(Headmaster Hand)

Bickering fills the house, for the duration of the night.

Even Reggie, disgraced from helping Geldegarde, gets involved.

"Now we've got no food, Elmore!" He says, angrily. "Your stupid handbag - you're wasteful, what on Earth are we going to do now?"

"Not my problem!"

"It is your problem!" Tessie exclaims. "You're going to starve along with the rest of us!"

But despite all the convincing arguments, it takes a whole day of starvation before Elmore concedes, allowing the handbag to be taken back for a refund. We won't have as much money as before, but it'll still be enough. Enough to get by.

I offer to take it. I need a breath of fresh air, from this house. Living with so many people is so frustrating - I'm such an isolationist, so to have to work at my plans whilst people shout in the background - it drives me slightly insane. It doesn't help that my only friends, Duster and Roy, spend most of the time asleep.

"I'll get some food, too!" I call to the others, as I leave. "See you later!"

There's sparse response. I swiftly shut the door behind me.

Truth be told, every single member of the group has been at least somewhat starting to get on my nerves. But I need to put that all behind me - I cannot be focusing on my little personal qualms. That won't do at all. What I need to focus on is finding wherever Elmore bought this stupid handbag, and hoping that they accept returns.

On the way I pass the train station, thinking - perhaps I should send Ollie and Angie up to school, for the meantime? When the wilderness survival week is over, because what day is it today, Tuesday? If I can get them out, on Friday, maybe then they'd be safe, so far away? It's a consideration I should keep in mind.

But that's a matter for another time. I stride through the streets of Onett, looking out for a handbag showroom - though I'm distracted again, as when I reach the town centre, there seems to be some kind of kerfuffle going on...

Oh, great. Police horses are all around the central statue - and there's some kids too, by the looks of it. Dismayed, I advance closer - but oh heavens, is that Ness and Lucas fighting the police with bread?

Of course - The wanted poster - my mind works quick, I have to help! I pull out a scrap piece of paper as the battle rages - quickly, quickly! I write, scribbling as best I can, running over. "Stop!" I gasp for breath. "All of you! Stop! I have an official pardon from Porky Minch himself, for these boys! Stop what you're doing immediately!"

A sea of helmeted faces turn, sneering. "Really? Is that so?"

I thrust my hand forwards, handing the chief constable my note, praying to myself that it works. Praying my forgery skills are good enough. Praying that I don't get myself arrested too...

There's grumbling amongst the men, as they examine the note. Each one takes a turn to read over it, one even bringing out a monocle to examine the words… But eventually, the note is handed back to me, and the chief constable turns on his horse, a sour verdict on his tongue,

"It is so. By the official 10th clause of the Criminal Law of Onett, you, Ness, and all of your associates, are pardoned, and free to go."

.

.

.

~~o00o~~

Chapter 47 - The Clouds are Gone

(Ness)

~~o00o~~

.

.

.

I'll be honest, I never thought I'd be involved in combat with the police, armed only with baked goods and fruit. And even more so, I never thought that would be a battle we could win.

Well, I say we won. Really, Headmaster Hand came to our rescue, with a masterfully forged note, declaring that Porky had granted us a pardon. Which, really, is the kind of luck I feel we've been very much missing out on in the past few weeks.

As for me, I'm trying to be positive. I'm trying not to think about Father right now, and how he might never lack me back into the family hom-

Nope! Not thinking those thoughts.

Not for the millionth time.

"Thanks," Lucas stutters, when the police brigade have gone. "You saved us-"

"Ah," Headmaster Hand waves. "It was no trouble. We have a common goal, after all."

"You got back to Onett safely, then?" I ask, blinking.

"Just about. We're holed up in some abandoned townhouse right now. Making plans. By the way, what's this about you committing murder?"

"He was a Future Human," I explain. "Andonuts. We went to find stuff out, but… well, he was - yeah. He was a Future Human, Pit shot him with an arrow, and he ended up kind of deactivated. The police sort of caught us in the act…"

Headmaster Hand nods. "Ah, right. Okay. Well, hopefully you're off the hook now."

"Hopefully so, Headmaster," Red nods respectfully, speaking for the first time in a while.

"Uh - What's with that?" Toon Link asks him, indicating towards the surprisingly expensive looking handbag that the former headmaster carries.

Headmaster Hand rolls his eyes. "Long story. But, well, we found a range of rare coins and sold them, but Elmore - you remember Elmore right? She purchased this handbag with all the money. I'm here to sell it again."

"Ah - right."

There's an awkward pause.

"Well, we've got to get more… bread," I say, lamely. "Uh, Toon Link, do you want to go get some bread with me?"

"Yes, I would love to get some bread with you, dear friend." Toon Link replies, with a mock bow.

"Ok - cool. Uh, Lucas, do you have the money?"

Lucas tosses over the remainder of the coins.

"Right. Awesome." I give an awkward thumbs up, before all too quickly leaving the alarming presence of the Headmaster.

Toon Link and I are swift to enter the bakery. It's a lovely place, I've been here many a time when I've escaped my Father's watchful eye, to pick myself up a pastry. They do the best pastries here. Even our cook can't compete - oh no. Home. I need to stop thinking about that.

"This place is great!" Toon Link says incredulously, looking at the rows upon rows of bread and cookies. "Can we buy the whole shop?"

I grin, tempted by the prospect. "You've never been here?"

"No, we do all our shopping at the market - but, my eyes are opened!"

A familiar face - Felicity, the head baker's daughter - emerges from the racks of bread. "Ah! Ness! Fantastic to see you, with a friend too?" She looks over at Toon Link, before her eyes narrow suddenly, in confusion.

I frown. "Yeah - uh - is everything okay?"

She retains her usual composure almost instantly. "Sorry! Weird day. I keep thinking everyone I see might be - no, never mind. What can I do for you?"

"Uhm," I think. "Four cookies - Two bread rolls - and a baguette, please."

Felicity beams, instantly making herself busy with the dough. "Of course! You know, just a minute ago, we had another kid in, around your age, he had the exact same order!"

"That'll be Lucas," Toon Link explains. "Uh, we sort of had to use it to fight the police-"

Her eyes widen. "Oh dear-"

I grimace. "Yeah, long story."

A sudden screech comes from the back of the shop. "REMEMBER TO BURN A ROLL FOR THE GODS!"

Felicity rolls her eyes. "Yes, mother, I haven't forgotten."

"DON'T TALK TO ME THAT WAY!"

"Mother, I'm thirty-two, please-"

"GET TO WORK!"

Felicity sighs, closing the door to the back. "Sorry about her. She's been even worse, lately…"

I frown. "Oh, why?"

She takes three rolls out of the woodstove, chucking one hap-hazardly into the flames. "Very long story, dear… very very long…"

"It's alright, we've got time."

She sighs, looking back at the door. "Alright, y' nosy thing… but promise not to tell anyone? 'Cause I could end up in a lot of trouble…"

Toon Link and I exchange a glance. "Yeah, we wouldn't tell."

Felicity gives another nervous look behind her. "Well, okay. Okay then. So, dear, a few - a few years ago, I had a son. But the father - well, we weren't married, see. Which is obviously… looked down upon - I had to, well…" She averts her gaze, looking intently at the cookie dough she's making. "Give him away. I thought I wouldn't see him ever again, but his name was in the newspaper, last week. But Mother saw… she's not happy, she still isn't happy, that I bore a child, and, and that's why she's been worse than normal."

I look up at her, surprised. I had no idea she could live such a secret life. "Sorry to hear that."

"That's why I keep looking at people, y'know dear, I keep wondering, if everyone I meet is him - because he's in Onett, somewhere. He has to be! He'll be your age, Ness - do you know anyone who's adopted?"

I shake my head. "Sorry, I don't. Do you?"

Toon Link shakes his head, his face blank. "Uh - No. I - do not."

"Ah…" Felicity hangs her head. "Well, sorry to burden you with all that then. Here's your order," she hands it over. "Take it free by the way, since you lost the other ones… yeah. Okay. Goodbye."

She turns to the counter behind her, apparently distracted. I take the bag of goods, giving Toon Link a shrug. "Good luck, Felicity. See you around."

"See you…"

We head on out of the shop, where Toon Link turns to me. "Ness, I have news."

"What's the news?"

He rubs his arm, looking weirdly nervous. "...Well… uh, you see, I was sort of abandoned in the forest and left to die, until my adoptive parents, George and Electra found me-"

My mouth practically drops to the floor.

"You what!?"

He gives a half smile. "Yep."

"So, so, Felicity's your mum!"

"Probably, yeah."

"So - so go back in, and tell her it's you!"

He rapidly shakes his head. "No way! I can't do that!"

"Why not?!"

"She'll be - I - just can't!"

I look at Toon Link, in disbelief. "But you - you gotta, right? Don't you want to like - reunite, or something?"

"Not really!"

"Why not?"

He shudders. He shudders, hard. "I just don't. Not now. I don't want to talk about it."

"Well…" I look nervously at the bakery behind us. "What about Felicity?"

"Screw her. I don't want to talk to her."

"But - but she's really nice!"

Toon Link turns to me. "Not right now. I can't - not right now."

I sense it's a losing battle.

"Sorry. Okay."

"Thanks."

I awkwardly pat him on the back. "Let's just go back to the others."

It's almost concerning how quickly Toon Link can hide all his emotions away; as soon as we're back by the statue, he's all smiles and jokes again. I have to wonder - how often is he just pretending? Putting up a facade to save face? I resolve also not to tell anyone about this matter. It's Toon Link's business, not mine… I still can't help but feel a little bad for Felicity though.

"Time to go clean, then?" Pit asks when we're back, to which everyone gives encouraged agreement. And so, we start walking off back to Lucas's house.

I'm glad they're all helping, and I'm glad we can all make Lucas a little happier, too. I can't believe - I feel so sick and guilty - that he's been living like that. It's unbelievable. I would've let him into my house, any day of the week! All he had to do was ask, dammit! But I suppose, then, in that respect, he's just like his Father.

We all pile down the road, keenly knocking at the door to the small building. Luckily, Claus opens the door for us - and he's delighted to see us too, by the looks of it.

He beams. "Hello Lucas! Hello Ness! Hello Toon Link!"

"Hey, bud!" Toon Link smiles. "How are you?"

"Doing better. Very much better."

I catch the ghost of a smile upon Lucas's face.

We follow Claus into the lounge, where Lucas's father sits, now awake. We say hello, but not much more - because, it's weird, trying to talk to him. Extremely difficult. He seems to have become evsry much opposed to any conversation at all - I'm not quite sure how Lucas gets through to him. Or, for that matter, if he even does.

"We're back, Father," Lucas says, clearly. "These are my friends, here, and they're going to help clean up. Is that alright?"

Flint gives a sort of half shrug, which Lucas interprets as a yes.

"Great. We've got some food too, so we can have some lunch first. How about a sandwich?"

Flint gives another slight movement, obviously too caught up in his thoughts for now to respond properly.

…

"This might take longer than I thought," Villager grimaces, when we're in the kitchen. "We're going to have to replace the carpets and everything, and we have to go back to school on Friday… And when you said it was bad, I mean, I'll be honest… I wasn't quite expecting this."

Toon Link claps him on the back. "Oh, don't be such a pessimist! We've got this, in the bag."

Lucas quickly makes a bunch of sandwiches, handing them round. "None of you have to do anything to help, you know… you're all very kind."

"Nonsense!" Toon Link proclaims. "We're your friends. Of course we'll help."

"That is right," agrees Red, firmly. "Let's get to work."

And so, once Lucas has given Flint his food, our job can begin.

—DAY 1—

Lucas very reasonably suggests we start with the kitchen area, since that's where we'll have to be spending time cooking during the day. Luckily, Flint takes the idea of staying at Toon Link's place for the week surprisingly well, when we tell him the arrangement. Heaven knows he must be tired of looking around at this place - I know I would be.

The first port of call is to assess the damages. The broken window is a big issue - we'll have to find a glazier's somewhere in town. It's a minor miracle that Pit declares his uncle is one though - and he rushes swiftly out, to find him. Good. That's one thing sorted.

The next issue is the cupboards. Most of the doors are hanging off their hinges. For most of them, it'll be a case of screwing them back on, we deduce, but there's a couple where the wood has just completely rotted away, or been completely devoured by woodworm, and they'll have to be replaced for sure. Lucas starts a list - his 'List of things to replace,' he calls it. Cupboard doors are the first to feature.

Whilst Lucas measures the door sizes and adds them to his list, Toon Link and I set about sorting the floor. Luckily, it's stone, so any dirt should be able to come off one way or another, and Claus merrily sets about getting some water from the nearest pump. The rest of us go round clearing the floor of all the larger pieces of junk - old sheets of paper, hangers, string, receipts, mouse droppings, envelopes, postage stamps, stones, even some rather nasty looking rotten pieces of food. But it doesn't take long for the majority of it to be gone, two distinct piles starting to form: 'Bin' and 'Keep'.

One is certainly larger than the other.

Since Lucas's kitchen area and lounge area, not unusually, occupy the same room, it's a little ominous, having Flint watching us from a couch as we work. I can almost sense his mournful atmosphere, radiating off of him. Every time we find something new, he cringes just a little, embarrassed. But I don't let it get to me - nor do I let the awful smell get to me, because heavens above, rats and mice have completely ravaged half the stuff here. Claus will be a while with the water though, so we have to move on and ignore that for now.

Starting on the pantry is another daunting prospect, but Lucas is the first to brave its darkness, lighting an old stump of a candle we find under the main table. When he swings open the door, I'm surprised by just how deep it seems to be...

"Careful in there!" I exclaim, as Lucas edges forwards. I'm sure I catch something glint in the darkness, caught by the candle light.

The smell is even worse than outside. Who knows how much rotten food could be in there? I feel like I'm going to die, just by breathing it in. But boldly, I follow - I'm not letting my boyfriend face it alone.

Suddenly, Lucas lets out a deathly shriek, the candle flying to the floor, plummeting us into darkness. My heart drops, as I rush forward. "Lucas?!"

I feel cold arms cling onto me"N-Ness-!"

"Guys?!" Villager rushes in, and light floods the pantry again, illuminating what must've terrified Lucas so much.

Three mice, staring directly at us.

"AAAAAAAAA!" I scream, like a little girl, dashing out. "CLOSETHEDOOR! CLOSE IT!"

Lucas follows screaming, bundling Villager out, face screwed up in fear. Toon Link shoves the door shut in panic. "What's in there!?"

"MICE!" I shriek.

Toon Link jumps, shuddering. "Oh hell no - we're never opening that door again!"

I pull the frightened Lucas close. "I second that!"

Villager scoffs, looking around at us all. "Come on - really? We've fought giant monsters, and you're all scared of mice? I thought you were stronger than that."

"They're scary, ok!" Toon Link exclaims. "Stop being such a tsundere!"

"TOON-"

"Calm down!" Red orders. "We'll put mouse traps on the list, and we'll deal with it later!"

"B-But-"

"We should work on the insides of the cupboards now, for maximum efficiency!"

There's no arguing with that.

It turns out there's weirder things in the cupboards than on the floor. Once we're past all of the dirty crockery, there are some real oddities hidden - Lucas manages to find a very damp sock, Villager withdraws a glass of something suspiciously red, and I come across a mysterious portrait of a vast number of frogs.

"We don't even collect art!" Lucas protests. "And I didn't paint this! I don't know where this could've come from!"

Luckily, there's no more mice, at least. There are some suspicious piles of shredded paper though - areas that the squeakers could potentially have been nested. But we manage to clear them without hassle, further increasing the size of the 'Bin' pile.

It takes us even more time after that, but eventually the cupboards are emptied. There's enough salvageable cutlery, though some plates have to be added to Lucas's List of Things to Replace. A shame, really. But I think we'll have enough money to cover it. Claus comes back with the water just in time for us to wash out the insides of the cupboards, screw what doors we can back on, and stand back, relatively pleased with ourselves.

But the job is still far from over.

We have to send Claus back out for more water - I do feel a little guilty for it, since the nearest pump is quite some distance - but he does the task happily enough, bounding back outside. I begin to clean up some of the broken glass from the window, as Lucas begins on the surfaces, where all sorts of nasty pieces of rotten fruits fester. There's also the drawers, which Toon Link and Villager oh-so-coincidentally happen to team up on, whilst Red sees about refilling the gas lamps.

A while later, Pit eventually comes back, with news about the window.

"My uncle will be able to come and replace it tomorrow," he says. "Apparently they're making a glasshouse for someone rich today, so we'll have to wait…"

Toon Link pulls a disgusted face. "Who?"

"Oh, some guy called Geldegarde…"

Lucas and I exchange the quickest glance of all time. But that'll be an issue for another day.

The main dining table is our next area of concern. It seems okay, seems to be holding itself up well, but we haphazardly add some extra screws onto the legs, just in case. Red performs some physics calculations to declare where they should go, so we just have to take his word for it that it'll help. The chairs are fine too, once we've scrubbed off the dirt. The moth-eaten cushions have to go unfortunately, but who needs cushions anyway?

A lot of hammering, goofing around, polishing and cleaning later, it suddenly comes to our attention that we're done.

The surfaces are clear. The cupboards are mostly fixed, and are clean inside. The drawers are stocked. The floor is back to a more hygenic stony grey. The 'bin' pile does unfortunately take up a large corner of the room - but hey, once that's gone, it'll all be tidy! Except for the pantry - but we're worrying about that later. I'm not facing those dastardly mice any time soon.

It takes a few trips with boxes, and eventually, it's finished. The rubbish is gone. The kitchen is back to normal. There's still things to buy, but, for the most part, everything is okay. Area one of three, is complete.

Tired and pleased with ourselves, we topple down on the couches.

"We finished, Father," Lucas says. Flint turns his head to view the changes, and gives a sort of nod. It's still weak - but it's definitely appreciative.

…

Toon Link's house is pretty nice. It's a reasonable walk to Montague Avenue, and Flint takes some extra convincing before he braves the outdoors, but luckily, we're quickly let into their warm hallway.

I've been to Toon Link's place more times than I can even begin to remember. Before Father banned me from going out anywhere, and before I met Lucas, Inkling and I would often hang out there after school. His parents were all too keen to have us. In hindsight, they were probably just delighted that the then-shy Toon Link had actually managed to make some friends, but we didn't mind one bit. Toon Link's parents were the nicest, we'd all concluded, so that was just where we went.

Lucas holds up a bag, as he takes off his shoes. "Thank you - for having us - I brought some steaks along, as a gift-"

Gerald, Toon Link's father, accepts it with a hearty smile. "Well, I never - Lucas, you're too kind. Thank you greatly - come on through, all of you, come on through."

We do so.

Toon Link's house has a familiar happy ambience to it. It's very much a home, pleasantly busy, all sorts of Things all over the place, it's truly excellent. But before we can even sit down and admire all that, we're accosted by Electra, Toon Link's mother, so she can tell us the arrangement.

"Toon Link told us about your situation," she explains. "And so, I insist you stay over for the rest of the week - it's the least we can do, as you've been such good friends to Toon Link, through all these years! Now, we've got plenty of rooms, and plenty of food, so it's no worry at all, okay, Lucas?"

I grin, in spite of myself. She knows him too well.

"Thanks," Lucas replies, a little overwhelmed. "That's amazing - thank you."

"Great. And as for your Father - you needn't worry about him, either. We'll get him back to himself, just you see. Alright?"

"Alright," Lucas agrees.

Even if there's still doubt in his voice.

...

There's not a minute to sit down and unwind, as Toon Link happily introduces us all to his little brother, Young Link (already 4 years old, to my amazement) before directing us all up to his neon yellow bedroom.

"We aced that," Toon Link grins, as we take our seats around the room. "Like, that couldn't have gone much better."

"Except for the mice," Villager reminds him. "Which you were terrified of."

"You're never gonna let me forget that, are you?"

"Oh, absolutely not."

"Great."

Red looks sternly around. "There is still much work to do. But it seems we have made a favourable start."

"Yeah… thank you guys," Lucas smiles. "I owe you all."

"You don't owe us anything," Pit replies, quietly. "If anything, we're the ones paying you back."

Lucas frowns. "Huh? For what?"

Pit's tone is serious. "Being there for me when Dark Pit passed."

"And saving our lives, multiple times," Toon Link adds.

"And looking after Ness in his coma-"

"And being generally awesome-"

Lucas blushes, a deep red, mumbling something incomprehensible, and I can't help but laugh.

An hour or so later, when the dinner is done (the steaks Lucas bought turn out to be amazing, of course) Lucas, Toon Link and I resolve to check on Flint, and to our delight, we find him talking to Gerald. Talking! It fills me with a real warmth, to know things are actually, genuinely getting better. And, it's an added bonus that it gives Lucas an extra spring in his step.

"How are you doing, dad?"

Flint looks up at his son, and I swear, he almost smiles. "Alright."

"Great!"

We head on back to the others, in good spirits.

"How's he looking?" Villager asks.

"A little better than you, actually." Toon Link plonks himself down next to Claus, who laughs.

Villager rolls his eyes. "You'll be the death of me."

"It must suck, not to have a sense of humour."

"Maybe I've never actually heard you say anything funny."

"Hey!" Toon Link throws himself at Villager, and the pair laugh, grappling on the floor.

A while later, the rooms are all decided, and it's time for bed. For the first time in forever, Lucas and I will be sharing a room, alone, and it'll be the first time as boyfriends, which I have to admit I'm quite excited for ("Not for those reasons", I have to tell Toon Link, who laughs at me.)

Toon Link produces some pyjamas that I can borrow for the night, which I'm very grateful for, having been in the same clothes for a couple days now, and whilst Lucas bathes. I lie down in the spare bed, contemplating.

It's been a productive day, today. But really, I think about going back to school, on Friday. With Porky, as the headmaster… worriedly, I shift in place. What kinds of measures will he impose? One thing's for sure; we need to be there, to prevent as much damage as we can. I'd considered counterattacking, making a move on New Pork City, but Porky has that high speed railway; the minute we're spotted by any single Future Human, he'll be on his way before we can say Placet Auxilium.

So, we're going to have to hold it out, and endure Porky's tormentous reign, under his thumb, but… planning. We'll have to find allies, that's certainly doable, I'm sure Rosalina won't exactly warm to Porky's misogyny, in fact, I can't imagine anyone would really like him.

The real question is why. Why on earth is Porky becoming the headmaster in the first place? He's got no qualifications, he hates children, he's busy forging an empire, and he's suddenly taking a break to teach a school? To me, that makes no sense. But perhaps it comes down to Lucas and I - it's clear to me now, that Porky is almost certainly after us, because of our powers. The way he's been speaking, he's been after Lucas specifically, and the way he keeps saying, things like 'I will have what I want…'

Oh! That's it! It has to be. He wants to steal our powers! Specifically Lucas's, because his powers are stronger - Porky's no stranger to dissection, human experimentation - and perhaps that's why he hates me so much? I'm the big obstacle in the way of his access to Lucas, and his power. He's kept trying to get me out of the way - the Future Humans putting me in the coma, the dream egg - and Lucas meanwhile, he tried to kidnap Lucas in the shower - it all makes sense!

Does everything finally come together, then? Except… not quite. The egg, there's something in it still. That's what Porky said. And there's the stupid grave in the forest, I'd almost forgotten about that. Yet another thing that makes no sense.

But we're getting there, I think. We have a general plan, even if there's no clear way to the end yet. Our survival is most likely clear for the next week at least, so long as we keep our eyes out, and bide our time. Train, practice with our powers. And Claus - on the riverside, he demonstrated power of his own, too, we can work with that, we can get stronger. All this is doable, Ryu gave us all the knowledge we needed, before his passing. We've got the psychic books to examine. And who knows what other important things he may have had in his possession?

I bring myself back down to earth. For now, we've got to be focusing on Lucas's dad, in the time we have to kill before school. Tomorrow, we'll be conquering the bedroom, a not so exciting prospect, but it needs to be done. It's a funny contrast really, between the domestic, and the big, wide picture of Porky.

Standing, I make my way out of the room, wondering what's taking Lucas so long. I momentarily think about going to talk to Toon Link, about the whole deal with Felicity, and his family, but when I tread down the landing to his room, I hear him and Villager talking in low tones, and I figure that it'll all be covered.

Lucas eventually comes out of the bathroom, pink faced, pyjama'd and clean, and we cuddle up together, and put an end to the day.

Until Claus bumbles in.

"Everything alright?" Lucas asks, sleepily.

Claus puts his fingers together, nervously. "Where do I sleep?"

Lucas hauls himself out of bed. "Just next door - come on, I'll show you-"

The pair go next door, and I sigh. Never a moment alone.

—DAY 2—

Waking up in Lucas's arms is usually a great start to a day, right?

Well, yes - until a certain Toon Link dashes in with a cackle, and covers us head to toe in cold water.

"We're supposed to be cleaning a house, not ourselves!" I complain, as I try to dry my unwieldy hair. "Why'd you have to go and do that?"

Toon Link shrugs, grinning. "We're late, had to wake you up somehow. Shaking you didn't work. You just enjoyed cuddling with your boyfriend far too much..."

"At least I have a boyfriend!"

"Oi! I'll hopefully have one too… eventually!"

Pit pushes his way into the bathroom, looking tired. "What's goi- oh dear, what happened to you?"

I sulk. "Toon Link did."

"Ah, he's probably just jealous, because Villager went home."

Toon Link folds his arms. "Hey!"

Once I'm suitably dry, breakfast is a nice dish of porridge, and a boiled egg. It's characteristically lively, with nine people all round a table, especially as Electra scolds Toon Link for getting water all over the spare bed. But once we're finished, it's time to go on out, and get cleaning again.

"Will my Father be okay here?" Lucas asks Electra nervously, as he puts on a borrowed coat.

Electra smiles. "Absolutely. Don't you worry yourself, he's in good hands now."

"Thank you."

"No problem at all, Lucas."

We reconvene with Villager and Red in the market square, before making the walk to Lucas's house. Lucas pulls out the key, and then, we're back in the house that smells of mouse droppings and beer.

Fantastic.

The bedroom is mostly a heap of clothes, tissues, receipts, and general grime. Unlike the kitchen, this should just be a case of picking things up, sorting them, changing the sheets on the bed, and then we'll be done. It does fill me with a little hope.

Pit's uncle, the glazier, arrives only a few minutes after us with a cheery hello, getting started on repairing the kitchen window, whilst we set to work dealing with the clothes.

It's safe to say there's a lot of variety.

A multitude of moth-bitten brown shirts are first to go - but unfortunately, a disgusting yellow and purple striped jumper remains undamaged. There's a drawer of waistcoats that has to be discarded, the contents completely buried with mouse droppings. There's even a collection of different cowboy hats, piled hap-hazardly under a filthy blanket, next to a large volume of dusty brown coats and helmets. Presumably, they'd have been used for Flint's mining job, when he was still employed.

In the wardrobe, there's a further Armageddon of things to deal with. It's hard to pull the great wooden doors open at first, but when we finally do, we find what appears to be sawdust (home for some more mice, Villager theorises), and some official looking documents, that Lucas gathers up. There's all sorts of boxes too, candles, more hats, bottles, and even a surprisingly nice looking pocket watch.

Realistically, there could've be a lot more though, and I imagine there was in the past... but Lucas reckons Flint sold most of it, to make money, after getting the sack. Which makes things easier for us, but, it's still a bleak concept.

"Ness, you've got mail," Toon Link announces, coming through the door.

"Mail?"

"It just arrived - here you go…"

I look at the writing - Tracy's handwriting. Keenly, I tear it open.

Ness,

I figured you'd be camping out at Lucas's house, mother just so happened to let slip the address to me… so, I figured, I'd write.

God above. The minute you finally get with Lucas, our oaf of a father has to kick you out? Where's the fun in that? How am I supposed to ship you two now? Seriously, he's an asshole, and he's been in a terrible mood since, so thanks a bunch for that.

Mother's just been really upset and distant, I think she's mad at Father. I wonder if she'll snap. Also, you know that Paula girl? You won't believe this - it turns out Father paid for her to go to your boarding school, before he found out you weren't into her. So that'll be lovely and awkward for you, ha ha!

Now, anyway, stay safe, please. It's boring as hell at home, and I could do with some chaos about now.

Peace,

~ Tracy

"You got any envelopes?" I ask Lucas, who points to the giant stack of them.

"Just a few…"

I get to writing my response immediately.

Tracy!

Great to know that not everyone is disowning me. I'm alright though, don't worry. Lucas and I are hanging out with da bois.

Out of interest, has Father mentioned a guy called Ryu? I said something, and I want to know if he picked up on it.

Poor Mother. Tell her I miss her, and that I think she should kick Father out. It's about time she stood up for herself, right? Father can't keep treating people like this. Or at least, get her to talk some sense into him.

Can I ask a favour? Under my bed, there's a load of things, please gather them up and send them in the mail to 1, Montague Avenue. If you can refrain from being nosy for once, and snooping around them, it'd be much appreciated. I'll leave sixpence for you under our doormat.

I feel bad for Paula, but she's actually quite nice, so don't worry about that. It'll be nice to see her. Wish you could come to boarding school to annoy me, too.

See you soon, I hope,

~ Ness

"I'll go deliver this," I decide. "Good luck."

"Alright, see you."

The walk is of course, familiar, and I find myself wondering, as I travel. Wondering about Toon Link.

Felicity, the baker I've known since I was a kid, is his mother. His real, actual mother - not Electra, Felicity. That's crazy, to me. And to think Electra left him in the forest - even if she had no choice… it's cruel. It's uncomfortable to consider, that someone you trust, can do something terrible like that.

No doubt it haunts her.

And no doubt it haunts Toon Link too.

What an enormous secret to have kept. Again, it's crazy to me, being so expressive, how anyone can keep something that enormous inside of them, for so long, without telling a soul. I can hardly begin to think of how it would've tormented him, feelings of being unwanted, insecurities, no wonder he's changed so much through the years...

And now I know, too. I feel as if I'm not supposed to, like I've stumbled into it, but perhaps it's for the best, that Toon Link faces it. And no doubt Villager will help him through. I don't think I should shoulder yet another burden, here, I think they've got this one covered. So, ultimately, the situation is none of my business.

Secretly pleased with how rational my thinking seems to have become, I push through the front gate, slipping the letter through the mailbox and depositing the sixpence, before quickly making my leave.

Unfortunately, on my way back, for the third time in three days, I'm accosted by a policeman.

"Well well well - does quarantine mean nothing to you?" They say, angrily. "There is a virus still, you know. You should be indoors!"

"I'm going home now," I try to explain. "I had to deliver a letter."

"Nonsense! Look at you, you're headed to the first residential district - but you're clearly well-dressed!"

"Look," I sigh. I neglect to mention that Porky made up the virus - they wouldn't believe that. "I don't want to fight, but-"

"Do you want to be taken down to the station?!"

I pale. "No!"

"Then, pay up!"

I can't quite believe my ears. "I'm sorry?"

"10 pounds, and you can go!"

"That's ridiculous!" I exclaim. "You made that law up."

Grumbling, the policeman takes out an A4 sheet of paper, and writes in red crayon: Going outside - fine of £10. "See?"

"You just wrote that!"

"Which means it's now law. Pay up!"

Sighing, I pull out my wallet, fortunate I brought it to deliver the sixpence. I painstakingly hand over a ten pound note to the policeman, who eyes it hungrily.

"Can I go now?"

"WAHAAAAA!" The policeman suddenly exclaims, throwing their helmet on the ground, revealing another hat underneath. I almost gasp - Wario? But it's not - this man's hat is purple - and his figure is a lot narrower. A spindly moustache suddenly appears from thin air, and he rubs his hands in glee.

I fold my arms. "You're not a policeman!"

"It's Waluigi time! You got pranked! Wahaaaaaaaa!"

"Can I have my money back, now?"

"No! WAAAA!" And all of a sudden, the man runs off.

Utterly bewildered, and feeling very much out of pocket, I head back to Lucas's house.

…

"Oh hey, what's this?" Villager says, pulling out an envelope from the wardrobe.

Lucas sighs. "Probably more bills and debt statements, or something."

"No - it has your name on it."

"Oh?" Lucas comes over from sorting out a pile of rather holey underwear. Curiously, I come over too - it's A4, unusually, and the name is stamped on, rather than written. There's no address, or stamp.

Cautiously, Lucas unfurls the envelope, pulling out a singular sheet of paper from within. He studies it carefully, before looking up. "It's my birth certificate."

"Your what?"

We all crowd round, keenly, as Lucas holds out the paper, in front of him. There's words, written in fancy font, with the Tazmily emblem embossed in the top right corner:

This certificate is to certify the birth of Lucas, in Tazmily, to parents Hinawa and Flint, on the 5th July…

"There's another one!" Pit interrupts, pulling out another, labelled Claus. Claus keenly takes it, crudely opening it up, and examining his certificate.

"It's me!"

Toon Link beams at the twins. "Wow, so you do exist, after all! Great to know you weren't just a hallucination!"

"This is-" Lucas wipes an eye, suddenly. "I-I never knew about this-"

I move in, to hug him, and he hugs back, still clutching the certificate in one hand.

"I-I shouldn't be so emotional-"

"Why is Lucas sad?!" Claus demands. "Who made Lucas sad?!"

"Claus - I'm happy-"

"But you are - you are crying!"

Lucas laughs slightly. "Crying with happiness."

"Oh..."

"This is too wholesome!" Red decides. "We should continue the cleaning!"

Lucas breaks away from me, slotting the certificate back in its envelope. "Y-Yeah, you're right… let's continue."

I smile.

Clearing the rest of the clothes doesn't take much more time, and after a quick lunch break (bread and fruit, delicious) we can start work on some of the patches of mould. Fortunately, no more mice decide to ruin our day as we scrub, despite the droppings scattered around the place, but they're all easily cleared up. Red leads the operation in changing the bedsheets, for some that aren't as worn down, whilst Villager drags out armfuls of tissues and dust from underneath the bed.

I meanwhile, set about trying to get some actual light to come through the window, green with moss and lichen, scrubbing hard to get the resistant flora off. We work in silence, but we work effectively, even Claus piling the unusable clothes into a textile recycling bag. Well, it's mostly silence, with Pit's uncle hammering in the window in the background, I have to wonder why installing a glass window requires any hammering, but that's why I don't study Trades, and Villager does.

And, before we know it, another day's work is done. Lucas hangs the bizarre frog painting on the clean wall, and we step back, admiring our progress. The bedroom is finally livable.

Tomorrow is slightly daunting, however. The living room is by far the worst room in the house, with all the bottles and potential broken glass everywhere, and it'll be a long day of working to conquer it. Not to mention the mouse-infested pantry that still remains… but that'll be an issue for then, not now!

"All done!" Pit's uncle exclaims cheerfully, in that typical booming voice that every single carpenter, plumber and builder seems to have. "No payment needed - family benefit! Haha. Goodbye, all!"

He leaves, and we do soon after.

It's a quiet night in, despite Toon Link's little brother Young Link having a tantrum, after spilling his dinner all over the floor. Flint seems to have had an alright day, having received a decent haircut from Electra, and is wearing his hat again too. And so, I have a nice warm bath, and Lucas and I clock in at 10pm for some good old cuddling and occasional kissing before bed.

What could go wrong tomorrow?

—Day 3—

I'm pleasantly surprised to wake up without having cold water poured all over me. And it's even better to be able to wake up in the arms of my wonderful boyfriend.

Honestly, I think I feel bad for single people, nowadays. I've lived that life, been single, and I wouldn't go back, not when I have my very own Lucas. Everyone should have themselves a Lucas, I think. When I'm prime minister, I'll make it so everyone has a Lucas to themselves.

God, I'm sleep deprived.

I give Lucas a small kiss on the cheek, before rolling out of bed, to start the day. Kisses are still kind of awkward, kind of new territory, for us. I still blush like crazy when they happen. But they're nice, really, sort of delicate. They do feel like a Thing That Other Couples Do, in a way, but I think we can make it our own.

It's weird thinking of ourselves as boyfriends, on the whole, because while we've always been a pair, always been a duo, there's never really been a title for it, other than best friends. It's odd to formalise it, formalise our bond with a word.

I'm not sure if I like it.

Honestly, not much has changed between us, as a result of me dramatically confessing my love. I suppose we now have that mutual understanding, that what we have is absolute, that nobody can take that away (a pretty big deal, if you ask me). But otherwise, there's the kissing, and not a whole lot else. Not that there needs to be more, though. In a way, it just feels as if we've been boyfriends all along. Which is kinda awesome.

I give him a cuddle. "Wake up, Lukey!"

He glares at me. "Don't ever call me that, ever again, or we're breaking up, forever."

Claus chooses that moment to come in. "Who's breaking up?"

"Oh, it's just some book," Lucas lies effortlessly, getting himself out of bed and getting his shoes on. "How about some breakfast, hm?"

We go downstairs, greeting a cheerful Toon Link on the way down.

"School tomorrow," Electra announces, as soon as we've entered the kitchen. "You boys all ready to go back?"

"Yes," Toon Link sighs. "For the millionth time."

"Aw!" Young Link pouts. "Big brother going?"

Toon Link ruffles his brother's hair. "Sorry bud, education, and fulfilling the requirements of a capitalist society call."

"What's capitalist?"

"Never mind that," Electra swoops in. "Omelettes, today - everyone alright with that?"

Lucas noticeably awakens. "Yes please!"

Electra laughs, grabbing a frying pan out of the cupboard. "I'll be happy to oblige, then. By the way, Lucas, your dad-"

Lucas tenses. "Yes?"

"-He'll be starting his new job today."

Lucas's eyes widen, and he drops his fork with a clatter. "His new job? What is it?"

"Well, well," Gerald Montague comes into the kitchen, smiling heartily. "I've always been looking for a second pair of hands to help out, 'round the butchers. And, he was more than happy to take on the role."

"Oh - that's great! Thank you…"

"Taught him all I know yesterday," Gerald says, grabbing a chunk of bread and buttering it whole. "Good handler of the meat, he is. A good, firm grip."

"I wonder if Lucas takes after him?" Toon Link whispers to me, innocently. I give him a dirty glare. Lucas is far too pure for any of that.

The omelettes are delicious, and, once they've been devoured, it's time to visit Lucas's house, for the final time, and to get this job done.

Red instantly halts us, when we meet in the town centre. "Everybody! We need to formulate an action plan. I shall take the lead today, and we shall defeat this dastardly assemblage of dirt!"

"If you say so-"

"Let's go!"

Vigilante Red leads the march to the front door, and we pile inside the place, ready to crack on.

The living room doesn't look fun. The biggest obstacles are the piles of glass bottles, but I fear they could mask even more filth and dirt beneath them. There's boxes of who knows what scattered around the place, there's weeks worth of unopened mail piled up by the front door, and there's just, general crowds of dust, and dodgy furniture, all over the place.

It'll be a daunting task.

"Right!" Red dictates, surveying the scene. "Whomst shall conquer the pantry, whilst the rest of us tackle the living quarters?"

Everyone turns to Villager.

"Hey! Don't look at me!"

"You're the one who wasn't afraid of mice," Pit reasons.

"But-"

"It is decided by democratic vote!" Red announces, banishing Villager to the kitchen. "The rest of you! Claus, fetch the water. Lucas, fix the furniture. Ness, read the mail. Toon Link, clear the glass beverage containers, Pit, sort the boxes!"

"And yourself?" Toon Link asks.

"I'm the manager of this team!"

"You weren't the manager yester-"

"Well, I am today! We haven't got much time - begin working!"

We do as we're told.

The letters that I have to sort through look vaguely daunting - I ask Lucas permission, of course, before I start looking through his dad's male, but when it's given, I get started.

Half of the envelopes are kind of filthy from being trodden on, any time anyone's entered the door, so it's with an outstretched arm and the hope that I don't get an exotic disease that I pull open the first letter:

Income Tax due - urgent action required.

Dear Mr. Flint,

If you are currently employed in the private sector, you are required by law to pay your income tax to the U.K. government, via your local Onett council taxman, who will come by to collect the money on the 18th December-

Right, that's out of date. I throw the letter away, sighing. Flint was probably unemployed at that point, so no money needs to leave our pockets, thank goodness. But I worry the rest of the letters may be much of the same.

Position Terminated.

10th November

Mr Flint,

As you have been made aware, your position as Pickaxe Wielder in Giant's Mine has been terminated, following unruly procedure in the workplace. Onett Coal Co. wishes you all the best for the future, and Onett Coal Co, also wishes for you to never return to our establishment.

Good day.

Well, at least that clears him of the income tax. I toss the letter aside.

Debt Due

Mr Flint, your next instalment of loan repayments for your rental of one PorkyCarriage are 8 months overdue. Interest rates have therefore risen to 5%, and your total due debt is £30,000. The longer you postpone, the larger the sum. Send the payment to:

The office of Porky Minch,

New Pork Tower,

New Pork City,

U.K.

Well, that won't be a worry if we defeat the debtor in a large and epic battle. Again, I toss it aside, but Lucas stops me.

"Was that a debt letter?"

"Yeah, why?"

Lucas pales. "I thought I'd paid it all off! What's it for?"

"One PorkyCarriage, apparently."

"What the hell is one of those?!"

I shrug. "Did you rent a carriage, when you traveled to Onett?"

"Well, yeah, but… really? Now he charges for it? I thought we'd paid for that - oh God-"

I place a hand on Lucas's shoulder. "Don't worry. When we've defeated Porky, the debt will be waived, I'm sure."

"But-"

I offer a hopeful smile. "Don't worry about it! We've got this."

Lucas looks down at the floor. "I guess you're right."

"I always am."

I continue reading.

Vote Geldegarde Montoli!

Tired of Mayor B.H Pirkle, sitting in the pockets of the rich? Tired of a lack of leadership? Vote for Geldegarde Montoli as Onett's regional MP! Geldegarde promises to dissolve inequality, ensure social progress for Onett's future, and drive the U.K. economy up to higher places. Geldegarde promises happiness for all citizens-

"Except the kids he pimps out," I mutter, throwing the letter away.

"And the leaders of the Onett Brigade he blows up," Lucas chimes in.

Red glares. "Back to work! Now!"

…

The rest of the letters are much of the same old dross, more debt statements from Porky (I'm sure to hide them away from Lucas), some letters regarding the mining job, a couple more overdue bills, but ultimately nothing too interesting, or surprising amongst them all. In fact, I conclude they all can be thrown away - however, just as I'm piling them all up, a bizarre, yellow envelope slips out of the pile.

Intrigued, I pick it up - and on the corner, I notice, the stamp has a picture of a mountain on it.

I turn. "Hey, Lucas?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you often get mail from Tazmily?"

Lucas thinks momentarily. "Duster wrote for a bit, I think. But we fell out of touch pretty fast. Why?"

I hold the letter up. "Seems like someone's keen to get in contact."

Lucas's eyes widen. He swiftly takes the envelope from my hand, before frowning. "Ness, this isn't from Tazmily. It's from Mount Oriander. It says so at the bottom."

"Where's that?

"Somewhere in Scotland I think, if it's a mountain. I wonder what it could be?"

Tentatively, Lucas unfurls the envelope, pulling out what seems to be an A4 piece of paper. I look over his shoulder as he unfurls it, looking closely at what the mysterious letter may say:

4th October

Dearest Flint,

My son, I know it has been a while. I truly am sorry for my slowness in contacting you. I've been sending letters to Tazmily, all this time, I had not realised you had moved! And now it's been eight years… heaven knows what you think of me. It's a piece of luck that your old friend Duster managed to set me straight.

I wish to reconnect with you and the boys, if at all possible. Lucas and Claus must be what, sixteen by now? Seventeen? I owe them a few years worth of birthday gifts, after all, having continually sent money to your old house, by mistake.

I hope you are faring well without dearest Hinawa. Her loss hit us all badly, and not a day goes by when I do not consider what could've been.

I look forward to hearing back from you, at long last. The return address is enclosed.

Yours Faithfully,

Alec.

I look up from the letter, perplexed. "Alec? Who's that?"

Lucas turns to me, in awe. "My grandad! I had no idea he was still around. This is amazing!"

Claus turns, sharply, a confused expression on his face. "Grandad Alec?"

"Yeah!"

Claus beams. "Alec! Is Alec coming?"

"Not yet - but Claus, he's alive! He's okay! I've got to write back - right now!"

Lucas dashes into the bedroom, with immediate haste.

My work done, I stuff the unused letters into an old box, before surveying the rest of the room. Villager's in the distance, working hesitantly on the pantry, whilst the beer bottles are pretty much cleared. I won't miss the intoxicating odour of alcohol one bit.

There's still much to do, though - so I busy myself with unpacking one of the many drawers around the place, until lunchtime comes.

"Our roles must be rotated!" Red instructs, as we chomp down on some cornbread. "For maximum efficiency."

"Thank God," Villager sighs, filthy from clearing the pantry. "That place is horrible."

"Any mice?" Pit asks, grinning.

"Not that I've seen - but I've not reached the far depths, yet. Luckily, that sounds like someone else's job!"

Red clears his throat. "Claus, you start cleaning the walls, Toon Link, you work on the furniture, Villager, clean the carpet, and Pit, fetch water! And as for you, Ness, and Lucas, you shall work on the pantry, for excess socialising, during working hours! Get started, now!"

My fate is sealed.

"It's alright," Villager reassures us, as we stand by the cavernous entrance, looking in. "I got rid of most of the rotten food."

I whimper. "Most?"

"Yeah, there's a whole raw chicken at the back still - I'm kidding, Ness. You'll be fine."

"I'm not so sure..."

Timidly, I light a candle, placing it on the filthy shelf within.

The light flickers like a menacing tongue, lashing from all angles onto the cobwebbed, filthy wall. The dark cavern leers at me, hungry and infinite in magnitude, its foul odour pervading, grabbing by the throat, and pulling me in.

I'm other words... I'm screwed.

I take a deep breath, grateful for Lucas's presence besides me. Villager seems to have, at least, emptied the immediate shelves. However, deep in the pitch black, I half expect to stumble into Narnia. Or, be eaten by mice.

I start laying out some more candles, hoping to illuminate the back of this thing - it turns out to be a good few metres back - I jump as I suddenly sense movement on the floor, but when I look down, there's nothing but the concrete floor.

I'm going insane. It's just cleaning a cupboard, right? I'm not that unstable. I can manage a small task…

"I don't like this," Lucas whispers. "I can hardly hear the others in here..."

"Has the pantry always been this creepy?"

Lucas bites his lip. "Claus always thought it was haunted."

"Oh, great."

"I mean, it's probably not, right? Ghosts don't exist."

Another scurry of movement flashes by my feet. I gulp. "I suppose so..."

Lucas sighs, pulling a cloth out of his pocket. "At least, if we die in here, we die together."

I shake my head. "We are such terrible heroes."

"What do you mean?"

"You know, in all the adventure books. The heroes that save the world are all supposed to be brave and stuff - and here we are, scared of a cupboard."

Lucas gives me a subtle grin. "Well, you're my hero."

I go beet red.

"Shut up."

It feels like it takes a million years, but as the afternoon drags on, the pantry slowly becomes usable again. The spiders are evicted, the grime is banished, the clouds are gone. We only burn out a couple candles, and Lucas only makes a couple of cringy romantic comments, and, even better, we see no mice. Of course, it's only after we've done, that Villager reveals he's procured the mouse traps, and he chucks them inside. Hopefully that'll get any that remain.

To our surprise, it seems like the others have done a good job on the living room, too. The bottles are gone. The furniture is stable. The walls are polished clean.

In fact, it's done.

It's actually all done.

We've cleaned an entire house, in three days.

I swell with pride, looking round at my friends with a grin, that's only matched on each of their faces. It's a testament to how hard we've worked, that nobody criticises anything, as we look around, at the now-habitable space.

We've done it.

"Good work, team!" Red declares, proudly. "Now, the father of Lucas may reside within this abode."

"Thank you all, so much," Lucas whispers, softly. "I'll pay you all back."

Toon Link sighs. "For the last time, you don't need to-"

Villager interrupts. "Just buy us a cookie, or something, if it'll make you feel better. It's no big deal."

"Actually," Lucas's cheeks go a little pink. "I've already got us some, for later-"

I beam. "And that, is why you're awesome!"

…

We go back to Toon Link's house, extremely pleased with ourselves. Everything's looking up. Everything is suddenly looking a lot, lot brighter. If we can team up so effectively on something like that? Then we'll have no problems against Porky, none at all!

These are my friends, forever. We'll do anything for each other. And that is exactly what Porky's been missing out on, all along, that's our secret weapon, I declare, happily.

The power of friendship.

Lucas slaps me for being so cheesy.

"You've done a great job," Electra beams, round at us. "Flint isn't home from work yet, but I'm sure he'll be really proud of you all."

Claus cocks his head childishly to the side. "How is dad?"

"Doing much better, he is. He says he's ready to try again, to give things another go. To try and improve himself."

Our smiles say it all.

The clouds are gone, alright.

A/N

It seems every month, I have a week in which I vigorously write two or so chapters, before meandering off and disappearing for a while.

Hello! I'm back. I started a new fic, whilst I was gone. It's called The Cycle, it's a fun ol' death game, focusing more on the smash cast, but still with good old Ness at the helm. The idea is that when I'm dry on ideas for this fic, I'll write for that one. They're polar opposites, see. And thus, more writing output! Hooray!

Although, I do have major exams in the next month, that define my entire future. So, I may be a little less productive soon. But hey, writing fanfiction is a great way to procrastinate revision!

Notes

Toon Link calling Villager a Tsundere was just something that needed to happen, really.

Alec is Lucas's grandad in canon, nice of him to show up at last!

I know, Waluigi isn't in smash. But he deserves a cameo nonetheless!

Also yes, the Narnia Books were written in the 1950s. But I've references Harry Potter Puppet Pals before, and nobody seemed to have an issue with that… so I'm hedging my bets.

Back to boarding school next chapter. But things will be a little different…

I look forward to seeing you then! Thanks for reading, and for your continued support!

~ReadyForTeddy