Truth

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It had been a day after Joxter and Snufkin began their journey towards Moominvalley. The trip, though mostly silent, brought the father and the son closer together. They told each other stories by the fire whenever they stopped to eat a meal. Snufkin told his father of the time he sabotaged the Park Keeper and even got sent to jail for it, which Joxter was beaming with pride. Joxter then explained HIS experience with the park keeper many years ago, which made Snufkin laugh until his sides were sore. Not only had Joxter ripped the keeper's signs out of the ground, he knocked him unconscious with a single swing of a sign, a sign that ironically read 'No hitting or fighting.'

"No wonder the law was on your tail constantly!" Snufkin chuckled, smoking his pipe. Joxter purred, adjusting his scarf.

     "Yes, but YOU! Using Hattifattner seeds to electrocute the Park Keeper?! Incredibly clever, and hilarious as well. I'm proud of ya' Snuf!"

     The praise from his father was still a surprise to Snufkin, but a welcome one. A crooked, somewhat dopey smile formed on his face.
"Thanks, papa... it was an act of justice though, I wouldn't do that to just anybody. That Park Keeper just had the audacity to have so many pointless rules! And those poor Woodies, little orphans forced to stay in the puny little sandbox or else be punished! Little My helped me, but I don't think she understood just how much that irks me!" Snufkin bit down on his pipe, just the thought of it was making him angry. Joxter, noticing his reaction, lit his own pipe with a cheeky grin.

     "But it was fun, right? Giving that bastard what he deserved?"

     "...yes." Snufkin admitted. Joxter howled in laughter.

     "That's my boy! But on a more serious note...how is Little My?" Joxter asked once his laughter subsided.

     "She's good! Still biting at ankles, but she lives with the Moomins now." Snufkin nodded.

     "I still can't get over my old friend Moomin and his sweet Moominmaiden are Moominpappa and Moominmamma now. Ah, how the years have gone by..." Joxter blew smoke from his mouth, watching it disperse in the air.

     "...now that I think about it, how did you know mother had over 30 children?" Snufkin questioned. Joxter's face grew pink.

     "W-well... I kept tabs on her. I have...connections, so when something involving Mymble happens, I hear of it quickly. Like I mentioned...I've been a little intimidated to talk to her in person. But I started to get worried about you and Little My, since my sources haven't mentioned either of you. Mymble Jr. visits Mymble often, but...you and Little My don't visit her often, do you...?"

     "No. Too many children for my comfort." Snufkin shrugged.
It was quiet between the two of them once again, as it seemed to happen quite often. Snufkin broke the silence with another question.
"Do you ever get upset about mother having children with other men?"

     "Hm? Oh, goodness no." Joxter smiled. "I still care very deeply for Mymble and all of her little anklebiters, hell, I still love her, but our romance just didn't last. We're both free spirits that wanted to do our own things. We were on and off so often that we eventually just decided to end it mutually. I stayed to raise you, but we both had different intentions. I respect that. But...now that I'm ready to accept responsibility, I wonder... I wonder if Mymble would let me stay again."

     "...I see..." Snufkin nodded slowly, thinking intently while smoking his pipe. Joxter shook his head and chuckled.

     "Sorry for putting such a damper on the atmosphere, lets go back to what we were previously doing. Got any other stories to tell?" Joxter's tail waved back and forth. Snufkin cracked a tiny smile.

     "Well... there is the time I got arrested for stealing a watermelon, and I broke out of jail with a can opener."

     "Oh! Do tell!"




















I finally got this finished hell yeaaaaaaaaah
Sorry for another shortish chapter, but I really like how it came out! We got some more questions answered, and more father son bonding! Hell yeah!
In case any of you haven't read the books, Snufkin did actually get arrested for stealing a watermelon and broke outta jail with a can opener, he talks about it in Comet in Moominland fkdkfksnfm

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