Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

 Yakko sighed for the hundredth time today. He was sitting on his throne, the crown on his head and he was wearing his fancy cape with his favorite slacks. He was listening to his royal advisor (kind of) and well, he was so bored . 

 The boy's feet wouldn't stop shaking, he wanted to leave the room already. But he had to stay, stuck in this throne room. He was the King of Warnerstock, and as his duty, he had to listen to this toon talk and talk and talk-

 He hardly stopped himself from sighing again. Normally, Yakko would be able to handle listening to long talks. He especially didn't mind if it was about something important, even if it was boring. Like his duty now. Brain, as the prime minister and most trusted advisor, was informing him about the recent events that happened in the Kingdom. At least this was what he guessed the mouse was talking about. Yakko wasn't able to listen to him properly even for ten minutes. Today he couldn’t focus on anything, really. His mind was too hazy… or it was simply too full of thoughts. He couldn’t tell. 

 He wondered if his dad also had gotten bored with such duties. From what he could remember, Dad was always cheerful and energetic. From what he heard, King William the Good was a great King, listening to everyone’s problems and solving them quickly. He also had heard he ruled together with the Queen- Yakko’s mom. He wondered if they ruled together because Dad would also get bored alone. Or did Dad and Mom enjoy the whole ruling thing? Maybe both…

 Honestly, what Yakko actually wondered was if his dad also had felt that burden in his chest.

 In the last year, many things had changed. His life, his past, himself... And not only that, now he had a lot of things to do and think about too. Yes, it was true that before becoming a King, Yakko also had a lot in his mind. He had to take care of his sibs, try to survive the winter years after the orphanage had closed, try to protect himself and his sibs from any possible harm- including the few sad memories and the new dangers around them. But now, he didn't only have to take care of Wakko and Dot, but the entire Kingdom too. And he had many responsibilities and duties, and many lessons to take to learn about being a proper King. Even though he had been seeing those lessons that he should’ve taken as a kid for a long time now, he still felt like he had learned nothing. Of course, this was not true, but he couldn't help himself feeling that way.

 Yakko once again sighed under his breath, blinking and trying to get away from the thoughts that had been bothering him for months now. He shifted on his throne and began listening to the mouse- or at least tried to. It didn't take him long to lose his focus again and drift back to his thoughts. Yakko now was thinking if his sibs were having fun with their visit to Acme Falls, and how much he wished he could have joined them. But he had to stay and take care of his duties. It was alright, they could visit Acme Falls together next time. He couldn't have duties preventing him from visiting the place he grew up in, for forever, right?

  …Right ?

 He shook his head, he didn't want to think more about the possibility. Instead, he tried to think about the possible ways Wakko and Dot drove Scratchy crazy. They loved to annoy the guy, just like how much they loved him. Even though he was still living in Acme Falls and doing his job as a Doc while getting richer thanks to his Scratchy Cola , they still saw each other occasionally. Yakko smiled, he had missed messing up with him. He had missed a lot of things, and all of the folk at the Falls. He hoped he would be able to spend some time with them, more than a simple dinner or something like that, someday.

 Yakko kept thinking about that idea. How nice it would be to have some fun at the castle with his friends... Until he heard a line that caught his attention-

 "...a fire in the town yesterday." Brain said.

 "A fire?" Yakko repeated, his fur bristling as he straightened up. Fire. He hated fire. It made him afraid, made him feel trapped, and reminded him of the worst memory he tried to bury deep.

 "Yes, Your Majesty, a fire. A house in the outskirts of the town got burned down. The owner of the house said..." Brain began explaining, but Yakko didn't want to hear anything else. Not when he could hear the screams in his head, and when the worry he had felt that night returned. He closed his eyes and tried to calm himself down. There was no fire around him. No soldiers attacking. He wasn't in that house. He was safe, in the castle now he called home. Everything was alright.

 He opened his eyes and noticed how he had clawed the throne without noticing. He sighed again, but this time because of his stupidity. How silly of him was to get so nervous over a word. Especially now, how silly it was of a King to act like that just after hearing a simple word . And still, he couldn't slow down his heartbeat. And he wanted to get out of that room, get away from all those walls around him, run to somewhere safe-

  This place is safe, stop being stupid. Yakko thought to himself. Then turned back to the mouse in front of him and tried to stop his thoughts. Instead of thinking about them, he watched him talk. Yakko guessed he hadn't noticed his panic. Brain probably couldn’t see him with how big the paper he was holding was in comparison with him. And he was still talking, who knows about what now. Seriously, for how long was he talking? Probably for at least three hours. Soon it would probably get dark. Yakko looked at the window, orange had colored the view. Just like how orange light had painted the halls that night, along with the gray smoke… Yakko felt his heartbeat racing faster, he couldn't think of that now. Not now.

 He turned his head away again, trying to find any possible distraction. Or else he would lose it, and it was definitely something that couldn't happen. His eyes searched the room, looking at the enormous tree waiting to be decorated for Christmas, then to the carpet and then to the walls and then to the ceiling trying to find any interesting details.

 And he did find a detail. Except it made it all worse.

 If he didn't feel like he was about to pass out before, now he definitely did.

 The dark gray color on the ceiling, which could be seen even under the paint (possibly because of how poorly and hastily it was done) only could mean one thing. And he knew what it was. He had seen that before.

 Then he started looking around more carefully, finding more small marks left from a fire.

 And suddenly, it all clicked. He gasped, realizing what it all meant.

 He trembled.

  This place... it couldn't be...

 He couldn't stay here anymore. He had to get out.

 Without saying any words, he got up and ran to the doors. He heard confused calls of his name. But he didn't care. He had to get out of here. He ran to the corridors, away from the throne room. But the more he ran, the more he understood. The more he realized. The more he remembered.

 It was all clear. His home that had burned down, it was this castle. And no matter how hard the people had tried to erase any damage left from that fire, Yakko still could see every little thing. Every little trace just making his memory more visible than ever before. As his eyes burned and his vision got blurry and he felt his chest tighten, he could see the red . He could hear the screams, he could smell the smoke, he could feel the heat and he could hear her scream-

 Yakko shut his eyes tightly, he let his legs lead him to whatever place he was running to. He wanted to scream so bad. To shout her name, but he couldn't. There was no way to reach her. There was no way to save her. He felt his heart pounding. He felt out of breath. He felt sick, he felt angry, he felt afraid- He just wanted them with him!

 He didn't know where he was going, just like that night- except this time he was alone. And he couldn't really see or understand anything around himself. He was too lost in his memory, a little boy's nightmare. And this nightmare had become so real, so painful. He just couldn't take it anymore. He didn't want to see the blood on the ground and didn't want to hear her last sound that broke him apart. He wished to get away from all of that. Even for a second, he wanted to forget it all.

 He opened his eyes and saw he was on a dead end. He stopped abruptly and fell on his knees. He gasped for air, breathing felt so hard as if he was drowning. And the sobs that kept coming didn't help either. Yakko just wanted to disappear from existence, because now it all felt so unbearable. Everything hurt so much. And even though he wanted to scream and shout, between the sobs, all that did come out from his mouth was a whisper: "Mom... Dad..."

 And with those words leaving his mouth, he felt so weak. He raised his head, opened his eyes. He felt like if he did so, he would see them fine and alright and they would come and hug him. Tell him everything was alright. But he didn't see them alive and well, his eyes only met with a portrait of them on the wall. It was enough to break his heart again. All the anger and panic in his head left its place to quiet. He closed his eyes again and just sobbed and sobbed on the ground. The true memories that haunted him left their place to the memory of the warm embrace of his mom and dad. The lullaby his mother would sing on his ears, and the warmest of the hugs his dad gave him felt so close. The longing hurt him, but he felt... safe.

  He didn't know how long it took him to calm down. To stop crying and be able to breathe with ease again- with as much ease as he could with a stuffy nose anyway. He didn't move from his spot for a while too, he didn't want to do anything right now. He felt incredibly tired.

 "Yakko?.."

 He heard the familiar voice call to him softly and turned his head to see Dot and Wakko standing at the door. He hadn't heard them, he also was surprised to see them so soon. They were not wearing their winter clothes, which meant they had returned a while ago, enough to change their clothes. Dot was wearing her pink shawl and a pink dress, while Wakko was wearing his usual blue sweater and red baseball cap. 

 "Hey sibs... you're back early." He said, trying to sound as casual as he could. With how hoarse his voice was, it most possibly didn't work.

 "What do you mean? We're not early." Dot said as she approached him, she was looking at him carefully.

 "Oh." Yakko could only say. He must've been here longer than he thought.

 "Yakko, are you alright?" Wakko asked once he stood next to him. Dot was by his side, also eyeing him with concern.

 Yakko felt terrible seeing them like that. As guilt took place in his heart, Yakko shrugged it off with a fake smile. "I have never been better in my life."

 "Yeah, and I am a fish." Wakko glared at him.

 "You look like crap." Dot pointed out. "You can't trick us. But you can tell us what's bothering you."

 "Who said something's bothering me?” Yakko raised a brow. “Also I don't look like crap, thank you very much." 

 He met with glares again.

 "Okay, okay... it's just..." Yakko looked at their eyes. He wanted to talk about everything that hurt so much right now, that was true. But he also couldn't hurt them. They already had gone through a lot, they didn't need to know about the fire and their mom's death. Not in detail at least. "It's just that today was a little stressful. But it's okay now, really."

 Wakko and Dot glanced at each other. Yakko was afraid they would keep asking him what was wrong, but they did not. Instead, they pulled him into a hug. Yakko got startled for a second but quickly hugged them back. He was grateful, this was exactly what he needed.

 "It's fine. We’re here now." He heard Dot say softly.

 "And we'll be here whenever you need." Wakko added.

 Yakko felt the warmth of his happiness returning. He was so lucky to have them. "Thanks, sibs."

 It took them a while to break the hug. Wakko and Dot smiled at Yakko, and he returned that smile to them. Then he got up, he also noticed how numb his feet had become from sitting for so long. By the way... how long had he been here? He also realized he had no idea where he was. Yakko looked around. He was in a dark room, a little light entering from the doors that were left half-open. The big windows were covered with curtains. And he could tell under the dust clothes were various pieces of furniture. And lastly, he once again was met with the portrait of his parents.

  Wakko and Dot were also looking at the portrait. "I'm so glad there are portraits of them." Wakko said.

 "Yeah, I am glad too." Dot agreed.

 Yakko frowned. He knew his sibs hardly remembered their parents. Oh, how much he wished they could remember the kind smile of their dad and the calming voice of their mom. How much he wished he could remember more about them too. He put a hand on each sib's shoulder, "I agree. Good thing the artist did a good job too." he said.

 Dot turned to Yakko, "Another accurate portrayal?" she asked. Since they had started living in the castle, they had found many portraits hidden or forgotten in unused rooms. Yakko found most of them pretty accurate. Wakko only noticed the inaccuracies a few times. And Dot… she hardly could remember her parents to make any comments about them.

 “Yep. They look younger than I remember, though.” Yakko said. There was no gray on Dad’s fur.

 Wakko looked thoughtfully at the portrait, “They look so happy.”

 “Yeah…” Yakko noticed how this conversation needed to lighten up. “By the way, does anyone know what room is this?”

 “I thought you knew. You are the one who was hiding here.” Dot said.

 Yakko looked at her confused. “I wasn’t hiding?”

 “Then why after you ran out nobody was able to find you?” She questioned.

 “Apparently they didn’t look properly. Also, I didn’t run away either.” Yakko crossed his arms.

 “I don’t think Brain is a liar.” 

 “Well, he must have understood wrong. Anyways, let’s go back to the main subject.” Yakko started walking around the room. “This place looks familiar, but I don’t remember it at all.”

 He saw Wakko walking towards the portrait, “I remember this.”

 Dot was silent. Yakko guessed she once again had nothing to say about remembering stuff. He didn’t say anything either. Instead, he looked behind the curtains, behind dusted windows he could see the dark sky. That meant for at least one hour he had been here. He sighed and kept walking. As he was about to finish touring the room, he heard Dot ask Wakko what he was doing. Turning around, Yakko saw him taking the portrait off the wall and putting it down. Yakko noticed the hole on the wall- as if it was a small pathway leading to somewhere else. Wakko wagged his tail as he looked at it.

 Yakko looked at him, “You knew this was here?”

 “No, but I remembered there was something behind the portrait.” He answered.

 “What is this?” Dot asked. “A secret way to somewhere else?”

 Yakko looked back at the hidden hole on the wall. It was high enough for a little kid to jump and climb in… It looked like it was… “ The hiding spot .”

 “Huh?” 

 “This was the place for in case needed, Mom and Dad had told us to hide. They had shown me how to replace the portrait too.” Yakko talked, excited. Yes, he remembered that! “A tiny jump and a little toon power” -he grabbed the portrait and threw it in the air, quickly grabbed his sibs, and jumped in the hole. Right after he was in the entrance was blocked with the portrait- “and voila! We’re safe!”

 “And where does it lead to?” Dot looked behind them.

 “Uhhh, throne room I think.” 

 “I had forgotten about that.” Wakko murmured. 

 “You were young.” Yakko said.

 Dot looked at Yakko, her expression a little sad. “Yakko, did we… did we hide here when that night happened?”

 Yakko frowned, he knew how sensitive his sibs were about that topic- just like him. And after this morning, Yakko had hoped he would never have to remember that night again. Not to even mention it. But he would never deny any answers about their past to his sibs. 

 “No, we were not. I remember we were with Mom in her room before… well, you know.” He answered. “The other secret getaway path, we had used that.”

 Dot nodded silently. Yakko then noticed Wakko's quiet sigh. Yeah, it was time to lighten up the mood. He pushed the portrait and jumped out, gesturing to them to join him. "Come on, we have something else to do."

 "What's it?" Dot asked as she followed him. Wakko jumped down after her.

 "Don't tell me you have forgotten it!" Yakko gasped, mockingly offended.

 "Come on Yakko, what is it?" Dot asked again, annoyed. Wakko had raised a brow, his tongue sticking out.

 "Tsk, can't believe you forgot such an important thing. What a shame." Yakko shook his head. 

 "What is it? Your birthday? Pie day? Annoy Scratchy to the point he loses all his nonexistent hair day?" Dot guessed, frustrated. 

 "Don't we celebrate the last one every day we see him?" Wakko questioned.

 "Oh yeah, you're right."

 "No to all of them." Yakko sang. "The answer is… Christmas! It's close and we got a tree to decorate!"

 The two younger siblings gasped with excitement. Yakko smiled widely. 

 "Did you see the tree in the throne room-" Before Yakko could finish his sentence, the two started racing to the throne room. They shouted to Yakko that the last one to arrive would be a rotten turkey egg. Yakko giggled slightly and ran slowly after them, but once they were out of his sight he stopped and looked behind. He looked at his dad- the kind man he knew for a shorter time than his mom due to illness taking him away from their lives- and to his mom -the woman that had sacrificed herself for her family. He felt anger and sadness again, for how cruel and unfair life had been for them. They were incredible parents- people. And now all Yakko could hope he could be as good as them one day. 

 He turned back and started running, he had a tree to decorate and sibs to catch.

 It didn’t take them long to arrive at the throne room. Yakko tried to ignore the marks around the room and kept looking only and only at the big tree. It was waiting for the three children to decorate it with various Christmas ornaments and toys, just like… 

 Just like back in their childhood… 

 Yakko smiled sadly, remembering the warm memories of him and his family decorating a tree exactly the same in the exact same room. His mom held his baby sister, and his dad was helping him and Wakko to put glass ornaments on higher spots. Then Wakko, who was so small, had eaten a box full of sparkly ornaments. Then they laughed when he had burped sparkles . He was covered with them and sparkled like an ornament. It had gotten even funnier as every time he burped, sparkles got out of his mouth for days. 

 Yakko turned at Wakko, with a smile reaching his ears. "Do you remember the Christmas you spent your week covered in sparkles?" 

 Wakko nodded, then he made a grumpy face and crossed his arms. "I do, Mom had made me take a bath every time I had gotten covered with them." 

 Yakko snickered. Everyone knew Wakko wasn't a big fan of baths. 

 Dot looked confused at them, "Is that the time Wakko looked like an ornament?"

 "You remember that?" Wakko asked, surprised.

 "Only the laughing and you sparkling like the morning sun, Sir Sparklebutt ." She shrugged, smiling. "Not much, but I know the story. Yakko told me."

 "Oh." Wakko then noticed the box with ornaments in it. He grinned, "Do you think sparkles would suit me now?" 

 "You want to get daily baths again?" Yakko questioned.

 Wakko seemed to consider it. Then he shrugged and took the box.

 Dot took it from his hand, "Hey, no eating ornaments! Especially not these!" She scolded him. 

 "Why?" Wakko asked genuinely.

 "Because they're the ornaments from our childhood." She explained. "One of the maids- Steph- found it along with the other stuff in the storage room ." 

 "I am pretty sure it's not called that, Dot." Yakko smiled smugly as his sister rolled her eyes.

 "I'm the Princess, I call it whatever I want." She said. 

 "May I remind you I am the King , Princess of Warnerstock?" Yakko pointed at his crown. " I can give it whatever name I want too. And change whatever name you call it as well."

 "You seek war, King of Warnerstock." Dot laughed, "I warn you." 

 Wakko sat behind them, eating some ornaments (that were not from their childhood) like popcorn, and started watching them.

 Yakko grinned, "The only wars I seek are the ones I'll win. Bring it on, sister dear of mine." 

 "If you insist!" Dot put the box down not so gently and grabbed a toy bow, then jumped on Yakko. The two started fighting, and laughter filled the room. They used some unimportant Christmas ornaments and toys as weapons too, instead of mallets. Wakko decided it looked fun and ate what was left of his snack in one bite and jumped in the fight cloud. 

 After laughing, making a mess, and destroying half of the ornaments and toys, Yakko, Wakko and Dot lay on the ground. They ended their fight because they got bored and wanted to make 'snow angels' with broken ornaments. 

 The casual, normal chaos always made Yakko feel better. It was as if he wasn't anyone important. Just a boy who did silly zany things. 

 He missed spending his days like that boy.

  Whatever , he thought. It's not like I can be that boy again .

 So he sat up and looked around. Noticing how many decorations they had destroyed, he turned to his sibs, "Good thing we are rich now." 

 "Yeah, we can buy as many ornaments as we want!" Dot grinned. "And decorate the tree perfectly cutely!"

 "We're not decorating the tree with your sparkly pink ornaments." Yakko said.

 "Oh yes, we are!" Dot got a box out of her hammerspace. "Look at them! How can you not decorate the tree with them?" 

 "Uuuhhh I don't know…" Yakko looked at the eye-catching pink glass ornaments. "What ya say, Wak? Should we decorate the tree with them?"

 "Only if I can eat them." Wakko said, reaching to the box.

 "No way!" Dot pulled the box away.

 "Then it's decided." Yakko shrugged.

 Dot groaned, "Fine, you can eat them but only after Christmas." 

 Wakko shook her hand, "Deal!"

 "Alright then, let's start getting this tree to look tree times better looking than now." Yakko smirked at the annoyed groans coming from his sibs. 

 Then they started decorating. Dot put her pink sparkly ornaments, Wakko put random new ornaments and ate the other half, and Yakko put the few they had kept from the time they were homeless. They would find a tree near the building that was once an orphanage and decorate it with those ornaments. And it would always end up looking good. 

 As they decorated, they were jumping and running around the tree. Sometimes climbing too. It was fun.

 And then the only ornaments left were the ones their parents had kept in the " storage room ". None of them had dared to decorate the tree with them. 

 They were too precious to them. A part of their childhood, of the few memories. Something that felt so fragile. Yakko was afraid if they touched them, they would break and disappear. 

 He knew this couldn't happen though. So he walked to the box and took one of the ornaments carefully, and then slowly with more care placed it on a branch. Quietly his sibs joined him. They didn't say a word. Yakko didn't know if it was the same for them, but each ornament made him remember something small. A joke or laugh or something his parents said or just them . And he wanted to remember every little detail, and keep them as safe as possible.

 It took them a while. But the tree was finally fully decorated. Now it looked like a Christmas tree. And Yakko smiled proudly at their job, he could see Wakko and Dot smile proudly as well.

 All that was left now was to place the star. 

 He turned to them, "I think it needs one more thing." He said, just like how he always did.

 Just like how his dad always did.

 "Oh, I know it! A star!" Wakko exclaimed. He took it out of his hammerspace.

 "Of course!" Yakko gasped and facepalmed. Then he took the star from Wakko, "And now… we need someone incredibly cute that everyone loves to place the star to the highest point. And who would that be?" He looked around as if searching for someone.

 Dot raised her hand, "Me! I'm the cutest of them all!"

 "Oh you, yes you are! May you place the star to the place it belongs?" Yakko asked.

 She smiled, "I can't turn back such a request." She took the star from his hand.

 Then Wakko climbed on Yakko's back, and Dot climbed on Wakko's back. She still didn't reach the top of the tree, so Yakko jumped high and Dot put the star in its place. 

 Dot jumped down from Wakko's back and Wakko jumped down from Yakko's back. The three looked at the enormous tree.

 Looking at it made Yakko feel at home. 

 He felt home, after so many years he truly felt home. Even for a second, he did.

 And still, the longing was there too. It haunted him in the castle. Even if he felt like he was home, he wouldn't get rid of that feeling. Yakko had accepted he had to live with that, with this grief of his that no one seemed to realize how much it hurt.

 "It looks beautiful." Dot declared with a bright smile on her face. 

 "Friends will love it too!" Wakko said

 "Oh right," Yakko remembered. "Is everyone from Acme Falls joining us for the Christmas dinner and celebration?"

 "Yeah, we told everyone!" Dot answered. "Everyone was excited about it too."

 "Good. Cannot wait to see them again." Yakko didn't notice his tail wagging happily. "What to do now..?"

 "I think we should reward ourselves with a visit to the kitchen." Wakko suggested.

 "It sounds good to me!" Yakko said as he led the way to the kitchen. 

 He couldn't wait to see the people he grew up with together again after so long. Christmas couldn't come faster. 

 Yakko got up, his mind was still hazy. He could hear his sibs snoring softly. A calming sound. He could see Dot sleeping peacefully in her bed, and Wakko’s head on the end of the bed. Yakko took the red cap that had fallen to the ground and put it on the nightstand next to his little bro’s bed. Then he used his toon powers and with a quick turn around himself, he was ready for the day. He looked at his sibs with a smile as he walked to the door, heading to the throne room as usual. As he stepped out of the room, he heard Wakko bark in his sleep. Then Dot purred loudly in her sleep as if responding to Wakko’s bark. Yakko grinned, they did that a lot, something he liked to call “sleep conversation”. It was funny, and he wanted to watch how their conversation would go. But he couldn’t, he had duties to do today. So he closed the door and started walking away.

 That was what he didn’t like about being a King. One of the reasons why actually. He couldn’t spend his day with his sibs like before. Even if he had responsibilities and things to do before he became a King, he still did most of those things with his sibs. But now, this was impossible. And it frustrated him a lot. Yes, he enjoyed helping his people, but the tasks of a King could be so boring! And tiring! Yakko truly didn’t enjoy any minute of some old men reading way too long scrolls way too slowly.

 And he couldn't change laws the way he wanted. According to Brain, he still had much to learn to change the laws the way he wanted them to be. After Salazar, they had already brought back the system his parents had established. He couldn't change that too… yet. Thankfully if he wanted, he could postpone his duties. Except he wouldn't. Because the people of Warnerstock needed him and he couldn't disappoint them. He couldn't disappoint his parents.

 Yakko snickered, good thing he was the King and not Wakko or Dot. He couldn’t imagine his sibs obeying the rules and not doing whatever they wanted.

 …

 To be honest, if someone had told Yakko he wouldn’t do whatever he wanted when he became the King, he wouldn’t believe them. But look at him now, being all serious and responsible. 

 Yakko felt sick again.

 It felt so wrong .

 At least was doing his job well. Or he thought so. He hoped other people thought the same too.

 That worrying thought wouldn’t leave his mind. And if Yakko could strangle his thoughts, he would do it. This was driving him mad, making him a nervous wreck, and suffocating him wherever he was. He hated that. But he couldn’t do anything, really. Except wishing to be better. Wishing for help, any kind of it. 

 Maybe if his parents were alive, they could have helped him. Everyone always talked about how his mother was so brave and wise, and how his dad was so gentle and kind. He wondered if they could’ve helped him…

  Whatever. They are not here, anyway. 

  Yakko sighed, he just wanted to find an answer to the question that was in his mind for the past many months. In a few weeks, it will be exactly one year since he learned-  remembered he was the prince. He will be the King of Warnerstock for one year. And yet, this question of his wouldn’t get answered. He also still felt like had just started his job. Perhaps it was because of how much he still had to learn, and how long it took him to get used to being a King.

 It was so strange, how this fate of his felt like a stranger.

 He wondered if his dad ever felt the same way. He wished he could know that, somehow.

 He wished to know many things.

 And he knew he couldn’t.

 There was no way he could now.

 And it hurt so much.

 Yakko stopped in his tracks and took a deep breath. Tomorrow was Christmas, he didn’t want to let himself drown in those thoughts (again). 

 Wait. If tomorrow was Christmas this meant today was Christmas Eve. He didn't have any duties today! 

 He facepalmed himself. Then he looked around and he noticed he was past the throne room, and blinked in surprise. When had he walked all the way to the… oh . He was in front of the room he had run in a few weeks ago. The doors were open, and the open curtains let the dawn light enter in. After discovering this room- his, Wakko’s, and Dot’s old room- he had requested it to be cleared nicely. It looked much better now, the big painted windows now could be seen clearly, just like the beautiful portrait of his parents.  

 Yakko looked at the portrait. His mom and dad smiled so kindly at him. They looked so happy. All together, many years ago they were so happy... Everything was fine.

 But now they are not here. And Yakko had no idea what he was doing. He didn't know how to be a King. Heck, he didn't know anything about being royalty in the first place! He was just an orphan one year ago. And then they find their birth certificates and the portrait and he recognizes his parents- Everything suddenly changes.

 He still remembers the first moment of seeing the family portrait. How it shocked him. How confused he was. He didn't remember his family like that. No, they were children of a very smart maid and a talented yet kind knight. He would remember his parents being the King and the Queen of Warnerstock if they really were, right?

 Then Scratchy had told them trauma can cause many things. Including fuzzy and messy memories. He had explained it in more detail, but Yakko didn't listen. He couldn't focus on the information about trauma. Not when he had learned his whole life was a lie. Not when he had discovered in fact, if Salazar hadn't invaded their Kingdom, they wouldn't only have at least a parent, but also they would be the Princes and the Princess. 

 It was too much to take. And it took a long time for Yakko to get through it.

 Actually, he still was trying to get through it. And suddenly becoming the King of Warnerstock was hard .

 He couldn't lie, he actually liked being called 'King Yakko'. He finally could help everyone- including his sibs that deserved the world- just like he always wanted to. It was a good thing. He remembered how excited he was when he learned he would be one too. And yet... the things everyone expected from him was... a lot. Warnerstock was still recovering, and the people expected him to lead them to the recovery of their Kingdom. To treat their wounds. The problem was, he was fourteen and had no idea what to do. He trusted all the experts in the castle by his side, helping him with their bits of advice, and yet he felt like he was... unfit for the role of a King.

 Not to mention some tasks were so boring that he couldn't even focus. Which was also a thing a King should be able to do probably- to focus.

 Well, at least so far everything seemed to be going well. His people were not poor or hungry anymore. And Wakko and Dot were much happier now. Wakko could eat all the food he ever dreamed of and Dot could wear any dress she wanted whenever she wanted. So why couldn't Yakko feel better?

 Perhaps it was because of the doubt of failing and everything going to worse.

 Or simply he had realized being King was not meant for him.

 ...Maybe he was becoming aware of how there was a chance of him not being able to get through all of this burden alone.

 He looked at the portrait again.

 He just wanted his parents to show him the right way, was it too much to ask?

 Apparently, it was. Because both of them were dead. And there was no way of bringing them back. Not even to hear one word or say one last goodbye or to ask a question- like if he was good enough. ( Because he felt like he was not and will never be good enough. And if he was the King now, he couldn't risk being a failure. He couldn't let his people down, he couldn't fail now. He just couldn't! )

  He just wanted to know if they were proud of him.

Yakko sighed, frustrated. He walked towards the painted window. He could see the sun slowly rising. A good day, the day just before Christmas. Everyone loved Christmas. Yakko did too, and he was very excited about it too. So better not to think too deeply about his silly annoying suffocating thoughts on Christmas Eve.

 After all, nobody talked about the former King and Queen anymore. They had gotten over their deaths. It wasn't their era anymore. 

 And Yakko knew it had been years since their deaths. And yet, he couldn't get over them. He had thought he was doing better about forgetting those memories he hated the most -his dad's goodbye and his mom's scream- and getting over them just as everyone wanted him to do, but after remembering the night again, he realized he still hadn't gotten over them. And it was so stupid, why couldn't he just get over them? He couldn't do anything about them anyway. His dad had died due to an illness. His mom was killed by Salazar, and he had taken care of that brat. And everyone seemed to have forgotten those facts. Yes, they knew once upon a time there was a King named William who was good, strong, and funny. And they knew once upon a time there was a Queen named Angelina II who was wise, hopeful, and brave. But that was all. A few stories about them, some folk tales and songs dedicated to them... But nobody talked about the rest. 

 Yakko wondered if there was something wrong with him. He still felt their death as if it was just yesterday. 

 Maybe it was the memories that resurfaced after he learned the truth.

 Maybe it was the memories that made him cry at night.

 He didn't know. And he knew he should get away from those thoughts for a while, but if he was going to be as good as they were, he couldn't avoid them. He couldn't run away from the memories. He was trapped, and nobody was listening to his screams.

 He looked away. Would his mom and dad be proud of him? He was afraid they were not. Because Yakko was not good enough yet. They were the best. He had to work much more to be as good as them. 

 He wished he could run away from this cage called castle once again. To disappear. For Warnerstock to find another King, for him to be released from all the weight. 

 But he couldn't. He had to stay. For his sibs. For his mom and dad. For his people.

 Being responsible was terrible, really. But he didn't have a choice. 

 He sighed. Maybe if someone would understand his thoughts, maybe if someone guided him, then he could relax. At least enjoy being the ruler of a kingdom. 

 But that was impossible. There was no one that would understand. And the ones who would- his sibs- didn't need the burden he had. He was old enough to get through his problems alone.

 …

 Yakko groaned, realizing what he was doing, he got annoyed with himself. He had just told himself he would stop thinking about those thoughts and enjoy this day. What a liar he was. 

 His ear perked up with the sound of footsteps on the hall approaching. Wakko's and Dot's voices were also reaching him. Whatever they were talking about, they sounded excited. Yakko smiled, it was always good to hear them happy. 

 He walked to the door and waited for them. Once they were right outside of the doors, he opened them and loudly sang: "Gooood morning sibs!"

 Wakko and Dot jumped, startled. Yakko laughed at how comically high his sibs jumped. Wakko and Dot looked at him grumpily.

 "That was not funny." Dot huffed. 

 "Yeah!" Wakko agreed.

 "Yes, it was!" Yakko grinned. Then he added, "Scaredy cats."

 This annoyed them even more, much to the eldest sibling's delight. 

 "I think you're hallucinating because I can't see any scaredy cats around here." Dot said calmly and angrily. 

 "Oh no, I think you just don't want to accept the facts." Yakko pulled some files from his hammerspace. "According to these DNA tests, you're part Felidae Scarediae ."

 Dot grabbed the files and pulled them from his hands with incredible power, and then tossed it far away. They heard the sound of glass breaking and a man screaming. She dusted off her hands, "There. No more paperwork for you. You're welcome."

 Yakko looked down at her, "Thank you?"

 "And as a bonus…" Dot smiled. Then Yakko saw Wakko joining her, a big smile with his tongue hanging out. It didn't take him long to understand they had a sinister plan in their minds.

 "Oh no-" Yakko wasn't able to finish his sentence as his sibs jumped on him and began to tickle him. Yakko tried to push them away, but he was caught with his guard down and now all he could do was laugh on the floor. He heard them laughing too.

 "Revenge, sweet revenge!" Wakko exclaimed. 

 "Who's the scaredy-cat now?" Dot asked with a smug smile. 

 Between his laughs, Yakko managed to say "Surrender- I - wheeze - Surrender!" 

 His sibs looked at each other, not sure if his punishment was enough. Then Wakko shrugged and Dot nodded, and Yakko was freed from the tickles. They didn't move away though. 

 Yakko lay on the ground trying to catch his breath. The two looked at him satisfied with their revenge. But Yakko wouldn't just surrender like that. He smirked and pulled them into a hug as he sat up. His sibs yelped in confusion, he had caught them off guard too. Then he started tickling their bellies, he was getting his revenge now.

 "Unfair!" Dot said between peals of laughter.

 "Mercy!" Wakko begged, "Please!" 

 "Not yet, I'm enjoying my revenge." Yakko said. He dodged any kicks and hands trying to push his face coming from them. When he stopped, Wakko and Dot were wheezing on his lap. "This is why you don't tickle your big brother." Yakko said. Before they could respond to him, he talked again- this time asking a question: "What are you even doing this early in the morning?"

 "Early?" Dot asked back. She was still trying to catch her breath. "It's almost noon!"

 Yakko looked confused. He then turned to look at the windows. He noticed the sun was high. "Huh. Time flies fast." 

 "What were you doing here?" Dot asked a question this time. "And why do we keep finding you here?"

 Yakko shrugged, "Woke up early and forgot today I was free until I walked in here. Then I decided to hang around here for a while. It's a cozy room, you know. Has a good vibe at dawn."

 "And you spent hours hanging in this room?" Dot raised a brow.

 "Suspicious." Wakko added.

 "I just got lost in my thoughts and enjoyed the morning. That's all." They kept looking at him with suspecting eyes. He rolled his eyes, "I say the truth and I get glares. I lie and I get glares. Will you two decide?" 

 "No." They answered in unison with big grins.

 Yakko shook his head as he smiled. Then he held each sib carefully under his arms and got up. He walked out of the room. "You had breakfast?"

 "No," Wakko answered. Then whined, "I'm so hungry!"

 "You are always hungry, Wakko." Dot said.

 "And you always say that." Wakko replied. 

 "Yeah, the author likes writing that sentence a lot." Dot said. Then she looked to the camera, "She should come up with more original dialogues, in my opinion."

 Yakko snickered, "You know sibs, she's only good with dialogue if it's angst." 

 Wakko and Dot groaned.

 "Yep. We're doomed." Wakko whined.

 "Cheer up, Wak." Yakko said. "We're close to breakfast."

 Wakko's tail wagged and he looked in front of him excitedly.

 "And after breakfast, we can-" Yakko started.

 “Make cookies!” Dot exclaimed.

 “Eat cookies!” Wakko exclaimed.

  Dot stared at Wakko, her arms crossed.

  "I mean make cookies. Yeah!" Wakko corrected himself.

 "Exactly!" Yakko said. "And now, time for the next scene…"

 It didn’t take long for them to finish their breakfast. As always, Wakko quickly had eaten more than five plates of food, Dot had eaten all the food on her plate and Yakko had eaten most of it. He always would eat the least, not because he didn’t like eating though. He just always felt full with little food. 

 Then the Wakko and Dot had gotten dressed up. Dot wore a pink dress with a puffy skirt, while the boys just wore what they usually did wear. And then they headed to the throne room to check if everything was ready. As expected, the presents were all put nicely under the tree and the room was decorated with pretty decorations. 

 Everything looked beautiful, and magical too.

 Yakko realized this was the first Christmas that they’d celebrate in a warm and properly decorated home in years.

 He looked around, even with the decorations he still could see everything he had noticed a few weeks ago. The remains of that night still haunted him, no matter how jolly the room seemed to be. But he didn't say a thing. He couldn’t. So he kept silent, only laughing and cracking a few jokes, till they left the throne room and headed to the dining hall.

 His sibs were walking in front of him, chatting about what to do once their guests arrived tomorrow morning. They had given the invitations to (almost) everyone at Acme Falls, inviting them to their castle for Christmas. Those people had become their family over years, and Christmas was supposed to be celebrated with family, right? Wakko was the one who had come up with this idea. Since the only family (except each other) they had was those nice people who had helped them over the years, he had thought it must be what should be done. Yakko and Dot had agreed excitedly. And honestly, Yakko couldn’t wait to see those people again. Not only had he missed them a lot since he couldn’t visit the town often, but he also really needed some people from the time his life was… normal.

 There was also the fact that celebrating Christmas alone didn’t feel right.

 Since the day they had come to the castle, Yakko had the feeling of something being missing. At first, he didn’t understand why he had this weird feeling. Then as he remembered memories from his youth, he began to understand.

 What was missing in the castle was Mom and Dad.

 Yakko sighed. His mom and dad were no longer around. So why, after all those years, he was feeling such strong longing? Why did he want them around? Was it because now he knew the truth? Or was it because they were back at the place the three of them last saw them? Or was it him needing someone who knew how to be King to lead his way?

 He realized he was once again getting lost in the same thought train from this morning.

 And everything once again was too frustrating, and Yakko wanted to scream.

  Stupid feelings and stupid thoughts and stupid feelings of anxiousness-

 "Yakko, you're growling again." Dot's voice distracted him, and Yakko noticed he indeed was growling. He also noticed Wakko and Dot had stopped walking, both looking at him. Dot asked, "What's wrong?"

 "Nothing, just the usual annoying thoughts." Yakko shrugged. They didn't need to know the details.

 "Mom and Dad?" Wakko asked.

 Yakko nodded in response. He had shared only a few of his annoying thoughts, just thinking about Mom and Dad was one of them.

 Wakko looked to the ground, "I miss them too."

 "Yeah, me too." Dot agreed. "It feels weird to be back 'home' without them. It feels..."

 "Wrong?" Yakko guessed, completing her sentence.

 "Yeah. It's not the same Christmas at this place that I remember, you know? Even though I don’t remember much, I know this castle isn't supposed to be this empty." Dot said.

 Wakko nodded, "It's not the same home."

 Yakko raised his brows, so it was not just him. How had he missed that? His sibs also were going through the same bad feelings of emptiness.

 He was so caught up in his problems, he had missed that!

 And if he missed such an important problem, how could he know he wouldn't end up missing bigger problems as a King in the future? Look at him- Even now he was getting distracted by his own problems!

 “Yeah… It’s not the same. But we still got each other.” Yakko put a hand on their shoulders. “Even if many things have changed, one thing has not. And it’s the fact that this year we’ll have an amazing Christmas together. Just like every year.”

 “And we’ll have company too.” Wakko said with a wide smile. "Everyone will be here!"

 “And we'll sing silly songs and dance till we fall asleep." Dot smiled, not as wide but a sweet one. "Just like before."

 Yakko nodded, "Just like before." He pulled them into a hug. His sibs needed one, he could understand it. Of course, they were struggling with their own thoughts too…

 Then his ears perked up. He heard voices from a nearby corridor. His sibs must have too because they also looked towards the way the sounds came from. 

 Yakko soon noticed the voices belonged to the two mice- Pinky and the Brain. They were talking, but Yakko didn't understand what they were saying. Not until they came closer, at least.

 The Warners listened to them, as their voices sounded more clearer.

 "But Brain! It's Christmas tomorrow!" Pinky said.

 "I know that well, Pinky." Brain replied.

 "Then shouldn't we take a break from your plans?" Pinky asked. "Isn't that day supposed to be our off day?"

 "It's a day off, not an off day ." Brain corrected. "You're right, it is supposed to be our day off, but after we get my newest invention to work, we'll have all the world's time in our hands. Then we can have as many days off as we want."

 "Ooh, I see! Egad, Brain, you're a genius!" Pinky exclaimed. After a few seconds, he added: "But I don't get it, how can we hold time if we don't see it?"

 A loud thud was heard, and the kids winched slightly. Afterward, Pinky's laughs were heard.

 "Come now, Pinky. We have to hurry." Brain said.

 "But Brain, didn't you have time? Narf!" Pinky questioned.

 Then Brain walked to the sight of the siblings, not seeing them he walked forward- the opposite way from where Yakko and his sibs stood. Soon Pinky joined him.

 "Not yet, Pinky. Not yet." Brain said.

 Soon they disappeared from their view, and the three Warners looked at each other curiously. 

 "What do you think they are talking about?" Dot asked as they broke the hug. 

 "Probably Brain invented something new for his plans to take over the throne. You know, the usual." Yakko answered as they started walking. "Possibly something to do with clocks."

 "Do you think he will ever be successful?" Dot asked.

 "Nope!" Yakko answered with a grin. "He may be a good advisor, but he certainly is terrible with his hobby."

 Dot grinned as well, "Maybe if we ever get a sequel, he may succeed for like an hour and a half."

 "Now, that would be fun. Fans would love it. And honestly, I could take a vacation from being a King too."

 "Faboo!" Wakko's voice was heard from behind. The two turned but weren't able to see him. 

 Yakko walked back, he knew Dot followed him. After a few steps he saw in the middle of the other corridor- where Pinky and the Brain had come from- stood Wakko. He was holding something in his hands. 

 "What's it, Wak?" Yakko asked, walking towards him.

 "Dunno, looks like a pocket watch but not exactly." Wakko answered, eyes still on the watch.

 "Where did you find it?" Dot asked, looking at what Wakko held.

 "On the ground." Wakko said. "Seems to be Brain's."

 "His invention, perhaps?" Dot guessed.

 "Most probably. I bet Pinky was holding it, then he got distracted, put it down, and forgot it." Yakko said. He also looked at the thing. It was a small, golden pocket watch. Its cover was open, and Yakko could see the numbers. The weird thing was, there were only ten numbers and two arrows. He snatched it from Wakko's hands to look at it better. "If it really is his, this watch must do something interesting and possibly dangerous." 

Yakko, Wakko, and Dot kept looking at it, uncertain what to do with the thing. 

 “We can take it back to Pinky and Brain...” Yakko said. Then immediately added, “Or we can learn what it does!”

 Wakko and Dot cheered, excited to discover what this little watch did. Their tails wagged excitedly.

 Yakko hummed as he turned it in his hands, inspecting every detail. He didn't see anything unusual (other than the difference of numbers and words). There was writing carved on its cover but before he could read it Dot, who had grown impatient, snatched it from his hands. She started inspecting it too. She turned the crown of it, nothing happened. She tried again but she grew even more impatient and began shaking it violently. 

 "You're gonna break it." Wakko said.

 "No, I'm going to find out what it does." Dot replied.

 "Nope, you're definitely gonna break it." Yakko said.

 Dot stopped shaking it and talked in an all-knowing way, "If it breaks, we can reverse engineering and find out what it does. See, I'm still right." 

 Yakko rolled his eyes, while Wakko took it from her hands. "Hey!" Dot shouted, but Wakko didn't mind. He sniffed it, then licked it. As he found nothing unusual as well, he proceeded to try other methods. He turned the crown as Dot did before, but he also held his finger on the small button on the watch. Now one of the hands was on X and the other one was on the left arrow. Then he waited. Nothing happened.

 "I think it's broken." Wakko handed the thing back to Yakko.

 "Oh. Then you know what it means." Dot grinned, her expression hungry for destruction. She grabbed her mallet from her hammerspace. "Let's break it into a million pieces!" 

 Yakko shrugged, "It seems that's the only thing left that we haven't tried." 

  He placed the watch on the ground. The Warner brothers took out their mallets. 

 Just as they were about to smash it, the pocket watch started vibrating. They looked at each other and threw away their mallets. 

 "It works!" Dot said. "But I don't like the sound it is making."

 "Me too." Wakko agreed.

 "Me three. Maybe we should take a step ba-"

 Yakko was cut off by the sudden light coming from the watch. He raised his arms to shield his eyes from the blinding brightness. He felt a strange breeze and he felt as if the ground was sliding away from under his feet. He wanted to look, to see what was going on and if his sibs were okay, but he couldn't as the wind and light were too strong. For ten seconds that felt like longer, it kept going like that.

 Then suddenly it all stopped.

 Yakko lowered his arms and blinked a few times to see better. Once he could see clearly, he realized he was still at the same spot. He turned on his left and felt relief as he saw his sibs. 

 "What was that?" Dot questioned, looking around. 

 "No idea." Yakko answered. "Is it me or is everything the same?" 

 "Maybe it was a light device." Wakko took the thing from the ground. 

 "What about the wind?" Yakko pointed out.

 "Light and wind device?" 

 "There must be more. Like how the ground moved, how do you explain that?" Yakko thought out loud. "It can't just do those stuff and nothing else. If it's truly Brain's invention, it must do something else too. Those things would not be enough for his plans."

 Then he looked around more carefully now. As he had said, everything looked the same. Except… he realized he couldn't see some of the dark marks. And was this rug's color always red with gold? 

 Then he saw something and he gasped. "Sibs, I think I know what the thing does."

 "What?" Wakko and Dot asked in unison.

 Yakko pointed to the front of them.

 Wakko and Dot's eyes widened as they saw what he saw.

 Three little kids running into a room.

 They knew who these kids were.

 And Yakko finally answered:

 "Takes you back in time."