I even found an unlabeled cleaning solution and distributed it across the bathroom floor after letting the towels disappear.
Then I conjured up the mop, and Henry helped by just putting his weight on , steadying my balance or sothing—in other words, he didn’t help at all.
"Want a mop since you caused all this chaos?"
"Sure. Can I stay like this while cleaning up?" he asked, his hands exploring under my shirt.
I sighed.
"You are awfully comfortable in your role as a helpless puppy, aren’t you?"
"Mhm, I can’t tell you how wonderful this is." He laughed joyfully before letting go and taking the mop from my hands.
I conjured up another, and with water and this ominous cleaning solution, we ended up in a sea of bubbles and foam to tackle next.
"Fuck. Can you acidify the foam?" I asked before noticing myself how damn lazy I had beco with our, but mostly Henry’s, ability.
"Forget what I just said." I conjured another towel hill up and distributed them before grabbing Henry’s wrist and dragging him out of there, vowing never to co back—this ti for real.
"I could have done it," he shrugged.
"No. Nobody is permitted to use their powers for bubbles; what the hell is wrong with ?" I uttered, and as I stepped out of the room, I followed into the kitchen, slling a tantalizing feast.
"How are you?" I turned back before we entered the kitchen.
"Perfectly alright, ready to acidify whatever you desire."
"No. Just acidify what—" I stopped.
Can’t tell a psychopathic puppy he can acidify everything HE wants.
"Alright." I nodded while hearing him laugh.
"And you?" he asked, turning serious.
"Alright as well." I grinned and dragged him into the kitchen, where I saw the table full of at, vegetables, and sweets.
Emma stood in front of the stove, putting a mouthwatering pot of lted chocolate on the stovetop to keep it warm.
I am not so much of a sweets guy, definitely not as much as the puppy—but hell, it feels like forever since I ate, and that included an even longer ti with a bunch of sweets.
"Thank you for your service," I genuinely thanked Emma, and when I swallowed audibly upon seeing the chocolate, I already had Henry’s hands covering my eyes, leading blindly to the bench, growling a "thank you" in her direction as well.
When Henry took his hand away, I found the child sitting beside , beaming at with his plate already filled, and in front of us was Ethan, who had also started eating already.
"Where are the others?" I asked him.
"It’s not ti to eat for the staff sergeant and Mrs. Howard," Ethan explained.
"Oh. Because they are old." I nodded. It should be around noon now, so maybe they have to eat at specific tis to take their ds or sothing.
I chuckled, seeing Ethan giving a reproachful look.
"No, they ate not long ago; nobody knew when you would wake up... And the only reason we are eating with you is that the kid has to eat as much as possible; anwhile, at is also okay..." He stopped for a mont before breaking into a charming smile.
"And I can’t resist Miss Emma’s food and can always make room for more." He continued to eat.
The brown-haired girl smiled from the door, bowing slightly, before leaving us alone to eat.
"Yes, it’s really good, especially the broccoli." I turned to the kid to not put Ethan on the spot.
The lost look he had for a mont hinted at sothing else, sothing deeper that could have to do with the months’ worth of ti he had been stuck inside the hellhole of the Deer-Monster world, where food was a luxury.
I really hope that guy hasn’t developed an eating disorder or sothing.
Ren grimaced, and I patted his head, hearing Ethan laugh before I again addressed him.
"Did you hear when I introduced the kid’s na? He is called Ren."
Ethan halted, this ti while smiling, and reached inside his suit jacket.
"Oh, I am aware. Henry did tell that you announced his na during my presence; I just apparently hadn’t heard it. But more importantly, I have received a professional business card already." He eventually pulled out a little folded paper.
He also unfolded it to show , though he didn’t hand it over, as if he were scared that I might snatch it from him.
On the paper were the hesitant and shaky letters I had already seen from the kid, clearly displaying his na, ’Ren.’ Under it was a stickman picture of a child.
I grinned; even I, who didn’t have a good relationship with stickn because they looked very similar to hangn, found it cute.
I turned to the kid.
"Where did you print these cards? I want so as well."
The kid laughed quietly, covering his mouth as if he was holding himself back from bursting.
"Oh, and why didn’t I get one?" I pointed with the fork at myself, seeing the kid reaching into his sleeve like a magician and taking out a similarly folded little paper.
"Thank you very much." I put my fork down to receive the business card and unfolded it.
Very similar, and very cute as well.
I showed it to Ethan, pointing at the hair my stickman had, contrary to his.
Our attorney feigned tranquility, but I could see his envy. HA!
"And Henry?" I asked.
"I have mine already." He continued to eat.
"When did you get it?"
"He snatched my first one away yesterday, directly after finally waking up," Ethan said grudgingly.
Ah. So because of that, the paranoia.
"I wanted to give it to Kenny since he ca up with Ren’s na, but now that he has his own, I will keep mine... now we have matching cards." Henry looked at as if we had gotten partner suits or sothing while happily admitting to his cri.
Mhm, it wasn’t the first ti he had snatched soone else’s property.
I laughed before I turned to him.
"Oh, you woke up yesterday?" What about the one week he had to guard the ungrateful that dared to leave him alone?
"It was an awfully long twenty-four hours; it felt like... a year." He instantly understood what I was getting at and looked at with puppy eyes, directly adding a reminder of the one-year-long absence he really had to go through.
"Mhm..." It worked perfectly on , so who the fuck am I to critique? I let it go.
"Did you get any info about my cellmate?" I asked Ethan.
He put his cutlery away and patted his mouth with a napkin.
"Your cellmate’s na is Charls Chadwell, nicknad Chacha."
Chacha... thinking back to his jiggling, wobbly cheeks and body, I found it absolutely matching. Much better than ’shitting buddy.’
"He disappeared one year after the earthquake in the south district."
Henry leaned back.
"A year after we entered the hole?"
"Yes. Not only did Mr. Chadwell disappear; other prisoners did so as well. Although the situation inside the city is still chaotic, I have reached a contact who looked into it."
How resourceful.
"So was there so other phenonon, like the hole in the south district asking to send prisoners there?" I snorted.
I don’t know what I had expected; that they only sent our group out? That the other prisoners were safe?
Why the fuck should they even stay safe? They are goddamn prisoners!
I don’t care if the imaginary child molester I never killed got sucked up in so portal, but I do care if said child molester managed to level up because he got the opportunity to et his counterpart.
And the fucking most I care about is if they sent innocent people in who shouldn’t have been inside prison in the first place, like Chacha.
God, I really like that nickna.
I an, Teddy was in too for a cri he hadn’t committed.
Wait... with , there were three people in there who were innocent?! What were the chances that everyone else was guilty, and I only t innocent people???
Is in that fucking prison even soone guilty??
Oh, the baldies were most certainly.
And Chacha had been bribed to be my prison mate, especially because of his even temperant and innocence.
I had leaned back as well, closing my eyes in annoyance when I felt Henry’s fingers stroking over my brows.
"Don’t frown," he said with a sad puppy look, making laugh at his cuteness.
Ethan shivered and hugged himself as discreetly as possible before finally answering.
"I didn’t find anything about their whereabouts."
I sighed.
"What happened to the hole in the south district? The portal did close by itself, didn’t it?" I had never asked about that, but now I was curious.
Ethan stared at the food on the table while speaking.
"I had been there two years ago just to make sure. The hole is still there; it’s just that, from what I heard from the reports, not long after your group of prisoners had entered, the portal closed itself. It was still a hole, just with a visible bottom, and now..." He stopped.
"Now that nobody wants to live in that place... and given that this was before the rats appeared, and there was ti and money..."
"Out with it," I continued to eat, curious about what got him so worked up.
"They made an artificial lake out of it. With boats and a small shaded island in the middle—this I saw for myself." He took his glasses off again to rub the bridge of his nose for a few silent monts.
"..."
Well...
I an, I am not a fan of lakes for apparent reasons, though one thing is clear: ’water’ is sothing you can use to fill a hole with.
"Is soone riding these boats?" Henry asked, repelled.
"No. And when I was there, there was still the safety barrier around the lake, including the walls they put up. Just that they didn’t limit the access to the citizens, who nevertheless treated it like the cursed spot it was."
"Want to ride a boat soti?" I asked Henry with a chuckle and saw his ears perk up again, his imaginary tail wagging.
"Just us two?" he asked with much more enthusiasm than I had expected.
Ethan cleared his throat uncomfortably while the kid grabbed my sleeve as if he wanted to co with us.
"Don’t worry. We will not go to any cursed lakes; we will go see the ocean soday, got it?"
Need to keep the kid away from dangerous waters.
Ren nodded as enthusiastically as Henry was being awfully silent.
No jealous growl, just acceptance?
I proudly petted Henry’s head before taking his hand under the table because he had to be strong now. I just rembered an issue that would also lighten up the atmosphere more than bad or cringy news would, for at least everyone other than Henry.
"By the way, there is sothing missing on the business cards the kid commissioned these talented craftsn to print."
Ethan raised his eyebrows while the beaming kid looked at curiously.
"His last na: Howard."
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