⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ no. wait. what is it the kids ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ these days say ? ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ let him cook . ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀

⠀ ⠀ having minded his own business, ⠀ he does a double take. narrowing ⠀ his eyes in suspicion, “what’s ⠀ that look for?” a beat. and then, ⠀ “i don’t like that.” ⠀ call it: parent intuition. ⠀

⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ”do you even think before ⠀you talk ? listen to yourself. “ a ⠀shake of his head paired with a ⠀downturn of his lips are telltale ⠀signs of his disappointment. ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀@SERPANTSLEUTH ⠀ ⠀

⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ” don’t you think this is a ⠀ ⠀ bit … “ he trails off, gesturing ⠀ ⠀ around them , “ much ? “ ⠀ ⠀ adding, “ even for you. “ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ 𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐎𝐍𝐈𝐂𝐀 ⠀ ⠀

⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀” and sometimes people do ⠀ bad things when they’re struggling ⠀ to survive. “ his somber tone relays ⠀ an underlying subtext he’s not ⠀ voiced yet. “ ༝ ‍ ݁ ‍𝑆̵𝑊̵𝐸̵𝐸̵𝑇̵ ‍ 𝗕͟𝗘͟𝗧͟𝗧͟𝗬 ‍ .ᐟ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀

⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ “ i was a different person ⠀ back then. it was a very strange ⠀ time in my life, son. “ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ༝ ‍ ݁ ‍ 𝗔𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗧 ‍𝗦͟𝗠͟𝗜͟𝗧͟𝗛 ‍ .ᐟ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀

⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ “ where is this coming from ? ⠀ ⠀ you … you’ve never had a ⠀ ⠀ problem with this before . “ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ༝ ‍ ݁ ‍ ‍ 𝚖𝚊𝚖𝚊 ‍ 𝚓͟𝚘͟𝚗͟𝚎͟𝚜 ‍ .ᐟ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀

“ that’s exactly it, Betty. they’re not in their right mind. “ his hands outstretched towards her, palms upright emphasizing her very point. “ you’re proving your own point. “

he raises a brow at her line of questioning, a small grin working its way across his mouth. “ are you implying i’ve committed a murder, kid ? “ ( he has. but dead men tell no tales. )

his shoulders lift and fall in a shrug. “ sometimes it’s hard to imagine the impossible. but it doesn’t make it any less the truth. “ a beat and then, “ you’re a federal agent. you should know that. it’s just a lot harder when it’s family. “

a stare-off. eyes narrowed, unblinking. he can’t help the widening of that grin when he says, “ you’re your mother’s child. that’s for certain. “

FP mmchts!, smacks his lips together. unseriously, he replies, “ like medium . “

tenacious, she is. truly a great quality of hers until it’s turned on him. then it’s less great. like now, for example. shaking his head, “ where are you going with this, Betty ? “

he’s truly the perfect mix of himself and Alice. but it’s faces like these that FP can clearly see the Alice so prevalent in him. a head tilt, “ is my medium … better ? “

FP chuckles with amusement. “ why ? “ he repeats. “ maybe because you’re accusing me of murder. you ever think of that ? “