the moment a tiny crimefighter had been waiting for. Outside, armed with water pistols, a lantern, and some smoke bombs made with glitter, Jason stood ready.

His mask was rubbed and barely visible on his face. He had tried several solutions for that problem, but all ended up either broken or irritating his skin—so he left it as it was for now.

“Okay… Step five: Defend the manor. No one will pass that door. Only over my dead body.”

He didn’t mention the Batcave because he had found he couldn’t reach the entrance—it was a bit too high for him. So he trusted Batman’s distrust and believed it would remain safe. Jason moved on to his other target, the manor.

Honestly… It was nearly 10 p.m., and Jason was starting to feel really tired. His eyes felt heavy.

“Come on, Jay… You can do this… Just… a little check.”

He pulled his notebook again and scribbled quickly with a broken crayon.

“No Bane, no Pinguin, no Killer Croc, no Scarecrow, and ESPECIALLY no Joker. I hate that guy… If I encounter him, I’m gonna…”

Little Robin yawned before he could finish imagining what he would do. He didn’t know at what hour the manor had become so huge, but his battery was running low very fast. He peeked behind a few bushes before returning to the front door rubbing his eyes.

“Okay… Plan B. I’m gonna watch him myself.”

Jason hadn’t even noticed he had forgotten his coat on the rank, so he was getting cold. The breeze and the first drops of rain urged him to take shelter. Alfred had been looking for him for hours, but Jason was so unintentionally sneaky that they never encounter. But the butler finally relaxed when he saw the boy going upstairs, almost sleepwalking—like a soldier returning from the field.

Jason made it back to Bruce’s room. He opened the door and climbed up to reach his father again. Bruce’s face was less warm than the last one thousand times he had checked it before, and Jason felt relieved.

“Don’t worry, old man…” Jason whispered. “I’m gonna watch over you all night…”

The cold was winning over him, so the kid snuggled close to Bruce’s body to get warm, slipping under the blankets beside him. He wrapped an arm around his father’s and took a deep breath to ‘get ready for surveillance’—falling asleep few minutes after.

Last part - Next part

[fae-cookie-run-madness]

May I ask for interactions(?) between the kiddos and their parents or with eachother, before everything became a mess-

Cause like, I'm imagining Cloud playing one of those 'slay the beast' games with Choco. With them letting hin wib and stuff. Or like, 'Sweet' Sugar just constantly finding ways to hold her kids cause I think she'd be a bit clingy.

I just love crave lore and getting to know more about these characters and their interactions w/ eachother

Dark Cacao family

Words: 762

Mystic Flour watch from one of the many walkways of the citadel, she shivered slightly as she pulled her fur cape tighter. She cursed her husband in her head for picking a place so cold yet she didn’t move.

Out in the snow, just barely outside the walls of the citadel was the crown prince Dark Choco cookie, and her guardian, Cloud Haetae cookie. Cloud Haetae was in their guardian lion form, chasing around Dark Choco who was carrying his little wooden training sword. The two laughed, playing pretend about some sort of beast, Cloud Haetae let out a disgruntled ‘hey’ when Dark Choco abandoned the sword and picked up a handful of snow to throw at him. 

Despite how much of her was still apathy, her heart warmed up, hearing the laughter and seeing the smile that planted itself on her son’s face.

“Plain Flour.” A voice said from behind her. Even if she didn’t recognize the voice, which she does, she knew it belonged to Dark Cacao, no one else in the kingdom would dare to call her anything other than Your Majesty.  “Why are you out here, it’s cold.”

“It is always cold.” Mystic replied matter of factly.

“Yes it is, but you prefer to be inside, why are you-” Dark Cacao said as he walked next to his wife, his words stopping as he saw his son and the guardian lion playing. “Where is Chocolate Bark cookie?”

“Training ended over an hour ago.” Mystic stated in a neutral tone.

“That still doesn’t explain why he doesn’t have a guard, Chocolate Bark or one of the watchers should still-” Dark Cacao started to say, however he stopped when he felt one of Mystic Flour’s glove hands touch his face. He turned to look at her, calm expression as always.

“You worry too much, Cloud Haetae would make sure nothing would happen to Dark Choco, even if something happens, I am looking over, I would not allow anything to befall our son.” Mystic said tracing some of the lines on the side of Dark Cacao’s face. “If you keep stressing you will give yourself wrinkles.”

Dark Cacao frowned deepen at Mystic words, annoyance clear on his face.

“Mom! Dad! Look I defeated the monster!” Dark Choco called out to his parents. They turned to see Cloud Haetae, playing dead, and Dark Choco practically bouncing in excitement holding his wooden sword. The young prince finally took notice of his parents' poses before making a face of disgust and asking “Are you going to kiss?”

Dark Cacao glared down at his child as Mystic Flour started to laugh, covering her mouth with her sleeve. Eventually she stopped and spoke up. “It’s time to come in.”

Cloud Haetae quickly grabbed the young prince by his clothes and threw him into their back before he began to run. Instead of trying to go through the door, the guardian lion decided to jump on some of the brinks that were perfectly flushed with the building. Eventually Cloud Haetae landed next to the royals allowing the young prince to slide off their back with shaky steps.

“Mom! Dad!” Dark Choco said as he ran up and hugged Mystic Flour. 

Dark Cacao was slightly hurt by this but knew he sort of deserved it, so much time making sure the kingdom fell apart meant that a lot of the affection fell into Mystic. However Dark Cacao still notices how both his son and wife slightly shook in place and quickly realizes why.

“You're freezing.” Dark Cacao said quickly grabbing his son and bringing him up and holding him close, his small form shivered against his father.

“No I’m not.” Dark Choco tried to counter. 

Dark Cacao didn’t even bother dignifying that with a response as he took part of his cap and wrapped it over his son's shivering form. He turned to Mystic Flour, who was currently giving Cloud Haetae a head pat.

“You must be cold too, come on, let’s get inside and get warmed up.” Dark Cacao said walking over and wrapping an arm around the pale cookie.

“Your word is law, your majesty.” Mystic said in her normal teasing tone.

Dark Cacao face shifted, not to a frown but a faint barely noticeable smile as the lead his family inside the citadel where it was safe and warm.

[dandylion240]

Caiden felt his mouth drop. Did he actually hear what he thought he did? “It’s a simple question. Surely Jonah told you where he lived and worked ….”

“I said I don’t know,” Ethan shouted, stopping mid stride to glare at his unwelcome visitor. “I never asked him. I didn’t want to know the details. I just wanted him to put the past behind him.”

Inhaling deeping, Caiden imagined himself taking the younger man by the shoulders and shaking him until he started to make sense. No wonder Jonah always seemed to be so lost. He was carrying so much pain inside him with no one to share it with. “Surely he talked to someone. Maybe his parents? A friend?

Shrugging, Ethan glared at him “I guess…maybe. I don’t know.”

Half guessing by the man’s demeanor that Jonah’s confidant was the man Ethan had been arguing with on the beach. “Now is not the time to give in to petty jealousies…”

Ethan's lips curled in a snarl “how would you like it if your wife talked to their ex about their problems instead of you?

Raising an eyebrow Caiden bit back his first response. That he’d have to wonder why they were going to their ex in the first place. What was lacking in the relationship that they didn’t feel they could talk to him. Instead he said “I’d be glad she had someone she trusted enough to talk to. Someone they felt would listen to them.” Overall he wished he didn’t need this guy’s cooperation to find Jonah. He was more a hindrance than help.

“Humph,” Ethan crossed his arms, his chin jutting out “I don’t think it’s any of your business who Jonah confided in. I don’t see how dwelling on the past was going to help him cope with everyday life. So I didn’t talk about it.”

Or let Jonah talk about it Caiden finished in his head. His hands curled at his side. He fantasized how it would feel to hit that insufferable face until something resembling sense came out. How could anyone think talking about a traumatic event was bad for them? “You mean it made you feel better to pretend it didn’t happen,” he felt a small bit of satisfaction watching the muscle in Ethan’s left cheek twitch. “Do you want Jonah found or not?” It might have been a callous question to anyone else but at this point he needed to do something drastic to wake this jerk up. To jolt him to his core.

“Of course I do,” Ethan bellowed like a wounded animal. “he’s my husband. I want him home.” “Then you need to help me…”

“What does the past have to do with what’s happening now?”

Blinking at the man’s stupidity the feeling of wanting to beat some sense into him reasserted itself. Shaking his head Caiden took a step back “obviously I’m wasting my time here.”

He waited a moment, expecting Ethan to stop him. To at least try to be helpful. Either he really didn’t know or he really was as stupid as he appeared, Caiden didn’t know which. Turning he strode towards the door. If he stayed any longer he was sure he’d give into his desire to beat the crap out of him. He should have started with Cory. This had been a complete waste of his time and effort. Time they didn’t have if they wanted to find Jonah alive.

Caiden watched as Cory approached his table. “Thank you for taking the time to meet me.”

Shaking his hand Cory sat down “anything for Jonah.”

Leaning forward Caiden explained “I’m working on the theory that Jonah was taken by someone who had seen him before. Someone that saw him working when he lived in San My. I’m hoping you can tell me anything you can remember from that time.”

Brow creasing Cory leaned forward “I could show you where he worked. I’m sure there’s still some who remember him. If you have deep enough pockets someone might even tell us something useful.”

“That’ll be a start,” he smiled. “Other than his old boss do you know any of the clientele?”

“Unfortunately no,” he slumped back his thoughts going back seven years. Jonah had been a struggling eighteen year old kid doing his best to provide for himself and his newborn son. He could feel Caiden’s eyes upon him “Jonah didn’t know the man’s name. Just that he was a special client who had asked for him special. According to what Jonah told me the guy paid a lot of money….”

Drumming his fingers on the table Caiden thought for a moment. “Did he mention anything about what the man looked like? Scars? Tattoos?” He was grasping at straws but if he had something tangible to look for he could run it through the database of known offenders.

Rubbing his chin, Cory shook his head, “no I don’t remember him saying anything. Just that he was older. Silver haired.” He took a sip from the sweating glass the waitress had set on the table in front of him. “Jonah always got very anxious around older, silver haired men; especially if they were too friendly with him.”

“I can understand why but it’s not much to go on,” he ran his hands through his hair frustrated at how slow this was going and knowing his chances of finding Jonah alive were fast running out.

“Sorry,” Cory muttered “I wish I could be of more help.” He pounded the table rattling the glasses “there was one time my daughter got upset at Jonah for asking her to help him do the dishes. She told him he wasn’t her master…that’s it. Jonah went completely white when she said that. I thought he was going to faint.”

Caiden was almost holding his breath as he listened sensing this was more than just a memory. He was going to learn something that was going to help him. 

“It took me almost two hours to calm him down. To get him to talk about it without dissolving into tears.” Looking up “the special client made him call him master the whole time.” His voice was gruff with an inner fury as he remembered Jonah telling him what he had endured that night, the shame, ,the humiliation, every little detail that man had done to him. He had held him into the wee hours of the night just letting him soak his shirt with his tears.

Meeting Caiden’s gaze, Cory said, “I want him.” He wanted to feel his hands around that man’s throat choking the last gasping breath from him.

“Not if I get him first,” Caiden growled.

“Do you have any leads on Julien Warden,” Cory asked. They were hoping if they could find him then they might be able to find out who brokered the deal.

“None so far,” he sat back adding “we do have people watching his ex-wife in Sulani. He might show up there.”

Nodding Cory accepted the fact that Noelle was the ex-wife even though she hadn’t told him who she was hiding from. “Do you think he’ll show up?”

“Yeah,” he sensed there was more to that question “what’s your interest?”

Smirking a little, Cory said “I may have dated her. Kai’s a good kid though. I’d hate to see anything happen to him.”

Nodding he considered the man across from him. “I need an honest appraisal of someone.” He had the feeling that Cory would give it to him. He liked his instincts and it wasn’t something he wanted to ask Evan when he had been in his office. “What do you think of Jonah’s husband, Ethan?”

Snorting Cory made a face, “he’s a little weasel who does as little as possible.” He gave Caiden a sharp look “and if you let him anywhere near this investigation I’ll personally kick your ass. He’ll mess things up. He’ll go off to play hero and we’ll lose Jonah forever.”

Nodding, Caiden agreed “yeah that’s the impression I got too.” He fell silent considering his next course of action. “I’m considering taking on an assistant but I need someone I can trust. I think you might be that guy.”

Leaning forward elbows resting on the table, Cory asked “are you asking me to help you?” He never considered police work before but "I’m your man if it helps bring Jonah home where he belongs."

“Will you follow my orders without question?”

“Probably,” he smirked, “I won’t promise anything when we find the guy who has Jonah. In my opinion the world would be better off without that deviant.”

Caiden silently agreed. Holding his hand out “welcome to the firm. Let’s go catch us a bad guy.”

Standing outside the car Caiden frowned over at Cory. It was worse than he imagined. 

“It’s not very pretty is it?” Cory motioned towards the building. His mind went back seven years to the night he rescued Jonah. He wondered what would have happened if he hadn’t gone that night.  “A lot of runaways wind up in places like this,” he explained.

Nodding Caiden had heard Raelyn talk about her brother and how he had run away when he was seventeen. Right before graduation. He had met Raelyn’s parents. They were good parents. “Why?” he asked the question that had puzzled him since Raelyn had told him.

“He had gotten pregnant on prom night. His parents wanted him to go to college and they would adopt the baby.” Jonah had told him the reasons and how he regretted not trying harder to get them to listen to what he wanted. “Personally I think it was Ethan’s refusal to step up and be the man he needed him to be..”

“Hardly surprising,” Caiden grunted “I imagine Ethan wanted him to get an abortion.” It sounded like something he’d do. The easy way out. Then life could continue on as usual.

“Yeah,” nodding a little sadly, Cory continued, “Jonah felt no one wanted him to have his baby. He felt the only way to keep him was to leave. For a kid living on his own he did really well. It was unfortunate he ran into people who made it their business preying off of vulnerable kids.”

Sighing Caiden had seen it often working as a cop. A lot of kids became a statistic. Lost  in a city of millions of people. Many of them aren’t even identified. Jonah had been one of the lucky ones to get out. 

Walking inside the no tell motel, the hourly rates marked prominently on a board behind the desk. The musty unpleasant smell of the old building assaulted their noses as they walked in. “It hasn’t changed much,” Cory mumbled beneath his breath.

Cory walked to the desk while Caiden stood by the curtains that led into the depths of the motel keeping a lookout. “Hey Stan still working at this joint?” he sounded pleasant enough despite the dangerous gleam in his eyes.

“Get out,” the man spit across his desk.

“Just as charming as ever I see,” Cory chuckled mirthlessly. Half turning towards Caiden saying “Stan has worked here for years. I’m sure he remembers Jonah. Nothing gets past him.”

“Isn’t that right?” Cory asked as he turned back to the man behind the desk, grabbing him by the shirt.

“Let go of me,” the man spluttered “I don’t know any Jonah.”

“Of course you do,” Cory shook him a little before letting him go. “Cute little good looking blond. Played the piano.”

“We don’t have no piano…”

“You did seven years ago,” Caiden stepped forward, putting a photo of Jonah under the man’s nose. “Recognize him now?”

Anger sizzled in the man’s eyes as he glared up at Caiden. “That little brat was more trouble than he was worth. If it weren’t for …” He snapped his mouth shut fear flashing in his beady little eyes.

“If it weren’t for who?” Caiden asked, pouncing on it like a cat on a red dot on the floor. “All we need is a name. Then we’ll leave.”

Trembling beneath their combined gazes, his eyes darted around the room as if seeking a way to escape. “I don’t have a name.” Licking his lips “just leave.”

“Wrong answer,” Cory growled slamming the man’s face down into the old desk making both it and the man groan. 

“This is harassment,” he yelled, struggling to free himself.

“Who are you going to complain to?” Caiden asked casually looking through the curtains making sure no one was coming to the old man's aid. “We’re not cops…”

“I’ve got rights…”

“Do we look like we care about your rights?” Cory hissed, lifting him up by the scant hairs remaining on his head.

“All we need is a name then we’ll leave,” Caiden repeated calmly leaning against the wall.

“Then you’ll leave,” the man asked hopefully.

“Yeah sure,” Cory agreed, releasing him.

“Alright,” he straightened his clothes, shaking a little.

“Who was the special client the boss arranged for Jonah to meet?”

“Can I see that picture again?” he asked, avoiding looking at Cory. “Every client has a type. I might recognize the client by the merchandise…err I mean…boy.”

Caiden held the picture out to him. He somehow felt dirty just letting this man touch it. 

“Looks like the type the Albino would request. The boss had brokered a deal back then but the Albino wanted to try out the goods first.” His eyes darted towards Cory “but you kind of ruined it. Cost us thousands of dollars…”

“What's his name,” Cory growled, not wanting to listen to how he messed up a deal that would have sold Jonah into servitude as some pervert’s toy.

“I don’t know,” he cowered against the wall behind his desk. “I told you I didn’t have a name. Just the Albino. All his boys call him master. That’s it. I don’t know anything else.”

Cory took a menacing step forward stopping at the firm pressure on his shoulder. “We’ve got all we’re going to get out of him.

“Like hell we did,” he wanted nothing more than to tear the place apart until they found something, anything that would lead them to where Jonah was.

Walking to the car grumbling “we got nothing that could help us.”

“I’m not so sure about that. I’m sure we’ll find something on the Albino.” It wasn’t a case he had worked but he knew someone who did and if his hunch was correct then they’d be closer to finding Jonah than they were this morning. Getting into the car Caiden reached under his shirt and pulled off a wire. “My friend at the station is going to be able use the information we got from Stan to close this place down. If nothing else we saved some kids today.”

“That’s something at least,” Cory admitted as he turned out of the parking lot.

Previous/Next

[smartylina]

Malina had expected everything from Kuzco, except HIM telling her such shocking information. Without realizing it, she gives him a furious glare as he explains the plan for his summer home. He is making a wise decision by looking away for a moment. The thought of Pacha and his poor family being homeless makes her feel bad, and she can't help but yell at Kuzco when he's done speaking.

Her mind tries to process why someone as nice as Pacha would help the jerk who was about to destroy his families hut. Then, his next words snap her out of her trance, and she waits until he's done speaking. "YOU! THE NERVE YOU HAD by being the most unbelievably selfish man ever! How DARE YOU?! Didn't you actually even give it a second thought? I don't know... maybe analyzing what would have happened to Pacha, Chicha, and the kids if you kicked them out of their home?!" Malina tries to breathe in and out, and she rubs her temples, looking at the floor, disappointed at the old Kuzco. She even wonders for a bit what it would have been like if she had met Kuzco back then. He'd have probably thrown her into the dungeons or burned her hut to the ground, too.

She gives herself some time to calm down before responding to him again, and then hums. "Pacha is lucky that he got to adopt you. But I can't possibly imagine how much worse you were before that. Destroying people's houses is so low, Kuzco." She says and raises an eyebrow when he mentions Yzma being a bad influence. "Yzma was the one who raised you, right? Clearly she isn't a good role model." She looks at him again and crosses her arms over her chest. "So she taught you how to be indifferent towards your own people." She states, feeling upset still.

After a short pause, she then adds softly. "I can't help but think that our relationship wouldn't have been the same if we met before you were turned into a llama."

Wow, starting off strong, huh? Kuzco huffs and levels her with an unimpressed stare, reminiscent of her own 'Malina Stare', but if he's being honest? He can't exactly blame her. If anyone is going to ask the hard hitting questions, it's reporter Malina; and like he already said . . . she deserves the truth. " Yeah . . . I mean, I don't know if I would say I was 'heartless', but there's a good reason your dad and everyone else hated me so much. " Yzma made it sound like the entire Empire was aware of his tyranny and hated back then, so he's a little surprised and a lotta bit grateful that Malina has only heard 'rumors' about his behavior. Up until now.

" The only reason Pacha agreed to help me out with the whole 'Yzma turned me into a llama and tried to kill me' thing was so I wouldn't . . destroy his village. " Kuzco admits, losing his nerve and turning his face away from her, so he won't see the anger in her expression. " It was my eighteenth birthday. Big ol' eighteen, the official birthday that would make me EMPEROR instead of a lowly little 'Prince' with the living mummy as my regent. I was dead set on making it a huge celebration; a Kingdom-wide party in my honor, all of the peasants set to bring me gifts, and the plan was to use half of the village distribution food supply for the banquet and then demand higher crop yields during harvest to make up the loss-- and the best part? The thing I really couldn't wait for? "

A nervous hand brushes hair away from his shoulders as he stares out at the edge of the cliff, thinking back to the look on Pacha's face when he delivered the news; at how blind he was back then, to not see the heartbreak for what it was. " . . . My summer palace. Kuzcotopia, the ultimate summer getaway-- complete with water slide. The Royal Maptographer figured it out, said it was the best hill in the countryside for the summer palace; so I was going to announce the destruction of Pacha's village at my big birthday celebration, and have construction start immediately on the palace so it would be ready by summer. " Kuzco takes a breath and realizes he's been talking for a while, which usually isn't a bad thing-- if there's one thing he loves, it's the sound of his own voice-- but now, it seems like the silence from Malina's end is deafening, and he tentatively turns to face her with a haunted look on his face.

" So . . . that's why he helped. 'Cause he thought he could convince me not to do it, and . . . what do you know, he was right. You save the Emperor's life, and apparently it gets you a free pass to NOT have your life destroyed, an adopted son and the best house guest in the entire world. " He realizes now why he never told her; that sounded horrible, even to him, and he winces at himself. " That was the tip of the iceberg. BEFORE all that, I was pretty horrible too . . . it's not like Yzma was a good influence, and I didn't really care what peasants thought of me so it's not like I went out of my way to fight her on letting me do whatever I wanted. "

[iero]

Saw a Facebook post this morning of this woman explaining how she voted for Donny Dickhead and now severely regrets it because her husband and the father of her children has been deported under FuckAss Fascist because he's not a legal citizen of this country and now she's a single mom... Girl, you really thought that Mr. "I'll Going To Build A Wall." in his first term would change his views? You thought a painfully racist man would change his mind?

[wolfwarrior142]

Aaravos with his first child: *loves her so deeply, profoundly devastated for a century after she's unfairly killed, causes chaos for centuries after*

Aaravos with his second child: Fuck this little freak lol

[dreamsy990]

TELEMACHUS AND ANTINOUS. FINALLY

[helenofblackthorns]

everytime I read City of Bones I'm always caught off guard by the fact the reason Luke looks for Jocelyn so hard in New York is because that's where the Lightwoods & Hodge are 😭 like what do you mean that worked??? and then you combine that with fact that seeing Izzy is what drags Clary into the Shadow world at the beginning of the book like..... it's so easy to forget their generational soulmatism is established from the very first book these people are truly never escaping each other lmao

[imagine-to-be-a-pike]

,,Fu Yao and Nan Feng as Fengqing's twins" yea sure But what if they don't know about it either. Like Mu Qing and Feng Xin had idk like 10 years of peace, spawned two kids (don't ask me, ask them) but ended up separating them

Nan Feng ended up as Nan Yang's deputy and Fu Yao as Xuan Zhen's. Both very unaware of their parents. They just think they are favored for some reason

[bixels]

I'm not getting into The Giving Tree discourse...

[incomprehensi-bull]

somewhat fascinated recently by the idea of layton's old stansbury friends learning more about him as they get back in touch post-MM and having to try and connect the dots between "hershel layton, 17" and "hershel layton, 37". cuz, like

imagine your (ex)friend skips town and that's the last you hear of him for 18 years. you remember him as a generally nice young man, and sure, you left off on a bad note, but you have no reason to believe that he's prone to anything more than some occasional snark and a mild tendency to snatch small items*

and then Events Happen, and he's back in your life now, and it becomes gradually and increasingly clear to you that you really, REALLY don't know him the way you used to. he has a distrust of the police and government that's entirely too personal, he's better at lying than you'd expect from someone who claims to be morally opposed to it, you learn eventually that he's on a first name basis with a known notorious criminal, and, uh, hey, hershel, you seem way more comfortable with weird machinery and loose explosives than i remember, what's up with that**

*operating under the assumption that the collection minigame is entirely diegetic because it's fun to do so ** in order, see: unwound future, lots of moments throughout the games, unwound future again, every instance of puzzles where layton is digging around in machinery and/or prompted to take out obstacles with explosives that are just, like, laying around? once again under the assumption that it's diegetic, because it's fun to do so