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Trust was not so easily given, and Philza Minceraft knew this.
Hell, he raised four children that held their own trust issues. He spent years cracking away at them for them to finally feel safe enough to sleep in the same room with him and to turn their backs to him.
So why did he throw away the bond with two, kill the other, but live with the fourth? He knew very well why he did, he played favorites. He didn’t try to of course, but there was just something about Techno that drew Phil to be with him more than the others. Maybe it was the saying that 'Technoblade Never Dies' that he could relate to as ‘The Angel of Death’. Perhaps it was how their childhoods were so similar, where they were taken away from their families and thrown into The Pit, an illegal fight club that wanted to watch blood spill. The most likely thing though, was that they were both fighters.
Wilbur was never a fighter while he lived under Phil's roof, always wanting to hold a pen to write stories than to pick up a sword to spill blood. He was a lovely singer too and could spin melodies from simply plucking the strings of a guitar. Even when he left to make a country and was thrust into an unjust war, he refused to raise his bow unless it was dire.
It was only when his sanity started to deteriorate did he start to raise his sword instead of his guitar. And when Phil heard the words of "Kill me Phil -" after he blew up his own country that he shredded blood, sweat, and tears for, did he know his son was truly gone, replaced with this shell of a human.
Tubbo was like a bluebird; innocent and a hard-worker.
Like Wilbur, he never wanted to harm anyone, which was different from his birth father, Schlatt. He would rather spend his time with the bees in the backyard and play with his bee plushie that he was left with in the box. He loved to spend time in the garden and nurture the flowers that grew alongside the food.
Tommy was a different case from the other two. While yes, he was a fighter, and a feisty one, he wasn’t the best. He was always so brash and loud, letting the enemy know he was coming from miles away. Techno was much more reserved and quiet and was deadly and to the point in his attacks. Phil saw him at the wars though, and he saw how much his youngest grew in his fighting.
Phil knew that he was too young to be thrust into these wars, too young to have met the face of Death multiple times by now, and too young to have been betrayed by nearly everyone he knew.
But, Phil sighed, there was nothing he could do about it now. The bonds he once had were shattered beyond repair and the three probably hated him by now. The only thing he could do now was to ask Ranboo if he needed a place to stay.
He had given Ranboo one of his feathers days after Techno’s execution, a way of communication that wasn’t able to be tracked by Dream. Phil had seen how the boy had been unwilling to pull the lever and was even hesitant to place Phil under house arrest.
He quickly searched through his satchel looking for the feather that was the main cell. Once he did, he quickly double-tapped the circle that rested at the top and scrolled through the contacts list. There were people from the Antarctic Empire, Ranboo, and then there was his family, Tubbo, Tommy, Fundy, Wilbur, and Techno.
Phil could only hope that Ranboo hadn’t left the feather in his house as the explosions fell down into what once was L’manburg.
With tense shoulders, he pressed the call button.
---
The dripping of water was the only thing that could be heard within the obsidian room besides the shaky breaths of a curled figure who was in one of the back corners.
A cat, Enderchest, meowed, disrupting the silence and rubbing against the leg of their owner in an attempt of comfort. Ranboo could only stare at his memory book as the feather in his hand hovered over the names of the people who were once his friends.
“I . . . I don’t have anyone left . . .” The book was shut with a slam, the title shinning against the lighting that the crying obsidian gave off.
“But,” a shaky sigh escaped through his lips. “I can’t forget them, otherwise I’m just giving up, and if I give up. . .” He stood abruptly which only succeeded in him collapsing down once more due to his unsteady legs.
“Then I’m just weak.”
The feather in his hand crackled to life, startling him before a familiar voice could be heard echoing around the small room. “Hey, Ranboo!”
“Hi, Phil.” The unshed tears in his eyes shone brighter as his voice wavered.
“Did you make it out okay?” Phil sounded concerned for him, for some reason that Ranboo could not fathom.
“Yeah, I’m still alive.” The smell of smoke was strong, even when he was far away from L’manburg. Some part of Ranboo’s mind wondered how long it would last.
“Good, good, where are you right now?”
“Uhm, I’m gonna be in L’manburg soon.” All Ranboo needed to do now was to pull himself out of this funk.
“Okay, good.” The rustling of a wing could be heard. “Do you need a place to stay or are you good?” Ranboo was caught off-gaurd by this question as images of his destroyed home flashed through his head.
“I- I think I do need a place to stay.” Ranboo sheepishly admitted, pulling himself up from the floor and balancing himself.
“Yeah? What’s been going on with you, by the way? ‘Cause like, we haven’t spoken in a bit, and I- I know that book was very precious to you, but I- I didn’t know exactly why.”
“Oh, it uh, keeps who my friends are in it, so I don’t forget, cause you know I have very bad memory issues.” His armor was put back on in a couple of seconds and he traveled back outside. “So, uh, I keep all of my friendships in the book, which is - has, changed quite a bit from today so I might need to update it.” The Panic Room was covered up once more. “I’ll be in L’manburg in a second- or what used to be. I’ll be in the big hole in a second.”
“I can get there, I can get there. Give me time, give me time.”
Silence fell between the two as they both traveled to the same destination and Ranboo wondered who was going to be the one to break it.
“So where did you go? Were you still around? ‘Cause it was hectic.”
“Yeah, I had a wither chasing me the entire time, so I kinda couldn’t just leave.”
A sharp intake of breath. “Yeah, sorry about that-”
“Oh, it’s okay-” Laughter could be heard from the two males.
“Are you in L’manburg now, by the way?” Phil asked.
Ranboo looked around, confirming his whereabouts. “Oh, uh, yeah, I’m next to the staircase that leads up to the Prime Path.”
“Alright, let me see if I can aim this. It might be off though.” A whoosh of the trident, ad Phil was standing right in front of him, his damaged wing tucked safely against his back. Ranboo hadn’t heard the full story, but from the information he gathered, one of his wings was singed beyond repair and was just a dead weight on his back from protecting Wilbur from the heat of the blast. “Oh, this staircase has seen better days.”
That elicited a chuckle out of the taller male. “A lot of this place has seen better days, in case you didn’t realize.” They traversed up the pathway, twisting and turning through the multitude of wooden slabs beneath their feet.
“It’s fine, we needed a change. It had to be done.” Phil waved it off.
“Yeah, actually. I kind of understand why.”
“You got everything you need?” Ranboo skimmed through his inventory.
“Yeah, actually. I had all of my mending books in a secret barrel in my house but I guess I’m not getting those.” Ranboo grimaced at the thought.
They conversed for a while longer, traveling through the Nether before arriving at and entering into Techno’s and Phil’s home.
“Yeah, so you can stay here until we can start working on your house.” Phil gestured to the couch. “I was thinking of building it next to the mountain that’s behind the house, so it would be somewhat ingrained into the mountain but not fully.”
Ranboo could only just nod, not able to fully express his gratitude besides a simple “Thank you.”
Phil smiled at Ranboo. “It’s not a problem mate. It’s the least I could do after destroying your only house. Get some rest, yeah? I should also tell Techno you’re here so he won’t immediately kill you as soon as he sees you.”
Ranboo chuckled nervously. “Oh yeah, that sounds good.”
“Yeah, I’ve got to get going, you’ll be okay on your own, right?” Phil stopped his shuffling to look at Ranboo, and to his relief, avoided eye contact.
“Yeah, I’ll be fine. Thank you, again.” Ranboo shited where he stood, opting to stare at the floor.
“As I’ve said before, it’s not a problem mate. I’ll be out for a while, and Techno should be back before I will, bye Ranboo!”
“Bye Phil!”
---
Techno trudged into his house, closing the door behind him before he collapsed against it, the roughed up edges of his armor digging into the wood. His sword rested limply in his hand as he let his body relax. He would definitely have to wash his sword from the blood that stained it.
He pushed away from the door with a groan. The satchels of potions landed on the floors and counters with a thump. He looked around before he spotted a lump laying down on the couch. Techno immediately tensed up, the grip on his blade tightening.
He swiftly but silently went over, his guard never slipping. His sword was raised, ready to be brought down on the intruder, but Techno then saw his face.
It was Ranboo, the kid that Phil had a soft spot for. He blinked a few times before he checked the feather that was clasped to a gold chain and that hung around his neck. He scrolled through a couple of messages, seeing some from Ghostbur, spam from Tommy, and one from both Fundy and Phil.
He clicked on the notification and read what laid before him.
Ph1lZa whispered to you: I’m letting Ranboo stay with us for the next few days until we can get a new house built for him. I hope that isn’t too much of a hassle. Talk to you soon Tech!
Techno huffed in response, but put down his sword and slid it back into its sheath. The feather was then nestled back to where it once was before, and as he was doing that, Techno saw that Ranboo was shivering.
The couch could barely hold him and the blankets he had didn’t seem to be doing much for him. Techno grumbled as he made up his decision. He swiftly picked Ranboo up and brought him up the ladder, careful not to awaken him or disturb him as they made the trip upstairs.
Ranboo was softly placed on the older’s bed, the red cloak that once rested upon Techno’s shoulders was instead acting as a makesift blanket for the taller.
E
Technosoft1
/rainbowchat
Caringblade
Technosoft
mic muted!
Technosoft
Technosoft
E
E
Technosoft
Technosoft
“Shut up Chat, I am not going soft for this kid.” Techno grumbled.
E
Throw him out! He’s only gonna hurt us like Tommy did!
Tsundereblade!
Tsundereblade!
Blood!
Techno only sighed in response before he went back downstairs, ignoring Chat as he headed over to the couch and placed his sword next to him.
“Goodnight Chat.”
Night!
Gnight!
goodnight !
E
Techno shut his eyes, and let his body rest.