Chapter Text
Combing through every available book on dog training makes Lady Galatea the most well-behaved dog on the entire server. Icarus trains her himself, and he likes to pretend he doesn’t spoil her anyway. May brings so many new things, including newly blooming flowers. Icarus helps his father in the garden, his favourites are the primroses.
He decides to ask everyone their favourite flower. Tommy is simple, he loves red roses. There is a large bush of them at the sanctuary that he tends with very gentle care. Uncle Wilbur says he enjoys sunflowers. Big, bright, and yellow, peeking over grassy hills and pointing to the sun. Uncle Techno has a tie between hyacinths and daffodils, Icarus tries not to giggle. The pair, yellow and purple, are named from greek tragedies. Both beautiful, with deep meanings and stories. Phil is fondest of forget-me-nots, and though his sons tease him for being a sap, he tells Icarus the story of a girl he once knew who loved the beautiful blue petals. They remind him of her, even now, and the story of the beautiful woman with the flowers makes Icarus smile. Tubbo and Ranboo turn it into a playful argument over which flower is the best. Tubbo says it’s peonies, Ranboo says it’s allium.
Icarus makes note of it and goes to ask Percy and Michael their thoughts.
“Boys!” Icarus calls, getting their attention easily, smiling brightly.
“What is the best flower?”
Michael doesn’t look up from the drawing he’s making, “Daisy, it’s pretty.”
“Dandelion!” Percy chirps loudly, excitedly pulling some from the grass around him and handing them to Michael.
Icarus scoffs, staring as Michael takes the bundle of plants, “That’s a weed!”
For a moment, they stand silently and wait for Michael’s verdict, he runs his fingers over the yellow petals and beams, “That’s a good one Percy.”
“Thank you, Mikey!” Percy giggles, causing Michael to giggle, making them both start to smile and laugh as they hand each other dandelions picked from the dirt.
Icarus watches and wonders how they became such good friends so quickly, until Lady Galatea barks at him and gets him to play fetch with her. He forgets about the flowers for a moment. Daisies and dandelions...surprisingly, it fits the pair, they go in tandem. Much like Percy and Michael, who are rarely seen apart nowadays.
At dinner, he asks Charlie what his favourite flower is. Looking slightly confused, Charlie states that he doesn’t have one. It makes no sense, he spends so much time in the gardens, he must have one! As much as he pressures, his older brother never gives. To distract him, Wilbur tells him about floriography. Flowers can have meanings, and Icarus becomes enamoured. Charlie will usually sit in the garden of the L’Manberg Sanctuary, listening to his music, silently scowling and watching his brother perched on top on the roof. He watches the sky, he watches the people. Every visitor feels his heavy glance against their back. On his hip, handle wrapped in purple velvet, is a shining diamond sword.
He’s carried it since the day Icarus went missing, never once is he seen without it. He goes with Quackity and Karl less, pulling away from the happy childlike fun they showed him. Returning full force is his aggression towards strangers and those he fears. Puffy does what she can, he trusts her greatly, but she is not a miracle worker. Some days he’s too paranoid to let even her carry the baby. Some days he does nothing but trail Icarus and do whatever his little brother asks. Tommy knows what’s wrong, at least a bit. Tommy knows his son has lost so much. Far too much. In the past somewhere he had other parents, maybe even other siblings. Tommy assumes the burnt-down village tells him all he needs to know. The ashes are barely the tip of the iceberg, not that Charlie would tell him.
Charlie’s perfectly fine with how things are, his dad doesn’t have to know about Evangeline. His father does not have to know that he blames himself for Icarus’ fall. It’s all too much for him to know. However, now, he doesn’t feel as safe. Anyone could take anything from him. Waking up is a calculated risk, because once again, losing feels inevitable. Swearing it’s purely for training purposes, Charlie begs everyone for netherite. For enchantments. For a brewing stand. It scares Puffy, Niki, Tommy, and Karl. They see this as a plea for safety. Quackity, however, enables his need to overprotect himself. He says it’s better to indulge him than let him feel unsafe. Apparently, they have fun on the trip for netherite. Big Q sang a song while they worked, goofing off and making Charlie smile a little. He doesn’t help enchant the sword and boots, but he does ensure the netherite is stably forged.
With his dark and well-shined boots, Charlie trains like a soldier going to war. As it always has been his swordwork is incredible, bow shots nearly better. From over fifty feet away he hits a creeper twice and kills it. Inside his house, Techno watches stood at the window.
“Tommy, where did you find him? An active warzone?”
Not looking up from his painting, Tommy replies, “Burnt up village. Why?”
“He fights...well, you didn’t teach him how to fight like that.” Techno’s eyebrows furrow, Tommy comes to stand at his side and watch his son from the window.
“What do you mean?”
“You, You fight to win. For glory,” Techno points, Charlie has a spider pinned under his boot, “Him?”
Adjusting his glasses to see better, Techno squints, staring at the method the boy uses. Charlie drives his sword straight through the most vulnerable part of the spider. It dies swiftly and quietly.
“He fights to kill, Tommy.”
Lately, Tommy has been trying to perfectly capture the mountain house in paint. Techno stands in the window and watches the children play outside when he isn’t busy. Tommy takes the time to pour over the canvas and use the most delicate brushstrokes. His hands are dotted and dashed in vibrant colours. Often, he’ll forget to tie his hair up, and from the window, Techno will huff. Walking over, brushing the blonde waves back into a simple braid, Techno uses every ounce of gentleness to pull back his little brother’s hair. It’s just brushing his shoulders now, bouncing around when he moves in the animated way he tends to do. Often, one of his family members will worm their fingers into it. While his father and brothers always tie it back for him, his children prefer different methods. Charlie will pick out flecks of paint he sees, even if it upsets his braid. Icarus has taken to flying above Tommy’s head and patting his hair. Percy, when sitting in his lap or cuddling, will always try and replicate the braids that the older family members adore. Clementine, now gaining more of a personality, will always pull it and giggle immediately after. She never pulls too hard, but the giggling happens every time.
By the time her birthday rolls around, she’s got a handful of words she can say. Baba was her first and seems to be her favourite. It’s what she uses to get all her brother's attention, much to Icarus’ dismay. Papa came next, which made Tommy nearly ecstatic. She even picked up “Mama” and seems to use it for every other adult that takes care of her. Tommy was confused by it at first but eventually found it funny. Mostly, she just laughs. Nothing even has to be funny or even remotely happy. Clementine will find any occasion to let out sweet-sounding giggles. Even at her young age, Tommy knows she’ll grow up to be a trouble-maker. Whenever she pulls his hair, smacks his face, or crawls somewhere she shouldn’t, she laughs like crazy. Phil jokes that it’s almost as if she’s a baby Tommy Innit.
On May 25th, the entire server gathers at the L’Manberg Sanctuary and dotes on the little girl. The tables are piled with presents, there is food and music and laughter. Icarus spends the most time holding her, vowing that now that she’s older he’ll have to start taking her on adventures. None of the adults doubt that Icarus’ attitude will rub off on her the most. Percy and Michael ask Niki for help to make a little flower crown for Clementine. Icarus carries her over to the garden and makes her “pick” her favourite. She grabs for the magnolias. Niki cuts the plants and shows the two excited younger boys how to weave the flowers together.
“You know, Clementine,” Icarus says with a puffed-out chest and proud expression, “My book on flowers says magnolias mean that you love nature.”
Clementine only giggles in response, “Oi! Don’t laugh! You’re a bee, y’know! You probably love nature!”
Percy places the white flowers in Clementine’s short red curls, Michael follows right behind him, patting Clementine on the head.
Charlie takes Clementine when Tommy has to tuck in Percy and Icarus that night. Putting her to bed is easy. He changes her into her pyjamas, places her in her crib, and sinks down next to it. The pair are eye to eye, Clementine babbles a bit.
“I’m gonna tell you a story, okay?” Charlie whispers, pressing his forehead into the wooden bars of her crib.
The light from the hall illuminates the dark room, Clementine stares at Charlie with wide eyes, “Once upon a time there was a boy and a girl.”
“The boy...well, he’s not the important bit. The girl is. The little girl had long brown hair, big green eyes like algae on a pond, and she loved making things look pretty.” He closes his eyes and pictures the last tiny head of curls he cared for, reaching a hand through the bars to pet her hair.
“One day, she said to her older brother, that’s the boy, ‘I wish we could go and live in a big house by a lake!’”
With a smile, Charlie mumbles out the story, repeatedly running his hand through her hair. “The boy smiled at her and promised that one day he would take her to live in a big house by a lake. A house where they would have enough food to eat, a warm bed to sleep on, and frogs. Lots and lots of frogs.”
Tommy walks to Clementine’s room, leaning against the door and listening to his son’s whispers, “The boy took the girl exploring, looking for a lake where they could build a big house. When they found a lake, they saw all kinds of frogs and lots of space to build a home.”
Charlie’s voice gets quieter, not noticing Tommy, shutting his eyes and pulling away from Clementine, “But the adults in their village didn’t like the lake, and they didn’t like the boy.”
“So, one day, a bad man decided he would take the girl to live in a big house far away. The boy-He-Well, the boy tried.”
“The adults in the village let the little girl go with the bad man.” He mutters, voice choked up, watching Clementine begin to drift.
“So the little girl went to live in the big house, and the boy went to live by the lake in the woods.”
There is a long pause, Charlie watches Clementine fall safely asleep.
“Sorry, it’s a sad story.”
“Charlie?” Tommy asks, watching his son jump and fall back onto the floor.
His expression is sad, and his voice stutters more than usual, “Uh-Hey. Just telling her a bedtime story. It’s done now.”
Charlie gets up, closes the door, and gives Tommy a nervous smirk. Tommy reaches forward and pats Charlie’s cheek. They wish each other goodnight. Tommy heads to bed, and he thinks about his son’s story. Charlie can’t sleep. He crawls out of his bedroom window, lands in the soft snow, and trudges over to Wilbur’s house. Wilbur opens the door, gives the boy a smile, and opens his mouth to speak.
Cutting him off is a very meekly asked question, “Does it ever get better? Do you ever feel like he’s completely safe?”
“I’ll make you some tea.”
Waking up on Wilbur’s couch, smelling mint tea and french toast, Charlie sighs. He moves his arm over his tired eyes so the sunlight from the window won’t aggravate him. For the day, Wil gives him simple tasks around the house. Dusting window sills, organizing sheet music, learning a handful of chords on the guitar. Wilbur shuns all the other adults and children away from his house. He’s determined to give Charlie a simple day. A day where he doesn’t have to act older than he is. They eat dinner together, red sauce with mushrooms over pasta. He stays over another night, this time accidentally. He falls asleep on the couch while Wilbur is showing him a new song he’s been working on. Tucking his nephew in, Wilbur goes to work at Phil’s house to give the teenager some privacy. In the morning, Wil returns to clean dishes and no nephew. His footprints in the snow lead out into the woods.
It happens when they’re all away or busy. Nobody expected it. Tubbo and Ranboo have taken Michael and Percy on a field trip to see Sam, Tommy and Wilbur have taken Clementine and gone to do “big man shit”. Everyone pretends they don’t know “big man shit” is a picnic. Phil has taken to organizing his attic, he’s told everyone not to bother him. He needs complete focus. In the living room of the Innit house, Charlie watches Icarus play through the window, Lady Galatea resting by the fire. Shoulders relaxed, Charlie stares out at the tundra snow. In his lap is his fox mask, his fingers run over the material repetitively. After years of use, you’d expect the paint to be chipped, but it appears meticulously taken care of.
Techno returns from chopping wood, immediately Charlie perks up. Icarus waves his wooden sword and calls to him across the short distance.
“Uncle Techno! Hi Uncle Techno! Hi!”
Waving back, Techno puts his logs in a nearby chest and walks over, “You playing L’Manberg?”
“Nope! I’m practicing my fighting!” Icarus slashes the air widely with his small sword.
With a scoff, Techno walks over and stares down at the kid, “Oh yeah? You want to be a hero?”
After a moment of thinking, Icarus shakes his head, “Hmmm...I want to be strong! Being a hero sounds like too much work!”
“Good decision, kid.” Techno smirks, ruffling the boy's hair.
It’s silent for a moment until, “Oh! Hey! You’re a good fighter! You should teach me!”
“I don’t know, don’t think Tommy’d like that.” For some reason, Techno is nervous to make Tommy upset, it’s strange.
“My dad says he’s gonna teach me soon, and I could surprise him by being the awesome Technoblade’s secret apprentice!”
While a sweet sentiment, Technoblade has an image to uphold, he raises an eyebrow at the boy, “And why should I teach you? Obviously, I’m a good fighter but there are lots of good fighters.”
The boy’s response is immediate, “You know about strategy! My books say that’s important! You can’t win without a plan, and honestly, dad isn’t very good at plans; he just does cool things because it’s cool!”
Techno thinks about it for a second. The boy looks so genuinely excited, and he’s greatly improved at his parkour skills. It could be useful for him to at least learn how to properly hold a weapon.
“Alright, draw your weapon.”
Icarus stands at the ready...and he does it terribly. Tommy was probably a good teacher, but he had to accommodate for Icarus’ wings. Imagining a fighting style for Icarus is easy because he’s seen how Phil fights. Icarus’ feet are planted too firmly on the ground, his grip is far too tight.
“You look like you’re trying to fight like Tommy.”
“What does that mean!? Are you being a bitch, Technoblade?”
“No. You’re just not Tommy.”
Techno tells him that Tommy fights recklessly, Tommy relies on being able to make split-second decisions in battle. He’s pinned firmly to the ground so he gives it his all no matter what. Icarus has an escape, his wings. Icarus follows Techno’s instructions, he lightens his footwork and holds his sword closer to his body. Techno positions him in such a way that he could easily attack.
“Okay, now hit me.”
Icarus lights up at how much easier it is when he relies on his wings for support.
Techno smiles, “You wanna try dodging now?”
“Are you gonna use your sword!?” A very over-excited Icarus shouts.
“Sure. But I’m not gonna actually hit you.”
Icarus nods, Techno draws the Orphan Obliterator. The boy vibrates with excitement, Techno motions for him to ready himself. Techno swings, Icarus dodges. He’s just about to start cheering.
“Icarus.”
Charlie is standing in the doorway of their house, his mask glinting in the spring light. They both stop.
“Get in the house.”
Technoblade should have known this was coming. The eldest child had never liked him. He was always scared half to death when Techno was around. The other half seemed to be slowly boiling anger.
“Charlie, we were just training-” Icarus looks mortified, usually he’d fight back, but now? Now he’s pleading. Techno figures it’s because Charlie has his sword in his hand.
“Get in the house, now.” Though his voice is measured and his body is calm, Icarus begins to freak out.
“Charlie-”
He puts a hand on the kid's shoulder, “Listen to your brother, Icarus.”
It’s the wrong move to have made because Charlie rushes him and swings at his arm.
“Please-Uncle Techno-He doesn’t mean it-” Icarus cries as Charlie readies his weapon at Technoblade.
The voices are shouting at Techno to help the kid, rather than hurt him. They can sense something is wrong.
“I won’t fight you.”
Charlie swings again, and he nearly slashes Techno’s ear off. If he hadn’t dodged when he did, he would have lost it entirely. That strike was a warning. Next, Techno has to dodge an attack that would have taken off his head.
“Icarus, go inside,” Charlie says in a hushed angry whisper.
Instead of looking at his brother, Icarus looks directly at Techno with panic in his eyes, “Techno-Uncle Techno please don’t hurt him-”
“I said now!” Charlie snaps at Icarus, who scrambles off into the house.
The problem isn’t that the kid is trying to fight him, it’s that he’s good. Techno and the voices are all in awe of his skill. Not only does he have the balls to come at him, but he also has the skill to nearly hit him thrice. His head is filled with either coos for the child or wild exclamations about the young boy's skill. It goes on for about thirty seconds before Charlie actually hits him. Right across his chest is a slash through his shirt, the wound isn’t deep but it still bleeds.
“Who taught you how to fight?”
The boy doesn’t answer, he just slashes again. This time, metal collides with metal. Techno knows he can’t hurt the kid, but he can fight to disarm. Raising his sword immediately seems like a bad idea because Charlie becomes a rabid animal. He attacks with such intense vigour, baring his teeth and using his lithe features to attack at any angle.
Icarus watches from the window as Techno strikes, he assumes he is striking to harm. His breathing picks up, and before he knows it his eyes are full of tears. Lady Galatea stands at attention, concerned for her boy as tears track down his cheeks. He runs rabidly out the backdoor, through the snow, and flies up to Phil’s attic window. With all the strength in his body, he kicks the wooden panels open. Phil turns to shout at the boy for kicking in the window when he notices the tears.
“Uncle Techno! Charlie! They’re-They’re fighting!” Icarus pleads, tears rolling down his cheeks, he grabs Phil’s sleeve and pulls him to the window.
Confused, Phil softly asks, “What, mate?”
The boy’s breathing picks up and he stutters out his words through steadily progressing sobs, “They’ve got swords! He’s gonna hurt him! Hurry!”
Phil follows the boy out the window, and from the air spots the rather intense fight. Charlie attacking brutally, Techno defending and blocking at every turn.
The pair fly down towards the fight, Phil lands gracefully behind Charlie while the panicked Icarus faceplants into the snow. He scrambles to his feet, attempting to run to his older brother before Phil grabs his arm.
“Don’t go near, Charlie’s pissed.”
“He’s mad at Techno! Not me! He won’t hurt me! He’d never hurt me! He said so! He promised!” Icarus sobs and screams, the sound alerting Charlie.
The teenager turns and charges for Phil who flies up into the air carrying Icarus. Charlie’s breathing picks up, he begins to hyperventilate. Looking around at the houses for a way into the air, he takes his attention off of Techno almost completely. It’s a wonder he manages to attack when Techno tries to get the weapon away. Since Techno wasn’t expecting it, he gets a small gash across the wrist for his troubles.
“Put me down! Phil! Grandpa! You’re making it worse! Phil! Put me down!”
Techno lunges to try and tackle Charlie to the ground but only manages to knock him upside the head. His fox mask tumbles to the ground and is crushed under Technoblade’s foot. It’s only split into five pieces but it’s enough. Charlie screams bloody murder. Red eyes train on Techno in the most hate-filled glare he’s ever seen. He knows those eyes, he’s seen that shade of red in the mirror when the voices get too loud. It’s a petrifying state of being. You fight and you fight until your limbs go numb. You fight until it all goes black. There is no barrier between yourself and the voices, it’s as if you’re being puppeted by fear, anger, and hurt. Techno knows exactly how it feels, the white-hot pain and agony of having no control over yourself and only searching for blood. Suddenly, his fighting ability makes sense. They tell you where your enemies are, what movies to make, how and where to attack. It makes you a vicious fighter.
“We’ve got a problem, Phil!”
With a roll in his eyes, and a tone full of sass, Phil shouts, “You really think so, Techno!?”
Techno lets out an exasperated sigh, “He’s got voices!”
Squirming in Phil’s tight grasp, beating his wings, Icarus is wracked with sobs, “Please! He isn’t dangerous! Please don’t hurt him! Please! I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to!”
Charlie begins to move more erratically, he swings but as he does he steps in strange ways. His eyes flit around everywhere, his breathing picks up. Techno and Phil exchange a look, and suddenly they know what to do. Phil puts Icarus down on the roof of one of the buildings and watches Charlie fight with Techno like his life is at stake. From the air, Phil ambushes the boy who just barely manages to get away. When he rolls to escape, he loses grip on his weapon and Phil claims it in the air.
Techno charges the teenager and pins him, arms stuck above his head. Phil tosses the weapon as far as he can throw it and goes to try and help Charlie. The second he’s pinned, Charlie starts screaming.
“Run!” He shouts, “Don’t let them catch you! Run! Go! Go! Icarus! Icarus! I-”
All the energy begins to fade from his body, he fights despite exhausted muscles.
Quickly removing his grip on the kid’s hands while still keeping him pinned, “Kid! Kid! Charlie! I’m not gonna hurt you! I’m not!”
Tired arms smack Techno with all they have, tears start rolling down his cheeks. Charlie’s bright red eyes flit around, searching for something. Someone. Icarus is still crying on the roof. Phil tries to calm him, as does Techno, but nothing helps. He thrashes and hits and kicks and does all he can to get away, all while shouting for someone to run. It takes thirteen minutes for total exhaustion to set in.
In one last-ditch effort, Charlie shouts with everything he has left, “Evangeline!”
Everything goes black.
Cobblestone walls box them all in, in the furthest corner he sits with her on their shared twin bed. Rows of the tattered mattresses line the walls. Outside, the moon is full.
“Eva?” Charlie mutters out rubbing his eyes, “You’re supposed to be asleep, Miss Molly will be angry with me if you don’t come to bed.”
On the floor beside their bed with a little candle lit, a girl no more than seven reads a little book, “I wanted to read, I’m being quiet.”
He sighs, leaning over to pull his little sister up on the bed, she snuggles into his lap and hands him the book.
“You’re better at reading than I am, will you please read it to me again?”
Her big green eyes look up at him and plead for a story. He can never say no to her. He brushes a hand over her head, past the little pink bow she insists on sleeping in.
“You brushed your hair? And your teeth?”
“Mhm! I’m all clean!” She points at the pictures in the book, “It’s the one with the ducks and the frogs! It’s about the pond!”
He knows the whole story by heart, he’s the one that made the book with pieces of scrap paper he stole from the garbage and a pen stolen from the carpenter’s store. Charlie begins to read.
Even passed out, Charlie mumbles her name. Techno carries him inside and puts him on the couch, Phil helps with his scrapes and gashes. Icarus follows them inside and holds onto Charlie’s hand for dear life.
Both adults watch the two boys from a distance, Techno speaks first, “There’s no way Icarus didn’t know.”
“There’s no way Tommy does,” Adds Phil, eyebrows furrowing as he stares at the boys.
“What do we tell Tommy?” Techno whispers, letting worry flood his tone.
“Everything,” Phil shrugs, “But first, we ask Icarus what he knows.”
Tommy and Wilbur arrive back from their picnic five hours later, carrying a happy Clementine. Confusion floods their expressions when they see Techno with a bandage on his arm and Charlie still blacked out on the couch.
Phil takes the baby and ushers over Wilbur to sit by Charlie. Techno takes Icarus and Tommy to another room. Wracked with guilt and tear-stained, Icarus can’t meet Tommy’s eyes.
“Tell him. You can’t not tell him.”
With his gaze still firmly planted on the ground, Icarus whispers, “Charlie made me promise not to tell you…”
Tommy squats down to his level, placing a gentle hand on his arm and looking him in the eye.
“He hears voices. They make him very scared.” Icarus’ eyes well with tears, Tommy gives him a hug and takes a deep breath.
“I-I’m proud of you for telling me, big man. Go sit with your brother, will ya? I gotta have a chat with The Blade.”
Techno can tell the second Icarus is gone that Tommy wants to shout at him.
“Technoblade if you laid a hand on my son, I swear to god you won’t live another day.”
Making intense eye contact, neither blinks, “Actually, your son laid a hand on me. I never attacked, just defended.”
Reeling back and then exploding, Tommy shouts wildly, “You fought my baby!?”
“He attacked me first!” Techno pleads, raising his voice to match his younger brother.
“So that’s an acceptable excuse to fight a sixteen-year-old boy who’s scared of you and apparently dealing with voices!?” Using all the strength Tommy can muster, he shoves Techno out of frustration and defeat.
It doesn’t move Techno, but he does give Tommy a slight shove back, “I know exactly what he’s going through! I went through the same thing! He wouldn’t have stopped! If I didn’t restrain him he would have tried to kill me until he died of exhaustion!”
“Ahem.” Wil clears his throat in the doorway, shocking both his brothers.
Tommy turns on Wilbur who looks very unimpressed with their fight, “The fuck do you want Wilbur!? Techno attacked my fuckin’ kid!”
“Charlie’s waking up.”
Really, all Charlie is doing is wildly thrashing in his sleep. Inside his head, he is reliving one of the worst days of his life. As he struggles against the pull of three adult men, he watches his younger sister be pulled away.
“Evangeline! Run!”
A woman, grey-haired in a bright red dress, walks directly up to him and snatches his jaw in her grip, “Now you listen here. That little girl is finally going to a loving family. Quit your yelling, it’s enough I don’t throw you out into the street for Technoblade to find.”
Twelve years old, frightened and alone, he thrashes and kicks and screams. His sister, the one he’d raised since she was a baby, stared at him with tears in her eyes.
“Come along now, Evangeline!” The man with her said, pulling on her hand and dragging her away from her only living family.
“Evangeline!” Charlie cries, shouting until his voice breaks, “Run!”
Miss Molly starts shouting, he stares at the red fabric of her dress until she’s done. The sharp pain against his cheek and the bruising grip around his arms cause his mind to blur. It is then and there being manhandled by multiple adults, being berated by the woman who was supposed to care for him, being ripped away from his baby sister, that he hears it.
Blood for the blood god. Kill them all.
Then there are more, so many more, they get louder and they shout. Choruses of unknown voices scream at him for blood. Scream wildly for pain and suffering. Scream for them to die as his parents did all those years ago. Something in him snaps. Charlie can smell the smoke even now, a fire that big burns its scent into your mind for years to come.
He wakes up in a panic, eyes welling with tears, muttering, “Evangeline-”
The pressure of someone crawling into his lap registers, the tears roll down his cheeks and his vision clears enough to see brown curls and charcoal grey wings.
“Icarus,” Barely speaking his name, Charlie grabs at his brother, pulling him in for a hug and pressing kisses into his hair.
Protect the little one, the voices say, don’t let him be taken.
Moving his eyes across the room, he sees his father. He sees Wilbur. He sees-Reaching for his belt to find his sword, he grasps at something that isn’t there. In a panic, he attempts to stand and run away with Icarus but the second he gets on his feet he collapses and feels near faint again.
Through his blurry vision he can’t tell who comes to rest in front of him. The voices are saying something, but he’s too woozy to understand their shouting. All he knows is the person is warm, and their large hand is pressing a warm cloth into his forehead. Exhausted, scared, and aching for comfort, he leans into the touch and ends up falling into their chest. Their steady heartbeat, their warmth, their gentle touch, makes him tune it all out. On the verge of fainting, the warm person picks him up and places him back on the couch. When their presence backs away he whines, barely able to make the feeble and exhausted noise. His arms hurt, his legs hurt, his chest hurts. Every single one of his bones aches from over-exertion, yet he still makes the effort to try and reach for the warm person. They respond hesitantly, scooping him up to sit behind him on the couch. Charlie rests his head against their chest, their steady heartbeat returns. He wilts under it, melting into the comfort and ignoring all the barely comprehensible words he’s hearing.
“Well...That’s a quick turnaround.” Wilbur laughs, all too pleased considering the situation.
It isn’t funny. At least, Techno doesn’t think so. Asleep again, resting against his chest, is Charlie. When he wakes up, he’s going to punch Techno square in the jaw, Techno knows it. Normally he wouldn’t indulge in this kind of thing, but...he couldn’t deny that he was developing a soft spot for the kid and fast. Charlie had always had Techno’s respect, he was a dutiful brother, a good kid, and above all else a good fighter. Too good to be true at sixteen. Part of him blames himself for not knowing sooner, the red in his eyes, the shake in his hands. Voices do that to you, make you both unshaking and shaky at the same time. Techno remembers very well how he was when Phil had found him. The fear, the anger, the instincts...the shouting. Dear lord, the shouting. When he was younger, they never shut up. Now, they’re kinder, calmer, they don’t push as much. Hell, they can even be sort of funny at some times. In his youth it was a constant parade of calls for blood, causing him to tear through any problem with a sword and his teeth.
In his heart, he can’t find the courage to move him. The kid looks content, and he’s probably in a lot of pain. Icarus crawls into Techno’s lap, resting on one of his thighs. He stares up at him with wide eyes, Techno sighs and motions for him to join.
“Will he be okay, uncle Techno?”
“...I” Technoblade looks up at Phil, Tommy, and Wilbur for guidance, but the three are engrossed in their own conversation about the situation, “Yeah, He...He should be okay.”
Icarus nods, wrapping his wings around the three of them as best as he can. Technoblade knows exactly who he picked it up from. It isn’t a surprise, really. Phil and Dream are becoming some of his favourite people, he’s picking up their traits quickly. Voices flood him, asking when Charlie will start to pick up traits of his family. Well, more specifically, him. Shunning those thoughts to the back of his mind, he tries not to get his hope up that maybe he could be a mentor.
How fun would it be to mentor him? He’s mature! He’s strong! The voices have made up their mind about Charlie.
As Charlie fumbles in his sleep, Techno thinks subconsciously, he has too.
He sleeps nearly two days straight, waking up only to be woozy and spoon-fed by one of his family members. It’s the strangest thing, all his dreams are so quick it barely feels as if time has passed. A flash of a faceless crowd in a colosseum, the large black boots gently tapping against a king’s throne, the hair of a woman lightly graced with a forget-me-not. He feels himself regain consciousness...and he is not at home. Someone with gruff hands pulls him into a sitting position and is immediately scolded for it.
“Be gentle with him! He’s only mortal, you know!”
He rubs his eyes and sees the smiling face of a woman. As he looks around and sees the colosseum, there is cheering from the faceless crowd. He recognizes some of the voices he picks out. Confusion waves over him as he looks back and truly takes in the pair. The woman is dressed in a baby-blue floor-length gown, the man...is not much of a man. He is a piglin, like Technoblade, but much bigger. He’s sitting beside him, but it is obvious he’s more than ten feet tall. His boots tap against the marble of the chairs he was laying on.
“Are you alright, Charlie? He didn’t hurt you did he?”
“Uhm-” She reminds him of his mother in the way she smiles, “Yes, Ma’am, I’m alright.”
“See how polite! Tommy’s done such a wonderful job with you!”
The man huffs as the woman sits down right beside him and takes his hand, the crowd in the colosseum cheer again.
Gently, her hand comes up to cup his cheek, “Phil’s told me so very much about you.”
His eyes narrow in confusion and suspicion, “Wh-Phil? You-You know Phil?”
She laughs a little, “I-Yes, dear. I know him. He’s my husband, I’m your grandmother!”
It did make sense. Phil never talked about girls much, and when he did it was always one girl, one girl who had a fondness for the same flower this woman wears in a crown on her head.
“You-He-...Where am I?” He asks, and his grandmother nods in the direction of the piglin who sighs and rolls his eyes.
“A colosseum.”
His grandmother gives the piglin and stern look, and he moves to the rails to see into the pit.
“You are in my realm. I am The Blood God. I pick champions, my people watch you. I’m entertained and well-fed by all the bloodshed my champions take on. They ask for blood so I may continue to thrive.”
“Awfully grim, but true! My name is Kristin, you can call me grandma if you’d like! I am the goddess of Death!”
“That...So…” Charlie takes a moment to process, “I’m killing for sport and my entire family is weird as hell. Great to know.”
Kristin chuckles, pinching his cheek, “I made him bring you here, you needed some answers.”
The Blood God turns and stares him down with scarlet eyes that bore into his soul, “And, I’d appreciate it if you no longer attempted to kill any other champions. It’s highly counter-productive to my needs.”
Shooting the god a quick death glare, Kristin smooths his hair and reassures him, “What he means to say, is that Techno is a huge sweetheart. All his audience members adore you to bits, they want him to be your mentor, so don’t let other people’s biases against him get in the way of your feelings, okay dear?”
“Okay, I just…” There is obviously not much he can say or do with two gods in the room, but with a confidence he didn’t know he had, he asks, “Can you tell my guys to like...chill? I-...I’m only sixteen. I don’t wanna be all...angsty and scared all the time.”
“So long as you cease fighting with The Blade, consider it done.” The Blood God waves a hand and disappears, hopefully, to reprimand his...audience.
With a swift and gentle kiss on the forehead from his grandmother, he feels his consciousness slipping.
“Tell my husband and children I said hello,” Kristin whispers, he barely registers it before he snaps back to consciousness.
Tommy, Phil, Wilbur, and Techno are all standing in his room looking to be at different stages of concern. Tommy is right by his side pressing a warm cloth in his head, Wilbur is tucking him into a heavy pile of blankets. Phil is sitting at the foot of his bed with a tentative hand on his ankle, Techno is watching from the door. He feels like he’s burning, and with all his might he shoves them all away.
“Quit it! I’m not dying!” Wiggling free of Phil’s hold and his blanket prison, he sits up and pouts like a child.
“You were half-frozen, Charlie! Your hands and your face were ice cold!” Tommy argues, trying to place the cloth back onto his head.
He rips the cloth from his father’s hand and tosses it across the room so he’ll have to go retrieve it, “Grandma says hi, by the way.”
Phil sighs with relief, Wil and Tommy look confused, Techno still stands at the door unemotionally.
“She’s lovely, huh?” There is a glint in Phil’s eyes that implies it’s a magical kind of lovely.
Charlie nods, offering Phil a small smile, “Very soothing.”
Wil gets up and starts to put blankets away, he and Tommy whispering about something or other. Most likely the ‘grandma’ comment. Techno clears his throat, and they lock eyes. Though his initial reaction is to be afraid, and some of the voices from his audience still tell him to fight, an overwhelming number begin to tell him that he’s safe. Charlie nods, and Technoblade tentatively steps into the room.
“How-Uh-How’re ya’ feelin’?” His uncle asks awkwardly.
Man, this is what Techno’s like? This guy's a loser! The others say he’s so cool but this is just lame!
Charlie can’t hold back the small laugh, and all four adults stare.
“Sorry just, uh,” He pauses, they know the voices exist, why not share his thoughts on them, “The voices think Techno’s lame.”
“Wh-” Techno goes to respond, then grimaces, “Great, now mine are bullying me.”
Tommy, Wilbur, and Phil all laugh. It’s a moment of peace that Charlie’s been craving for years.
“Could uh-I need to talk to Techno, alone, could you guys-”
“Message received,” Phil responds, ushering Tommy and Wil out by their collars as they protest, the door slams behind them and they are alone.
It’s deadly silent as the two just look at each other, Charlie knows it’s his job to break the news.
“So...I met the boss man. Says we can’t fight.”
Techno blinks hard, trying to figure out what the boy means, then the voices chime in cheerily.
“Wh-You mean The Blood God!? Heh!?”
“Yeah...Phil’s wife is the goddess of death. I think she likes me.”
Charlie can see the gears turning in Technoblade’s mind as he internally argues with the voices.
“Also, she said uh-Well-She said your voices like me?”
Techno scowls, crossing his arms over his chest and huffing, “Oh god-Be lucky you can’t hear them cooing over you. You’d feel babied.”
Patting a spot on the bed, Charlie offers him a place to sit, “Sorry I uh-I lost it on you. PTSD and such.”
“You’re awfully calm now,” The piglin comments, very warily sitting next to him.
Now, he was faced with a predicament. The real reason he is so calm now is that Techno has spent two days helping take care of him, and he can remember the calm he felt curled up against his chest like some helpless kid. He decides that lying is much, much, less embarrassing.
“Well, The Blood God said you have to mentor me. So I’ll have to learn to be calm.”
There are obviously still moments where Charlie retaliates. He draws his sword, fights tooth and nail, or simply flinches when Techno moves too fast. But, overall, the pair bond quickly. This is evident by their complete takedown of Dream and Icarus at Icarus’ birthday party in July. The winged boy had begged for a team-based obstacle course event in order to celebrate, Tommy could not say no. There were three sections and three teams between the arctic community and the L’manberg Sanctuary where the party was held. Big Q and Bad broadcast the whole event live to the sanctuary, providing hilarious bickering as commentary. First, archery. After that, speedrunning to build a portal and get to the nether base. After that a parkour course complete with an MLG water bucket over the top of the sanctuary down to the party floor.
Dream and Icarus flew through the competition, Charlie and Techno on their heels the whole time. Wilbur and Tommy, the third team, bickered far too much to progress as fast as the other two teams. Charlie and Techno completed the archery course first, Dream and Icarus built their portal and travelled in record time. It was down to the last stretch of the parkour, both teams neck and neck. Dream and Techno had already MLG’d into the party space, waiting on the boys. As Dream was coaching Icarus through the jump, Techno and Charlie were having a silent staring competition. Both boys jumped at the same time, and while Icarus freaked out and used his wings at the last second, Charlie landed it. Icarus barely even noticed that he lost, enamoured in his brother’s achievement. Before his cake and numerous presents, he hugged his big brother as tight as he could and shouted about how cool he was. While he was distracted by cake, Techno ruffled Charlie’s hair as congratulations. Charlie felt...surprisingly safe.
Then came the hard part. Over the last few months, he’d pulled away from two of his favourite adults, and while now he spent a majority of his time doing menial tasks silently with Techno, he missed the fun of Quackity and Karl. Usually, they reached out to him, but they hadn’t spoken in a while. Charlie felt he needed to apologize for his distant behaviour. His only problem? Sapnap. Whenever he would try and go to find Quackity or Karl, they were always with him. It’s not as if he couldn’t take Sapnap in a fight, or that Sapnap would be particularly mean to him, he just felt...bad when he was around. Scared. It was the same dumb feeling he would get when he would see George, or worse, both of them together. It builds up until it spills out while he and Techno are tending the turtles. He just looks up at the mountain and shouts in frustration.
Before Techno can even respond, Charlie whips around and starts to talk at a mile a minute.
“I want to hang out with Big Q and Karl all the time but Sapnap is always there and I hate Sapnap, he freaks me out, I don’t fucking like him. So I can’t talk to them and I can’t say sorry for not really talking to them much and I would punch him if it wouldn’t make Karl and Quackity mad at me.”
Techno blinks once, “I’m bad at advice, go ask Phil.”
And, of course, Phil was no help. What did he know? Tommy was right, he was senile. His grandfather’s genius advice was, “Mate, just talk to them,” which is not conducive to the problem at all. Charlie has tried talking to them. But he always sees Sapnap and feels the creep of that old paralyzing fear his voices loved so much and he bolts. He tries writing a letter like Wilbur suggests, but that is far too fancy. Tommy jokingly tells him to just stab Sapnap, but then Big Q and Karl would never forgive him. It feels like he’s asked every adult on the server before he decides to just give up and sulk by Badboyhalo’s house. Laying in the grass and grumpily staring up at the clouds, he mulls over the situation for a very long time. He hears Bad approaching and doesn’t even move, he just grumbles very loudly.
“What’re you doing in the grass, you silly muffin! You’re gonna stain your sweater!”
“Don’t care. Trying to do teenage angst.”
Bad giggles, leaning over to look him in the eyes even though Charlie sees him upside down, “Ah, is it about that Karl and Quackity thing?”
Charlie grumbles and Bad laughs again, he’s always so positive and happy, Charlie cannot stand it while he’s trying to brood, “Well, maybe you should get them an I’m sorry gift! You don’t even have to talk to them, you can just leave it on their doorstep!”
Bolting up from his place on the grass, he scrambles to his feet and scurries off, yelling behind him, “Badboyhalo, you are a genius! I have to go to do that now, bye!”
Tuesday nights are usually saved for game nights in the triad's house, except Sapnap had an errand, so it had to be postponed. When he enters carrying a fairly small box, Karl and Quackity both perk up.
“Yo! Got us a present, Sap?” Quackity asks, smiling and already hyped.
“No, actually, it was on the doorstep. Says it’s for you two.”
The pair are off the couch in an instant and opening the box. Inside are a pair of gold circlets with little gemstones in them. One has lapis and citrine, for Quackity. The other has emerald and amethyst, for Karl. The note in the box reads, ‘Traded for these in the nether, Piglins make good jewelry (Techno taught me). Sorry I’ve not spoken to you much. Come hang out soon.’
“It doesn’t have a name, who’s it from? Tubbo? Wilbur?” Sapnap asks, confused, but fawning over the jewelry gifted to his husbands.
“Nope, this is definitely from Charlie!”
“Agreed! The kid has a damn good eye! These gems are quality, shit!”
That Saturday, Charlie gets into the biggest snowball fight of his life. He and Karl team up against Quackity and absolutely destroy him before making a snow fort and putting a sign out front that says “No dummies allowed!”. No matter how endlessly childish it feels, it’s nice to do something with Karl and Big Q again. Before they leave the promise to come to pick him up soon, to show him some cool shit. He doesn’t miss the glint of their bracelets. Through dinner, he’s beaming, and when Wilbur asks how his day was and he recounts the story, everybody listens. Love swells in his chest and it all starts to feel safe again. Home is here, home is these people and this large dark oak table. It is home when after dinner, he watches the adults take care of the dishes or head home. Watching Percy and Michael play is home, Icarus and Lady Galatea reading by the fire is home, the friendly bickering in the kitchen is home. He begins to drift to sleep, and Techno puts his cape over him before walking out the door to go to his house for the night. He leaves without his treasured item, and Charlie curls into it, falling asleep then and there. Techno will not retrieve his cape until morning, it is a reminder that he is there even in his sleep. They all are. Love here is not conditional, this is his family.
Sapnap, the bastard, is decidedly not his family. Big Q and Karl try to help them bond, but when Sapnap starts talking about how he sets things on fire for fun sometimes, Charlie completely shuts him out. It’s just in Sap’s nature to not know where the line is. If, on the rare occasion they’re in the same room, he’ll push the line in a light-hearted teasing way that makes Charlie want to bang his head against the wall. Or stab him. He cannot stab him, that would probably get him in trouble with Karl and Quackity. Techno wouldn’t mind though, and he finds he cares too much about what Techno thinks. When his beloved uncle and mentor plans a week-long solo trip away in late September he feels dejected with Icarus. After a lot of pleading with Tommy, Icarus manages to be allowed to have a sleepover at Dream’s house while Techno’s away. Neither boy has ever had a sleepover and something stirs in Charlie.
That’s the start of the whole ordeal he’s gotten himself into now. All he wanted was a sleepover with Karl and Quackity. Karl and he would cook dinner, Quackity would pick a dumb soap opera to watch, and they’d spend all night throwing popcorn at the characters when they said something cringeworthy. Things didn't go as planned, both adults ended up late, and he was stuck alone in the house with fucking Sapnap. The man tries to joke with Charlie but he denies and denies the upbeat atmosphere, until he decides getting closer to the child is a better idea. He’s in Charlie’s face when the door swings open, making some dumb joke. After all that’s happened he’s fed up with being disrespected, fed up with Sapnap not taking the hint and backing up. The voices tell him that Karl and Quackity are coming in, but he doesn’t care. He sees red.
The man nearly flies across the room with the force at which he is punched. All three husbands stand and stare, exchanging looks. Charlie is about to feel guilty when Quackity starts to laugh hysterically.
“You just got bodied by a sixteen-year-old holy fucking shit!” Through Big Q’s loud and harmonious laughter, he grabs Charlie and gives him a massive hug.
Karl, on the other hand, reprimands Sapnap, “Sap, baby, we told you the kid would kick your ass if you got in his space!”
Nursing what will probably be a terrible black eye, Sapnap smiles, “I didn’t think you meant it!”
Charlie smirks, “I’d do it again. Felt good.”
They’re not sure how it’s possible, but Quackity laughs harder. Karl partakes in bullying Sapnap and gives Charlie the biggest bear hug. They do end up watching a terrible soap opera, Karl splayed out across all three of the people in the room. Charlie feels confident enough to poke fun at the show alongside them, it’s a good night all things considered.
When it all falls together for him is his birthday, when he turns seventeen. The party is calmer, as calm as a gathering in the Dream SMP can be. Tommy and Wilbur collaborated to get him his own custom-painted guitar, Phil forged him a netherite pickaxe, Karl and Quackity recorded an original song for him. He plays the song in front of everyone and it’s hilariously awful on purpose. Techno gives him his first totem of undying, and Charlie has to fight back emotions. Every other adult brings a myriad of presents, nearly too many to count. Lavender infused honey from Ranboo and Tubbo, a leather-bound journal from Puffy, two loaves of fresh bread from Niki. He can’t remember half of them. Near the end of the night, he sits under the L’Mantree with his guitar and his sister on a blanket. It’s hard to learn, but he wants to start with the L’Manberg anthem so he and Icarus can be like a band. The sun is just beginning to set when three boys run up to him holding gifts.
“Mine first!” Icarus says, shoving a very small box into Charlie’s hands.
He opens it and finds a ring made of gold and silver, seemingly inscribed with his sword and...lotus flowers. It’s stunningly beautiful, really, and so he smiles and pats the ground for them all to sit. He puts it on and finds it fits perfectly.
“It’s lovely, Icarus,” Charlie says with a smile, looking at Percy and Michael expectantly, “What have you two got for me?”
From behind their backs, they reveal five fresh mandarin oranges, both smiling brightly at the older boy.
“Well, you guys certainly know how to pick out gifts. Sit, c’mon, I’ll peel them.”
All three boys sit in a circle shape around him, as he gently takes the oranges into his palm and sets his guitar aside.
“What’s it like to be grown-up?” Michael asks as Charlie digs his thumb into the skin of one of the oranges.
Citrus fills his nose, the juice squeezes onto his fingers, “I like it better than I used to.”
“Back then,” Setting the peel onto the grass, Clementine reaches out to grab one and he swiftly moves it away from her prying hands, “It was hard. I always had to fight for myself with no family to help me.”
As he knows how much his brothers and cousin despise it, he gently picks the pith away from the fruit, “Now, though? It’s easy as breathing.”
“I have you all to protect me now, don’t I?” He smiles deviously at the young boys as he breaks the orange into its neat pieces.
Michael snorts, Percy giggles, and Icarus lets out a cheer he certainly picked up from Tommy, “Hold out your hands so I can give you all some.”
They do, and he does. Each of them gets two pieces, including Clementine. Charlie uses his sword to cut them much smaller for his baby sister.
Golden light from the sunset illuminates the young children against the L’Mantree. Michael tells them all a story about a strange lady he and Percy met a few days ago. Icarus scoffs and sighs, but maintains a bright smile. Percy helps Charlie feed pieces of orange to clementine. Tommy watches from a distance as his children begin to grow into men, his oldest only a year away. Ranboo is beside him, also watching, and he puts a hand on Tommy’s shoulder.
“You ought to teach Michael the Innit family mantra. He’s practically one of us.”
“Hey! You can’t steal my son!”
“I didn’t!” Tommy laughs, pointing to Percy who is resting his head on Michael’s shoulder, “He did!”
It’s not a very hard mantra, but Michael struggles with it until Percy guides him through it. They’re putting lotus flowers, Charlie’s favourite, into the pond when Percy enunciates the mantra aloud perfectly. Michael repeats it back to him. To them, the safety of each other is warmer than the Nether.