1492, Spain.

"What's wrong with you?" Otto yelled. He glared at Tuddrussel and Larry, who were shocked at Otto's behavior, but also were feeling incredibly guilty for what had happened. "I can't believe you just left me like that! You went and got someone else, and got someone who probably knows less about history than you two put together!"

"Hey now, you need to just calm down," Tuddrussel said, trying to reason with him. "I know this looks bad but there is no need to make a scene here." The officer sheepishly smiled, he knew deep down this wasn't going to help him, but the poor man was trying his best. Otto didn't want to calm down for Tuddrussel's sake, if he was embarrassed of a little kid scolding him like he was the parent and Tuddrussel and Larry were the kids then by all means he felt entitled to it. He clinched his fists, ready to fire out more lecture. "You two have no idea how horrible that was, do you? It was one thing to leave me stranded on a deserted island; at least I know that was an accident. But this is just. . .I can't even begin to tell you how awful that was, I mean how could you just not- well, care?"

Larry looked exasperated, he felt so terrible for the child. He knelt down beside him, placing a hand on Otto's shoulder, noticing that he flinched as he touched him gently. "I'm so sorry Otto, I know this has been a difficult day for you, and Tuddrussel and I are feeling absolutely terrible about this whole thing." Otto wanted to just run off again, even if he was back with Larry and Tuddrussel like he had hoped, wished, begged, and prayed for to come back to him just a little while back. He pushed Larry's hand away and quietly said, "Whatever, you guys just stay here; I'll go talk to Columbus and get the mission complete. That is why I'm here anyway." Otto said coldly. He walked off from them to go talk to Christopher Columbus, who was unsuccessfully trying to get seagulls away from his hot dog stand.

Tuddrussel and Larry watched him silently, seeing how easily Otto could perk up and pretend that rant never occurred, it was kind of bewildering. Larry crossed his arms and looked at Tuddrussel severely, giving him a very evil glare indeed. Tuddrussel defensively asked, "What?" "You know what." Larry said. "Now you've gone and done it. We're never going to hear the end of this and I for one can't blame him. What we did was inexcusable, absolutely traumatic! He's got enough problems without our help, and you screwed up in the worst possible way." Tuddrussel huffed in annoyance, having to deal with lectures from both Otto and Larry is more than he could stand. "Get off my case Larry, that kid is just being dramatic, which he wouldn't be if he wasn't around you all the time! Seriously, what's his deal? If I had known that Sister Ratched lady was going to be in the same place as us I would have stopped him from leaving, but I didn't, ok? Yeah I shouldn't have made you go look for another kid when we have this one and I know it was stupid but it's not like we were going to totally abandon him or something."

"Well it sure did seem like we were, can you even comprehend the idea that he was scared out of his mind?" Larry said, poking Tuddrussel's chest. "After this I think it would be best if you didn't talk to him for the rest of the day." Tuddrussel looked back to Otto, who was having some in-depth conversation with the explorer. Under his breath he said, "That's not going to be a problem."

"And so if you just go to Queen Isabella about it I'm sure she will be more than willing to help." Otto said. He was smiling for real now, happy to be working again, and with such an easy going person! Columbus was only working a hot dog stand to help pay for his own expeditions, and wasn't enjoying the lifestyle at all. But Otto managed to talk him into asking the king and queen for funding a second time. "You make it seem so easy, how do you manage that?" Columbus asked. Otto shrugged, "I don't make it easy, it IS easy. You did it once, you just need to do it again when the timing is right, and it's now or never. So get over to their summer home up that hill over there and do it!" Columbus took off his apron and dropped it on the stand. "You're right, who would have thought a child such as yourself would tell me all this, well I believe I'll go to the palace right this minute, screw the formalities!" Columbus gleefully said. Otto gasped, he did get the mission complete within ten minutes. "All right!" Otto said. Columbus took off his overcoat and turned it inside out, revealing a more clean and formal coat best suited for meeting royals. He looked over at the mirror that was propped up on the side of a building, taking off his hat to smooth out his frizzed out hair. "Those two gentlemen over there, you belong to them?" Columbus casually asked as he put his hat back on. Otto's cheerful face turned back to somber when he mentioned them. "Yeah." He said quietly.

"Hmm… you don't seem so sure."

Otto felt confused by that, how could he not be sure? That was his family, even if he was very angry at them. "I'm sure. It's just that, well, it's been a very bad day."

"I see. I noticed that they were coming over here with a different boy for a while before you showed up. Are they your brothers?"

Otto was getting that sick, burning feeling in his stomach and chest again. He had been getting that feeling all day with his cheeks feeling like they were on fire. Had Tuddrussel and Larry been taking other kids besides the one he did see? Otto could feel the tears coming on but he couldn't dare let them out, not there. "No, I'm an only child, and I'm an orphan. They couldn't find me so they tried to help you another way." Otto said, his voice cracking from holding back the emotions he so desperately wanted to hide. "How many times did they come over here with another boy?" Otto asked, curious to know how many times they chose to waste time trying to find him. Columbus thought about it for a moment, "I believe it was only four or five times. "

"okay." Otto said, disappointed in his friends loyalty. He looked over at Tuddrussel, who was arguing with Larry, of course. Otto shook his head and put on another smile, looking at Columbus he said, "Well I better get going. I have faith that everything will turn out fine as long as you do what I had said." Columbus nodded, "Thank you again, Otto. You truly have a gift; those two over there must have been crazy if they were looking for someone else. I hope you can get things settled with them soon."

"Thanks." Otto smiled faintly, not bothering to hide the true feeling of sorrow that he felt on the inside. He waved goodbye to the Italian explorer and told him good luck as they moved away from each other. Otto took a deep breath and shoved his hands into his pockets, sulking back with a heavy heart to the only people he could go to, or ever want to go to. He wasn't sure what to do, he wanted to just scream and kick and cry, but he couldn't do that, that's what babies do. That's what Tuddrussel and Larry would do under stress. At the orphanage Otto wouldn't dare do that in front of anyone, especially Sister Thornley, it was for one humiliating, it was also a cause for a public attitude adjustment. Otto winced at the thought of her, with her wrath still fresh in his mind he remembered how she really let him have it after getting back to the orphanage earlier that afternoon, and if her cruel chastising wasn't enough she kept piling on what seemed like never ending punishment. "If you don't have those potatoes peeled by the time I get back I'll take you outside and make you cut your own switch!" He remembered her threats all to well. It was hell, pure and simple.

But while Otto was glad to have Time Squad again, he couldn't get over the fact that it just seemed like they were trying to get rid of him at one point. Why would that be? All because of some stupid argument over a video game? He felt lost, and felt deeply hurt by the two people who were the only thing close to what he could call family. He saw that Tuddrussel and Larry noticed that he was coming back and stopped bickering. They waited patiently as he walked. When he got to them he stopped in his tracks and took his hands out of his pockets to adjust his glasses, which he noticed were a little unbalanced on his face.

"So how did it go?" Larry asked. Without looking at him, Otto said, "Mission accomplished. He took it really well." Tuddrussel scratched his head, unsure of what to do, he wanted to congratulate him on a job well done, but he wasn't willing to annoy him like Larry feared. "Well I for one can't wait to get home; there is so much to do to prepare for dinner tonight- chicken teriyaki with miso soup. I know how much you like Japanese cuisine Otto." Otto didn't seem impressed, but he was very hungry and politely told Larry thank you. Larry sighed; he didn't know what to do with him. He typed in the coordinates for home and pressed the button that zapped them off the face of the Earth.