Chapter Text
“Up up up , we’re gonna miss the train and get expelled before we ever even enter the school!”
Tubbo called, shaking the unwilling Tommy in an attempt to wake his friend up - how had he even gotten in here? He lives on the other end of town! - Tommy found himself thinking tiredly, whining a bit as his friend kept shaking him, before finally opening his eyes.
Prime, Tubbo looked like an idiot right now - dressed up in a fancy button-down and dress pants. Tommy assumed his parents had forced him to dress “presentable” for their first day of school, since the Tubbo he knew would never be caught dead in something so stuffy and clean. And, with the torn red bandana around his neck, it looked utterly ridiculous.
If there were any people in town Tommy didn’t want to ever be dressed by, it was Tubbo’s parents… Who knew rich people were so bad at looking normal?
“Tubster, it’s fine , I’m up - what time is it, anyway?”
“It’s eight. We have to be on the train at eight-thirty sharp . And the train station is twenty-four minutes away if traffic decides to be nice to us. So yeah, we need to GO . Get up, get dressed - let’s go!!!”
Well, that was quite an oh shit moment - Tommy immediately jumping out of bed as Tubbo headed out of his room to let him get dressed and grab his suitcase, which Tubbo had forcefully helped him pack the day before.
Tommy quickly threw on his usual red-and-white baseball shirt, comfortable shorts, slightly destroyed sneakers, and green bandana - grabbing his suitcase and booking it down the hallway and down the stairs, hurriedly grabbing himself an apple from the kitchen. He knew Tubbo’s parents were planning to drive them to the train, and he really didn’t wanna leave the richest people in the entire city waiting any longer than he had to.
“What, leaving already? I’m sure the Underscore’s fancy car can get you there with plenty of time - aren’t you gonna hug your big brother goodbye?”
Wilbur asked with a chuckle from the kitchen, letting out a small ‘oof’ when Tommy threw himself at his chest, before quickly shouting out a “love you gotta go bye!” over his shoulder as he threw himself out the front door.
Wilbur chuckled, calling out a quick “Don’t get arrested without me!” to his brother, before going back to making himself breakfast - figuring he’d be needing more than an apple to keep him up for work.
Tommy ran out through the front door as fast as he could, rushing into the driveway where he found Tubbo and his parents waiting for him - Tubbo quickly taking his suitcase and putting it in the trunk while his parents just kinda… Blinked at him.
“Is this what you’re wearing for your first day? The Institute is a very professional environment, and you’re there on scholarship - you’ll want to make a good first impression, Theseus.”
Tommy winced at the use of his real name - not because it upset him, simply because he knew why it was being used, and he wasn’t interested in a lecture from a rich guy right now.
“Oh, lay off him, dad - he was still asleep when I got in there. Besides, that’s kinda his signature outfit. And, even if it looked bad - which I don’t think it does by the way - the teachers are gonna be more interested in what he can do than what he’s wearing.”
Tubbo’s father simply sighed at Tubbo’s words, and Tommy found himself - not for the first time - impressed by how easily and casually his friend told his father off for these things.
Being from the poorer (Tubbo’s mother insisted on saying “less fortunate”, but Tommy wasn’t an idiot, he knew he was broke compared to them) side of town, Tommy dressed and acted completely different than most people from Tubbo’s neighbourhood. And while Tubbo would never make him feel bad about it, and his parents tried not to point it out - with limited success - it could still sting a bit when a comment about his clothing or his hair or his things slipped through due to being deemed harmless. So Tommy was eternally grateful for Tubbo always insisting on not pointing these things out, as well as the fact that Tubbo would always tell someone off if he noticed them making him feel bad - not that he needed him too, Tommy could handle himself, but still. It was nice was all. He didn’t need his friend to stand up for him, but it was nice of him.
“Okay, your stuff’s in the trunk - let’s get going so we don’t miss the train!”
Tommy was very eager to not be standing in his driveway, and quickly got into the backseat with Tubbo - his parents heading to the front seat and starting the car.
The moment both Tubbo and Tommy had done up their seatbelts, they were off - Tubbo’s parents not really wanting Tubbo to miss out on school, though whether it was out of compassion or a desire not to lose however much they’d spent to get him into the school in the first place was a mystery to both of the boys in the back seat.
The drive there was set to be a boring one - as most drives with the full Underscore family tended to be - until Tommy felt a shove on his shoulder from his overly excited best friend.
“Tommy Tommy Tommy - Tommy we’re gonna be going to The Institute Tommy!”
Tommy found himself laughing softly at his friend’s sheer, unburdened joy - though he couldn’t blame Tubbo for being excited. After all, every kid born with powers dreamed of going to The Institute - and they were actually going! They were about to be students at the best hero school on Earth!
…That thought made Tommy a little ill, in all honesty.
Him? Tommy Innit? In a school tailored to the richest people on the planet?
Yeah, that was quite a thought - but hey, at least his family hadn’t paid for him to be there!
…He felt like a bit of a dick for thinking that, actually, since Tubbo’s had.
“We’re gonna be heroes! What’re we gonna call ourselves after we graduate - oh, oh, what if we have matching costumes? Obviously we’ll be a team so we might as well, right?”
And suddenly, all worries had been tossed from his head - Tommy laughing happily at his friend’s excited ramblings.
“Oh, hell yeah we’ll have matching costumes! But mine’ll be cooler cuz I’ll be in it.”
Tommy replied, Tubbo shouting back a “You wish!” and smacking him on the shoulder with a grin
“Boys, keep it down, won’t you? We’re driving.”
Tubbo’s mother requested from the driver’s seat - though Tommy knew that this request wasn’t up for debate.
“Or we could just close the backseat? Then we can be as loud as we want and you won’t have to hear it!”
Tubbo suggested, his mother sighing affectionately, before handing him the remote to separate the back seat.
Damn rich people cars… Tommy would never get used to this no matter how many times he saw it.
Soon enough, the front and back were separated by a soundproof wall (how did a car even fit that, anyway?) , and Tubbo was back to excitedly rambling about school. Now, Tommy would normally be pretty fed up by now, since he didn’t really like learning as much as Tubbo - but The Institute was very different from their previous school.
Their previous school had been a boring public school (Tubbo’s parents had thought he would do better in that environment, which he did) , but The Institute… That was the biggest, most influential hero school on the planet - and also a boarding school, which Tommy was a bit freaked out about, but he could live with it. Sure, he’d miss his brother and his house and the raccoon under the porch that he’d adopted, but he’d be home every summer and planned to write home every single day.
…Well, email home, since he didn’t really feel like writing physical letters and mailing them on a daily basis - because while Wilbur was dramatic enough for that, Tommy was a naturally impatient boy and didn’t want to wait weeks upon weeks for a response from his brother - but still. He knew his brother would keep him up to date with whatever nonsense he got up to, and he knew Will would probably never forgive him if he gave up before he even got there after all the work the two of them had done to get him into the school.
Well, obviously Wilbur would forgive him - but he wouldn’t be impressed.
Tommy realized he had zoned out when Tubbo shoved him again, and zoned back in - the two of them quickly going back to talking about what they were looking forward to at school.
“I heard the dorms are, like, massive! Like, twice the size of your room, Tommy!”
”Oh, so the same size as your room then?”
Tommy joked, Tubbo laughing along with a grin.
“My room isn’t that much bigger than yours! Oh - oh, and I heard they have an indoor pool too! Remember that time we went to that pool for my birthday? Like that, but in our school! How cool is that?”
And now Tommy was laughing along too.
“Didn’t I almost drown you in that pool?”
“Oh, hush! We were eight, it’s not like you did it on purpose!’
This joke-filled bickering continued for the rest of the car ride, and by the time the car reached the train station, both boys had laughed themselves half to death - their faces bright red and cheeks hurting from the size of their grins.
—-
The two still-grinning teens were soon handed their suitcases (and the rest of the cases Tubbo had packed, which left them needing a cart) , Tubbo being given a quick hug and a kiss on the forehead from each of his parents before the two were ushered off to catch their train.
And so they found themselves with four minutes to get to the train platform, running through the train station with their things and grinning like madmen - excited and thrilled to the point that they’d occasionally start giggling seemingly out of nowhere.
Given the school-issued pins they were each wearing, though, everyone in the station was well aware of why they were laughing and grinning. They were about to be students of The Institute - why wouldn’t they be so excited they looked like they might just collapse? The Institute was every wannabe hero’s dream come true!
The two of them made it to their platform with just a moment to spare, the train actively pulling into the station when they got there. The two of them rushed to join their soon-to-be peers in lining up to get on board.
They couldn’t believe this was actually happening. This was bound to be the best day of their lives!
The second they were let on the train, they rushed to find themselves a car - happily setting their things down on the floor and sitting down, Tommy finally getting a chance to eat his apple.
“I can’t believe this is happening… I can’t believe this is happening! Tommy, we’re gonna be heroes!”
Tommy lit up once again at the reminder.
Yeah. Heroes. Him and Tubbo, professional heroes - it seemed impossible! And yet… Here they were, on the train to the school that would teach them everything they needed to know.
Just him, his best friend -
…And whoever had just knocked on the car door.
The two of them shared a look, and Tubbo quickly called out a “Not it!” before Tommy could speak - Tommy grumbling quietly as he headed to check the door.
The guy at the door - Tommy assumed he was a student, despite him towering over them both and being dressed in a three-piece suit - awkwardly looked to the floor.
“Uh, hi! I uh - all the other cars are full, is there any chance I could ride with you? You won’t even know I’m here - well I mean obviously you’ll know I’m here, but-”
Prime, if Tommy had to listen to this dude stuttering for another second, he was gonna scream.
“-Yeah, sure - plenty of room in here. But we’re not gonna stop talking, so you’d better be ready to listen to our bullshit the whole ride.”
He stepped out of the way as he spoke, the suit guy quickly stepping into the car with a hushed “Thanks”
Tubbo looked up from whatever device he’d been messing with when the guy stepped in.
“Welcome to the fun car! I’m Tubbo, that’s Tommy - who’re you?”
The suit guy awkwardly started messing with his tie a bit before speaking again - Tommy having now noticed that he didn’t have a single bag on him.
“Oh, I’m uh- I’m Ranboo! I’ll try not to bug you guys too much-”
“-No way, I’ve got so many follow-up questions! Like, where’s your stuff? Why’re you in a suit? What’re your powers?”
Tommy sighed, jokingly smacking Tubbo in the head.
“Don’t let him freak you out - he’s just excited.”
“Oh, it’s okay! Uh, I don’t have any stuff? And this is kinda my only outfit. So that’s uh - that’s what that’s about.”
Ranboo’s response had definitely not been expected, but the other two decided not to question it - clearly he was just a generally strange dude, so they might as well move on from that - Tubbo quickly changing the conversation topic to rambling about The Institute again. Tommy joined in immediately, and Ranboo wound up being dragged into the conversation after less than a minute.
By the time the trains reached the station where they’d be getting off, all three of them had successfully hyped themselves up to the point that they were probably going to end up incredibly disappointed in what the school was actually like.
—-
After the tour of the campus, the entire student body was practically vibrating with excitement - and Tommy was no different. He couldn’t wait to show off what he could do, get put in the hero course, and write his first email to his brother about how cool the school was.
Of course, he would have to wait, since they all still had to sit through an assembly about the rules and all that stuff. And then they had to sit through everyone whose last name was earlier in the alphabet to get placed in their courses.
Eventually, though…
“Innit, Theseus?”
Tommy would normally groan at the use of his actual name, but he was far too excited - sprinting up to the stage happily, his blonde hair bouncing from the speed he was moving at.
“Alright Theseus, what’re your powers?”
“I can blow stuff up! Also, I move fast, and it’s really hard to hurt me.”
He probably could’ve phrased that better, but he couldn’t help himself! He was so excited!
“So explosion inducement, enhanced speed, and enhanced durability?”
The dean asked, Tommy quickly nodding a confirmation.
“Yup!”
He confirmed with a giant grin, his excitement contagious as ever.
“Well, it’s a good thing this room is explosion-proof… Well then Theseus, let’s see what you can do, huh?”
FUCK YES! Those were the words he’d been waiting for!
Tommy didn’t waste a second , quickly getting started on the routine he’d planned for himself - well aware that students tended to get more favour from the teachers if they put on a show, and wanting to make the best possible first impression.
So, he was off. He quickly ran off the stage - only visible as a red and white blur as he moved - quickly doing about three laps around the room, before running up the side of the wall (Prime thank his interest in parkour) , and pushing himself off of the wall, before making a large explosion in midair right above the stage as he fell semi-gracefully back to the ground.
There was dead silence for a moment, before the ENTIRE room erupted in applause and cheers - Tommy feeling like a million bucks, excitedly giving a bow.
Eventually, the cheers died down, and the dean spoke up.
“That was quite the show, mister Innit! Did you rehearse for this?”
“Might’ve.”
Tommy replied with a grin, taking a moment to catch his breath.
“Well, it certainly paid off for you! Congratulations on making it into the hero course - and with one of the most impressive displays I’ve seen this decade at that!”
While not everyone cheered at that, those who did - the ones already set in the hero course the loudest amongst them - were loud enough to make up for it.
Tommy shouted happily as he ran off of the stage, hurrying to take his place among his peers to the left of the stage.
After Tommy, several people were called up - being sent to hero or sidekick courses with far less fanfare than he had received. He was too excited about his own placement to care until he heard a name he recognized.
“Ranboo?”
Huh. That was weird - why hadn’t they used his last name when they’d made everyone else suffer through hearing theirs?
Oh well - Tommy’s interest was piqued now, his eyes and ears focused on the man he’d met on the train.
“Well, I’m well aware of your powers - but we should still tell the rest of your peers.”
…That… Was also weird.
Why was everything weird around this guy???
”Right, yeah - I uh- I can teleport, I’m telepathic, and I have telekinesis. Which, uh - unfortunate combination name-wise, but uh - but still.”
“Sounds like it would be, yes. Now then, care to demonstrate?”
Ranboo was too uncomfortable to speak, so he simply nodded - quickly lifting the entire stage off of the ground and gently setting it back down, before teleporting himself to the door and back.
He hadn’t really bothered with making his demonstration fancy like most of the other students, and his placement in the hero course had been equally lacking in theatrics - with him immediately and visually relaxing once he was standing to the side with his peers and was no longer the center of attention.
Tommy and Tubbo had cheered for his placement, as had the other heroes, but that was about it.
He probably was glad for that, seeing as he looked like he’d like to melt into the floor right now.
Tommy once again zoned out until something piqued his interest - only occasionally paying half attention to impressive demonstrations until he heard the words he’d been most excited for.
“Alright, next up: Underscore, Tuberculosis?”
He couldn’t help but cringe - nobody had called Tubbo by his real name since they were in, like, fifth grade - and Tubbo didn’t seem happy about it either.
“Uh, it’s Tubbo, actually!”
He called as he hurried onto the stage.
“Alright then - Tubbo, what can you do?”
“I’m immune to explosions - which comes in hand being friends with mister firework over there, I’ll tell you that-”
Tubbo gestured to Tommy as he spoke, earning himself a thumbs up from his best friend.
“-And I’m also a technopath with enhanced intelligence!”
Tommy cheered after Tubbo spoke, not needing to see the demonstration to know his best friend was about to kick ass and get sent to the hero course with even more fanfare than he’d gotten.
…Or, at least, he’d assumed that would happen.
That was not, however, what happened - as Tubbo wasn’t even asked for a demonstration before the dean spoke.
“Well, in that case, I’m sure you’ll be a perfect fit for the sidekick course!”
...what...
What!?
“Uh, but I didn’t -”
“- Next on the list, we have-”
It was clear that Tubbo wasn’t going to be getting a chance to argue this - or even show what he was capable of - as he was quickly ushered off of the stage so the next student could come up and show off, heading off the right of the stage with his peers.
He seemed devastated, and Tommy was livid - but one of the other students grabbed his shoulder gently before he could move.
“Trying to fight the dean will just get you and your friend both expelled. Look on the bright side - at least you made it into the hero course!”
That wasn’t a bright side.
It wasn’t a bright side at all.
They were supposed to be doing this together, they -
Tommy’s phone lit up in his pocket, the notification - which wasn’t from anything in particular - reading simply “Please don’t cause a scene, Toms.” when he checked it.
He glanced up across the hall, and made eye contact with Tubbo.
Normally he’d be mad at Tubbo for hacking his phone, but… Well, he couldn’t be mad at him right now! He’d just been utterly crushed…
He nodded in understanding, and Tubbo focused his attention back on the stage - leaving Tommy silently fuming as the placement assembly continued.
Tubbo hadn’t even gotten to try…
That wasn’t fair!
It. Wasn’t. Fair.