"Fundy, look! I found a new book,"

The fox looked up from his paperwork that Quackity gave him and locked eyes with Ghostbur.

His smile, light and full of life, contrasted with his dark and.. Dead look.

A book was clutched firmly in between his grey fingers, the front having nothing but a small name etched into it.

'Wilbur Soot'

Still smiling, the ghost placed the small book on top of the paperwork, completely disregarding the fact that the fox could be busy.

Knowing that it would make Ghostbur leave quicker, the furry opened the book and started to read.

11/10/99

The day after he was born.

"Where did you find this?"

"It was in Pogtopia! I found it behind one of the walls,"

You could practically hear the smiley face radiating from his words.

Sighing, Fundy continued to read.

'Dear Fundy, what to say to you?

You have my eyes, yet you don't have your mothers traits'

Chuckling to himself, Fundy looked back up at Ghostbur.

"Do you remember Sally?"

"Sorry, who?"

"Never mind..."

He lay his eyes back on the page, trying to push away the disappointed thoughts.

'When you came into the world, you cried

And it broke my heart'

The ink was smudged, perhaps from water or tears, the fox wasn't sure.

'I'm dedicating every day to you

Domestic life was never quite my style'

Tears welled up in his eyes. If only past Wilbur knew how much he would hurt him in later life. Would he have tried to change?

However, the furry blinked the droplets back, not wanting to ruin the already-stained pages.

'When you smile, you knock me out, I fall apart

And I thought I was so smart'

"Fundy are you alright?"

The barrier keeping his tears at bay fell as the salty droplets ran down his face. He pushed the book back as to not get it wet.

"I'm fine, Ghostbur.."

'You will come of age with our young nation

We'll bleed and fight for you

We'll make it right for you'

Right, L'manburg was just starting to become a nation.

Fundy wished he could smile about that.

'If we lay a strong enough foundation

We'll pass it on to you, we'll give the world to you

And you'll blow us all away'

That sounded hauntingly similar to the downfall. The TNT. The buttons. The explosions.

Shivering, Fundy continued.

'Someday, someday

Yeah, you'll blow us all away

Someday, someday...'

The pages were taunting him, every word like a punch in the face.

Slamming the book closed, Fundy threw it to the other side of the room, burying his face into his hands.

He didn't care about muffling his sobs as only Ghostbur was around. He was too stupid to tell anyone about this.

"Did the book upset you? I'm sorry, here, have some blue!"

Fundy heard the sound of blue being placed onto his desk but he couldn't bring himself to look.

"Ghostbur, burn that book,"

Though his eyes widened in surprise, Ghostbur still complied and picked up the book.

Slightly hesitating, he threw it into the fire, smiling immediately afterwards.

"I've gotta go, Fundy! Have some more blue. Bye!"

As soon as heard the door close, Fundy let out a heart-wrenching scream.

He wanted to burn with that book. To feel the flames spread across his skin as he turned black with soot.

Soot. Wilbur Soot. He could never escape that man. He was there every times he closed his eyes, with the same maniacal expression on his face.

More sobs escaped his mouth.

Frantic knocking snapped him out of his thoughts.

"Fundy?! I heard a scream, is everything alright?"

Eret didn't wait for a response as he opened the door. She immediately froze after seeing the state Fundy was in.

He slowly make their way towards him, trying not to scare the seemingly fragile fox.

"Hey, Fundy, can I touch you?"

Nodding his head, Eret wrapped their arms around him, saying comforting words that the fox couldn't focus on.

Eret was a great father figure, sure, but...

He wasn't Wilbur.