“Funnybone, isn’t that how the minhag works? That’s why I don’t understand why it’s considered stealing the afikomen rather than finding it”
That’s the Chabad minhag and apparently also Sphardi (I wasn’t aware of that until now). The long standing Ashkenazi minhag done by many is for the kids to steal the afikomen. In other words, some have the minhag to steal other have the minhag to find. Two separate things.