In a couple of days time, my account is going to be 3 years old! It's crazy to think I've been doing this for nearly 3 years now. As a kind of celebration, I thought I'd publish this little one shot. I don't own any rights to Professor Layton (sadly). Credit to chinara on DeviantArt for the cover image, it's so cute and I just couldn't help myself :) Anyway, Enjoy!
It was surprisingly quiet when the Professor stepped into his apartment. He shut the door behind him, took off his shoes and coat. But once he looked up he found himself unable to move from shock at the sight before him. The floor had been cleared of rubbish and swept, the shelves had been dusted, the windows almost glowed, and there was a hint of lemon hanging in the air.
"Luke?" he called out as he stepped further into the house. But his eyes were still focused on his surroundings rather than looking for his newly appointed apprentice. He hadn't seen his apartment this clean since... well, ever. His feet even squeaked on the floor as he turned the corner and entered his kitchen. The dirty dishes that had been on the counter were gone, all his pans were stacked neatly in the cupboards and the utensils hung in their appropriate places. But then he stepped into the living room and nothing could stop the smile spreading across his lips. Books and papers were stacked in neat piles and even all the fossils had been put back on shelves and straightened up. But what really made the Professor smile was the sight of Luke curled up on the sofa in the middle of the room, fast asleep. The boy's sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, his hat was discarded beside him, and his hair appeared to have tiny flecks of soap in it. Slowly he approached him, reached out a hand and gently shook the boy's arm. Luke grumbled slightly and eventually opened his eyes.
"Professor?" Luke asked slightly confused before yawning, stretching his arms, and sitting up.
"I get back from work to find you asleep on the sofa. What on Earth have you been doing all afternoon that has tired you out so much?" the Professor asked curiously. Luke did not reply but instead he looked down at the floor and- if the Professor wasn't mistaken- a light blush began to form on his cheeks.
"I'm not mad at you, Luke" the Professor reassured him as he crouched down in front of him "I just want to know what you've been doing all day". Luke mumbled something incoherent so the Professor lifted the boy's head up with his forefinger to look at him, a comforting smile on his face. After another pause, Luke spoke again.
"Well, when you left I decided to tidy up a bit"
"You mean, you've been cleaning my house all day?" the Professor questioned, his eyes wide with shock.
"Yes," Luke answered shortly, finding it increasingly difficult to continue looking the Professor in the eye.
"Why would you do that? I'm sure as a young boy there are far more interesting ways to spend the day" the underlying humour in the Professor's words and the small gleam in his eye helped Luke feel a little more relaxed.
"I just wanted to make myself useful so you'd let me stay," Luke said quietly, bowing his head again as the Professor's eyes widened.
"What made you think you needed to do such a thing?" The surprise was evident in the Professor's voice.
"It's just... you seemed kind of reluctant to keep me around so I wanted to prove to you that I can be useful and do things for you" Luke slowly lifted his head while the Professor stared at him slightly dumbfound. Silence hung in the air for a few moments before the Professor shifted himself to sit on the sofa next to Luke and after a brief pause, he gently wrapped an arm around the boy's shoulders.
"Luke my boy, I am most grateful to have you here. Never doubt that. But I have lived on my own for quite some time now, maybe too long it seems, and I have forgotten what it's like to have someone in my care"
"I can take care of myself" Luke mumbled in a weak protest.
"You misunderstand me. While you are here it is my duty, as well as my utmost privilege, to care for you. And part of that means making you feel comfortable and welcome. You will never have to do things to impress me and make me wish to let you stay here for I have already made up my mind that you will always have a home with me for as long as you want it"
"Really?" Luke almost whispered, looking up at the Professor with a wide-eyed innocence that the man hadn't seen in a very long time.
"Of course!" The Professor chuckled gently, squeezing Luke against him briefly "Now how about a few puzzles to ease our minds since it seems I wasn't the only one to do a lot of hard work today"
Luke grinned eagerly at his mentor and the Professor told him his first puzzle. The boy solved it with relative ease and then told a puzzle for the Professor to solve. They continued this cycle for almost an hour, exchanging puzzles back and forth. As Luke mulled over a particularly difficult one, the Professor found himself smiling. He realised that he truly meant what he had said to Luke earlier about always having a home with him. He knew he could be forgetful, messy, and could easily get caught up in his own work but he also knew that Luke understood that he was only human. While Luke was around him and learning all he could, he hoped he too would be able to learn and change as a man as well as a mentor to this cheerful boy.