This story is not specifically about Final Space, even though Avocato is the main character. There's a small medley of other characters from a handful of other cartoons that I'm not going to say here because I want you to be a little surprised by who pops up. Before we get to Avocato talking about Little Cato, I have three other characters talking about their experiences and flaws as parents. So whether or not you've seen or even like these shows, I hope you find their insights interesting. Where this takes place is after Avocato refused to kill Little Cato in episode 6's flasback. Usualy my story try to feel as canon as possible, but this exception was a fun experiment, so read, review and enjoy
It was a bright day on the unnamed planet in the Animation Nexus dimension. Within this dimension, every cartoon ever made, television or movie could come to communicate, hang out and take a break from the storylines of their franchises. even villains found a certain peace within the Nexus that they refused to disturb. Within a small town in the Animation Nexus lays a small one-story office building where several animation parents were meeting to give each other advice on how to be better role models and guardians for their children. The transdimensional uber portal suddenly opened in front of the small office building to reveal a car like mini spaceship holding a blue Ventrexian named Avocato, who was on his way to the meeting at that very moment. After the week Avocato had, he was so lost in remorseful thought staring out the window that he didn't realize he'd reached his destination.
"Here we are, pal." announced the driver, Bender Bending Rodriguez, who was met with silence. Avocato merely stared at nothing for a few moments. He had so much on his mind, so much fear in his heart, that it wasn't until the robot snapped his fingers that he awoke from his trance. "Hey, come on Buddy, you got yarn in your ears? I've got places to be."
"Oh, sorry." he exclaimed as he paid Bender for his services. He gave Bender twenty dollars and was just about to exit the mini ship when Bender stopped him.
"What no tip?" he questioned in frustration.
"Hey, come on, I need money for the ride back." Avocato hastily replied.
"Whatever, cheapskate. Have fun." with that, Bender drove off into the plaza to search for more characters needing a driver. Avocato watched the Uber ship drive off and sighed as he turned towards the small beige building. He calmly entered the building with his thoughts still racing about Little Cato. It was only last week that he was forced to nearly kill his only son but didn't. Now, Little Cato is a prisoner of the Lord Commander, Avocato has lost his second in command position and the only way to ensure his son's safety was to continue serving the Lord Commander. However, he had seen advertisements for this "Inter-dimensional Parent Counseling Session" and thought it would be good for him. One day, he was going to be free from serving the Lord Commander and liberate his son into a better life. Avocato has been a terrible father, and a killer. so this group would aid him in his desire to learn to be a better father. It was the least he could do for his child at the moment. Hopefully, the group would accept him considering he was the second in command to a killer. He walked to the front desk where he was greeted by Waylon Smithers working at the front desk.
"What can I do you today, sir?" Smithers greeted politely
"Hi, I'm here for the parent counseling meeting." Avocato explained, stepping up to the desk.
"Oh, that's just about to begin. It's the fourth door to the right." he replied, pointing down the hallway.
"Thank you." Avocato waved as he made his way down the hall. He passed the meeting for cheapskate bosses, the club for grumpy comedic straight man, and the club for geniuses whose inventions constantly backfire. Once he found the meeting for better parents. He hesitated at first; he was still worried that they would harass him for being a villain, but hopefully, they would accept him as a Ventrexian who wanted to be a better father. With one last deep breathe, he slowly entered the room as to not make a commotion and saw that there were four other characters in the room, who all turned to see that he'd entered their meeting. The only character standing at the end of the chair made circle was a tall red-skinned woman with shades and a big 1970's style hair.
"Hello there," the woman waved softly, greeting the cat. "Welcome to our parent support group. Would you like to take a seat?" she gestured him to the empty folding chair between Master Splinter and Moon Butterfly.
"Very well, thank you." he said modestly, sitting next to the blue-haired queen and the giant rat man. Master Splinter began playing with his fingers anxiously and looking away from Avocato, but it quickly caught his attention and he rose an eye brown in disbelief
"Aw, seriously man? I'm not even a cat." he whispered in annoyance
"My apologies." Splinter replied, clearing his throat, "Force of habit."
"Alright then, let's begin." the woman exclaimed to the group. "Welcome to the Inter-dimensional parent counseling session. My name is Garnet from the series Steven Universe, and I'll be in charge of keeping us on track and helping us all give one another advice about why we're here today. We've all come here today because we feel that we're struggling as parents or parental figures to our children. Before we begin, I'd like to thank Moon Butterfly for using her dimensional traveling magic to bring us all together, as well as Rick Sanchez who won't be joining us today. Without them, none of us would be here right now. Thank you, your majesty."
"Oh ho ho, the pleasure was all mine. I need just as much advice as anyone else here." Moon chuckled modestly as Garnet praises her for her efforts
"With that said, let's begin with going in a circle and introducing ourselves and stating where we are from. For example, I've already mentioned that I am Garnet from the show Steven Universe. Why don't we begin with you?" she explained, gesturing towards the silver robot monkey sitting in lotus position to her left.
"Oh, very well." The simian replied, standing in his seat for a moment "Hello, everyone, I'm known as Antauri from a series called Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go. It's nice to meet you all."
Then the next character stood up and introduced herself. "Greetings, fellow parents, I'm Moon Butterfly from Star vs the Forces of Evil. I'm charmed to make your acquaintance." Moon bowed in front of everyone as a sign of modesty before sitting back down. Next was the blue feline.
He gulped in nervousness, feeling a little shy about being a calm, collected meeting after serving in the Lord Commander's military for so long. He swallowed his shyness and spoke up with somewhat "Oh, um... hey. I'm Avocato and I'm from a new series, Final Space. I came here because I have a serious problem and I'm hoping you guys can help me."
"Um-hmm, that's why we're all here, Avocato." Garnet added, confirming that the blue feline came to the right place, "and finally, who might you be, sir?" she asked, gesturing towards the tall rodent in front of her
"My name is Hamato Yoshi, but you may call me Splinter. I am from the 2012 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles dimension, and I would like to thank you for the invitation."
"Any time, Splinter. So since it's a small group, each of us will share their problem and talk about how we can resolve it once the meeting is adjourned. Who would like to go first?" Garnet politely asked sitting down. After a moment of silence, Avocato worked up the courage to share his situation, only to be beaten by Splinter who quickly raised his hand first. "Thank you, Splinter. Tell us about your family." Garnet said with a smile
"It's not something I'm proud, so I was hoping you all could help me. I've pondered this for many days, but I don't think I can handle this feeling any longer. I'm the single, adopted father of four boys, all teenagers."
"Oh, bless your soul, I can barely survive managing one teenage daughter with my husband." Moon interrupted to add the relatable comment
"He he he, thank you. You see, my sons are trained in ninjutsu and are the protectors of New York City in my dimension, where we fight a war with an old foe of mine and protect the earth from alien invaders. They're always out on these reckless adventures and I'm almost always afraid for their well being."
"My daughter is always out on adventures. More than I know about, it's just a part of animated children characters growing up." Moon replied in understanding as she crossed her legs.
"I have a similar query." Antauri added, raising his hand halfway up
Garnet entered the conversation as well "I have a child amongst my team as well. He's still growing but becoming a fine warrior. It's normal to be afraid for their well being. It's nothing to be ashamed of."
Avocato just sat silently with his legs and arms crossed, listening to the conversation. He wasn't a good parent like these four supposedly were, what advice could he possibly give these people?
"Well, that's just my story, but it's not my problem." Splinter continued, much to the other's curiosity, "Lately I've been doubting my abilities as a father because I've been accused of child favoritism, which... isn't entirely false in hindsight." Splinter explained remorsefully.
"Would you care to elaborate on that?" Garnet asked with a finger on her chin
"My eldest son, Leonardo is the leader of their team, and when I eventually pass on, they will only have Leonardo to look to for guidance. Not to mention he's my most skilled pupil. I've been passing on more of my knowledge to him than anyone else because he needs more than my other sons. I fear that I've allowed those excess training sessions to display favoritism that I won't wish to obtain, but it's a feeling towards my eldest that I have that I don't want. Garnet, what would you recommend for me to be rid of this problem?"
"Hmm, this is a fascinating issue you have, Splinter." Antauri responded before the Crystal gem could reply "I would first like to commend you for being aware of your problem and wanted to cure yourself of it. Any good father would be aware of that and want to break such a dangerous habit the way you desire to."
"I agree with Antauri," added Moon, "it's never right to have a favorite child, but you clearly don't have that intention. You want to love all of your sons equally, but based on your description, Leonardo apparently does need some extra attention. That doesn't mean you can't give your sons the same amount of attention. "
Avocato was very fascinated by this conversation now, but still remaining silent. He couldn't exactly relate to Splinter's dilemma because he only had one child, but this conflict was interesting to talk about. The blue Ventrexian saw a very loving father within this rodent, but certainly a flawed one. A flawed one who wanted to better himself for his children, reflecting his own desires.
"I understand that," Splinter continued, "but even without the favoritism, how can I prevent my sons from arguing and being rivals with one another?"
"You can't" Antauri simply replied "Siblings or not, anyone living together can get competition and argue once in a while. It's perfectly normal, especially with brothers. Believe me, I live with five people." he chuckled
"Two of my teammates used to fight and compete quite often," added Garnet softly as she returned to addressing Splinter, who was taking in every word that everyone was saying "but they've matured and gotten along much better lately because they've learned the importance of teamwork, respect, and compromise. The best thing to do, Splinter, is try to spend the time you have left with your sons wisely. When they argue, don't take sides and instead compromise with their problem so you don't display any more favoritism."
"It would also help if you had some bonding time with all of your sons together. Perhaps go out for a walk or play a board game of some sorts. That's what I used to with my family." Moon added with a smile
"It's clear to me that your sons look up to you greatly, or else you wouldn't be having these anxieties." replied Garnet with a motherly voice "The best thing you can do is support their anxieties and emotional needs and encourage them to support each other in the face of your war. You all love each other so remember to embrace each other's company."
Splinter embraced the wisdom o his new comrades. He's thought he wasn't a good father because of how he's treated Leonardo compared to his Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo. He realized that he did so much for his boys and was a good father, but it was up to him to be a better father before they didn't need him anymore. With a small tear of relief, he spoke "Thank you all for your wisdom. I vow to take it to heart while I can."
"I'm glad we could help, Splinter." replied Garnet. Suddenly, she noticed Avocato who was staring into his lap and just realized he hasn't said a word since this session began. "Avocato, is there anything you would like to contribute to Splinter's conflict before we move on?" she asked curiously
Avocato looked up at everyone and replied
"I only have one child, so I can't relate. Besides, you're all are probably much better parents than I'll ever get the chance to be."
"Just because you have one child, doesn't mean you couldn't have contributed." said Moon, putting a hand on his shoulder. "As I said before, I only have one daughter."
"I'm only a father figure to one boy." added Antauri
"As am I." replied Garnet "The amount of children you have shouldn't affect your abilities as a parent, Avocato, no matter how many you may have."
"Thank you, but I don't have anything to say on the matter. Maybe the next one, but I've got a lot going on right now. So I'll just listen until it's my turn." the blue Ventrexian insisted
"If that's what you wish, but feel free to chime in at any time." smiled Garnet "Now, let's move on to the next story. Who would like to go next?"
"I would."
TO BE CONTINUED
This was originally planned to be a one-shot, but it's getting too long, so I decided to make it a 3 shot. I also wanted to include more characters, but I decide to keep the group with these five because they're all from sci-fi shows and I don't want to overload the cast. I submitted this to the Final Space group because we're seeing this story through Avocato's eyes, and he'll be the focus of the final chapter. So leave a review, tell me what you think and have an awesome day.
Credits
Avocato from Final Space
Master Splinter from TMNT 2012
Antauri from Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go
Moon from Star Vs The Forces Of Evil
Garnet from Steven Universe
Cameos
Bender from Futurama
Smithers from the Simpsons
Rick from Rick and Morty