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Techno shifts for the hundredth time in his seat, anxiety curling deep in his stomach. The doctor - which he had forgotten the name of - taps away at her board, brows furrowed. They were both lost in thought, all for different reasons. She was a doctor trying to figure out what’s happening to him while he’s a teen trying to not let go of his biggest secret.
You see, this all started hours ago. When Techno had gone out with his vigilante gear, ready to fight the crime in the city’s poorer areas. With a name like Quick Bunny you’d think he’d be lighter on his toes, but no. Techno was clumsy with his powers and tripped more times than not. Still, he's never gotten seriously injured.
Bruise’s, check. Cuts, check. Kicked in the no-no square? A dirty move but he’s had to bear it before. Many times actually. The criminals in district fourteen were ruthless. But not once has he been found out or hit by something he couldn’t treat with an ice pack and some Advil. All until today that is. He hasn’t been found out, no, he’s been hit with a power he had no idea what it does.
So of course the first thing he does when he gets home and comes face to face with Phil - concerned as to why he’s so late from school - is to tell his old man he was attacked by a criminal. You know, like an idiot. And of course Phil’s first instinct is to look him over and drive him to the nearest hospital.
“It says here that you’ve been hit by a mind altering ability.” The doctor speaks up from across them, Phil squeezing his hand for comfort. For him or the other, Techno will never know. “If the criminal you're describing is correct, that is.” She adds, looking up from his piece of paper.
“Mind altering!?” Phil panics, looking from the doctor over to him. Techno groans, looking away from the two of them. He doesn’t feel abnormal, he’s fine. All he wants to do is sleep in his bed and forget this ever happened. He’s literally been thrown into a building, he thinks he can handle something so weird as this.
The doctor raises her hand, trying to calm his dad now. “Now Philza, everything’s fine. The ability is mind altering, but it isn’t dangerous. We think it’s actually a filter type power.” That doesn’t seem to calm the other down very much, his hand squeezing harder around his. Techno squeezes back, trying to do his part in calming his dad down.
“So what does that mean for Techno?” Phil asks, looking at him straight on. Techno shuffles again in his seat. He feels like his dad's burning holes into his forehead.
“Well…” The doctor looks at him then, lips in a thin line. “It means that Techno can’t lie. At least for the next twenty four hours.” …What.
“What!?” He voices, startled. He can’t lie? That can’t be true, there’s no such thing as an ability making you not be able to lie. “You have to be joking.” He adds on, because this can’t be happening. Techno’s a literal vigilante, his whole job rests on him lying to everyone around him. Friends, classmates and his family.
The doctor only nods, obvious to his internal distress. “I’m sorry, but I’m not joking. The good thing is it only lasts around a day. Then you're back to normal. The downside is that you almost don’t have a filter. Nothing but the truth will come out of your mouth until the effects wear off.” Techno sucks in a shaky breath and looks over to his dad. Only to see him look the most revealed he’s ever been in ages.
Phil nods along to the doctor, his panic almost all gone now. “Are you sure that’s the ability he’s under though?” He questions, still ever cautious. “And not something else?”
The woman hums in thought for a couple seconds, tapping her pen to her board. “We could always test it?” She suggests, like the crazed lunatic she was. He keeps his mouth shut however, not wanting to say something he’s going to regret. If he can only say anything that’s true, then he’s in big trouble. “Ask Techno something he wouldn’t normally say, or that he’s lied about.” Oh they better not.
Phil turns to him, skepticism all over his face as he opens his mouth to speak. “Do you actually like my homemade meatloaf?” He asks, eyes shining and hoping for the answer that would put all of Tommy’s, Wilbur’s and Ranboo’s whining to shame. Techno tries to hold his tongue, but an itch embeds itself into his throat. Forcing his mouth open and his vocals to kick into gear.
He tries so desperately to say what he's always said, but alas, fate is never kind. “It tastes like you found it in the trash behind a strip club, warmed it up and sprinkled gravel on top before putting it on the kitchen table.” He blurts. A second passes, then another, and then another.
Heat rises up into his cheeks as he watches Phil’s face crumble to a frown. “…You said you liked my meatloaf.” He whispers. Techno recoils, hands moving up to cover his mouth.
His body moves without him wanting it to as he talks behind his cupped hands. “I threw up once after eating it.” His voice is muffled but with the dead silent room everyone hears it. The doctor looks like she wants nothing better to do then leave the room while Phil looks like he’s just killed his pet crow. “And I have really bad bowel movements for like five days afterwards each time you make it.”
Techno’s eyes widen at the vulgar words, face heating up brighter than a ripe tomato. Phil lets go of his hand, putting it in his lap as his eyes widen too. “…We had meatloaf two days ago.” He points out.
“I know.” He whisper’s, horrified as he keeps going. Not able to hold his tongue. “I haven’t been able to go to the bathroom since.”
~~~
The car ride back home is awkward and filled with silence. Well, except for when Phil parks the car in front of the walk in clinic to get medicine for going to the bathroom. Which he won’t ever think about again because that’s completely and utterly embarrassing. But other than that it was quiet, with Phil at the wheel and him in the passenger seat.
He finds that if no one’s talking to him directly he can hold his thoughts inside, where they're supposed to be. The sun was setting by the time they rolled up to the house, the street quiet as parents urged their kids inside for dinner. Phil parked the car and stopped the engine as he unbuckled himself from his seat. Techno moves to open the door and get out, wanting to spend the next twelve hours held up in his room.
He’s stopped by his dad's hand on his shoulder. He turns to face the other man. Phil looked calmer than when this all started. When Techno walked inside with a raging headache and was immediately pushed into the family’s car as Wilbur, Ranboo and Tommy panicked on the porch. “If you feel sick or anything, tell me? Okay? I can always call the doctor back if things aren’t right.”
Techno goes to agree, goes to put his dad at ease. Because out of everyone it’s the other who needs it, not him. What comes out is the truth. “I’m most likely not going to tell you if I start to feel bad.” He says. Body freezing as the words come out. He clasps his mouth shut, watching as Phil’s shoulders hike up to his ears.
His dad goes through all stages of grief right before his eyes. Looking like a torn down man with nothing but four rowdy teenagers to show for his life’s work. “Why not?” He asks then, grip turning firmer on his shoulder.
Techno sees the exact moment when this turns from two people talking to a dad and son conversation. Which wasn’t at all helped by the fact he couldn’t lie anymore. “I don’t want to worry you with something I can just tough through.” He replies, flinching at his own words.
Phil’s frown deepens, hand retreating from his shoulder. “It’s my job to worry, I’m your father.” He states, unbuckling himself from his seat. “It’s your job to tell me when something is wrong.” He knows for a fact that this conversation wasn’t over, that Phil was thinking up more things to say. But Techno took that second he was distracted to run for freedom.
He unlocks the door and runs out of the car and over to the house. He hears Phil curse behind him but he ignores it, taking out his own key from his pocket and shoving it into the lock. The door unlocks with a click and he wastes no time in opening it. What he’s met with is his brothers peeking over from the living room, all of their eyes being red rimmed. “Techno!” He doesn’t even get one foot in the door before Tommy’s crashing into him.
If he wasn’t used to objects slamming into him on the nightly then Techno would be sprawled out on the porch stairs right now. “Hey Theseus.” He grumbles, looking up from him and over to his two other siblings. Ranboo and Wilbur stood right behind Tommy, both looking him over his narrowed eyes. Wilbur rejected his glances as Ranboo fidgeted in place. “Hey Will, Lethe.” He greets as Tommy pulls himself off of him.
The nicknames were overkill, but he wanted them to know he’s fine. And it clearly worked as the three teens' shoulders slump down, a collective breath being taken. “What the hell happened?!” Wilbur shouts, looking between him and someone else.
That someone else being Phil, as he walks up behind him. “Techno got hit with a mind altering ability.” He states, forgetting for a second that the words ‘mind altering’ probably wasn’t the best to use. He then quickly backtracks. “It’s not dangerous, just an inconvenience to Techno.” He doesn’t miss the pointed look his dad gives him, shuffling away from the older. “How about we all go inside so I can explain better?”
Everyone reluctantly agrees, Tommy and Ranboo sticking to his sides as they walk to the living room. The designated ‘let's talk’ room in the house. He enters with his family all with him, sending glances to each other and mounting words he’s too tired to spy on. Techno sits down on the single seat, watching as his younger siblings grumble to themselves as they go sit next to Wilbur.
Ranboo brings his knees up, resting his chin atop them. His tail curls lazily around his legs. Tommy takes a perch right next to Wilbur, his own tail finding its way into their older brother's grasp. Phil, who looks tired himself at this point, sits on the love seat alone. A few seconds stretch with no one talking, but with Tommy and Wilbur being here it doesn’t last longer then that. “So is Techno dying or something?” He asks, ears pearled up for an answer.
Phil sighs, looking at him for a few seconds before moving to look at the rest of his siblings. “He’s not dying, Tommy. While walking home Techno got hit with an ability that makes it so he can’t lie.” Ranboo looks over at him then, mitch matched eyes blinking owlishly at him.
“You can’t lie?” He asks, like their dad didn’t just confirm it.
“Yep.” He pops the ‘p’, trying to not show how much he’s internally screaming at his misfortune. He sees the second Ranboo understands how horrible this was, eyes widening. The others do the same, but Ranboo was different in his conclusion than them. Because he’s the only one who knew about him being Quick Bunny. Not by choice, but he still knows.
He recognized Techno passed the mask and gear he wears one day while out in the city. The convenience store they walked to together went under attack and seeing Techno with abilities of his own must have dawned the realization on him. He could have hid of course, but he wasn’t about to have his baby brother hurt just because he wasn’t Quick Bunny at the moment, but Techno.
Ranboo swore to secrecy on one conclusion. Techno gathers information on the criminals and hero’s he runs into. The boy was a huge nerd when it came to the city’s super powered people. He couldn’t say no, not when it meant he could keep doing his nightly outings without pause. “You had us all freaking out for that!?” Wilbur yells, waving his hands about.
“You freaked yourselves out.” He points out, looking around the room. “All I did was say I was attacked-“
“And you think that’s any different?” Tommy grumbles, crossing his arms. “I almost died from a heart attack! You’d have two downed boys here, I swear it.” Everyone collectively rolled their eyes at the two’s dramatics.
“At least you're safe.” Ranboo pipes up after a while, steering the conversation away from the other two. “How long will the effects last?” He asks after that, looking to their dad.
“Twenty four hours.” He supplies, looking way too tired for the time. Wilbur’s eyes widened at that, looking between Phil and him.
Techno sits up straighter, feeling a migraine already coming on. “Wilbur don’t-“ He’s cut off by the pure determined look in his older brother's eyes. This wasn’t going to end well.
“How much do you love us out of ten?” Techno tries to keep his thoughts to himself, but the direct question curls around his vocals, making him unable to keep them locked up. This bastard, was the only thing he could think of before he ruined his reputation.
“Ten is too small of a number to use.” He blurts, cheeks already turning red. “But it’d have to be ten if I had to choose…” Wilbur looks delighted by the answer. Tommy on the other hand looks like a messenger from the devil himself. A gremlin child, if you will.
“Were you the one to wash Henry after I said he hates baths?” Tommy asks, leaning forward on his knees. Elbows pooping himself up. He hears Phil sigh and Ranboo mumble why he was still upset about that.
“Yes, the thing smelled like death. You haven’t washed that toy in years, I swear to god it started to look like something alive was growing on it.” Techno groans after his tirade, forced to watch as Tommy’s determination turns into something deadly. He’ll have to be watching out for pranks now.
“He wasn’t that bad smelling!” Tommy yelled, looking around the room. “Right Ranboo?” Ranboo looked away at that, tail curling around his wrists as he pretended they didn’t exist. “… right, Ranboo?”
The younger of the two twins shuffles closer to the side of the couch, ignoring his blonde other. Techno can’t help but snot at the display. But the thought of the others ringing him out for all his worth springs him on to move. Plus his bedroom was calling to him, his geer left in his school bag for anyone to discover. He stands slowly, watching everyone in the room.
When none of them turn to him he quickly walks out of the living room. The perks of being the middle child. Techno makes his way down the hall, making sure to grab his dropped bag he left in the hallway before he was shoved in Phil’s car two hours before. He swings it onto his back as he turns left up the stairs, hurrying up them.
Finding his room in the laundry-filled hall was no different than any other day, and soon enough he was standing in front of a door with the words Techno scrawled on it with pink marker. He opens the door and closes it behind himself, heading right for the closet. Once there he drops his school bag and unzips it, moving all his completed assignments and giving text bags out of the way.
At the bottom, with stains and grim embedded into the very fabric, was his vigilante suit. Well, less of a suit and more of what you’d see robbers wear. It was mostly black with white and hot pink accents, spray painted with a pair of bunny ears on his hoodie back. He grabbed everything and stuffed it into the deepest part of his closet. Passed boxes of old school experiments and forgotten report cards.
It wasn’t the best hiding place but with three brothers and one having a knack for stealing, it was the best he could do. Techno stood and closed his closet, only to immediately jump when he sees Ranboo on the other side of the door. “Oh my god.” He breathes, clutching his chest. “Really!?”
The younger boy just smiles cheekily, pointed ears raising as he walks deeper into his room. “Sorry.” He apologized, sounding very far from actually being apologetic. “I’m hiding from Tommy.” He says after a beat of silence, settling himself into his desk chair. “And for my notes.” He adds a little quieter, making grabby hands towards him.
Techno rolls his eyes as he bends down to pick up his bag, tossing it over to the other. Ranboo catches it, immediately diving into it and taking out a geography textbook. To anyone else it looked like just another overpriced school textbook, but to them it was an anomaly. Techno didn’t take geography this year.
Ranboo lets the bag fall to the ground as he opens up the huge book. Inside the pages were carved out and glued together, making it essentially the best place to hide a journal. One ripe for Ranboo to flip through. The younger boy purrs as he opens up to the latest page, claws running over the many words written there. Techno was a detailed person, especially when it comes to the twins.
He’d never say that out loud of course, he wouldn’t give Tommy that kind of power. “You fought Magma!?” He whisper yells, head shooting up to stare at him. Techno shrugs, walking over to his bed. He sits down, leaning back on his hands.
“He’s a hot head.” He said, looking out his window. The moon was starting to rise now, bathing them in moonlight. It was still beautiful the hundredth time he’s seen it, but it will never compare to leaping so far up into the night sky he could feel the stars above him. “Plus it isn’t like I captured him.” He grumbles after a few seconds, going over that night’s events in his head. “He got away.”
“You still held your own.” Ranboo points out, sounding like a child in a candy store. “Against Magma, Tech. That’s amazing! I could never…” He hums, listening as the other flips to the next page. He’s starting to head that a lot recently. Of Ranboo saying he could never do what he does. If he didn’t know the other, he’d say he was actively thinking about becoming a vigilante himself.
But his younger brother had a mutation ability, not one like him. He was different, with a tail and pointy ears. Techno was blessed to be able to leap multiple feet into the air and kick people across the street with one firm hit. The other, sadly, was not. Abilities weren’t genetic after all. “I bet you could.” He finds himself saying anything, catching the other off guard.
“What?” Ranboo replied, head tilting to the side. “What are you talking about?”
Techno pushed forward so his elbows were resting on his knees, a soft smile on his face. “Phil made all of us go to self defence classes, and you're stronger than normal kids your age thanks to your mutation.” He points out. It was a fact, Ranboo was good at fighting and had the punch power to back that up. He however was a wuss. A runner instead of a fighter. It wasn’t a bad thing, just another fact.
The boy just rolls his eyes. “A couple defence classes won’t make me a good vigilante, not like you.” He doesn’t say anything to that, instead keeping his truth ridden words to himself. He’s half afraid of what would come out if he opens his mouth, having the truth speaking effects still lingering. Ranboo goes to say something else when suddenly the door whips open, cutting the other bit off.
Techno shoots up into a standing position, forcing his feet to move in front of his younger brother. He only relaxes when he sees a mop of blonde hair and shining blue eyes. “That was a reaction.” Tommy says, looking between them. Techno kicks his foot back, hitting his bag and driving it underneath his desk.
“What are you doing here?” He huffs, watching as Tommy rolls his eyes.
“…Seeing my big brother?” He lies, voice cracking. “And my twin?” He adds, making it sound to much like a question. Techno levels him with a glare, causing the other to cross his arms. “Fine! I wanted to ask you some things.” And there it is, the gremlins true intentions.
“Well that’s too bad.” He drawls, walking forward and putting his hands on the boy's shoulders. “Because I don’t want to answer any.” He pushes, Tommy stumbling back towards the door of the room.
“Oh come on! It’ll be fun!” For you, he wants to say. But he keeps his mouth clamped shut. Techno pushes harder but Tommy holds onto the doorframe, causing it to creak. Ranboo is literally holding a journal full of his vigilante outings, he can’t let the other in. Not if he wants to keep his secret. “You can’t just push me-“
“I can actually!” He yells, shoving harder. Tommy has the grip strength of a crocodile jaw however, holding onto the doorframe like it would let him have all the answers he wants.
“It’s very insensitive!” Tommy bites back, like asking him questions he couldn’t lie to wasn’t the same thing.
“Get out of my room Tommy!” He growls, trying to push the younger out of his room once more. He has no idea if Ranboo had hid the journal yet or not, the other had a tendency to freeze in situations like this.
“Oh come on, Techno! Ranboo gets to be here! Why can’t I? What are you so secret about all of a sudden?” Ranboo’s breath hitched at the question, but Techno was too busy trying to get the blonde out of his room to realize what he had said. That it was a direct question. He meant to complain some more, saying it was not the others business. But he could feel the ability take hold of his vocals and voice, forcing something he would never say willingly out.
“I’m trying to hide the fact I’m a vigilante from you!” He yells, shoving the other fully out of his room. Then it dawns on him, what he had just said. His neck snaps over to Tommy’s face, with his wide eyes and gaping mouth. They all knew he had just said the absolute truth, and that’s what makes this horrible. He tries to take it back, say it was all a joke to see how he’d react. But all that comes out is spluttering nonsense.
“…Tech-“ He grabs Tommy by the collar of his shirt and drags him into his room, turning his head over to Ranboo.
“Lock the door.” He orders, turning on his feet and tossing Tommy onto his bed. Ranboo moves out of the way and goes to the door to do just that, the journal left on the desk. He crosses his arms - to hide the shaking of his hands - and glares at the other. Tommy straightens up, moving to sit properly as he glares at him back. He goes to say something, probably yell and alert Phil and Wilbur about their scroble, but he raises his hand to silence him.
“You're not going to say anything about this.” He states, taking a step closer. “Do you understand me? I don’t need dad knowing and banning me from saving lives, Tommy.”
He watches as Tommy takes a breath in and out. Eyes moving between him and Ranboo, who had just walked back over. His shoulders hike up to his ears and in a split second he’s seeing a smile. “your so fucking cool!” He whispers yells, hands curling into fists as he keeps looking between them. Techno’s taken aback by the reaction, so sure the other would tattle. He doesn’t get a word in as Tommy goes on.
“Techno, you're a vigilante, that’s amazing! Of course I’m not going to tell dad, are you kidding me? You're literally the only reason I’m not failing my English class, I owe you this.” The other takes a breath in, hands moving up to fix his bangs as they get in front of his face. “And really, it’s kind of hurtful to know you think of me as a snitch.” He adds, eyes sparkling with youthfulness.
Techno takes a step back then, shoulders falling as he looks at his little brother being amazed at the fact that he’s a vigilante. Ranboo was the same, he remembers it like it was yesterday. So excited to hear all about how he beats up criminals and the hero’s that have almost caught him. Really, he shouldn’t have thought Tommy would be any different. He’s Tommy.
“…You're fine with it?” He asks hesitantly, testing his luck where there was no reason to. Tommy nods, looking at him then Ranboo. Who sits at his desk chair, eyes roaming everywhere but them. He breathes out a breath that’s been clogging his lungs, anxiety rolling off of him like syrup. “Okay then.” He says to himself, noticing as Tommy’s tail swings from left to right excitedly.
He groans internally, knowing what’s going to come up next. He beats his brother to the bullet as he moves his hair out of his face. “Do you want to see my gear?” He already knows the answer to that, but seeing Tommy perk up and nod like an excited puppy makes up for the next grueling hours of questioning that’s sure to come.
Maybe having Ranboo and Tommy know of his alter ego wasn’t such a bad idea. Thanks mind altering ability, you made him a better person.
Suck it.