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It had been a big adjustment for Ranboo, going from the simple two story house he cobbled together himself in Techno's tundra to the sprawling, overwhelming manor Foolish had built on commission for Ranboo, Tubbo and Michael. He'd kept the house by Techno's but it was mainly a storage place now, because even if the manor was overwhelming Ranboo was determined to get used to it.
It'd been a little over 2 weeks now and despite Ranboo's best attempts, he'd gotten lost almost every morning. Even now, he'd gotten turned around again looking for the entrance to the kitchen. He wandered down another hall, peeking in every door he passed as he went. Just as he was about to turn down another corridor, a small paper on the wall caught his eye. Bright yellow contrasting against the dark wood that made up the majority of their home. He pulled it off, bringing it closer to his face to read it.
You're going the wrong way big guy! Turn around and take the first right hallway and the kitchen's at the end of the hall. :D
Ranboo picked his head up and looked around, expecting Tubbo to be hidden somewhere laughing at him. He had to have been watching him struggle, how else would he have known he'd see this?
"Tubbo?" He called out tentatively, waiting for a minute but getting no reply. He didn't even hear the other's classic giggle, no sign at all that anyone else was near him. Ranboo sighed, looking at the note again before giving in and following the directions on it. He turned around, heading back down the hall and turning at the first right. The closer he got to the end of the hall the more noise he was starting to hear, and as he opened the door he was greeted with the sight of his husband noisily in the process of cooking.
Tubbo sang to himself as he watched the scrambled eggs cook, swaying slightly and mumbling half-correct lyrics as he worked. Ranboo couldn't help but smile, walking up to him and resting his chin on Tubbo's head, holding in a laugh when he felt the smaller boy tense in surprise before relaxing again once he realized who was touching him. "Morning 'Boo!" He tilted his head up to look at his husband, who sighed happily and leaned down to give him a gentle kiss on the forehead.
"Morning Tubbo... I got your note." His voice was thick with sleep, but Tubbo just smiled in response, turning his attention back to the food he was in the middle of cooking. "Were you watching me?" Ranboo asked, his arms encircling Tubbo's shoulders as he hugged him from behind, shifting his head from the top of Tubbo's to his right shoulder so he could watch him cook. The smaller boy moved with practiced ease, shifting the eggs in the pan with a spatula and leaning back into Ranboo slightly, the warmth of the other coaxing him closer.
"Nope!" Tubbo said matter-of-factly, a satisfied smile on his face as he worked. "You kept mentioning you were getting lost in that area so I figured if you did it again you'd see the note and get turned back on the right track!" He turned the burner off, splitting the eggs onto three plates, one a little smaller. Ranboo stepped back, grabbing the plates and bringing them to the table. He juggled them cautiously, his hands large enough to awkwardly balance two plates in one so he only had to make one trip. "I'm gonna go wake up Michael, be right back." Tubbo called out, rushing out of the kitchen.
Ranboo chuckled, grabbing a few glasses from the cabinet and setting the table before opening the fridge door. Staring into the fridge he found himself unsure what he opened it for, his short term memory failing him. Yellow drew him in and he noticed a note similar to the one he'd just found from Tubbo on a bottle. Michael's favorite! was scribbled on it, along with a doodle of an apple. The enderman hybrid grabbed the bottle, pouring each of them a glass as Tubbo returned, their son in his arms. The sleepy piglin was clutching at Tubbo's neck, head nuzzled into his shoulder. Michael let out a little whine as Tubbo pulled him away to set him in his chair, his eyes scrunched, making little snorts of protest before eventually opening his eyes to see the food set before him.
"Sorry Michael, it's breakfast time! Gotta wake up." After rousing their boy, breakfast was a relatively quick affair. Tubbo and Ranboo passed off feeding duties between their own bites of breakfast, Tubbo spreading some jam on a slice of toast and feeding it to Ranboo while the half-enderman struggled to keep Michael from spilling his apple juice everywhere. It was always a bit of a mess, but Ranboo would take it any day over his somber solitary breakfasts of the past. Once breakfast was over they said their goodbyes, sharing a quick kiss at the door before Ranboo headed out, his communicator on his wrist and some light armor over his clothes.
The goal today was to refill their wood and stone stock, having used up a large portion recently on extending the backyard. Ranboo went to their nearby mine, opened up his inventory to retrieve his pickaxe and got to work. He mined for a while, his communicator blasting music to keep him distracted from the hard work. Although he enjoyed complaining about mining to Tubbo, Ranboo actually enjoyed it quite a lot. It gave him time to let his mind unwind and go on auto-pilot for a while. After a couple hours and a few stacks collected he called it a day down there, putting his pickaxe away and taking out his axe instead. As he retrieved it he noticed something yellow stuck to the axe head, holding it close so he could read it.
You're my big strong lumberjack ;) Don't forget we need dark oak!
Ranboo laughed brightly, unable to hold back his grin as he twisted his arm to get at his communicator, sending off a message to Tubbo to let him know he'd gotten the message. The ram hybrid just responded with a heart but it was more than enough to make Ranboo's face warm with happiness. He took the sticky note off, carefully folding it and putting it in his pocket before making his way to the nearest dark oak forest, thankful for the reminder.
After a couple hours of chopping wood Ranboo's inventory was almost full, and he was ready to call it a day. The sun was high in the sky, he guessed it must've been a little past noon, and his stomach ached with hunger. Checking his inventory again, he was surprised to see a brown bag inside, meaning Tubbo had packed him something. He wasn't sure if he'd just forgotten or if it was a total surprise, but he wasn't going to complain either way.
Plopping down under one of the surrounding trees, Ranboo pulled out the brown paper bag, unraveling the closed top and pulling out its contents. A small bottle of milk, a baggie with a few of the oatmeal chocolate chip cookies they'd baked together the other day, and a pb&j, all kept cool from the magic that made up the inventory's void space. On the cookie bag was a small paper, and Ranboo could feel himself already beginning to grin again as he peeled it off to read.
These cookies aren't as sweet as you, but you'll probs still like them. :P
The enderman hybrid let out a little groan, hiding his face in his hands as he tried to reel in his smile. Tubbo was just too cute, he still couldn't understand how he'd gotten so lucky sometimes. Slipping it in his pocket he got to eating his lunch, his smile never fading.
By the time Ranboo was heading home the sun was already beginning to set. The late day sun cast everything in an orange glow, Ranboo taking in the beauty of the sun's reflection off the snow before heading into the manor. Stepping inside the chilled silence from outside was instantly replaced with warmth and the sound of laughter echoing through the halls. A familiar shriek rang in his ears and the source of the noise was barreling towards him. Michael charged forward, Ranboo picking him up and twirling him, being rewarded with a cheerful giggle snort in return. "Michael! How do you always know when I get home!" Ranboo cooed, hugging his son to him tightly, tucking an arm under to support him as he walked forward. The piglin immediately nuzzled his snout under Ranboo's chin, a familiar and well-loved spot Michael tended to cuddle into.
Tubbo poked his head out from Michael's play room, a smile spreading across his face upon seeing his two boys. Ranboo could hear music softly playing now that Michael settled down, and a glance into the room told him Tubbo had been playing Chirp and most likely having a dance party with their son. "Supply hunt went well?" Tubbo asked, humming in approval as Ranboo showed him his full inventory. "Nice! See you found the lunch I packed you too. Sorry there wasn't any fruit, Michael distr-" Ranboo cut his husband off by pulling him into a tight hug with his free arm, leaning down to meet him. He pulled away for a moment then pressed a quick kiss to Tubbo's cheek before leaning back again.
"My husband goes out of his way to prepare me a surprise lunch and the first thing he does when I get home is apologize for not giving me more food? I don't wanna hear it, Tubbo! You knocked it out the park." Ranboo chastised him playfully, Tubbo grinning at the teasing tone his husband used. He reached out and took Michael from him, Ranboo taking the opportunity to take off his armor. "How was your day?" He asked, watching as Tubbo set Michael down by his toys, the piglin quickly getting distracted by his blocks.
Tubbo sighed dramatically, throwing a hand over his eyes. "What a day I've had, Ranboo. You'd hardly believe it." Ranboo felt the familiar warmth of amusement wash over him, taking a seat in the rocking chair Foolish had crafted them and tugging Tubbo's hand to try and coax him to join. He needed little coaxing turns out, the ram hybrid happily hopping into the taller's lap and leaning back still exaggerating. "So the moment you left, Michael remembered it rained yesterday and wanted to go jump in puddles. Being the perfect and strict father I am, I said yes absolutely, and we both jumped in puddles for an hour."
Ranboo stayed silent, patiently waiting for the next part, but Tubbo had paused, staring up at the ceiling. "You good, Tub?" He asked softly, bringing a hand up to gently ruffle the brunette's hair, taking care to not knock into his still growing horns. Tubbo let out a little grumble, blinking slowly before turning his gaze back to Ranboo, a smile slowly growing.
"I was buffering again." They both laughed, a contagious giggle that they couldn't escape until Michael got curious and clambered over, Tubbo reaching down and picking him up so he and Michael were both atop Ranboo's lap now. "Michael, what else did we do today, do you remember?" Tubbo asked, their son giving him a confused look in reply and letting out a little snort in response. Tubbo brightened, looking up at Ranboo again. "That's right, Michael and I found out he really likes mud! We made a bunch of mud castles and then we took a bubble bath, remember that?" Michael nodded in understanding, Tubbo grinning and cupping his son's face in his hands. "I put in too much bubbles and I lost Michael in them for a few minutes but it turned out he made a bubble igloo he was hiding in." Ranboo chuckled trying to imagine Tubbo scouring through bubbles looking for their son. Tubbo ruffled the tuft of hair on Michael's head playfully, the little piglin giggling and reaching for his hands. "And then Michael wanted to dance for a while so we tried to figure out what his favorite disc is. Turns out it's Chirp."
Ranboo nuzzled Tubbo's cheek, smiling fondly. "He's got good taste, must've gotten that from you." Tubbo laughed, catching Ranboo's cheek with a quick kiss before sliding off his lap, setting Michael down again. Ranboo whined in response, going limp in protest as Tubbo tried to pull him to his feet. "Tubbooo I just want to cuddle with my boys more." The smaller hybrid grunted with effort as he tried his best to pull Ranboo up, but to no avail. He dropped his hand with a huff, dropping to the floor and letting Michael cling to him.
"You're annoyingly big. Can I chop off some of your height, bossman? Just a few inches? You don't need your ankles that bad."
"Sure, but don't come crying to me when you need someone to pick apples for you."
Tubbo grumbled in response, arms encircling Michael in an unconscious habit, scooping him up as he got back to his feet. "Fine! Me and Michael are gonna go have tea time without you then, and we'll eat all the party rings before you get there." He rushed out of the room, the piglin in his arms squealing in delight and clutching at his father's shirt for stability. The mention of tea was enough to catch Ranboo's interest, and with a sigh he pulled himself up to follow after his boys.
The rest of the afternoon was filled with conversation between sips of tea and nibbles of some beautifully iced cookies Niki dropped off while Ranboo was out. Michael demolished his in a matter of minutes and spent the rest of the time trying to convince his parents to give him theirs, which Ranboo did cave to on his last cookie. Now was Tubbo's chance to get some stuff done, the smaller boy kissing both Ranboo and Michael's cheeks in goodbye as he headed out to visit Tommy, who had called on him earlier to help with a redstone door.
Michael stared up at his father expectantly, seeming like he was waiting for Ranboo to do something. Ranboo looked back at him, curious. "Is it... is there something we should be doing, Michael?" he asked gently, his mind blank. The piglin snorted and shot to his feet, a tiny cloven hoof clutching at one of Ranboo's fingers and pulling him to follow. The enderman hybrid did just that, awkwardly walking hunched over so Michael could continue to hold onto him. The piglin led them to the study, where a desk was set up near one of the windows and a familiar journal lay on it. Next to it was a tiny table along with a child-sized chair, papers and crayons strewn about.
"Oh! Is it drawing time?" Ranboo guessed, Michael giving a nod of agreement as he let go of his father's hand. Pushing the man towards his desk, Michael then went and sat down at his own, pretending to be very serious as he started on a new masterpiece. Ranboo watched him with fondness before taking a seat at the desk. He remembered he journaled, he just had forgotten where he'd left it. From how Michael knew he assumed this had to be a daily occurence, the study walls were partially covered with many of his son's artworks from prior days.
As he thumbed open his journal and flipped through the pages, Ranboo smiled as his eyes caught on his family's names time and time again. In his flipping a shock of yellow caught his eye and he turned back, opening to a page of writing half-covered with yellow notes. The handwriting was Tubbo's, and turning back farther he realized he had dozens of pages filled with notes with many things written on them.
Morning handsome! Slept over Tommy's last night so don't be scared! Go wake up Michael and I'll be home by lunchtime.
Your clothes are in here bossman, not the little closet.
Come home soon, take the tunnel to Snowchester to get here faster.
Smelly boy, don't forget you wanted to take a lava bath today!
There were more than Ranboo cared to count, his face flushing as he realized the notes today were a daily occurence he'd forgotten til now. How could he forget such a loving gesture Tubbo seemed to do every day? Turning to the next blank page he began to write about today, starting with getting lost on his way to the kitchen and ending with Michael drawing what looked to be his chicken next to him. He carefully took out the little yellow squares from his pocket, unfolding the notes he'd been saving all day. He looked over them one by one, taking in the messy loops of his husband's words. Sticking them to the journal entry, he made sure none were missing before closing the journal resolutely, a goal in his mind to remember the notes come the next time he saw them.
Just as he finished he heard far off sounds from the front door, Michael instantly on his feet and rushing toward the source of the noise. Ranboo got up to follow, and was greeted by Tubbo and Tommy at the door kicking off their shoes. Tommy was yelling Michael's name excitedly, picking up his godson and hugging him. "Michael! There you are, your dad here was trying to convince me you moved into a mud hut in the backyard! 'Ello Ranboo, how do?" Tommy gave the taller boy a nod which Ranboo returned with a nod of his own, walking over to Tubbo and taking a hand when the ram offered it.
"Tommy's gonna stay for dinner, we're thinking pasta." Tubbo said with a grin, Ranboo returning his smile naturally and nodding in agreement. The evening flew by fast, as it always seemed to do when they had guests, and before long they were saying their goodbyes and Tommy was off to check up on his hotel before it got too dark.
As the remaining hours dwindled they got Michael tucked into bed, spending some time together once he fell asleep. Tubbo coaxed him to the ballroom, putting Chirp on low and holding out his hands. Ranboo took them, the two dancing and giggling at their own terrible forms, modified poses they'd made months ago since Ranboo was too tall. When the record finished they called it a night, getting changed into their nightclothes and clambering into their shared king-size bed. Quiet goodnights were whispered, sleepy smiles exchanged as they fell asleep facing each other, a conversation half-finished before Tubbo had succumbed to slumber.
In the morning Ranboo woke up alone, stirring slowly as the sun flooded the room. As he sat up he took in his surroundings, confused for a moment before memories started flooding back in. He was in Snowchester, in the new mansion, in his and Tubbo's bedroom. And it was morning. He got up, getting himself changed and ready for the day before leaving to head to the kitchen.
The halls were vast and unchanging, the enderman hybrid slowly peering through each entryway he passed as he got less and less sure he knew where he was going. Just as he was about to turn down a new hall, a small paper on the wall caught his eye. Bright yellow stood out against the dark wood that made up the majority of their home. He pulled it off, bringing it closer to his face to read it.
Good morning Boo! Turn around, take the first right hallway and the kitchen will be at the end of the hall. See you soon :P