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The world had changed a lot and Phil had seen it all.
Bloodshed was an old friend and ruined towns with the cries of their fallen were etched into his mind like jagged writing in stone, begging to not be forgotten.
The opinions of his kind drifted and shifted with the world and he had seen countless fall from the calls of the vile and wretched and scared. Nobody was safe from falling but that didn’t mean he should watch by and do nothing.
He’d spent his years protecting and training the children close to him. The world spit and looked down upon hybrids and he couldn’t fathom the idea of finding another broken child running through the forest, looking for a place to hide.
He tried to stay away from the rest of society, just raising the children he cared so deeply for, he had a house with a garden and taught them how to fight and provide and in turn they taught him how to feel again.
He learned to feel the sand between his toes, the wind in his hair, the blood pumping through his heart, and long forgotten love running through his veins.
Wilbur taught him to hear the laughs and tears and other rich melodies that flowed through everyone.
Techno taught him to see the world, not from a different perspective or ideal but to actually see the mountains standing shoulder to shoulder and whipping canopy of leaves and the glistening stars.
Tommy taught him to feel the old, long forgotten, feeling of wonder when finding something new, to feel excited again, which wasn’t hard with him.
And when someone left a box at his door in the middle of the night, a small child wrapped in a tight bundle, he knew the child would teach him something new too.
They lived and learned together and he swore that if anything happened to them he’d rain down a fiery storm of a father with a broken heart.
---
Phil had lived for centuries and gotten over many of his personal flaws but still got nervous to go to the market.
He tried not to leave his cabin unless absolutely necessary, it wasn’t safe for hybrids but they were running low on supplies and he couldn’t get out of it.
Wilbur had been begging him to take him farther then the edge of the forest for months and would not let this opportunity go to waste.
Reluctantly, after finding suitable cover, he agreed to take Wilbur with him, he looked the most human of all the boys.
Tommy had whined and asked to come too but Phil turned him down, “No, it’s not safe for you,”
“But-”
“No but’s- hush child,” He looked to the living room, “Techno! You’re in charge!”
Techno didn’t look up from his book but gave Phil a thumbs up, “Got it.”
He turned back to Tommy, messing up his hair, “We’ll be back soon.” Then headed out, locking the door behind him. He already knew Tommy would be watching them leave from the window.
His sword felt heavy against his side and he could feel Tommy’s eyes burning into his back.
-----
“They’ll come back, right?” Techno looked up from his book to see Tommy standing on his tiptoes looking out the window, long nails scratching at the wooden ledge, striped tail flicking back and forth anxiously.
“‘Course they will, they always do, they’re just headin to the market.”
“Why can’t I go-”
“Ya ‘ready know the answer to that, it’s dangerous out there for us.”
“But why does Wilbur get to go?”
“‘Cause he does,” Techno flicked a page in his book, trying to focus over Tommy’s whining.
“That’s not fair!”
“Life’s not fair.”
“Why is that Technoblade?” Tubbo asked, rolling onto the upper part of the couch, peering at Techno’s book, he shifted so Tubbo could see it better.
“‘Cause people are assholes to those who aren’t like them.”
“Those people are bitches!” Tommy took one last glance out the window before bouncing over to the couch and flopping on one of the cushions.
Techno snorted, “Yeah, they are.”
They sat in silence for a while, Techno enjoying his book when Tommy piped up, “Can we go outside?”
Techno gave him a look and raised an eyebrow, “Uh, no. Dad’s not here and it’s broad daylight out.”
“But I’m bored,” Tommy drew out the last word and slid off the couch onto his back, staring at the ceiling.
“That sucks.”
“Techno!”
“Why don’t you and Tubbo go play upstairs? There are plenty of things to do.”
“Tommy, we can keep working on the hotel!” Tubbo chimed in, Tommy perked up, “Oh yeah! Lets go!”
Tommy scrambled over his feet and Tubbo over his messy braid, then jumping off the couch. Techno sighed, shifting in his seat and continued to read, listening to their pattering footsteps against the creaking wood.
Finally having some peace, Techno dived back into his book, letting the words wrap him up and drag him down, losing himself in the strange world.
He had always loved to read anything and everything he could get his hands on. He remembered making Phil read to him every chance he got and when Phil couldn’t he’d still look at the books, running
his fingers along the leafy pages and soft intends in the spine. He remembered Phil reading to him and Wilbur before bed, then to Tommy too, then Tubbo.
He didn’t realize how long it had been until;
“Techno, we’re hungry,” Techno looked up to see Tommy staring at him from the hallway, he could hear Tubbo thumping down the stairs. He looked at the clock and realized that it was noon.
He sighed, stretching, then set his book on the coffee table, eyes lingering on the math sheets Phil had given to him and Wilbur that they had yet to finish.
“Okay okay, what do you guys want?”
“Some of the stuff we had last night!” Tommy shuffled over to the table.
“We finished that last night.”
“What do we have?” Tubbo asked, climbing onto his chair, Techno looked through their cabinets and realized that Phil really did need to go to the market.
“Uh- we have peanut butter and bread,” He offered, trying to gauge their reactions without looking directly at them.
Tommy frowned and Tubbo made a face.
“Listen guys this is all we got, that’s why Phil’s goin to the market.” He reasoned, the boys nodded so he started on the sandwiches, grabbing them glasses of water as well.
They ate their lunch while Techno cleaned up the kitchen, he wasn’t that hungry anyway.
Once they were done Techno grabbed Tommy and Tubbo’s plates and set them on the counter, eye catching at the window then his heart dropped.
A group of men dressed in black were running down the hill and through the trees towards their house.
Techno gasped, “Come here! Quick!”
He grabbed Tommy and motioned for Tubbo to follow him. He dragged them over to a set of kitchen cabinets and threw open the door, shoving the pots and pan aside he motioned for the boys to climb in.
“Whatever you do, do not come out, do you understand me?”
“What’s happening?” Tommy asked, eyes wide, Tubbo put an arm around him. Techno looked towards the front of the house.
“I saw people running at the house, they might be dangerous so stay quiet!”
Techno slammed the cabinet shut then ran to the hallway, looking for the swords Phil kept for training, when something crashed against the weak wooden door.
Techno head snapped up as the door was rammed again, the feeble lock shattering and hinges breaking as the men rushed in. Techno grabbed a thick metal candle holder and braced himself as one of the men ran directly at him. “Here’s one!”
The metal grooves of the holder drug into his hand as he swung it at the man’s arm.
The man barely flinched, he kicked Techno in the chest and sent him to the ground, knocking the candle holder away. He leaned over and grabbed the front of Techno’s shirt.
Techno lashed out and dug his nails into the man’s arm, feeling blood well up under his nails. The man yelped, reared back and punched him across the face.
Techno hit the floor again, it groaned under their weight, the man hit him again. He arched his back and kicked up, getting a blow to his chin.
The man yelped but recovered quickly, jumping back at Techno before he could get away, holding him down. He managed to hit the man again before his arm was pinned down and a knee was planted against his chest.
He tried to block him but it was fruitless as the man hit him again and again and again, he could feel his skin splitting.
The man finally stopped and stood up, planting his foot against Techno’s chest to replace the knee. Techno looked up at him with blurry eyes, body throbbing, as he panted.
“What the fuck are you doing!” A new voice came, one of the other men in black stomped down the stairs, he grabbed Techno’s attacker by the shoulder.
“Just getting it under control-”
“Stop beatin on em! The sellers ain’t gonna want damaged goods!”
“He attacked me first-” The man sputtered, the other scoffed.
“What are you, a child? Can’t handle an attack from- what- a 13 year old? Just hold on to him for now, we’re having trouble finding the others.”
“Are you sure they’re here?”
“Of course, where else would they be?” The man then turned and stalked into the living room, “Keep looking!” Techno heard furniture scratching against the floor and glass breaking. Two other’s dressed in black thumped up the stairs.
The man grumbled, leaning over he grabbed Techno roughly by the face, other hand going for his wrists, “Where are they?”
Techno didn’t respond, glaring the man down. He could feel blood running down his lips and chin.
“Fine, don’t talk. We’ll find them eventually.” He grinned, “I’ve seen you lot before, you’re quite a bunch.” He gripped Techno’s face harder as Techno started to fight in his grip. He was silently glad nobody had gone into the kitchen yet.
“Piglin’s aren’t too high in demand, especially since you're older, you’ll probably end up in a ring somewhere, but those little ones running around? They’re harder to come by and still young enough to be trained- you can imagine how valuable that is.”
Techno’s chest was burning with rage, hands shaking in the man’s grasp, he wouldn’t let these sick bastards get to his brothers.
He mumbled something, feeling blood pool in his mouth. The man wrenched him closer, hot breath against his face, “What was that, pig?”
Techno spat a wad of blood at the man’s face.
The man yelped in disgust, jerking back, let go of Techno’s wrist and frantically wiping at his face. Techno managed to rip himself away from the man’s grasp, scrambling to his feet, and turning to run.
“Hey!” The man lunged at him. He hit Techno’s back and slammed him into the ground. Techno’s chin hit the rug roughly, the man pressed his head into the ground.
“Are you havin’ trouble holding down a child?” Someone called from upstairs.
“No! Shut your trap Tobias and find the other brats!” He pressed his knee against Techno’s back. He turned back and leaned close to Techno.
“Alright pig I’m done playing around, where are the kids?”
Techno glared at him from the corner of his eyes. The man huffed.
“Okay, since you’re all bite and no bark, I’ll give you an incentive.” He pulled a dagger from his belt and grabbed Techno’s braid. “I’ve always heard Piglins consider their long hair a symbol of pride and strength, do you want to lose that?”
Techno felt panic seep through his body, heart racing as he tried to jerk his head away despite knowing it was futile.
“I don’t believe damaged goods include hair, so one last chance, where are they kids?”
Techno held his tongue and glared at the man.
“Fine then, you brought this on yourself.” The man jerked his head up again and sawed roughly through the braid, uneven strands fluttering down across his face.
He tried to push down the lump lodged in his throat, it didn’t matter, it was just hair, it would grow back, it didn’t matter, it didn’t matter.
The man spilled the dagger back into his holder, grinning, “It’s a shame-” He broke off with a scream and Techno heard;
“Get off my brother!”
The knee from his back disappeared and Techno scrambled up to see Tubbo yanking a large kitchen knife out of the man’s thigh, Tommy rammed him against the stair wall, ears flattened and back hunched.
“I thought I told you guys to stay hidden!”
“He was hurting you!” Tubbo’s response was overpowered by Tommy-
“That’s the thanks we get for saving you?”
Techno groaned then grabbing Tommy and Tubbo.
“We gotta go- they’re trying to get us.” He grabbed their wrists and ran towards the back room, bashing the door open, they didn’t have time to grab their shoes.
Techno pushed the back door open and kept running, bare feet hitting the sandy patch behind the house where he and Wilbur would spar, and ran into the forest.
The plan Phil had him memorize as a ‘just in case’ was etched into his brain but he could barely think, adrenaline pumping through his body, as shouts came from behind him.
Phil had said something about the river and Techno decided to head there. He slowed for just a moment to pick up Tommy and Tubbo, then kept going.
He weaved between the trees, feeling sticks and leaves scratch and sink into his feet, cutting them deep but didn’t register the pain.
“Techno he’s gaining on us!” Tommy cried, Techno didn’t dare look behind him, he could feel the man’s eyes burning holes into his back.
Techno didn’t know exactly what they’d do when they reached the river, should they try to escape down it or knock the man into it? Would Tommy and Tubbo be okay if they fell in?
He was ripped from his thoughts when his foot caught on a root, he hit the ground, Tommy and Tubbo landing roughly with him.
Techno scrambled to his feet, stepping protectively in front of his younger siblings.
The man skidded to a halt, looked him up and down then threw back his head and cackled loudly, disrupting the birds in the trees.
“You must think you’re so tough don’t you? You can’t just give up!”
Techno didn’t speak, he felt light headed, the adrenaline was wearing off and his vision was blurring.
“Go away bitch! We didn’t do anything to you!” Tommy, peered out from behind Techno’s leg.
“That doesn’t matter! You’re wrong! Fundamentally wrong! You’re freaks!” The man lunged at them and Techno braced himself, holding his stance-
Only for the man to collapse in a heap in front of them, sword in his back.
Techno looked up to see Phil ripping his sword from the man, feathers ruffled and hair disheveled.
---
Phil had felt his heart stop, like everything was moving in slow motion, the leaves were fluttering down, the door to the house creaked sideways on broken hinges and shouts filtered through the windows.
Then everything sped up.
He was moving in a blur, running inside and jerking his sword from it’s hostler, swinging it at the first person he saw, dressed all in black. He was going on autopilot.
Find the kids, where were the kids? Where were his kids?
He cut down one person and two others stared at him in horror then fled, managing to knock the door completely down on their way out.
Panting, he called out “Techno! Tommy! Tubbo!”
No response.
“Boys!”
Nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
He looked down the hallway and saw the back door wide open, foliage by the back of the house still rustling. He was about to charge out when;
“Dad?” He turned and saw Wilbur standing in the doorway, eyes wide and skittish, like he couldn’t settle on one horror, trying to take it all in at once.
“Wil- just- just stay right here,” He prayed those fuckers wouldn’t come back just yet, “I’ll be right back- just hang on.”
He shot out the back door and into the woods, feet barely touching the leaf speckled ground, he hoped Techno was heading for the river.
Branches and roots tried to hold him back and trip him up but he pushed through, speeding up when he heard voices.
Ripping himself from the trees he saw a man in the same black uniform speaking wildly and ran without thinking, ramming his sword through his back. He yanked it back out quickly and sheathed it, shoving the gurgling body aside with his foot.
His heart soared but ached when he spots his boys.
Techno looked horrible, blood running from his nose down his face and shirt, dark bruising across both sides of his face, and uneven pink hair that barely passed his jaw.
Tommy and Tubbo looked shaken but Tubbo had a sharp glint in his eyes, like he was ready to attack at any moment. The adrenaline dissipated and Phil’s hands were shaking.
“Boys,” He breathed out, stepping closer.
He reached out and wrapped his arms around them, managing to lift them all up, folding his wings around them in a protective shell.
As much as he wanted to stay there and hold them he knew they didn’t have much time, turning and rushing back towards the house.
Phil knew they had to run and that he couldn’t explain everything in the moment, there was a very fine line he had to walk between letting the kids know enough of the situation without straight up horrifying them to the point where they would be unable to move.
He rushed back into the house, setting the boys down gently, Wilbur peered out from the living room and Phil motioned him closer.
“Phil what’s going on?” Wilbur asked, “The house is destroyed-”
“I need you guys to listen to me, okay, we need to leave, right now.”
“Is it cause of-” Phil cut him off.
“It’s because of the people that were just here now, go upstairs and layer up your clothes and pack anything that you want to keep, one back for clothes and another for whatever you like.”
“Wait- why’d they attack us?” Tubbo asked as he ushered them to the stairs.
“I promise I will explain everything later but you need to get ready right now. Wilbur help them get packed.”
He pulled Techno in the kitchen and set him on the counter, he dunked a hand towel in the water and handed it to Techno who started to gingerly wipe at his face and feet, while Phil searched for the first
aid kit.
Once he found it and grabbed disinfectant and bandages, he dabbed at a cut on Techno’s jaw, trying to be thorough but quick.
After making sure nothing was stuck in the soles of his feet, Phil covered them with disinfectant wipes then wrapped them with gauze.
He knew he should check them over more thoroughly but they didn’t have the time. He set a hand on Techno’s knee.
“Run upstairs and-”
Techno had already slid off the counter and was heading for the stairs.
Phil took a deep breath, packed up the first aid kit then rushed up the stairs towards his room.
He shoved the door open and went to the closet, ignoring the mess of the room, pulling out random bags and clothes he knew he’d need, layering on shirts and pants and stuffing socks and in pockets.
He stopped so he’d still be able to move efficiently then stuffed more into one of the bags, grabbing picture frames and gifts from his kids.
The bracelets and necklaces they had made him were thrown in the bag as well, drawings and letters gently folded and stuffed in pockets. He managed to fit most of it in one bag then rushed back downstairs.
He spotted the bag of goods he and Wilbur had brought home in the doorway and brought it into the kitchen, pulling everything from their cabinets and shoving it in, along with the first aid kit and as
many containers of water they had.
Phil started looking for the old wooden wagon they had out back, brushing the dirt off he stuck his bags in it and pulled it out to the sandy patch then it hit him, bedding.
He ran back to his room, seeing the boys start to peer out of their own room, he grabbed the blankets off his bed, folding them into tight, small, balls then went back to the hallway.
Techno and Tommy were already out, covered in layers and bags in hand, he handed the blankets to them, “Go out back and put this on the cart, I’ll be there in just a second.”
He stepped into Wilbur and Techno’s room, to check and make sure they didn’t forget anything, Wilbur was still jamming something into his bag, the whole room was trashed.
Not a messy child trashed, but destroyed.
The beds were ripped apart and shoved out of place, colored pencils and crayons littered the floor, old toys and books scattered everywhere, pictures torn from the walls, even the curtains were just barely
hanging on.
Wilbur had finished packing and was staring up at him, eyes glossy.
“You got everything?”
Wilbur nodded, squeezing past him, then Phil noticed his guitar.
It was laying close to his bed, the neck and body had been completely crushed, it looked like it had been stomped on, the strings were flat and frayed, and through the bits of splintered wood Phil could
see pieces of Wilbur’s name among the fragmented remains.
The embers in his chest were burning again, he should’ve killed all of those monsters, he pushed the feeling down. He couldn’t get mad yet.
He looked in Tommy and Tubbo’s room, heart sinking when he saw it met the same fate as the twins.
There were toys and trinkets scattered around, squished and broken, the fort they had been working on was destroyed, and one of the beds was on its side.
After looking over the room he headed back downstairs, looking in the living room which looked like the others, he didn’t stay long but bent down and grabbed Techno’s book off the floor, then rushed outside.
The boys were loading their things onto the cart and Phil’s chest hurt, Wilbur’s eyes were blown wide open, looking wildly in the direction of every noise, holding onto Tommy’s shoulder protectively.
Tommy was holding Tubbo’s hand, both looked shaken and scared. Tubbo’s eyes held a familiar resistance, like he was scared of the world but wasn’t scared to fight it.
Techno looked dejected, he grimaced, arm not so subtly wrapped around his abdomen.
He’d check them all over once they found a safe place to rest for the night, he paused despite everything else in his body screaming at him to run- to get away and keep his kids safe- he had to say goodbye.
The house wasn’t something special, he tried to tell himself, only the warm memories which now felt haunting had any meaning.
But they didn’t.
He built his own little home, made it to be warm and safe then others joined and filled up the barren corners and walls. This was the place he had learned to heal in, he got to laugh and cherish and love in the little place he created, and now he had to say goodbye.
And so did the kids.
He sighed, shaking his head, and grabbing the carts handle.
“Say bye to the house boys.”
“Are we not coming back?” Tommy asked, green bandana starting to fall from his neck, Phil reached back and retired it.
“No, we aren’t, I’m sorry.”
“Why?” The mask around Tommy’s eyes scrunched together and despite himself Phil managed a small smile, for just a moment.
“It’s not safe here and I need to keep you safe so we have to leave, now are you all sure you got everything?”
Techno nodded while the others chorus of “Yes” filled the air, Phil sighed, “Alright then, let’s go.” And started off into the forest.
----
Phil had always loved spending time in the forest with his kids, Tommy and Tubbo liked to look for bugs while Wilbur and Techno played in the streams and rivers.
Golden laughter and dappled skin from the blazing light that filtered through the tree canopy, shining on the haze in the warm air.
Now it was frantically racing through, weaving around the trees, dragging a cart of supplies, and making sure nothing and nobody was left behind.
Wilbur and Techno were in the back, making sure nothing fell from the cart and also keeping Tommy and Tubbo in the middle from lagging behind while Phil was up front and leading the way.
They’d run for a short burst then slowly clammer forwards, trying to catch their breaths only to then start back up again. The forest no longer felt like a safe hiding place but hellish landscape where those
monsters would pop up at any turn.
They had been running for so long, guilt crept into his chest he looked back and saw Techno carrying Tommy, who looked almost asleep. It was getting dark and they needed to lay low.
Phil spotted a small cave a little ways ahead and decided to stop there.
“Come on guys, just a bit farther, I see a place we can rest for the night!”
They perked up at that, picking up the pace Phil wheeled the cart across the smooth stone as the boys crept in after him. He laid out the blanket then stepped out and grabbed a bundle of sticks.
He came back in and tried to start a fire, setting the sticks up.
He blinked and Tommy and Techno had passed out on the blanket, Techno holding protectively onto Tommy, whose limbs were flayed out in every direction.
Phil managed to get a small fire going, then reached into one of the bags, handing a peach to Wilbur and Tubbo each.
“Dad, where are we going?” Wilbur asked quietly, nibbling at the fruit.
Phil paused, he didn’t have an answer, they were just running.
“I’m not sure, hopefully somewhere safe.”
“Wasn’t the house safe?”
“It was but-”
“What if we find a place to stay but then it gets attacked again?”
Tubbo’s eyes flickered between each of them during their back and forth.
“We just have to hope it doesn’t happen-”
“But why did it happen? Why did they attack us?”
Phil sighed, “People are scared of those who are different from them and will react badly and sometimes violently.” His eyes drifted over to Techno.
“That’s not fair,” Tubbo said, wiping his hands on his pants.
“Life isn’t fair sometimes but we can’t fix everything.”
“I’m gonna make my own place someday, where this will never happen again.” Wilbur said, staring into the fire.
“I can’t wait to see that happen, but for now try to get some sleep, we’re going to be traveling again in the morning.”
“How much longer will we be running? It’s tiring.” Tubbo said, laying next to Tommy, Wilbur laid on the other side of Techno, putting his arm around him.
“Not too much longer, we’ll find a new place soon.”
Phil didn’t sleep that night, he tended to the fire with a wing over his kids, watching the cave entrance like a hawk.
He had to protect his kids.
----
It had been five days since they started running and everyone was exhausted.
Wilbur and Tommy were at each other's throats, their bickering grated against his ears, Techno’s sarcastic comments were getting more frustrating, and Tubbo kept wandering off.
Phil knew it was a stressful time, he had barely slept or eaten, he knew Wilbur was mad and Techno was hurt and Tommy and Tubbo were scared but he was getting to the end of his rope. He feared he
might snap.
They had stopped for the night again, in a small clearing under the stars, Tommy and Wilbur were still going at it.
“If you could just stop being such a idiot-”
“I’m not an idiot- you’re just stuck up you stupid son of-”
“Stop!” Phil hissed, sticking a hand between them, he rubbed his temple, resting his burning eyes for a moment, “Just give it a rest.”
Tommy slumped back against, arms folded, grumbled to himself. Wilbur frowned, breaking a stick into little pieces.
Phil was breathing in the silence and peace then looked up and realized Tubbo was gone.
“Where-where did Tubbo go?” He had already scrambled to his feet.
Techno looked up, “I don’t know- he was here a second ago-”
“Tubbo!” Phil called, scanning through the foliage, chest tight. They could’ve lost him, Tubbo was small he could’ve fallen or gotten lost- Phil couldn’t breath. “Tubbo!”
He was just about to run back into the forest when the bushes rustled and Tubbo squeezed out, ear flicking, “I’m here.”
Phil thought he was going to be swept off his feet from relief.
“Tubbo! Where were you? I told you not to run off!”
Tubbo drug his foot along the ground, “I thought I saw something…” he trailed off, Phil sighed, he was too tired for anything else.
“Don’t sneak off again.” He set the blanket down for the kids as they slowly started to settle down.
Techno shuffled over and sat next to him, putting his arms around his waist, and pressing into his side. Phil put an arm around his shoulder, playing with the ends of his uneven hair, as they slowly drifted
off.
He watched their chests rise and fall in the dwindling fire light and felt a lump in his throat.
He didn’t know what to do.
He was dragging these children all around without any actual plan of where to go and wondered if it was even worth it.
He was able to piece together what happened from Techno, about how the men wanted to take them, something about fighting rings and training children. It made his chest hurt.
If he had been just two minutes later he might’ve lost them, if Techno and Tubbo hadn’t reacted the way they did and as quickly as they did then Phil could’ve lost them.
He shoved his face in his hand, trying to muffle any noise he might make, Techno’s weight against him was grounding, comforting but also heavy.
He didn’t know if he could protect them out here, he didn’t know what to do.
Against every part of his mind begging him to stay awake he passed out by the fire, completely exhausted, fingers still tangled in Techno’s hair.
----
In the morning they packed up once again and started forward, Phil somehow felt worse even after getting some sleep.
They trudged through the forest, Tommy and Tubbo chattering behind him, when Techno sped up until he was walking next to Phil.
Looking straight ahead he muttered, “I think someone’s followin’ us.”
“What?”
“The bushes along the path keep rustling weirdly,” Techno’s eyes drifted over to the foliage, Phil looked discreetly as possibly, and noticed Techno was right.
It looked like they were being followed.
Before he could even get another word out Techno had run into the bushes, jumping through and tackling whatever was following them.
Phil yelped, pulling his sword from his belt, rushing over to see Techno pinning- another kid? With a white mask to the ground.
The kid thrashed around, trying to shake Techno off, clawed fingers barely missing him.
Phil leaned over and pulled Techno off, “Stop that- you’re still hurt!” He pushed Techno behind him and pointed his sword at the boy. “Why are you following us?”
The boy flinched back, “I was- you’re the hybrids from close to… what was it… Red Hawk! My mom- where is she- was talking about you guys and I wanted to see if I could find you.”
Phil narrowed his eyes, “How’d you know about us?” The other kids had peeked closer, looking over the plants.
“Words travel fast, my mom wanted to try and find you guys before some hunters did-”
“Dream!”
Phil's head snapped up as a hybrid woman with curly hair pushed through the trees.
The boy, Dream, scrambled up and ran to her, she sighed, “You follow me everywhere except when I need you too.” She turned to Phil.
“So you must be the ‘deranged’ hybrid I’ve heard about.”
Phil sputtered, “What-”
“You were pointing a sword at my son,” She interrupted coolly, Phil jumped, sheathing his sword.
“Sorry, I’m just a bit paranoid, I thought he was dangerous.”
She chuckled, “No, he’s just my duckling, but he did me a favor. I’ve been trying to find you because I wanted to offer you a place to stay.”
“What?”
“I have a place that is completely hidden from everyone else, there are other hybrids there and it is one of the safest places around here.”
Phil’s heart skipped a beat-it sounded almost too good to be true, “Are you serious?”
“Yep, I can take you there now.”
“Thank you- uh- I’m sorry- what’s your name?”
The woman smiled, “Call me Puffy.”
---
Puffy led them through a thick part of the forest, helping them pull their cart. Phil still felt weary, hand resting on his sword’s hilt.
They reached a large wooden wall, a gate carved out of the middle, with people standing along the edge, guarding it, close to a large mountain. Puffy led them inside and Phil couldn't believe it.
There was a bustling town, hybrids milling about, different shops and buildings lined the stone scattered streets, it looked so homely.
Puffy showed them to a house along the wall, Dream was already showing the kids inside.
“Are you sure this is okay?” Phil asked, “This is-”
“I run the place and I say it’s okay, don’t worry about it. We have some local community things like a garden and farm and some other services that you could help with but for now let's just get you settled.”
She handed him a key, “My office is close to the front, by the gate if you need anything.”
The house felt strange as Phil carried some of their belongings inside, not in a bad way, just bittersweet. It reminded him of his cabin except the layout was different, the floors didn’t creak in the right place, and there weren’t any scribbles on the wall but it was still nice.
The kids would be able to be actual kids and go outside, make friends, and play without worry. They were already exploring the house, fighting over rooms.
He turned to Puffy, heart swelling, “Thank you-”
“Don’t mention it,” She stuck her head in the doorway, “Duckling! Come on! Let’s let them get settled in.”
Dream scampered down the hall and followed his mom out the door, waving goodbye as he did. Phil waved back then went to go stop the fight over the bedrooms.
----
It had been two weeks since they settled in and Phil had never felt safer.
There had been some bumps along the way, Techno was still healing, that man had hurt him badly, making Phil all the more glad that he had shoved a sword through his back.
The boys got nightmares, waking up and creeping into his room, crawling into bed with him, on one bad night he had all four of them curled up in his bed.
It felt weird to have neighbors and other people to rely on but they had made friends with a family next to them, Wilbur taking a liking to the fox hybrid, Techno had made friends with a loud blue boy and
they all seemed to get along with a lanky boy who just seemed to materialize around their house.
Phil knew those people were still out there, that they weren’t always completely safe, but no one ever was, and that they had others to help them now.
He had found a new little pocket in the universe, one where he and his children were safe.
They were finally safe.