Episode:
21: The Great Monsoon, Part 3

Maybe it's time to stop running.

Another day was bleeding away into night, another continual relapse into inevitable darkness. Grishnaks snapped up their worms and regurgitated it for their younglings, resting on the peaks of the Butterfly Castle. They were in fact one of the few species not to have migrated from the central kingdom since the beginning of the Great Monsoon. Unsurprising, given they possessed tenacious qualities that bordered on extremophilic.

Evenings were the quietest time. Few bombardments occurred in this period, as the Empire focussed on other conquests. Occasionally, one might hear a loud, muffled boom against the barrier that the MHC had erected around the kingdom, but it did little damage. The Empire's interests remained elsewhere, personal vendettas aside. They had a whole multiverse to conquer, after all, and the last bastion of Mewni was, contrary to expectation, not as important to Queen Star the Unforgiving.

Her alternate counterpart relied on that. Princess Star Butterfly, beside herself as much as usual, remained steadfast on her journey. She trudged through the cobblestone pathways outside the castle, through the mostly barren street and the empty park.

She sighed as a cold breeze washed over her arms. The Mewnian Graveyard of the Butterfly Kingdom grew larger every other day, it seemed. So much so that River had ordered the construction of a separate graveyard – Povarian Square – to honour the knights and soldiers that had died in the conflict. Simply because the Mewnian Graveyard could not accommodate so many lives lost. But there was one life it could.

As Star made her solemn way into the graveyard, she stopped to pay respects to Grayfia's grave. Penelope likely didn't have a chance to erect a graveyard in her kingdom, due to the Empire's takeover, so Moon instead built it here when the Spiderbites fled to their castle.

She stopped short of the grave she sought.

HERE LIES

ADAM BUTTERFLY

WARD TO THE BUTTERFLY KINGDOM, ROYAL MAGIC AMBASSADOR, NOBLE SORCERER, LOVED FRIEND AND BROTHER

MAY THE SUN GLEAM UPON YOU ONCE AGAIN

It was a simple grave. Nothing flashy. Just a stone slab stuck into the ground six feet above an empty coffin. There was no body to bury. His body was destroyed after he fell into Lake Majoris. Stupid. "Here lies". Except he didn't lie there at all! His body was –allegedly– at the bottom of that lake. Not under this drab and thrifty grave.

Star had wanted something more. She had demanded a statue be made, or at least some kind of mural, just anything that could tell the populace how important the man was. To her.

Marco had been against it. He reasoned that Adam wouldn't have wanted that. Her boyfriend insisted that Adam would never have wanted to be made a martyr, nor be given much more than a standard burial. Adam didn't view himself as important enough for that, hating being made to seem above everyone else. He would have said that all deaths were equally important. In Adam's eyes, making his grave larger than life would have denounced every other one.

In the end, Moon had agreed with Marco. So here she was, sitting at a grave that didn't come close to appreciating her brother.

Star took out her laurel wreath from her purse. It had been miniaturised with her magic, and a simple tap on the side enlarged it to full size. She bought them from the kingdom's best florist, rather than creating it from magic herself. Adam deserved more than fake, magically-made flowers. He deserved the best of the best. Crouching down, she gently rested the wreath against the gravestone, softly amongst all the others she had put there consistently every day since it happened.

'The sun's going down,' uttered Star. 'Sometimes I wonder if it's gonna come back up. Or if this one time, it won't.' She held a hand to her head. 'I dunno. Maybe I'm just spouting spiritual crap.'

The princess sighed.

'Who knows where the Empire's gonna attack next. I…I think Dark Star's saving us for last. Make us suffer just a bit more before the end.' She balled her hand into a fist. 'She's mine.'

'She isn't your responsibility, Star.'

She blinked. She turned around to see Marco standing there, hovering briefly on one leg. Star sat back. She offered him a sideways glance at most, but Adam's grave never went beyond her peripheral vision.

'Hey, Marco.'

'Hey. Thought I might find you here.'

'I'm always here, Marco. Even when I'm on the front lines. Doesn't matter where I go, I'm still…right here.'

Marco bit his lip, twiddling with his fingers. 'Um, I spoke to Moon again. About your…idea.'

Star's head snapped around. Her hand fell to the latest wreath of flowers she had set down.

'What did she say?' she asked hastily, bouncing on her knees slightly. Marco couldn't quite meet her with half-hopeful gaze.

'She said no, Star.'

'What?!'she all but screeched, standing up. 'Why not? We didn't…we didn't find his body, Marco! I need to know…I need to find it, okay?'

'I understand, Star, but it's way too risky,' he warned. 'An expedition to the bottom of Lake Majoris requires us to enter Empire territory. Right next to their Mewnian stronghold, the Mace Kingdom. There's no possible way we could do it undetected. And that's not even considering that 90% of the lake floor is Apophis.'

'So we're just gonna leave him there? Not even try to find him?!'

'What choice do we have, Star?'

She folded her arms. 'We can find him ourselves!'

'No, you can't. What if the Empire finds out about Apophis in the process? You'd be risking the lives of thousands just at a shot at finding him! Not even him; his dead body! Is it really worth that much to you?'

'YES!' she screamed. Marco's eyes went wide, and he stepped back. Star realised her own voice and closed her eyes. 'Sorry. It's just…I won't believe it. I won't believe he's gone until I see the proof.'

'He was disintegrating and then he fell into the lake and exploded. What more proof do you need?'

'His body.'

Marco groaned and folded his arms. 'And what if there isn't anything left of him to find? What then, Star?'

Her eyes flickered to Adam's grave. 'I…I don't know. I just…I have to find him. Have to get closure on something. Marco…the last thing he ever said to me…'

The dead don't want anything.

'I don't want that to be how I remember him.'

Marco smiled slightly. He hesitantly reached forward and took his girlfriend's hand. She reciprocated the gesture, as he gently stroked her fingers.

'Then don't. Remember who he used to be. Strong, brave, thoughtful…even kind.' He smirked with a hint of humour. 'When he wanted to be.' Star snickered a little at that. 'He was a good guy at heart. That's what mattered. Even if…it didn't quite come out, in the end.'

'Yeah. I just…can't believe it…' Star's eyes wandered. Marco frowned. He felt her tighten her fingers around his hand, her nails digging into his palm. 'When I get my hands on her, I swear, I'm gonna –'

'Star,' Marco's tight voice cut her off. She frowned, confused. He shook his head, slightly in disbelief. 'This isn't about her. This about honouring the fallen, not getting revenge.'

'Not about her?!' she parroted, yanking her hand away. 'You're kidding, right? Dark Star is the one who did all this! Took Adam from us! Slaughtered millions across the multiverse! And you're telling me this isn't about stopping her?!'

'Stopping her, not violently murdering her!' Marco exclaimed. 'This isn't you, Star! You don't seek revenge!'

'When I first saw her…when she killed the other Janna…you know how I felt. You know I wanted to see her dead. So don't lie to me and tell me I'm not capable of wanting revenge!'

'Revenge is not who you are!'

Star glared at him. Her palms went white with the strength of her fists.

'It is now!'

'Star. Don't do this. Don't shut me out,' he begged, lowering his eyebrows. 'You're going down the same path as Adam. This…this is why he died. You're making the same mistakes he did!'

'Adam was a hero!'

'Adam was a selfish, revenge-obsessed hero!' Marco pointed out. 'I loved him too, Star. He was my friend! But let's not act like he was some perfect saint, who did a heroic sacrifice for the greater good! He died because he was selfish and violent! He wanted to make Dark Star suffer, just like you want to make her suffer. He let his emotions rule his head, and he ran in blind, and got himself killed! Stop acting like it was anything different because it fucking wasn't!'

'SHUT UP!' she bellowed, taking out her wand. Marco stared at her as the wand shard started to glow. He remained still, stood in place, as the apoplexy began to wash over her. She panted for air, as she slowly realised what she was doing.

Star lowered her wand. Her fingers trembled until they released, falling open. Her wand clattered to the ground. Tears leaked from her eyes.

'Marco…I'm so –'

'It's okay,' he assured, reaching forward to hug her. 'It's all okay.'

They remained there for a few moments. Star was still beside herself; she always was when she unplugged the dam of emotions inside her. Marco held her tight. He said nothing. He didn't need to. Eventually, Star caught her breath back and released herself from his comforting grip.

She bent down and scooped up her wand. She examined it with distaste, wiping off the dust and dirt staining its edges.

'I'm losing myself,' she remarked sadly. 'Marco, I…I know you're right. About Adam. But…you can't honestly expect me to let her live.'

'But you won't resort to murder.'

'No.' She sighed. 'But I won't have to. It doesn't matter about my principles, Marco, it's the "inter-conflictual rules of engagement". Mom keeps talking about it. Execution. If I don't do it, she will.'

'Moon doesn't want revenge like you. That's the difference.'

'And you know that because…? I doubt you're the person she confides in. You're my squire, not hers. I'm scared to think what her squire would be like.'

'You're being facetious,' he argued. 'The point is…I know you're angry. I'm angry too. But we can't let that anger control us. Yeah we can use it, to be strong, but we don't let it use us, to be reckless.'

'I know…I know…'

Marco took her hand again and led her back to Adam's grave. He revealed a set of flowers he had been holding the whole time. She watched as he set the flowers down on the gravestone and stepped back.

'We don't just honour his memory, Star, we learn from his mistakes. That's how we move on. Not by retreating into ourselves.'

Star reluctantly nodded. She traced out the lines of Adam's name on the gravestone, thinking to herself. She scratched off the edge of her thumbnail on the weathered stone.

'I just…I know, somewhere deep inside, that he's alive, Marco. I just…can't explain it. It's a feeling. I just know it.'

For once, Marco chose not to object. Instead, he nodded sagely and put a hand on his girlfriend's shoulder. 'I hope you're right. More than anything.'

Later the day, even further into the evening, Adam swallowed the air in his throat and bent down to pick up a piece of trash. He contained his groans of pain until he managed to take hold of it, depositing it into the nearby bin bag. The kids had had a movie night, watching some Apophian comedy, and left most of their rubbish behind. Idle slopcorn, bowls of heated mealworms, empty bottles of strange soft drinks (like something called capertaz), and various other pieces of refuse, had all been thrown to the wayside, entirely forgotten.

Of course, it was Adam who was tasked with cleaning it all up. One-handed. With an injured leg. Sylvia seemed more apologetic than Jason on the matter.

All the kids had been sent to bed. The encroaching Sunday, tomorrow, invited Michael to be less strict on their bedtimes, but he wasn't overly liberal. No doubt more than a few of them were staying up late anyway, but they'd find out soon enough just how valuable proper sleep was. Not that Adam had that opportunity, given his penchant for sleeping late, and having to get up early. Constant nightmares notwithstanding.

As he was just about halfway done cleaning up all the rubbish, he heard Michael's office door swinging open. He looked up and almost missed Lily running out of his office and storming her way up the stairs.

'Lily!'

Michael appeared a second later, staring unsuccessfully in the direction that the girl had ran. He sighed, putting his hands on his hips, and shaking his head. Humming to himself, Adam walked over to him.

'I'm guessing she didn't take the news about her stepdad all too well.'

Michael bit his lip and nodded.

'I just want to find a decent home for her.'

Adam raised an eyebrow. 'And you thought her post-alcoholic stepfather would be a safe environment?'

'The wellness check tomorrow is going to confirm that,' he replied. 'I can't hold too much against the man. He waited half a decade, going through the proper legal channels to apply for the opportunity of custody.' He folded his arms. 'He's just following the rules.'

'I think we should be on our guard,' said Adam. 'Once an alcoholic; always an alcoholic.'

'That's for me to decide.' After realising how fatalistic he sounded, Michael retreated slightly and smiled. 'So…how was your first day?'

'Uneventful,' he responded.

'Right. I imagine, as the Royal Magic Ambassador; your days were more…action-packed. Never a dull moment?'

'A few. You only tend to remember the important days.'

'Well, I assure you, there will be lots of things for you to do around here,' Michael told him. 'Errands, mostly. Paperwork. And interacting with the kids, of course.'

Adam nodded.

'I've been getting to know them. The older kids don't really seem to like me, probably because I'm only a little bit older than them. You know what teenagers are like. Won't respect anyone close to their age.'

'Respect will come in time,' he reassured, waving a hand dismissively. 'Although...Jason told me that the younger kids seem to have taken a liking to you. Specifically, one of them.'

Adam frowned. 'What do you mean?'

'Lily,' answered Michael. 'Jason told me how you handled the situation in the garden, with Lily seemingly being left out. I must say…I do like how you handled it, but…avoid encouraging the younger kids to be too independent. It usually leads to them lacking respect and being excessively rebellious.'

'I'm not exactly experienced in dealing with children,' Adam admitted. 'Honestly, a few days ago I would have happily admitted that I hated kids. It's just…I believe in personal agency and independence. Always have.'

'Oh, I'm all for that! Like I said, I like how you handled it. I'm only encouraging some restraint. You don't want kids thinking that every decision should be theirs. Kids have to eat their vegetables, but they nearly always don't want to. Sometimes, an adult has to make the decisions for them. Do you understand what I'm getting at here?'

'Understood,' he said. 'I'll be more careful in future.'

'Good.'

Michael turned and made his way back to his office. Adam watched him leave, curious at the thought for a moment that he actually might like this job. Even as he made his way back to the living room and returned to cleaning up the rubbish, he balked at the concept of getting close to people again. His presence in this city alone was endangering them. Dark Star would smite this whole city just to get to him. Slaughter whomever got in her way.

Danger seemed to follow him at every turn. He would be foolish to believe he was out of the woodwork now. He had to avoid becoming too attached to this place, because he was dead-set on leaving eventually. He had a war to fight. Friends to help. Family to console.

His blood boiled at thought of what could be going on above ground. Besides what Argynos had told him, he was completely in the dark. People were fighting, bleeding, and dying up there, and he had no concept of when one battle ended and the next started. A whole new history could be written without his noticing because he was right beneath the feet of warfare.

Something tugged on his trouser leg. He looked down. Lily was standing at his feet, staring up at him shyly.

'Could you tuck me in?'

Adam froze. Now what the hell was he supposed to say to that? A sputtered series of blathers escaped his throat before he successfully formulated an intelligible sentence.

'W-Wouldn't you rather have Mike do it instead?'

'No!' she snapped. She shook her head at her outburst. 'I mean…please? It would help me get to sleep.'

Adam sighed.

'Fine. Why don't you show me to your room, eh?'

'Yay!' cheered Lily, racing up the stairs. Adam rolled his eyes and hobbled after her, just managing not to lose sight of her.

Adam managed to slide the duvet over Lily one-handed, hovering near the bedside table for support. Lily snuggled into position, resting her little head on her pillow, and smiling. He managed to bend down slightly to watch over her.

'Is that better?' he asked. 'Not too cold, is it?'

She let out a hum of satisfaction. 'Nope. It's good.'

'Great.' He got up to leave, just edging towards the door. 'Goodnight.'

'Wait,' she spoke up. Adam didn't really listen, and still hobbled toward the open door. 'I heard what you said this morning!' Adam immediately stopped in the doorway, his back still facing her. 'Are…are you really an orphan? Like me?'

Adam sighed and turned his head to side-eye glance at her.

'Yes.'

'So…you're the only one who will understand!'

Sensing what this was about, Adam went over to Lily's desk and picked up the chair. He moved the chair to her bedside and sat down, propping his walking stick on her bedside table.

'Is this about…what Michael told you? About your…stepdad?'

Lily nodded. She sat up in her bed and hugged her knees.

'I'm scared,' she confessed. 'Mister Butterfly…what were your parents like?'

'My real parents? I never met them. They gave me away.'

"Gave him away" was the nicer way of putting it. They abandoned him in the forest for the murdercrows to eat him. He was fortunate that his adoptive parents had found him that day. Or he would be dead.

'My adoptive parents found me and raised me, but they passed away too.'

Lily nodded in understanding. 'And…if your real parents showed up one day…saying they wanted you back, because…because people made them better…would you go back with them?'

Adam thought long and hard before he answered the question. He decided to go with honesty.

'No,' he said, sitting back in his chair. 'Aside from how ridiculous that would sound…I've moved on. I don't need them in my life anymore. But Lily…it's not the same for you. You're still a kid…you need people to take care of you. To look after you.'

'Why can't you look after me? Here? In care, with Mike and Mr Jason and Mrs Sylvia? I like it here! I don't want to leave!'

'I understand, Lily. I really do. You don't have to like your stepdad. Or want to leave with him. That's why Mike and I are going to investigate him, to make sure he's safe for you to live with.' He swallowed the air in his throat. 'I'll admit I'm not a fan of him either, but…if it turns out he passes the check, then perhaps you should give him a chance? There is a possibility he's changed. If you end up really not liking it, then you can always come back.'

Lily hummed in uncertainty. Her eyes darted all over the place. 'I dunno…'

'Here.' Adam raised his hand and closed his fist aside from his pinkie finger. 'Pinkie promise. If your stepdad ends up taking you back, and you hate it, I'll make sure you get to go home.'

Lily wiped away a tear and nodded. She beamed with the brightest light as she raised her little finger and do the pinkie shake. Adam nodded and decided that, finally, his work here was done. He stood up to leave, swiping his cane and hobbling towards the doorframe.

'Can I ask you one more thing, Mister Butterfly?' He nodded. 'If you could, would you want to see your parents again? The good ones? Or any of your friends again?'

Initially, Adam opened his mouth to give the obvious response. Yes. Of course, he would. His parents died in front of him, with so many things left unsaid in the meantime. And his friends were…his friends! They thought he was dead. He didn't want them to suffer any longer.

Then his eyes moved, unconsciously, to his missing arm.

An arm that was gone because of him. A massive physical impairment he had caused himself. And that wasn't even the only thing that was lost because of him. Half of Mewni was lost to the Empire because of his foolishness. His friends might not even survive to see tomorrow because of him. Some of them could be dead and he wouldn't even know it.

If he made his way back, what would he even accomplish? He already made the fatal mistakes; what was to say he wouldn't doom himself to repeating them yet again? Chances were…his friends were only losing because of their grief. Grief that he imposed upon them.

The pain in his leg flared up again, almost as if to agree with him. What use was he to them, anyway? He'd just get them killed. Like he got Beru killed. Like he got Janna killed. Like he got himself killed.

They were better off without him. He was better off lonely. His leg buckled slightly in confirmation. He nodded minutely to himself. After a long moment of silence, he finally answered.

'No. I'm more of a lone wolf, really.'

Lily blinked. She looked him dead in the eye.

'I think lone wolves should find homes.'

Adam hummed at the thought, slightly startled in the wisdom of it. He nodded again, more confidently this time, with the point and vigour of the man he used to be. Or at least a little bit.

'Goodnight, Lily. Sleep well.'

On the following afternoon, on Adam's third day of consciousness in Apophis, Michael and Adam arrived in Newton Way, outside the house belonging to Abel Stillwater. The water above the dome had a greenish hue that day, casting a seaweed light on the city down below. The excess water from the building's dehumidifiers collected in the city grates, dripping down into puddles on the concrete pavement. Adam raised an eyebrow as he inspected his surroundings.

'This the place?'

'Yep,' replied Michael. 'Lily seemed much happier this morning. I take it you had something to do with that?'

Adam shrugged as he limped towards the house. 'I just told her that this whole thing doesn't have to permanent if she doesn't want it to be. But also, that she should consider giving the man a chance if he passes our check.'

'Good,' he replied, nodding. 'I wouldn't want her to feel forced into this. I know Abel's known for his alcoholism, and drug addiction, but…the recovery institute passed him off as having fully recovered. We should reserve all judgement till we see the man for ourselves.'

Adam hummed in agreement, but he wasn't really paying attention. His eye caught the windows at the front of the house. There were windows boarded up with old newspapers, blocking the view inside. The building looked quite old, even for the Old Quarter, and the paint on the front door was thoroughly worn. It was taller than it was wide, though only two storeys. It looked like a tiny little slice of homestead, forcibly squeezed into place on the neighbourhood terrace.

Adam and Michael made their way up the stone steps and knocked on the front door. It took a minute before somebody answered, and the door opened rather shakily.

The man that Adam had seen on the dossier came to life right in front of him. His reputation certainly preceded him. Admittedly, he looked much better than he had in the original image. He was well-shaven – infuriatingly better than Adam himself – and his posture was straight and orderly. His fingers seemed to twitch, but his clenched right fist suggested he was keeping it under control. His pupils weren't as dilated as he was expecting, nor was his complexion as flushed, and the rest of his skin was bereft of its sickly pale tone.

'Hello. Thank you for coming. Do come in!'

Abel moved out of the way and allowed the two of them to step inside. As he did, Adam noticed that his knuckles were quite red, and he spotted that his wrists were quite worn for some reason.

'You should find everything in order,' said Abel, a pert smile on his face. Michael hummed.

'Yes, well, you should still understand, we still have to look around. To make sure this is a suitable place for a child to live.'

'What's with the newspapers?' questioned Adam pointedly, looking straight into Abel's eyes. 'And the worn old paint on the door? You wouldn't want Lily breathing in old paint fumes, would you?'

Abel frowned. The corner of his lips twitched a little.

'Of course not,' he replied, relaxing his brow. 'I only recently moved in. The newspapers are from the last owner when they boarded up the place. They didn't anyone would buy it, but…well, it was cheap, and I needed a place to live. It's an old house, hence the old paint – which isn't toxic, by the way. However, I assure you, once I have a more stable income, I'll renovate the place. I just want Lily to feel safe and warm here.'

'Can we see the bedroom?' asked Michael. 'The one you want Lily to stay in.'

Abel nodded happily, beckoning towards the stairs. 'Of course. Follow me.'

Adam relented for a moment, glancing about the hallway. He couldn't exactly just slip away and investigate without being noticed. Ultimately, the Mewman followed the two of them up the stairs.

As he was walking up the steps, though, he couldn't help but notice an unhealthy creaking in the wood. He looked down at his feet and noticed it. Part of the stairs was worn, across multiple steps, it seemed. Adam figured, initially, that it was simply due to age. That was until he noticed the arrangement.

The stairs were worn and busted in patterns. Multiple parts of the stairs were worn and broken, alternating from side-to-side. That couldn't have been from ordinary use. Some amount of force had to be used in order to break the steps like that.

Strange, he thought. Very strange indeed.

Any answers to that question remained elusive to him, however, as he reached Lily's room around the corner. Michael opened the door and gestured for them to take a look inside.

Adam gave it a keen eye. Upon entry, though, it seemed perfectly normal for a girl Lily's age. It wasn't furnished much, exactly, but the wallpaper was clean, and the proper facilities were in place. The wallpaper was dandelion yellow – Lily's favourite colour – and there was a dollhouse below the perfectly-scrubbed window in the corner. Lily loved to play with dolls. The bed was child-sized, recently cleaned, and well-ironed. The floor had a well-vacuumed carpet lying across it and there was a distinctive smell of recently-applied air freshener wafting through the air circulation.

Michael hummed. 'Nice place. Lily would love it.'

'Yes. This is where most of my allowance from the Primajora went.'

Adam said nothing, as his eyes shifted about the room. Awfully convenient, he thought, that Abel had enough time to put up this entire bedroom, refurbish it and clean it out, yet neither the time nor money to even remove the newspaper boardings or repaint the front door. Didn't he know that first impressions were everything?

Almost like Abel was just keeping up appearances where he was concerned that it mattered.

'Adam?'

He looked up. Michael was staring at him promptingly.

'What do you think?'

'Hm? It's…nice,' he admitted, following the two of them out the room. Regardless of whether he meant it or not, he couldn't afford Abel thinking he might be sceptical. He didn't appear quite as nervous as Michael had claimed he would be, but that didn't absolve him of all suspicion just yet.

'Perhaps you two would like a glass of capertaz?' Abel suggested, as they made their way down the stairs and into the living room. He looked at Adam. 'It's an Apophian delicacy. Very refreshing.'

'That sounds lovely, thank you,' replied Michael.

'Uh, I'm fine,' said Adam, by instinct. He wasn't sure how a drink made for Lacetans would affect a Mewman. Actually…I could…He frowned. 'Never mind, actually, I think I will have some. Thanks.'

As all three of them sat down in the living room, glasses of capertaz fluid in hand, Michael decided to get down to business. He set down his glass on the coffee table for the moment.

'Now, Abel,' he spoke up, leaning forward. 'As I'm sure you know, Lily is reaching a stage in her childhood where she starts to gain a level of personal agency, in that…she isn't exactly afraid to say what she believes. How, exactly, do you prepare to deal with the very real possibility that Lily cannot be convinced to live with you?'

Abel bit his lip before answering. 'Well…although I would very much like to have my step-daughter back, I know I can't buy her love. I just…really want her back. That's all.'

Adam raised an eyebrow and folded his arms. 'You haven't answered the question, Abel.'

'Quite right,' he admitted. 'Well…if she really can't be convinced, I suppose…I'll just have to leave her be. But…I really don't want to. I know I can do better. Be better. I just want her to give me a chance.'

'Well, you know you can't force her to,' Michael said. Abel nodded regrettably and sighed.

'I can only hope she'll come around.'

Adam let out a grunt and grimaced. The two looked at him. He leaned forward and clutched his stomach. Michael frowned.

'Are you alright, Adam?'

'Yeah, it's just…' He grunted again. 'That capertaz…I really don't think it's meant for Mewmans. It's really not going down the right way.' He stood up and gestured toward Abel. 'Do you…know where the bathroom is?'

'Yes, yes, um, upstairs, second door on the left.' Adam rushed out of the room, barely enough time to give his thanks. He entered the hallway with steadfast precision and moved halfway up the stairs.

Once he was entirely out of sight, though, he relaxed his façade. His ruse had been successful. Now that he had an excuse to leave the room, he could do his own first-hand inspection.

First things first: the broken footsteps on the stairs. He eyed the pattern leading up the stairs and noticed how it continued on the carpet on the first-floor hallway. Adam bent down and lifted up the carpet. Underneath, the floorboards were compressed, crammed inwards. That couldn't just happen because the wood was worn from overuse.

It seemed instead that someone had been stomping their way up the stairs and towards…something. And not just once, but many times, in order to wear out the planks of wood like this. That seemed to imply the perpetrator had an anger issue.

Following the footsteps across the carpet was the obvious next step. The footsteps were less noticeable the further along the first floor Adam followed them, but fortunately, his injuries had not impaired his keen eyesight.

As he traced the steps, he considered the fact that, if the previous owner had caused these angry footsteps, it would seem like a priority for Abel to fix. Unless, of course, he hadn't noticed them, because he had been the one to create them in the first place.

The psychological evaluation of him hadn't determined anger issues. Not that Adam considered himself a professional, but this seemed to directly conflict with that.

The footsteps came to a dead stop in the middle of the hallway. Seemed almost strange, Adam thought, until he looked upwards. There was an access hatch to an attic upstairs. With a suspicious lock on it.

Ordinarily, this would have been an issue. Ordinary in the sense that the lock was made for Lacetans, so would be difficult for Lacetans. However, Adam was a Mewman with comparatively enhanced strength.

He might be missing an arm, but he had a cane. The pain in his leg flared up instantly, but he did his best to ignore it. He clenched his fist, until his skin turned white, as he gently threaded it through the lock with the hook. His leverage on the lock obtained, he began to pull. And pulled harder.

And the lock broke instantly. The hatch opened and the ladder fell down. Adam managed to duck out of the way in time, though it almost took his head off. He stumbled back, unhooking his cane.

In honesty, he wasn't sure what he would find up there. But he had to find out, for Lily's sake. And so, with the confidence of a Mewman trying to outrun a murdercrow, he climbed up the ladder and into the attic.

Adam's eyes widened. Immediately, he knew something was up. The attic was in total disrepair, beyond just age. The wooden panels in the walls were beaten in and crushed, and one of the pillars holding up the roof was smashed into two pieces. Dotted along the wall were several alcoves of crushed wood, which only could have been sustained from punching the walls repeatedly. The floorboards looked just as worn as everything else in the room.

Whoever was using this room was clearly using it a lot. Question was, who? He readily assumed Abel caused this, but it really could have been caused by the previous owner.

He knew he didn't like Abel from the second he met him, because he was a drug addict and alcoholic. Adam had terrible experiences with those kinds of people back home. People on Negative Mewni were often addicted to a drug called spice, so named because it felt like someone stuck a chilli pepper in your brain.

There was always a possibility he was being prejudiced towards Abel because of his past mistakes. He thought he would have learned by now, but he supposed he hadn't.

Either way, this attic didn't give him any hope that this place was a safe place for Lily to live. As it was, though, this wasn't enough proof that Abel specifically wouldn't be a suitable carer for her. He needed something more tangible.

What he did notice, after a minute of inspection, was another strange thing about this attic. There was one specific floorboard that appeared newer, and lighter in tone, than the others around it. Curious, Adam walked over to it. It was noticeable that it was younger than its fellow wooden companions, enough to suggest two things.

One: the disrepair was less likely to be caused by the previous owner because they were quite new (though he could not tell for certain how new it was, so it wasn't for certain). And two: if the previous floorboard specifically had been replaced, then it must have been worn more than the others around it. Which means, more than likely, it must have been removed enough times to justify replacing. And there was only one reason somebody would continuously remove one specific floorboard in the middle of their locked attic.

Adam reached forward with his one good arm. He wriggled his fingers around it, trying to gain some grip on it. Once he did, he let out a groan of pain and he ripped off the floorboard from the ground.

Just as he expected. Something was hidden under it: a metal strongbox, with a particularly sturdy lock on it.

Things weren't looking particularly good for Abel. If this wasn't his, how had he missed it? Surely, he would have been in the attic at least once, right? He must have noticed the lock on the attic door. Who in their right mind moves into a building without checking out the attic?

Either way, it didn't matter. A strongbox with a lock was suspicious enough. The more conservative part of his mind was reminding him to mind his own business, but it was swiftly overturned by the thought that this inspection required him to stick his nose in others' business.

Adam took a deep breath. He punched the lock with all his strength, slightly denting the strongbox in the process. When it didn't break the lock immediately, he had to give it a few more punches before it finally opened.

He seethed in pain and rubbed his sore knuckles. He hoped the effort was actually worth it. The strongbox had now been broken open, revealing its contents to him.

A few notable items were inside. An Apophian-brand electric dart-gun was on top. It was loaded. Displeased, he removed the darts from the gun and snapped them. Beneath the gun was a panel of metal – a fake panel, Adam deduced. He reached forward and removed and nearly choked at what he found.

There was a photo of Lily on top. That confirmed it. This was Abel's doing.

The photo was ripped, so that you couldn't see the face of presumably the mother, and only Lily's bright, beaming face. Underneath, there was something…concerning.

Dozens of photos, depicting various things Abel had spied upon. There was a photo of the Royal Residential Children's Home, along with pictures of Lily, by the window to her bedroom, and Michael, in his office. There was even a picture of him, with Argynos, outside the children's home two days ago, when he first arrived. There were several more photos of Lily, taken from across the street from the children's home.

He turned over the pictures. Each photo of Lily had a series of mad scribblings across the back. "MINE", "YOU ARE MINE" and "THEY WILL NOT TAKE YOU FROM ME" were amongst them.

Adam stood up. He'd seen enough. He put the disturbing pictures in his pockets and put the strongbox back in its place. As he looked around at the holes in the wall, it finally clicked.

The recovery program had missed this obsessive and violent behaviour because he found an outlet to direct it. It was like he could vent out all his anger and that made him appear calm. They didn't know that Abel had some kind of personality disorder, or behavioural disability, because he had learnt how to hide it in the years since his arrest.

That's why the house seemed so broken, yet Lily's supposed bedroom had been excruciatingly, painstakingly constructed, to the most pristine of details. He was obsessive. He had grown to believe that getting Lily back was all that mattered, so any time he faced any adversity with that, he lashed out.

Adam didn't want to admit that it reminded him a little of himself.

Nevertheless, he went back down the ladder and closed up the ladder. He couldn't replace the locks he broke, so the best he could do was hide them. Shutting the attic door, he patted himself down and limped his way back towards the stairs on his cane.

As he turned a corner, he bumped into something.

'Adam!' exclaimed Michael. 'Are you alright? You were taking a while.'

'I was worried I-I might have poisoned you,' Abel added, picking at his fingernails.

'Yes...yes I'm fine,' he replied, limping over to the top of the stairs. As he reached it, though, he stopped and turned back to Abel. 'Abel? How…long have you been living in this house, exactly?'

Abel blinked nervously. 'A few weeks.'

Adam hummed. His eyes narrowed.

'It's not in very good condition.'

'Well…you can blame that on the previous owner,' he replied, unconsciously scratching the back of his scalp. 'But I s'pose…it did make it cheap enough for me to afford. I'll make sure Lily won't get hurt.'

Adam looked away, idly picking at the dry paint on the wall.

'And…how many times have you tried to get Lily back? As in, how many times have you put in a request for custody?'

'I…I don't see how that's relevant.'

'Four times,' Michael answered for him, folding his arms. 'What's this about, Adam?'

'Four times,' he repeated, pacing about the hallway. 'Three times rejected. Must've been frustrating for you. To be rejected so many times.'

Abel dodged his glance. He spotted Michael's equally pressing gaze in his peripheral vision.

'Yes, I suppose…it was quite…quite annoying. I was frustrated, but…I took it as an opportunity to improve!'

'Frustrating is right.' He pointed at the staircase. 'The steps on the staircase. I noticed them the second I walked in. They're broken, in alternating patterns up the stairs. Almost like somebody has been stomping their way up the stairs. Regularly.'

'They're not mine,' he blurted quickly. 'They were there when I moved in.'

'Six months ago?' prodded Adam, prompting him to nod. 'The wood on the steps looks old but the damage is quite new – look at the rot on the exposed wood between the cracks. Notice how there's not much of it. That suggests it's recent.'

In actuality, Adam had no clue about how old the wood was or if how much rot could develop over six months. He knew nothing about woodworks and his eyes weren't supermewman, so he couldn't really tell. But it was a well-calculated bluff regardless.

Abel tightened a fist behind his back. Cords became visible in his throat, but they quickly disappeared.

'I don't know what you're implying, "Adam",' he said between clenched teeth. 'But I certainly do NOT appreciate being hounded. I think I'd like you to leave now. Haven't you uncovered enough?'

'No. Not yet.' Adam made brief eye contact with Michael, who was frowning deeply. He nodded slightly in the direction of the attic hatch in the ceiling a few feet away. He began making his way toward it and Michael, who had understood the hint, followed him. 'The worn wood caused by the footsteps don't stop at the stairs. They lead down the hallway. Then they stop here. Right below the attic.'

'I've never been in the attic,' Abel claimed. 'The previous owner said there was just junk in there. So, I never bothered to look.'

'You're good, I'll admit,' he said. 'I'd almost believe you…in fact, let's say I do. You wouldn't mind if we had a look?'

Abel fumbled for a second, but avoided gulping as he said, 'No. Not at all.'

'Where exactly are you going with this, Adam?' Michael asked, folding his arms. 'What does this have to do with Lily?'

'Just trust me, Michael.' He reached up with his cane to pull down the hatch to release the ladder. In the corner of his eye, he spotted a flash of surprise on Abel's face when he realised the lock on the attic door was missing. He gestured toward Michael. 'You go first. Then you, Abel. I'll go last.'

Michael seemed dubious at first to be receiving orders from him, but he seemed to understand the importance of the situation. He went up the ladder, with Abel following sheepishly up into the attic. Adam climbed up the ladder last, which unfortunately robbed him of the chance to see Michael's initial reaction to the absolute chaos that was Abel's attic.

He did hear his impassioned remark.

'Oh my Vaught!' As Adam entered the attic, he couldn't resist a smirk. Michael turned to Abel. 'What the hell happened here?'

'I dunno,' he replied, holding his hands on his head. 'The owner never mentioned this! Unbelievable.'

Adam raised an eyebrow. 'It never occurred to you to go into your own attic?'

'Well, as I said, the last owner said it was just a pile of their previous belongings, so I never bothered to go in.'

'Yes, but it is still your attic. And a man struggling for funds such as yourself, I find it hard to believe it never occurred to you to at least see if you could sell the stuff? It is, after all, legally yours.'

Abel dodged his protruding eye and shrugged. 'I…I dunno…it just felt wrong.'

'Right…so if this really isn't your doing, then you wouldn't mind lifting up that floorboard over there?'

'What floorboard?'

Adam smirked. 'I was really hoping you'd say that.' He pointed in the corner of the attic. 'The floorboard over there. Lighter than the others, and much less damaged. It's been recently replaced. Now, I'd expect you to be alarmed that someone is replacing floorboards in your attic. Unless of course, you're the one doing it.'

'Okay, this is enough!' snapped Abel. Michael stared at him. He blinked. 'Uh, I mean…I have no idea what's under there, or why it would be replaced.'

Adam smirked. 'I never said anything about something being under it.'

'No…no…you said…' he stuttered, scratching his cheek. 'You definitely said that already!'

'No, he didn't,' Michael pointed out. He turned his eye to Abel in suspicion.

'I wonder what's under here?' Adam exclaimed with sarcasm, effortlessly ripping off the floorboard with one hand. He reached in to reveal the strongbox. Upon opening, he showed it was empty. Abel breathed a sigh of relief.

'See? Empty.'

'Of course. I removed everything I found inside. Just because I wanted you to look relieved for a second before I expose you.' He took out the dart-gun. 'Electric dart-gun. Licenced. I'm sure a quick request for information will reveal it's licenced to you.'

'A gun?' Abel scoffed. 'So what if it's mine?! That doesn't prove anything!'

'Proves you're a liar,' Michael pointed out. Adam hummed.

'That's not the worst of it.' He took out the collection of photos and threw them onto the ground. 'You've been spying on the children's home. Or, more specifically, you've been spying on Lily. Making sure nobody else can have her.' Michael bent down to inspect the photos. The more he looked at, the more horrified he became. 'You see, Abel, you're obsessed. Not with Lily, but the idea of her. You've always felt like she was unrightfully taken from you, haven't you? Well…anytime your "quest" faced any difficulties, you'd lash out. Took your anger out here, so that you'd be calm enough to hide your anger issues when your psyche was evaluated.'

'It's not true!' he insisted, his complexion flushed. He turned to Abel. 'It's…it's a trap! He…he put them there, not me!'

Adam raised an eyebrow dubiously. He picked up the photo of himself and Argynos and showed it to Michael.

'Ignoring the rather ridiculous idea that I'd try to frame a man I hadn't even met yet, this photo clearly shows me and the Head Witchdoctor, Argynos, outside the children's home early in the evening. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that someone else took this photo, because it couldn't have been me. Look at the writings on the back of those ones! Clear evidence of obsession. The only person, really, who could have taken these pictures is you, Abel. Doesn't make sense for it to be anyone else, does it? You're not only a liar, but you have anger issues and some kind of obsessive disorder.'

'Yes…' Michael uttered, stepping back in shock. 'This is very concerning, Abel. Very concerning, indeed. It might be a nice bedroom, but there is absolutely no way you could be trusted with Lily with this kind of behaviour. Nor can this place be safe for Lily. I'll have to make a report about this to the authorities as soon as –'

'NO!' Abel screamed. 'I…I'll take it to court! I swear! You'll be hearing from my lawyers!'

'Or…we could take all this evidence to the police,' Adam suggested, smirking. 'You could take a nice walk with us to the station, and we could see what Apophian laws are about stalking.'

Michael nodded, stepping over to the ladder and blocking the exit. 'I agree. We can settle in this court if you like, but I really doubt you'd win the case.'

Abel stepped away from them. He began taking deep breaths and doing anger-managing exercises. Adam heard him whisper a few placating words to himself.

'Yes…yes…alright. The police station.'

Adam and Michael nodded at one another and went to escort him away.

As the two were leading Abel out of the house and toward the police station, Michael glanced over at Adam.

'Really impressive, what you did back there.'

Adam blinked. 'Thanks.'

'How'd you notice all that?' he asked. 'I didn't notice anything out of place. But you did. Almost instantly.'

'I…guess I just have a keen eye.'

Michael hummed, commenting, 'Must be the keenest eye I've ever seen.'

'I dunno,' Adam shrugged off. 'My parents…they always taught me to pay attention to every detail. Because you never know what might end up saving your life.'

The following day, whilst Adam was in the kitchen with Sylvia and Jason, he was explaining the events that had occurred the previous afternoon. As it was a Monday, it was Jason's turn to cook lunch, and Adam was doing any washing up required. It took a while to get through the story, but they seemed pretty shocked by the whole ordeal. Sylvia had looked at him like he'd grown a third head when he insisted that the basis of his suspicion began on some old paint, some yellowed newspapers, and some worn-out wooden panels.

'How did the court order go?' Jason asked him.

'It never went that far,' he said. 'The police did an investigation and ruled that the photos were taken by him within a few hours. They held him in jail for a day, then put him on a registry that would prohibit him from being within a hundred metres of Lily or the children's home. His request for reassuming custody was then retroactively denied.'

'Does Lily know yet? That Abel won't be taking her back?' Sylvia asked. Adam shook his head.

'Not yet. The police are leading an investigation into Abel. They think he might've harmed someone at some point. I figured, once he was sent to jail, I'd tell Lily…with the insurance that Abel could never harm her again.'

'You know Lily is the curious type, though,' argued Jason. 'What if she finds out on her own? In fact, she probably will. Why bother keeping it from her?'

'I don't think anyone would want to find out their father could be going to prison. But I'd think she'd want to be reassured that he could never harm her ever again.'

'But he isn't her father,' Sylvia argued. 'Not really. And she doesn't even like him. I think she'd appreciate you being more honest with her, and not treating her like she's fragile.'

'Hmm…' he muttered, considering it. 'Maybe you're right. I suppose, given the confidence I have that he'll end up in prison, there's no harm in telling her a bit earlier.' He gestured toward the main foyer through the living room. 'I'll…be right back.'

Adam made his way through the living room and into the foyer of the children's home. He sighed in dissatisfaction. The front door was wide open.

'Kids, how many times do I have to tell you? Please shut the door when you go ou–'

He stopped himself as he got halfway towards the door. The lock on the door was broken, beaten-in with frantic force. Someone had broken in. But who? And where would they be?

Then it dawned upon him.

'Lily!'

He bolted up the stairs, storming through the corridor at the crack of a whip. In that moment, the inoperability of his right leg became forgotten, as though it had been nothing more than a dream. He stormed into Lily's room, The door had been hanging open, and her bed covers were strewn about messily. She had left in a hurry, possibly by force.

Adam hurried his way back down the stairs, as best he could with a cane in hand.

'Jake! Sylvia! Michael! We've got a huge problem!' It took only a moment for all three care workers to assemble in the foyer. Michael was last, given he had been in his office at the time.

'What's going on, Adam?' Michael asked him.

'It's Lily!' he cried. 'She's missing! Abel's taken her!'

'What?!' Jason screamed. 'How did he get in and out without making a noise?'

'He must've told Lily that he had assumed custody of her,' deduced Adam. 'Enough to keep her quiet so he could get her out!'

'I should have expected this,' Michael said. 'Abel demonstrated exceedingly violent and obsessive behaviour. No wonder he took Lily.'

'Somebody's taken Lily?'

All four of them turned to see one of the kids at the top of the stairs. Michael opened his mouth to respond, but he didn't have enough time before the kid raised their voice again.

'Guys! Lily's missing!' they exclaimed up the stairs.

'Missing?'

'Where's she gone?'

'Has someone broken in?'

Within seconds, the entirety of the children swarmed in the foyer of the building, crowding around the four care-workers. Strings of voices overcame one another, like a string of badly-written music. Michael raised his hands.

'Now, now, children. Calm down!' Gradually, their voices fell to bare silence. 'I'm afraid it's true, but we are working to solve the situation. If you could return to your rooms –'

'No way!' Alex exclaimed. 'Lily's gone! We wanna know what you're doing to save her!'

Michael sighed. 'Well, I suppose there's no point in asking. You'll just eavesdrop anyway.'

'Where could Abel have taken her?' Jason asked Adam. He shrugged.

'He couldn't have gotten far. He only just took her.'

'Well, you said he was obsessive, right?' said Sylvia, prompting a nod from both Michael and Adam. 'Well, he feels like Lily was "taken" from him, and this place wasn't where she truly belonged. So wouldn't he take her to someone he thinks she belongs?'

Jason nodded. 'His house.'

'But that's not very logical, is it?' Adam argued. 'We know where he lives. He wouldn't exactly be able to keep her for long before we found him.'

'He's not thinking logically, Adam,' Michael pointed out. 'He's being driven solely by this…desire, to be in control. In control of Lily, particularly.'

Adam hummed. He could certainly relate to the desire of wanting to be in control. Star always said he was a control freak.

'I'm going after her.'

'No, you're not,' Michael shot down immediately. 'Not in your condition. You can barely walk. And you're missing an arm!'

'It doesn't matter!' he cried. 'This is my fault. If I had told Lily sooner, had gotten Abel arrested sooner, he wouldn't have been able to take her.'

'Adam, I understand you feel responsible, but you'd merely be putting Lily in more danger,' said Sylvia. 'Let someone else go instead.'

'No.' Adam was already making his way over to the door, throwing on his coat. 'If you want to come with me, you're welcome to. If you want to stop me, you're welcome to try that, too.'

Michael shook his head. 'Adam, you know the rules. A minimum of two care-workers has to be in the children's home at any one time during working hours. One of us has to call the police on Abel. Only two of us can go, and it can't be you.'

'I don't care. I'm going to save Lily no matter what.'

'Now is not the time to play hero, Adam!' Jason yelled. 'A girl's life is at stake!'

'You think I don't know that?!' he yelled back. 'I'm not playing hero. I'm just a man, trying to atone for his mistakes. This is one of them.'

'I agree,' said Michael, 'this is a mistake.'

'A mistake would be if I didn't go out there.'

Michael grimaced. 'Adam…if you go out there, you can consider yourself fired.'

Adam immediately went for the door.

'Then consider this my resignation.'

He left before Michael could say anything. He groaned out loud. After a moment, he turned to Sylvia and Jason.

'Alright. Jason, Sylvia: call the police and let them know about Abel. Hold the fort until I get back.' He glanced over at the door where Adam had left. 'He's a stubborn one…I need to make sure he doesn't hurt himself.'

With that, Michael left as well. Sylvia and Jason stared at one another for a few solid seconds before a child's ecstatic cry broke the silence.

'Hey, Alex, look out!'

Both of them looked in their direction just in time to see Tim trying to hit Alex with a walking cane. Fortunately, Alex dodged in time.

'Tim!' chided Sylvia, walking over and snatching the cane from him. 'We do not hit one another!' As she took the cane, though, she realised something. 'Wait a moment…this is…'

'Adam's walking stick,' Trilla identified. 'How…? I thought he couldn't walk without that thing?'

'His compound fracture must've healed,' Jason said, shrugging.

Sylvia looked at him dubiously. 'And he didn't notice?' She shook her head. 'Strange. Really strange.'

That morning, as the artificial dome lights illuminated the streets, two men, one Mewman, one Lacetus, bolted through the streets towards the home of Abel Mercutio Stillwater. Michael was too invested in finding Lily that he hadn't bothered to question how Adam could run perfectly unencumbered, and Adam certainly hadn't noticed it himself.

'There!'

Michael pointed ahead at the end of the street. Abel was shoving his way through the crowds with a screaming Lily on his shoulder.

'ABEL!' Adam screamed, separating the crowd with his booming voice. 'You lied to her, didn't you?! You know that your custody has been rejected!'

'Return Lily to us this instant!' Michael yelled at him.

'NO!' cried Abel, forcing his way round the street corner. 'She's MINE! Not YOURS!'

'She's not an object!' Michael yelled back, as they chased him through an alley and into a parallel street. 'Nobody owns her, Abel! She's her own person!'

'I'm her FATHER!' he insisted. STEP-father, Adam muttered to himself. 'I make the decisions! I get to decide where she lives!'

Adam nodded to the screaming Lily trapped in his arms. 'Then maybe you should ask her what she wants!'

But Abel wasn't listening. He still wasn't listening when he turned another corner and a group of police hovercars swung down and landed in front of him. Several Apophian Police Department officers stepped out with their guns immediately drawn on him.

'Abel Stillwater! Release the girl or we WILL fire!'

'No, don't shoot!' pleaded Adam. He couldn't risk Lily getting shot too. He looked over at Abel. 'Abel…be reasonable here…you can't make it out of this alive. Not unless you let her go!'

Abel backed away, until he met a brick wall. He looked between the officers, Michael and Adam, then finally, Lily, before he made his move.

Quicker than anything could have expected, he drew something. His electric dart-gun. Adam knew he should have confiscated it, even if he knew it wasn't legal for him to do it. Abel held Lily in a tight headlock and jammed the nozzle of the gun to her temple.

'Stay back!' he warned. 'Make a single move and I swear I'll shoot her!'

'Put the girl DOWN!' yelled a police officer.

'You wouldn't,' Michael gulped. Abel stared at him.

'You definitely don't want to find out!'

'Abel, think about what you're about to do,' Adam said. 'You're considering taking the life of an innocent child. That's not something you want on your conscience!'

'Neither do you,' he replied. 'So, let the two of us go, and she gets to live.'

'I DON'T WANNA GO WITH YOU!' Lily cried, desperately trying to free himself from his grip. 'I HATE YOU!'

'I am your FATHER, Lily!' cried Abel. 'You will love me whether you like it or not!'

'No!' she insisted. 'I-I'm not letting you push me over! This is me…standing up for what I believe in! I like things how they are! I-I…I JUST WANNA GO HOME!'

'I'm taking your home, honey,' Abel said. 'If these people would only leave us alone, we could be together!'

'I don't want to be with you!' cried Lily. 'YOU'RE…YOU'RE A MONSTER!'

Abel sniffed away a tear that escaped his eye. He took several terse breaths as his fingers wavered in their grip around the dart-gun. The gun lowered, for a moment, before he pressed it harder against her head again.

His finger squeezed on trigger.

'Lily!' cried Adam, raising his hand.

You know that feeling, before you drop something made of glass, when you have that moment of solidarity in the fact that there is absolutely nothing you could do prevent it shattering? Adam felt that, for a moment, before his own determination gave way into something different.

A ghostly green arrow struck the gun before it could fire, spearing it to the brick wall with pinpoint accuracy. It took Adam a solid second to realise the arrow had come from him.

'What the…?' Michael uttered.

'Magic,' said one of the police officers.

'How'd you do that?' asked another one.

Abel appeared just as shocked, but not for long.

'ARGH! FUCK!'

Lily had used the distraction to bite down on Abel's arm as hard as she could, drawing blood. Abel's grip on her loosened. Just enough for her break free. She squirmed out of his arm and scarpered away from him and towards Adam.

'Mister Butterfly!'

Her voice broke him from his reverie. He crouched down and caught her in a tight hug.

'It's okay, Lily…you're safe now…'

'PUT THE GUN DOWN! NOW!'

'Okay! Okay!' Abel cried, casting away the guns and throwing up her hands. 'I surrender.'

Adam heard the officers reading him his rights, and Michael asking Lily if she wanted some ice cream, followed by Lily asking to hug Adam for a little bit longer. However, he didn't really process much of it. He heard it, but he wasn't really listening.

Instead, his eyes remained trained on the ghostly green arrow embedded in the brick wall. A waft of green mist rose from within, like a murky, humid breath.

Magic. He just cast magic.

By the time the three of them returned to the children's home, Lily was still very much attached to him. He was carrying her in his arms. Indeed, he limped inside behind Michael, as the door swung open.

Upon their return, a wave of cheers erupted from the children. All of them had been waiting in tense silence the entire duration of the kidnapping, as were Jason and Sylvia, who were also in the foyer. All of them had no expectation that the two would even return with Lily at all, but they were wrong.

'Welcome home, Lily!' Jason exclaimed, bending down, and patting her on the head. She remained perfectly happy to be in Adam's arms. 'Are you okay now?' She nodded. Jason looked up at Adam. 'I guess I underestimated you.'

Adam shrugged slightly and set Lily down on the floor. Well, he attempted to set her down, for the moment he let go, she ran into his leg and wrapped her arms around it.

'Looks like Lily's found a new parent,' joked Sylvia, smiling. Adam smiled back sheepishly.

'She wouldn't let go,' he admitted. 'The whole way back. It certainly made walking back difficult, aside from the limp, of course.' He glanced over at Michael. 'You…weren't actually serious, about firing me, were you?'

He blinked.

'I was.' Adam gulped. 'But, well…I can't really fire you now, what with Lily practically glued to you. Would seem in poor taste.'

'That's a relief,' he said. 'It would be difficult explaining to the Primajora how I ended up getting fired from a children's home. Never looks good on the face of it. Plus, their other ideas for community service would be…difficult, considering my condition.'

'Oh, yes, that reminds me!' Sylvia exclaimed, moving over to a nearby chest of drawers and picked out something leaning on it. She handed it to him. 'Your cane. You left it behind.'

'Oh. Thank you.' He frowned to himself. 'I guess…in all that adrenaline, I didn't feel the pain. Definitely came down on the way back, no wonder it hurt like hell.'

'I'm not so sure about that,' Michael spoke up, humming in discontent. 'You ran up those stairs just fine, didn't you? That was long before the adrenaline was pumping.'

'So, what?' said one of the kids. 'Is he faking it?'

'The doctors confirmed it was definitely a compound fracture,' Jason pointed out. 'What are you thinking, Mike?'

'Well, Argynos said over the phone that your leg was fractured, but he also told us the last scans he did were weeks ago,' he explained. 'And that he didn't have a chance to do another one yet, because the machines were busy. I think…the fracture already healed. But you don't know it yet.'

'What do you mean?' inquired Adam. 'The pain in this leg says it's very real.'

'Except I don't think the pain in the leg is real. I think it's psychosomatic.'

'Psycho-so-what-now?' Trilla piped up, confused.

'It's when a mental problem can cause…physical effects,' he explained. 'Like from internal conflict, or stress.'

'So, you think I just…made it up?' said the Mewman dubiously.

'Not voluntarily.' He turned and looked Adam in straight in the eye. 'But that's not the main mystery on my mind. Since when were able to cast magic, Adam?'

'Magic?' parroted Sylvia. Adam laughed nervously.

'Well, I was the Royal Magic Ambassador. Par for the course, really.'

'Since when did Mewmans cast magic?' Jason questioned. Sylvia stared at Adam, a tinge of regret in her eyes for what she was about to divulge.

'The Butterflies can,' said Sylvia.

'Are you a Butterfly?' Alex asked him excitedly. Cordelia, one of the younger kids, merely laughed.

'Adam's not a butterfly!' she exclaimed. 'He's very clearly Mewman! He doesn't have wings!'

'No, not that kind, Cordy,' the older kid responded, rolling his eyes. 'The Butterflies are a royal family in the Butterfly Kingdom topside.'

All eyes were on Adam in an instant. Adam could feel a dozen and more pairs of eyes staring right into his soul, and he knew he couldn't keep himself hidden for much longer. He groaned.

'I should have known my secret would get out eventually. Don't know why I even tried to hide it.' He sighed. 'I'm an orphan, lost my parents when I was nine, but…when I was seventeen, I got lucky. The Butterfly Family adopted me. The Queen let me stay for a few months, before she appointed me the RMA…before eventually giving me the Butterfly name.' He could see all the surprised faces on the children, and he had hoped the time he spent imagining their reactions would have helped. It didn't. 'So…yes, technically, I am royalty. Not so much a prince, more like a ward. But I don't want to be treated like one! That's why I didn't tell anyone. I might legally be royalty, but I've spent most of my life not being royalty. That's how I prefer it, honestly.'

'So…if you're an adopted Butterfly, how is it that you can cast magic?' pressed Michael, folding his arms.

'That's unrelated,' he replied, abashedly scratching his scalp. 'It's not because I'm a Butterfly. I got my magic well before I even met them.' Adam bit his lip. 'Look, i-it's…it's a long a story. If I told you, you'd just think I'm crazy.'

'Just tell us.'

'Yeah, Michael, I'm telling you…you wouldn't believe a word of it!'

'Well, we won't know unless you actually tell us!' protested Jason.

Adam shuffled over to the nearby chest of drawers and rested on it, digging his cane into the carpet on the floor. He managed to pry Lily off him long enough to give his explanation.

'You all want answers? Fine,' he said, taking a deep breath. 'I'm from a parallel multiverse where the Butterfly Family are evil plunderers in a massive interdimensional empire, and my adoptive parents were killed for being part of the Monster race, so I went on the run and found a fragment of Star Butterfly's wand and it gave me magic upon touching it. I went on an obsessive quest for revenge against them, but I ended up accidentally trapping myself in this multiverse and I tried to take out the good Butterflies by mistake, so I worked with them for just under a year to make it back home, but as a result, I started a war between our two multiverses. When I finally got my chance for revenge, I let my anger control me and I got myself killed and Argynos and his healers brought me back to life so in exchange for the debt I was sent to work here for community service.' He coughed vigorously the second he finished, gulping for air. 'I really shouldn't have tried saying that in one breath.' He coughed a few times more. 'Anyway, I lost my magic to an evil version of my adoptive sister, Star. She cast a spell on me that caused me to lose my arm. I only survived because of Argynos and his healers.'

He looked up at the group of people, who all stared back at him with intrepid incredulity.

'Any questions?'

Everyone else besides Lily raised a hand. Adam smirked a little and glanced down at his palm. He had a question of his own. He'd barely been able to process the fact that he just cast a spell. His magic…it wasn't gone! Not entirely, at least!

Adam nearly laughed at the bewilderment of the fact. It shouldn't have been possible, but it was. Being able to run perfectly fine with a compound fracture in his leg also shouldn't have been possible. His unwitting and wholly reluctant stay in Apophis was just full of surprises.

Pleased, Adam bent down next to Lily and whispered in her ear, 'You know, you were right. Lone wolves should find homes.'

So, Adam's magic is back! Kinda.

It was never really gone. Ever since he Dipped Down in Episode 9/Chapter 20 (of Volume I), he gained access to a higher level of magic that went beyond his original transformation. Think of it like this: his arm was like his wand, and Dipping Down allows you to cast magic without a wand. Hence, he kept his magic despite the Whispering Spell erasing his metamorphosis. It might seem a little cliché, I suppose, but he needed a rush of adrenaline and a moment of crisis to really bring it out.

But this does not, by any means, mean Adam is back to full strength. Aside from the fact his arm's missing, he could only produce one arrow of Spectral Aim. All he's done is realised he still has magic (which was hinted towards at the end of the previous chapter), but the Whispering Spell still severely weakened him. Adam's of course going to be looking into this and trying to figure out how he could possibly restore himself. That will be the focus of the next episode, which will conclude the main Apophis arc.

Yes, that does mean Adam will go home soon! In about 3 chapters' time (including this one).

I hope people aren't bored by this part of the story because it consists almost entirely of original characters and content. This world of Apophis was something I wanted to expand upon. It's entirely my brainchild, really, and I'm quite proud of it. The minor conflict with Abel and Lily was intended to be a backdrop for Adam's character development, as his conversations with both of them reveal a bit about his psyche and how he's feeling. Hell, the title of the chapter tells you that too, "Lone Wolves Should Find Homes". A lesson Adam needs to learn, since being a lone wolf is something he's very well-accustomed to, even despite spending almost a full year with Star and friends.

Speaking of Star and friends, how's about that scene at the beginning? That originally wasn't going to happen, but I added it after some redrafts. For some reason I never considered until recently to focus on how the other characters are dealing with the fallout from Adam's death. It's not the main focus, because Adam's the main character (although Star is co-protagonist, hence why she gets such a long scene and Eclipsa did not). I think it encapsulates well enough how Star and Marco are handling the presumed death of Adam. Star wouldn't want to believe that he's dead, and Marco is more down-to-earth about it. Star wants to think of him as a hero as she's in denial about the fact that Adam's own hubris caused his death. Marco just feels depressed and a little angry about the whole ordeal. And Star wants revenge, which becomes important later.

There's one more of these scenes coming up: this one will focus on Moon and the MHC and shine more light on the brief Eclipsa scene from a couple chapters ago. Hint: more Owl House references!

The investigative scene was a callback, all the way back to Chapter 10/11 (of Volume I) where Adam was being a detective and trying to figure out where Star's spells went. Well, his keen eye and deductive mind are seen again here, but I put some explicit limits on it, so he didn't go full Sherlock Holmes. He completely made up the "evidence" about wood-rot, because why would he have a clue about how that works? He's a smart guy, but let's be reasonable here.

Obviously, since his thought tracks are followed throughout the whole scene, it's clearer where his reasoning comes from with certain things. Abel hid the stuff reasonably well, if you think about it. He can easily claim not to have the key for the lock to the attic, and Adam couldn't get in there without busting it open. He of course did, but if he had done it in front of Abel, he would have gotten in trouble for property damage. Hence he had to do it by making up an excuse and pretending the capertaz gave him indigestion. Abel never suspected Adam would bust open the lock; he doesn't know who Adam is or what's he's capable of. As far as he knows, he's just some new employee. And Adam hid his suspicion reasonably well.

Basically, I didn't want to make Adam seem too smart. That was my only concern. Anyways, I think I've rambled on for long enough. Thank you all for reading the chapter, I hoped you enjoyed it! And as always, I appreciate all the support I've received with this story so far! It's really ramping up now.

The next chapter will be called, "Oasis in the Heart", and the chapter after that (which concludes the next episode) will be called "An Octarine Twilight". Exciting, eh? See you then!