Omake 25: Reluctant Dreamer

"Family is the Greatest Adventure of all!" – Huey Duck, Ducktales (2017)

Warning: This one has a perspective which is tied to a John Bukharin, but not this story's John Bukharin.

"So, you're dad but… not dad," Nora spoke up with a confused tone. "And that over her is-"

"My kid, yes," I replied sheepishly, fixing my surrogate daughter in my lap while little Nora stared at the scene with clear jealousy and confusion. "Different dimension."

"I'm sorry if this creates any problem. I can get off and-"

"Do you like it?" Nora interrupted the unusual being, a bit of a jump beyond normal faunus as far as she could see.

"K-Kinda? It's dad. So… it's nice."

The orangette giggled at that curt but 'densely big' response. "Yeah, dad is amazing. He can cook, he can fix things and he is a super-strong man!"

They both shared a smile but… there was still a degree of genuine awkwardness in Nora's face and mind. And not for bad reasons if I had to be honest. The fellow girl wore a pink bow on the right side of her head, pink shirt with rolled-up sleeves, a blue sleeveless sweater vest, and a purple skirt. Oh, and before she forgot, she was also a small white preteen duck with white feathers that are generally styled in a bob cut.

Yes, duck. That's something tied to the world I ended up in, which was the very one where the adventures of Donald Duck, Scrooge McDuck and others unfolded.

The one which I currently had with me was little Webby, which I had signed up to become guardian of a few months ago with her adoptive grandmother's permission. Let's just say that things back home were a bit more 'complicated' than just that, but I was glad I could hold back from explaining too much about it.

"Would you like a cup?"

I blinked, glancing to the side where my other self emerged from the kitchen holding two steamy cups filled with hot chocolate. I didn't ask for it, but I would have done the same had the situation been the opposite.

"Don't mind if I do," I said, a fond smile emerging as I grasped my cup while Webby got hers. She quickly took a tentative sip and… smiled.

"It's so good. It's like a second dad. Two dads. Double the fun!"

"Yeah, this is so cool!" Nora agreed mirthfully. "So, wanna go play tag once you're done with the cup?"

Webby paused, her head tilting upward to look at me with a questioning look.

I sighed. "Sure."

I think I should have specified that she shouldn't have drunk the hot chocolate too fast but… as usual, Webby defied common logic and didn't get internal burns from what move as she was already skipping after the fellow child. My other self hummed as he shifted down to take a seat beside me.

"So, it's all tied to… Louie?"

I frowned at that assumption.

"Y-Yeah? Wait, how do you-"

"I mean, it's Ducktales we're talking about," The second Bukharin interjected calmly, almost expecting me to know about it. "I just love how they remastered the old series. It's really well-polished, and the lore is expanded and altered to make it so… pleasant to grasp."

…

"I… What is Ducktales?" This was the first time I heard of that name, and I could tell it somewhat… matched with the current predicament I was stuck in.

A confused look appeared on my counterpart's face, mirroring my bewildered self as I tried to grasp what I just heard him saying.

"Ducktales. The cartoon that was first made in 1987 and then remastered in 2017."

My lips pressed into forming a thin line. "I'm still not grasping this. I don't remember either of those."

…

"I think you come from a dimension similar to mine but… where you never had Ducktales. Either you never saw it, or it was never made," The second John argued. "But I can already tell you're kind of doing a fine job with Webby."

"Thanks?"

"And trust me when I say that she needs… this support. Especially when a specific plot-twist will come up."

A plot-twist? Was it important? It was clear that John knew about a possible future, one where my insertion never happened and things went differently. But how is it different? And how much of the known lore could be used to prevent messes from happening?

Would that even be fine? To know about the future?

It was quite the intense situation to be subjected to but… if it was about Webby, then it was only right for him to take steps into preparing for the incoming dangers.

"What do you mean? What plot-twist?"

"I'm afraid I can't tell you much more. Just that you need to be careful as those bonds you have with the family will be put to test into the… greatest adventure ever," He cryptically replied, leaving me more confused about it than I would have liked. But as I got ready to press for more, I found myself interrupted by a giddy Webby.

"Dad! The portal reopened. We can go back."

Knowing how unstable those things were, I really didn't have the luxury of time from the looks of it.

"I'm sorry for leaving you with this worry," My counterpart apologized and I hummed.

"I guess it's fine. It's a warning to be careful and… I will be. It's no use to ignore this now," I replied calmly, passing him my empty cup and walking up to the duckling so we could go through the currently-open portal and back to the McDuck Manor. Behind us, a calm Bukharin watched over us, giving a shrug to a sad Nora and offering her to help him out making some pancakes.

Kids and pancakes...

But that's another story… for both Bukharins.