Chapter Text
Tommy was perched on a tree branch, his wings stretched out either side of him, waiting for Tubbo to come back with dinner when he pulled the compass from where it was tucked under his shirt.
The chain slithered through the hoop it was attached to as he brought it out in front of him, his hand grasping the warm brass.
His thumb traced the proud phoenix that was engraved into the front before he flicked it open with a loud snap.
He sent a small burst of flames, starting from the fire-feathers at the base of his wings to the tips to warm himself up against the cool evening. He reveled in their warmth before snuffing out the flames again.
His eyes landed on the ornate compass face, the muted red strokes proudly proclaiming the cardinal directions against the weathered tan background. In the middle of the compass rose sat a small sun and moon icon that seemed to dance around where the needle sat.
Between the icons were small flames, seemingly connecting the two.
The broken needle spun in a lazy circle, pointing to all the directions as Tommy held it still.
His eyes scanned the engraving on the inside of the lid as he had thousands of times before.
When the sun is hottest
Or when the moon is coolest
A child of burning heart will rise-
Eternal feathers will cease
And peace will reign
He didn't know what it meant despite the dozens of hours he had spent trying to figure it out.
In the end, it didn’t matter what it meant. The only thing that mattered was what the compass meant to him.
It was the last thing he had left of his parents.
He still has the flash of a memory, sitting on his father’s lap as a toddler as he dangled the compass just out of reach. The way his chubby hands had swatted at the tarnished brass in an attempt to reach it.
He heard his mothers voice, promising him that the compass would one day belong to him.
He remembered the day they gave it to him.
He had turned five when they had awoken him with a small box covered in red wrapping paper, complete with a little orange ribbon.
He had eagerly yanked the ribbon off and tore the wrapping paper away.
The compass had sat nestled in a small cushion, looking every bit as grand as it had on his father’s chest.
He smiled at the memory.
He clutched the warm metal tightly as memories of the rest of the day flooded his mind- the smell of smoke invaded his nostrils as the screams of his dying neighbours filled his ears.
The delicate chain around his neck turned into a tight collar being yanked on as he was brought to the other children. He remembered the overstuffed wooden cart they had put him into as they were taken to the Pit.
“Tommy?” he felt a gentle hand being put on his shoulder.
He looked up and saw the worried grey eyes of his best friend- his brother in everything but blood.
“Hey, Tubs,” Tommy said, giving him a weak smile.
“What’s wrong?” he asked softly.
Tommy took a deep breath and looked back down at the compass.
“I’m just remembering,” he said quietly, a tear forming in the corner of his eye.
Tubbo took his hands between his own and gave them a gentle squeeze.
“I know it’s hard, but we’ve got each other, yeah?” he told him.
Tommy nodded his head. As awful as his fifth birthday had been... there was one highlight.
He had met Tubbo.
He remembered it vividly.
They had herded all the avian children into the carts, the kids had all huddled together, trying to be quiet so as to not disturb the avian hunter who drove the cart.
Whispered rumours about the awful things humans did to those with wings... how they were sold off- killed for their wings- how they were enslaved...
Before this moment, all of those had been nothing but ghost stories that the older kids told the younger ones at parties to scare them.
And as it turned out? That was all they were. Stories.
What awaited them was much worse.
He remembered when the hunters at the front of the small cluster of carts had paused and rolled a large boulder that seemed to be attached to the mountain, revealing the mouth of a cave.
The carts descended inside, the cold damp walls already warning Tommy of what was to come.
He remembered reaching for the fire that sat inside of him, trying to warm up. He wasn’t very powerful at the time and only after wrapping his wings around himself did his heat do anything.
But even so, his wings were tiny, they barely covered him.
Someone had noticed and yelled “Phoenix!”. It wasn’t long before he was roughly pulled from the cart and taken down a long corridor.
He remembered being strapped down to a wooden chair that had been bolted to the ground with his wings being spread out forcefully.
The memory of the cruel smile the Digger had given him sent shivers down his spine as he held a pair of tweezers and yanked out his fire-feathers.
He remembered the pain as they were pulled out, leaving only the fluffy down at the base of his wings.
Once the last feather had been pulled out, he remembered the numbing chill that had overtaken his body.
He remembered the way they dragged him into what would eventually become his bunker.
He had collapsed as soon as he was shoved in, the door locking behind the guards.
No one had come to help him as he sobbed on the ground. No one but Tubbo.
He remembered the smaller, brown-haired five year old who had rushed to his side, who gently pulled him to the nearby wall and held him as he cried.
The boy who tried wrapping his tiny green wings around Tommy despite his own wings being barely large enough to wrap around himself.
He snapped out of the memories as he felt Tubbo’s wings wrap around him, much like he had when they had first met. But now they were sixteen, or at least Tubbo was, and Tommy would be sixteen in a few days if they had kept count properly. And instead of the Pit, they were out in the middle of the forest.
Ever since that fateful day, it had been the two of them. The phoenix and the starling against the world. Together to the end.
Sure- they were often hungry and on edge from hunters- but here they were. At least they were free.
Neither of them could fly though. When they had escaped, they had tried, but after Tommy broke a bone, they decided it wasn't worth the risk.
Although they dreamed of flying in the clouds, they couldn't afford injuries like that. If a hunter had come by for them during Tommy’s recovery, they would have been done for, dragged back to the hellscape they had left nearly four years ago.
“I’ve got dinner, but I need you to start the fire,” Tubbo said, carefully standing up from beside him, pulling him out of his thoughts.
“Just because I’m a phoenix doesn’t mean I should start all the fires,” Tommy said, rolling his eyes playfully.
“Actually, I’m pretty sure that’s exactly what it means,” Tubbo retorted.
Tommy sighed dramatically before standing up and grabbing Tubbo’s hand.
Tubbo sent him a cheeky smile before giving his hand another squeeze and the two jumped down from the branch, their wings extending on either side of them to catch the wind and slow their fall.
When they got down, Tubbo led Tommy to where he had built the campfire, already with a few raw fish on the old metal rack they had found a few years back.
Tommy bent down and held out his arms, feeling the feathers at the base of his wings heat up a bit before a small flame appeared in his cupped hands.
He gently blew on the flame, letting the fire catch onto the wood.
Sure, he could have just put his hands on the wood, but it was more fun this way.
Tubbo sat down next to him, with a poking stick they had stolen a few months back, ready to cook the fish.
They sat there in silence, peacefully watching the fire dance in front of them.
“I think the town is getting suspicious of us,” Tubbo said after a while.
Tommy nodded. He had been expecting this. Most villages they could get a few weeks out of before their locals suspected anything. Once they did, the pair made sure to pack up and leave.
In the current town, however, they had been trading for a few months. Tommy wasn’t sure if it was that they had gotten better at hiding their wings or if this town had been especially dense or a combination of the two. Either way, it had been nice to stay a bit longer.
“I say tomorrow we go in, grab a few more coins and some bread, then head out,” Tommy proposed.
Tubbo nodded in agreement. He knew what had to be done as well as Tommy, but he tended to let the phoenix call the shots. Or at least whenever Tommy wasn’t being an idiot.
For now though, they had one more night.
They put out the fire and snuggled into the thick copse they had made their home for the past few months.
Tommy laid his wing over Tubbo and warmed them up, both of them eternally grateful that Tommy was a phoenix.
That night, they dreamt of dancing amongst the stars, not knowing that soon it would be more than a dream.