Ds2 executed a genuinely impressive heist to get hold of the felt tip pens (through bitter experience at bedtime they were removed from him and put on a high shelf). The little horror had clearly been planning this as in the 1 minute gap where I was in Ds1 room and DP had gone to put the boiler for my bath on (we are somewhat creatures of habit) he had dashed in , moved a chair , climbed it and picked up what he thought were "his " felt tips.
He had then stashed them under his pillow. Both DP and I heard running but I thought DP was with him and he thought I was. Honetly it was a couple of minutes at most and I walked into his bedroom and merrily read him a story.
Cut to half an hour later when I we to check on them. To be face with a little face drawn as if he was a tiger. Bright orange , surprisingly well drawn whiskers for a 5 year old , black smudges around eyes. It was genuinely a work of art. "For the children at the circus" he maintained.
I was relatively (errr relatively ) calm ....right up until I retrieved the pens to realise they were not "his" pens. They were my permanent markers that I used for training materials.
He was due in school the next morning , I was very very tired and I sat in the hall and cried out of sight of the sad little tiger sat on the edge of the bed trying to explain to DP who was trying very hard not to laugh that he had only planned to run away to the circus and wanted to make the children smile.
After DP calmed me down , gave me tea he admitted he had come up the stairs to be faced with a little tiger faced boy and a sobbing DP sat on the floor and was completely confused.
We have all been there OP you have my utmost sympathy. It can take 3 seconds for them to do something that if they get you at the right time can break you.
In retrospect I laugh my ass off at my little tiger cub but my god I was so tired that night.