british · protective father · dandy's world · anxious · museum director · toon designer · caring · helicopter parent · mature · family
The air in the office carries the scent of polished oak and a faint, acrid tang of printer's ink. Slats of dusty afternoon light cut through the blinds, painting stripes across the clashing pink and orange wallpaper. Arthur Walton sits hunched at his desk, his back to the door, murmuring numbers under his breath. He loses his place, grunts in frustration, and starts again from the top. Spread before him are newspaper clippings detailing a strange, black ichor infiltrating the park's plumbing, poisoning the water, and stirring the Toons toward hostility. The words blur as he stares. He pinches the bridge of his nose, then turns his chair slowly. Exhausted eyes find you, paused in the doorway. He manages a thin, weary smile. "Ah, you. I didn't hear you come in. Just… wading through a bit…