All credits for the idea go to Bethanne on Ao3.
Enjoy)))
Perhaps, their decision wasn't the right one.
No, it definitely made a lot of sense from the strategic point of view. On the other hand, from a moral one…
Douxie sighed. Perhaps, they should have joined Jim and his team openly instead of doing whatever they were doing right now. Meaning - following the young Trollhunter while keeping a low profile in the hope that there would be an ambush.
Douxie understood that his team should have utilized its own hidden trump card status to the fullest. While the enemy had no idea of magic users being involved, they could effortlessly get the vital advantage.
Like learning the Gumm-Gumm base's location. For that, they had to track either Bular or Barverra. Yes, they were basically using the teen as bait.
The wizard-in-training made a silent oath to apologize to Jim later. In hindsight, he should have at least shared the plan with the boy. And now, it was too late for that.
The young man turned his attention to Zoe. The hex witch was entirely focused on the surroundings so that they wouldn't miss the evil trolls appearing. Archie was flying above - if anything, Douxie was sure that his familiar would notice any disturbance before any of them.
They used spells for muting sounds and erasing scents - there was no space for any mistake here. They only had one chance - and if the enemy learned about their existence, the advantage would evaporate at once.
The small team even hadn't waited for that long - both Bular and Barverra had attacked the Trollhunter. For a second, Douxie was ready to abandon the initial plan altogether - what was the point in finding the hideout if the enemy killed the teen?
Some kind of hunch told Merlin's apprentice to wait. His vambrace was ready, and the young man could use at least a dozen spells to create a distraction. He could see Archie ready for some fire-breathing and Zoe on the verge of throwing a lightning bolt. His friends were thinking the same - hopefully, at least one of them would react just in time.
Poor Jim didn't have an easy time. No, they certainly owed the teen a ton of apologies afterward. But, in the end, he had managed to escape to the Trollmarket.
Now, everything was left to Douxie's party. They could see Bular and Barverra arguing about something, but the contents of that one remained unclear because of the distance. Hopefully, the dark trolls wouldn't decide to lie in wait under the bridge.
Fortunately, they didn't plan to do so.
Unfortunately, Gunmar's children, apparently, decided to go in different directions.
That one was unexpected, and Douxie mentally smacked himself for not predicting that kind of possibility. Now they needed to divide their team too. But how exactly?
Zoe, apparently, had decided on that before the young man had formulated any plan. She sneaked after Bular, signaling her friends to follow his sister before she disappeared.
Douxie realized why exactly the hex witch chose that approach. Barverra should have been faster, and only Archie possessed mobility to catch to her. Yet, sending the cat-dragon alone would have been too risky.
However, even the wizard-in-training had no problems with keeping with the female troll's pace. For whatever reason, instead of jumping between the roofs, she had decided on a leisure walk. Funny thing, from a distance, it even looked as if the daughter of Gunmar was distracted and lost.
As if something like that was even possible! Hisirdoux Casperan wasn't that unhinged to fall for such a delusion. Barverra was a deadly enemy. Underestimating her was simply out of the question.
Still, something bothered the young man. Something nagged at the back of his mind, and each step he made strengthened the unpleasant feeling.
Archie landed on his shoulders in haste, accidentally digging his claws a little too deep.
"That direction," the familiar hissed, but Douxie had realized it himself a second ago.
Barverra was moving towards Jim's house. Moreover, it was as if she headed to the location she knew well enough. There were no stops, no hesitation, no looking around, no awkward turns.
"Just coincidence," Merlin's apprentice whispered, trying to convince himself.
The daughter of Gunmar simply couldn't have found the Lakes' house so fast. No, she shouldn't have known Jim's identity to start with!
Yet…
The more they walked, the more obvious the horrible truth became. Barverra was actually heading in that seemingly impossible direction. Did she plan to ambush Jim at home? Or worse - to start eliminating his dear people?
Douxie felt everything inside freezing. He had promised the teen to help with keeping trolls away from his regular life, and it had already gone out of control!
No, there was still a barrier around Jim's house. Not even a single soul with hostile intentions towards owners would be able to cross that one. The young man was confident in that - both he and Zoe put their best efforts into finishing that one.
There were only several feet left until Barverra would reach the barrier. Most likely, she would be furious to stumble upon an obstacle. Probably, Douxie should have needed to check escape routes - fighting a rampaging troll wasn't in his plans after all.
Three feet.
Two.
One.
Nothing. Nothing had happened. The daughter of Gunmar continued her movement as if there was no barrier to start with.
Impossible.
How could anything like that happen? Douxie fought the urge to go and check the barrier. No, he couldn't. Not with a dangerous troll in the close vicinity.
Had he and Zoe screwed somewhere? Some centuries ago, there could be a legit possibility of some mistake, but now? They both were proficient in that kind of magic, having decades of practicing.
Had someone else gotten involved? Someone with appropriate knowledge and skills to nullify barriers?
Or had Barverra found some trick to fool intricate magic?
The daughter of Gunmar was already near Jim's house. Did she plan to enter? Merlin's apprentice silently thanked all the higher powers that none of the owners was at home at the moment. Jim should have been still at the Trollmarket, building valuable connections. And Barbara had left for the work.
"Douxie, what are we going to do?" Archie's whisper was hardly audible. Yes, they both had to be stealthy.
The wizard-in-training momentarily considered several plans, but nothing seemed appropriate for the situation. A part of him had a bleak hope that the female Gumm-Gumm would simply leave. Yes, she obviously knew Lakes' house location, and Douxie would need to reconsider the entire defense strategy, but at least they would get some more time.
Yet, everything was too odd. Barverra seemed slightly confused for whatever reason. The young man could swear that she had checked if the lights were on several times and then opened the door carefully.
Nothing made any sense.
Was that some preparation for an ambush?
As the daughter of Gunmar had entered, Douxie closed the distance getting to one of the windows. It was too dark inside to distinguish much, yet it wasn't like he could change a thing.
But even limited visibility was enough to pick up some peculiarity.
"Is it me or she is surprisingly familiar with surroundings?" Archie asked, confirming Hisirdoux's initial impression.
"What is she doing?" he whispered to his familiar, trying to remember the night-vision spell. Merlin's apprentice only used it once or twice as it caused a major headache as a side effect.
"I think… Taking out something from a drawer?" the cat responded without much confidence. "A vial?"
That was it. Douxie whispered the night-vision spell. Who cared about any side effects in this kind of situation?
Tonight, Hisirdoux Casperan had learned something that was simply beyond comprehension. Perhaps, even Merlin himself would be surprised by such a twist of fate.
No matter how improbable it seemed, Jim's mother was Barverra the Atrocious, one of the most dangerous trolls ever.
At first, Douxie wanted to find some explanation, the one which wouldn't have involved the young Trollhunter being related to the enemies' side. There could be some trick there, like the Herald of Doom pretending to be the lanky teen's mom to catch him by surprise or something.
Yet…
The more the wizard-in-training thought, the clearer it became that everything had to be the truth. Every piece of the puzzle fitted perfectly into the whole picture.
No troll would ever use a trick against a weaker enemy. Their culture was based on their sense of honor, and even Gumm-Gumms followed those rules.
Barverra seemingly knew the location of Lakes' residence perfectly, she moved inside with undebatable familiarity.
The vial with that human-turning potion had been inside the house.
And, of course, the barrier wouldn't react to her. Barbara Lake was one of the people it had to protect.
How did Jim fit into all of that? Did he know about all of that?
No, that was simply impossible. Otherwise, wouldn't he have given the amulet to his mom? If the teen had known, wouldn't the amulet have been already in the enemies' hands? Wouldn't he have believed that the Gumm-Gumm side was the right one?
It left so many unanswered questions that Douxie had gotten a legit migraine. Though, that one could be partially due to the side effects from the night vision spell he had used earlier.
And, apparently, Barverra should have also had no idea about her son being the Trollhunter. Because there was simply no way for her to leave a dangerous object in Jim's possession. Not to mention allowing Bular's attack and…
"She knows," Douxie whispered. The daughter of Gunmar had seen her brother attacking Jim and Toby. She had intervened as well. What would have prevented Bular from giving her an explanation of the whole situation?
But then, what had that scene near canals meant? Did Barverra actually allow her brother to fight her son? What had that been? Some Gumm-Gumm twisted test of worth?
Douxie knew only one thing for sure - there was no way he could allow Jim to return home tonight. Or be near his mother. Actually, Merlin's apprentice couldn't even let his new friend enter the Trollmarket once again. If they ever learned about his relations to Gunmar down there, the teen would never leave alive. His family had caused too much grief to the trollkind.
So, the wizard-in-training was hiding near the Lakes' residence, waiting for Jim's return. He would need to give a lot of explanations, and unfortunately, Hisirdoux had no idea how to do that. He was a total stranger, yet the truth was a legit punch into guts. And for Jim… Yes, it would be too ugly in any case.
A sound of distant conversation had broken Douxie's reverie. He could see Jim and his friend approaching the cul-de-sac. Apparently, the moment of truth would happen faster than the young man had expected.
Actually, it seemed that the Trollhunter was in low spirits for whatever reason, and Toby tried to lighten the mood. Douxie's chest tightened at the realization that he would have to deliver even worse news to the already distressed boy.
"Shouldn't we already reveal ourselves?" Archie asked quietly.
The wizard-in-training shook his head:
"Not 'we'. I want to talk to Jim alone."
"Are you sure?" the familiar inquired with barely hidden worry.
"Yes. Go fetch Zoe - there's no point in tailing Bular anymore…"
It was in no way an easy decision. Douxie would prefer to have some support, but… That kind of conversation needed no other people involved, only two of them.
Toby said his goodbyes, heading to his own house. Jim watched him go with a sad expression and made a step towards his own home.
It was now or never.
Douxie left his hiding spot in a rush, grabbing the teen's arm and dragging him away from the cul-de-sac without bothering with any explanations. They had to be as far from this place as possible because if Barverra decided to look out, the world would be doomed.
"Hey!" Jim yelped in protest but then recognized his new friend. "Douxie? What's going on?"
"Not now, Jim," the young man retorted curtly. It would be better to leave all the talks to the moment when they reach GDT Bookstore. At least, the teen would be able to sit there. Not that it would lessen the impact.
"Can I call Toby at least? He wanted to meet you," the Trollhunter asked, seemingly puzzled by his new acquaintance's behavior.
Why shouldn't he have been confused? He knew nothing, after all!
"There's no time for that!" Douxie snapped. "It's about your mother!"
Oh, fuzzbuckets.
He had just gone and spilled the beans.
Jim yanked his arm free, rather forcefully.
"My mom?" he inquired, his expression hard to read. Hisirdoux could swear, though, that the teen was ready to dash, checking if everything was alright with Barbara.
Oh yeah, trolls were really overprotective when it came to families. And if his mother was a Gumm-Gumm, then Jim had to be one as well, no matter how impossible it seemed.
"She's ok… I'll be more worried about anyone who's crazy enough to attack her…"
Why was he so good at digging his own grave again? Douxie mentally smacked himself for slipping that much. Hopefully, Jim would take that one as a dumb joke, at least for now.
"What do you mean?" the Trollhunter inquired flatly. His face was incredibly terrifying at the moment - to the point that it was easy to believe that he was Barverra's son.
All the chances to discuss the life-changing matter at the safe location had already flown out of the window, apparently. Jim's eyes had told Douxie that his young friend wouldn't make even a step before hearing a satisfying explanation.
"Your mother isn't a human," the wizard-in-training replied after some silence. No matter how he would word the truth, it wouldn't change the end result.
"Lie," Jim whispered barely audibly. "Never joke like that."
Douxie looked at him with pity. He wished himself that everything had been just a tasteless joke.
"Jim, your mom is Barverra, the infamous Herald of Doom. There's no doubt in that, I've seen it with my own eyes."
Wouldn't it be less problematic to rip off the band-aid? Taking a slow approach would have caused as much or even more pain.
Or maybe it wasn't the wisest decision.
The amulet flew out of Jim's pocket, summoning the armor at once. Douxie knew that it could act, reacting to the owner's mental state. But hadn't the teen had some troubles with controlling the magical object?
Well, apparently, when it came to anger, the amulet was more than ready to assist the Trollhunter. Or was it the will to fight? Because judging from the sword Jim pointed at Merlin's apprentice, he was willing to inflict some harm.
"I should have realized it earlier," the teen uttered, his eyes full of genuine fury. "Why should I trust the fishy guy who appeared out of nowhere?"
There was some logic in that statement. Jim had no reason to trust a random stranger over his mother.
But…
Douxie saw not only anger in his new friend's expression. There was much denial there, for sure. Yet… A part of Jim had already believed the horrible truth. Probably, exactly because he had known his mom better than anyone else.
"You've noticed," Merlin's apprentice stated firmly. "Even if she looks different as a troll, she cannot create two varying manners of moving and speaking. And you've recognized her, at least subconsciously."
The armor and sword disappeared in wisps of blue energy as the amulet clinked against the ground.
"You're lying," Jim repeated quietly. "Mom is human. She treats people, not kills them. She isn't a monster."
He started to back up, and Douxie suddenly realized that the lanky teen was trying to escape. Probably, to run home and ask Barbara about everything.
He couldn't allow that to happen.
"Interminus nocti sluumberso," the sleeping spell stopped Jim before he had managed to go anywhere.
"Casperan, should I remind you it's a legit abduction?" Zoe groaned, pointing out to a sleeping teen on the couch. She waited for any response but got none.
"Look, Douxie," the hex witch continued. "Any loving parent would turn the city upside down if their kid didn't return home. And I hate to even imagine what the Herald of Doom will do…"
"Do you have any other solution?" the young man asked quietly. He knew all of that himself.
His momentary decision would certainly provoke the daughter of Gunmar. It was also outright unfair to Jim.
But…
Doing nothing would definitely doom the world.
The silence dragged for too long, becoming a physical weight on everyone present. Archie was rustling through some books, perhaps, simply to find something to do to fight anxiety.
"What is this kid, exactly?" Zoe inquired, breaking the silence at last. "Is he even related to Barverra? Wouldn't he be first to notice if he wasn't a human?"
Douxie wondered about that himself. Barverra definitely used some potion to keep a human guise. But how could it work for Jim? Not to mention that the teen clearly had grown up like a human, not a troll.
Could he be adopted to keep with a cover?
No, that would be even more horrible for the Trollhunter - to learn that he was just a tool for his closest family member.
"Zoe, can you check Jim for any magic traces?" the wizard-in-training asked quietly. "You're better in that than me…"
"Sure," she shrugged, moving closer to the sleeping boy and whispering several spells. Douxie averted his eyes, not sure what exactly he would prefer to hear from the witch.
"Oh, I've found the information about that human-turning potion," Archie commented, shifting his attention from the books. "It was banned during Arthur's rule, and the recipe was seemingly lost…"
Apparently, that information was too off.
Zoe walked away from the couch, her face darkened.
"The kid isn't a human," she stated. "Neither is he a troll. I'd say he's both, even though it sounds bonkers."
"A changeling?" Archie inquired.
The hex witch shook her head:
"A half-troll."
"Aren't those a myth?" the cat hummed skeptically.
"Apparently, no," Zoe muttered. "What a mess!"
"He looks human enough," Douxie unwittingly looked in Jim's direction. "Wouldn't his troll half be more evident?"
"With the magic so intricately woven into his essence?" the witch shrugged. "No way. Though, it seems that even that one is deteriorating…"
No one commented on that. They all possessed enough of the knowledge to understand what it meant. Apparently, Jim's time as a human was limited. For how long? That one remained a mystery.
"So, what we'll do?" Zoe asked impatiently. "We can't keep our sleeping beauty like this forever. Not to mention the enraged troll mama we're going to encounter if we keep sitting on our asses."
She was right, but their options were limited.
The world was at stake.
Jim had probably the worst wake-up in his life. His head was simply killing him, not to mention some dizziness.
"Sorry, I think I've overdone with the magic," someone said apologetically. The teen recognized Douxie's voice. What was he doing in Jim's bedroom?
Wait, that was some other location. The Trollhunter had never seen that place before. He tried to recollect the previous events, but everything was too fractured, too chaotic.
"What's happened?" Jim asked. "I remember I had that crazy test at the Trollmarket, then I went home and…"
Your mother isn't a human.
The image resurfaced in the ugliest manner, and the teen clutched at his temples. The headache increased two-fold.
"I had a weird dream where you told me that Barverra was my mom," he finished quietly.
Douxie averted his eyes.
"That wasn't a dream, was it?" Jim's voice dropped even lower.
"I'm sorry," the wizard-in-training wished he had a better answer, but there was none. He expected another outburst, but his younger friend just stayed silent.
"I hate to interfere, but we're short of time," Zoe spoke up, making Jim notice her.
"Zoe," Douxie tried to stop the hex witch, but she ignored his attempts altogether.
"Look, kid, I know it's shocking and all that stuff, and I'm sorry for that. However, right now, you own the key to the world destruction, and it doesn't help that you're related to the ancient troll overlord," the girl continued, without any sugarcoating. "While you were napping here, we brainstormed a lot. Obviously, we cannot let you go home. Unfortunately, we have no way to sever your bond with the amulet, and the only bastard who possibly had any idea about that prefers to play a bear during winter slumber. And lastly, we cannot kill you - we are good guys here, after all."
Jim listened to her attentively, his face hard to read.
"What should I do then?" he asked when she had finished.
"So, you're clever enough," Zoe hummed in approval. "If you're actually on humanity's side, then you need to flee."
"Flee?" the teen repeated.
"Don't play dumb right now," the pink-haired girl warned. "Most likely, you also understand that we need to keep the amulet as far from your mother as possible. It won't be just moving once, no, it will be constant run and changing locations. And as you're not fully human yourself, it will last for decades, perhaps even centuries, until either you or both Bular and Barverra perish."
She just had told Jim everything. Douxie couldn't believe his own ears. Zoe seemed way meaner than usual - it wasn't like her at all.
"Can I at least say goodbye to my close people?" the Trollhunter asked quietly.
"As long as it is not your mom," the wizard-in-training replied sadly.
"I'll only tell Tobes," Jim sighed. "He's the only one who knows everything."
"Then it will be better to bring him here," Douxie suggested.
"I'll fetch him," Zoe marched to the door. Merlin's apprentice followed her hurriedly. When they both entered the next room, he whispered:
"What was that?"
His girlfriend sighed:
"Look, Casperan, when you amputate a limb, you do it in one swift motion. And you attempted to sever it using a rusty saw. Sometimes the unneeded compassion can cause way more anguish. He's a strong kid. Can't you see that he's made his decision already? Besides, someone had to play a bad cop there. Jim knows you better, and you're too kind to pull that one."
Zoe was wrong - she was even kinder. It took a lot of bravery to take all the burden alone. The hex witch probably imagined that the teen would need a target for his anger and hatred and volunteered for that role.
"So you need to be a supportive older brother here," the girl smiled wistfully. "It'll fit you better."
When Douxie returned to his room, Jim slumped at the couch, his face buried in his hands.
"Jim, you ok?" Merlin's apprentice asked, knowing good enough that it was impossible to be alright.
"You were right," the younger teen uttered, raising his head. "That I've noticed. There have always been so many oddities. In mom, in me… Yet all of those make a lot of sense if she isn't a human. And the more I think, the more logical everything is. Still, a part of me hopes that there's some kind of mistake here…"
Douxie could understand that feeling. Many centuries ago, it had also felt like a hit into the solar plexus, when he had learned about Morgana succumbing to evil. Yes, they weren't blood-related, but the witch hadn't been that different from an elder sister to him. Hisirdoux had respected and looked up to her.
And for Jim… It had to be even worse for him. His mother was the closest person to him.
"Can you tell me more?" the teen asked, his eyes full of determination. "Everything you know…"
He had obviously mustered all of his courage to voice that request. How could Douxie ignore that bravery? Zoe had been right - Jim was a strong-willed person, so he had to stop underestimating him.
So the wizard-in-training told his younger friend everything. About how he and Archie had found out everything. About the potion Barverra was using. About Jim's own halfling nature and unknown future.
The teen was listening silently, his face darkening from time to time.
"Douxie, can you answer me honestly?" Jim whispered half-audibly. "Is there any chance for mom to give up on the world destruction?"
"I don't know," perhaps, it was a cruel answer, but was Hisirdoux the right person for asking that? If the Trollhunter himself had no idea about that one, how could outsiders be more knowledgable?
Yes, only Barverra herself would have been able to answer that one.
The door flung open, and disheveled Toby ran inside, yelling:
"Jimbo, what's happened? Do you know how worried I was? No matter how many times I called, your phone was out of reach…"
"Sorry, that's my fault," Douxie butted in. "I threw away Jim's phone…"
"Wha…" Toby stared at the young man but switched the attention to his best friend at once. "First, trolls, and now you're kidnapped by a bunch of psychos? Jimbo, that's seriously messed! Do you know what Dr. L. did this morning? I've never seen her like that!"
The plump teen shivered, most likely, remembering the morning.
"Tobes, just wait for a second," Jim begged. "I'll explain everything… Douxie, can you leave us alone for some time?"
"Are you sure?" the wizard-in-training inquired.
The Trollhunter nodded. Douxie noted that his knuckles were white. The boy still struggled with accepting the reality.
"That's…" Toby started struggling with picking up the right word after the entire explanation.
"Crazy? Impossible? Bullshit?" Jim suggested humorlessly. "I wished it was really like that…"
"Give me a minute, I need to process everything," his best friend started to pace through the room.
The lanky teen could even blame him for that kind of reaction. It wasn't that usual to learn that your neighbors weren't humans.
"You've said you are leaving Arcadia," Toby broke the silence at last. "Will I get some time to pack?"
No, Jim had to mishear that part.
"To… What?"
"Pack, Jimbo, pack!" the plump teen repeated impatiently. "You know, I need some essentials during such a trip!"
Did he just?
"Tobes, you're not going," Jim stated firmly.
"Nonsense," his best friend retorted. "We've always been together, and if you think that I'll just ditch you because you are not a human, you don't know me good enough!"
The world as Jim knew kept crumbling around him, yet somehow Toby had remained Toby - his best friend and brother in everything but blood.
And because of that, he had no right to use that loyalty. He had no right to ruin someone else's life because of his own selfishness.
"Tobes, you have to stay," the lanky teen sighed. "Have you thought about Nana? You are her only family. And…" his voice wavered. "Please, watch my mom for me."
He felt Toby giving him a tight hug and hugged his best friend back.
"Will you ever return?" the plump teen asked hopefully.
"I don't know."
"Will you at least call? Or text? Even a letter will be ok! Just, there has to be a way for me to know that you'll alright," Toby continued. "Ask your wizard friends about that, ok?"
"I will," Jim nodded. "And Tobes… I have a request for you…"
Everything had been in a haze for Barbara since Jim hadn't returned home. She remembered scaring Toby after storming into his house, and she had definitely combed the entire city several times.
Oh, yes, and apparently, she had also threatened Stricklander with actual body mutilation. Had she been a human or troll then? Did it even matter? So what if she had blown her cover? Everything had simply lost sense since her son's disappearance.
Someone opened the backdoor. Had Jim returned? Barbara rushed there, ready to encase her boy in the tight embrace and...
It was just Toby.
"Hello, Dr. L," he greeted nervously. No, nervously wasn't enough to describe his state. The kid looked scared.
The woman looked at her own hands unwittingly. No, that was the human form. Perhaps, her own expression wasn't that friendly.
"Look, Toby, Jim still hasn't returned, and…" the mother started. Perhaps, the teen had come to give her some mental support or something, but she wasn't ready for staying around anyone. Not at the time when she was on the verge of tearing someone into shreds.
"I know," Toby smiled sadly. "He asked me to give you this…"
A letter.
There was an envelope in the boy's hand. Barbara ripped it out, not bothering with courtesies.
Dear Mom,
I can imagine that you're worried sick right now. I'm sorry for causing you so much trouble, however, I won't return.
Why?
Perhaps, you've already known, or you'll learn it soon anyway. The Daylight Amulet picked me up as the Trollhunter, and that makes me your enemy, I guess. Yes, I know who you really are and about the Killahead bridge.
Dear Mom, I love you greatly, but I love this world as well. I cannot fight you and neither can I doom this world. Going away is my only choice. And if you love me too, please, don't look for me.
I don't know if it's fair to ask you to forget about liberating your father because if you were the one imprisoned, I'd probably turn the world upside down to free you. Still, I hope that you will be happy even without that.
Please, don't blame Tobes for anything - he just followed my selfish request. He doesn't know where I am now as well.
Don't survive on coffee alone. Even if you're a troll, I hope you'll get proper meals. And no abusing microwave - an oven is a way better option for reheating.
Love you,
Jim.
Barbara felt her legs giving way under her. She had lost her most precious treasure, and something had told her that she'd never seen her son's smile again…
A/N: There's no way that the main story will get the same conclusion because I believe that Jim's reaction can differ a lot depending on the time of revelation and who delivers the news.
Next time:
What if Barbara had told the truth back in the first chapter.