Chapter Text
Niki was hiding in her treehouse, with her younger brother, Ranboo, after a fight with their adoptive parents. She was twelve at the time, and Ranboo was nine. She had gotten a bad grade and they got mad at her. They immediately brought up the fact Niki was ‘part animal’ which wasn't even really how being a hybrid worked, but whatever.
She was sent up to her room when she heard them yelling at Ranboo. There was a loud thud, so she peeked out of her room. Ranboo was running upstairs, a bruise on their left shoulder. Niki pulled him into her room and quietly shut the door.
Ranboo quietly explained that they has gotten mad at him for getting in trouble at school, but it wasn't his fault. Some kid was being a dick to Tubbo and pulled on his wings (Tubbo being a bee hybrid) so Ranboo punched him.
Niki assured him he was doing the right thing. They sat on her bed, quietly, while Niki made sure his shoulder wasn't too hurt, which it wasn't. Just a bruise from them pushing him. Then, they heard yelling.
“WHERE ARE THOSE ENDER BITCHES NOW?!” Niki could practically smell the alcohol on their dad. So, she and Ranboo climbed out the window, going into the forest and to the little treehouse they had built a while ago. Their safe haven.
It had been around an hour of them talking when someone knocked at the door. Niki looked at Ranboo and they stayed quiet, not sure who it was.
“Hey, Ranboo?” Tubbo's voice came through the door, “Hey! You in there? It's Tubbo!”
“Oh,” Ranboo sighed, “Come in, Tubbo!”
“Yo!” The door opened and Tubbo, Tommy, and Puffy came in. Tommy, Tubbo, and Ranboo were all the same age, nine, and Niki and Puffy were twelve. The five of them had known each other forever and no one else knew about this treehouse.
“Did your parents get mad at you for what happened?” Tommy asked, pausing before apparently seeing the bruise and whispering, “Oh.”
“Did they...” Tubbo sat by Ranboo, and Niki stood up and backed away. Ranboo nodded and Tubbo looked down, “Aw, man, you shouldn't have defended me like that.”
“No, I don't regret it,” Ranboo shook their head, “That asshole had it coming. Besides, it isn't nearly as bad as usual.”
“Are you guys staying here all night?” Puffy asked.
“Considering dad was drunk and demanding to know where those ‘ender bitches’ are definitely,” Niki huffed.
“Schlatt got all pissy about the fight, even though I didn't even do anything, so we're staying here, too,” Tubbo looked at Tommy, “But you can go home, big man, your dad is cool, right?”
“Sure, but I'd rather stay with you guys,” Tommy pulled out his phone, “I'll tell Techno to lie and say I'm at his house.”
There was an understatement between the five, that Niki and Ranboo had abusive parents, that Puffy and Tubbo had neglectful parents and an abusive older brother, and there was no fixing that. Tommy didn't tell anyone, because they were all under the assumption that they couldn't do anything about it. And they had good reason to believe that.
So, the five of them spent many nights there, sometimes they would patch each other up, yell about how unfair life was, or just hang out. It was their safe haven. The one place Niki could feel safe.
When Niki was fourteen, everything went to shit. Ranboo was eleven, yet he matched Niki in maturity
Their parents were yelling at Ranboo for something. Niki stayed upstairs, shaking and terrified. That was when she heard the thud. She peeked outside his door, waiting for Ranboo, but she just heard a muffled scream and another thud.
***WARNING***
So, she ran downstairs and saw their dad throwing Ranboo to the ground before pulling him up and punching him. Their mom was watching, rambling about Ranboo being a disrespectful little brat. Niki let out a low growl, clenching her fist.
“GET OFF OF HIM!” She tackled their dad, her claws digging into him. Niki stepped off and shoved him away, pulling Ranboo up and pushing them behind her.
“Fuckin’ bitch,” Their dead grabbed a half-empty bottle of beer and walked forward, “What'll you think they'll do to you? Wild hybrids, hittin’ me for no reason?”
“I-I'm sorry,” Niki was frozen to the ground, despite feeling Ranboo tug on her.
It wasn't until their dad smashed the bottle over her head, the alcohol spilling over both of them, causing horrible pain, that she was able to run. She opened the door and ran out, ignoring the yells behind the two of them.
***SCENE OVER***
As if life couldn't get worse, it was raining.
“Wh-where are we gonna go?!” Ranboo after a few minutes of running, “Niki, I- I can't keep going-”
“It's okay, Ran, Tommy only lives twenty minutes away, and I'm sure it'll be faster running,” But Ranboo was slowing down, and when Niki looked back at him, she saw the blood spilling in his half-closed eyes, “Ran, stay with me.” They couldn't go anywhere else, not in such a hybrid unfriendly neighborhood. They couldn't.
“I'm... I'm tired...” That was when he lurched over. Niki yelped and grabbed him. She sighed and took her jacket off, draping it over them for a little extra protection. She then pulled him up, so his arms were draped over her back and walked, carrying the fellow ender hybrid. He was only a little shorter than her, and almost the same weight, so it wasn't easy.
Niki thought she was gonna pass out, too. The heavy rain was burning her skin off and blood was blurring her vision. But she couldn't give up. For Ranboo.
She could see their house. She sped up, feeling so much relief, until she was running. Niki banged on the door, “Tommy?!”
Tommy didn't open the door. A boy with curly brown hair and a yellow beanie on did. Wilbur, wasn't it? His eyes widened and he stepped back.
“Holy shit- DAD!”