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"Wha...?"
Tubbo looks away from his blueprints and at Michael, arms up, next to the chair he is sitting in.
The child smiles again at his father, arms still in the air. "⎍⌿! ⎍⌿!"
Pulling him into his arms, Tubbo leaves the room, somewhat confused. Michael continues to babble. "⎅⏃!"
The brown-haired boy stops for a minute, then sighs. He takes out his communicator, hoping Ranboo hasn't left the house yet.
_____
you whisper to ranboo: ranboo
ranboo whispers to you: yeah ?
you whisper to ranboo: did you leave the house yet
ranboo whispers to you: was about to, why?
you whisper to ranboo: well dont go yet and come here i need help w/ michael
ranboo whispers to you: ok? is it bad?? should i be worried??
you whisper to ranboo: nah dw its just weird
ranboo whispers to you: oh alright
ranboo whispers to you: where are you?
you whisper to ranboo: living room
ranboo whispers to you:
ill
be there in a minute
_____
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"...Yup, that's ender alright," Ranboo comments at Michael's excited rambling, his tail swishing nervously in the air.
"Yeah, I figured it was ender- The question is 'how does he know it'," Tubbo responds, pinching the top of his nose with his free hand in frustration. "He doesn't even speak English yet!"
"Wh- You're asking me like I know!" The enderman hybrid flails his arms around. "I can't speak ender past a few basic words, and you don't speak it at all, and we're the only two people to see Michael on the daily-"
"Which means someone has to have come see him when we weren't there."
A nervous silence settles between the two, slowly taking in the implications. Someone managing to interact with Michael without them knowing is bad news. They keep important stuff in their house, but even then, items can be replaced. Michael, on the other hand...
"We need to find out who it is. Evaluate the level of danger they represent. And then..." Tubbo pauses for a second. "Well, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it."
"Sounds fair. What are you planning?" Ranboo asks, his tail movements not as erratic as before.
"Just interrogating everyone that's likely to know ender. That'd be..." The smaller boy counts on his fingers, thinking. "Tommy, Bad, Sam, Foolish, Phil and Jack. Wait, I don't know why I said Tommy, scratch that-"
Ranboo chuckles. "Yeah, I don't think Tommy would know ender, let alone be sneaky enough to come speak it in front of Michael. But I suppose the rest is fair," He comments. "Jack could've learned it in the nether around a blue forest, Sam did study ancient languages for a while, Foolish is old as heck so he probably knows it, Bad and Phil- also super old. So it checks out."
Tubbo nods and runs towards the door, grabbing the other's hand and pulling him along. "Then let's go!"
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
Their shoes crunches with the leftover snow from Snowchester still underneath them, but it quickly melts away as they make their way to the prime path.
"Hopefully Jack and Phil will read the letters we left them and get back to us when they go back on, because that would save us a lot of time," Tubbo mutters.
Ranboo sighs to try and hide a chuckle. "I told you to check who was online before going to run everywhere looking for them."
"Shut up."
"Okay."
The half-enderman follows close behind, but Tubbo can hear the smug grin in his tone of voice.
"Whatever," he huffs. "I'm messaging Bad. Hope he's not busy with the Egg stuff and also that he won't try to murder us this time."
_____
you whisper to badboyhalo: hey
badboyhalo whispers to you: hi!
you whisper to badboyhalo: are you busy rn
badboyhalo whispers to you: no! the egg actually doesn't need anything today :3 why?
you whisper to badboyhalo: me n ranboo need to talk to you for a min
badboyhalo whispers to you: i think i can do that! what about tho owo
you whisper to badboyhalo: just come here im sending our coordinates
badboyhalo whispers to you: ill be right there!
_____
"He seems in a good mood," Tubbo notices. His ears flicker once or twice, nervous to face Eggpire BadBoyHalo again.
Now walking next to him, Ranboo seems to be thinking the same thing. "...Lucky for us," he says after a few seconds.
They don't have to wait long, as the vine-covered demon joins them quickly, gracefully leaping over obstacles thanks to the long legs of his 9'6 feet talk form. When he gets close enough, he shifts into his more manageable, 6'8 feet tall form. It's still tall, but much easier to talk to.
"Hi!" He greets them cheerfully. "It's been a while! What is it you need? You wouldn't say," he asks.
The boys look at each other, and Tubbo starts.
"Bad, do you know ender? Or anyone that does?" He asks. The demon's happy expression sends shivers down his spine, although he's not quite sure why.
"I'm so sorry, but I don't. I know gemfolk speak since Skeppy didn't know common at first, if that helps?"
Tubbo frowns, disappointed. "No, that's all we needed to know. Thanks anyways."
"I could ask the Egg if it knows," Bad adds, deep in thought. "It probably does, and it's the only other being who I'm sure could speak ender aside from you, Ranboo."
Ranboo seems uncomfortable at the comment. He pushes Tubbo towards the opposite direction as he waves a quick goodbye to the demon. When they're out of earshot, he sighs.
"Sorry, Tubbo. I just- being compared to the Egg made me feels weird and I was already not so great just being around him, so-"
He stops as the goat hybrid gives him a light pat on the arm, smiling. The half-enderman visibly relaxes at the comforting gesture.
" 'S okay, I understand the feeling. I was uneasy the whole time, too." He sighs. "Okay, who's next?"
"Uh, I think it's Sam. He's probably at the prison."
"Then let's hurry. I hate this place."
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The tall obsidian box looms over them, casting an uncomfortably large shadow. Neither of them say anything until they reach the door. The prospect of being near Dream in any way is already enough to make both of them very tense.
As they stop in front of the entrance, Tubbo takes a sudden sharp breath, startling Ranboo.
"I'm not setting a foot in this," he says through his teeth after a short pause. "Let's just- Let's see if he'll come out first. I'd rather not get closer to what's inside."
"Agreed."
The enderman hybrid's tail whipping the air gives Tubbo confirmation on his husband's emotional state. They are both staying as far as possible, for their own sakes.
He takes out his communicator once more, praying that Sam will be a tiny bit more cooperative than usual.
_____
you whisper to awesamdude: yo sam
awesamdude whispers to you: hello tubbo.
awesamdude whispers to you: what do you want?
you whisper to awesamdude: can u step oustide for a sec
awesamdude whispers to you: what for?
you whisper to awesamdude: we have a question to ask u
you whisper to awesamdude: face to face
awesamdude whispers to you: why not here? it's not like anyone can see this conversation.
you whisper to awesamdude: they can if i lose my communicator and it already happened a few times
you whisper to awesamdude: can you just come outside for a sec please
awesamdude whispers to you: why not come inside?
you whisper to awesamdude: you know why
awesamdude whispers to you: ...
awesamdude whispers to you: alright. fine. but no more than ten minutes.
you whisper to awesamdude: thanks
_____
"Wow... He actually said yes." Tubbo stares at the messages in disbelief. "I thought he'd never budge."
"Maybe he's going soft on you," Ranboo snickers.
"Well, better that than being forced to step into this fucking box. I just hope I won't have to regret it."
Ranboo sighs and nods, concern in his eyes. As much as they were pleasantly surprised at the fact that Sam didn't force them to enter the prison, it doesn't mean that they're safe in his presence. He hopes the Warden has forgotten about Tubbo's pranks, or that at least enough time passed for him to tolerated the brown-haired teen again.
A few minutes later, the sound of redstone breaks the heavy silence and startles the both of them. They eye the entrance nervously, waiting for Sam to show up.
A second later, the guardian of Pandora's box steps out of the threshold, lowering his mask for a breath of fresh air. Tubbo doesn't blame him - the air is stale between the obsidian walls. From the corner of his eye, Sam spots the teens and slowly makes his way towards them.
"So," the engineer confronts them, looking them up and down with furrowed brows, "What was so important that I had to leave the worst criminal the server has ever known alone and with no surveillance?" His voice sounds like a growl despite not being outright threatening, and Tubbo can't help but flinch.
But the goat hybrid shakes his head. Get a grip, damnit!
"You studied ancient languages at some point, right?" He asks with the most confident tone he can muster. "The kind that doesn't use our alphabet?"
Sam pauses and glances at Ranboo. It's indescribable, but it makes the enderman hybrid shiver.
"...I did. Why?" The man finally answers. "What do you want to know?"
"Would you happen to know ender?" Tubbo asks, stepping a bit closer to Ranboo for comfort. But the Warden's shoulders relax suddenly, surprising them both.
"I tried to learn it. I only know how to write some symbols, and definitely not how to speak it, if that's what you're asking," Sam sighs. "It takes a very long time to get the strokes just right, and ender uses sounds that I just couldn't replicate. I don't have the right vocal folds for it. Only endermen have them. And also piglins, for some reason."
"...Oh." The teens look at each other, slightly defeated. Another dead end.
"I don't think anyone on the server could speak it aside from Ranboo if he tried learning it, honestly," Sam adds. "I could try and show you the symbols, if you wanted."
"Maybe later," the taller boy replies with a heavy sigh. The tension is slighty lighter, but the disappointment hit him like a bag of bricks. "We've got to get going."
"Alright. I should go back inside too," the Warden nods. "Someone needs to make sure Dream doesn't try and portal his way out of the cell again."
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After having exchanged some parting words with him, the boys rapidly made their way back towards civilization, away from the looming threat of Pandora's shadow. Once at a safer distance, their legs give up and they end up on the floor, pants covered in dirt.
Once the shock has passed, Tubbo takes a big breath and the leftover tension quickly melts away. He smiles. His chest feels lighter already.
"I'm so glad that's over," he groans. "I didn't realize how sick this place made me feel."
Ranboo's tail sways in agreement. "It's too bad we did this for nothing. It wasn't him," he mutters.
"Apparently it's also no one else on this goddamn server. How did Michael learn it if nobody speaks it?"
They stay silent for a few minutes.
Suddenly, Tubbo snaps his fingers. "Edward."
Ranboo turns to him, confused. "What?"
"You know how, since Michael learned how to climb up the ladder, we sometimes let him wander the house for a bit?" Tubbo says. "Edward is a literal enderman. He knows ender! That's where Michael heard it!"
"Wait." Wait a goshdarn minute." Ranboo frowns. "You mean that we've been running around all day, worried that someone might have broken in and could potentially hurt our son, when it was our pet the entire time?"
The teens pause and look at each other for a few seconds before bursting into laughter. Of course they had to get paranoid first and use their brain after covering half the server by foot. Why wouldn't that be the best course of action?
Tubbo's ears twitch in relief. "Jesus Christ, we have issues," he sighs.
"We really do." Ranboo gets back on his feet, dusts himself off and holds out a hand to his husband. "Come on, it's starting to get late. Let's go back home."
The smaller teen takes it with a smile. "Yeah. Let's."
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The house is quiet, late at night.
Lonely torches provide small patches of light.
Something moves in the shadows between them.
A few footsteps, wood squeaks. A trapdoor opens.
Micheal sits up in his bed, rubbing his eyes. But when he recognizes the presence in the room, the baby piglin gasps with excitement.
"Hi! Hi!" he squeals, making grabby hand gestures at the creature. Purple light bounces off of the little one's skull as he's being picked up.
"⊑⟒⊬ ⏚⎍⎅⎅⊬," the low voice greets him fondly. Michael giggles. He likes the familiar sounds of the strange language.
"⊑⟒⌰⌰⍜!" he greets back. It makes the other chuckle.
"⍙⍜⍙, ⊬⍜⎍'⍀⟒ ⎅⍜⟟⋏' ⌇⍜ ⍙⟒⌰⌰ ⟟⋏ ⟒⋏⎅⟒⍀ ⏃⌰⍀⟒⏃⎅⊬!" The voice compliments him. "⊬⍜⎍'⍀⟒ ⎐⟒⍀⊬ ⏁⏃⌰⟒⋏⏁⟒⎅!"
The praise makes Michael's cheeks light up with a soft red hue. He doesn't really know how to make all the sounds himself just yet, but if the the other tells him he's doing well, he will try. "⏁⊑⏃⋏☍ ⊬⍜⎍, ⎅⏃⎅⏃."
The bright purple eyes staring back at him fill with joy. "⟟'⋔ ⌇⍜ ⌿⍀⍜⎍⎅ ⍜⎎ ⊬⍜⎍." The tall being presses Michael against his chest. Michael smiles at the warmth.
A sudden wook creak makes them both flinch. The tall one sighs before setting Micheal down in his bed. "Right. I have things to do. I wish we had more time, buddy. I really do. I'm sorry." He gives the child a kiss on his forehead. "⟟ ⌰⍜⎐⟒ ⊬⍜⎍, ⋔⟟☊⊑⏃⟒⌰. Never forget that."
Michael waves his little hand at the other. "⏚⊬⟒ ⏚⍜⍜," he squeaks before the other teleports away.
The house is quiet again. Michael slowly drifts away to sleep again.
As his thoughts blur together into unconsciousness, the baby piglin simply wonders why the other doesn't use the strange language with him after those nights and never remember their chats by the next morning.