Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Technoblade was a natural born fighter, forged in the fire of hell, shaped in battle.
He had trained for years to react in the best way possible to any situation that could present itself on the battlefield. He was very proud of it, actually.

However nothing could have ever prepared him for what he was about to witness.

The war had been going on for as long as the piglin hybrid remembered, not that he disliked it, of course. In fact, a bittersweet feeling fed on his heart when he realized that this could very well be the last battle.

The voices would not be pleased.

With rehearsed movements, Technoblade went on a rampage. Red stained his sword as he spun in the battlefield, a dance of death and loss. The adrenaline pumped through his veins as his head demanded more blood.

He was happy to comply.

Screams echoed in the air, creating a symphony that only made the dance more enthusiastic. The rebels never stood a chance and it seemed they had realized that as well, scrambling to get as far away from him as possible, but there was no mercy in war.

All of a sudden, an out of tune voice towered over the rest, one that Techno knew very well.

His head jerked up right as his sight tried to focus on the source of the noise. His eyes widened upon the scene he found.

His brother, Wilbur, tempered in the same hellfire as him, was struggling.
That, however, wasn’t the most surprising part about it, no.
Wilbur was losing against what could very well have been a child.

This was no place for kids, that much was true. Where had he come from? How could he fight with such precise movements? These questions were left unanswered as Techno ran in his brother’s direction, a swing hitting too close to Wilbur’s throat for comfort.

With a simple movement Technoblade raised his sword. A loud clank was released when the blade came in contact with the kid’s dagger.
Despite their, evident, size difference, Techno’s stance wavered both from the child’s strength and the surprise said strength brought.

Now that he was closer, Techno could see the appearance of his foe: he looked no older than 11, not that Techno was very knowledgeable about human children; despite his great abilities, the kid was scrawny and clearly malnourished, wearing barely a rag covering his pale and dirty body; behind the soot and the mud, Techno could almost see golden hair.

A grumble rose in his throat, but he dismissed it easily.

Techno lowered his head, finally managing to meet the teen’s eyes.

Red met pale blue, almost grey. They were dull and empty, not like a kid’s own, and they were surrounded by deep eyebags that made clear the poor condition he was in. It seemed like he was up in his own world, not even focusing on the battle at hand. Techno felt a bit hurt in his pride as he pulled back and attacked again.

The boy raised his blade and stopped Techno’s attempt, then he raised his fist and hit the older boy in the stomach, breaking his defence. Taking the full impact, Techno fell onto the ground confused.

The boy’s attention focused back on Wilbur who stood by, observing the strange encounter. He reached for his sword and pulled his foot back, securing his stance, but the boy was quicker.

Wilbur grimaced as his blade flew from his hand, landing with a thud on the muddy ground. Before he could even try to reach for it, the kid made his move and prepared to attack.

Techno, still a bit dazed and aching, pulled himself up. All of his instincts were calling for blood, those who harmed his pack had to pay.
His vision went red.

“blood for the blood god” demanded the voices

He heard them loud and clear.

Dust clouded the air, blood tainted the ground. Techno’s shoes were stable and secure. His steps faster than the wind, his weapon slick like a serpent. Before he even realized what was going on, the boy fell onto the ground unconscious.

Techno’s head got quieter, he took on the sight of his action and glanced at his twin, who was on the ground staring at him with wide eyes, words trapped in his mouth.

Techno broke the tension first.

“Fuck, Phil is gonna be so pissed. We should leave him here.”

Wilbur shook his head, as if to focus again on the situation at hand

“it’s a kid, we cant leave him here” he scoffed, dusting himself off.

Techno huffed and pointed at the child.

“that’s a whole murder weapon, I don’t think we can classify him as a kid. I don’t want to get involved with whatever that thing is.”

he offered his hand to his brother who promptly accepted and pulled himself up.

“Techno.” Wilbur scrunched his eyebrows “ look at the state of him!.” He declared as he kneeled next to the body, placing his hands on the stained shirt to apply some pressure.

" besides, if dad ever finds out- and trust me he WILL find out- we left a child bleeding out in the middle of a field after WE stabbed him, we’ll be the one with a hole in our stomachs instead” Will reasoned.

Technoblade crossed his arms.

“cmon, it’s barely a scratch, he’ll survive.” he commented with a pout. 

Wilbur threw him a glare “ We won't be able to say the same about ourselves if we leave him here.”

Fine, his brother was actually making some sense.

King Philza’s angry image conjured in their minds sending goosebumps through both of them. Wilbur’s deep brown eyes stared into Techno’s soul, a silent prayer. Techno rolled his eyes in return and kneeled next to his twin

“okay fine, but you carry him , feed him and take him on walks”
He patted his brother’s back with a smirk, Wilbur coughed.

“he’s a kid Tech, not a dog” he remarked while wrapping his hands around the bleeding boy, amazed by the light weight.

They moved with ease across the, now empty, battlefield, familiar with its routes. When they finally approached their main base, Techno began his walk towards his horse

“ugh, I can't believe we're really doing this” he grunted, fingers massaging the space between his eyebrows. He threw his brother a glance, clicked his tongue and mounted on his horse.

“I leave you alone ONE fight and you stab A CHILD!?” King Philza’s voice resonated in the wide hall.

His hand tight over his nose bridge, his voice calm but stern. He took a deep breath with eyes closed, sitting on his throne as the twins stood in front of him, heads lowered.

Technoblade was the first to raise his head

“I want to point out that I stabbed him in self defense” his voice was void of emotion.
Behind him Wilbur huffed out a laugh that got suffocated when Phil’s blue eyes landed on him. At that, he cleared his voice and stepped forward

“I stand with Techno on this one dad. As much as I hate to admit it, if he hadn’t hurt him, I don’t think I would have been able to stand here today.” He turned his head toward his twin, his lips thinning in a soft smile.

The king’s brows furrowed.

Techno could tell the gears in his father's head were turning. After a couple of minutes, his shoulders slacked with a sigh.

“this does not make any sense” He stated, gaining a sound of approval from both his sons

Then, he raised an hand to his chin “you do not believe the rebels would use child soldiers right?” he considered for a moment.

Wilbur shrugged
“ I don’t think they would stoop so low…”

“and it’s not like they had the skills to train him, they barely trained themselves” Techno interrupted, huffing out a laugh and taking one step forward, corner of the mouth slightly raised. Taking down the rebels, while tedious, had been unsurprisingly easy

“...BUT we shouldn’t take any chances” his twin concluded, annoyed. Oh so now he was against keeping him, of course. 

Technoblade rolled his eyes "I agree" he said ”wherever he came from, that thing is clearly dangerous, we should be wary of him. When he wakes u-“
“ IF he wakes up” his father interrupted. His voice not without an hint of irritation.

Techno clicked his tongue and inhaled deeply “ I already told you, that kid is like a killing machine- he’s fine, I barely hit him. When I was his age-“

Wilbur stopped him from going on a rant and spoke

“ I think what Techno was trying to say is that we should have that child as far away from us as possible” he crossed his arms and received a glare from his twin. It had been Will's idea to bring the child with them and now he suddenly wanted nothing to do with him? 

Philza fell silent. On one side, keeping him here could be useful. On the other it could endanger his family and that was something he could not allow. Plus he didn’t even know wheter the kid was going to make it or not.

Tough a harsh thing to do to a child, he could had him locked in prison until they understood the situation better. However he was a father before he was a king, doing something that cruel wouldn’t be easy on him.

Perhaps if the kid got surveillance at all times and collaborated he could stay in one of the guest rooms. It would probably take a few weeks to confirm where he had come from…

A knock on the door shook the king away from his train of thoughts.

Dark hair came into vision as a man, no older than twenty-five, entered the room. In his hands there was a folder that he held close to his person as he walked to the center of the room, head high. He slowly lowered a red and black scarf that covered his mouth and nose.

He bowed graciously “I greet his highness King Philza, sun of the empire, angel of-“

“don’t worry about the pleasantries, we all know the greetings, what brings you here Ponk? I hope it’s good news” the king cut him short, waving his hand and smiling politely

Ponk raised himself, brushing his white coat and spoke

“ the…guest the princes have brought has awoken. However I’m afraid he appears quite shocked still, he might need some time to adjust.”

Philza nodded, Wilbur sighed, Techno huffed

“See, I told you he was just fine” he stated, a cocky smile betraying his flat tone. He gained a side look from his father and brother alike in reply

Wilbur approached the man “ is he stable?” 

The healer raised the folder, took out some papers and began
“ Well, first of all he’s severely malnourished and dehydrated. I found some healed scars along his body as well, I could not determine what might have caused them.”

Philza tensed at the words, but let the man finish.

“On the bright side, tough his wounds seemed quite severe, the boy is recuperating at an amazing rate. He’s also responding well to the treatments. If my predictions are correct, he will be able to leave the bed in a couple of days, a week at most.”

Phil let out a long breath, one less problem to deal with. Still, the healer continued

“However, upon being faced with questions regarding his identity he appeared lost. It seems as if he has lost his memory.”

“Memory?” Wilbur raised an eyebrow, inviting Ponk to continue

“Unfortunately, he can only recall his name. I decided not to question him further as his reaction was quite… distressing. I advice you to leave him alone today so he can adjust to this new setting.” He concluded, holding his folder tight in his hands.

Philza’s mouth thinned in a line, eyes fixated on the healer. Meanwhile Techno walked towards Ponk, hands snatching the papers. Wilbur moved, scooching next to his twin. However all the information on the paper was already known to them. They had no choice but but wait until morning.

What a bother. 

The king coughed. His hands were clasped together politely.

“Very well then, we will interrogate him tomorrow morning. Thank you Ponk, you are dismissed” he issued and got up from his throne, approaching his sons. 

Ponk quickly bowed, gathered his documents back from the prince's hands and made his way toward the door.

Meanwhile Philza faced the teens, putting his hands on their shoulders. His eyes crinkled with worry

“since we have to wait until tomorrow, i advise you guys get some rest.”

He spoke in a soft tone, his touch gentle and warm. He leaned closer and sniffed, nose scrunching.

“ and probably take a bath too” he mocked affectionately as he let go of Wilbur’s shoulder to hold his nose.

His smile was returned by Wilbur, while Techno let out a gentle rumble and placed his hand on top of his father’s, squeezing tenderly.

“Good night father.” they echoed
“Good night kids.” 

Chapter Text

A child runs in the forest, breath quick, feet heavy. However he does not stumble, he can’t afford to. He NEEDS to run, the sounds are getting closer. Twigs slam against him, leaving behind a red trail. However he does not mind, he can’t afford to. His lungs burn like fire and so do his legs but he keeps running…

Tommy woke up in a cold sweat, throat aching from the ghost of a scream that he knew teared through him in his sleep. His eyes open and darting all around the unfamiliar room. He jolted up, and immediately an incredible pain forced him to get back down.

Apparently his throat wasn’t the only thing burning. With trembling hands, he grabbed the soft blanket covering him, hands brushing it longer than he intended, and tossed it to the side, revealing his skinny body dressed with only pants and some bandages around his waist, tinted with blood.

His breath picked up its pace, while his head tried to piece together where he was and why. Despite his efforts, the only thing he achieved was worsening his, apparently present, headache.

A clang resonated in the room, startling the teen. He quickly scanned his surroundings for something to handle, but to no avail. Standing up was out of the question too.

Defeated, the boy resorted to covering himself again with the blanket, basking in the feeling of the soft fabric against his skin.
Perhaps the sound might have been fruit of his imagination.

Of course, he had never been that lucky.

A man entered the room. He pressed a button and suddenly the room lit up.

Tomny groaned at the sudden light, squinting his eyes.

The man turned at the noise, expression wide at the teen, but it swiftly tinned, presumably due to a smile. Tommy couldn’t really tell, after all the man was wearing a red and black handkerchief around his mouth.

“pretty cool huh?” he said

Tommy’s eyebrows scrunched, confused. He stared at the…torch?

“ it’s called glowstone, Philza brought a whole lot after his trip in the nether. It’s like an oil lamp but much better. Plus it wastes pretty much nothing”

He didn’t appear tall, but he wasn’t short either. He looked average, for the most part he had the features of a normal human except for a thin black tail poking under his coat.

He walked slowly towards the bed, his steps were secure. he probably didn’t want to scare Tommy.

However that wasn’t going very well, not that the boy would let him see it. In fact, under the blanket, Tommy’s hands were quivering, ordering him to defend himself against the imminent danger the older man represented but the Teen stayed as still as rock.

His heart was threatening to come out of his chest, but he did not react, instead he just stared at the newcomer as he made his way towards him, watching, waiting.

He wasn’t a kid after all and surely he wasn’t scared of some nerd with a cool bandana

“ how are you feeling?” the man asked when he finally stood next to Tommy.

“…”

Receiving no response, the intruder slowly moved his hand towards the kid’s forehead slightly touching it.
Tommy flinched under his touch and, guided by his instincts he slapped his hand and glared at him.

The older boy swore he heard a hiss.

When he realized what he had done, Tommy’s body screamed to hide. Even so, he stilled once more.

The older man took a step back and wrote something on a folder Tommy hadn’t noticed he was holding. After that he cleared his voice and spoke softly

“Thankfully, your fever has gone down.”

he didn’t seem angry and Tommy was grateful for that.

“ you must be very confused, I’ll explain in a bit, but first ” he continued

“ I’m Ponk, I’m a healer. Prince Technoblade brought you here after you got stabbed during the fight”

a fight? Tommy didn’t remember a fight, much less getting stabbed. And who was this Technoblade guy. What a dumb name, he should’ve picked something cooler, like “Thomas” for example. That was a really tough name, Tommy knew that for sure.

What he didn’t know was that Ponk had just asked him a question and was waiting for an answer. At the awkward silence and at the kid’s blank stare, the healer repeated himself

“I said, can you tell me your name? And what were you doing at the site of a battle?”

The kid lowered his gaze for a moment, his eyebrows furrowing. His big bluish eyes focusing on the hands under the blanket, that were now fidgeting together.

That was a good question. What was tommy doing in a battle?

Actually, what was Tommy doing before waking up here?

His lips were pressed together, forming a thin line as he searched for an answer. His breath started picking out when he wasn’t able to find one. why could he not remember? They must have done something to him, surely this Technosomething prince scrambled with his brain and messed him up for good.

Now, his teeth had started torturing his lower lips, while tears threatened to spill from his eyes. Every breath he took hurt due to his wound but he was too deep to care now. He knew his name was Thomas, he knew he was around 15 of age and… that’s it. How can you not remember your life?

“ kid, are you still with me?”

The healer, who was now kneeling next to his bed said with a concerned look on his face and his bandana over his neck.

Tommy dismissed it and focused instead on another thing

“I” he coughed “ i’m not a kid you prick.”

His voice was hoarse and weak, but that didn’t stop him from correcting the obvious mistake, while pointing out the stupidity of the man.
Speaking of who, he was now staring at him with wide eyes, open mouth and looking absolutely ridiculous.

Unfortunately, much to Tommy’s own entertainment, that didn’t last long as Ponk quickly recollected himself and stood up with a weird glint in his eyes.

“oh yeah and how old are you supposed to be child “ he countered.
Tommy sat up straight, eyebrows pulled together and arms crossed in front of him. He puffed his chest and said

“ I am an adult, an adult man! I’m almost 16…I think.”

Then he turned his head towards the man

“ also STOP CALLING ME NAMES! I have one you know and it’s the coolest of them all: Tommy “
Apparently his voice was back and it was LOUD, annoying even.

Ponk smirked and wrote something in his folder.

“Very well Tommy, can you tell me do you remember what you did yesterday?” his voice became soft again and Tommy relaxed a bit and replied

“ i…I don’t know. I cant remember I think.”

Ponk looked confused for a moment, next he wrote something in his folder again. Could it be that they had nothing to do with this? At least the healer seemed unaware of Tommy’s memory problems.

“ …memory loss… concussion?... maybe trauma…” he heard him mumble to himself before asking one more question

“can you tell me whats the last thing you remember?”

Yup, the healer either had no idea tommy lost his memory or he was a really good actor. Could healers double as actors?
Tommy doesn’t remember ever meeting an healing actor, well to be fair Tommy didn’t really remember anything so nothing could be certain, maybe he had met one and they had got along nicely, becoming friends even or maybe they had started the worst rivalry ever-

“Tommy?”

Oops, Ponk was waiting for an answer, wait what was the question again? Oh yeah memory shit, right

“ uhh, waking up here is the earliest thing I remember” he concluded

Ponk hummed, nodded and wrote on his folder. This dude really liked to write. Apparently Tommy got in his thoughts again because when he focused on the healer again, he was near the door, bandana back over his mouth

“ I’ll be back later, for now I suggest sleeping, healing is most likely taking a toll on you”

And then he left.

Tommy heard a *click*, of course, they locked him in. However Tommy had noticed that he was, in fact, incredibly tired.

Despite not wanting to listen to the prick’s order, he fell back onto the pillows.
Not before long, he drifted to sleep and hoped that, this time, his rest would be dreamless.

Chapter Text

Technoblade woke up in a grumpy mood that day. Actually, “woke up” wasn’t probably the best expression, in fact he barely had slept.

The voices had been loud all day.

It wasn’t a new occurrence, of course, after all he had them for more than he could remember. However they did not mix well with anxiety.

He was too worried about this mysterious “kid” to fall asleep. He had spent the whole night pacing back and forth in the corridor next to the infirmary.

He had to make sure the kid wouldn’t try anything funny and escape or worse, kill someone, during the night. Locks rarely stop spies.

Of course, they weren’t a 100% sure he was a spy but they weren’t 100% sure he wasn’t one either. He could have been lying about his memory problems to take advantage of the darkness and strike. Or his plan was to trick everyone to trust him enough to let him wander and steal valuable information that would eventually destroy the empire.

Either way, techno would not play with his chances.

Unfortunately, the moon had still been high when he headed for the infirmary and King Philza had ordered him to wait till morning to interrogate the intruder.

Techno knew better than to defy the king’s direct order, he still remembered the last time he had pissed him off. It’s not like his father was violent or anything, but he sure knew how to be intimidating when he wanted to and Techno was not fond of having to clean the stables for a week again.

So he had waited.

As soon as the first morning light shone through the corridor’s windows the prince made his move. After all, his father had said to wait until the next day, but he never mentioned anything about waiting for him.
“ Hah, loophole” The voices echoed

First, he put his ear against the cold wood of the door.

After having assessed that the kid was probably still sleeping ( yes he had incredibly good hearing, thanks to his piglin heritage) he slowly placed his hand over the metal handle and pushed down, cringing at the squeak.

The prince hoped the spy’s hearing was nowhere near as good as his, and he slowly pressed forward to peek inside.

As expected, the kid was still asleep.

Without a second thought, Techno entered the room and made his way towards the bed where the child had been laying.

As he towered over him he noticed how a ray of sunshine hit the sleeping figure, reflecting against his curly hair. Now that the boy was not stained with soot anymore, Techno could see very well how his hair actually looked.

The light bounced off of the wild strands, making them sparkle and enhancing the pale skin. The kid looked…small and fragile, not like the killer he had seen on the battlefield, his eye bags were basically holes at this point and it was evident how malnourished he was, with prominent cheekbones and bony hands. Yet, his face still held childlike puffiness to it, emphasized by the relaxed look on his face and the golden locks that framed it.

The voices got louder

Something grumbled deep inside Techno. His instincts are most likely reacting to the gold color, he told himself to reason with the warm feeling in his chest.

All of a sudden he wasn’t really sure he wanted to wake the kid to question him anymore.

He could always wait until he woke up.

He would be more complacent that way.
Yes, that’s exactly the reason why he took a step back and sat in a chair next to the bed, staring at the angel like child in front of him as his chest rose slowly under each breath to then go back down as he exhaled.

Techno could afford to relax, after all it’s not like the kid could try anything when he was so close to him. And so, Techno closed his eyes and took a deep breath, letting a sigh escape him while he adjusted in the chair.

It hadn’t even been an hour when Techno woke up.

It all started with some whimpers, but soon they had evolved in full fledged screams that hurt the poor prince’s ears, while also alarming him of imminent danger. He opened his eyes all of a sudden and rose to his feet at the same time, reaching for his sword in an almost automatic response. He swiftly assessed the room, in search of an assailant but when he found none, he turned his gaze toward the kid in the bed. No longer he was laying peacefully.

Technoblade’s jaw clenched as he took in the scene presented in front of his eyes.

The boy was SWEATING, hard, clutching the blanket i over his chest. His other hand was grasping the covers as he tossed and turned in the bed like he had been torched alive. His legs kicked from under the sheets, and his back arched in pain.

The voices were in chaos.

Techno scrutinized his face, unsure of what to do. The kid was clearly crying, but it wasn’t a silent type of cry, it was instead a painful lament accompanied by piercing screams and gritting teeth. Between yells, the kid was gasping for air as if the room didn’t have enough.

However what struck Techno the most were his eyes. They were open wide, letting the blue irises shine in the light, filled with tears, glowing. Even so, his gaze looked lost, foggy, like he was trapped somewhere he couldn’t escape.

Techno knew that feeling very well, nightmares weren’t foreign to him.

Of course, he could very well walk away, after all it was none of his business and it would just be another bother to take care of, but something stopped him from taking that decision.

He couldn’t quite understand why he did what he did, but he rationalized it with a “it’ll be annoying if someone wakes up from all the screaming”.

Anyway, he was now next to the bed, kneeling, with his hand caressing the boy’s hair

“shhh, it’ll be okay” “you’re safe”

He repeated like a mantra

Unintentionally his chest started emitting a low frequency growl, it was something he used to do to calm Wilbur down back in the Nether. Of course, he didn’t know if it had the same effect on humans as it did on piglins, but the boy seemed to calm down nonetheless.

His breathing slowly returned to a normal pace as his hands relaxed over the sheets and his eyes fluttered to a close.

After what felt like half an hour, the blonde haired boy finally fell into a peaceful sleep again and the prince thanked the Gods that he hadn’t woken up in the middle of that endeavor otherwise things might have been incredibly awkward.

No one shall ever know of this, Techno would bring it to his grave.

Plus the kid was still a suspect, nightmares of not.
With this in mind, Techno sat down once again, but this time he decided to stay vigilant, for no reason in particular.

The sun had fully risen when Tommy started stirring again in the bed. He groaned as he slowly sat up and stretched, eyes still closed. He was surprised when the burning in his stomach did not come at the moment.

It took him a full five minutes before he opened his eyelids and finally saw that he was not alone

“HOLY FU-“ He jumped to his feet, standing on top of the bed. The guy was sitting on a chair in front of the bed. Was it a guy?

Tommy wasn’t really sure.

The figure stayed silent.

Tommy took a moment to assess him. The first thing that caught his eye Weren’t his tusks, or his abnormally large pig like ears, or his red eyes either. Instead it was his hair.

Now, Tommy wasn’t an hair expert, nor a color expert, in fact he had no idea what fucking color that was, but he was pretty sure that THAT wasn’t a “common” one. It looked red? But paler? Like it had been sitting in the sun for too long and it had washed away, leaving whatever the fuck that was.

Nonetheless that wasn’t the only thing peculiar about it, no, the weirder fact was that it was long. Like, incredibly long, waist length long even if it was tied in a braid. How long would it even take to braid it that way? It looked so tight and firm but some strands were left out especially around the face. Some of it was framing his incredibly square jaw.
That guy looked like he could tear your throat with a bite if Tommy had to be honest. He shivered at the thought.

A Deep, monotone voice made its way to Tommy’s hears.

“ Your name” the guy stated. No, not asked, stated.

Tommy knew better than to antagonize him, at least for now, but that didn’t mean he would be easy on him either so he stayed silent. He crossed his arm and sat back on the bed, glaring at the guy sitting still on the chair. Did he even breathe? It certainly didn’t look like he did.

Tommy heard a deep sigh followed by a subtle groan and for he moment he wondered if he had made the wrong move and pissed him off. Surprisingly though, the man spoke again

“ I am Technoblade”

OH so he is the guy with the “dumb name”

“excuse me?”

Did tommy said it out loud? Fuck, judging by his tone, he did do that. Well, there was no point in backing out now.

He raised a finger to point at the man.

“yeah you heard me, what kind of Stupid name is Technoblade. It sounds made up” he declared with a slight tremor in his voice.

IN response, Technoblade only raised an eyebrow and so Tommy took that as his cue to continue

“ you should change it to something cooler like BIG MAN or TOMMY. Yes that’s definitely better “ he nodded to himself

“ so your name is Tommy” Techno stated, and Tommy could swear he saw the corner of his mouth raise slightly. Now it was Techno’s turn to cross his arms. He leaned back onto the chair, a smug look on his face.

The teen furrowed his eyebrows, opened his mouth to say something, closed it again, pouted and then opened it again

“I never said that, you have nothing against me”

Technoblade stood up suddenly, and got closer to Tommy, who know felt like a an animal in a cage. He was HUGE. Not in a height sense, while he was tall he wasn’t abnormally tall, but in a width sense. His shoulders were BIG and he was packed with muscles that even clothes couldn’t hide.

A tinkling was heard in the motion as he was covered with golden accessories: belt, chains, rings, bracelets, earrings.

Somehow he didn’t make it look tacky, instead he appeared regal, they really suited him. Tommy caught a glimpse of a pair of twin earrings dangling from his lobes: one had a yellow stone, the other a green one. In doing so, he also caught sight of his eyes. A shiver ran through his spine.

He had this ominous aura him that made tommy freeze in his place.

However, there was…something odd about it but Tommy couldn’t quite put his finger on it so he focused back on the murder intent.

Was this the day that Tommy dies? Dead before even living?
Technoblade spoke, his voice as monotone as before but somehow lower, like a wolf about to capture his prey.
Instead of attacking though, he stopped in his track, lost in his thoughts for a second as if he was listening for something, or TO something.
Whatever it was, it seemed to have calmed him down to the point where the ‘murderous aura’ turned into a ‘I will beat the shit out of you but leave you alive’ aura.

“ now, I happen to have some questions for you, it will be better for the both of us if you choose to collaborate”

That was incredibly ominous, but Tommy was a big man and he wasn’t scared, not at all so he did the unthinkable.

He bolted for the door. Nope, not scared AT ALL.

Somehow, that caught Technoblade off guard and he took a moment to react. Luckily that was enough for Tommy to reach the door, pull the handle and

“Uh..hi?”

For fuck’s sake, this was not his lucky day.

Chapter Text

“Uh…hi?”

To be fair, Tommy didn’t expect to get far when he ran for the door , but he was hoping he would at least reach the corridor and not get stopped at the doorway by an oversized bird.

Well, maybe oversized bird was a bit mean, he mostly looked human if it weren’t for the humongous wings on his back and some feathers on his neck.

He was tall, not taller than Techno though, and he was wearing some kind of green robe. It looked very casual and worn out as it had been on many adventures.

Meanwhile his wings looked very well kept, with deep black feathers that faded into a fiery red. Tommy wished he could see more of them but they were safely tucked behind the man, who was looking at him with the softest smile in the world.

He had some wrinkles, especially around the eyes that were now squeezed slightly because of the smile, yet he didn’t look a day older than Thirty. They were blue, not like Tommy’s icy blue but more of a sky blue, a warm one, full of life and love.

On top of that his hair didn’t have a single spec of gray, it was all a shiny pale blonde. Also it was up to his shoulder, but Tommy suspected it was tied to the back, so it was probably longer than that. A tiny braid was secured behind his left ear.
What was up with this place and long hair.

Sure,he had them too but it wasn’t exactly his decision.

Between all the pale blonde, something shined.

An earring with two gemstones: a yellow one and one that reminded Tommy of the color of Technoblade’s hair.

The man cleared his throat and spoke once again with a modulated tone

“ how about we sit and have a chat, would you like that?” he asked gently, like it was really Tommy’s choice and not an order, but the younger boy knew better than that.

Tommy gulped, taking a step back to let the man enter.

As he did , his eyes fell onto Technoblade who was sitting on the bed, watching the situation unfold. For a moment, Tommy thought he saw anger in his gaze, but it was quickly replaced by fondness, like seeing him there was something he had expected.

“goodmorning Technoblade” he cooed “fancy seeing you here, I believe that yesterday I said WE would talk to him in the morning.” He continued while making his way towards Techno, who promptly responded

“ maybe your old age is finally catching up to you Philza” he remarked, with a hint of humor in his voice.

In response, Philza raised an eyebrow

“techno” he said in a scolding tone, without any real ill intent behind it.

Technoblade let out an huff and replied, puffing out his lower lip slightly

“ in my defense, you said we had to wait till morning, not that we had to do it together”

And Philza just, smiled tenderly, shook his head and let out a small chuckle

“Point taken”

Then he turned to Tommy, who merely stood by, waiting for the exchange to end. He was still eyeing the door, but his chances were already slim before a flight-able man walked in so he trashed the idea to run.

“C’me here” he said, patting down the bed next to himself. Did he want Tommy to sit there?

Tommy instead opted for the chair in front of the bed and sat down straight to which Philza reassured

“Relax, we don’t want to hurt you”

“Yeah sure, like the man next to you didn’t want to tear out my throat five seconds ago” Tommy blurted out.

In response Techno groaned, but got shut up by a knife sharp glare sent by Philza

“ I’m very sorry about him, he has an hard time when it comes to…socializing” he adjuststed himself on the bed and he reached a hand over to Tommy

“ hi, nice to meet you. My name is Philza Craft, I’m the king of this empire, but don’t mind all that, you can call me Phil” he tilted his head, waiting for an handshake

Tommy was unsure of what to do, fidgeting in his seat he looked at the hand. Then he looked at Phil. His name sounded familiar.

“You’re the lamp guy” Tommy remembered Ponk’s mention of the device. Philza retracted his hand and looked confused so Tommy took the chance to clarify

“The…huh…glowstone. Ponk mentioned it.”

His eyes lit up and he smiled

“ Oh! You’re right, I did bring that” he looked up at the glowstone on the ceiling, his gaze softened.

“ I got it on a trip a while ago. You know back then-“

Techno coughed “ maybe we should save stories for later Phil”

His father deflated for a second, but returned quickly to his kind sternness. He nodded and got ready to talk but Tommy spoke first, amused by the tender exchange.

“I’m Tommy, nice to meet you old man”

He was so dumb, he definitely ruined it after this one.

Unexpectedly, he heard a giggle. Then the giggle turned into a laugh and that left Tommy speechless. He had just insulted the king, and he was laughing? What a weird man

“Gods, Wilbur is going to adore you”

The teen had no idea who this Wilbur dude was, but he had another dumb name so he guessed he was these people’s friend. Filled with an unexpected burst of confidence, Tommy indulged the joke further, to see how far he could push these boundaries

“ I mean, who could blame him. I am the best man there is. It’s hard not to adore me.”

And that invoked another giggle from the man. Obviously, Technoblade had to ruin the fun

“ yeah yeah, humor whatever. Back to questions.” He interrupted, waving his hand.

“ Who hired you? What were you doing in the middle of a battle? Why were you trying to kill the prince?”

Tommy had to process that one

“ I was trying to kill you?” he questioned, almost baffled. He must’ve been insane if he had chosen to go against THAT one.

Techno glared, staring at him like he was trying to read his soul. Tommy felt incredibly exposed all of a sudden. He raised his legs and put his knees up to his chest.

“stop playing dumb, no not me, my brother.” He growled “ who are you working for?”

Tommy shook his head baffled

“ Are you insane? What are you talking about ” he spat, but Techno’s stare only got more intense and Tommy swore he was starting to sweat from stress.

“Sorry for my skepticism but not its not everyday you find 10 years olds on the battlefield ready to open your guts.” he stood up violently which caused Tommy to jump in his seat.

“tell the truth and nothing will happen to you”

Philza scowled

“Techno.” He reprimanded, voice firmer than last time. Technoblade looked down at him, his fists tightening, then he sat and crossed his arms releasing a low grumble. Tommy took that as his cue to talk

“ first of all, I’m 15 so fuck you” he mocked

Phil looked him up and down, almost like he couldn’t believe the boy he had in front of him was not a child. He sure did act like one.

“Second of all, I have no idea what are you talking about. I don’t remember shit from before waking up in this prison” the king gave him a sympathetic look and smiled

“if you are really telling the truth you’ll be out in no time, don’t worry “ he reassured and got up. Tommy huffed

“But I AM telling the truth”

“ yeah sure and I’m not half pig ” Techno bickered

“You for sure smell like one though” Tommy mocked back, raising his middle finger

“That’s it, I’m stabbing this kid again” he reached for the sword

“ Oh so you’re the one that stabbed me! Come at me bitch, I’ll return the favor.” He climbed on the chair, growling with his teeth.
Philza observed the scene with his hand pressed on his eyes. He sensed an headache coming.

“Kids.” He scolded. And that was all it took for both the boys to stand down, but it did not stop them from glaring at eachother.

“Anyway, I think that was all for today, we’ll come back later so you can relax for now. Ponk will come to check on you from time to time to see how you’re recovering.” He turned his gaze on his son

They both made their way towards the door. First techno, then Philza.

Tommy’s eyes stayed glued to the latter’s back. His wings were really pretty, Tommy thought they would be even prettier while he was soaring the sky.
Before closing the door, as if Phil had read his mind, he smiled.
“see you later Tommy”

Alone he was, again.
This time around he could actually move, explore, at least that should be able to keep his mind occupied for a few minutes. And so explore he did.

First, he slowly made his way towards the windows, to assess the surrounding area.

He placed his arms on the windowsill, a shiver running through his body when the skin made contact with the cold stone, then the fresh air hit his face. It was pleasant.

The sun was shining brightly in a perfectly clear sky, quite a normal scenery in summer, in the distance a forest could be seen, but the whole area looked generally flat, a valley perhaps. The castle, Tommy had assumed it was a castle due to the tall stony walls and the correlation to the king, was at the center of a huge town.

“I’d probably die if I jumped from here, so this in not an option”
he commented and went back at looking at the town.

For all that Tommy could see, it looked lively enough, peaceful and filled with laughter. The people knew they were safe as long as the castle still stood, and judging by the royal family it didn’t look like that would change any time soon. At The sight Tommy caught himself smiling softly. He wondered whether he too had a life like that, mundane and filled with love, before this whole mess.

No, he couldn’t think about it now, it would only make him spiral. He had to divert his attention, so he left the window alone and decided to explore the room instead.

It was pretty simple: a couple of similar beds, a closet and a rug.
Tommy’s eyes scanned the walls, empty except for two doors. One was the exit and the other one probably the bathroom. He took some steps and opened the door.

“yup, a bathroom” he confirmed and returned to the bedroom.

“That was exciting” he remarked sarcastically when he had made his way to the bed and sat down. He fidgeted with his hands, stood up, walked to the closet and opened it.

“Empty”

He went back to the bed and sat down, only to stand back up again and head to the main door.

“ugh, closed”

He was getting restless. How long was he supposed to wait? this was becoming incredibly boring.

He had just returned to the bed when he heard a clank and the door opened again. Tommy got up, expecting a familiar red and black to pop in the frame

“ finally! I was dying of boredom here, you dicks really don’t know anything about hospita-“

Then an unknown figure presented in front of him.

“Holy shit you are tall.”

“Umh…thank you?” the man replied. Tommy didn’t mean to say that out loud, but it hadnt been the worst thing he had ever blurted out so this wasn’t a complete failure of an introduction. Nonetheless he apologized

“ sorry big man, I didn’t want to say that out loud” he chuckled a bit

“It’s fine, I don’t mind” the stranger reassured, walking quick steps toward the bed. Then he extended his hand and smiled, tilting his head slightly to the side. His eyes, However, stayed on Tommy.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Wilbur”

Chapter Text

“Nice to meet you, I’m Wilbur”

So this must have been the person King Philza was talking about before. Something was off about him.

First of all, he was tall, scarily so.

He was sporting a loose black cotton shirt with puffy sleeves and some really tight leather pants. Despite looking pretty slim, you could spot some lines of muscles. A golden pocket watch was dangling from him pocket. Judging by the golden watch, the golden rings and the golden glasses Tommy assumed he was also a fan of gold, not as much as Technoblade though.

He was also wearing an earring on his right ear similar to the ones the king and the prince were wearing, only this time the stones embedded in it were green and whatever color that was.

Tommy concluded it was another royal.

Now that he was closer, the teen noticed how the older boy resembled Technoblade in a way.

He didn’t have huge tusks, replaced instead by sharper canines and he didn’t have big ears, just a bit pointy. Plus his eyes weren’t completely red like Techno’s own and yet they both shared the same intense gaze that was, in retrospective, chilling. However Wilbur’s eyes had been softened by the soft strands of brown hair that fell disorderly on his forehead. His hair was pretty curly and wild on his head, but ,to Tommy’s surprise, it was cut short on the side. He still managed to have a tiny braid in it somehow.

The teen realized that he had been staring for too long and greeted in return

“I’m Tommy. Are you a relative of the prince?”

Wilbur sat down next to him on the bed, he smelled flowery and Tommy found himself relaxing.

The older boy replied in a sing song

“ You’re pretty smart aren’t you? I’m Techno’s younger brother. Well, technically we’re twins but he was born 3 minutes earlier so he likes to boast about it” he chuckled

That explained the resemblance. Nevertheless if Tommy hadn’t noticed the shared appearance himself, he would have had found it hard to believe him. After all they had such different demeanors. Technoblade was intimidating, direct and scary. Meanwhile Wilbur seemed approachable, gentle. Could brothers really differ that much?

Apparently yes.

The brown haired boy placed his hands behind himself, leaning on his elbows as he stared at the ceiling

“ speaking of whom, he told me about you. How you could be a spy."

He stated, eyes still lost on the ceiling

“ he also told me you happen to have…memory loss” he explained, voice void of the excitement from before, putting pressure on the last words.

Something in the air shifted.

Tommy shivered in his place, not knowing where to look, hands slightly twitching.

“Umh..yeah. yeah, memory loss” the words came out mumbled for some reason. Wilbur had been so nice to him, he had no reason to be afraid of him.

“ so you don’t remember when you almost killed me”

The voice fell heavy on the blonde’s ears. He turned to look at Wilbur, only to find out his eyes were already on him. A cold, calculating gaze was tearing right through him. Tommy found himself swallowing.

He didn’t remember it, of course. Should he apologize nonetheless? That seemed like the most sensible thing to do so with a trembling voice he attempted a reply
“I’m…I’m sorry. Umh, really, I really don’t remember it, I swear! I umh.. sorry.. I don’t-“

“Cut the bullshit”

Tommy’s eyes widened and focused on the floorboards. He really was telling the truth.

“ but I’m not lying.” His voice came out more high pitched than indented. Even though he wasn’t looking, he could feel Wilbur’s piercing stare. He visibly jumped in his seat when he heard the older boy’s side of the bed creak.

“mh.”

Soon after, a pair of leather boots came into Tommy’s view. He could feel the prince towering over him, but he dared not to look. A whimper escaped his mouth when he felt a hand on his head.
He was preparing for a hit and then a pat.

“Anyway, it must be so boring heree! I would have died already ”

The voice was back at the same enthusiastic tone of the beginning. Puzzled, Tommy raised his gaze.

Wilbur was back at his usual chipper self, sporting a kind smile on his face. He had inclined his head a bit when he saw tommy’s stare

“are you okay Tommy? You seem on edge”

This was incredibly weird. Had the interaction from before been a dream? Maybe tommy misunderstood it. Yes, that was probably it, after all Wilbur is so nice. However the blonde boy’s body didn’t relax yet, opting for a restlessness that showed through his leg.

“Yeah im cool Big man, just bored. As you can see, there arent many activities here.” he forced his lips in a tight smile.

“I can see that.” He nodded “ Dad said to wait until Ponk comes by to give you permission but I could make an exception and let you out for a stroll?”

Tommy’s ears perked up

“ you mean outside?”

“no, in the pond. Of course outside” Wilbur joked, huffing out an empty laugh.

“ obviously I would have to accompany you so I can make sure you don’t run away, but I’m sure you wouldn’t do that, would you tommy?”

Tommy tensed.
“ no, of course not.” He nodded

“when do we go?” he asked

Wilbur considered the question for a second then spoke
“even now if you want to”

On one side, he would get to go outside, on the other something inside Tommy is yelling him to stay as far away as possible from Wilbur.
“Sure, lets go big man”

When did Tommy ever listen to his body.

They walked through the wide corridors of the castle, Tommy mapping them out mentally in case he ever needed to run. He had scrapped the idea of leaving this place for now. His main priority was to regain his memory and if he could do so in a place with a warm soft bed and food, he would take the risk that would come with staying there.

Plus it’s not like he had anywhere else to go. He would just wait until someone reclaimed him as part of their family.

“Good morning prince” “have a nice stroll prince Wilbur” “ greetings prince”

These guards were really polite, this must’ve been the 15th one they passed and not one stayed quiet. It could have also been an etiquette thing since the prince was passing by. Surprisingly no one questioned him on who was with him nor where they were going.

Pretty convenient skill to have when you’re, technically, sneaking someone out.

They reached what looked like an indoor garden. Tommy deflated at the sight and Wilbur, obviously, noticed it and commented

“ What? Did you expect a trip outside the castle? You’re still a prisoner after all.”

OF course, how could he forget about that.

Tommy’s shoulders raised as he shrugged
“ better than that cell of a room” and so he walked to sit on the grass.

The sun was enjoyable on his skin and the grass was refreshing. It tickled his hands, he didn’t mind it.
Wilbur didn’t join him this time. The prince stood leaning against one of the columns that surrounded the garden, carefully watching over the boy.

“What a creep” Tommy mumbled to himself.

He sprawled over the grass and yawned. The warmth was really nice, he could hear some birds and the winds caressed his face with a pleasant breeze.
The sounds of nature lulled him into a quiet sleep.

“Punz, have you seen Wilbur?”

Technoblade stood in front of one of the guards that were “patrolling” the area, like it was needed with the whole royal family in the castle.

Punz replied almost immediately

“He brought some kind of kid to the Camellia garden your highness”

Only a gruff was let out as the prince left the area. He walked in the familiar corridors, his foots stomping on the ground at every step. No guard dared to utter a word as he passed, they were aware of his foul mood despite his lack of facial expression.
HE reached the garden quickly, after all it was a spot he hung out often at.

“ you’ll wake the kid with those elephant steps” Wilbur whispered, mischievous smile hidden behind a raised finger.
He hinted with his head in a direction and Techno turned to look.

Sleeping peacefully on the grass was Tommy. His chest raised and lowered rhythmically and he had a placid smile on his smile. He was probably content with the sun’s heat.
Techno’s lips tugged briefly at the corners.

He turned back at Wilbur

He was patting the grass next to him, inviting his twin to sit and so he did. He placed his head against the column behind them.
The sky was clear, the sun was shining with a comfortable heat and even the voices had quieted down. Techno spoke low

“ He isn’t supposed to be outside. You’re going against father’s orders”
“ Do you really think he’s a spy?” Wilbur had ignored his remark.
Techno stayed silent in contemplation.

“The probability is low, but we both know that we can’t risk it." He murmured with a sigh "He’s the closest someone has ever gotten to killing us in years and he’s only 15. He could become a danger to our family.”

“Are you suggesting we kill him?” Wilbur spoke slowly and quietly
Techno’s jaw clenched

“ I don’t know. “

“Dad would never approve of it”

“ he would never know”

HE turned his head towards his twin

“ I say we give him a couple of weeks. He’s still a kid after all. If he poses any kind of threat to us we dispose of him”

Techno nodded tightly
“Two weeks?”
“Two weeks.”

Chapter Text

“This will be your new room from now on”

In the morning, Tommy had been woken up by the sound of knocking on the door and the King’s voice.

Now, after walking for a considerable amount of time through the castle , Philza had stopped in front a room.

“I’m apologize for the lack of decorations, as it is a guest room, but i hope it will to your taste for the time being”

He said politely, inviting the younger kid to go inside and look around.

It was definitely big, not as much as the infirmary, but it had way more furniture and it didn’t look as lonely.
The bed was HUGE. Upon seeing it, Tommy had the sudden urge to jump on it to test if it was as comfy as he suspected. On top of the mattress laid multiple pillows of various sized. Everything was topped off with a canopy, loosely falling onto the sides of the bed.

Under the bed emerged a red and gold rug that extended for half the room. On top of it, next to the bed, there was a small nightstand and a candle holder.

On both sides of the bed, on the wall, there were two broad windows with beautiful red curtains that parted due to the window shelf. Tommy could see a garden from here, but he still was at an high floor.

He turned his gaze on the opposite wall, catching briefly a satisfied expression on Philza’s face. There was a door and a painting next to it. First, he walked toward the door to open it.

Tommy’s surprised gasp was unable to be missed.

IT was a walk in closet, packed to the brim with clothes Tommy’s size that ranged through various different sizes.

“I didn’t know your taste in clothes so i decided to get a bit of everything. If you find something that you particularly like don’t hesitate to tell me.”

Phil had leaned against the door with a slight smile, watching Tommy slowly as he passed his hand against the different fabrics and enjoyed the sensation. He muttered a thank you, eyes on the ground and continued his exploration.

He left the closet after a couple of minutes and his gaze fell upon the painting. No doubt it was made by an expert, each line was incredibly precise and meaningful and it all came together in this breath-taking depiction of a deep red scenery. The kid had never seen anything quite like it and decided that it would be best to take it every single detail about the painting. And so he stared.

Philza had apparently noticed the child’s interest on the painting so he stood next to him and spoke, causing Tommy to jump a bit at the surprise

“It’s beautiful isn’t it?”

His voice was released like a sigh. Like he had no choice but to loose his breath upon the sight...or the memories.

Tommy nodded, but Philza’s eyes were still on the painting. They were vague, lost in thoughts

“This was one of my many travels. It’s where i met Techno and Wilbur. It had smitten me to the point that, when i came back, i spent hours in my study trying to recreate its beauty. Unfortunately i still couldn’t manage to capture its essence in the right way. This was the best i could do.”

Tommy’s mouth was closed in contemplation. Both intrigued and surprised by the sudden story. Too many questions were making their way to his mind but seeing the king’s nostalgic expression he decided to keep them to himself. After all, he could always find the details later. King Philza apparently like to tell stories so Tommy suspected this wouldn’t be the last he heard of it.

The king blinked and the spell between them was broken.

“Alright then, i’m going to let you settle down and unwind. I will send a servant when it’s time for lunch.”

Tommy looked perplexed

“ Am i going to have my meals with you?” he asked and received a giggle and an answer

“Of course you will, you’re our guest after all!”

Having said that, the king left to attend whatever business kings usually do. Meanwhile Tommy decided that he really needed a bath and entered the bathroom to the left.

Technoblade had glared at the guards that stood next to the door and stormed into his father’s office who was already aware of his coming somehow.

“How could you give him the guest room?”

Techno’s voice was sharp and his palms had slammed against the desk but the king did not react. Instead, he slowly raised his gaze, blue meeting red, and smiled

“well, it’s not like we could have let him stay in the infirmary forever.” He politely confirmed and waved his hand in dismissal
Techno did not falter but he did lower his tone

“ you know very well that’s not what i meant. He’s an enemy, he can’t be trusted. “ he spat

“He’s just a kid Techno” phil clarified

“He’s a danger to this family” Techno rebuked

“There’s still no proof of it” phil stated

“He’s fooling all of you” Techno mocked

“He has memory loss and needs our help” Phil explained

“ He’s-“

“Enough.” Techno’s father interrupted him. “I am older and more experienced. This is my decision and it’s final. Do i need to remind you that i am not only your father but also your king?” the older man concluded, eyes fixated on his son’s in a stern gaze.

Technoblade raised himself from the desk where he was facing his father. He curled his fists against his sides and clicked his tongue

“Whatever, if something happens don’t say i didn’t warn you” and so he turned his back and headed hastily outside the office
Phil sighed and stood up

“Techno wait-“ But his son was already out of sight. Defeated, he fell back onto the chair, wondering if he had made the right call after all.

Techno knocked heavily on the wooden door which made cracking sounds under the pressure. Soon enough, a short man came into view as he opened the door. His hair was unkempt and he sported a pair of glasses that did nothing but emphasize the evident pair of eye bags. His brown eyes closed due to the loud yawn he let out in the action. Then he focused on the person in front of him and he straightened immediately.

“Greetings prince Technoblade, what can i do for you?” he backed to leave space for the younger boy to pass. After he had entered, he closed the door.

“I’ll cut to the chase Karl. I came to know that you have connections to the guild run by Quackity. Am i correct?”

Karl’s eyes widened, surprised by the question, he fiddled with the bottom of his shirt but he did not answer.

“ don’t worry, i do not intend to punish you or report you. I am here unofficially. I only need some information regarding an individual that recently entered the palace” Techno explained, voice monotone as always.

Only then Karl moved behind his desk, grabbing some paper and quill and putting them on it, his gaze changing to something more professional and focused. He cleared his voice

“What do you need?”

Techno grunted satisfied and placed his elbows on the desk, leaning on it, his jewels jingled in the silence of the library

“I need you to find everything you can on the kid that’s staying in the guest bedroom. He says he lost his memory so all we know about him is : His name is Tommy, he’s around 15 years old and we found him near the town of Bellum. Here’s a description of his appearance.” He handed the librarian a paper with a detailed list of Tommy’s physical attributes

Karl nodded and wrote down every word said by the prince. Then, he took the papers and carefully folded them and put them in his pockets.

“alright, I’ll see what i can find. Come back here in a week.” He explained. Suddenly he smiled

“now regarding the payme-AH“

The clinking sound of a bag of gold resonated through the empty room as Techno slammed it on the desk, making the poor man jump in his place.

“Half now, half at the end of the job”

He informed and left the room, without saying goodbye.

Chapter Text

At noon a servant came knocking onto Tommy’s door, informing him that lunch would have been held soon. Tommy assumed it was impolite to show up with the same clothes again so he headed for the closet.

Choosing what to wear was the hardest decision in his life, not that he remembered any others up ‘till now but his point still stood. After what felt like an hour Tommy emerged victorious from a completely overthrown closet. He had opted for a lose red shirt that was kind of puffy at the sleeves, and a pair of fancy trousers with small golden decorations.

He looked in the mirror to make his hair presentable but seeing that it was being difficult, he ended up tying them in a low ponytail. He was due to an haircut soon but that was a problem for future Tommy.

Satisfied with his look, he carefully poked his head outside the door in search for a servant that would show him the way.

“Are you ready? You shouldn’t be making the royal family wait” a feminine voice called for him.

A girl all suited up in a heavy looking armour stared at him impatiently with deep green eyes. She didn’t look like a maid. A guard then?

She had long brown hair tied up in a high bun topped off with a rose, weird choice if you ask tommy after all flowers get damaged really easily. Whatever, it was not his problem.

He did not reply to her, instead he left the room and made his way towards the girl, who promptly started walking. She did not speak the whole way and walked rather quickly, to the point that Tommy struggled to keep up.

With heavy breaths, he finally reached the dining room. The older girl knocked and put on a smile.

“come in” the king’s voice was clear even behind the sturdy door.

A Small conversation between the king and the guard started but Tommy toned it out. His focus was all on the lavish room, in particular the table filled to the brim with food.

Green and gold banners draped the walls, all of them with the same symbol, next to them there were paintings or stands showcasing weapons. The table was adorned with golden candlesticks, surrounded by piles of elaborate dishes which spread in the air an inviting smell.

Tommy could feel his stomach rumbling already

“Thank you Hannah, you are dismissed” the king ordered and the guard obeyed and left.

Now in the room there was only silence.

That and the piercing stares of the two princes that were sitting on opposite sides of the feast: Techno on his father’s right, Wilbur on his left. Their faces didn’t show any distaste, however the kid could feel the hate from Techno’s gaze and the unreadable emotion from Wilbur’s . Meanwhile the king smiled politely at him, and raised his palm in an invite

“C’mon Tommy, join us”

Tommy closed the distance between him and the table with teetering steps. Where should he sit? Obviously besides the princes was not an option since the hostility was very visible. Could he sit in front of the king or would it be disrespectful?
Tommy ended up sitting in front of the king. Making him wait could have been more disrespectful, plus he could always switch seats whenever.

Surprisingly no one said anything.

“Thank you for joining us today”

Tommy nodded in response. The food looked really tasty and he was very hungry, but he waited.

First, the king toasted for the longevity of his empire, then he made his plate. Techno followed him and so did Wilbur. Instead, Tommy waited. The boy was staring at the plate in front of him like a ravenous wolf but he did not dare touch it. Halfway through the meal, Philza looked at Tommy with a puzzled look
“Is the food not to your liking?” he asked worried

Tommy jolted, he quickly put his hands in front of himself and shook his head vehemently

“ no no, i like it. I was just...”

He gesticulated while trying to find an excuse

“we can make the chefs do something else if you want” the king insisted
“or you could starve” techno commented while shrugging his shoulders
“Techno!” his father reprimanded
“what? I was stating the obvious” he complained, voice monotonous as always and then went back to focusing on his plate

The king place his blue eyes on Tommy again

“ Don’t worry, it’s safe to eat. It’s not poisoned or anything. You can eat it if you want” Philza remarked

To be fair, the thought of poison did cross Tommy’s mind a couple of times in the past few days but he had come to the conclusion that if they wanted him dead they probably wouldn’t use something as vile as that, which the boy didn’t know if it was for the better of for the worse.

“ i would never doubt you about that”

With a swift movement he raised the spoon and started eating the soup, while forcing a smile. His stomach thanked him with a low rumble.

That seemed to calm down Phil, as he began eating again.
Several more moments of awkward silence followed, occasionally interrupted by the king’s attempts to idle chat with his sons.

To no one’s surprise, Wilbur replied to all of them, adding his own anecdotes about the day, while Techno shut each of them down with a groan or a guttural sound. Each time, his father looked more hurt that the previous one.

Could they have had a fight? Perhaps it was Tommy’s fault. He had the habit of making people mad just by existing. Maybe he should apologize to the king. Maybe not, he should not meddle with family affairs. But again it did concern him...

“ what about you Tommy, how was your day?” Phil asked placidly, it seemed that he wanted to insert the younger boy in the conversation too.

Tommy shrugged

“you know, pretty good if you ignore the fact that I’m basically a prisoner here big man.”

Goddamn impulsivity, he should have thought about his words more carefully. They had given him a room and food and he had insulted their generosity.

However, just like the last time, the king laughed

“ just hang on for a few more days until we find your family alright? But i suppose it’s boring being holed up in your room all day...”

Philza glanced over to Techno who was not paying attention. The king smirked mischievously

“Perhaps Techno could bring you with you whenever he goes in the library, can you do that,right Prince?”
Tommy gulped. Techno growled. If looks could kill Tommy assumed the king would have died since his son was basically staring daggers at him.

“And why would i do that” he snapped

“ because it’s an order” the king concluded not averting his eyes from the prince’s face. This was a fight for dominance and when Techno looked back at his plate, tightly gripping his fork, Tommy knew who had won.
“...fine” the piglin hybrid muttered defeated and went back to his food.

Tommy was not at all excited about spending time with him but it’s not like he could refuse. He hoped Techno wouldnt do anything while he was with him.

“ i can’t believe i have to babysit the kid” Techno rambled while making his way to the guest room.

After the fight with his father, the voices had been incredibly chaotic and incomprehensible. He hoped some reading would calm them down.

“Hey gremlin, open up! We’re going to the library”

He shouted while he was , pretty much, punching the door. A confused Tommy opened the door yawning. His hair was a mess and his eyes were half closed

“...what?” he mumbled with a low voice

Techno huffed and adjusted his glasses.

“Keep up or you won’t see the outside for a very long time” he declared and started walking in the opposite direction from which he came from.

Tommy took a moment to process what had just happened and was quickly on his feet behind the older boy. Techno could hear his heartbeat rising while he was struggling to keep up the pace and slowed down unconsciously.

The kid stayed quiet during the walk, occasionally looking around at the decorations or the paintings on the walls. In the end they reached the same door Techno had opened that same morning.

“ Good evening prince Techno, back already? Unfortunately the info-“

Karl stopped himself when he saw a bundle of golden locks follow the prince. He put on a smile and left the counter.

“Hi! You must be Tommy, I’m Karl the librarian. Welcome” he said enthusiastically

The child smiled smugly

“ Hello Karl the librarian. You’re the only one here with a semi normal name, must be nice huh”

He laughed, and Karl followed suit.

Meanwhile Technoblade decided to pay the conversation no mind as he went to pick up a book and sit in his usual spot next to the lit fireplace.

Soft steps disturbed his peaceful reading. The kid must have finished bothering the librarian and was probably looking for his next victim. Unfortunately for Techno, he was the only one here.
“what do you want” he asked rolling not taking his eyes off the book
Tommy took a step forward and launched himself to the chair next to the Fireplace

“Watcha reading?”

“none of you business” Techno dismissed

Tommy pouted and decides to get closer, too bored to care about the danger.

“The art of war. That sounds boring” he commented

Techno finally raised his snout from the book, more expressive than usual.

“No, it’s not” he rebuked with a small frown

“I bet it is.” Tommy continued

“ It’s a classic. But you’re too dumb to understand it anyway” he snickered. Tommy raised himself from his seat

“I am literally the smartest here, you should take that back”

Techno laughed, like full on laughed

“or what? I stabbed you once, i could do it again with no effort” he finished

And Tommy took that personally. Before Techno could even register it, his book disappeared from his hands. Tommy was in front of him, smug on his face, one hand on his hip and the other holding the book.

“Give it back” Techno warned
“come and get it.” And the kid bolted.

Chapter Text

“ i can’t believe i leave you guys alone for an hour and you end up in a fight”

The king was standing in front of the two kids who were sitting next to eachother on the infirmary bed, with their arms crossed, a scowl on both their faces and a couple of bruises. Phil had to admit that, despite the annoyance at the beginning, the whole ordeal looked cute, especially the way they were pouting at the moment.

It had been a while since he saw Techno display age appropriate behaviours, he had to grow up too fast and he hadn’t had the chance to enjoy his childhood fully.

Phil had to stop himself from smiling.

“ He started it!” Techno excused himself, with more emotion than usual.

Tommy looked at him betrayed and stood up

“That’s not true! He’s lying” he defended

Techno shrugged his shoulders and commented

“ He was being annoying dad, I had to do something”

His father sighed deeply, squeezing the bridge of his nose between his fingers

“Techno, how many times do I have to tell you that ‘being annoying’ is not an excuse to hit someone?”

Techno didn’t bother answering, instead he went back at staring at the wall on his side and so did Tommy. Gods, they were adorable. Something in Philza’s bird brain wanted to just wrap them in his wings and coddle them until they fell asleep.

He might do that with Techno later on, but first he had to make them learn their lessons. After all, Tommy didn’t seem like a bad kid and even though the princes kept doubting him, Phil’s intuition had never been wrong.

He suspected that what he was about to say would strain his relationship with his son further as they didn’t quite make up yet, but it was nothing that couldn’t be fixed with time. Plus Tommy was only a temporary thing. In fact, at this moment, many of the kingdom’s intelligence where searching for information about the kid so that he could go back to where he belonged.

“I thought I had made clear that Tommy’s a guest here at the palace. Apparently I was not authoritative enough.” He sighed and techno squeezed his fists waiting

“From now on I expect you to treat him with respect-“
“But father” Techno complained

“- and I also want you to bring him along whenever you have free time. Be it during training, reading or just wandering around in the castle. He needs to get accustomed to the palace life for the time being.”

Both Tommy and Techno looked smitten, staring with wide eyes at the older man. Techno jumped on his feet and Tommy followed suit

“ you seriously can’t ask me that! We barely know him!”
“I don’t want to be stuck with this guy forever Old man!”

They both shouted at the same time, but Phil did not falter. And as they kept gesticulating dramatically while listing reasons on why this was a bad idea, the older man simply smiled and placed his hand on their heads, patting softly.

“it’s for the best, trust me”

It looked a bit ridiculous since Techno was taller, but the point still got across. That made Techno calm down regarding that matter, but Tommy got more agitated and quickly moved to the side and complained that he wasn’t a kid and other jumbled nonsense.

Phil chuckled brightly

“ I have to go now, be good please. Don’t fight again, or at least don’t destroy the library while doing so”
And left to attend some matters regarding the empire that had plagued his mind for the past week. However that wasn’t something that concerned his kids.

“ By the way, I obviously won that one” Tommy bickered and pulled out his tongue at the prince next to him who simply chuckled

“ sure gremlin, believe what you want but, just to be clear, I wasn’t the one pinned against the floor” he raised his middle finger in response

“ and I wasn’t the one that faceplanted on it.” The younger boy mocked back, raising the bird too.

“ oh you want to come again child!?” Techno squared up, staring straight at the kid who didn’t falter but put himself in an attack position

“ wanna lose the second round too idiot?!”

Luckily they did not go on a second round, too tired and aching from the first one tough neither of them had admitted it. Instead they decided to simply head to their own rooms to shower the dust off of themselves. Obviously, Techno had to accompany the blonde boy all the way to the guest room as he did not want to leave him unattended.
After that was done, he headed for his room.

A week went by and, thankfully, Tommy and Techno had reached a sort of truce, both too scared to upset Philza even more.

They mostly spent their evenings together as ordered by the king, plus the meals and the occasional hang out with the other prince in the garden. Speaking of Wilbur, Tommy hadn’t had the chance to see him that much and he wasn’t really sure he wanted to.

There was something off putting about the way he looked at Tommy, but he couldn’t quite his finger on it. He hadn’t been openly hostile, quite the opposite in fact.

He was bright, welcoming and unsurprisingly loquacious. Despite all that, he still had some weird moments in which he spouted vague phrases or stared excessively at the kid as he was a wolf waiting for his pray to make a mistake.
Tommy had felt cornered many times, but dismissed them as being paranoid whenever the prince went back at acting normal.
A sort of routine had been created and the blonde boy was getting used to it more than he’d like to admit it.

Now, he was sitting in the living room, idly turning the pages of a book he had no interest in and sighing, waiting for Techno to finish his.

“if you’re that bored you can leave” the prince had said, surprising both of them. Was it supposed to be some kind of test of loyalty? Should he dismiss it and stay here?

“I mean it, go… I don’t know…bother Wilbur. I’ll let you go for this once.” He concluded

Tommy blinked unsure, slowly he rose and he carefully placed the book down. He froze on his way to the door upon hearing a voice

“he should be in the kitchen” Techno added
And Tommy left, in search for the other brother.

After the brat had left, Techno stood up to his feet and left the living room, carefully checking the corridors. Without Tommy in his way, he could go get the materials from the Librarian, hoping he had some.
With cat like silence, he made his way to the library, opening the door in a swift movement of his arm.
Karl didn’t look surprised this time. Instead, upon seeing the prince he nodded and ducked, reaching for something under his desk.

He presented a mere sheet of paper to Techno, who now stood in front of the counter with a puzzled look
“Well?” he asked impatiently

Karl shrugged

“We didn’t find anything” he said

“So he’s clean” Techno commented, somewhat relieved.

“No. I mean we didn’t find ANYTHING.”

HE tensed up again, raising an eyebrow
“what?”

“ No name, no place of birth, no medical records. Nothing. The kid’s a ghost” Karl sighed and curled over the desk.
Technoblade snatched the paper from the wood counter. No news about this kid before the day they found him. That was impossible.

How do you make someone disappear, even from the eyes of one of the most knowledgeable guilds?

“so Tommy is really a spy” Techno inquired

However Karl shook his head

“Highly unlikely, the rebels weren’t this good at hiding their tracks. I’d say there something else behind it, but we can’t do much until the kid remembers”

Techno grumbled as a sudden headache hit him. The voices stirred in his head more chaotically than usual.

“ so he wasn’t lying about his memory loss, at least that’s good to know.” He straightened up and went to reach for his purse, taking out a small heavy looking pouch

“I’ll inform the king about it. Thank you for your help Karl.”

Techno concluded and placed the pouch on the desk and then left. Next step would have been his father’s office.

The prince knocked on the king’s door. They had not spoken since their fight, but their duties went in front of personal feelings.

“Come in” the king’s voice announced tiredly.

At first, Techno saw the king slouching on the desk, holding a pen in one hand and his head in the other. His eye bags were evident, but the rest of him looked impeccable as always. He rose his head with a stern look that softened when he realized that it was his son. Then his father straightened up a bit, put down the pen and smiled.

“what can I do for you Techno?” he asked in his usual tone.

Techno’s rage had been already dimmed by the time that passed, but it got completely replaced by concern once he saw his father again.

Duty comes first.

“ I ran a background check on Tommy.” He stated, pulling out the piece of paper Karl had given him.

His father didn’t look surprised, he had simply muttered a “that was faster than mine…” and let his son finish.
Technoblade got closer to the desk and placed the paper on it rudely

“they found nothing”

Phil was about to say something along the lines of “good” but he was stopped
“ and by nothing I mean NOTHING. The kid doesn’t, legally speaking, exists.” He crossed his arms.

Philza closed his mouth thinning it in a line as he usually did and looked at his son

“that’s weird, are you sure about it?”
The prince nodded.
“yes.”
The room filled with silence. Techno broke it
“ so what do we do now?”
His father sighed
“ we can only wait. For him to regain his memories or for someone to claim him I guess…”
Techno huffed, smirking slightly
“ so you’re adopting another stray then?”
His father looked betrayed, his wings puffed out slightly and his cheeks reddened

“ I am not! He will leave once he remembers. Also look who’s talking mr ‘ I calm him down when he has nightmares’” he bickered. Now it was Techno’s turn to blush

“That’s not true! I don’t fraternize with enemies”

“don’t think I don’t know about your little nightly visits to the guest quarters.” His father smiled innocently. The way this man always knew everything about his sons baffled Techno.

“ I-I Was no-“

Philza laughed and waved his hand

“ sure, sure. You obviously were just checking if he had any evil plans to unleash on us”
Then out of the blue he continued

“ thank you for not being mad at me anymore. You were just being cautious. I’m sorry about the way I acted, I should’ve listened to you more.”

HE averted his gaze. A laugh echoed in the room
“ That’s what I always say! Well, anyway you were right so I guess I could’ve listened more to you too.”
PHilza joined the laugh

“At least you’re not acting like a manipulative asshole like your brother. He’s treating the poor kid like he’s a toy”

“oh about that…we kind of had a deal. Whatever, I’m going to talk to him tonight, don’t worry.”

They both calmed down, but on their faces was left a fond smile.

Chapter Text

“TOMMY STOP YOU’RE GOING TO HURT SOMEONE” Wilbur yelled, reaching for the younger kid’s arm in an attempt to grab what the boy was holding. Tommy expertly avoided his action, twirling on himself.

“Bitch boy stop being melodramatic, it’s just a whisk”

He stated, going on with his business.

“You’re supposed to lightly stir the mixture not kill it!” The older boy commented, finally snatching the tool from his hand.

As it turned out, Tommy was utter shit at baking. He was either too violent or too soft, this plus the fact that he sucked at following basic instructions made the recipe for a culinary disaster.

Flour was all over the floor, batter was dripping from the ceiling (how did that even get there) and burned previous attempts laid discarded on the counter.
Wilbur was not having it. Meanwhile Tommy was having the time of his life, despite the company.

He had never baked anything before!

All the different textures and flavour were amazing, if only it weren’t for those damn instructions.
Why did he have to listen to a stupid book, it looked easy enough and he was a big man. He could do it without it. And so he had thrown the book into the fire, claiming freedom.

Everyone can imagine how that ended.

“ get out of my kitchen right this instant!” Wilbur begged pushing the kid away, but to no avail. The younger boy had planted his feet onto the ground and had no plans to move.

Instead, he reached behind Wilbur and got a hold of something with one hand, while trying to keep the batter away from the hybrid with the other.

“STOP ADDING MORE CHOCOLATE!”

Wilbur barked loudly, but he was just a little bit too slow and Tommy managed to steal the chocolate from the counter and pour it in the mixture.

Just as he was about to walk away victorious, his left foot got stuck against the right one, his mouth produced something between a grunt and a scream.

Before Wilbur had time to react, they were both on the floor, cake batter all over them as the bowl fell onto the ground with a loud clank. Tommy was splayed ungracefully on top of Wilbur, who had managed to cushion the fall with both hands, and wad laughing loudly. His face was a mixture of cake, chocolate and childlike glee.

His eyes were teary at the corners, his cheeks were red from the lack of oxygen and his mouth was wide open with a full laugh coming out of it. In the end, Wilbur couldn’t avoid joining in as his eyes thinned and the corner of his lips raised.

Slowly, the chuckles came down, replaced by one wide smile on one kid and some sort of smirk on the other. Tommy finally pushed himself up, reaching out a hand to Wilbur, who firmly grabbed it and pulled himself up.

He looked around, the whole room was a mess. A drip of batter fell from his hair and landed on his nose, tickling it slightly.

“I’d say we need a bath”

The older kid stated, raising both his arms in defeat.

Tommy frowned a bit, but ended up agreeing. Wilbur continued

“I’ll call someone to clean this up, you go ahead. We’ll meet at dinner.”

Tommy nodded, but before leaving he raised a finger and slid hit against his forehead, then he put it in his mouth and smiled.

“See, i knew I was doing it the right way. It’s delicious! A shame to wash it all away”

Wilbur did the same, but a disgusted scowl was on him instead of a smile.

“Literally shut up. This tastes like sugar, it’s barely a cake”

Tommy looked very offended. But Wilbur held out his hand and started pushing the boy away

“Now go ahead, you’re filthy”

“Look who’s talking” tommy rebuked

“yeah and whose fault is it”

Finally Tommy gave in and left the kitchen, heading towards his room.

After a couple of minutes of collecting the utensils on the floor, Wilbur started heading towards the door to call a maid to finish up. Instead, he was met by a puzzled look onto a face he knew extremely well.

“Did a cake explode here or what? What happened?”

Techno asked and entered the room, looking around to the mess that presented itself before his eyes.

The voices were chuckling in his head, echoing loudly.

Meanwhile the prince was just baffled. He took a step further and his feet almost slipped against a gooey mixture on the floor. He looked toward his brother again.

His twin spoke in a defeated tone, shoulders slumped

“Tommy happened, that’s what.” He walked towards the counter and sat on it, batter sticking to the pants even more.

Techno tentatively walked towards him, trying his best to avoid the sploshes of batter on the floor so that his boots would not get more dirty.

“I see you two are getting along just fine then.”
He commented once he managed to face his brother, who was trying to take out the batter from his head with a dry towel.

Wilbur scoffed defensively, cheeks slightly tinted red

“yeah so he lowers hid guard, obviously”

“Obviously” Techno mocked him.

Wilbur glared at him.

Techno grabbed a, surprisingly, clean chair and sat in front of him, eyes on the ground.

“About that...” he started, tone serious all of a sudden.
Wilbur shifted his weight on the front, head tilted and judging eyes.

Techno took a deep breath and exhaled
“I don’t think Tommy’s a bad guy.”

Wilbur’s eyebrows furrowed

“What?” he asked, voice filled with genuine surprise

“did he manage to fool you too? I thought you were smarter than that Techno” he said with a slight mock in his voice. His eyes narrowed and darkened.

Techno, however, didn’t falter and decided to speak again, clear and concise.

“I have spent far more time with him than anyone in this castle. I have looked into his past, nothing suggests he could be lying to us, at least about being a spy. I genuinely believe he’s a good kid, his mind is just a little jumbled at the moment.”,

“You can’t be serious” Wilbur spat, throwing the cloth onto the ground with a quick movement

“I am as serious as I always am” Techno kept his eyes on his brother, fighting for dominance in a war of stares. Neither of them wanting to back down.

“I don’t want to kill him.” Techno sighed. His gaze softened upon the realization that, maybe, he was starting to get attached to the kid.

“You’ve gotten soft.” Wilbur jumped off the counter, glaring at his twin and scoffed. He bumped into his shoulder and started moving towards the door.

Technoblade grabbed his arm, holding him tightly in place. The fabric of the shirt rumpled under his strong hand.

“I don’t want him dead.” He clarified. Wilbur was still turned towards the door . He violently shook off his brother’s hand, clicking his tongue. Then, he proceeded to the door.

Just as he was about to leave, he spoke, shoulders relaxing slightly.

“I will keep an eye on him.”

At that, Techno exhaled. It was not a promise to love the kid like he was starting to, but at least the boy would not get murdered in his sleep. The prince scoffed, all and all he could say that the talk went better than expected. Satisfied, he turned around and remembered the mess. He was pretty sure his brother had no plans of coming back.

Damn it Wilbur.

Chapter Text

“Don’t worry darling, I am always with you.”

The woman speaks softly, cradling a child in her arms. Rocking back and forth as a melody leaves her lips and her hands tighten around the small body. Cold drips fall onto the child’s face but he does not notice as he has already been taken over by the realm of dreams.

Once he manages to open his eyes, the warm touch of the woman was already gone. To no avail he screams her name for days, burning every amount of energy left, just to feel once more her touch, but she’s already gone. Gone are also warm touches and soft sounds.

Tommy opened his eyes in a hurry, he could feel his heart trying to escape his chest and one hand was already clutched there in an attempt to stop it. His blonde curls stuck all over his face in a messy patter as sweat dripped on his soft pillow, leaving a disgusting pool behind.

He could feel his body shiver, yet he felt too warm. He yanked the blanked off of himself, trying to cool down. He tried to picture what his mind so quickly forgot once its host had abandoned the realm of dreams. As much as he tried to, nothing conjured up in his mind.

It must have been another nightmare.

Slowly, he sat himself up. Tommy’s back was cold against the wall and his eyes were still watering. He could taste the salt on his lips.

The child pulled his knees up and started controlling his own breathing, he found himself rocking to seek comfort.

Just as he was about to calm down, a sound reached his ears. Tommy perked up a little bit. It did not sound like something he had heard before, and it definitely didn’t sound like voices. It was actually pleasant and soft...warm.

He carefully stood up, trying to find the source of this noise. With meticulous steps, he reached the door and poked his head in the corridor.

The sound was getting stronger and he was determined to find out what type of animal or person was making it. Honestly, it sounded like something birds made in the morning, just less...chirpy.

Tommy had discovered that birds made noises pretty recently. He had asked Techno what was the sound that made him wake up many times in the morning , he had described it as annoying but somewhat cheerful. The day after the prince had brought in his room a cage with something that he explained was a bird, a Redpoll he had said. He also had a book about them with him and spent the whole morning explaining to Tommy that they were the source of the morning annoyance.

The child had listened carefully to the words and even managed to pet the bird before freeing him once again. Seeing the bird fly away gave him a weird feeling, like someone was squeezing his heart.

The volume of the sound had reached its peak and Tommy found himself in front of a semi-opened door. A weak light was coming out of the room, as well as the sound he so much wanted to identify, but as soon as he tried to peek through the open space, the sound stopped.

“Who is there?” A familiar voice had asked

The teen opened the door completely. He waited at the doorstep, his pupils adjusting to the change in light.

Inside the room Wilbur was sitting on his bed, holding a weird object in his hands. The light from a candle highlighted his cheekbones and bounced off from his curly hair, making them look like chocolate.

His eyes shone redder in front of the candlelight, brighter than usual. They were open wide, fixated on the entrance. Tommy could’ve sworn he saw something glint at the corner of his eyes.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt you” Tommy’s voice came out feeble, like a whisper lost in the night. Wilbur sighed and sniffed, passing his hand over his eyes.

“What do you want” he murmured, voice more genuine than what the younger kid was used to from him.

Tommy took that as an invite to step inside, so he turned around, closed the door and took some big steps to reach the bed. Meanwhile, Wilbur kept his eyes on the kid, tracking his every move, ready to counter whatever he thought he was planning. Instead, the kid simply spoke with clear words.

“What was that sound before? The nice one” he said

Tommy stood in front of the prince, looking down at him with wide eyes and childlike curiosity. He really wanted to know more about the fuzzy noise.

Wilbur looked at him, then at the object in his hands, then back at Tommy while raising the wooden thing

“you mean the music?” he asked unsure

“So that’s what it’s called? Can you do that again?”

“Don’t tell me you’ve never heard music before.” He replied, almost smitten. Tommy shook his head from side to side.

Music huh, that was a nice name for something that felt like an hug. Tommy wondered where the name came form. The word sounded like the sound cows made, perhaps they made music too. Tommy would love to own a cow some day, he would probably call him Henry.

The music filled the room once more as Wilbur shifted in position and began expertly moving his hands on the instrument. He plucked each string one by one, while his other hand worked to hold some of them in place. Tommy admired his coordination.

His eyes fell dark once more, lost in the melody and the memories of times long gone.

The music sounded sad but soon it started warming up to a more comfortable and cozy tone.

All of a sudden, music wasn’t the only thing reaching the blonde boy’s ears.

Wilbur was singing.

Delicate words fluctuated around him, telling a story so familiar yet so out of reach.

Before he even knew it, Tommy was crying. Heavy drops of warm tears filling his eyes and crawling slowly all the way to his chin and falling onto his hands.

He started humming too, attempting some words here and there.

At some point, it felt too easy. Like the pieces of a puzzle finally fitting together, the lyrics of the lullaby came out like they were never forgotten. He sung like the birds in the morning, a tune so engrained in his body it had become second nature. It felt like remembering how to breathe again.

Tommy knew this song, he must have heard it somewhere. He knew it.

The bliss of the moment was ended by the last note played by the older boy, who raised his head in surprise and looked at Tommy.

“I’m surprised you know this, you said you didn’t know what music was” he whispered, voice still filled with emotion from the song.

Tommy took a second. He frowned, then he muttered weakly

“I don’t…” he started, fiddling with his hands “I just know the lyrics I guess. I’m not really sure…”

Wilbur tilted his head up, leaning on his elbows onto the bed, instrument discarded in his lap. He sighed

“It was something dad used to sing us a lot when we were younger. Thought he might’ve made it up, guess not.”

He chuckled bitterly, fingers brushing the cords.

Then, the spell broke.

Wilbur sat back up straight, his curls fell down on his face, covering his eyes. His jaw tightened .

“You should go back to your room”

He said sharply, an order not a suggestion. Tommy gulped and reluctantly headed towards the door.

“goodnight prince” he hesitated, half expecting a goodbye, but received no response.

With heavy steps, he walked through the dark corridors lit only by the shine of the moon that came through the windows. He hummed, keeping himself company while the shadows grew darker. In his head, the feeble memory of a melody discovered once more.

Chapter Text

“Tommy, would you mind coming to my office this afternoon? I would like a word with you”

The king said while taking a bite out of a slice of bread, not raising his gaze from the documents in his other hand. Tommy blinked quickly, still looking at his plate. He tried to think about what he might have done in the past days in order to be summoned in the office. Nothing came to mind, yet he tensed up regardless.

“Yes your majesty” he replied stiffly, gripping the fork tighter.

Philza looked up at him and the corners of his mouth raised slightly, as he was usual to do, and nodded. Then he went back to study his documents, scanning the pages slowly. Tommy tried to return the smile, albeit more forced.

He noticed some marmalade stuck on the side of the man’s lips and for the rest of breakfast he could not concentrate on anything else.

Had he done something wrong? Was he getting kicked out?

Perhaps they had found something about his old family and they were going to pick him up. At the thought, he unconsciously grimaced.

He was getting used to palace life and he and Wilbur were finally on decent terms, he would be a liar if he said he would not have been slightly disappointed if he had to leave.

All kind of different thoughts raced through him all day and it was almost time to meet the king and put an end to his overthinking.

He was walking through the corridors once more, heading to the main’s office, when all of a sudden he bumped into someone while turning the corner. Well, more like someone bumped into him

“Watch where you’re going tall ass”

The stranger spat annoyed.

Tommy stopped, focusing on the small figure in front of him, trying to mumble some sort of excuse. The stranger filled the awkward silence

“Oh, it’s you” he looked up from behind the curls that fell all over his face, brown eyes meeting blue. He had vertical pupils, odd.
Tommy came out of the shock induced daze and replied insulted

“I’m sorry, do i know you?”

“Well, no. But i do know you. You’re Tommy, the whole castle is talking about you man.” The boy stated, flopping his hands around while talking “You’re like a celebrity here. The mysterious killer child who came out of nowhere. Now that’s a story worth telling.”

Now that was too many information at once. Was he really that famous?

Before Tommy could even reply, the kid took a step back and extended his hand. It was obvious that this boy liked to use them, in fact they were filled with scars and callouses, like Techno’s owns except they were on the fingers rather than the palm.

“I’m sorry, I’m Tubbo. Nice to meet you”

Tommy hesitantly reached back and shook his hand, not surprised by the strong grip. Tubbo raised the other hand, cupping both his hand Tommy’s and shook with even more energy.

“So where are you headed?” Tubbo asked with a curious gaze, finally taking back his hands

“the king’s office.” Tommy answered pointing in the direction Tubbo came from

“Well, that’s odd, I’m going there too and that’s the wrong direction.” He chuckled. Tommy almost went red from embarrassment, and started walking towards the opposite corridor. Tubbo was quick on his tail

“Still getting used to the... curious layout” Tommy mentioned. It had taken a while to memorize where all the important meetup points where in the castle, but he still struggled with the directions from time to time.

“I feel ya. Basically grew up here and I still get lost sometimes. No worries! “ the smaller boy loudly confirmed and patted Tommy’s back, who promptly flinched at the heavy hand on his back. This kid had strength.

“You grew up here?” he asked. He was surprised he wanted to learn more about the kid, perhaps it was because it looked like they were roughly the same age.

“My dad’s in the council so i always used to hang around during the meetings. It’s full of secret passages! I gotta show you around sometime.”

Tommy smiled and nodded. That explained it. This meant the kid knew a lot about the castle and its residents, Tommy could learn a thing or two.

“sure I would love to!”

And so they walked all the way to the office, spending the time in an idle yet powerful chit chat, jumping from one topic to another.

Tommy found out Tubbo liked to construct things, he had called himself an inventor.

Tommy also found out that Tubbo really liked to make said inventions explode, which had caused him to end up in troubles many times.

Once he accidentally set Techno’s cape on fire!

He had to clean the stables for months after that, which was not a fun time, but the baffled look on the prince face had been totally worth it.

For the first time since he had come here, Tommy did not feel any ulterior motive from the other party and easily enjoyed a conversation with a peer without worry.
Of course, all good things must come to and end eventually.

They had reached the sturdy door of the King’s office. Again, two guards stood at the front. They barely acknowledged the kids when they knocked.

“come in!”

Phil’s voice could be heard outside of the door with no problems.

Tommy opened the door, but hesitated to walk inside. He was unsure who was supposed to go first. Did the king want to see Tubbo or Tommy? Were they supposed to walk in together?
Upon hearing no footsteps, Phil looked at the door.

“Ah, I see you two came together, that’s perfect.” He said delighted.

He rose from the chair, walking towards them, arms slightly open.

“your highness” Tubbo greeted, kneeling with a hand on his chest, head tilted down in a surprisingly elegant pose, which did not seem to fit his usual mannerism.

The king made a movement with his head and the boy rose. Phil placed a hand on his shoulder

“I’m glad you already met, I presume you have already introduced eachother?”

Tommy nodded “ we met on the way here, big T is pretty cool” he said, causing the other boy to smile wider.

Tubbo nodded “ i agree with Tommy, I am pretty cool” he chuckled, making the king do the same.

“Actually, that’s why i called you both here...” the king started, clearing his voice “ i assumed you two would get along since you’re pretty much the same age.” He then turned his head towards Tubbo, who straightened up “Tommy is still getting used to the palace life and I would like for you to keep him company since the princes are not always available”

Tommy mouth twisted slightly. On one side, he was basically getting another babysitter, on the other Tubbo was a pretty interesting person.

At least he seemed better than the princes.

Tubbo glanced towards him and smiled “I would love to your highness!” his hands waved to empathize his wording.

Phil moved his eyes to Tommy, raising an eyebrow

“I’m cool with it too” the teen confirmed.

The king placed both his hands on the kids’ shoulders, and looked at a point behind them, face blanking for a moment, then his smile came back.

“I’m pleased to hear that. Life can get pretty boring here, sometimes a playmate is needed” he nodded and guided them towards the door. While they got out, a woman with long white hair slipped past them, entering the room.

“Very well then, go have fun! “ the king ordered, closing the door in front of them

Tommy stilled, eyes towards Tubbo, unsure on how to start the conversation again. Before he could speak, Tubbo smirked, pupils glinting maliciously.

“want to make some hay bales explode?”
“hell yeah i do”

Chapter Text

“I can’t believe it’s been more than a month and we still have no idea where the gremlin came from. There’s no way he just spawned in! “ Wilbur groaned, his hand passed through his hair while he released a frustrated sigh. He slouched over the desk, looking at his father.

“Perhaps if we take some blood we could locate some sort of provenience? I think Karl might know a spell for that…” the king inquired, back curled forwards, head in his hands and gaze fixated on the single page of information they had on Tommy.
Most of it collected from the boy himself during the past month and a half.

“No way. He’s already terrified of contact as it is, I don’t think it would be a good idea to stick a needle up his arm” Techno concurred and the voices agreed.

“we could do it while he’s asleep!” his twin proposed, raising a finger.

The king raised his head and shook it

“I have to agree with Techno” he sighed

“We can’t risk him waking up. It took us so long to build some sense of trust, it would get destroyed in a second and we would only make matters worse.”

Techoblade lowered towards the desk, strands of pink hair falling on it. He slid the paper towards himself.

“ Will, you said he sang some sort of song he didn’t know he remembered right? “

The brunette nodded puzzled.

“Yeah, he said he remembered the lyrics or something, why?”

The other boy raised himself and started pacing in the room, hand slowly caressing his own braid.

Each step was like in slow motion

“What if…” he started
“His memory is triggered by mundane events? We make him do stuff he probably used to do and he will remember eventually right?”

Philza pondered the question
“ it does not sound like a bad idea…”

Wilbur interrupted
“How do we know what he used to do?”

Techno stopped and hummed
“ I mean, it’s a kid. Let’s do normal stuff, like studying or I don’t know…cooking”

“ already tried cooking, we baked a cake but he did not seem to have remembered anything.” The younger twin mentioned, recalling the terrible attempt at baking, a chill run down his spine at the memory.

Techno grumbled

“Then let’s try with studying for now. Then we can try to drag him in as much activities as possible”

He concluded, stopping in his steps.

Phil nodded

“alright, we don’t have that many options anyway. I will inform the tutor, we can have him follow the same lessons as Tubbo so he won’t be alone.” He decided. With a quick motion he grabbed a quill and a piece of paper and started writing.

A knocking on the door made the family raise their heads. Techno was unaware his father was expecting visitors

“Come in” the king ordered

A familiar pink head came into sight, kneeling gracefully.

“Your royal highnesses, I have news of the southern border.”

Niki declared in her usual formal tone, simple and direct. Techno respected her for that, and her incredible logic mind which awarded the woman a position in the council
The king’s eyes hardened as he took in her words. With a quick hand gesture he dismissed the princes

“my sons, please leave us. We will resume our conversation at a later date”

The twins did not hesitate and they both directed themselves outside of the study, albeit slightly confused by the situation. Rarely their father left them out of the state affairs, but when he did, it was for a good reason so they did not question him.
Techno decided he would head towards the training grounds, to release some stress and calm down his head, which had become noisier ever since the kid arrived.

.

Tommy was running toward Phil’s study, hands cupped in front of him, holding a small paper crane he had made with Tubbo.

While it took him an embarrassingly long time to learn how to make one and it was far from perfect, he was still proud of his little creation and he was planning to give it to Phil as a way to show his thanks.

On second thought, it was a childish act which did not suit him, but he had made that decision on an impulse and it was too late to turn back.

As he approached the door, a woman came out of it. Her eyes were stern, but they softened once they took notice of him. She had the same weird hair color as Techno, just paler. Tommy had learned it was called pink and it included a huge variety of shades.

She greeted the kid with a nod and left.

Tommy slipped inside the room, taking advantage of the already open door.

A chill ran down his spine as he entered the room, but he dismissed it. He took wide steps until he reached the desk, wide smile plastered on his face.

The king did not acknowledge him, he was far too concentrated on the letters he was holding in his hand.

Tommy placed the crane on the desk and took a step back.

“Behold my great abilities at shaping paper!” he announced loudly, his hands indicating the little bird. The king made a movement with his a it was quick, but his eyes had stayed on the papers.

“Not now Tommy” Phil commented with a tone more tense than usual. He scanned each line slowly, with one finger curved against his mouth.

Tommy ignored it and jumped into a long explanation of his day with Tubbo, as he was used to do every now and then, ever since Phil had asked for updates on his time with his new friend.

“I said not now Tommy” the king tried again, sighing. But Tommy continued with his narration, not noticing the king’s jolt every time the teen reached a higher note with his voice.

All of a sudden the king slammed his papers on the desk, with more force than usual. He looked up in a quick motion, glaring at the blonde kid.

Tommy shut his mouth with an audible clank. His teeth hit against eachother painfully. He gulped and turned his head down in a single swoop.

He had made the king mad, he was so stupid. Just because he wanted to show him the dumb piece of paper he had made. He was a king! He had million of things of course he would not care about a useless folded sheet.

The king realized his mistake when he saw the kid tense up. He sighed and raised himself from the chair, heading towards the kid, muttering apologies.

The younger boy began to relax and decided to try to look up at the man, blue eyes lucid and mouth tightened in a frown.

Then, the king did something that made the kid’s heart jump in his throat.

Phil placed a hand on the left shoulder of Tommy, hand firm in place in an attempt at comfort. He squeezed faintly, fabric wrinkling.

“I’m not mad at you, relax” he said, but it was not his voice, or at least, it was not just his.

Tommy’s eyes widened and he froze once more. His hands began to tremble as his ears tingled with a dull sound, silencing everything else around him.

The figure of the king flashed with someone else’s, wide creepy smile in place of the usual soft one. Tommy breath quickened.

A memory started placing itself into his head, his body reacted to it before his mind could even register it.

.

Techno slammed the door wide open with an huffed breath and sword in hand. His senses were all on high alert and so were the chatters in his head, screaming at him to help.

A servant had come to take him, urging him to hurry to the king study, for an emergency.

The loud clank of the dropped weapon was suffocated by the agonizing screams that echoed in the wide room.
In the middle of it, on the ground, there were two figures.

On the left, Phil was kneeling, cape splayed open and ruffled feathers. He looked disheveled and for the first time in a long while, Techno could see the panic on his face. Forehead marked with sweat and blue eyes scarily wide and concentrated on the figure in front of him. The man had his hands digging into the kid’s wrist, in an attempt to stop him from repeatedly hitting himself and everything he had nearby. Surprisingly, he was failing, struggling to handle the kid’s strength.

He abruptly turned toward his son, tears threatening to spill as he looked at him with desperation and worry. Techno understood his cry for help and took a leap towards Tommy, who seemed not to notice.

He sat on the ground behind him, as the kid kept screaming incoherent phrases that ranged from the “I’LL BE GOOD” to the “SHUT UP!”.

Without thinking twice, Techno wrapped his arms around the smaller boy, blocking his movements not without effort. He stayed there hugging tightly while the kid rode through his screams, now moving his whole body in an attempt to escape the comfort prison. Once the yells had subsided, the only noises left in the room were the hiccups that occasionally shook the frail figure.

The voices screamed against the king, many blaming him for the breakdown.

His father had not dared to utter a word. He sat on his knees in front of them, fist tight against his leg. He just stared empty at the boys, waiting for the worst to pass.

Tommy’s eyes were still vacant, but he had stopped shaking and fighting back and now he was laying motionless and heavy onto the older boy like a puppet without strings.

Techno chest grumbled throughout the whole process, trying to soot both the boy in his arms and himself. Once he was sure the kid had fallen asleep he spoke, breaking the tension that had raised in the room

“What the hell happened” he glared with more spite than intended, at his father who lowered his gaze guilty

“ I don’t know…” he tried to explain, recalling what had happened earlier
“tommy came in the studio trying to show me something but I dismissed him and I guess I must’ve reacted badly because he started spiraling in front of me and then the screams and the hitting-“

His breaths got shorter between each word

“Hey,hey, dad, deep breath, it’s not your fault. Let’s try to understand this, what did you do exactly before he…” Techno asked with an hushed tone, pointing at the kid in his arms with a nod at the end of the sentence.

Phil collected himself, eyes back to normal and voice no longer trembling, although it still felt week, and explained with more details what had happened.

His son listened carefully while he rocked the younger boy in his arms, wishing him a peaceful sleep.

Chapter Text

A gentle woman caressed a child’s forehead, raven hair shining in the brief rays of moonlight that breach the room, glittering like the whole universe was trapped in them.

“You are my most precious thing, my little star”

She chants  in hushed phrases, warmth and comfort  emanating from her very being.

The child closes his eyes, lulled by the words of love. Suddenly the warmth is gone, only cold ground, dark corners and an excruciating pain marking his back, remain.

The kid hugs himself, but the warmth never comes back.

Tommy was surprised when he opened his eyes and found himself in his own bed. His head was thumping like crazy and his throat felt dry and irritated, so he turned his head in an attempt to find a glass of water.

Instead he found a slouched Technoblade, dozed off onto a chair next to the bed. Upon hearing movement, he raised his head and slowly opened his eyes. Tommy had no idea how long he had been there, but judging from the way he was stretching uncomfortably, he knew it was not a small amount of time.

The prince huffed and Tommy interpreted that as a greeting, so he nodded. He was still not feeling like talking.

Thankfully, techno did not speak so Tommy took his time to recollect his thoughts.

He remembered heading to the king’s office to show him something, then he remembered the older man’s outburst but he had no clue how or when he had gotten back into his room.

The prince noticed the confused look on the younger’s face so he offered to explain. Tommy simply nodded exhausted

“Phil was having a stressful day and he took it out on you without reason. He wanted to make sure that you knew it was not your fault, but he decided it would be best if you did not see him until you felt ready.”

A vague memory of the previous night presented itself in Tommy’s mind, it was vague.

Techno noticed Tommy’s lost expression

“Do you remember what happened?”

He remembered Philza’s panicked voice but it felt dull, distant, like he had never been there in the first place. He was not able to pinpoint the details of the situation, it was just painful…and the yells, had that been him?

Then there was a familiar warmth and a white noise that had made the chaos go away.

“I…think so” he croaked, slowly uncovering himself to sit up. A jolt in his head made him stop in his tracks and he fell forward. Thankfully, Techno was ready to catch him

Tommy swore he heard whispers.

“thank you” to which Techno replied with a soft rumble

“You should rest some more, do you need anything?”

“A working head?” he joked

“Best I can do is chocolate cake”

Tommy’s eyes lit up and he nodded vigorously, Techno chuckled and left the room.

He came back soon after, holding a plate with the most delicious looking piece of cake Tommy had ever seen. His stomach growled as soon as the delicacy was in his hands.

In a couple of minutes, not even crumbs were left, on the plate at least.

Techno snorted in affection when the kid used his sleeve to clean the remnants of the cake that mysteriously reached the  tip of his nose.   

Tommy looked at him offended, then handed him the empty plate and smiled.

“feeling better?” Techno asked, sitting next to him

The younger boy shrugged “I’m tired” he said “ the cake made it better though” he huffed

“I hope you’re not too tired to receive visitors” as soon as those words left the prince’s mouth, a quick and insistent knock resonated in the room.

Tommy tilted his head towards the door, Techno got up and made his way to open it. A familiar figure hopped inside the room, curly hair bouncing in his steps

“I’ll leave you to it” Techno said and left the room, closing the door behind himself.

“I heard you’re not feeling well”

Tommy smiled softly at his friend obvious preoccupation. Tubbo trotted towards the bed, and  reached over to the other boy, grabbing his head between his hands and starting to move it around, assessing the situation with quick movements.

Vertigos hit the blonde one, but he forced himself to sit straight, placing his hands on top of his friend’s to halt his movements

“Tubbo, I’m fine. I’m just too cool to get sick you know” he said with a steady voice.

Which was not a lie per se. After all, he wasn’t sick physically so he was, technically, telling the truth.

That seemed to ease the other teen, who promptly pulled himself up and clapped once, announcing loudly

“well then. If you’re not sick I’d say it’s time you meet someone!”

That was so unprompted and Tommy did not have time to process before Tubbo shouted

“RANBOO YOU CAN COME OUT NOW!”

Tommy felt a sudden pain piercing his head first. He closed and reopened his eyes, squeezing tightly to attempt to soothe the feeling, but the ache did not stop. Suddenly a slender figure appeared in the room in a puff of purple particles.

“hi” he said slowly, raising a white hand

“WHAT THE FUCK”

Tommy yelled, jumping backwards with an open mouth. Now that was something completely new.

The stranger turned towards Tubbo with a slight nervousness.

He was a giant. No, not tall. He was the tallest being Tommy had ever seen. He was pretty sure he was even taller than Wilbur. However he was lean, and a bit curled over, so that his gaze was lowered on the ground.

His skin was particular to say the least. First of all, he was half black and half white, with specs of shiny purple stars dusted all over them. He had slender horns at the top of his head, adorned with some golden jewelry.

The bottom of the horns was hidden behind long hair matching the skin’s pattern. It was shorter in the front, and longer in the back but it did not reach the boy’s shoulder. Two strands were locked behind the pointy ears, longer and softer than Techno’s one but decorated with sparse earrings nonetheless.

Tommy’s eyes were suddenly drawn by movement, and that’s when he took sight of…”a tail?”

Ranboo coughed and reached for his  own tail embarrassed. It was long and it ended with what looked like fur, it looked very soft.

Before realizing, Tommy had reached over a hand in an attempt to touch it. Surprisingly, the owner of the object of interest did not back away and Tommy took a hold of the soft material, petting it slowly. It was very soft, and his headache seemed to have lessened. He could have pet it forever.

A laughter brought the boy back to reality and he promptly retracted his hand in an apology.

“Tommy please, if you want to seduce Ranboo, at least introduce yourself first” Tubbo admonished jokingly. Tommy made a choked sound, Ranboo chuckled, bringing the tail up to hide his face.

“I WAS NOT- whatever, I’m Tommy”

“And I’m Seduced.” Ranboo spat in a serious tone. Tubbo exploded in a fit of laughter and Tommy followed. Ranboo tried to comment on how it was not even that good of a joke, but ended up joining in the laughter as well.

Once the chuckles were settled and they had managed to recompose themselves, Ranboo continued with his introduction, although Tubbo occasionally joined in to interrupt and add some cool anecdote.

“so I’m Ranboo. I don’t live here, obviously. My moms are bakers, but I have access to the castle because my mom was friend with the king-“

“She’s actually a war hero!!” Tubbo interjected

“yeah sure, and then I met Tubbo here one time-“

“I saved them from certain death!”

“I was literally just falling onto the ground, because of you. Anyway, we hit it off pretty quickly.”

“and I basically adopted you. What an amazing story!”

Tommy listened to the two banter amicably, going back and forth on how the story actually went. Before it could escalate, he interrupted

“Okay but how did you just show up out of nowhere”

He decided to ask the most important question of them all, because he felt they had glossed over that pretty quickly and it needed more attention because as he previously commented: what the fuck.

The boys stopped and looked at him confused

“He’s an hybrid. That’s his power?” Tubbo commented raising an eyebrow and pointing at the very obvious look of the guy next to him. Tommy was not sure he had understood that correctly, of course he was not dumb. He knew the people in this castle were not normal people, but for once he did not question it and just accepted it the way it is.

Ranboo took in Tommy’s empty stare and decided to intervene

“so you know how the princes are half man, half piglin? Or the king has wings?”

Tommy nodded

“Well, my mom is of Ender descent and she passes that to me so boom! Cool powers. Mostly teleportation”

“You lived here for like what, almost two months? Did you never question why I had horns or why techno has pointy ears?” Tubbo looked genuinely puzzled, so Tommy tried to come up with a decent answer

“Honestly, it didn’t feel like it mattered.” He shrugged, then his eyes lit up with a realization and he grabbed his friend

“Wait Tubbo, does this mean you have cool powers?”

He asked with excitement, Tubbo looked at him and huffed “ no, of course not, powers are kind of rare” he informed his friend, who immediately frowned

“lame” he said, sticking out his tongue. Ranboo suffocated a laugh behind his hand. Tubbo looked dramatically offended as he gasped

“you don’t have powers either!” he accused

Tommy huffed

“of course not, I’m not an hybrid like you! Unless you consider my incredible good looks as a power, which, in that case would be the strongest out of all of yours.” He joked. Tubbo attempted to head-butt him, thankfully Ranboo stopped him just in time,laughing

“Ranboo let me go I want to see if his good looks can take my incredibly hard head!” he struggled in the taller teen’s grip, comically flaring his hands around.

“Come at me, bitch.” Tommy challenged “Ranboo, let him go, I can take him” he ordered, and Ranboo let go suddenly, causing Tubbo to launch onto the blond teen.

Chapter Text

Tommy had known Ranboo for around a week and, honestly, they were getting along pretty well. The boy had spent most of his days with his friends since the princes had been busy and the king was clearly avoiding him, perhaps he had been waiting for Tommy to make the first move, but he never did.

He had planned to meet with Tubbo and Ranboo that day, so he was waiting in the main garden, sitting on the grass, enjoying the sun. A sudden familiar headache and here there was Ranboo, appearing out of a vortex of sparkles.

“Boob boy, hello!” Tommy greeted and the ender hybrid clicked his tongue

“Tommy I told you not to call me that” they said while wiping some purple off their shoulder.

“and I told you to call me Big man, yet here we are.” Tommy joked, patting the grass next to himself.

 Ranboo sat down and leaned back, touching the ground as the sun shone brightly, warming his skin. The blonde teen did the same. He enjoyed the feeling of cozying under the morning light, so much so that he liked to spend most of his days in the garden.

“where’s Tubbo?” he asked. The grass shuffled next to him.

“he said something about having to turn off something and he-“ a wide yawn interrupted his sentence ”-bolted”  his eyes fluttered quickly. Tommy’s head had been hurting a lot lately and the nightmares had made it harder to sleep, but the cozy grass and snug sun rays were challenging his will to stay awake.

“I’d say we take a nap” Tommy proposed and Ranboo agreed.

They still had to wait for Tubbo, after all.

Loud, it was too loud. A constant chatter, a never ending whisper. Too quiet, and the words are not clear, it’s just mumbling. What do you want?

Tommy’s eyes snapped wide open and the first thing they caught sight of was purple. Then black and white and then they registered the familiar figure of Ranboo, looming over him. This was already weird as it was, usually the ender hybrid would avoid any type of eye contact, but now he was staring straight at the boy with dilated purple pupils.

Wait a second…purple?

Ranboo’s eyes were supposed to be green and red.

Tommy sat up straight in one swoop, but Ranboo did not react at all. He stayed as still as a statue, eerily looking at the other teen. All around him particles swayed and fell as the slender figure imposed his height to the sitting kid below him. It blocked the sun, casting a shadow that engulfed the blonde.

“Ranboo?” Tommy asked with a whisper of his voice, hand tightening on the grass.

The other teen did not reply, but his mouth opened. Indistinguishable sounds echoed and screeched in the vast garden. Tommy flinched.

“C’mon man you’re scaring me”

But Ranboo did not stop, instead the sounds became more insistent.

At that point, Tommy decided to stand up, the purple gaze following him as he did. The boy placed both hands on his friend’s shoulders and shook slightly.

“Ran? What’s going on?” his voice sounded shakier. He looked around quickly. There was no sign of Tubbo.

He could’ve went to look for him, but he was afraid to leave Ranboo alone with whatever was happening. More sounds filled the air. Some sounded so loud that Tommy could’ve  sworn they were inside his head. He could feel the pressure of his brain against his skull, aching to escape. His grip tightened around the fabric, as his eyes filled with tears. In a desperate attempt, he shook with even more intensity, causing the both of them to lose their balance, falling in a sitting position onto the ground.

“Ranboo, seriously. Stop it.” He ordered with a firm voice, pained by the fall.

“Tommy?” the preoccupied tone reached Tommy’s ears, who replied with a huge sigh. He wrapped his arms around the boy.

“Toms are you okay?”

Tommy pulled away from the hybrid, hands still on his shoulder while he looked at him in question. Ranboo was averting his gaze, but Tommy could make out the familiar red and green colors

“I SHOULD BE ASKING YOU THAT!” he yelled exasperated, throwing an arm into the air.

“WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT” He commented, finally breaking contact with the boy and passing a hand through his own blonde curls. He had never seen his friend act that way, and it was scary.

Ranbo blinked rapidly “what?” he asked, with concern on his face. It seemed genuine.

Tommy’s mouth snapped shut in a thin line. He the proceeded to take a deep breath.

“You just like, mentally disappeared or something! You were all purplish and weird-“,

This time it was Ranboo that had placed his hands on his friend’s shoulder. They tilted their head with a sympathetic gaze

“Did you have a nightmare?” he asked. Tommy tried to rebuke only to get shut up again from Ranboo

“ we were napping, sometimes it happens.” He sighed, bringing his friend into a hug “ you’re okay now, you’re awake” He assured.

That sounded weird, Tommy did not usually remember his dreams nor nightmares for all that mattered, but the way that Ranboo sounded made him doubt himself.

 Yes, perhaps it might have been a nightmare, honestly it would explain the headache. Speaking of which, it had just gotten to the point where he was feeling incredibly dazed. There was a dull noise in the back of his head, much like what happens after there has been an explosion and your ears are all tingling and muffled.

Yes, muffled was the right word to describe it.

Tommy dropped his head with a sigh, and relaxed his shoulder. He smiled, only with his mouth.

“Perhaps you’re right…” he agreed.

He cleared his throat “ Honestly, I am not really feeling at my best, sorry. Would it be alright if I ditched you guys for today?” he asked, looking at the ground.

“ I’m sure Tubbo won’t mind” Ranboo replied, releasing his friend from his grip and reassurin g him with a warm smile.

Tommy excused himself and headed to his room. The walls of the corridors felt foreign as he made his way in the labyrinth that was the castle. His steps felt heavy, and his breaths got deeper. Suddenly he was too cold, then too hot.

All he wanted to do was lay in the bed but finding his room felt like an eternal quest and he was not quite sure he was up to it.

————————

The king was taking a stroll in the castle that day, uneasiness making his feathers shake as each step mindlessly took him in a new area. His mind was weighing heavy with thoughts.

The man’s eyes focused on a frail figure at the end of the corridor, not realizing that his walk took him right into the guest quarters. There, Tommy staggered, hand clutched at his head. Philza instincts rose up and he hurried towards the kid.

He was about to reach for him, but he stopped, hand coming back next to his hip. Tommy took notice of the motion and raised his head, eyes squinting

“your highness?” he whined and his gaze widened

Philza felt a stab in his heart when he heard the formal tone. He had spent so much effort into convincing Tommy of abandoning that habit and just refer to him by his name, but now it was all gone because of his stupid mistake. He should not let his work  ruin his emotions like that, but matters with the kingdom had been so tense lately and he still had no idea what he was supposed to do with Tommy…

The kid was looking at him with his clear blue eyes,  but they were once more not focused on him. It felt weird to think about it, but it kind of reminded the king of Technoblade’s gaze back when he was young.

That convinced him to speak

“Are you okay Tommy?” he chirped with worry, tilting his head

Tommy nodded tightly “just a headache” he said “I was trying to get to my room to sleep” the blonde kid pointed towards the door behind Philza, which was covered by his wings. His gaze lingered on them. They had puffed up with preoccupation, almost like they were making up for the fact that Phil was not touching the kid, to offer him comfort.

The king took a step to the left “oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to be in the way.”

“It’s okay” Tommy took a step towards the room, but faltered, almost losing his balance. He placed a hand on the wall to keep himself upright.

Philza’s heart tightened. His rational side was warning him not to push it, worried that Tommy could once more be scared of him, but his fatherly impulses took over, screaming at him to help. Soon, his arm reached for Tommy, not quite touching him, but close, in question. Tommy looked at him and then at the arm.

He leaned in, although rigidly.

Phil took that as a sign that not everything had been lost. They could fix it.  He helped the blonde kid to his room, assisting him to sit on the bed.

Once settled, Tommy thanked the king.

“Would you like for me to send the healer to you?”

He asked frowning. Tommy shook his head “There is no need to. I’ll be fine.” He confirmed.

Philza was about to turn around and leave the room, but something compelled him not to.

Now or never.

“I’m sorry for snapping at you” he said, fidgeting with his sleeve. He was rarely nervous, but he had not a good record with apologies. His mind went back at his fights with Techno, but he decided to focus on the moment.

Tommy’s eyes went round, mouth slightly parted. He stumbled to find words, but Phil interrupted him.

“Don’t try to excuse me. I have been on edge, that’s true and I would have never imagined such a reaction, regardless it was unfair to you. I want to apologize. You have every right to be mad at me and I don’t expect to be-“

“Phil…I get it. It’s okay”

Tommy smiled, it was soft, unlike his usual goofy ones. It was a smile of understanding and Phil almost felt tears prickling his eyes.

“I promise I’ll do better from now on”

Tommy nodded

“You’re talking like I’ll be staying here forever” the kid joked. Philza’s heart skipped a beat.

That’s right. The kid was just a guest here, a passing soul until his memories came back or his family did. The king had gotten used to his presence in the castle that he had forgotten the way it used to be.

“Who knows what the future holds” Phil commented smiling “ I don’t mind another troublemaker in the house” he concluded and Tommy smirked, crossing his arms

“and who says I enjoy your presence old man” and Phil laughed.

In the next few days Tommy began to eat his meals with Philza again. He still jolted in some cases, but he always went back to normal, joking with his casual tone. Phil was grateful for this, enjoying the lively teen. He had managed to get along with the staff quickly, gaining more and more freedom in the castle. People could hear his laughter echo in the empty corridors. It had been a while since the castle had so much joy in it.

An idea started placing itself in the king’s mind, but it was way too early for that.

They had all the time in the world.

Chapter Text

“So what do you think about joining Tubbo and Ranboo to their lessons?”

The king had proposed Tommy on one of their common meals. Tommy had pondered that idea for a couple of minutes. On one side, it sounded incredibly boring, on the other it would allow him to spend more time with his friends. Once he established that the pros outweighed the cons, he agreed.

Which brought him to this moment. Sitting at a desk, knee bouncing while the professor talked without end. On the blonde boy’s left, there was Ranboo. He was writing down stuff as the words were spoken, tongue out and pen gripped tight. They often interrupted to ask more questions.

Meanwhile, on his right, Tubbo yawned. His hands were busy making little shapes out of paper under the desk. Sometimes a question would get asked, and he would just attempt an answer, causing the educator to sigh deeply.

Speaking of whom, they were now writing something on the chalkboard. Tommy focused on her figure. He had  introduced himself as Eret and apparently they had been at the castle for a while since they had taught Techno and Wilbur too. He was sporting a brown button up with wide sleeves and a embroidered mantle on top of it. He had a pair of silver earring dangling from her ears, almost covered by the long curly hair. Two silver chains lost themselves behind the hair. They were connected to a frail pair of glasses that found its place on the teacher’s face.

Eret was easy to understand most of the time, but the subjects not so much.

Luckily, since he was relatively new, Eret had yet to ask him any type of question which Tommy had been grateful for since he had no idea what they were talking about most of the time, too busy trying to ignore the mumbling in his head.

Apparently his luck had to run out at some point.

“Tommy, would you like to answer this one for us please?”

The kid gulped, sneaking a glance to his right and catching Tubbo snuffing out a laugh.

“I’m sorry could you repeat the question?”

Eret nodded, pointing towards the chalkboard

“A sailboat is traveling north at 10 km/h, relative to the water. The water is flowing west at 5 km/h, parallel to the shore. What is the velocity of the sailboat relative to ground, and what is the angle of travel that the sailboat makes with respect to the shore?” he asked with measured tone. He handed out the chalk in her hand, waiting for tommy to take it

“11.18 km/h and 63.43 degrees” Tommy blurted without thinking about it.

Where did that come from.

Tommy’s gaze widened and so did his teacher’s. Ranboo coughed and Tubbo straight up gasped.

There was no way Tommy had got it right, he must’ve just blurted out the first thing that came to his mind.

Eret turned around and made some calculations. With an opened mouth, she turned back to his students

“That’s…correct”

No way.

“I’m just cool like that” Tommy covered his disbelief with a joke and a shrug of his shoulder. Tubbo looked at him offended

“He’s cheating!” he exclaimed, getting up and pointing a finger at the blonde kid.

“No I'm not. You're just jealous!” Tommy rebuked, slamming his hands on the desk. Then, he stuck his tongue out mockingly. Tubbo frowned and opened his mouth to defend himself.

Eret spoke once more, interrupting the chaos that was about to ensue

“Tommy, if you’re driving a cart that accelerates from 10 m/s to 20 m/s over a time interval of 10.0 s. If you and the cart together have a mass of 500 kg, how much power is used?”

The kid looked at the professor for a moment. He felt this situation somewhat familiar and the solution presented once more to the boy

“7.5000 Watts” he replied in a heartbeat, voice monotone. He blinked quickly in disbelief.

“no fucking way!” Tubbo erupted. Ranboo could be heard laughing in the background.

Eret took a few steps towards the kid, eyebrows raised.

“Have you ever been taught before?” they asked.

Tommy frowned. He tried to think about it, but his mind stayed empty. His body, however, reacted with a shiver. He could feel the back of his knees slightly itching all of a sudden, and he slowly sat back onto his chair. 

All the evidence pointed towards the fact the he, apparently, had received an education.

“Apparently so?”

It was time to test the extent of the kid's knowledge.

The next hour was spent quizzing Tommy on all the different subjects. From mathematics to biology, to horology and pharmacy until they landed on history. Up until then, Tommy had gotten all the questions right, expressing a wide knowledge especially when related to practical question. He was surprised and he was riding the high of his mighty mind so when the next question came he replied without a single beat

“What has been the event that has signed the beginning of King Philza’s reign?”

“The traitor and his corrupt council overthrew the rightful king, executing him publicly and claiming the kingdom for themselves, causing avoidable bloodshed all throughout the country. The fake king brought back with him two monsters, ready to mutilate whoever tried to challenge their authority.”

He stated confidently. A mantra that placed itself in his head, like it was always there. All the eyes in the area landed  on him.

The classroom fell silent.

The boy made himself smaller in his seat, while they judged his response. He replayed back what he had previously said. It felt right, Tommy was sure he had not made a mistake. However his friend's gazes were rather concerned.

“That’s not right…” Eret broke the silence, clearing his throat. He opened a book and placed it on the desk, then he pointed to a line

“The great king reunited the heirs of the old council, planning a way to reclaim the kingdom. With his two new sons next to him, they snuck into the palace, defeating the tyrant and re-establishing peace in the kingdom. Thanks to their combined efforts, the people were once again able to afford the costs of living, aided by the lifting of the heavy taxes the previous ruler had imposed on them. That’s how the rule of king Philza came once more to be.” She read slowly, enunciating each word with solemn grace. Once she had finished, she raised her gaze towards Tommy.

“That does not sound right” The kid spoke “the false king was merciless and bloodthirsty.” a familiar pressure made itself known behind the kid's eyes.

“Do you think king Philza is merciless?” Ranboo inquired with a weak voice.

Tommy appeared lost for a moment. He thought back to the kind eyes of the man, and the warmth he brought with himself when he entered a room. He pictured his soft smile and his gentle touches. If he had to describe him, the king appeared far from bloodthirsty.

Logically, he knew that Ranboo was right, but he felt defensive of what he knew so deeply.

“I don’t know, I barely know the guy!” He spat, but regretted it immediately, clutching his arms closer to himself.

Tubbo looked at him, vertical pupils meeting his blue eyes. “Tommy, where did you learn this?” he asked, like the kid had any idea himself.

“I don’t know” he said on a huff, why were they asking so many questions. He pressed his fingers on his eyes, trying to relieve his headache. Despite his struggling, the questions only kept coming.

“Tommy, do you remember who taught you this?” This time it was Eret speaking

“I don’t know.” He spoke, his tone was slightly firmer this time. Tommy’s ears ringed and he wished he was anywhere else but there. 

“Tommy, are you getting your memories back?” Ranboo inquired, his voice felt louder than usual, echoed by the kid’s head. It was suddenly too much for him, and Tommy's jaw clenched.

Suddenly, in a bolt of irritation, he jumped up from his chair, startling the others.

“I DON’T KNOW. SHUT UP!” he shouted, hand cupping his ears. Once more, silence fell in the room. He pressed his palms further onto his head, wishing that they could just reach his brain and turn it off.

This time, Eret decided to take a step back. Tommy felt the air move next to him and exhaled.

“Well, I think class dismissed for today. We’ll review some more history tomorrow. Go take a breath outside” they ordered with a soft breath.

For a moment, tommy stood still. He slowly brought his arms back down, keeping his eyes on the ground.

Without second thought, Tommy stomped towards the door, not waiting for his friends as he was used to do. He needed somewhere quiet, somewhere he knew no one would look for him. Somewhere he could find more answers.

Chapter Text

Technoblade had a tiring day. To be honest, when you are a prince, every day is a tiring day. However, this one had been particularly exhausting, even tough the sun had not yet set in the horizon.

The voices were particularly chatty, they rose in mismatched comments with every particular action the prince had taken. Some were snarky remarks, but most of them blurred in a constant mumble which Techno had no intention of deciphering.

The voices had been with him for a long time, so he knew what to do in cases like this. As usual, he opened the small wooden door to his favorite place. Surprisingly, Karl’s usual smile was not there to greet him in that moment, instead he spotted a bush of blonde hair reclined over what looked like a book. He approached the figure slowly.

“So you like reading now?”

Apparently the kid had not yet heard the prince enter the room, judging by the way he jolted in his chair when Techno had spoken

“You scared me!” the boy commented. He was glaring at him, but his face seemed strained with uneasiness. Technoblade chuckled in reply

“Hard to avoid when you’re so consumed in your book” he took a seat next to the teen “what are you reading?” he asked as he leaned over to take a peek

Tommy looked back at the book, eyebrows lowered. Now, Techno had never been the best at emotions, but it was obvious that the kid was not feeling very chipper.

“An history book” Tommy sighed, rotating his hand so that the cover was visible enough. *the start of an era*, it read. Not one of Techno’s favorites, and apparently not one of Tommy’s either

“must be the worst one that exist here, you look like you’re being tortured” Tommy chuckled tightly, his shoulders closed in on himself.

The voices rumbled.

“it’s rare to see you here, should we party?” Techno attempted a joke again, but it only caused the boy to tense up further.

“it was too loud outside.” Tommy said. The way he said it felt…familiar. Techno’s stomach stirred slightly.

Enough with the jokes then. It seemed a pretty grave matter.

“seriously, are you okay Toms?” the older teen places a hand on the kid’s shoulder. In return, Tommy looked at him, blue irises glittering. Technoblade could spot the beginning of a tear in the corners of his eyes. However, the kids mouth was pressed in a line. Techno glanced at his hands, which were holding tightly onto the fabric of his jeans.

He seemed small, all curled up in his seat and it vaguely reminded Techno of Wilbur, the way he used to cry after a tiring day back in their birthplace.

“I could help you if you tell me what’s wrong.” Techno offered again, low grumble accidentally coming out. That seemed to ease the kid a bit.

“I…” the kid started, interrupted by an hiccup. Techno could see how Tommy was stumbling with his words, trying to form a coherent phrase

“-something happened…” he continued “ I think- my memory might be coming back?”

One look at the teen face and Techno could tell the memories that were coming back were not as promising as they all had expected. He prompted the kid to share more, patting his head briefly.

Tommy told Techno about the history lessons. He spoke slowly, stopping every now and then to take a deep breath. He explained how that false history had eased itself into his words, like it had always been there and although it was, apparently, wrong, it fit right in his mind. He explained how disorienting it had felt to think about the people that had hosted him like they were monsters, who committed such unreasonable acts for nothing but greed. He had decided to learn and perhaps make himself change his mind, so he had started reading. Each and every chapter twisted in his mind to an older, darker, version of the story. One that had been so engrained in his education, he had accepted it without reason.

But now, he had a reason to dispute it. He could not bear the nauseating sensation that had accompanied his memories, so he had decided to fight it. He was a brave one, after all.

Techno listened carefully to his explanation, nodding every now and then, but never interrupting the teen. Once he sensed Tommy had finished, he spoke, simple and stating the obvious point.

“So that explains the stabbing. It looks like someone made you hate us on purpose.”

The heaviness of these words hit once they were pronounced. Both the boys realized that the way they had met was far from amicable and, despite the months spent together, they were still, technically, strangers. Noticing the shift in the air, Techno attempted to change the subject, but Tommy spoke first

“Actually, there’s something else” he started. It was like a dam had been opened, and, although he would not admit it, Techno was grateful the kid wanted to open up to him.

“Lately, I’ve been having these…headaches.” He raised a hand, finger open on his forehead “they start slow but they keep growing and growing until it becomes physically painful to even think!” he blurted out, opening and closing his hand, mimicking an explosion.

Techno cringed. He knew that type of headache pretty well and the thought that the kid experienced them too weighted in his heart.

“have you tried seeing the physician?” Techno proposed, but Tommy shook his head

“I don’t think it’s related to something physical. I fear it might be more mental or stuff like that”

Could it be?

“how can you be so sure?” Techno asked, his voice shook slightly.

“the headaches are not alone. There’s always something else with them” he started. Techno stared at him, he could almost recognize the worn look in the teen’s eyes. It was far too similar to his own.

Perhaps it was?

“is it related to the loudness you mentioned before?” Technoblade guessed. He hoped with his whole heart Tommy would disagree, say something different, but to his displeasure the boy nodded.

He turned towards the piglin hybrid, raising both hands and shaking them with his head in between

“it’s like a mumble, whispers I can’t quite make out.” He said. Techno gulped.“ Sometimes they are silent. Others the chaos is just too much for me to handle.”

Technoblade abandoned his usual serious face in favor of a shocked one. Could this kid be like him?

The voices chanted one of us!

“do…do they speak to you?” Techno stumbled in his words and whispered, his eyes fixated on the figure next to him.

“No, I don’t think so.” Techno’s shoulders dropped briefly, only to tense again “ It’s like they’re muffled, as If I was under the water. I can’t hear them quite right” he specified. Technoblade sighed, dropping his head

“I know you might think I’m crazy but-“

“I don’t.” Techno interrupted

“You’re lying” Tommy let out a wheeze

“I’m not.” The prince rebuked

“Yes you are” The kid replied back, eyes darting in the room

“Tommy. Look me in the eyes and tell me if I’m lying.” Technoblade ordered with his firmest voice. He wanted Tommy to understand, to let him know he was not alone.

Tommy slowly moved his gaze towards the prince. Blue meeting red. Techno recognized the moment Tommy realized

“do you…have them too?” Tommy asked, his voice was so low that Techno could have missed it if it weren’t for his inhumane hearing. He nodded, slow, never averting his gaze from the kid.

“I’ve had the voices for a long time. But mine talk to me sometimes.”

Technoblade was a very private person, especially when it came to the voices. Out of everyone in the castle, only his family knew of them. Philza, because he had been there when the hybrid heard them for the very first time, and Wilbur, due to the many nights in which they both stayed awake trying to ease them down.

The older teen had never imagined he would tell anyone else, especially a random kid that he had stabbed, but revealing it to Tommy felt…right.

The voices grew louder upon the recognition

The kid’s eyes shined with hope, as his hands fell on his knees, bouncing restlessly.

“so you know how to help me then?” Techno’s lips tightened “It’s not that easy kid, you can’t exactly make them go away” he said with a sigh. Tommy’s head lowered with an inaudible defeated noise.

“But” Technoblade continued “ I know how to calm them down, so perhaps we could try to do that together, so you can at least function normally” he smiled softly. Tommy raised back his head and smiled in thanks.

“And how should we do that.” Tommy asked, his voice gaining back some of its loudness

The older boy moved an hand to touch his braid, pondering on what to do. When it came to himself, time had made him learn a few tricks.

Would it be the same with Tommy?

Techno was unsure, but he was certain of one thing. He would not be able to do this alone.

“First, we have to tell Philza. Perhaps even Wilbur”

At that, Tommy physically recoiled

“But why-“

“they know about me, and they were there for me when I needed it. They could do that for you too. Plus, I could use a hand and I do not wish to keep secrets from my family” Techno explained methodically. Tommy face still grimaced at the idea, but he recognized that it would be safer this way. Also he too did not want to keep harmful secrets from the people that had been so kind to him.

He groaned “huh, alright. But only if you’re there with me.” His cheeks blushed slightly at that. Techno grumbled, raised a hand and ruffled the boy’s hair “of course”

Tommy chuckled, he ducked away from the touch “stop treating me like a kid” he rebuked, but Techno could read the joyous tone behind that statement

“only when you stop acting like one” surprising even himself, he stuck his tongue out mocking the younger teen.

They both laughed at the absurdity of the situation. A moment ago, they felt hopeless, now they had found companionship in their misfortunes.

“Should we tell them over breakfast tomorrow?”

“I think dinner tonight would be better, Wilbur is not really a morning person” Techno commented.

They decided to spend the rest of afternoon sitting in silence, enjoying each other’s company for a little while longer.

Chapter Text

The dreadful dinner had come. Tommy would have been a liar if he said he  was not shaking in his boots.

Of course, he knew he had Technoblade’s support and most likely the king’s too, but he still felt nervous. The mumble in his head, the voices as Techno had called them, were a relatively new thing for him and he still needed time to get used to them.

Luckily, after the talk in the library, the boy’s mind had seemed to quiet down to just a low buzz in the back of his head. It was pretty bearable, despite the annoyance.

His sat at his usual spot, meals together were now a normal occurrence and Philza held them to a very high regards. Even when the King was packed with work, he had always made time to dine with his sons and, in the last couple of months, with Tommy. He believed that the only way to enjoy food properly, was eating in company. Honestly, if it were not for the current tension, the boy would have agreed.

For some reason, he always felt miserable when he had, occasionally, eaten alone.

The princes greeted eachother and said hello to Tommy. All three of them raised when Philza entered the room and sat at the head of the table.

Soon, maids brought in luxurious plates filled with food. Once, Tommy would’ve never imagined so much food in a single place, but now he was getting used to it. He knew that nothing on the table would end up wasted, the king would make sure of that.

Despite the marvelous taste, he chewed his meal slowly, his other hand fidgeting under the table. Philza was quietly conversing with Wilbur, then he finally raised his gaze

“And how are you two doing?” he said looking between Techno and Tommy. Before Tommy could muster up the courage, Techno spoke for him

“Actually father, Tommy has something to say to us today.” Tommy glared at him.

Traitor.

Technoblade dismissed his gaze with a scoff. The kid felt the piercing blue gaze of the king on him, accompanied by the brown eyes of the other prince.

He gulped and placed the fork he was holding back onto the table with a clank.

He inhaled deeply. He could do this, Techno had his back

“I’ve been getting back some memories-“ he started

Philza’s eyes lit up, and his wings puffed slightly

“Oh that’s amazing!” he chirped. However, he soon took notice of the grim expression on the boy and deflated

“Is it not?” he asked tilting his head and Tommy shook his own

“it’s not… good.” He explained once more of the history class event, avoiding going In as much details as he had done with Techno, but still providing enough context. At each statement, Philza’s smile faltered, brows frowning in a preoccupied expression. He took in every bit of information he could with the utmost elegance, in comparison to the scoffers Wilbur would sometimes let out, accompanied by some “we never did that!” and “that’s not true”.

Once the story had been narrated, Tommy dropped the huge news

“and now I have voices” he said it so simply, like it was a normal occurrence to have outsiders in your head mumbling constantly. Both Philza’s and Wilbur’s mouth fell open.

“What do you mean by voices” the king tried to ask for more information, slowly recomposing himself

This time Techno stepped in and Tommy thanked him mentally.

“He’s the same as me. Sort of. His voices mumble more than actual chatter, but still.” He clarified firmly.

A huge exhale could be heard resonate in the room, and with it the King fell back to his chair, wings tucking themselves back into position. He brought his hand to his head, clutching his temples.

“I didn’t believe it was possible for other to have them”  he commented to which Techno replied “ Neither did I, yet here we are”

“this changes everything” Wilbur suddenly spoke “ we could finally try to understand where they came from and how to get rid of them!”  he emphasized his point with his hands. His brother frowned, Wilbur should have know more than anyone how his twin felt about his voices.

“This changes nothing.” Technoblade inferred, glaring at Wilbur “ I thought we had made it clear before. The voices are a part of me, have been for a long time now” Then he turned to Tommy

“And they’re a part of you too.” He concluded, corners of the mouth slightly raised.

“Now, it’s only a matter of growing with them, rather than taking them away” Philza raised himself from his seat. “although, they could give his clues from where Tommy came from” he proposed.

Techno could see Tommy nod tightly at that, almost reluctantly.

“For now we should focus on calming the headaches” the hybrid spoke once more, and his father agreed.

They looked at eachother, silent. A whole conversation carried on by their gazes. Years of fighting together had made them all work on the same page, and Techno was glad his father still got it. He raised his right brow and crossed his arms. The older man finally gave in and smiled softly

“Alright, I guess we could try to do it the Technoblade way”  before Tommy could speak, Wilbur interrupted “you want to spar with him? Are you insane? You’re going to get stabbed” his tone was a mix of surprise and malice.

“if I remember correctly, he was the one stabbed last time” Techno pointed out. Offended, Tommy made a disapproving noise, and scoffed

“I was not in myself last time. I could beat you with my eyes closed big man” he stated, voice proud. Then, his head lowered suddenly, a previously forgotten consideration popping up in his mind. He spoke with a feeble voice

“Are we sure it’s a good idea? What if I go rogue again and I end up hurting someone?” Technoblade softened at the worry of the boy, he was unsure of what to say to ease his mind. To be fair, it could very well be a possibility, but Technoblade was sure it would not happen again, not now that Tommy had spent so much time with the family.

Thankfully, Philza spoke with his most reassuring tone, the same he used to use whenever Technoblade was having a hard time.

“I will not lie to you, it is a possibility” he said, straight to the point as always. Tommy tensed, lips tight “ but” he continued “ it will take more than a small kid to take all three of us down, we’re strong” he flexed his muscles to prove a point. Techno stepped in “ and you’re not the same as before, you’re trying to learn more about us, instead of sticking with the History you know. That is all the assurance we need to know that you won’t hurt us.”

Tommy looked lost in thought for a second, then his eyes focused back in, slight purple hue and a determinate fire behind them.

“let’s do it.” He sounded more confident than he had ever been since he stepped foot in the palace.

Technoblade couldn’t help but smirk at the boy’s conviction, already planning their training session.

“How about we start tomorrow?” he proposed, eager to start.

“I will have a knight prepare some equipment. The sooner, the better” the king stated, moving from his seat.

“at dawn then.” Techno said, and Tommy coughed out some air “Dawn?!” he lamented “ can’t we do like, mid day?” To which Techno shut him up with a glare “Don’t be a kid. I will drag you away from bed if I have to” and the teen groaned

“Fine. But I want breakfast first.” And Phil agreed “That can be arranged.”

“I am still against this idea” Wilbur stepped in. All three of them turned towards him and Tommy spoke

“too bad I don’t care about your opinion” he mocked, and Wilbur almost launched himself at him, restrained only by his father gaze “ damn gremlin” he cursed under his breath. Techno snorted and the king groaned, both aware of Wilbur’s words thanks to their superhuman earing.

“I will bite you, and that’s a threat” Tommy bit back.

Philza halted the discussion with a gesture and a light chuckle “ no one is biting anyone” he said. “Now, it has gotten quite late, you should all head to bed, you have a tough day in front of you” and his boys all agreed and headed to their own rooms.

A child yearns for the sky he can’t quite reach. The echoes of past screams rumble in his skin as his back burns against the cold floor. His eyes a mirror of his wishes.

Tommy’s eyelids opened slowly, heavy with the headache of a night not well slept. With a dragged pace, he turned his head towards the window, pitch black still engulfing the outside.

He passed a hand on his forehead, damped by his sweat. He knew he would not be able to sleep again, not with the way the chatter in his head awoke with him. He splayed himself on the bed, arms and legs wide in a star position. His gaze was fixated on the ceiling, too dark to actually make out, but soon his eyes acclimated to the lack of light, used to the action.

He exhaled, propping himself up to sit, clutching the soft blanked between his fingers. He felt drawn somewhere, but was too tired to comply.

“Can’t you shut up for a minute” Tommy said to no one in particular. Just as he was about to get up to wash his face and hope to catch some more hours, soft notes made their way in his room.

Wilbur was playing again.

If you asked Tommy what prompted him to stand in front of Wilbur’s room once more, he would not know how to reply. Yet here he was, dim candle light bouncing off his curls as he peeked in the slit made by the not quite closed door.

He had tried his best to be quiet, but apparently the hybrid’s hearing bested him again.

“ Don’t be a creep and come in” Wilbur said, surprising the kid with a soft whisper. He had not stopped playing when Tommy took a few tentative steps in the room. As if he had done it a thousand times, Tommy sat at the end of the bed, at a safe distance from Wilbur.

He watched as the man expertly ran his fingers on the chords of his instrument, a guitar, Tubbo had called it. This time, the tune was not familiar, but Tommy embraced it with as much stupor, lulling his head at the soft rhythm. He laid back putting the weight on his palms.

The song was telling a story, Tommy realized. And could not help but associate it with the painting in his room.

He could picture empty spaces filled with red and harsh conditions, fire crackling here and there. Despite the temperature, it felt cold. Then the music shifted, picking up its rhythm. It jumped from note to note, hesitating in some point as the old themes appeared again here and there. Then it held, stilled suddenly. A new melody melted in the old one, erasing the cold. Somehow, Philza’s smile came to the boy’s mind as the music found its end.

The silence was comfortable and Tommy did not dare to breathe, afraid to break the spell. Surprisingly, Wilbur spoke, voice feeble

“So what do you think?” he said, head turned down as he fiddled with the pegs at the extremity of the guitar.

Tommy was not sure he would have been able to capture what he had felt with words. A clear idea was in his mind and he noticed how the voices had quieted down, loosened by the sounds.

“was that when you met Philza?”

Wilbur scoffed, it was not a mean sound, rather a suffocated laugh.

“I knew you were smart” he joked softly. Tommy felt brave, comfortable in the atmosphere they had created.

“What was that like?” he asked, genuine curiosity bubbling in his stomach.

Wilbur looked up, gaze further away than it appeared. It took a solid minute of silence. Tommy believed Will did not intend to answer, but to his surprise, a story began.

“it was scary, at first” he said with the same fondness his father used to use. Tommy tried to slow down his breathing and he let himself fall slowly onto the bed, not to look at Wilbur.

“We were alone at first. Techno and I” he shifted, and Tommy felt the mattress weight down, he knew the other boy had set down the guitar and made himself more comfortable. “ I was weaker compared to him, always have been. Out of the two, he had been the one to inherit the most piglin traits. He left, for days at a time to take care of me. Most of the times he came back with something to eat” his tone changed to a slight chuckle “ he insisted I was the one to eat it ‘you need to get strong’ he used to say, lying that he had already eaten. I could see the exhaustion in his face, but I did what he asked anyway”

Tommy felt his guts twist, akin to the feeling of hunger.

“At some point, his trips took longer and longer.  He brought back more to eat, but he always sported some kind of injury. He kept telling me it was nothing, that I had nothing to worry about. I still do not know what he did back then.”  He took a trembling breath

“Then, one day, he did not come back at all.  I waited for weeks for him to show up. I hated the thought that something might have happened to him. It felt like a part of me had died and I was too weak to do anything about it”  a hiccup interrupted his story, but he quickly regained somewhat of a composure

“Just as I was about to give up, Phil showed up. He was so bizarre with his wide hat and warm smile. His wings behind him felt powerful and reassuring. He looked at me and said ‘ You’re Wilbur ‘ like he had known me all my life.”

Tommy could feel the affection he held for the man by the way he spoke of him, like his name conveyed all the emotions he brought to him.

“Techno was with him, he was clutching at his vest and nodding towards me and I knew.” He continued

“And so here we were, princes of a kingdom in ruins with more than we deserved” Tommy could see he had raised a hand, reaching towards the ceiling. He did not want the story to be over, but he knew it was not yet the time for more, so he spoke in an attempt to drag the conversation further.

“I’m glad you all found eachother” he had not expected Wilbur, who was usually so against him, would open up to him in that way.

“I’m glad you found us too”

Tommy did not open his mouth further.

Chapter Text

Tommy had dragged himself to his own room just before dawn. After the heart to heart with Wilbur, both did not speak, enjoying eachother silent company.

He barely had time to close his eyes that a knock awoke him. Some rays were beginning to show themselves to a new day and Tommy wished he had the power to stop time, just to get even five more minutes of sleep. He turned around, wrapping himself tighter in his blanket.

The door opened with a loud clank and he groaned, fully covering his head with the fabric

“Oh no you don’t” Suddenly, his cover was yanked away from him, much to his displeasure. He felt the cold air of the morning hit and the serious gaze of his friend.

“ C’mon Technooo, five more minutes” he dared, clutching his pillow and throwing it towards the older boy, who promptly caught it. The pillow slammed against Tommy’s head before he fully awoke.

“Did you just smash me with the pillow?” he asked offended, sitting up with a quick motion. He yawned and tried to glare at Techno, although his eyes were still crusty from sleep.

“ I have no idea what you are talking about” he rebuked, tone as serious as usual. Tommy was about to speak back, but the hybrid continued “now get up and ready, we have a long morning ahead of us. If you aren’t ready in ten minutes, I swear I will drag you to the training grounds in your night clothes”

Having said that, he left the room and Tommy groaned.

Tommy took around half an hour to get ready, and another ten minutes to eat a quick breakfast before Techno had dragged him into a wide garden with a square at the center of it. With each step Tommy took, dust from the sandy ground moved. He looked at the stands filled with weapons at the edges of the platform, and gulped. He hoped they would not use those.

He followed Techno all the way to a crate, which he opened. He turned around and handed tommy a wooden sword and took one for himself. It was light in the boy’s grasp, as he adjusted his grip to better  suit his needs.

“We will start with a warmup, revising the basic movements. Then we will move to a light spar, first hand to hand to get our muscles going.” Techno explained, taking his place at the center of the grounds.

Tommy’s mind quieted down as he admired carefully.

The prince stepped forward with his left leg, then placed his right next to it, at shoulder’s distance. He turned the right foot slightly, so that they were not in the same direction. He straightened himself, assuming an elegant pose and slightly bent his knees.

With each lunge, Tommy could feel the years the prince had put behind his swordsmanship. Although the moves were simple, they were perfectly polishes as if they had been practiced for decades on end.

Tommy stared as Technoblade’s pink braid, bounced with the movements, small strands escaping the intricate design and falling over his face, framing his focused gaze. Said gaze, went on him. Techno turned towards Tommy,eyes questioning

“are you going to stare at me all day or are you planning to join me?” Technoblade asked in all seriousness, without stopping his thrusts. Tommy shook himself.

Right, he was supposed to train.

And so, he stepped into position next to Techno. Feet falling into a familiar pattern he seemed used to. As he imitated the older boy’s movements with surprising ease, he could tell that this was something he knew. Perhaps the fighting style was not entirely his yet, as he felt rough on some edges, but it was still obvious he knew more than the bases.

Soon, Tommy steadied into a rhythm of lounges, pars and thrusts. He was no longer following the pink haired hybrid, who had now stopped to study the boy, curious about the type of swordsmanship.

Tommy had rotated on himself with the last action, coming to face Techno. He saw his scrutinizing gaze and for a moment his head blanked. He let the sword hit the floor.

Techno closed on him, unsure as to why the sword was dropped.

“are you okay?” he asked, and Tommy nodded

“all great big man” he said while kneeling to pick up the sword. Before he could make a grab for it, Techo placed his foot on the wood, holding the sword there.

“I don’t think you need more practice with the stances. Leave it, let’s do some hand to hand.” He concluded, pushing the sword away with his foot and throwing his in the same direction.

Tommy raised himself and stared at him. Techno looked incredibly focused as he took a few step back, preparing for an attack.

Tommy did the same, albeit with less intensity

“are you sure you want to do this?”

He asked, but Techno grunted “I’m not a baby Tommy. Hit me with all you got.”

So Tommy caught the occasion and lounged forward, preparing a punch to hit the other boy’s stomach. Techno easily parried it with his right hand and returned it with his left one. Tommy stepped back just in time. He repeated the same movement, careful as to where he aimed.

However Techno simply avoided this blow, stepping to the side and stopping. He firmly gripped Tommy’s hand mid punch and growled. The boy flinched at Techno sharp voice

“what are you doing?” he asked

“Hitting you?” Tommy replied confused, still in that uncomfortable position

“No I mean, why are you holding back” Techno spat offended. Tommy frowned

“I’m not.” He rebuked. Techo released his grip on Tommy’s arm, slightly throwing it in the movement.

“I saw you fight. This is not it.” He huffed, forehead creased.

“either you come at me with all you got or you go back to your room. I do not accept half assed trainings” he stated, getting back into position.

Tommy did the same. He sighed, looking at the ground. His brows drew together as he raised his gaze slowly, settling on the man in front of him. He dragged his foot back, steadying his breaths.

He inhaled. He  exhaled. The buzzing in his head temporarily stopped and he focused all his attention on his body.

Before Techno could react, Tommy was on him. He tried to stop the hit, but the kid was faster. Warmth spread on his left side as his body reacted to the punch and he lost his balance. His opponent did not let that opportunity slide and he quickly slid his leg under him, making Techno fall onto the ground with a thump.

Luckily, Techno had landed on his hand and managed to use the momentum to pull himself up and throw another punch. This time, Tommy’s surprise at the quick reaction made him an easy target. His fist collided with the right side of the boy’s face.

Techno took a step back, pulling both his hands up in a guard, waiting for a counter attack. The prince felt the air shift and in seconds Tommy was behind him. Techno ducked and rolled back.

Tommy pounced at him, like a ferocious animal. Techno caught a glimpse of the boy’s eyes, almost absent but not quite. He could still see Tommy in them, he was just…blurred.

Techno pushed the boy off of him, who quickly got up to his feet, bringing up his guard. They slowly circled one another, waiting for either to make their next move.

They closed in on eachother at the same time. Tommy throw quick punches and Techno avoided most of them and vice versa.

Suddenly, Tommy grabbed his arm and his shoulder, planted his feet and used all his strength to throw Techno back onto the ground. Techno tried to flee the grasp, but failed to do so, hitting the sandy ground.

He coughed at the impact, dust raising in the air. Techno’s eyes widened when Tommy was not in front of him. Before he could turn around, an arm had wrapped around his windpipe, choking him. He tried to claw at the arm, but the kid was apparently stronger than him.

His breath quickened as the voices in his head started chanting for danger. His vision almost went red, when a familiar voice whispered in his ear

“I won.” Tommy said in his usual excited tone, a bit cockier than he was used to. He released Techno who promptly fell forwards, holding himself on one hand as he coughed.

Techno noticed a shadow covering him and he raised his head, feeling a bruise on his neck already forming. Tommy had circled him, coming to the front, and he was holding out a hand.

Techno could see that the few hits he had managed to land where already leaving their impact on the kid who, regardless of everything, smiled goofily.

Techno took his hand, smirked and pulled himself up. He dusted off his pants.

“that was good” he said huffing proudly.

Both of them were still trying to catch their breath, panting slightly.

“Want to go for another one?” Techno asked and Tommy nodded.

They kept sparring until the sun started setting in the horizon. A chill breeze passed through the garden, making both of them shiver.

In the end they had had a total of 25 fights. Of which, to Techno’s surprise, Tommy had won most of. The rest ended in a tie, with only two of them being Techno’s victories.  Rather than being bitter for having experienced more losses than he had ever had in his life, Techno was already thinking about how much the teen would brag around the castle, showing everyone his “unpaired strength and incredible skills”

Techno held back a chuckle at the thought. He turned to Tommy.

They were now sitting on the grass, drying off the sweat with some towels and Techno remember the purpose of the training.

“so did it work?”

Tommy immediately caught on, thinking for a second. The older teen could see that his expression was more relaxed than usual and already had his answer, yet Tommy spoke nonetheless.

“I think so, my head was much clearer” and Techno nodded, content with the confirmation.

They stayed in silence, sitting there until the stars started to show themselves. If they did not head back in the castle soon enough, his father would definitely declare them missing since they had already skipped lunch, being too caught with their matches.

“we should go. We stink” Techno said, standing up. As if to confirm the statement, Tommy sniffed himself quickly, scrunching his nose and getting on his feet

“yup. See you at dinner?” he asked and Techno agreed.

As he went back to his room, the man pondered over their training session. He replayed each fight in his mind. Each movement was carefully analyzed for future sparring. Despite the unfamiliarity with Tommy’s fighting style, Techno believed he had held himself up pretty well.

He took the usual route to his room, asked a maid to draw a bath and waited. In his mind scenes from the first fight played. It was rare for him to feel so…defenseless against an enemy. Of course, a chokehold was not proper fighting technique, he had adamantly scolded Tommy for it after, but the way the boy had him in his grasp, the strength he displayed, surprised him.

How could a human be more powerful than a hybrid?

Doubts about Tommy’s humanity were interrupted by the bath being ready. Techno slowly submerged himself in the boiling water. His shoulders relaxed in the well known heat, all the tension in his muscles temporarily releasing.

Before he fell asleep, Tommy’s empty gaze from their first encounter flashed in his mind.

The voices stirred in his head, uneasily.

Chapter Text

A couple more weeks passed and Tommy was becoming more and more an established part of the castle.

He had taken habit to train with Techno every other day, and surprisingly  Wilbur had allowed him to participate in his late night singing sessions as well, which had made him warm up to the boy’s presence. At that point, most of the court, royal family included, was sure that Tommy would not be a temporary thing anymore. Not that they told him, of course, but Tommy could see it in their demeanor.

Tubbo spoke of the future, of growing up together. Wilbur and Techno talked about going to visit the sea on the next year, since Tommy had never seen it in person. Even the king was slowly giving him some official, non-urgent, matters to handle from time to time. Like delivering messages or studying documents.

Everything seemed to have been going well, if it were not for the constant chatter in the boy’s head.

Of course, the training and musical nights helped, but it appeared the voices grew stronger by the day, to the point in which Tommy was barely sleeping anymore. Not that he let that transpire from his actions. In all honesty, he believed he was a good actor if he needed to.

He had decided that the people in the castle had already done too much for him and that he could handle this one thing on his own.

He was a tough man, not a baby.

And so most nights were spent reading, or exercising. Anything to quiet his mind.

He was still taking lessons, although it was more for the company rather than to actually learn something. He hung out with Ranboo from time to time, but tried to keep all their encounters in a specific time frame or his headache would kill him. Ranboo did not seem to mind, generally understanding and agreeing to his friend’s suggestions. They had never spoken again in regards to what had happened that one time they fell asleep.

Tommy had convinced himself it had been a crazy dream and decided to never bring it up again due to embarrassment.

Regardless of how much he was being accepted in the castle, Tommy was still not allowed to leave it, even though he had no desire to. Of course, he would enjoy a visit of the nearby capital, but he surely had everything he needed right where he was.

And that was more than what he deserved, especially after the fights.

The first one had showed up gradually, growing from within.

Tommy was sitting in the Camelia garden, surrounded by flowers. The scent was prickling his nose politely, as the warm rays of sun hit his face. He often wondered why the empire was called Antarctic if it was sunny most of the time, but judging by the reigning family’s taste with names, he could pretty much guess.

He attempted to listen to the soft wind moving through the leaves, trying to focus on everything besides his mind.

He felt the grass shift next to him and he turned just in time to see a sleepy Wilbur plop down next to him. He had a wooden stick in his hand, with various holes on it and Tommy stared curiously.

Was It another musical instrument?

As if he had read Tommy’s mind, the older teen spoke

“It’s a flute” he said placing the tool in front of the kid. He brought it back to himself  “you blow in it and it makes sounds” he concluded, bringing the instrument to his lips.

In all honesty, Tommy was not in the right mood to hear music, his head was already loud as it was and while Wilbur’s guitar had a soft lullaby, the so called flute scratched his ears in an uncomfortable manner.

He grimaced at the sound. Perhaps another day he would have found it entertaining, but now it was just painful. All of a sudden, he could feel the way his clothes hugged his body and the grass prickled his hands.

The sun, previously warm and inviting, now scorched violent against the boy’s skin. He tried to politely quiet Wilbur

“not for me big man, I prefer the guitar” he said stiffly. Wilbur chuckled, and removed his lips from the instrument

“don’t be a bummer” he joked, moving back to play again. Each note brought goosebumps to the boy’s skin.

Tommy shifted in his place and tried again. The scent of the flowers was punching his nostrils now.

“nah seriously, that thing sucks” he commented. Wilbur playfully glanced at him and kept playing, unable to read his body movements.

Seriously, Wilbur had to stop it or Tommy would scratch away his skin. In a desperate, and impulsive attempt, Tommy yanked the flute from his friend’s hands and threw it as far as he could.

Wilbur turned towards him, both irritated and offended. His nostrils flared slightly as he raised his voice

“Why did you do that!” he said and Tommy could not tell if he was genuinely upset or not. Honestly, he could not care less at the moment. The yell had felt like an explosion against his ears and that caused him to raise his voice as well

“You were being annoying! I told you to stop it!” he rebuked, clenching his fists. Wilbur clenched his jaw, and got up

“I was trying to do something nice for you!” he replied, and Tommy was too upset to appreciate the sentiment. In the heat of the moment, he stood up, pointing his finger against the prince

“Well, apparently you were not trying hard enough!” he accused and before Wilbur could reply, he stormed off, stomping his feet all the way to the entrance of the corridor.

Wilbur followed him, grabbing his arm

“What’s up with you today!” he asked, his tone higher, conveying both worry and irritation. Tommy turned with a sharp movement and glared at the teen.

“Just leave me alone!”

He yanked his arm free and kept walking. This time, Wilbur did not reach for him.

The second fight happened suddenly, like a switch had been flipped.

Tommy was honestly being eaten by guilt from the way he had treated Wilbur. They had not seen eachother since, and the kid hoped it was due to the fact that Wilbur wanted to give him space, but he had convinced himself it was because the older teen had finally realized how much he actually despised Tommy.

Regardless of his mood, and his increasing headaches, he still needed to somewhat attend to his duties. That was how he had found himself in the king’s study, sitting at the desk, next to Philza. He had been given some documents about finances that the king needed to review. To practice, he had shared them with Tommy, who studied them as quickly as possible

Once he was done, he slid them towards the king. The man turned his blue gaze towards him and smiled.

“Are you done?” he asked and Tommy nodded. It had taken him longer than usual, a mortal combo of sleep deprivation, voices and guilt had taken their toll on him. Philza, flicked his gaze to the top of Tommy’s head and reached for it, ruffling his hair in affection. Tommy blushed at the treatment, and complained. He would never admit he felt a bit sad when the warmth of the hand left his head.

The teen waited for a couple of minutes, ready to be dismissed, when the king spoke

“You’re done here for today. Wilbur should be free, how about you go play with him?” Tommy’s mouth visibly tightened as a sharp “no.” left his mouth.

The king looked puzzled and Tommy hoped he would not ask any questions. Unfortunately, he was not as lucky as he expected.

“did something happen?” Phil asked, with his usual compassionate tone. Tommy’s chest squeezed at the voice, it felt like he actually cared for him. At that, something in Tommy snapped. He slammed his hands on the desk, startling Philza, and stood up.

His eye twitched

“Just because you treat me as your kid, does not mean I am one. You are not my father.” He stated coldly. A sharp stab of guilt hit his heart when he noticed the hurt look on Phil’s face. However he did not stop, instead he backed from the chair, which made a screeching sound against the floor and declared, keeping his gaze on the ground

“ I’m just doing this out of obligation. I am merely a guest.” His lips tightened, tears threatening to come out at the realization.

Yes, he was just a guest here, he was getting too comfortable. He would need to leave someday.

The king spoke, but Tommy did not hear him over the ever so louder chatter in his mind. Without second thought, he stormed out of the office, heading for the library.

Technoblade was sitting on the floor of the library, back pressed against the couch, as he read quietly the book in his lap. Every minute or so, he would move his hand to turn the page, slowly, breathing calmly in the empty room.

His ears twitched, picking up heavy stomping coming towards the door and he realized his quiet would not last. As if on cue, Tommy slammed the door open, launching himself towards the couch.

In the movement he caught sight of Techno on the floor and his eyes widened, making him miscalculate his launch, causing him to land on the floor, instead of the pillows. Techno huffed out a laugh and Tommy glared at him.

Techno flinched. He could see some sort of heat behind the teen’s gaze. The chat in his head worried with him.

He tried to think what could have happened to Tommy that had caused him to storm into the library, but he did not ask him. If Tommy felt like he needed to know, he would tell him, that’s how they worked.

Tommy composed himself, but he kept on the ground, clutching his knees to his chest. His eyes were still on the empty fireplace, perhaps waiting for Techno to say something.

Instead, the prince just focused back on the book.

Tommy sighed, resting his head on his knees, face now towards Techno. The older teen raised his gaze from the book and glanced at him. He could see the eye bags deep on the kid’s face and he understood.

“Too loud?” he whispered and waited for some sign of confirmation from Tommy. He nodded and Techno smiled sympathetically and went back to his book.

After what seemed like an hour, Tommy’s head had plopped onto Techno’s shoulder. With a small voice Tommy finally spoke

“I had a fight with Wilbur” Normally, that would not be news to him. They often had petty fight for the most ridiculous things, but the way Tommy had said it made Techno think it had been different this time around. He waited for the boy to continue.

“And I said some mean things to Phil” Techno looked at him, raising an eyebrow. He waited for an explanation, but it never came. Instead, slow hiccups filled the room.

Techno could feel the boy beside him twitch with every sound, but he kept his eyes on the book, mindlessly switching the pages of a text he already knew by heart, patiently waiting for the kid’s breaths to even out.

He took a deep one himself, closing the book on his lap.

“When I was your age” he started with a low rumble, his voice soft like the crackling of the fire in front of them. He shifted in his position, extending his strong arm and using it to bring Tommy down. The boy did not fight back, letting himself be guided on his friend’s lap.

“I used to fight with dad all the time…” he continued, now with his hand in Tommy’s hair. He had undone the loose ponytail he often kept and the kid’s long golden curls feel graciously onto Techno’s lap. Tommy was facing the fire and the other boy could almost see the reflection of it in his eyes.

“One time, I was gone for days, perhaps weeks” He brought the other hand into the hair and picked some strands in between his calloused fingers.

“ I felt…constricted in the palace. Believed royal life was not my fit. Or better, I was not a good fit for it.” With each word he moved his hands flawlessly, intertwining the strands with one another. Sometimes, one went rogue, but he worked quickly to put it back in its place.

“So I ran to what I knew best, the battlefield. I found a club. Climbed my way in it and just let loose. They did not care I was a child, sure did not look like one either. I made a reputation for myself in the ring…” he brushed away a loose strand that had fallen onto Tommy’s face. He could feel him trying hard not to breathe loudly, keep the focus he had on the story.

“I was accustomed to the ecstasy of it, even before Philza found me. I found it, inebriating. “  his voice became quieter “ but it was never enough. The voices had full control”  Techno  took one ribbon out of his pocket.

“Then Philza came, he had found me again. Shut down the whole damn place in the meantime. I was miserable, face stained with blood, sweat and tears and yet, he embraced me in his arms.”

Tommy spoke in a frail voice “did you guys make up then?” he asked and Techno chuckled, tying off the ribbon at the end

“hell no. I pushed him right into a puddle. I was furious. In my messed up head back then, he had taken a place that was mine, even for the brief time I was there.”  He moved the perfect braid he had just made to the side “I told him all kinds of things then. How he was not my father. How I was just some random screw up he had found on the street and decided to take in like some pity project…” the corners of his mouth raised slightly

“The point is, kid, sometimes you are bound to screw up and say things you might regret. Especially” he said pressing a finger against Tommy’s temples “when even your own head is playing against you”

“the important part is, you learn from it, and you grow. You get better.” He concluded sighing.

Tommy shuffled on his lap, raising himself from the cozy position. In doing so, he moved a hand to feel the braid. He patted it delicately, soft smile on his face, despite the obvious redness around his eyes.

“it’s lopsided” he chuckled. Techno huffed out a laugh, pushing the kid shoulder’s playfully “asshole.” He said and Tommy smiled. He looked down, breathed  and looked up again.

“Thank you.”

“don’t mention it.”

Chapter Text

Over the course of the next few days, neither Wilbur nor Phil seemed to mention Tommy’s…outburst, but Tommy knew he had to apologize, at the very least, to Philza.

And so he did what he had to do.

He went to Wilbur. Not because he was a coward, obviously, but because he had decided to take it in small steps.

He knocked on the prince’s door with three solid movements. At the third one, a voice from inside answered

“Tommy just come inside, you never knock!” Will said huffing out an exasperated sigh, so Tommy opened the door, slowly letting himself in.

He had now just realized he had no idea what to say. He glanced around the room, scouring for something to use as an excuse for his visit. His blue eyes landed on something familiar.

He took a step forward and pointed his finger

“I was wondering if you could play that again for me, please?” Wilbur looked at the flute, then back at Tommy, then focused again on his guitar, turning the pegs at the end of it to tune it.

“Why, so you can yell at me again?” he spat and Tommy felt himself become suddenly smaller. Guilt was a bad beast, one that ate you from the inside out.

He twisted his thumbs together and exhaled. He just had to tell the truth, nothing too hard.

“Listen, I’m sorry about that time I was…overstimulated” Tommy approached the bed  “ I haven’t been sleeping that well lately with the voices and the nightmares” Wilbur placed the guitar back down and raised himself to sit at the edge of the bed

“yeah, I’m aware” he said and Tommy remembered all the times he had come to seek comfort in his room, in his music. Wilbur passed a hand through his brown curls.

“I get, it’s okay. It happens” he said. It seemed sincere and Tommy gleamed, suddenly feeling better

“Are you sure?” he asked and Wilbur smiled

“Yeah I am, now scram. I have stuff to do.” He joked. They  chatted for a couple more minutes. In the end, Tommy skipped on the path to the door, stopping at the handle.

It was time to face the biggest issue now.

“do you happen to know where the king is?” he asked, turning towards Wilbur, but still grasping the handle

Wilbur shrugged “ it’s Sunday right? He’s probably in the tower at this time”

Tommy needed to ask the directions to the tower to a guard that was passing by. He had explained calmly each turn that the boy was supposed to make and Tommy was following those instructions diligently. As he approached the dreaded tower, each step had become heavier.

He looked up at the stairs in front of him, they appeared almost brand new.

Perhaps Philza had the habit of flying trough the wide window balcony, rather than climb the stairs. In all honesty, if Tommy had the possibility to choose, he would definitely skip the climb.

One foot after the other, he made his way up the stairs. He reached a old looking wooden door, decorated with purple painted flowers. He looked down at the golden handle and hesitated.

He had ruminated for a while how to apologize to the man, but no words ever felt right. Yet here he was, about to interrupt Philza with whatever he was busy with, just to muffle out some sort of excuse for his behavior. Tommy inhaled deeply, reaching out to the handle.

As he moved into the room, the door hinges creaked creepily. Tommy was suddenly blinded by the well lit room. The bright sun made its way through the huge balcony, and from the pair of windows on either walls. The kid took a moment to realize that the room had no corners, it was round all over.

The rays reflected onto the wooden floor, which appeared like honey from the daylight. Every now and then, there was a splotch of color, or a rug messily thrown away, dirty from paint. Against the wall, on the floor, there were dozens of canvases, half painted or half drawn.

Some had managed to take place on the wall, next to the windows. However they were partially covered by some green curtains that decorated the room.

Tommy’s eyes scanned the art, taking in all the view. Then, he finally focused on what he had been looking for.

At the center of the room, there he was.

Philza had his back towards Tommy, slightly turned to the left. The boy could see how his wings were safely tucked behind him, shining a mesmerizing black from the sun while the feathers at the end looked like they were on fire.

Tommy’s gaze fell onto the apron the king was wearing. It was probably supposed to be white, judging by the ribbon tied at the back, but in reality all kinds of colors tinted it and, from what Tommy could see, it looked like it did not stop the paint from staining the king’s clothes as well.

He was wearing a simple shirt and a pair of loose pants. Tommy’s eyes squinted when a ray hit the usual earring the king was wearing, reflecting itself right into his face.

From where he was, Tommy could neither see the canvas, nor the older man’s expression, but he could feel the aura of concentration Philza was in. Lost in his own personal bubble.

Tommy almost decided to turn back, not wanting to disturb the man in his rare moment of peace.

However, he persevered. Mostly because he hated the thought of having climbed all those stairs for nothing.

With stumbled steps, he approached the middle of the room. Perhaps the king had heard him enter, but appeared not to care, because when Tommy was next to him, he spoke without averting his eyes from the canvas

“They say that once you see where it all ends, you will never be afraid of new beginnings.” Tommy was startled by the emotion the king’s voice was carrying. He studied the quiet smile that had appeared in Philza’s eyes. He followed that gaze until he landed on the painting.

Phil’s hand was slowly moving over it, the brush leaving purple marks as he did. Apparently the king liked to do landscapes, or at least it appeared like another one.

“I have seen the end, yet I fear for each new dawn” he admitted calmly, blue eyes looking at the fresh paint. Tommy’s lips fell open as he took in the picture taking shape. A desert of pale sand, surrounded by the void of the universe, twinkling with stars. His heart ached at the view, and he suddenly realized how vividly Philza had managed to capture the place.

From the way the man spoke, Tommy assumed it existed in the real world and it was not a land from the king’s imagination.

“I have experienced thousands of dawns, and the future holds just as many” Tommy turned to him, just to realize that Phil had done the same. Blue meeting blue. Tommy did not avert his gaze

“How do you fight the fear?” he asked, suddenly aware of his own heavy heart. The future scared him more than he had the courage to admit.

And Philza smiled. Soft, as if he had all the answers in the world.

“I’m still learning” Apparently not.

“and so are you” the man continued slowly, understanding. “it’s a process. Sometimes, it’s a rough one. Others…” he turned towards the painting, making another stroke “it’s beautiful discovery” as he perfected the last movement, he placed the brush on the table next to him.

Tommy turned his head down, staring at his shoes.

“I’m sorry for what happened at the study” his voice trembled, full of emotions. He suddenly straightened up when he heard a chuckle. The older man was looking at him fondly. He was leaning back, putting his weight on the table behind him. The sun was kissing his skin, making his hair golden and his eyes as clear as the sky outside the window.

He looked like a painting. Frozen in time.

Tommy’s eyebrows drew together and Phil took notice of his expression. He cleared his voice

“I apologize.” He said “you briefly reminded me of Techno.” Tommy shifted on his feet. This has not been the first time the king had made that comparison. Perhaps the time spent with his friend had made them similar, in a way. Although Tommy believed they were complete opposite, he did not correct the man.

After a couple of seconds of silence, Tommy remembered he was supposed to be apologizing, so he gulped down and gave himself courage. All of a sudden the words fell on his tongue.

“Just to clarify, I do not spend time with you just out of obligation” each word was exhausting to speak. Tommy felt like his mouth was filled with molasses, but he continued nonetheless.

“And I do not think I am a guest here” Tommy noticed Philza tensing up and he quickly explained himself “I mean that I am not JUST a guest, you know. I like you guys. I mean, I like staying here and you’re all so nice and you give me food and you actually care about me and-“

“Tommy, Tommy. I get it.” And Tommy smiled. It was impressive how they could just understand him so simply. A wave of relief passed over the kid and he felt his knees almost give in as his eyes threatened to spill. All the tension from the past few days crashed down, leaving him incredibly vulnerable.

Philza tilted his head at the sight. The table creaked as the man raised himself to approach Tommy. He slowly opened his arms in an invitation

“May I hug you?” he asked with such a care in his voice that Tommy could not dare to refuse. He nodded tightly and he felt the warmth of the embrace close on him. It was tight, and comfortable. He opened his arms to return the hug and was surprised when he felt feathers tickling the back of his neck.

Apparently Phil had wrapped him with his wings. Surprisingly, Tommy did not feel trapped, and he fell harder into the embrace, placing his head on the shorter man’s shoulder. He sobbed quietly as the tension from the last few days crashed on him.

They stood there. Still as statues for what seemed like an eternity while Phil moved his hand in circles over  the child’s back, hushing down his sobs.

Finally, Tommy raised his head from the cranny of the other man’s neck. He sniffled, using his sleeve to clean the snot that trailed from his nose. At the motion, Philza scrunched his nose  “Use a napkin next time” he joked and Tommy smiled, moving his whole open hand slowly on his face, attempting to be as gross as possible to tease the man.

In response, the king glared at him, then proceeded to laugh, moving towards the table to retrieve a cloth and toss it towards the kid. Tommy caught it easily and used it to clean the mucus off his hand and the tears off his face. Not in that order, of course.

Once they had both settled down, Phil’s voice echoed in the room. He was taking off the apron, so he was turning his back from Tommy.

“you know” he started, pitch slightly higher than usual “ the warm season is pretty much here” he continued rocking on his legs.

Tommy looked confused, unsure where the conversation was going.

“And it gets pretty hot in the castle” he stated while folding the clothing in his hand neatly “so I was thinking” he placed the apron on the table and turned around “ we could use a little vacation” he proposed.

That caught Tommy off guard. A vacation? And where would they go?

Philza seemed to have read his mind because the next thing he said was “ We have a cottage in an area not far from here. It’s near a lake, and pretty isolated since it’s surrounded by trees. It will be tranquil” He explained.

Tommy considered it for a second “ I suppose it sounds nice to have some time away from here” not that he personally needed it, but looking at the amount of work the king had in the last few weeks Tommy believed it would do him good. Perhaps his headaches would soften with the fresh air as well.

At Tommy’s reply, Phil jumped from his position, shining with anticipation. He clapped his hands once “That’s perfect! I’ll inform the council and we can make the necessary preparations. It should probably take around 8 days” he said while he pretty much run to the balcony. The window was already open as he stepped in the fresh air. He raised his head to take in the breeze.

Tommy gawked when, with a smooth motion, Phil opened his wings wide, displaying them in all their glory. He smiled, as he climbed on the edge, still turned towards Tommy, who took in the sight with childlike wonder.

It was marvelous.

“you should go inform the princes” the king ordered. Without a warning, he fell back. Tommy rushed to the balcony, worry in his stomach, but then he caught sight of the man while he used the momentum to  soar himself to the sky. He flew back to the height of the balcony and waved at Tommy, before taking off to reach the entrance of the palace. Tommy felt a stab of jealousy while he looked at the graceful figure In the air.

He turned towards the door, catching sight of the stairway and sighed deeply.

Chapter Text

Despite Philza’s words, it had taken them less than a week to prepare for the trip, and less than a day to actually reach the estate.

They rode before dawn and, despite having the usual few hours of sleep, Tommy felt anything but tired.

Throughout the whole journey, Tommy’s knees bounced in excitement while he looked curiously outside the window of the carriage, occasionally asking how far along they were.

It was his first time out, away from the castle.

Philza was outside of the carriage, happily using the reigns to direct the horses in the right direction, while he whistled to a joyful tune. Inside the carriage, Techno sat in silence, head deep into a book, but still paid attention to his surroundings. Meanwhile, next to him, Wilbur was napping relaxed with his head against his brother’s shoulder, who did not seem to mind. Occasionally, he let out a snore that caused the younger teen that was sitting in front of him, to giggle. Tommy was lost in the moment, enjoying the trip in the comfortable wagon.

Every once in a while, the wheels would bump on a rock, but the sturdy carriage kept on going without much ado.

The sun was at its peak when Philza halted their journey. From where Tommy was sitting, he could only see trees on the outside. Quickly, Phil came into view and moved to open the door.

“We’re here” he said with a satisfied smile.

Tommy was shaking in place.

Techno woke Wilbur up. He looked around confused and yawned. Soon, all three of them were out of the carriage.

Tommy stretched under the sun, getting his eyes once again used to the bright light. It did not take much for him to finally catch sight of the property.

“So, what do you think?” Techno asked coming up behind him.

“Pretty cool huh?” Wilbur followed suit, using both of his hands to push Tommy towards the house

“let’s make ourselves comfortable” he said with a smirk.

Tommy’s mouth fell open as he looked at the cozy building that would be his house for the next few days. It was big, but not as big as the castle of course. It was made completely made of a warm wood that had some chocolate accents. There were a few windows here and there. A comfortable porch was at the front, with a couple of stairs that pointed towards the front door. The boy was amazed by how modest it looked compared to the fanciness of the castle, and he honestly preferred it.

However, the part that made Tommy breathless was the body of water right next to it. It glittered in the bright sun that shone right on it. The lake looked as still as a painting and for a moment, Tommy believed himself to be in one of Philza’s pieces. One with nature.

Here, surrounded by trees, he could hear birds chirp peacefully. The scent of flowers made itself known to his nose as he stepped closer to the house. At the back of it, on the opposite side of the lake, the boy could barely see what appeared like a garden, guarded by some tall bushes.

Before he had time to investigate, Philza’s voice rang in the quiet.

“boys! I am not going to unpack your stuff for you. Come get it!” he said as he was unloading some of their belongings.

Tommy had not brought much with him, after all he did not really own much, so it took him less force than expected to bring down his handbag from the top of the carriage. He nodded at Philza, and waited for the others to do the rest.

Techno, to the kid’s surprise, had packed three whole bags. Tommy had always thought him for an essential guy, but apparently he had been wrong.

Instead, Wilbur easily grabbed his own luggage, and strapped his guitar tightly on his back.

He briefly wondered if he should have brought more with him when Philza moved past him to approach the cabin and he had with himself a bag close to Tommy’s one in size.

With a skip in his steps, he followed the man.

Once he had opened the door, the boys flooded in. Both Techno and Wilbur immediately headed in one direction, almost running and Tommy heard them argue with eachother playfully.

Perhaps they were fighting for the room position.

Confused, the younger boy looked around.

The front door opened in a wide living room, completed with a couch and a cozy fireplace. To the left, Tommy could see another room, probably the kitchen.

To the right, where the twins went, there was a corridor.

His gazing was halted  by a hand that placed itself on his head, patting softly. Tommy looked to his left and he saw that Philza was still next to him

“Come with, I can show you your room” he said and headed in the same direction that the twins ran to.

In his steps, Tommy noticed a defeated Wilbur huffing out while unpacking his bag in a room. Soon after, what Tommy assumed was Techno’s room came into view and he caught sight of a satisfied smile.

Finally, he was in what would have been his room for the time. It was comfortable, but not shabby and Tommy appreciated the simplicity of it. Philza told him to unpack and to reach them to the deck at the back as soon as he was done.

Tommy did not bother to take stuff out of his bag, except for his toothbrush. He launched himself onto the bed to test its softness and was not disappointed.

He smiled when he realized that the journey had not tired him out. His skin was buzzing with energy.

He jumped off the bed with a swift motion and headed towards the door.

Techno had decided to lay on the grass next to the water. He had never been a fan of it if he had to be fair, so he preferred spending his time reading near the lake. He took his usual spot, with his back on the sturdy tree and took in the scene.

It had been a while since they last came here, yet everything felt the same. Phil was lowering himself on the deck, bold wings sprawled out and relaxed. He looked content, but Techno noticed the slight shiver that went through his body when his feet touched the water. And so the king sat there, looking at the sky.

Meanwhile Wilbur had decided that a swim would suit him best and had quickly disregarded his shirt in order to launch himself into the lake. A huge splash of water followed him as he did so. Techno scoffed at his antics, while Phil chuckled at the cold water that hit him.

The prince’s head quieted down, the familiarity of the atmosphere calming him.

His ears twitched. A shuffle on the grass, and Tommy had finally joined them. Even from a distance, Techno could see how his eyes glinted and reflected the lake.

Tommy was visibly holding himself back as he approached the king with dignity. Before he could speak, however, Wilbur splashed some water at him. The kid glared at him, and the older boy laughed

“C’mon Tommy the water is perfect! Let’s take a swim” he encouraged while moving around.

Techno saw Tommy slightly stiffen, as he clutched the hem of his shirt. He was about to step in, to avoid making the kid more uncomfortable but his twin spoke again

“What, are you afraid of some cold?” he teased. Tommy’s demeanor changed in an instant as he took the challenge.

“Of course not!” he scoffed and hurried to take off his shirt.

Techno’s heart skipped a beat, and he was sure Philza’s did the same, when Tommy’s back came into view. Two vertical rosy slashes marked the pale skin of the boy, a reminder of the Tommy’s past that was still unknown to everyone, even to the teen himself. Maybe because of the quickness of the action, or perhaps because of the stupor that had caught them, neither the king nor the prince commented on the scars, while Tommy took a leap off the deck, landing loudly into the water.

The lake sloshed and a sudden doubt was placed into Technoblade’s mind.

“Wait. Has he ever swum before?” he asked with urgency. His father looked at him, and then back at the water widening his eyes at the realization.

“I’m sure he’s fine” Wilbur commented. They waited a couple of second as the bubbles rose from underwater, then they stopped.

“Perhaps not.” Wilbur went down.

Soon, he re-emerged with his arms under Tommy’s shoulders.

Alarmed, Techno stood up and shortened the distance with his family

The voices in his head had begun to chatter in worry.

The boy coughed as he was dragged back to shore and a wave of relief washed over him.

Tommy raised a hand victorious, and gave a thumbs up.

“All good!” he said and everyone erupted in hysterical laughter.

“You should have told us you did not know how to swim!” Wilbur berated him as he held him steady from under his chest

“I forgot about it!” Tommy complained, raising his arms in frustration. To be fair, he had contemplated the option before throwing himself in, but had decided that the challenge mattered more than having a bit of water in his lungs.

“Don’t distract yourself! Move those arms” the older boy ordered and Tommy reluctantly obeyed.

He was not expecting an impromptu  swimming lesson when he first came here, but he was having fun and the water was nice, so he complied. Although he was not entirely sure about having Wilbur as an instructor.

But it did the job.

After a couple of hours he had finally learned how to keep himself up enough to reassure Phil that he was not going to drown again.

Tommy was taking another lap in front of the man, when a malicious idea popped in his head. He smirked and approached the deck.

This was going to be fun.

Philza was peacefully sitting at the edge, with his feet in the water and his eyes closed to welcome the sun. He was leaning back on his hands, blissfully unaware.

Tommy turned towards Wilbur  who was looking at him puzzled.  The younger boy pointed at the man, then placed a finger over his own mouth, inviting his friend to be silent. Wilbur smirked as well when he realized Tommy’s plan, and nodded energetically, encouraging the boy.

The sudden silence seemed to have thrown off Technoblade. He raised his head from the book and glared at the approaching Tommy.

“Phil-“ he said, catching the attention of the man who promptly opened his eyes and turned to him with a hum. Before the hybrid could continue, Tommy took advantage of the king distraction and swiftly wrapped his hand over his ankle and pulled.

A sound between a grunt and a scream left Philza’s mouth as his body made contact with the cold water, splashing  Tommy’s face.

He quickly emerged, long hair sticking over his eyes. Tommy froze slightly at the silence of the man. Philza used both of his hands to move the strands that made it impossible to see. His eyes met with Tommy’s and laughter erupted.

Wilbur was chuckling in the background an even Techno huffed out a laugh.

Philza’s mouth corners raised maliciously as he approached the blonde kid, raising both of his arms

“come here you little shit, I will make you regret learning how to swim!” he said as he chuckled. Tommy moved his hands to splash the man and hopefully slow him down. When he realized that it was not having the intended purposed he turned around. He caught sight of a snickering Wilbur and decided to go towards him.

“Wilby help! He wants to drown me!” he said without thinking as he shielded himself behind the taller boy. Both the king and the prince froze and Tommy frowned unsure of what was happening.

Wilbur peeked over his shoulder to look at him in the eyes, mischievous glint in them.

“Did you just call me Wilby?” the older boy said with a gleeful tone, slightly high pitched while his father held back a laugh. The realization of his recent words made Tommy blush and he quickly pulled away from the man

“NO I DID NOT!” he said, like a liar. Wilbur turned around to face him completely, with that teasing smile of his

“Oh Tommy, you don’t have to be embarrassed” he joked and Tommy averted his gaze.

“shut up!” he screeched and jolted towards Wilbur, placing a hand over his head and pushing him down in the water. Despite his words, Tommy’s heart was warm and his head was at peace.

They played in the water until the sun started to settle in the horizon, tinting the lake with beautiful shades of orange. A shiver run down the kid’s back as he tried to warm up on the shore, sitting next to Wilbur. It did not take much for them to dry, after all they only had their bodies. Meanwhile, Philza’s wings were still dripping on the grass.

Apparently his feathers were not waterproof, maybe that was why he had not thrown himself in the water earlier. Tommy felt a bit guilty at the sight, but he quickly scoffed it down once he realized that the king did not seem to mind. He had curled one wing over his side and was using a thick cloth to dry it off.

In his head, a familiar murmur picked up slightly.

After an internal debate, Tommy decided to approach the man and offer his help, after all it was mostly his fault so he could afford it. Plus, he had the chance to touch the magnificent wings he had so long admired.

“May I help?” he crouched down next to Phil, reaching out with a hand. Phil turned towards him, he looked at his eager face, then he glanced at his extended arm and smiled. He placed the cloth on his hand

“Sure, go ahead. I was getting tired anyway” he agreed and Tommy positively beamed. He let himself fall down onto the soft ground, a bit behind Phil. The man graciously moved the wing over his lap. It felt heavy, perhaps even more so due to the water. Tommy took a moment to admire it, the tips of the feather appeared even more saturated when wet, while the black ones above them deepened their color, melting with eachother and creating a dark abyss. Some drops shined with the sunlight and glittered like stars in the night.

They were, truly, magnificent.

Tommy raised the cloth and gently moved it over the wing. With slow movements, the boy passed over each section of it, drying it off as he went. Occasionally, Philza adjusted himself to allow Tommy more room to do so. Surprisingly, it dried quickly thanks to Tommy’s help.

The teen moved onto the next one, repeating the same movement and in no time, it was dry as well.

Tommy’s hand faltered as he pulled away one last time, sad that the moment was already over. Perhaps, he should have done it slower, to allow himself more time to admire them. That was a selfish thought, he recognized. Who was he to take such permission.

He should have been grateful the king even had let him touch them.

“All done your majesty” he said quiet, eyes still on the wings. Philza looked at him to thank him, but stopped with an open mouth as he was about to say something. He stared for a few second, appearing lost in thoughts. Tommy froze too, waiting for the king to speak.

Had he made a mistake? Had Philza not enjoyed his assistance?

He tensed up. What the man said next made his jaw fall open

“Would you like to help me preen them?” he asked candid, as if it was the most common thing in the world.

Tommy jittered In place as both Wilbur’s and Techno’s gazes turned to them. Silence fell on the scene. Drying the wings was one thing, but preening them? That required much more experience than Tommy had and it could seriously injure the man if done incorrectly.

“Wilbur could show you how it’s done?” as if Philza had read his mind, he spoke. At the mention, Wilbur got up from his position and approached them. Techno did the same.

Tommy realized that the man still needed a reply. He took a deep breath, wanting nothing more than place his hands again on the soft feathers

“I would love to” he agreed, and fell again on the grass, this time behind the man. Wilbur sat next to him and placed his hands on the right wing. He looked at Tommy

“It’s not hard, you just need to be careful. Here” he said, and his hands begun to move, slowly. Tommy watched carefully as the teen fingers first went to the base of the feather, then slowly moved up, adjusting it in the right position.

“Sometimes, the feather will crook due to daily activities” Philza started

“especially since he’s an old man” Wilbur joked, gaining a playful glare from his father

“And they just need a little help.” The man continued

Wilbur repeated the action a couple of times more, then turned to Tommy as he plucked out a feather. Phil did not even flinch. Tommy’s eyes widened

“There are a few that need to be removed, so don’t worry. It doesn’t hurt.” Philza commented and Tommy sighed

“Your turn now, go on.” Wilbur said, continuing his work on the right wing. Tommy looked at the left one and raised his hands. He gulped as he placed them on the soft feathers. His mind went blank.

What if he plucked the wrong one? What if he made a mess? Would Philza hate him then?

He closed his eyes, feeling the plumes under his palms. Tommy inhaled deeply and nodded. He opened his blue eyes and set his mind to it.

With determinate movements, he used his hand in the same way Will had showed him to. The boy smiled when he realized how easy the action felt to him. He worked quickly, but not without passion. With each feather, the movement became mechanic, familiar.

Tommy was so immersed in his job that he did not realize that Techno had sat next to him, amazed by his work. What he did notice, however, was the gleeful chirps that every now and then Philza let out. Following each one, Tommy’s smile widened.

Not soon after, Tommy felt the man completely relax in his grasp. He and Wilbur worked diligently for what Tommy believed was not enough time.

Once the last feather was done, the boys both scooted back, admiring their work. A proud feeling, a warmth, exploded in Tommy’s chest, but it was accompanied by something else, something not quite as happy.

 He dismissed it quickly, as Philza turned to him, half lidded eyes and a yawn.

“That was perfect. Thank you.” He said grateful. At the same Techno spoke

“I agree with our father. It was almost like you were an expert at it, have you ever done it before?”

Even if he had done it before, he had no memory of it. However, considering that Avians were very rare, he doubted it. Tommy shrugged

“I don’t think so, maybe I’m just a fast learner” he commented

“Or maybe I’m just a really good teacher” Wilbur boasted and Techo snickered

“ let’s not go that far.” Wilbur glared at him “I think the achievement is mostly Tommy’s” Techno continued, huffing a smile towards the boy. Meanwhile, Philza had gotten up. He placed a hand on Tommy’s head and patted his hair.

“whatever the reason was, it was pretty great. Good job kid” he complimented and Tommy’s cheeks tinted with red. “thank you” he said, hiding his face in his hands.

Nobody commented on it, instead a rumble was heard in the area and it reminded them that they had not yet taken their supper, too busy having fun in the lake.

“I think we should go make something to eat” Techno said, getting up

“Yeah, but only if Tommy stays away from the kitchen” Wilbur joked, mirroring his brother

“Hey! I only burned the kitchen once!” Tommy bit back, raising as well.

“And it was enough.” Wilbur replied.

“Please, I do not want any of you in my kitchen” Philza stated, already feeling the headache coming. Yet he was smiling, as Tommy could clearly see. Laughing, they all made their way towards the house.

Chapter Text

A boy sits in the grass, the warm presence of a woman next to him. Her hands are busy moving slowly, but her gaze lingers on the boy.

“Watch carefully, my little stardust. It will be of use in the future”

And the boy does, but when his eyes dart back to the woman she is no longer there. The grass turns to stone as the place she once occupied, empties.

He chases the warmth by copying her movements, hastily and clumsily.

Soon, he realizes it is useless. It’s all gone.

Tommy opened his eyes slowly , bringing both heels of his hands to his face and pressing them to his eyes. He had forgotten his dream, as he was usual to do, but the uneasy feeling in his stomach still lingered. It wrapped itself around his guts, squirming and squeezing.

The teen decided to sit up in his bed to fight the nausea. It creaked in the movement, and the sound bounced off the wall in the empty room. He sighed, glancing at the door.

Perhaps some water would ease him.

He dragged himself out of the covers and flinched at the cold floor underneath his feet. Slowly, he lurched towards the door. His eyes quickly adapted to the darkness of the corridor as he made his way to the living room, then the kitchen.

He yawned and reached for a cup, then he grabbed the pitcher and poured himself some lukewarm water. He took a few sips, but his stomach only churned in response. Tommy placed the cup back onto the table and turned around. He took a few steps towards the living room but stopped.

The teen’s nose scrunched at the faint smell of smoke that reached him. Alarmed, he glanced around in search of an open flame. The cabin was still in complete darkness, so it was probably not a fire. The fireplace was also empty, so not that either.

With curiosity, he looked for the source. He sniffed the air and followed the trail. It brought him to the back door.

From the small window, Tommy could make out that someone was sitting on the stairs. The door opened with a creak and the figure jolted in place, swiftly moving their hand away. Wilbur turned around with wide eyes. However, upon recognizing Tommy, his gaze softened and he took a huge exhale, dramatic as usual.

“Fuck Tommy, you scared me. I thought it was dad” he chuckled tense, as he shifted back into a more comfortable position.

Tommy approached him slowly, feeling the breeze hit his face. The floorboards creaked under his weight.

“Sorry” he sat down next to him. In the moonlight, Tommy could see something burning in Wilbur’s hand. Idly, the older teen moved said hand, bringing it near his own lips. He placed the weird burning cylinder in  his mouth and inhaled. The blonde boy watched mesmerized as Wilbur released smoke from his mouth and relaxed his shoulder.

That looked interesting.

“what is that?” Tommy asked with a whisper. He pointed the Wilbur ‘s hand. The man took another drag

“Tobacco” he huffed out with the smoke. Wilbur looked towards Tommy, and caught sight of his wide blue eyes “it’s not for children” he continued.

Not fair.

Tommy frowned “you’re not an adult either” he complained and Wilbur chuckled

 “I know.”

He said taking a drag “Why do you think I’m freezing my ass out here genius?” another puff of smoke was released in the air. It swished in the darkness, reaching for the skies.

“Does it taste good?” Tommy asked

“hell no” Wilbur replied, scrunching his nose

“Then why do you smoke it?” it did not make sense.

Wilbur shrugged, he flicked the cylinder slightly, making some of the ashes at the end fall

 “helps me sleep sometimes or i guess it makes me relaxed, i don’t know. Old habit” that made even less sense, but at least Tommy empathized with the lack of sleep.

“rough night?” he asked and scooted closer to the other teen. Wilbur took one last inhale, then he  squished the tobacco cylinder onto the porch. After that, he pulled back his arm and threw it as far as possible.

“you’re not the only one with nightmares wonder boy” Wilbur replied bitterly. He laid back onto the porch, his head weighted over his crossed arms.

Tommy’s mouth squeezed in a tight line, he glanced at the figure next to him, then raised his head to look on the horizon. In the darkness, it should have been impossible to make out anything, but Tommy could see the trees that stood tall in front of him. He noticed the way the leaves swayed in the breeze, lulled by the night.

“What do you dream about?” The question clearly surprised Wilbur, who shuffled in his place. Tommy admonished himself for asking.

It was none of his business after all.

Silence fell on them, as they listened to the shuffle of the garden.

“Sometimes it’s my old life, sometimes it’s the war.” Wilbur spoke quietly “I dream about the days in that shit hole, fighting for scraps and worrying if any day with my brother would be the last.” His bitter tone was not missed by the boy’s ears.

Tommy tried to imagine how life could have been for the twins, aided by the few stories they had shared with him. Living somewhere you didn’t really belong, casted away by both human and piglings alike, unaware of what the future held and hanging on a thread day by day. Somehow, he understood the feeling

“you got out though. You and Techno both” Wilbur turned towards him and smiled, softly, but his eyes were not really on him.

“yeah, I guess we did.” He sighed and fell back onto the porch again.

There were a couple minutes where no one said anything. Tommy tapped with his finger onto the wood, but it barely made a sound. He was debating whether to go back to sleep or not, when Will’s voice made itself known once more.

 “What about you, what are your nightmares about?”

Tommy’s finger stopped.

“I don’t know. I never remember them” he said

“Perhaps it’s a good thing” Wilbur stated

“Perhaps it is.” Tommy agreed half heartedly

The boy brought his knees close to his chest, and laid his head on them. He thought about his dreams. Despite the tender state they left him in, Tommy would have preferred to remember them. Perhaps they could give him clues about his past, although he had the feeling that he would not want to return to the place he once was in. Not after Philza and the twins.

Everything here felt so familiar, he had his routine, his clothes, his room...his people.

“What if i never get my memory back?” he blurted out. It was a worry that had appeared in his mind more than he would have admitted. Did he want his memory back?

“What then?” Wilbur asked, genuine confusion plastered on his face

Tommy closed more on himself

“the whole point of me being here is gaining back my memory and going back to where I’m from. What if...it never happens? Where will I go?” he asked, his voice betrayed him, tensing at the last words. He felt the tears threaten to come out of his eyes, so he hid his face in arms.

He expected a half assed reply from Wilbur, a reassurance that he will remember at some point. What he did not expect, however, was a loud laugh.

Wilbur was laughing.

Offended, Tommy raised his head and glared at the man. His eyes blurred the image, and he sniffed slightly, but Wilbur did not stop.

“This is serious!” he complained, turning his whole body towards Wilbur. He threw his hands out in frustration.

Wilbur calmed down and looked at him, short giggles still shaking him from time to time. He reached out a hand, raising himself from the floor. Still with a smile, he passed his finger on Tommy’s head, patting slightly.

“You can be so dumb sometimes” he said condescendingly. Tommy moved his head with a swift motion, he huffed out

“What are you talking about” he raised his voice. Wilbur’s eyes stared right in his and suddenly he was serious again

“Tommy. Dad made you preen his wings.” He said, like he was stating something obvious. It only caused Tommy to tilt his head.

Wilbur exhaled frustrated, he pinched the top of his nose between his fingers, then he used his other hand to make something of a chopping motion, bring his arm down to make a point

“You know how wings are very important for avians right?” Tommy nodded. Yes, he had studied a bit about avians back in the castle, although there were very few books, with them being rare and all.

“And how careful you have to be when you preen the wings, otherwise it could ruin it for a while?” Tommy nodded again. It was something that had scared him a few hours prior, when Phil had asked him to do it. It was something so weird to him, that Phil had trusted him enough to let Tommy do it.

“So they obviously do not let it be done by everyone” Tommy stared at him, eyes wide. Wait.

“Usually preening is done by people they care about. Their family.”

Oh.

Oh.

Tommy’s mouth fell open in the moment. The notion had not even been considered by Tommy’s mind.

“With or without memories, dad already considers you part of the family. If you need one, you’ll always have a place with us.”

Tommy stilled and he was unable to reply. He felt the dampness trail down his cheeks and soon he was shaken by quiet hiccups.

He tried to take it all in.

Family.

He had always hoped for a place with them, but his heart believed that they would throw him out sooner or later, bored or annoyed with his existence. Especially if he had not regained  his memories.  So he had tried not to get too attached and he had scolded himself when he failed to do so.

However, upon hearing Wilbur’s words a wave of relief washed over him. It was the confirmation he needed to finally see it clearly.

He thought back at the trainings with Techno, at the quiet nights with Wilbur, at the proud moments with Phil. He finally realised that his growing fondness was not one sided.

He had a place with them if he wanted to, and damn, he wanted it so bad.

His hiccups had gotten heavier and soon Wilbur’s arms were wrapped around him, holding him close while he cried his heart out in relief.

Perhaps he did not know where he came from, but he knew where he wanted to stay.

“have you finished sogging my shirt?” Wilbur asked, parting slightly with Tommy to look at him. The boy sniffled and nodded weakly. He scooched further away, but he kept his hands on Wilbur’s arm. He was not yet ready to completely abandon the warmth the older teen emanated.

It took a moment before Tommy composed himself.

“thank you” he croaked. Wilbur simply smiled and helped the boy up, keeping a hand on him

“Let’s get you to bed” he said and started walking slowly towards the door. Tommy still felt a bit wobbly and his legs were buzzing, but he followed Wilbur.

They made their way to Tommy’s room. Surprisingly, Wilbur did not leave Tommy at the entrance. Instead, he guided him inside, and assisted him all the way to the bed. He waited for Tommy to lay on the mattress.  Once down, Wilbur had pulled the covers of the bed up, tucking the boy in, then he had wished him a goodnight and left.

Half dazed by the sleep and the cries, Tommy fell asleep easily, still feeling the warmth of the hug around him.

Chapter Text

Tommy had just finished getting ready for the day when the nicest smell travelled all the way to his room. With the sweetness permeating the common corridor, the boy made his way towards the source of the scent.

He picked a turn and finally he was in the kitchen. The table had been made with a simple cloth and some wooden utensils. Tommy caught sight of some strawberries and immediately snatched a couple, stuffing them quickly in his mouth, then he noted someone by the stove, who chuckled at the view.

With his mouth still full, Tommy smiled goofily and raised a hand in hello

“Good morning to you too” Philza giggled at the boy and turned his back to him again.

Tommy could see he had a spatula in one of his hands, but the man’s body was covering the other. Curiously, Tommy walked towards him, chewing loudly.

Once he reached the stove, he understood the source of the sweet smell.

Phil was making pancakes!

“They will be ready in a few minutes. You may take a seat if you wish so.”

The man had raised his gaze from the pan and glanced at him. Tommy swallowed the bite he was still chewing in a quick gulp

“i didn’t know you could cook” Tommy said. It was not meant like an insult. He just would have never imagined the king in such a...modest setting. In the castle, everything was prepared by the chefs, so Philza was never near the kitchen.

Somehow, it fit him. The spatula in his hands, the grey apron carefully tied around his waist, the bare feet that touched the ground. He had his sleeves up to his elbows and Tommy could see the strength of his arms.

Apparently, he had stared for a tad too long, because Philza seemed like he was waiting for a reply. Thankfully, the man quickly understood his confused gaze and repeated himself.

“Could you pass me a plate?” he asked pointing towards a cabinet. Tommy turned around, raised an arm to open the cabinet and grabbed a plate. While he placed it next to the stove, Phil spoke again.

“I used to cook for myself back in the days.” He flipped the pancake with ease.

“ Now i have servants, they do not allow me in the kitchen ever.  They keep saying it is not a job for a king” he sighed and scooped the pancake with the spatula and placed it on the plate.

“So, when i can, i take the chance to prepare something.” He used a spoon to pour more batter into the pan “ It’s relaxing in a way, almost like painting.” He smiled and looked towards Tommy, who nodded in reply.

Then the teen chuckled, remembering the last time he had been in a kitchen.

“I’m sure Wilbur would disagree” he laughed. Philza let out an amused huff.

“he probably would. I was made aware of your little kitchen invasion. I must say, I am impressed. I was not aware cake batter had the power to defeat gravity” He laughed out lout. Tommy blushed, unaware that the event had reached the king’s ears. Then he mentally slapped himself.

Of course it had. Phil was the king. It was his castle.

“What can I say big man. I’m a wonder.” Tommy joked. Phil smiled sincerely

“you sure are” he said, voice full of affection.

The blonde boy did not reply to it, unable to find the right words.

Phil ended up repeating the motions a few times, until the plate was stacked with pancakes.

Tommy’s eyes widened at the amount, mouth already drooling. They looked perfect. Round and golden and warm.

“Would you mind bringing the plate to the table please? I need to clean up here” Phil asked and Tommy nodded.

Carefully, he grabbed the pancakes. Hesitantly, he turned around and the stack jiggled on the plate. With slow, calculated and precise steps, Tommy reached the table. Finally, he placed the stack at the centre and huffed out in relief.

He raised his eyes from the table and he saw Techno making his way in the room. His hair was loose over his shoulders, except two strands in the front that were carefully braided to the back of his head. Despite the familiar morning greeting the two exchanged, Tommy could see that the teen’s forehead was more creased than usual.

“Bad day?” he asked tapping his own head. Techno nodded and sighed

“They are very excited about the trip and won’t shut up.” He said and he threw his arms up in the air frustrated. Tommy patted his back in comfort. Then he saw Techno move his head towards the table, raising an eyebrow

“Did dad make pancakes?” he asked, lips slightly curled in a smile. Tommy nodded

“Wait until Wilbur sees them. Gods, it has been way too long since we last ate them!” He commented excited.

Tommy couldn’t help but chuckle at his friend’s joy. It was rare to see Techno so excited about something, especially something so mundane like pancakes.

“Speaking of, someone should probably wake him.” Tommy interrupted. Since Techno had no intention to do so, Tommy decided to move towards Wilbur’s room. He knocked loudly on the door. He waited a couple of second, but received no reply.

Tommy  opened the door, peeking inside. The room was completely filled with sunlight and at the centre of it, Wilbur was blissfully sleeping with his pillow on his face. He was sprawled diagonally over the bed, all of his limbs extended in pose that attempted to take as much space as possible.

With confident steps, Tommy approached the bed. The soft snores became louder as he went.

“Will, breakfast is ready.” He said softly, curled down over his friend to shake him slightly. Again, Wilbur did nothing to show he was awake.

Time for some drastic measures.

Tommy took a few steps back, he locked eyes on the bed and took a deep breath. He smirked and with two whole strides, the boy launched himself on Wilbur. He landed with his whole body over the sleeping teen, the bed creaked with the weight.

Tommy could hear a choked sound escape him on the impact.

A loud groan was released suddenly and a pair of hands attempted to scroll off Tommy, who was, in return, holding for dear life onto the covers.

“Fuck off! It’s earlyy” Wilbur complained. The realization that Tommy would not probably move dawned on Wilbur as he removed his hands from the teen and placed them on the pillow that was over his face. He used his position to raise his knees and turn to the side with another muffled groan.

 The sudden movement startled Tommy, but he shifted his stance with Wilbur to adjust.

He was not a quitter.

So, Tommy put both his hands on Wilbur’s shoulder and shook him again

“GET.UP” he ordered, his usual high pitched voice making its intended effect. In retaliation, Wilbur began to quickly kick his feet and swing his legs. Tommy took every hit easily, impressed by the boy’s lack of force.

Once Wilbur was out of breath, he finally moved the pillow from his own face, throwing it towards Tommy who promptly shifted to the left and avoided it.

He smiled cockily when Wilbur’s piercing glare fell on him, his eyes still half lidded by the sudden awakening. Slowly, he removed himself from the bed so that Wilbur could sit up.

“how do you have so much energy in the mornin-“ he yawned loudly. Tommy smiled again, he was shifting in place, basically vibrating. Wilbur sighed and got a hold of his covers. The blonde boy could see that he was about to lay down again, so he spoke

“Phil made pancakes.” He said, with excitement in his  voice. Wilbur stopped his movement midway and looked at Tommy, mouth slightly gaped.

“Are you serious?” he asked and Tommy nodded with more energy than intended.

Before he could realize, Wilbur had launched himself off from the bed and out of the room at a surprising speed. With a chuckle, Tommy followed.

“i see we’re full of energy today!” Phil said. He was bringing a glass bottle full of something onto the table.

Techno was already munching on something, Wilbur had thrown himself on the nearest chair and was now trying to get as many pancakes in his plate as possible. Tommy did not wait for an invite, and he quickly took a seat next to Wilbur.

Phil passed him a plate already made, Tommy thanked him.

“it has. Been. So long” Wilbur had said between one bite and another. It looked like he was really enjoying it.

Tommy glanced towards Phil, who had chuckled in reply, but the boy could read in his eyes that he was not entirely focused. Perhaps he was thinking about the last time he had cooked for his kids. Tommy should probably ask about it.

Phil’s eyes fell on the plate in front of him, and his expression saddened, only for a moment, then he was back to his usual smile.

Probably better not to ask.

So, Tommy decided to focus on his own plate. He cut himself a piece and took a bite and his eyes widened

“THESE ARE AMAZING” he proclaimed. Wilbur turned towards him

“I KNOW RIGHT?” he agreed, nodding his head repeatedly

“how do you even make them like this?” Tommy asked, this time turning towards Phil. The man opened his mouth to reply, but Will interrupted

“Good luck trying to get a recipe out of him, I have tried for who knows how long. The old man knows how to keep a secret” he complained. At the same time, Phil answered

“I could show you sometime if you want to, as long as you promise not to tell Wilbur” he said casually. Wilbur snapped his head towards him, murderous gaze

“Traitor.” Phil laughed “ Sorry man, i just don’t think you would do these pancakes justice” he shrugged with a smirk. Wilbur gasped and pointed at Tommy dramatically

“And the kid who makes the kitchen explode can?”

“touché”

Now that was not true. He had only made it explode once. Maybe twice.

Who keeps count of these frivolous things.

“Well then none of you get the recipe then” Phil poked out his tongue jokingly and then focused back on his breakfast.

The whole meal was spent in a friendly banter and a overall positive mood that left Tommy all fuzzy and warm.

While they were putting away the cutlery and washing the dishes, ready to enjoy another day in the lake, a slow pitter patter began to be heard. It clicked rhythmically on the wooden roof. It was soft, but the room was full of individuals with peculiar hearing, so they noticed it right away.

Tommy ran towards the nearest window and groaned

“There goes our day of fun” he sulked, resting his head on the windowsill. The raindrops raced their way on the glass, while the sky began to darken.

“Who says we can’t go outside?” Techno jumped in from behind. He smirked to Tommy, who immediately understood. They both turned towards the rest of the family

“that is a terrible idea” Phil commented

“Let’s do it.” Wilbur agreed.

With all the three kid’s strength combined, they avoided Phil’s struggles to hold them inside. They raced for the front door, laughing and bickering.

On the porch, they halted, glanced at eachother and jumped off of it.

Immediately Tommy felt the freshness surround him as his clothes clung to his body and his curls flattened over his faces. He tilted his head up, taking in the rain, and smiled. The sharp air prickled  his lungs, but he did not feel cold. He closed his eyes and for a moment everything felt quiet.

Just him and the rain.

Then, he heard chattering besides him. He shook himself and turned to look at Techno and Wilbur who were trying to convince Philza to join them

“C’mon dad! It’s fun!” Said Wilbur. The damp hair that fell on his forehead had sharpened his features, and Tommy finally saw the resemblance with Technoblade.

“refreshing even” added Techno who had pulled his hair up in a braided bun. Smart

Phil shook his head with conviction.

“no way I’m getting these wet again.” He opened one wing and pointed at it to support his statement, dramatically, like Wilbur was usual to do.

He waved his hand “you boys have fun, I’ll watch you from here” he said and promptly sat on the stairs, safe from the storm.

Wilbur clicked his tongue and turned around, his arms were crossed in front of him “Bore.” He said under his breath, muffled by the rain

“I head you!” shouted Phil with a tease in his voice. Wilbur snapped his head towards him and stuck his tongue out. His father laughed in reply.

Tommy turned towards Techno, who had suspiciously cupped his hands and was now approaching Wilbur silently.

The rain must’ve covered his steps because he caught his twin by surprise as he launched the water he had collected onto his face.

Wilbur glared at him, which Tommy thought was weird. After all, they were wet already that did not make much of a different.

Apparently Wilbur had taken it as a challenge.

Soon, the three boys were playing under the rain, chasing eachother with hands full of water.

It took them a while to finally stop and when they did, the exhaustion and the sharp air had finally taken their toll on them. Shivering, the boys made their way back to the house.

They dripped all the way to the living room.

Phil handed them some cloths and moved to light the fireplace.

Tommy, Will and Techno sat down in front of it. Tommy revelled in the softness of the fur that acted as both a carpet and a seat. He scooted closer to the flame, once it was lively in front of them.

“I’m freezing” Techno commented, he sat dangerously close to the fire.

Wilbur chuckled, he leaned towards his right and pushed Techno with his shoulder playfully“ don’t be dramatic. It was your idea after all.” Techno sighed

“I regret it” he admitted

“told you it was a bad idea” Phil chimed in, he had a tray in his hands.

When did he have time to make tea?

Slowly he passed a mug to each kid. Tommy left the cloth on his head and reached over to the cup, thanking Phil. He held onto it tightly, trying to absorb as much warmth as possible, he blew slowly over the top, casting away the steam.

Bravely, he took a sip and smiled. Phil had got it just right.

He turned to the man, who was now helping Techno dry off his hair.

“i feel warmer already” Will said, sipping on his own drink. Tommy agreed.

A few minutes passed and Tommy had completely discarded drying his hair off, in favour of quietly finishing his tea. He was taking another sip, when Phill approached him.

“Toms, you’re going to catch a cold if you don’t dry your hair properly” he said. Tommy shrugged in reply.

It took too much energy, it would dry off on its own at some point.

The cloth that laid on his head was grabbed, startling Tommy, who looked up at Phil.

“may I?” at first he didn’t actually understand the question, but nodded anyway. Only when Phil had sat behind him and pulled him back against his stomach, had Tommy realized what he had meant.

He was helping him dry his curls. Should he tell him to stop?

Whatever fighting spirit he had tried to conjure, immediately disappeared after Phil started patting his head with the cloth. Tommy leaned more into the touch, relaxing his shoulders to revel in the contact.

Beside him, Wilbur was braiding Techno’s hair, with a hint of a smile on his face.

Did everyone in this family know how to do braids? Was it some kind of requirement for adoption?

He was lucky he already knew how to brain then.

He smiled instinctively at the thought, but quickly stopped himself, embarrassed by his reaction.

 Phil worked slowly, at some point he halted his movements

“should i tell you a story?” he asked. Wilbur jumped in place, Techno rolled his eyes

“aren’t we a bit too old for stories” he said, Wilbur scoffed

“Speak for yourself, i like dad’s stories” he bit back. Phil turned towards Tommy, expectantly.

“I wouldn’t mind a story” the boy said shyly. Wilbur raised his fist victorious

“Yes! Story time!” he said, as he moved closed to Phil. Reluctantly, Techno did the same.

Tommy could clearly tell he was as excited as Wilbur.

Phil cleared his throat “very well then” he said, but kept his hands working on Tommy’s hair. It was taking him an awful long time, he was probably due to an haircut soon.

“There was once upon a time a...crow.” he started

“ it was not particularly bright nor big, but it was wise. The crow had seen eras begin and fall, for as long as it could remember.”

Tommy softened into Philza’s hands, laying more of his weight on the man.

“This had caused the poor crow to feel lonely. It had realized that everything would end eventually. So, it had decided not to get attached anymore to avoid heartbreak.” He sighed.

It did not take a genius to understand that Phil was talking about himself, but Tommy did not point that out.

“Instead, it started to wander. Flew from one place to another without a break. It fought monsters, and helped other birds and creatures alike. The crow believed itself to be very good at it. However the emptiness still plagued its heart. No matter what it did, the monsters came back and the creatures became worn with time, yet the crow stayed the same. Stuck in the fogginess of its life.”

Tommy felt the sadness of the man as his own, he did not dare imagine what it would be like to be forever the same. The curse of watching your loved ones die before you felt like the heaviest burden ever.

“Despite its best efforts, the crow grew tired of the fame that followed him and decided to hide away. Hiding from destiny is not a clever choice. The crow brought with itself destruction. Out of the nest it had chosen to hide itself in, the crow was the only survivor once again.”

Tommy tried his best to shut his mouth, but a yawn betrayed him.

“but then, the plagued crow met a wonderful butterfly. It taught the crow that love sometimes means loss and to enjoy life as it comes.”

Tommy’s eyes started to flutter as his head begun to feel heavy.

“thanks to the butterfly, the crow found it in itself to move on and fight once more for what he held dear. Live with time and not against it.”

“What happened to the butterfly?” Wilbur asked, the voice felt muffled to the boy’s ears. Phil halted for a moment.

Tommy never had a chance to hear the reply. For the first time in a while, he slept an empty, yet comfortable, sleep.

Chapter Text

Tommy woke up confused in his own bed. He turned under the covers, trying to remember how he had reached his room the night before. When nothing came to mind, he dismissed the thought, focusing instead on his growing headache.

Figures he couldn’t have more than a day of peace.

With sluggish movements, he got ready for the day.

He could  hear shuffles coming from the kitchen and the living room. He poked his head from the doorframe, and greeted Phil, who appeared to be  making breakfast.

Phil turned towards him with a bright smile, apron on his waist and whisk in hand

“ah, Tommy good timing” he said as he stirred some type of batter. Tommy hoped it was pancakes again.

“ would you mind helping your brothers load our stuff onto the carriage please? The stables are right next to the house”

If Phil noticed his slip up, he didn’t mention it. With some tension in his shoulders, Tommy reluctantly agreed.

Right. It was their last day, they would depart early in the morning. Unfortunately, ruling a kingdom required the family to avoid long periods outside of the capital. Tommy had just gotten used to this routine.

Bummer.

“sure big man, i’ll get going” he flinched at his own high pitched voice. As he turned back to the living room, he noticed some boxes he didn’t realize were there before. This was all the stuff Phil had unloaded by himself the first time around, it was only fair they helped him now.

He picked one box right up and headed to the front door. He heard voices towards the right, and approached them.

“Good morning sleeping beauty” Techno greeted with a playful tone. Tommy just grunted in reply, placing the box onto the ground with an huff

“Goodmorning!” Will chimed in, unusually chipper. He was not a morning person most of the time.

Perhaps he was excited of going back to the castle.

Again, Tommy just nodded in reply. Techno looked at him, with a crease between his brows. He got closer and leaned towards him to whisper

“Bad day?” He asked. Tommy raised a hand and laid it flat, moving it around with a shrug.

“headache” the boy whispered back. Techno simply nodded. Tommy knew he understood what it meant to have a bad day, more than anyone else.

“You should go rest, we can handle ourselves here” he proposed. Tommy was about to retort, but Wilbur joined and cut him off

“no buts!” he said, grabbing the box at Tommy’s feet

“Techno’s right. We’re almost done anyway.” He shuffled Tommy’s hair with one hand and shooed him away.

As he walked back to the house, Tommy wondered what he was supposed to do. Yes, his head  weighted over his body more than usual, but he felt anything but tired.

He had no intention of spending the last day moping in his bed. Tommy grazed the area with his eyes, looking for something that could catch his attention.

The lake sounded like too much work.

He wasn’t in the mood to chat with Phil either.

Finally, his gaze landed on the backdoor garden, it did not look like anything special, but he moved towards it in a trance. He had not had a chance to explore that yet. Plus, it would be quiet, so perhaps his head would benefit from it.

That sounded reasonable enough.

 The garden was closed off by some tall trees, that shielded the inside from view. Once Tommy managed to squeeze through the barrier, he looked ahead in awe. Rather than a garden, it felt like it was more of a small forest.

At first, the grass was short, adorned with some occasional wild flower. Then, the trees and plants grew in number, creating a thick area. However, what stood more to Tommy’s eye was what looked like a path, leading into the depth of the actual forest It was marked by a blanket of small blue flowers.

Tommy kneeled down to admire them. Each flower had a yellowish centre and seemed to have five petals around it. They grew close together from the same plant. The boy swore he had seen them before, probably in one of his books, but he was unable to identify them. They shimmered of a pale purple.

That was unnatural.

With curiosity, he pulled himself up and begun to follow the trail. Soon he realized the purpose of the shimmer. Following every step, Tommy looked back, feeling guilty about stomping onto the flowers and every time, the flower bounced back into position, like nothing had ever happened.

They were enchanted!

Tommy had read about magic at some point. Not everyone was capable of it. It was mostly an innate thing in some hybrids, other times it required years and years of studying ancient texts that had gotten lost in time. If Tommy remembered correctly, the smith at the castle was able to use magic to a certain degree, the rest of it was mostly alchemy, which was a widespread practice.

The particularity of the situation only raised the boy’s curiosity more, who picked up his pace, feeling the pull getting stronger.

Tommy felt the pressure in his head increase as he got closer. He blamed the strong scent of the flowers, which only got worse with each step.

At last, he was standing in a flat area. The trees had moved to the outer section, surrounding something similar to a shielded island, just not in water. The ground was now fully covered with the flowers which shined due to the light that entered from the top. It was silent and...still. Not even a hint of a breeze.

There, in the middle of this, stood a statue. Tommy approached it quietly, soft steps closing in.

A creature towered on top of a slab. The stone carefully modelled to take in every detail, from the powerful veiny wings, to the sharp claws, to every shiny scale. The craftsmanship was breath-taking, like the author had trapped this weird lizard in time. Tommy shivered at the presence. It felt like it could fly away any minute.

He closed in, and noticed what the slab the claws were standing on, actually was.

“Beloved, may you shine with the stars you so long admired.” It read.

Tommy’s eyes widened at the realization.

It was a grave.

With an unsteady hand, he reached over to touch it, holding his breath instinctively.

He tried to think who it could belong to. Was it someone the twins cared about? Was it someone Phil cared about? Or was the grave here before the house?

He gulped down a grief that was not his own.

The stone was cold under his hand. In the silence of the moment, the mumble in his brain came back.

With a shaky breath, he pulled back his hand suddenly, like the stone had burned him. He looked around, and felt his the pressure in his head worsen.

His head fixated in a specific direction, through the woods, away from the grave, far from the cottage. Tommy’s legs moved on their own, as the chatter took over, silencing his own internal monologue.

The boy took a step, then another.

He had reached the edge of the circle, when a voice snapped him out of it.

The voices fell silent.

“Boys! Breakfast is ready!” Phil had said, yelling out of the door. Quickly his sons had run to the cottage, ready to eat. All except one.

“was Tommy not with you?” he asked to the twins. Wilbur shook his head, Techno shrugged

“he was not feeling well, so we sent him his way. I thought he would go back to bed” he said. The man cursed himself, he should have noticed Tommy was not at his best today.

“When was this?”

“an hour ago or so”

Phil sighed, shoulders tensing “i didn’t see him coming this way” he walked with wide strides towards Tommy’s room, urgency in his movement. The door crashed against the wall as Phill took sight of the empty bed.

Okay, not here.

“Techno, check the lake. Wilbur, the stables” before he could even finish his sentence, his boys were already moving.

“He’s not at the lake, nor in the stables, nor in the house. Do you think he might have gotten lost in the woods?” Techno asked. It was rare to see him openly display worry.

Phil paced back and forth, his feathers ruffling behind him.

“Could someone have taken him?” Wilbur asked fidgeting in place. Phil shook his head, not even wanting to consider the possibility of Tommy being taken away from them.

“I will try to see if i can spot him from the sky, you guys wait here in case he comes back” the man stated. His wings spread out in a familiar movement as his mind chirped with worry and soon he was in the air.

It took him a while to spot him, his eyes unconsciously avoiding a certain spot, but with no other options available, he headed towards the flowers. There, Tommy was wandering, head straight, pointed towards east.

With a sigh of relief, Phil lowered his elevation.

“Tommy! There you are” Phil.

He had landed a few steps behind him, his wings falling back into place. His breath was heavy.

Tommy glanced towards Phil in a daze, not quite taking in the sight of the man, then he turned back towards the trees.

“We couldn’t find you anywhere, we were worried” Phil said with a stern edge in his voice.

“Sorry...” he mumbled, not sure if Phil had caught it. His eyebrows creased as he tried to focus on the distance ahead.

“Tommy, please wait.” The man had said, reaching out a hand to grab Tommy’s arm.

Tommy looked down on the grass.

Oh, he was still walking.

Tommy stopped.

“Toms, are you okay?” now Phil was right next to him, his hand had slid down in Tommy’s own, and he was squeezing slightly.

It was grounding

Tommy had finally found it in himself to turn his head, breaking the weird aura that had entrapped him.

Phil’s eyes were on him, sky blue filled with worry and confusion. His hair was falling unevenly over his forehead, some strands had escaped the ponytail and were now sticking up in all directions. His clothes looked dishevelled and unorganized, with his  belt lopsided.

 Tommy’s chest squeezed slightly at the sight.

How fast had he flown?

The kid dropped down his head, squeezing one hand in a tight fist, the other was still firmly held in the man’s grasp. Silence fell upon them, not even the wind dared to break it.

They stood there, surrounded by the iridescent flowers and the ominous presence of the grave.

 Tommy was pretty sure his hand had started getting sweaty, but Phil did not let go. He did not let go until Tommy’s breath evened out, he did not let go until Tommy raised his head again. He did not let go until Tommy had looked him in the eyes, assuring him he felt better.

Only then, Phil released the kid’s hand.

Tommy kind of wished he didn’t, still feeling the impression of the man’s fingers on his hand. He opened and closed it, stretching his finger.

Then, he spoke, the lingering question that he had held to the tip of his tongue ever since he found the garden.

“what is this place?” it was not a demanding tone, just a whisper. If Phil didn’t want to answer, he would not pry further.

Instead of words, the man moved towards the grave, with a longing gaze. Tommy followed suit, albeit slower. Phil traced the edge of the stone with his fingers and his shoulders slumped.

His hand climbed up, now touching the statue.

“A truly magnificent creature, isn’t it?” he said to no one in particular, but Tommy nodded in acknowledgement.

“It’s an ender dragon. The guardian of the end, so they say”

Ender dragon. Tommy had heard something about it, only in passing, but held no details regarding the creature, although the name sounded pretty cool, and the figure itself was, beautiful, to say the least.

“I had a lover once.” Philza begun. Tommy could tell it was the beginning of a story, just by his tone. He knew he didn’t need to reply for now.

“I suppose it’s been a far too much since then, the memories have already faded out, no matter what i do to attempt to hold onto them.” He sighed

“But, what i do remember is a legend she  used to tell me. My dear often spoke of the mythical creature that waited at the end of it. It laid under a sea of stars, quiet, eternal. “ the edge of his lips curled slightly upwards, a soft smile at the memory.

“She devoured every story she could find, hungry for more knowledge.” He turned towards Tommy “ at some point, I remember, she even corrected an ancient text on the subject, claiming its ridiculousness” he chuckled. Then, like a switch had flipped, his gaze turned sombre, his eyebrows creased

“I have no recollection of how we came separated, i believe time did what time usually does. Everything was blurry after that, my beloved long lost to the depths of my mind. Next thing i knew, i was a king with no past, leader of a new-born country” the hand on the stone tightened

“Then one day, i had a dream. The tales she used to narrate came to me suddenly, a revelation. I woke up with this...void that plagued me from the moment i raised to the moment  i laid down. I could not bear it any longer. So, i left. I invested all my energy into searching for the end of it.  I wanted to hold on to what was left of her, see what she had only heard in tales, perhaps i would have found comfort in knowing her stories were real.“

His wings fluttered slightly behind him

“and i found it. The end, i mean. It was...” he stopped, forehead creased. “it was...” another stop, as he moved his left hand around, trying to find the right words. He waved it in dismissal

“point is. I was finally there, ready to face the guardian, in a place only named in legends. But, no one was there. Not a single scale in sight” his lips thinned in a line “i think that was when it hit me, her loss.”

He took a deep breath. Tommy could see the faintest glint of tears coming out of the man’s eyes.

“However, every cloud has a silver lining. I met Technoblade and Wilbur. I departed in search of closure, and i came back with more than what i deserved. I would not trade it for anything in the world.” He smiled towards Tommy, who looked at him with a concentrated expression.

“i built this to honour her, a way to move on and a way to always remember her.”

“a way not to lose her in time again.” Tommy said, eyes on the ender dragon, and Phil nodded. Then, the boy focused on the man’s last words.

“Wait, you built this?” he said, with wide eyes and mouth slightly open. Phil smiled and straightened himself up, boastfully

“yup” he popped the  ‘p’ at the end of it. It reminded Tommy of how Wilbur sometimes gloated about a  new song he had composed. He smiled, genuinely amazed

“That’s incredible! How? This looks incredibly realistic! “ he rambled excited. He could see Philza slowly getting rid of the sombre  aura that had surrounded him. Soon, he was laughing at Tommy’s antics, sometimes interjecting to explain how the statue came to be.

Tommy was taking in every bit of information with solemn seriousness. He wondered if, one day, Phil would teach him. After all, they had a lot of time in the future and Tommy was counting on not losing even a single minute.

Despite how much he was enjoying the conversation, the boy was reminded of why exactly he had chosen to walk in the woods. When another stab pierced his  head, making him visibly wince, Phil was telling him that they were probably supposed to head back to eat.

“do you mind if i stay here a bit longer?” he asked, stopping Philza in his tracks.

“i’m not really hungry at the moment” he continued, trying to explain himself. Phil had just smiled and spread his wings, ready to take off

“alright, but please be back before sundown. And don’t wander off! My heart has taken too many hits lately” he used a hand to ruff the boy’s hair and then left.

Tommy was, once more, alone in the quiet of the garden.

He yawned.

The flowers looked very comfortable, shining under the warm sun. And his eyelids felt heavier after the talk with Phil.

It looked like a good place to take a nap, in all honesty.

Slowly, he lowered himself onto the ground. The flowers felt soft and the petals tickled his skin, in a nice way.

Before he knew it, he had fallen asleep, safely guarded by the legendary creature towering over him.

The boy sits across the woman, clumsily picking up flowers from his basket. They left the stem longer on purpose. Slowly, the woman brings two flowers together, intertwining the stems with ease. The boy follows her guide smiling. He can feel the sun shining on him.

Soon, he has a flower crown in his hands.

The woman is leaning her head, and the boy places his creation on her.

“Thank you my little stardust”

And the boy’s chest is so warm when the woman does the same with him.

“yay! We match!” the boys says, looking up at her with wide eyes full of life.

She replies and brings him in for a hug. He can smell the flowers on her.

The boy feels safe.

Chapter Text

When Tommy reached the castle once more, walking through the vast corridors, many people greeted him with glee. It kind of made him forget the nostalgia he felt for the summer house, despite being there only for a couple of days.

However, being back also meant Phil was no longer as easily approachable. He was often swept by papers and documents and dragged around by a councilor in need of sudden assistance. Surprisingly, even the princes had duties to attend to, so Tommy was on his own.

With nothing better to do, he had decided to go bother Tubbo, who was probably In the smithy, pestering poor Sam to build whatever devilish project the teen had in mind.

With confident steps, Tommy reached the building situated just outside of the castle, in the inner courtyard.

“Hiya Sam!” he greeted, moving his head around.

Sam looked up from his anvil, removed his goggles and smiled with his eyes. His actual smile was always covered by the mask he never seemed to take off. It wrapped around his lower half of the face, covering both his mouth and nose. Tommy had heard it was enchanted and it allowed him to breathe around other people, without the potential for danger.

Much like many people in the castle, he was an hybrid, of what Tommy was unaware. A clear tell of mixed heritage was the color of his eyes: a dark green took the place of the usual white sclera and a almost neon green shined around his pupil. His eyebrows overtook perfectly the role to show emotions,  which made him quite the open book.

“Tommy! Great to see you bud, what brings you here?” the man replied, leaving the hammer on a table next to him

Tommy cleared his voice “ uhm actually, I’m looking for Tubbo, have you seen him?”

Sam thought for a minute, tapping his finger on his forehead and smearing it with some black powder in consequence. Then he shook his head

“I think saw him pass by earlier. He might be headed to Ranboo’s at the local market, he was muttering something about merchants and whatnot. I think if you run, you might catch up to him at the gate. “ he stated, pointing in a direction with his gloved hand.

Tommy thanked him and headed towards the gates without much thought. Just as Sam had said, Tubbo was at the entrance, ready to get out.

“Tubs!” Tommy yelled to get his attention. Upon hearing his name, the teen turned around, curls bouncing in the movement, and gleamed when he recognized the caller

“Tommy. Hi!” he said as Tommy jogged up to him, his voice made it apparent that he was actually glad to see his friend

“are you headed out as well?” the boy asked, but Tommy shook his head

“Actually, I was looking for you” he panted and Tubbo smiled, flapping his hands while he spoke

“Oh! That’s nice to hear! I was actually about to go meet Ranboo and help them with some shopping, would you like to come with? I could show you the town after that!”

“YEAH let’s go” Tommy replied without missing a beat.

“Amazing! We should hurry then, I’m already a bit late” Tubbo turned around, and skipped across the gate, greeting the guards in passing.

Tommy followed suit, but, upon reaching the arch of the exit, froze.

The realization of the action dawned on him.

He had never been outside of the castle before. Well, not in the city, at least. He did not remember the king forbidding him to, but he had not given him permission either.

Was he allowed outside? Would it have made the king upset?

The boy’s forehead creased with doubts, unsure if his actions would have consequences in the long run. He rocked in place, in and out of the imaginary limit he had placed in the area.

Was it worth risking it, just to hang out with his friends? He was sure Phil would not mind it, right?

His muttering was suddenly stopped as a hand reached for him dragging him along.

“Toms! I said we’re late!” Tubbo reprimanded tugging at the boy’s arm

To steady himself and avoid a clumsy fall, Tommy took a step forward with both feet, crossing the boundary he had been trying to previously enforce.

Immediately guilt weighted on his shoulder as he was forced to take one more step outside. Then another, and another, until the castle was further away than the town.

He shivered, glancing at the entrance. His stomach twisted with mixed emotions, but what towered over it was something he had not felt in a while:  dread.

He should go back.

They don’t like it when he leaves.

He tried to take a step backward, senses in alarm all of a sudden, feeling caged by Tubbo’s hand.

He turned towards his friend, ready to say something  but stopped.

“We’re almost there, just follow me!” Tubbo’s smile was in Tommy’s vision, bright, excited, along with the outline of some colorful houses. The hybrid’s hand had now lowered itself onto Tommy’s who would feel the callouses of his hard work.

And how could he turn back when his friend was this happy?

He focused on the cheerful chatter that began to rise around him, rather than his own thoughts.

Up in his room, at first, Tommy had been able to tell that the townsfolks felt safe here. Seeing it up close, however, felt completely different.

Now that they had reached what looked like a busy street, for all Tommy knew, laughter could be heard easily.

Tommy caught sight of some kids, playing with a circle on the street, then he sniffed the scent of fresh bread that fluttered in the area and was coming from a lovely bakery, next to what looked like a flower shop.

The walls of the houses were decorated and colorful, the windowsills were adorned with flower pots or laundry set to dry on random ropes.

“We’re almost there” Tubbo urged Tommy, still holding his hand to guide him. Internally, the teen thanked him, because he was too busy looking around rather than following the intended street.

Last thing he wanted was getting lost.

What Tommy thought was a busy area, soon turned to a sea of people. Women were hurrying from side to side, merchants were yelling for someone to buy, figures chatted along the street and shoulders bumped into him.

 He tightened  his grip on the hand, he could feel his palms sweat. Sensing his friend tense up, Tubbo tapped with his thumb, probably to try to reassure him.

Tommy had wished it worked, but he could feel the headache crawling behind his eyes, ready to explode. The chatter begun their murmur.

Before he could focus on it, a tall familiar figure came into view. First, they said hello to Tubs with a hug, then they turned to Tommy

“Tommy, I didn’t expect to see you here! Nice to see you man” Ranboo greeted, his tail swinging from side to side. Judging by his fidgeting hands, they didn’t look too comfortable with the surrounding situation either

“it was an impulsive decision really…” Tommy commented with a lower voice, but he caught himself and raised it “Nice to see you too boob boy.” At the nickname, Ranboo frowned softly, then he clapped his hands

“Welp, I already regret you being here.” A chuckle from both him and Tommy “Should we start with the shopping? ” Ranboo pointed in a random direction.

“I would like to get it done as soon as possible” he finished. And oh boy, did Tommy feel the same.

 Tubbo jumped in place, smiling mischievously.

“Time to do so bargaining.” He said confident

Ranboo sighed “please don’t. Last time you almost made a poor merchant go bankrupt!”

Now, THAT sounded like a Tubbo thing to do.

“Not my fault he doesn’t know how to do business boo” Tubbo rebuked

“It’s not business  if you threaten them!” Ranboo replied with a high pitched voice which was only met with a cocky shrug from his friend.

Tommy laughed at the antics, doing his best to focus on his friends, rather than let his eyes dart around and consequentially panic.

Tubbo had let go of his hand unfortunately, so the teen tried his best to stay behind them. The waves of people threatened to separate the group and the chatter inside his own head had slowed Tommy down.

He knew that everything was getting too loud, but he didn’t want to ruin the fun, so he pushed on.

Soon, the boys had reached a small shop. Outside the sign read “ the vital compass” and in small under it “ Fundy’s apothecary” , surrounded by sculpted leaves and some hand painted bees. The front of the building looked rustic, all made from a dark wood that left no place for any windows.

“I just need to buy some stuff and a packet of beeswax for my moms and then we’ll be good “ Ranboo said and entered the shop. His friends followed suit.

The chiming of a bell warned the shopkeeper of the customers’ arrival. At first, all Tommy heard was the sound of glass shatter, then he saw was a blur of red and oranges scurry towards the counter. He heard the clinking of some bottles and then

“Hi! Welcome to The vital compass, how may I help you?” the person said with practiced professionalism. Tommy was surprised at the youth in his voice, he had expected someone older to run the shop.

Instead, as they approached the counter, a guy that looked no more than a couple of years older than them, smiled. Tommy could immediately tell he was an hybrid, thanks to the foxlike ears and the fluffy tail behind him. He was sporting a polite grin, but his face was spotted with green stains that travelled all the way to his clothes. The white apron had the worst of it, mixed with some purple stain as well, but some of the green had gotten onto the black shirt he wore underneath, probably ruining it forever.

Ranboo took a step forward and the guy’s eyes widened and his shoulders relaxed

“Ranboo, hello! The usual am I correct?” he asked, already reaching for something underneath the counter

“Hi Fundy, yes please. Also, do you happen to have some beeswax left? Mama wants to make candles” Ranboo asked, reaching for the coin purse on his hip.

The guy, Fundy, straightened up and placed a paper bag onto the counter. He then puckered his lips pensively

“mh, i think I might have some left in the back, but I do need to check” he said, and walked towards a door “ please make yourselves comfortable, this might take a while” he continued and disappeared in the other room, which was probably storage.

Since Tommy was physically unable to sit still for more than a minute, he quickly started to wander in the shop, hand drifting over all of the shelves with stuff on it. There were jars, bottles, baskets, all filled with things Tommy did not recognize, save for some exceptions like ginger roots and mint.

Meanwhile Ranboo and Tubbo had gotten into a silent argument over where to head to next. Tubbo was adamant they had to bring Tommy to the alchemist But ranboo insisted they had to see the public garden First

Honestly Tommy felt already exhausted after the first shop, but did not vocalize it, afraid to ruin his friends’ mood.

Not wanting to interrupt them, Tommy tried to keep himself entertained. Soon enough, the lights in the shop felt like too bright, which led to a jolt in his head, which brought more tension behind his eyes. He pressed the heels of his palms to his eyes to ease the pressure, but only caused the voices to scream more.

Needing some fresh air and ,possibly natural lighting, Tommy turned to his friends

“Do you mind if I wait outside, it’s… getting too warm in here” Ranboo and Tubbo did not look convinced by his excuse, but knew better than to question him when he needed some space, so they shrugged.

“Want me to come with you for company?” Tubbo asked, getting up from his chair. Tommy shook his head.

“thank you for the thought but it’s not necessary, I will stay nearby” he said and his friend sat back down, with an understanding nod.

The fresh air hit Tommy like a truck, but so did the noises all around him.

 At least the light was not violently punching his eyes here. With a sigh, he sat on the ground, propping his back against the firm wood of the wall. He let the air fill his lungs in and tried to draw out the sounds. Many people passed in front of him. Some gave him a curious look, others an annoyed one.

For the first time, Tommy realized how uncommon being an hybrid was. Since he was always surrounded by peculiar beings, seeing humans like him felt odd. The sight of tails or ears or other hybrid-like features was scarce in the mass that passed by.

He scanned the crowd, trying to spot as many as he could to pass the time.

Human; human; human; fluffy ears!

Human; green skin; human; human

Human; human; hood ; human

Wait

He did a double take towards the cloaked figure that walked in the crowd, head low and a hurried pace.

 They slithered between the people with the skill of a thief. Tommy swore he caught sight of something familiar as the person passed by, fingers around the hood to keep it down. Around the middle one, a small green ring. The light had bounced off of it, hitting Tommy in the eyes, catching his attention.

From where he was sitting, it was too small to actually see, but something inside him buzzed and urged him to move.

Tommy jolted upwards and began his slow chase.

He tried his best to keep up with the mysterious figure. His shoulder hit various passersby  making him flinch. However, he kept his eyes glued on the dark hood.

After a sharp turn, the crowd thickened and, despite Tommy’s height, the view became more obstructed. He tried to hurry his pace, now using his elbows to move the people in his path, apologizing right after.

Another sharp turn.

The cloaked figure now barely in sight.

Tommy’s head protested this sudden exercise, the buzzing clearly getting more irritated and the headache pushing behind his eyes.

All of a sudden a ray of light, probably reflecting off off of the mirror in the nearby barber shop, hit Tommy’s sensitive pupils. On instinct, he closed his eyes briefly but when he opened them again, the figure was gone, lost in the myriad of people In the street.

Tommy stopped in his tracks, looking around quickly, but no sign of the person.

He tried to reach the end of the street. As he did so, he looked in the alleyways on the side in a hopeful attempt, but he found nothing.

With a slump in his shoulders, he sighed.

That sucked, he should probably go back to Fundy’s.

Which way was it again?

In the hurry to catch the figure, Tommy had not considered memorizing the path he took.

Dumb move.

He scoffed. He knew he had a great sense of direction, obviously, so how hard could it be to find the way back.

Apparently a lot.

After who knows how many minutes, Tommy’s head had become the greatest obstacle in his search. It pounded hard, worsened by the crowd-induced anxiety and the boy’s attempt to remember the way.

Tommy needed quiet, that much he knew.

Luckily for Tommy, it seemed that his wandering had led him to a less popular area. Not that it was a positive thing, considering that the shop was supposed to be in a busy street, but at least he could catch a break.

Quickly, Tommy slipped in a dark alleyway, getting as far as possible from the noise.

Again, probably not the smartest move for the average person, but he knew how to kick ass so it didn’t bother him as much.

He made his way into the depth of the small area, his jaw clenched tight from the pain.

Tommy expected to find nothing at the end of it, instead he noticed a broken sign on top of a old-looking door. In faded ink it said

“the collector’s archives-bookshop”

Perfect.

The teen ignored whether the shop was open or not, and he pushed the door open, slipping inside the building.

Without windows, the room was softly lit by wall mounted candles, which in an area full of paper was probably not the best move but who was he to judge.

An old chime clinked and the sound bounced off the dusty shelves, all filled to the brim with papers, books and scrolls. Even on the stone floor books piled up in tall stacks, rivaling the bookcases. A ladder missing a few steps was pressed against one of them.

With how small the room was, Tommy wondered how someone was supposed to navigate it. Curious, he took a step forward. He reached for the covers of the books, barely being able to read the title. As soon as his finger brushed against the cover, a cough came from behind him, making the poor boy jump with a yelp.

“May a help you?” a feeble voice made itself known in the area

With his heart beating hard in his chest, Tommy turned around.  He had to look down in order to see the owner of the voice, and possibly, the owner of the shop itself.

An old lady stood there.

The gravity of time had made her curl over, leaning on a wooden cane for support. Around her head she wore a gold and brown bandana that popped against the neat grey bun in which she kept her hair in. Her face was wrinkled to the point Tommy could barely see her eyes. One eyebrow was raised in question, letting the boy see the deep green of her eyes, filled with the life her body was lacking.

Her smile was polite, completely business.

Her outfit was simple, brown as well with golden accent. A pair of glasses was hanging from her neck, with a string tied around it to keep them in place.

Her hands were big and looked younger than the rest of the woman, but they were scarred around the fingers. Tommy wondered what kind of story it would be if he were to ask her about it.

The pep in her tapping foot probably suggested it was probably something uncommon. And also that Tommy was supposed to speak.

“uhmm…hi, I’m Tommy.” He said shyly raising a hand in hello. He pointed towards the door and begun to ramble

“Sorry, I saw the sign, I don’t know if you were open giving the state of it, not that there was anything wrong with it! It was a lovely sign, great ambience, ten out of ten…anyway I probably should have knocked now that I think about it or  asked at least, it was not polite of me, or of anyone really…if someone came into my house like that and started touching my stuff ouch haha…not that I touched anything! I just got here, but you probably already know that and-“

The lady cleared her throat.

“right sorry. I was trying to find a quiet place and I saw the sign and I love books so here I am” he finished quickly while slightly rocking in place.

The lady smiled softly at that.

“ Nice to meet you Tommy, you may call me Theresa.”

What a nice name

“ You are welcome to stay as much as you like, it has been a long time since I last saw youngsters in my shop, especially ones that like reading” she said with a hoarse voice.

Tommy saw her slowly approaching a chair nearby. She sat down, placed the cane nearby and picked up a book that was open on the pile next to it.

Tommy smiled and turned around to look at the books. He saw many titles he did not recognize, which was odd, considering the royal library had the largest book collection in the continent.

“How did you find so many unique books?” the question came naturally and he turned around to see her reply.

Theresa raised her head from the book, her eyes wrinkled even more as she smiled.

“It was a passion of mine, years of collecting and searching. It was not an easy feat” she said, glancing at her hands and suddenly Tommy wanted to hear more about it. What kind of stories could this woman have lived in her lifetime?

Instead of prying, Tommy asked a more polite question.

“which one is your favorite?”

The old lady fell silent, pondering the answer. She shook her head

“I could not tell you my boy, too many to remember. However I could tell you which one was the hardest to retrieve, if you wanted to hear about it”

Of course

“of course!”

The lady chuckled at the enthusiasm. She slowly raised herself from the chair and made her way to the bookshelves. Like she had everything memorized she plucked a book from a pile with incredible expertise. The pile wobbled briefly, but kept on standing.

“In my village, there was a tale of an ancient kingdom.” Theresa started, waving off the dust from the title.

“This kingdom was ruled by a power seeking tyrant: Prime. In his search for greatness, the man defied nature and created a…being. He believed the being could be controlled, but its greed far surpassed the one of its maker. Prime was killed by his own creation. Hungry for more power, the being begun to expand its reach, gaining followers and claiming the title of god for its own. The religion spread like the plague, oppressing the nearby territories. Eventually the people grew tired and angry. Anger often leads to war. And so, the cult was defeated and the being vanished. Every trace of it ever existing disappeared from Earth. Everything, except this”

She held out the book for Tommy to reach.

Despite the size, it was heavy. The cover was deep green, made from leather. The corners were sturdy with gold and at the center, with a fancy writing, the title shined of a similar color

 “Dwale’s commandments”

Tommy shivered at the woman hushed tone.

“ I was looking for ruins, spent decades trying to locate one. And when I did, I was overjoyed. I did not expect the traps in it to still work” her fists tightened at her sides “ but I found it in the end.”

Tommy opened the book, the pages yellowed by time. The smell of dust prickled his nose. His eyes focused on the first page, the first phrase, the first words. It echoed in his head with uncanny familiarity

“He who dreams shall be the only creature to deserve the epithet of Deus”

A voice that was not his own read it in his head.

He who dreams.

His eyes widened as his mind pictured a stone mask. An everlasting smile.

The clutch on the book tightened as a new  unpleasant memory had unfolded in the boy’s mind.

He could feel his body shaking and the once warm library became cold. However his body felt like burning and his knees threatened to give out.

The lady must have noticed his ghastly expression

“are you alright?” she asked with a worried voice, eyebrows creased in her expression

Tommy gulped and tensely nodded. Slowly, he focused his gaze back on her, trying to ground himself. Having a breakdown in front of a stranger was not polite.

“uhm…” he tried and cleared his voice but it still sounded shaky “I know this book is imp-important to you” he breathed out “but would it be okay if I borrowed it? I can bring it back I swear! “ he said desperate.

He needed to show it to Phil, it was a clue, something about his past, he needed to know more about it.

Theresa looked at him, face unreadable. Then, she smiled sympathetically 

“ you may keep it, I think you might need it more than me. Besides, I’m too old to care about earthly possessions.”

If Tommy had been less in a crisis he would have deemed the woman his favorite person and would have probably hugged the life out of her. For now, a huge thank you was all he could muster up and the promise to come back to see her again.

With a certain urgency, Tommy apologized to the old lady, who told him she did not mind, and left the shop.

With the book held tightly against his body, Tommy hurried back to Fundy’s. This time he asked for directions from different people, trying to look as normal as possible.

After a few failed attempts and some scowls, he managed to find the way.

At the entrance of the shop a very panicked Ranboo was pacing and talking while a tense Tubbo was yelling at them

“HOW COULD WE LOSE HIM” Tommy managed to hear in the distance and he saw Tubs throw his hands in the air.

With a jog, Tommy approached the two. When his friends finally saw him, they quite literally threw themselves at him, pulling him in a hug. Tommy’s knees wobbled under him, the tension in his body releasing slightly.

His friend’s voices drowned his own thoughts.

Ranboo was rambling about how worried they were about him while Tubbo was scolding him for running off.

Despite the brief relief from seeing his friends care so much about him, the teen had to interrupt them. He  pushed the book forward to give himself some space and show it to the duo at the same time.

“Guys, we need to go back to the castle."

Chapter Text

Technoblade was being dragged to yet another meeting despite his various complaints.

Ever since the royals had been back, one issue after the other seemed to have appeared in the empire. First, some wildfires in the outskirts of the capital, then a pestilence hitting the cattle of southern regions. This time there were rumors about a drought in the northern areas.

In the past they  had easily dealt with issues like these, after all the empire was known to have many resources, but the timing of it all seemed odd to the prince.

Some scouts had been sent to check the cause of the wildfires and they had returned confirming it was nothing but a natural occurrence due to summer temperatures.

Still, Techno felt uneasy and the voices appeared to agree with  him.

As he was making his way through the corridor, to meet with an ambassador from the north as well as his brother, a bundle of purple particles appeared at the end of it, followed by a familiar head of golden hair.

Tommy!

The voices were murmuring happily, glad to see him, but they halted their chatter once Techno caught notice of the boy’s gaze. His blue irises darted around the area quickly, with his eyes blown wide and a red tint around the corners.  His friends appeared to be on edge as well, but not as much as him.

Techno stopped himself from reaching his sword on instinct, assessing whether the danger was nearby.

Finally, Tommy’s eyes fell on him, widening in recognition. Quickly, he jogged towards Techno, almost falling in the urgency. He was  clutching what looked like a book tight to his chest.

So, not an immediate threat then. Techno’s hand lowered from his scabbard.

Tubbo and Ranboo were quickly behind the blond teen, all three of them were rambling about something, their voices overlapping making it harder to understand  the actual words.

“woah woah, one at the time” Techno tried to calm them down. It seemed to have worked on anyone but Tommy, who kept on rambling about cults and memories. His legs were shaking and his curls clung to his forehand  with sweat.

Techno placed both hands on his shoulders, grounding him.

“Toms, what happened, are you okay?”

Tommy finally focused on him, eyebrows brought together.

He saw the boy take a shaky breath, lower lip trembling.

“I- I think I might have found something. About my past? We nee-“

His eyes said more than Techno needed to hear

“Say no more. Follow me, I was supposed to meet with Will, we can call for dad on the way”

Techno interrupted. Tommy nodded and followed him to the meeting room, leaving his friends behind with a hurried goodbye.

Wilbur was tapping his foot loudly against the floor, while leaning on Tommy’s chair, where Tommy was sitting, still clutching the book as if it would disappear out of thin air if he had let go of it. On his right, Techno stood rigid, waiting for their father to come through the door, occasionally sending worried glances at the teen, who had yet to speak again.

Hurried steps could be heard outside and soon a blurry of feathers and green erupted through the door.

Techno could see the tension in his wings as he strode forward, approaching the table

“Is everyone alright? Did something happen?” he asked, his eyes landing on Tommy’s trembling figure.

Techno caught his gaze and silently told him it was not an active emergency.

“Tommy, how about you tell him what you have found?” Techno invited gently, patting his head.

Tommy nodded stiffly, he placed the book onto the table. The deep green of the cover complimented the dark wood, but the golden accents and edges shone brighter under the light. Techno caught himself before he could let out a grumble.

Meanwhile Phil, who had gotten to his left, read the golden title out loud

“Dwale’s commandments? What is this?”

His voice was unsure and low.

Tommy tensed, moving his chair closer to the table.

“ I was at the market-“

“ you went at the market alone?!” Wilbur interrupted, Techno shot him a glare

“I was not alone, Ranboo and Tubbo were with me! At least at first…” Wilbur scoffed

Phil frowned

“We will discuss this matter later, do not worry. Please Tommy, go on”

Techno doubted they would, but did not say it.

“As I was saying. I was with my friends at first, but then we got separated and I found this library? It was run by this really old lady and it had all sorts of rare books and scrolls. She told me she had collected them herself throughout the years”

“an adventurer?”

“ I don’t know. In any case, we were talking and she told me a legend of a kingdom. I think its king was called Prime?” He looked up to Phil, who shook his head

“ Long story short, this Prime dude had made a creature that then betrayed him and begun to create a religion of sorts. For some reason the being disappeared and so did everything about this supposed religion. Everything, except this.” He tapped on the book

Techno’s lips thinned in a line.

“what does this have to do with you?”

“I thought the same at first. Then I opened the first page” Tommy said as he opened the book, but his movement was slow, tentative.

“And suddenly, it was like I already knew its content…these commandments were- they were taught to me” Tommy’s voice broke at the last part, a visible shiver ran through him. His eyebrows drew closer together and his hand came pressing at his temple.

“I remember a desk- and a voice instructing me” a hiccup halted his narration, but he pushed through, his eyes closed tight.

Techno had a feeling he would not like the direction where the  story was headed.

“And there was this stick, a pointer. I tried getting the answers right- I really did-“ another hiccup shook his whole body. The boy brought his arms around himself, tightening his grip around the fabric of his clothes“ but everything hurt- there was- there was so much blood and i-“

Tommy full on started sobbing, loudly, his eyes now wide open looking at his hands, but not really focused on them.

“I- tried to- I’m sorry- I”

He was getting lost in his mind, Techno had to stop him before it was too late, but he was too caught up in his own emotions.

Whoever these people, these bastards, were they needed to pay. Techno would make them pay.

The voices stirred, blurring his vision. His fists tightened at his sides. He could see a similar look on his twin.

His father, however, was a far wiser man.

Without missing a beat, he kneeled on the ground, turning Tommy’s chair so he could face him. His wings sprawled on the ground.

He pulled the boy into his arms, caressing his hair, and telling him softly that he was safe.

His stance was welcoming, relaxed, but Techno could see the ice, the pure hatred that had pooled in his eyes. He envied the man’s ability to stay collected.

At first Tommy was frozen, then his arms fell around the man, clutching desperately at the fabric of his shirt while he wept on his shoulder.

For a while, nobody moved. Tommy needed some time to calm down, adjust, and in all honesty, so did they.

Techno still felt the urge to head outside and smash someone’s head open, but relented.

Finally, Tommy’s head emerged from Phil’s clutch. The boy sniffled, his eyes red and puffy from all the crying and his cheeks wet with snot and tears. His blue puddles glanced towards Techno, who immediately melted at the sight.

He leaned over Tommy, caressing his bright hair

“feeling better?” he asked.

Tommy considered the question for a moment. He released the fists that still balled Phil’s shirt, then nodded.

“do you want to take a break?” Will asked, softer than his brother ever heard him be

Tommy shook his head and gulped

“No… I ca- have to do this” he croaked and turned himself towards the book again. Phil turned with him, but kept his hand on Tommy.     

“besides the…lessons… I don’t remember much. It was cold, the place I was in. I can still feel the chill of the floor. The sun could not get in to warm me.”

“it could have been somewhere underground” Phil said. A simple hypothesis, but it made Techno’s gut churn at the thought. Tommy loved laying outside to sunbathe, taking in as much warmth and light as possible.

“If this cult was believed to have disappeared, then it means they want to stay hidden, so it would make sense” Techno interjected with a pained expression

“However, why keep a child in their grasps? If they intend to lurk in the shadow why teach you to fight?” Will asked

“ My guess is as good as yours.” Tommy shrugged, wetness still stained his cheeks.

“could there be more like Tommy?”

“this could become a threat to the empire”

“could they be related to the rebellions happening?”

“Or the disasters we have been experiencing lately”

“but why now? After all these years, why now? Why us?

“Boys, enough. All this speculation won’t bring us anywhere. We need to gather information”  Phil reasoned, gaining his sons attention. His eyes were resolute now, he knew what the firsts steps would be. The hybrid had always admired that quality in his father, his ability to keep himself levelheaded enough to guide others. That was what had made his a great leader in the battlefield and a great king in the empire.

“Techno, ask Quackity’s guild to investigate. I know you have ties with them.” The prince didn’t bother arguing, simply nodding at the king’s order.

“Will, check the library and see if you can find something useful.” Will looked determined enough

“I will try to check in with the neighboring countries. Perhaps Badboyhalo might know more than we do.”

Techno was not too fond of the Badlands, but they had signed a peace treaty a while back, when the new sovereign had taken the throne, and so far no attempt of retaliation had been made so they could be trusted.

Techno sensed Tommy shift

“What about me?” he asked

Phil looked at him, concern visibly showing

“you should take a break, look after yourself.”

“No way. I want to help too!”, he said with conviction. “this is about me, I should be allowed to help!” Techno understood his sentiment. He saw Phil give in.

“Fine. You can locate the lady where you got the book from. She clearly knows more than we do.”

Tommy beamed at that

“But. You’re not going alone. And, as much as I trust Ranboo and Tubbo, they have no experience in case of battle. I will inform Puffy to come with you.”

The boy groaned

“ I don’t need a babysitter. I can fight well enough on my own.”

Well enough was an understatement in Techno’s opinion. However, Phil did not budge

“no, you’re right. But that doesn’t mean you should. So either you let the councilor come with or you don’t go at all.”

He used his formal tone with this one, and Techno knew Tommy had no other option but accept and so did the boy.

“fine” he mumbled.

“Thank you Tommy. Now, I know we’re not in the best mood, but I am quite hungry. How about we head off to lunch?”

Lunch was a simple affair, the cooks had not prepared many items for the meal. Tommy suspected the king had ordered them not to, opting for a less heavy supper.

Tommy was thankful for that. He had barely managed to finish his plate, his stomach already heavy with anxiety.

He looked at the princes and he noticed they seemed in no better state. Techno was stabbing the meat in his place repeatedly, while Wilbur was rolling a potato in his plate with his fork.

Phil must’ve caught on the somber mood, but made no effort to lighten it up. Perhaps he too was deep in thought from the recent revelation.

Tommy was not aware that the king was actually plotting several ways to torture those who had dared to lay their hands on his boy.

After the plates had been removed and the table cleared by the maids, the princes rose quickly and left the room, heading to their respective mission of the day.

Tommy waited at the table, until the king stood up as well, instructing him to follow. With no one uttering a word, they made their way to the study.

There, a woman stood.

She was familiar, Tommy had seen her before in the premise of the office several times. She kneeled in front of the king, her white hair bouncing in the movement. The side of her head was marked by a pair of sturdy horns that wrapped on themselves.

Tommy recognized the hybrid from the stories Tubbo sometimes told about his aunt.

“no need for formalities, my friend.”

Puffy raised her gaze at Phil’s command. Then, she smiled and left her position, straightening herself.

“Puffy, this is Tommy. Tommy, meet lady Puffy. She’s my right hand in the council.” He looked at her fondly. Tommy wondered how long they had known eachother for.

“It is a pleasure to officially meet you Tommy.” Her hand was sturdy and her handshake strong. Tommy felt himself relax at her presence. It felt familiar in a way to that of Phil.

“the pleasure is mine lady”

“oh please, call me Puffy. No one calls me lady except the old man here” she joked.

Tommy’s eyes widened. It was rare to see someone outside of the princes, refer to the king so casually.

Phil chuckled

“ you have earned your title, it is only right for me to honor your efforts” he explained politely

She waived her hand dismissively

“Yeah yeah, whatever. So how may I assist you?” she asked, her mood shifting to something more professional.

“I would like for you to accompany Tommy at the town’s market.” He phrased it like a favor, but the woman knew it was an order.

“as you wish” she said immediately “when shall we depart?” Puffy turned towards Tommy, her  green eyes glittered like silver.

Tommy hummed “ I think we could go now if that’s okay?”

“The sooner we’re done, the sooner we can rest. That’s what I always say at least” she chuckled. Her movements were delicate, but Tommy could see the energy behind them, much like the one he could see behind Tubbo’s.

“then I wish you a safe stroll. Be careful, we don’t want you getting lost again” Phil warned, smiling at him.

“not like I intended to get lost the first time” Tommy huffed with a whisper and a pout. The king chuckled. Damned enhanced hearing.

“ do not worry your highness, I will keep my eyes on him” Puffy reassured the man with a wink.

Phil smiled “I know you will”

And so, they left the study, Puffy with a pep in her steps, Tommy a bit behind with his shoulders hunched over.

It didn’t take them much to reach the gates of the castle. The whole walk Tommy did not open his mouth, lost in his own head. Puffy did not seem to mind, simply carrying on forward until they were well on their way to the town.

The now familiar route felt shorter than the first time, or maybe Tommy was just walking quicker.

Soon, they had reached Fundy’s. Now, it was up to Tommy to dictate the direction. He followed the same streets that he had taken earlier in the day, surprised when less people were in the way.

Puffy, followed silent behind him, mentally remembering the way for future references.

After another sharp turn Tommy faced the alleyway once more.

“here we are.” He said out loud and walked towards the end of it.

He glanced at the crooked sign outside quickly, then he opened the door with more confidence than the first time.

His shoulder sagged profusely when, instead of densely filled bookshelves and timid lighting, he was met with the darkness of an empty room. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

He closed the door with a snap and looked back at the sign. Tommy let out a yelp when he noticed that the run down piece of wood missed the ink that marked the place.

“that’s not…”

Puffy tilted her head, long ears lowering

“are you sure this is the place?” she asked

Tommy’s hand tightened around the handle. He three the door open again, half expecting the old lady to magically appear in front of him.

There was no way a whole library could disappear out of thin air. But he was sure this had been the right place. Even the position of the torch holders was the same!

“Maybe you remembered incorrectly?” Puffy asked with a sympathetic tone.

Tommy felt his jaw clench at the woman’s words.

“It was here! Right here!” he yelled, making Puffy flinch at the sudden burst of tension.

He almost felt guilty, but the boiling in his stomach prevented him from feeling it.

“Calm down Tommy, we can still find it, it could be another street down.” Again, Puffy spoke softly. It made Tommy’s blood boil even more

“Don’t tell me to calm down!” he yelled again, his fist connecting with the door before he could even realize. The wood cracked and bended under his hit and the impact made the hinges give up. Puffy jumped in place when the door was sent flying across the empty room.

Silence fell between them.

Soon, Tommy’s anger was overcome by another emotion. He begun to pace around, bringing his hand up to his hair to tug at a loose strand.

It didn’t make sense!

He muttered half out loud and half to himself.

Was it magic? Did he have an hallucination?

But the book was real…

His pacing became more frantic.

How was he supposed to return the book now? Would they be able to find her? Would she even want to be found? Why him, why now?

He bit his lip hard, his stomping slowed down, then stopped completely.

He had lost his only reliable trail to his past. He should’ve asked more. He should’ve done more. He should’ve predicted it. He should’ve-

A sobs tore through him.

It was not the time to cry, not again, but his eyes seemed to disagree.

Why was he so useless?

He fell to the ground, hands around his head.

“fuck-“ he whimpered, letting his intrusive thoughts almost take over.

Suddenly a splash of cold water fell on him, shaking him awake. Puffy, who apparently had quietly watched the whole scene, had just dumped on him the entire contents of her waterskin. At his surprised and, honestly a bit offended glare, she plopped right down next to him.

“why did you do that!” he half yelled in a high pitched voice. She huffed, looking deeply into his eyes with a hint of mischief and concern

“you were going bonkers man” her chuckle was soft

Tommy raised an eyebrow

“And that gave you the right to drown me?” maybe he was a bit overdramatic but he had just gone on an emotional rollercoaster so maybe he was allowed some dramatics.

“Made you feel better, did I not?”

Tommy took in the fact that his shaking had stopped and his head felt somewhat clearer. Huh.

“I thought so” he made an offended noise, scrunching his nose and lowering his eyebrows.

She giggled, bringing her knees up to prop her head on her arm, her face turned at him “gosh you’re like a carbon copy of him”  Puffy’s tone was fond.

“Who?”

“Phil.” She said like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Tommy almost spoke to disagree. He, a bundle of insecurities and confusion, was the furthest thing from the reassuring king. She said something first, stealing his chance to rebuke

“The unshakable general of the soldiers, but in reality he too had his…moments” Tommy found it hard to picture a distraught Philza, breathing heavily into his knees with reddened eyes.

“he used to deal with them alone most of the times. Then one day I found him in quite the predicament and water seemed the only thing that woke him up. He was so offended after!” she laughed out loud

“ he was soaked from head to toe, with his bangs all stuck  to his forehead, and the funniest pout on his face” That, tommy could imagine. She chuckled again, her white curls bouncing with the movement.

“ I see him a lot in you and I think he does as well” she said softly “ He seems happier with you here, they all do.” Tommy gulped at the sudden affection in her tone

“you care a lot about Phil, huh” he stated. She perked up and smiled

“Of course! I owe everything to him, pledged my life to him an all” she mentioned casually, then she spoke more serious

“He’s the reason that we are here now, that the empire stands where it is today. He’s truly a marvelous ruler.” The admiration in her voice was genuine.

Phil had found the right people by his side and perhaps, Tommy had found them too.

“so, now that we got over the sad, shall we go search for clues around?”

“let’s go.”

Chapter Text

No one in town had any recollection of neither the small library in the alley nor the quirky old lady running it.

Tommy and Puffy had walked around until their legs hurt from the effort, asking questions to as many people as possible. They had managed to gather little to no information.

Not a single soul had been aware of the run-down establishment, which was odd.

Someone had to had gone there at least once, right?

Defeated, the two decided to make their way to the castle, hoping someone else had had better luck than them.

Unfortunately, it seemed the others required more time. Techno needed around a week for his contact to reach back with their findings, Phil was trying to set a meeting with the nearby ruler as soon as possible , while Wilbur had not even managed to make a dent in the royal library. So far, nothing useful had been found, much to everyone’s displeasure.

“Isn’t it weird that the only person in the whole capital who could be of help suddenly disappeared without a trace?” Will had asked once  Tommy finished recounting his findings

“do you think she might have to do something with  what we’re looking for?” Techno had asked back, raising an eyebrow.

“i do find it odd, but no point crying over spilled milk. she’s gone, and considering how no one even believed she existed i doubt we will ever be able to find her.” Tommy groaned, pulling yet another book from the imposing shelf.

They were helping Will with the searching in the library since there were way too many books for a single person. Luckily, Techno had read a lot of them so the quantity shrunk, albeit not significantly.

Still, it helped.

“You can put that one back Toms, it’s about the development of agriculture in the country.” Techno stated from across the room. Tommy followed the hybrid’s instructions and placed the book back, moving onto the next one.

The chatter in his head was dull and made the reading far more difficult than expected.

It was a tedious job. Tommy did not know whether he was being fidgety from boredom or anxiety. Either way, it had the same effect on him, which was the tenseness in his muscles and the tapping against his thigh.

“ugh, another one about colour theory. Who needs these many!” Wilbur sighed frustrated. Tommy chuckled.

“I need a break. I’m getting antsy” Techno announced and jumped off of the ladder he was on.

“Feel you” Tommy agreed

“Want to spar?”

“Heck yeah!” oh, they hadn’t sparred in a while. Tommy was about to have an absolute blast (despite his uneasiness, he managed to win most, if not all, the matches)

The next days went by in a blur of menial tasks and flipped pages. Techno could see Tommy’s nervousness grow each passing night. More often than not he would find himself in the boy’s room, bringing him down from  yet another nightmare that had caused his thin frame to shake uncontrollably.

Ever since the memory of the so called “teaching” had renewed itself into his brother’s mind, Tommy had rarely spent a full night without tears staining his red cheeks. Although, he seemed to have no recollection of it the following morning.

Techno could not tell if it was a positive thing or not. What he knew, however, was that the voices were upset at the situation, perhaps even more than himself.

The chatter appeared to have grown fond of the boy ever since he came awake in the castle walls. Not that Techno could blame them.

He was now walking towards the common room. Phil had called a house meeting there, which was quite formal. It meant important business.

To no one’s surprise, he was the first to arrive there, which meant he could comfortably sprawl on the couch.

“not fair, stop hogging the couch!” Wilbur had barely entered the room and he was already scowling.

“Finders keepers.” Techno shrugged cockily. Wilbur’s frown deepened and he huffed, plopping himself onto the nearby chair with his arms crossed.

What a baby.

Soon after, Philza entered the room, closing the door behind himself.

Instead of sitting down, he stood in front of his sons, shifting from foot to foot. Weird, he seemed nervous. Their father was rarely nervous. Had something bad happened?

“So, i have called this meeting-“

“shouldn’t we wait for Tommy?” Wilbur interrupted.

Phil made a face.

“Tommy is not aware we are having a meeting, and i would like to keep the contents of it...between ourselves please” he had brought up a hand to fidget with his earring.

Techno’s guts churned on instinct. Had his father found something in regards to Tommy?

A high amount of possible reasons flashed through the piglin’s mind, all terrible to a degree. Philza spoke again, twisting the gem between his fingers. The movement caught Techno’s eyes and he focused on the jewel, realizing something.

His mind quieted down and a smirk made its appearance on his face.

“So. As i was saying...I would like for the discussion that is about to take place to stay between us for now.”

He looked at the twins, both of them made a nod in acknowledgment. One of them more confused and hesitant than the other.

“as you may know, Tommy has been with us a long while- ever since he came here there was never a dull moment and I feel- I feel  like he has always been a part of it. As if it was meant to be” he took a deep breath, his blue eyes focusing ahead of him

“I would like for him to be a part of the family, officially, i mean.” He breathed out all at once. Then, he promptly continued

“I know this is like a big change and you may not be ready and there is so much we still need to talk about but-“

“Dad, DAD!” Wilbur stopped the ramble with a frown on his face “Why are you even asking! We talked about it before!” he chuckled.

Techno remembered the brief ‘hypothetical’ question they had discussed back at their cabin, when Tommy had fallen asleep in front of the fireplace and Phil had been caressing his hair. With eyes full of love, he had asked them their opinion on making  Tommy a more permanent factor in the castle. Techno remembered  how his chest had filled with affection. Like it were even a choice at that point.

The simplicity with which Tommy had made a place for himself in their group spoke for itself.

“ Yeah old man, what are you waiting for. You have called him ‘your son’ multiple times already!”

 Techno added, trying not to let the glee transpire too much from his tone. He was betrayed by the happy chatter that boomed in his mind.

Their father froze, letting go of the newly added ruby on his earring. Then he beamed, wings opening up suddenly.

“Oh! I’m so elated you guys agree with me.” He chirped delighted

The man spread his arms, closing and opening his hands as an invite. Wilbur jumped in the hug. Techno feigned annoyance, but joined his family in the embrace as well.

The warmth of Phil’s arms around him felt secure and familiar. Techno chuckled as he pulled away.

“So, what are you waiting for? Go tell him!” he said with urgency

“YES YES, The sooner the better” Wilbur agreed, helping his brother push out their father.

“No no, i need to find the right time! And prepare a banquet, maybe even presents. Oh, and the necessary documents will need to be drafted...” Phil fought back. He planted his feet and turned around to face his sons, who, in vain, were trying to push him out of the door.

Techno had forgotten how stubborn and proper the man was when it came to it.

“Just promise you won’t tell him while i make  the necessary arrangements please” he pleaded to them.

Reluctantly the twins agreed, although Techno knew it would be much harder for his brother rather than himself.

With a pep in his step and a wide smile on his face, Phil left the room and marched towards his office. Techno felt the joyous aura he had left behind him in the room.

They just had to wait a bit more and soon Tommy would be officially one of them, not that they needed paperwork to prove it, but it was still nice to have the confirmation.

Tommy had sensed something shift in the castle, though he had not been able to pinpoint exactly what it was.

Perhaps it was his own anxiety talking, convincing him that every servant had been glancing his way or had hidden whispers whenever he passed nearby.

 In any case, something had changed and it was marked by the guard that had begun to take her nightly shift near his room. Granted Hannah had not explicitly said she was guarding him during the night, but she had not been subtle either.

He often bumped into her when he attempted to take a nightly walk, or simply sneak for a midnight snack. She always brushed it off as a coincidence when asked about it, but Tommy knew better.

Except, he didn’t know why there were back at keeping tabs on him. And that had made his uneasiness grow worse by the day.

His headaches plagued his days, and the nightmares infested the nights. This, combined with the shift in demeanour of the castle’s attendants, made Tommy as restless as he had been the first time in the palace.

Despite his growing worry, he did not ask about the situation to anyone, afraid to know the truth.

Tommy did not spill his anxieties, not even when Techno noticed it after a session of training. The teen had been distracted the whole day, more often than not losing to Techno, which had been rare  up until that point.

 The prince had stopped the session mid way, asking Tommy for explanations to which Tommy replied with a simple “not feeling it” and a “it’ll pass”

Except it did not pass.

After yet another failed sparring match, Techno had taken the matter into its own hands, suggesting the boy to speak to Phil regarding the situation.

“I just worry there is more you are not telling us” he had said with a frown.

“ ‘m just tired” Tommy had brushed it off, but still Techno did not relent

“Maybe sparring is not enough anymore, let’s try going to Phil. I’m sure he has stuff you could do.” He suggested with a tone that intended more than he let on. In all honesty, Tommy did not have the energy to fight it so he let himself be dragged to Philza.

The boy was waiting outside of the office, while Techno and his father conversed about private matters.

From outside, he could make out some words like “it’s time- yes” and “garden- calm”

Once they had finished their exchange, they opened the door. Instead of letting Tommy in, Phil made his way out. He was smiling.

The man was positively enthusiastic lately, which soothed Tommy’s mood slightly.

“I have an idea in mind. Follow me if you please.” The king asked in his soft voice. Tommy simply nodded and walked right next to the man.

Halfway through, Tommy realized that Techno had  not come with them.

Perhaps the king had asked him not to. For what reason, Tommy did not know.

They walked through a corridor that Tommy rarely found himself in, taking turns in a place that was unknown to him.

Despite his best judgment, he found himself anxious.

Where was Philza taking him?

A beautiful archway was passed and soon Tommy took notice of the sky and the sun. However, they were blurred by some kind of dome that encompassed the area. 

In front of him there were rows and rows of crops that grew inside enclosed spaces. Some of them were colourful flowers, other were leafy greens. Each one of the boxes had a sign stating what was growing in the soil.

Phil walked on the stony pathways to reach the centre of it all.

Tommy took the time to look around and see the growing sunflowers and the  vines that encompassed  the wooden frames that towered over the soil. However one type of crop seemed to take most of the man-made space. Tommy read the signs marking it.

“wow, that’s a lot of potatoes” he blurted out. Phil laughed

“yes, Techno likes to take care of them” he giggled fondly.

Wow, Tommy had never imagined the prince as the farmer type,  but somehow it made sense. Perhaps this was the new activity he would do?

He had never worked the soil before, it was not an easy job. Everything could be ruined  due to a single bad move. Plus, did he really have time to play farmer? There was still a lot to do in the castle.

Phil had halted in a round space that looked like the centre of the area. He turned around to face Tommy and sprawled his arms

“This is the greenhouse. Some of the vegetables we eat come from here”

Tommy spun in place.

Greenhouse. Green, check. House, check. Made sense.

“We came here because-“ Phil started a bit hesitant. Tommy interrupted him

“do i need to tend to the potatoes? Because I’m not sure if you know, I’m not the greenest thumb here big man” he said making a double thumbs up to prove a point.

Phil shook his head and tried to speak again

“No, we’re not here for that- i –“

“Woahh, what’s that behind you?” Tommy interrupted again, finally taking in a plant that was behind the man. The boy walked around Phil, to look at the massive tree better.

It towered over the round centre, probably twice Tommy’s height, with branches as thick as him. It had a light purple hue, but it looked sullen. No leaves adorned the top of it, nevermind flowers. It was as if it was dead, despite it being the middle of summer.

Tommy felt an unusual sympathy towards it. It looked sad. However, it was still a magnificent tree that left Tommy unable to draw his eyes away from it.

The mumble in his head seemed to agree with him.

“oh-“ Phil said, surprised by the sudden change of topic. He cleared his throat and moved next to Tommy

“That’s a chorus three. I brought it back with me when i visited the end. Truly a beautiful plant, with its magnificent lilac hues. But, as you can clearly see, it is not faring so well.” He sighed

“I’ve honestly tried everything to keep it alive, but it seems it missed its original environment far too much. Despite its state, i could not bring myself to remove it-“

“Can i take care of it?” Tommy said abruptly.

Better than the potatoes for sure.

Phil looked at him with both pity and surprise.

“Are you sure? As i have mentioned it has not bloomed or even sprouted ever since it came here, it is an impossible feat. Perhaps we can make you tend to easier crops like the carrots or toma-“

Tommy shook his head with conviction “no. I want this one”

He was not sure what had brought this sentiment forward. Perhaps he felt himself in need of a challenge.

This would surely make his mind occupied.

Tommy felt the man beside him shuffle and sigh

“fine, you can try to take care of it. But do not be too disappointed with the outcome” Tommy smiled at that and thanked the king profusely.

He could prove himself to be useful if he managed to fix the state of the tree!

“So, back to why i brought-“

Suddenly, a servant approached the area. Phil’s jaw clenched

“Your majesty-“

“What” the king groaned annoyed, glaring at the person, who jolted under his fiery stare. It was the first time Tommy had seen him display such emotion. It seemed Phil was surprised as well because he breathed out and cleared his throat to speak again, adjusting his expression.

“ What brings you here?” he asked with polite coldness.

The man gulped before speaking “your majesty, a letter has come from the Badlands”

That seemed to spark Philza’s interest, who immediately turned to Tommy

“i apologize, we will continue our talk at a later time.” He said and left the greenhouse in a hurry.

That left Tommy and the servant alone in front of the tree. The boy turned to the man

“so, where do you keep the gardening tools?”

Chapter Text

“I will need to leave for around a fortnight tomorrow” Phil stated as he placed the cutlery back onto the table. He slowly cleaned his lips with the gold-lined napkin, then he spoke again.

“The ruler of the Badlands has agreed for a meeting, which means i need to depart as soon as possible.”

Techno groaned from his side of the table, it was a sentiment Tommy could very well share.

“Can you not send an envoy? Why must you be the one who leaves?” The prince had asked, clearly disagreeing. Phil shoot him a fatherly glare that quickly shut the boy up.

“We all know that the information we seek is strictly confidential. We cannot trust anyone else to do it.” He stated.

Which was fair enough, but still debatable.

“then let me or Techno go!” this time it was Wilbur who protested, but his father rebuked just as fast

“no. I am the swiftest of us all. It will take you twice the time to go by horse than it would take me to fly there. We need to make haste” he said and left no more room for debate.

It was clear the princes were not used to the king leaving them in the castle. Honestly, Tommy was not fond of the idea either.

He knew that the king absence clearly meant his duties would befall onto his sons, which also meant Tommy’s sparrings and music sessions would be put in a temporary halt.

On the bright side, this also meant Tommy had more time to focus on the Chorus plant and figure out a way to make it bloom again. He could probably ask Tubbo for some tips, the boy looked like someone who knew about trees and stuff. Or he could simply search for the answer in books, like he was used to do.

Either way, Tommy was already drafting in his mind some ideas on how to revive the plant and he was eager to put them into action.

The next morning, after some needed farewells, Phil left the castle in a hurry, promising his children to be back as soon as possible.

The pit in Tommy’s stomach as Phil left made the boy hope the man would keep his word.

Soon, both Wilbur and Techno were once again swept by a mountain of royal duties, which left Tommy time to spend in the greenhouse, as predicted.

This time, Tubbo was with him, and so was Ranboo.

“Maybe we should try more water!” The brown-haired boy said as he turned around abruptly, hose turned on in hand

“Ick!” Ranboo shrieked and disappeared on instincts. The noise echoed in Tommy’s mind, making the pressure behind his eyes increase. Maybe it was not the right day for his friends’ antics.

The voices bubbled in his head, frizzing like a freshly made potion.

As Ranboo reappeared behind Tubbo, it became apparent that his reaction had not been fast enough.

“C’mon man! Watch where you point that thing!” he grouched, trying to shake off the water dripping from their hair. Tubbo chuckled and turned around to face them, repeating the movement with the hose

“Oops”

Ranboo disappeared again, only for Tommy to feel his hands on his shoulders a moment later

“Help! Protect me Tommy!” Ranboo squeezed his shoulders. Tubbo turned to face them with a malicious smirk.

Nope.

Tommy looked straight into Tubbo’s vertical pupils.  He raised an eyebrow. Tubbo’s smile widened.

Before Ranboo could even react, Tommy ducked, falling to the ground and rolling to the side. At the same time Tubbo raised the hose and ran directly at his friend, giving him a very much not needed shower.

“mercy! Mercy!!” Ranboo half choked, half laughed as he tried in vain to protect himself by raising his arms in defeat.

Tommy watched the scene with delight and a traitorous chuckle left his mouth. Tommy froze when Tubbo’s attention turned from Ranboo to focus on him.

“Don’t you da-AH!” before he could even finish his words, a spray of cold water landed on his body.

Bastard.  

His blond curls stuck to his forehead and Tommy closed his eyes on instinct, shielding himself from the jet by trying to curl onto the ground.

“I AM THE KING OF WATER! KNEEL BEFORE ME YOU MISCREADANTS !” Tubbo laughed manically

Tommy considered punching him for a second, but the water hitting him was quite distracting.

Each individual drop felt so sharp against his sensitive skin.

After what felt like an eternity, the pressure of the stream lessened and then disappeared completely. Tommy peeked from behind his hands only to see Tubbo looking at the hose with a confused expression. He shook it to try and summon  the water again, but to no avail.

In front of Tommy, Ranboo appeared and offered a hand. Tommy lifted himself up with a laugh, which was only incremented by Tubbo’s look.

Then, it was Ranboo the one to laugh.

“AH! I turned off the water!” he remarked victoriously as he pointed at his friend in mockery. Tubbo glared at him.

“Not fair.” He whined, crossing his arms.

Tommy squeezed his hair between his hands, water dripping heavily onto the ground.

“what’s not fair is that you’re all cosy and dry , while we are soaking wet” he complained.

At his side, Ranboo was shaking his head like a dog, droplets falling everywhere. They shared a look, then Tommy’s eyes fell on the goat hybrid.

Tubbo’s fate seemed to dawn on him. He raised his hands in a plea, took a few steps back and sprinted away as much as he could.

Tommy ran after him, while Ranboo teleported.

Soon enough, Tubbo was in the middle of a really wet and soggy sandwich.

“NOoo- get off-” he complained. They stayed close a couple more moments before backing off.

Having released their friend from the forced embrace, Ranboo and Tommy took a step back admiring their work. Now Tubbo was wet as well.

Not as much as the other two, but still enough to be amusing.

The group looked at eachother, then they all erupted into a fit of giggles and insults, that evolved into playful pushing.

A Sharp pain to the head and a pained moan interrupted Tommy. The boy pushed against Tubbo a bit more heavily than he had originally intended to, making the teen stumble onto the ground.

“Sorr-ugh”

 He raised his hand to clutch at his forehead, but stopped midway under the concerned stare of his friends.  

“And headache, ‘tis fine” he dismissed before they could even ask. Tubbo, who had raised back onto his feet, tried to place a hand on his shoulder for reassurance, but Tommy flinched and glared at him as another stab passed his mind.

Tubbo averted his eyes.

Tommy breathed out and locked his jaw

“Give me a sec-“

“- I think I will  go.” Tubbo interrupted “ Maybe put on some clothes that are not damp” he said, retracting the hand

Great, he and his stupid head had ruined the mood.

“yeah, i as well. Endermen and water do not really go along y’know” Ranboo excused himself, looking at the boy apologetically.

Amazing job Tommy, really.

“no wait-“ he tried to speak, but his mind fumbled on the words. Perhaps this was for the best. He could see them another day, maybe not while his head tried to kill him.

“okay” he sighed “ tomorrow?”

“sure man, another day” Ranboo reassured him and left in his usual blur of purple particles. Tubbo, on the other hand simply smiled at him and made his way to the exit.

The newfound quiet of the place seemed to ease the pressure beneath Tommy’s eyes, but his mind made up for the lost sounds on its own as the mumble mellowed  into an uncomfortable hum.

“Any progress with the plant?” Techno asked, flipping yet another page in yet another book. As much as he loved books, this was getting annoying. That and the amount of duties he had to attend to for the past week.

The voices had been uneasy ever since Phil had left.

Tommy, who was sprawled onto the couch, groaned loudly

“No. No matter what i do, nothing changes! Not even a leaf!”

“Give it time, it’s only been around a week anyway, I’m sure you got this” Techno was sure Tommy certainly did not have it, but he lied just like a good brother would do.

He needed some confidence boost anyway.

“You’re right I should-“

“GUYS! I FOUND SOMETHING” Wilbur sprinted into view, holding out a book in hand. Tommy jolted from where he was standing and soon he was right next to Wilbur. Techno did not move, both his brothers coming towards where he had been sitting.

Wilbur slammed the book down with more emphasis than Techno would have liked.

The title read “On the matter of what it was before” and then, under it in a smaller case “ a comprehensive guide of the history of the kingdom from The first to The feathered”

“Quite the long title” Techno commented.

“let’s hope the contents are exhaustive as well”

Wilbur opened the book, turned the first pages quickly and he read with a solemn tone

“In a time of war, nearby villages fought and pillaged eachother for dominance. Amongst them, there was one guided by  a commander, greedier than most, crueller than few. He, supported by unknown forces, conquered territories. However, his strength was never enough for even stronger countries surrounded his. Bitterly, he halted his advance. His name was king Prime”

“It’s the dude from the story! See if it tells more”

Techno hoped it had the information they needed, they could have used a win.

“shh, i was getting to it!” Wilbur admonished “ehm ehm, where was i? Ah yes. His name was king Prime. He ruled his kingdom with the iron fist and so attracted the hatred of its citizens. Despite the growing animosity, his reign lasted for more than 50 years then it abruptly ended?”

“what? Why?”

“The circumstances of his death are unknown to the general public. Many historians used to theorized the king was murdered by someone in his court, specifically by his son.”

Techno tried to imagine what it would feel like to murder their own father, he winced at the thought.

“son? Why would he do that?” Tommy commented, but Wilbur ignored his remark

“However this belief was soon discarded as no historical records on the existence of this supposed son were ever recovered and king Prime was said to have remained a bachelor until the end of his life at age 72. Furthermore the next ruler in line had no previous relation to the former royal family, supporting this last statement. It is believed a coup occurred in the capital, causing the next ruler, king Edward ‘the fool’ to rise to the throne.”

“keep going”

“That’s it.”

“what? What do you mean that’s it?” Tommy snarled. He snatched the book from the table, flipping the page back and forth frantically.

The book keep going on about the next king, Edward, but paid no further mentions about Prime. Damn luck as always.

Tommy huffed and put, or actually threw, the book back onto the table with a slam.

His mind jolted at the sound, a stab piercing through.The chatter stirred in his mind.

Wilbur jumped slightly at the sudden display of anger.

“This is useless! It gave us nothing we didn’t know already!” Tommy raised his voice, throwing his arms in the air.

Nothing made sense, all their effort was for naught. His jaw clenched. 

Wilbur came next to him, smiling fondly with his eyes and raising a hand to reach the boy

“It’s okay, we’ll find something, it’ll be oka-“

“STOP SAYING THAT!” Tommy snapped, using his hand to discard Wilbur’s

They didn’t get it. They couldn’t get it.

Tommy could see Will moving his mouth, but the words were muffled. His own head grew louder.

“You don’t get it! It’s pointless!” He said pushing against Will. Tommy’s brain mumbled apprehensively.

He just wanted to be normal, why was he not normal?

He also wanted to regret the push, but emotions clouded his judgment. Much like he had done with Tubbo, the strength behind it was more than expected. Luckily, Wilbur was sturdier than the goat hybrid, but still stumbled back a few steps, taken aback by the action.

Why did nothing go the way it should have?

The next hit was in a daze of anger, one that he had not felt in a while. He lunged forward, but his hands were aiming higher than the prince’s chest.

Everything should just stop.

The action set Techno in motion. He threw his hands and caught Tommy’s, who freed them without much ado. The boy then stepped heavily towards Will again, the prince backed into the bookshelf.

Techno imposing frame came between them once more, his red eyes stern and fixated on the boy.

“It’s not Will’s fault. Stop.” He said, the voice had sounded sharper.

It was the same pitch Techno always used, but he had added a growl, a warning. It hit right where it hurt.

Tommy pulled his hands back in a pained motion, eyes on the blink of tears. He focused back into reality and he dared to look at Will’s expression.

All he could see was fear. Will was scared of him. After everything they had been through, he had made Wilbur afraid of him.

Tommy gulped back a sob.

“I-I’m sorry” he muttered. Techno’s expression immediately softened, but before he could speak Tommy was already out of the door.

Before he knew it, the comforting presence of the chorus tree came into view.

 Tommy’s anger was still bubbling in his chest, but the source of it was unclear. He lounged at the tree and stared at the dry branches.

The tree stood tall, wilted and coarse.

It mocked him of his failures.

Tommy’s fists clenched at his sides. Not even the plant would show him its favour.

“WHY WON’T YOU JUST GROW!” his fist came into contact against the purple bark, staining it darker. A bone crushing jolt grew from his hand, resonating all through his arm. The tears fell heavy on his cheeks.

At first, he felt the relief of the hit, then the adrenaline of it subsided. He pulled his hand back suddenly, wincing at the stab it caused.

His knuckles were broken, skin bruised and tinted red from the hit. Tommy attempted to move his fingers, but the feeling it caused made him immediately halt.

His shoulders heaved as he panted. Breathing suddenly felt hard.

Tommy raised his arm, looking at the hand from a higher angle. He attempted to close it again with great effort.

Despite everything, his mind felt clearer.

He concluded his hand was not broken. Tommy had a feeling he would be able to tell otherwise.

With his last remaining energy, he fell heavy onto the ground, his back propped against the trunk and his arm limp at his side.

That was definitely going to leave a bruise.

With unsurprising difficulty, he steadied his breaths.

Before he knew it, his eyes closed and his mind drifted.

The air is thick and the fumes raise high, clouding his space. The boy tries to shift, but he is bound. He can hear the dripping of something, but he knows it’s not water. His mouth feels sandy and his ears are ringing.

Something shifts and the boy is taller. Still, he is bound, but something changed. His hair is longer and cheeks are plump.

Tommy fights against his restraints. He is not supposed to be here. He knows no longer of the roughness of the ropes. His head is mumbling, it never stops. It’s warning him, Tommy can tell.

He thrashes against the bounds and it comes undone magically. Tommy gets up, the darkness of the cell surrounds him.

The door is open.

He approaches the corridor, slow steps. His skin is tingling.

A white glint in the darkness

“Found you.”

Tommy woke up in a jolt, he took a moment to understand his surroundings. As he finally recalled the events of the previous hours, he relaxed, only to tense again as another memory made itself known to him.

His dream felt vivid in his mind, burning like a flashback, except it had not felt quite like it.

Tommy’s brain juggled to connect broken pieces, recalling something about a ‘research’ of some kind. About what? He was unsure.

A shiver ran through him as he recalled the second part of the dream, it was a lucid one. He remembered knowing it was not quite real, yet it felt so...

Tommy gulped down a feeling of unsettledness .

The teen rested his head against the trunk. His blue eyes widened when they caught sight of something small and lilac.

It fluttered slightly above Tommy’s face. With disbelief, the boy stood up. He squinted at the shape.

The chatter chittered with energy.

His hand trembled as it came into contact with the softness of it.

Tommy’s mouth widened.

A sprout!

He jumped in excitement.

“I MADE IT!”  he squawked.

The chorus plant  had a leaf! It was not on the branches but it was still a huge win.

As he admired his job well done, a person came to mind. Discarding everything that had happened before, too overcome by joy, Tommy ran to find Techno.

As the poor dummy took another astounding hit, the only thing in Techno’s mind was the previous day. His fist clenched around the hilt of his sword as he recalled Tommy’s sudden behaviour.

Techno raised his arm and swung heavily, hitting his mark.

He thought about Tommy’s unfocused gaze as he had aimed for Will.

Another hit, right at the mark.

He thought of his cloudy blue eyes, so dull he swore they almost shone with a purplish light.

A step back and a huff.

He thought of his brother’s expression. His mind inadvertently connected it to their first meeting.

A movement to load the hit.

He remembered Tommy’s hurt, plain on his face, and his quick apology.

The sword whooshed, cutting the air.

He recalled his own anger, his instincts and his immediate regret.

The blade wedged in the hay, stuck in the cut he had made.

He heard Will’s voice again. He was not going to hold it against Tommy.

Techno knew he was not going to either, after all the boy had apologized. The hybrid knew what it felt like to feel helpless against the odds. The anger was not directed at Tommy, but at those who had made him that way. He also knew Tommy’s anger was not directed at them either.

He levered against the sword, but it hardly moved.

Tommy just needed some space, and they would give it to him, at least until Phil arrived.

Phil had dealt with the twins’ outbursts many time, he would know what to do.

Techno tugged at the sword again, finally setting it free. He stumbled back for the rebound.

As the hybrid steadied himself to his feet, a presence appeared next to him. He turned abruptly, only to see a mop of blond curls.

He had not heard Tommy approaching.

“TECHNO TECHNO” he said, clearly excited

“Gods Tom, when did you come here”

“NO TIME, FOLLOW ME, QUICK!” he grabbed his arm and started to pull Techno in one direction with a rather insistent strength. It was confusing, Techno wanted to ask questions but he relented, sensing a feeling of urgency coming from the boy.

They ran together, Techno recognized the path to the greenhouse.

No way, could it be?

And it was.

Despite all odds the plant, known for being incurable, had a tiny leaf right in the middle of the trunk.

Unbelievable.

Techno stepped closer, making sure his eyes were not betraying him. Then he turned around slowly, his eyes wide. Toms stood proud, a little squeal in his giggles

“I made it!! A leaf!!” Techno’s neutral mask dropped as he  smiled at his brother’s joy. His chest warmed and awoke a soft grumble.

The voices chattered with delight

Techno raised a hand and ruffled the boy’s hair, blond curls soft under his rough fingers. The golden hair shone bright, glinting under the sunlight, like the jewels he was used to wear

“Good job kid” and he meant it.

Tommy at that positively beamed and he soon launched himself into a detailed explanation on how he took care of the plant, throwing often some remarks on how he was the best gardener of all times.

Techno listened to it all with pleasure, cradled by the joyous chatter of the boy’s voice.

Chapter Text

The light of the moon was dim, covered by pale clouds passing by. A cold breeze and the many stars above were Phil’s only company. The wind stung  his skin as he quickly made his way across the sky. The whoosh of the avian’s fierce wings pierced the quiet of the night.

His muscled ached with the effort, each moment furthering his pain. Despite this, the man kept going.

In his mind, the faces of his sons appeared on loop. Oh! How he had missed them in the last weeks.

The trip had been more trouble than worth. Phil had been welcomed as an esteemed guest with the highest honors, but had only been able to speak with the monarch after a week in the court. Furthermore the information that he had managed to gather were far from exhaustive.

The rulers of the Badlands, Badboyhalo, had shared with Phil what he had managed to gather in regards of the kingdom that came before the Artic Empire.

Bad had told him, once they had finally met, how it was said that, in his greed, king Prime had managed to collect the powers of three mythological beings : the Withers. With that, he had defied the laws of nature, creating a new being with dark magic.

Phil had found frowned at the information. After all, creating even one whiter is an incredible feat, let alone three. However, the man had let the other ruler continue his tale.

That’s how Phil found out that this supposed new being, after creating the infamous cult, disappeared for good.  It was said that the creature, striving to become a god, had allied with the protector of the end, gaining its favor and moving to another plane of existence and in doing so, had completed its mission on mortal earth.

It was just a legend of course. Phil had confirmed with his own two eyes that there was no ender dragon in the End, after all.

What had happened to the cult in its last moments went without saying; without a proper leader to guide it, the religion disappeared and so did its believers.

It was odd, however, how everything about it vanished. Surely there must have been some  detailed historical records somewhere, or some followers that perpetuated its beliefs…

Unfortunately, that was all that the ruler had to offer. So, after many days away, Phil was eager to reunite with his sons.

The king left as soon as dawn came, bringing with himself barely anything to eat. After a full day of travel, only interrupted  by a brief pause to rest, he was now closer to his reign.

He could see the capital in the distance. With a yawn, the man kept going relentlessly, until the outline of the castle was very well visible.

Phil adjusted his elevation with the intent of approaching the balcony of his tower.

This return needed to be quiet, last he wanted was all the court fussing around him at this hour of the night.

Finally, the balcony was perfectly in view, inviting the man to land and be welcomed by the familiar walls and paintings.

Phil’s eyes adjusted to the darkness as he tried to focus on a figure standing at the edge of the window.

An intruder?

He slowed down his descent.

The figure, who was now taking more and more a familiar shape as he got closer, moved to take a step, moonlight reflecting off of his blonde curls.

Had Tommy been aware of his return?

But the boy did not stop to look at him, instead he kept going straight. His steps slow in an unsteady daze.

Realizing something was off, Phil brought his wings together and inclined his body, gaining speed.

Soon, his son was in front of him. Then, he was swooped in his arms.

Tommy’s body was light, and despite the surprise he was lifeless. Phil frowned as the took in the sleeping form of his face, his usual furrowed eyebrows and the irises moving quickly behind his eyelids.

Had he been sleepwalking?

His grip tightened on the boy, as he walked inside the art room. Had this been the first time? Had anyone noticed yet?

Where were the guards! If he had not arrived in time…if he had delayed just one day, Gods know what could have happened!

Phil blamed his mind as worse scenarios kept running through his head until he felt Tommy shift in his arms.

It was a hesitant movement, at first.

The boy’s eyes fluttered open for a second, blue eyes clouded with a troubled sleep. A wrinkle of confusion formed between his eyebrows, but it quickly smoothened out when the boy realized who was holding him.

“…dad…y’re- back” he nuzzled against the man. His cheek pressed against Phil’s chest, nose scrunched at the fabric that tickled his nose. Phil felt Tommy’s breath even out  as the boy fell asleep with a soft smile on his face.

Philza halted in his steps.

His heart skipped a beat and he could not help the tear that left his eye and the wide smile that cut through his face.

Dad.

It sounded…right.

Yes, Tommy had been his son for a long time, that he knew but to hear it from the boy himself was something else entirely.

He resisted the urge to chirp out loud, afraid to awake the teen. His stomach was tangled and he felt all giddy inside. Warmth spread from Tommy’s body in his arms.

Phil resumed his walk slowly, cherishing the quiet of the moment. Time seemed to slow down for them, to honor the intimacy of the action. The simplicity of a father bringing his son back to bed.

Yet, it all ended too soon. As Phil placed Tommy on his bed, as he tucked him under his covers, as he ran his hand to move the hair out of his face and as he left a kiss on his forehead, he felt all the answers that he needed.

In the morning, yes, in the morning he would ask him.

The next day Tommy would know how much he meant for them.

But for morning to come,  night had to end first.

Tommy’s eyes are open, but not really. He is walking, but not really. He feels like he’s floating around, moving towards the end of a lengthy corridor. The walls a pattern of stones and cracks with the torches hanging unlit, yet he can see clearly the steps ahead.

A song, a light is at the end of it, he can hear it. The voice raises in him a whirl of sensations. Familiar sensations. Someone is singing.

He wants to reach it, so he walks. One foot after another, the tune his only guidance.

The ground is taken off of him

This time he opens his eyes for real and all he sees is blue.

He can feel a warmth surrounding him.

It’s dizzy, but he knows. It’s comforting.

He chases the warmth

“…dad…y’re- back” it slips out of him

Tommy does not mind. It’s nice to see his father in one of his dreams, usually it’s people he does not know.

He is gone too soon, leaving him trapped in his mind once again.

The corridor is back, looming over him. He feels tiny in comparison, the ceiling so tall he could never reach it.

The song is there again.

Someone is screaming as well.

The sound taints the sweetness of the song. It encases the boy all around.

Suddenly, Tommy feels heavier. Each step as if he’s walking on quicksand. The floor threatens to swallow him whole.

Something is holding him back.

He screams.

There are no shackles around his legs, nor chains around his arms.

He can’t move ahead.

It’s sudden, a stab that overpowers every other sensation.

An agonizing burn radiates from his back, leaving him breathless.

Yet he lets out a  blood curling scream that echoes in the corridor and takes over the song

He feels the edges of his vision blur and everything becomes muffled

The door ahead is no longer there.

A hand is now raising his head, thumb gripping tightly against his cheeks, digging on his skin.

They  click their tongue repeatedly.

Tommy would like to glare at them, but everything is so dizzy and he feels so tired.

His head is tilted to the side.

The movement makes a jolt of pain resonate all throughout his body.

He hisses. White spots dance around his vision.

Someone smiles.

“You’re grounded”

A Phantom pain to the back awoke Tommy. He stood up immediately, clutching at his throat to stop the hiccups that were making his whole body tremble.

Slowly, the pieces of the messed up puzzle that was his mind came together.

He gulped back a sob. No time for tears now.

Tommy’s trembling feet made contact with the carpet and it took all of his strength to pull himself up. With deep breaths, he steadied his quick paced heartbeat.

The first step caused him to seek support from the wall, his body felt like it was on fire.

A Throbbing pain pulsed behind his eyelids. His head felt too loud as each memory filled in its designated spot, flooding his every sense.

Unsteady, the boy walked through the door, into the corridor.

He expected to find Hannah, but it seemed there was no trace of her.

The usually lit corridor now was overcome with an uncanny darkness, just like his nightmare.

Something was not right. With his whole body in an overwhelming alarm, he made his way towards Phil’s room.

It was instinctual, rather than rational.

He knew Phil was probably not back again, but he felt like he needed to try anyway.

His head was heavy, eyelids threatening to close. The boy lost his footing more than once as his shoulder blades seared with agony, each nerve and muscle feeling as if it was being torn and rebound again.

Cold sweat ran all throughout him, effort increasing greatly as he dragged himself to the king’s room.

Suddenly, the hair on his neck raised accompanied by goosebumps and he froze in his steps.

His head snapped back. He was not alone.

Tommy squinted, begging his vision to catch sight of whatever his instincts had caught on.

But the darkness was impenetrable.

He turned around, determined with his goal. The teen  quickened his pacing, his hand still up against the wall as he staggered.

He knew he was not fast enough.

With the last of his strength, Tommy screamed for his father.

Philza was about to lay in bed when the most terrifying sound reached his ears.

Tommy was screaming. He was screaming for help.

He ran out of the room as fast he could, bedsheet tangled on his feet. The door snapped open revealing an unusually dark corridor. Phil’s breath was quick but it halted at the scene he found.

At the end of the corridor a purplish light came from what looked like a portal. It shone sinister, outlining a hooded figure. They towered over the light, projecting their shadow long against the floor. A white mask covered their face, with a grin drawn on it, much like a child’s creepy creation.

Phil felt his feet as if they were glued to the ground.  He went to reach for his sword, but only grabbed the fabric of his nightgown, his weapon probably discarded on his counter in his room.

He mourned the oversight, only a fool would let his guard down.

Phil wanted to open his wings, but they were heavy against his tense body, tired by the long trip. His muscles screamed at him in mutiny.

His eyes fixated on his boy thrown over the shoulder of the stranger carelessly. He was limp, his arms dangling with gravity. Seeing his son being treated like a mere object made Phil’s heart sink.

The world came to a halt as the realization hit him.

Phil felt all the anger rise in himself, but the corridor seemed impossibly long.

He screamed.

Helplessness, devastation, and anger surged through him as Phil stood frozen, unable to move.

In the span of a second and an eternity, Phil found the strength to take  a step, reaching out, but Tommy was already gone.

His son, ripped away in an instant, left behind nothing but a black void in his place. Phil’s eyes widened and his mouth fell open to let out a distraught wail.

He barely registered the fall, his knees heavy against the floor.

 In the king’s mind echoed a message:

“Your blood will run as it destroys your legacy. From the ashes I will rise.

Your empire shall fall.”

Chapter Text

An ear piercing scream reached Techno’s room. His eyes snapped open, only to close suddenly as a sharp stab pierced his head.

The voices in his head were yelling alarmed, one overlapping after another with the only intelligible word being “Tommy”

The hybrid jolted from bed, nerves going haywire, feeling the edges of his vision turn red. With a sudden intake of air he yanked his sword, which was sitting carefully on his nightstand, and ran out the door. Techno quickly looked around for guards or any signs of a fight. Finding neither, he took for the direction of the scream at an inhumane speed.

The chat screamed at him to hurry, crowding his brain.

However, on his way, his eyes stumbled upon a figure on the ground, her sword laid discarded next to her.

Hannah was motionless on the floor, her hair sprawled carelessly in a mess of strands and red. Luckily the color was given by the usual roses Hannah adorned her hair with, not a single drop of blood around her.

Despite the voices yelling at him to ignore the guard, Techno ducked and checked her pulse.

Still alive, thank gods.

He snapped back up, senses tingling. If Hannah had fainted it meant…Tommy!

Techno ran as fast as he could, but the corridors seemed to lengthen with each step as the darkness thickened around him.

His breaths became heavy, somehow the air was colder.

The voices seemed like they were mourning, suddenly quiet. No…

Before he could make a last turn, another gut wrenching scream resonated in the halls.

A voice the prince could very well recognize.

At the start of the corridor, a few paces ahead of Techno, the darkness unveiled to reveal his father kneeling on the floor.

From this side the prince could only see the man’s wings sprawled onto the floor like a cape and the slumped shoulder adorned by his long blond hair that fell messily over them.

“Phil?” he tried.

The man gave no signs of having heard Techno, his head kept straight. His son walked slowly, circling him. Only once he had reached the front could Techno truly take in the wrecked state of his father.

Phil’s disheveled fringe fell against his pale skin, sticking to his forehead. His mouth was left agape, twitching open and closed like a fish out of water, but Techno could barely hear his breaths.

 What was most haunting, however, were his eyes. They were empty, wide open and stuck somewhere ahead. His usual kind gaze was replaced by a look of pure terror. Phil’s icy irises took over everything as his pupil appeared smaller and the tears clouded his vision. They fell silent and heavy down his cheek, mixing with his sweat and falling onto the floor.

With a loud thump, the prince fell on his knees as well, but Phil did not react.

“D-Dad?”

Techno could feel him trembling under his hands. He tried to shake his father, to wake him up from this trance.

The man did not move. His arms were limp against his body.

“D-Dad! What- What happened?” Techno’s voice felt foreign to his own hears. Never his tone had failed him like that.

He shook his father once more, his jaw tightening.

“Where’s Tommy?”

Phil’s eyes slowly focused on his face, seemingly reacting at Tommy’s mention.

“-T-Tommy…” his voice whispered hoarse looking at Techno

No…it couldn’t be.

Phil gulped down. His eyebrows came together as his eyes blurred once again. Phil’s shoulders shook with hiccups as tears overcame him once again and he fell forwards. It was violent, like a dam had broken down. His pained moans stabbed right through his son’s heart.

Phil clutched at Techno’s chest, burying his head and wetting his shirt with tears.

Techno did not have the strength to do anything but place his arms around Phil, allowing him to weep. The prince could not blame the tears that escaped him as well.

A couple minutes after, Wilbur found them like this: on the ground, clutching desperately at eachother like a lifeline. It was the first time he had seen his brother display an emotion so openly.

The brothers would often dismiss whoever told them that twins had a special telepathic bond. It had always sounded absurd to them!

But in that moment, Techno had spared a quick glance at him and…Wilbur knew.

His fist tightened at his side and tears fell painfully from his eyes as he ducked his head.

For what felt like hours, the royal family mourned a loss.

The cold, the screams, the darkness. Not again. Not again. NOT AGAIN. NOT AGAIN. NOT AGAIN NOT AGAIN NOT AGAIN NOT AGAIN-

The next few days were the hardest the court ever had.

 A veil of sorrow covered the whole castle as each person missed the sun that had lit up the corridors for a year. Laughter and glee had been taken alongside Tommy.

However the child was not the only one being mourned. The guard, Hannah, beloved and trusted by many, slept motionless in the infirmary, trapped in a never-ending dream.

The healers had not been able to discern what had exactly caused the coma, and they had spent sleepless nights trying to figure out a cure. So far, nothing had worked.

Techno knew the healers were not the only one avoiding rest. Him and Wilbur had barely slept a few hours collectively, not wanting to waste any time they could use to search for Tommy.

Techno had contacted every informant he knew, praying that someone had any clue, while Wilbur spent his time in the library, hoping to find more about the cult.

However, Phil was the one who was faring the worst out of any of them.

The hybrid could see his father’s eye bags deepen each time he landed in his tower.

Despite his sons trying to reason with him, he had taken to fly over the territories, trying to spot anything suspicious like a hawk in search of his prey, for hours on hand. Techno doubted the man had gotten any sleep at all.

“Dad, please, you need to rest!”

His son had begged him after the first three days as the king prepared for another departure. In reply, there was only a sigh and a clouded stare, before the avian flew away again.

And while he was met with dismissal by his father, his brother reacted with anger.

Vain were the attempts to pry Wilbur away from the books.

“Will, I brought you some bread” Techno had attempted after his brother had missed the fifth supper in a row.

Will did not move his gaze from the books.

“Will, please, you’re starving yourself.” His brother had tried again.

Again, nothing.

Defeated, Techno had tried to move a book away from him, to give him the slice of bread. It was a simple gesture, one that reminded the hybrid of the days back in the hellish dimension.

Instead of a grateful stare, Will had gazed at him with spite, swatting out his hand and reverting back to the book.

“Go away.”

Techno did not try to feed him directly again since then, leaving some maid to do the job for him.

With the king absent, and one prince in isolation, all royal duties fell on Techno.

It did not bother him much at first, then it all changed on the 15th day after Tommy’s disappearance.

Techno clutched at his temples, trying to focus on the councilor Schlatt’s attempt to explain wood strategies for the upcoming winter. It felt pointless to the prince. How could he think about the distribution of wood when Tommy was still missing?

More than two weeks had passed. Not a single trace had yet been found. The more time passed, the more the royal family grew restless.

Techno’s ears ringed under the powerful headache that hit him.

The voices rarely made sense these days, muttering incoherent words over eachother.

The insomnia was not helping either…

“Your highness, are you paying attention?” Schlatt’s voice snapped him out of his pensive state

“Yes yes, you were on about the wood shortage we had this year due to the sudden wildfires-“ Techno replied monotone. The councilor seemed satisfied, as he turned around to continue his explanation to the room

“as I was saying, we-“

“-YOUR ROYAL HIGHNESS!” the door of the meeting area flew open with a bang. A soldier stumbled in, yelling with a pained face.

He was missing his helmet and parts of his armor. Techno could smell blood on him. Alarmed, he stood up.

The soldier winced as he tried to bow. His chest raised and lowered quickly under his stolen breaths

“What has made you come her so hastily? Speak!” Techno ordered, his gaze sturdy on the man.

The soldier did not dare to look at him in the eyes, but his voice did not quieten.

“The south border is under attack!”

What?

“Under attack? By who?” this time, it was Niki who spoke. She was the council in charge of war related matters, while also being an incredible strategist.

Techno had always admired her quick wits and he looked up to her, despite Niki being just a few years older.

The soldier shook his head

“I’m afraid we do not know m’am” he gulped down “four cities in the south were suddenly thrown into chaos as masked individuals begun to stir troubles”

“Masked individuals?”

“no one had reclaimed the attacks, but they all started at the same time, it seems an organized revolt. Our soldiers were taken by surprise, very few survived” the last words came out strained

Techno glanced at Niki, her eyes sparked with determination

“councilor, please take a detailed statement from him and report back to me as soon as possible.”

She nodded and left with the soldier.

Techno left the room as well, the wood could wait.

Breathing…is he breathing? So hard to tell…

Does it even matter?

Phil was seated exactly where he had been for the past five days after another failed flight: the balcony of the tower. Each day that passed, he spent less and less time on his trips, despair overcoming him.

In the past two weeks Philza had scoured each territory with unsettling precision, but to no avail.

Yet, he tried as much as he could to stay away from the castle.

Everything reminded Phil of him…

Each surface, each room, each person, had echoes of Tommy all over them.

It was too hard to bear.

He needed to do more, to search further away. Maybe he had overlooked a city!

As he was about to jump off into the horizon again, a familiar presence appeared behind him.

“I’m going to find him.” He said, not bothering to turn around

“I’m not here to stop you Phil” Techno stood a few paces away. If the king had been in his right mind he could’ve immediately told that something was off with his tone.

“Then what do you want” he spat. Phil had not meant for it to sound angry, but he had slept very few hours in the past days and controlling himself had been harder.

He heard Techno shift in place, straightening himself up probably. It was something he always used to when talking to the king the first few days in the castle. Trying to make himself look bigger.

Not that he needed to do that anymore now, he very well towered over the avian these days.

There was silence for a moment, Techno was trying to keep his mind steady. He would make a great king someday, one able to make decisions under pressure.

“I have arranged a meeting. I need you to be present.” He asked

Phil glanced at him, turning his body slightly.

“I wish not to partake in irrelevant bureaucracy matters, thank you” he turned again, spreading his wings. Phil flinched at the pain that the movement caused. His muscles were sore from the hour before.

He heard Techno huff “This is actually important. The South is getting attacked.”

Finding Tommy was the priority, losing a few cities was regretful, but not an impactful loss. Each moment mattered. He should be looking for him instead of wasting time in this tower.

“I’m sure Nihachu has got it covered.” He cut short.

Quick steps echoed in the room and suddenly a hand grabbed his shoulder, forcing him to turn around with a hard shove. On instincts, Phil pushed against the sturdy figure, making him stumble with surprise.

An angry grumble and soon Phil was raised from the ground by his collar, finally face to face with the prince.

“What’s your problem?!” Techno spat. His eyes were filled with anger.

“You’re the fucking king. You don’t get to get up and ditch everything!” The man’s stomach churned with guilt under his eyes. Phil averted his gaze to the floor, limbs limp at his side.

“no, don’t you dare. Look at me!” he felt Techno shake him. When no response came, he let go.

Like a doll with no strings, Phil fell hopelessly on the floor, crumbling on himself.

Techno surely was looking down at him. The king could feel his anger piercing him. But he could also feel…pity.

Techno exhaled a shaky breath. He crouched at Phil’s level. Phil could see his knees get closer to his shoes.

“Listen, I worry about Tommy too…” Tommy…just his name almost brought tears to the man’s eyes. He should be looking for him. Too much time had already passed.

Phil’s fists clutched, finger burying themselves into the flesh.

“...i want him back home as much as you do, but for that to work we need to have a home for him to be back to.” Now that he was closer, Phil could tell all the exhaustion coming from Techno’s tone. How much had he put up with ever since Tommy disappeared?

“The kingdom needs its king-“ a sharp intake of breath “-and I need my father”

Ah. How dull had he been, neglecting the sons that were still there with him while desperately searching for the one they had lost.

Phil placed his hand over Techno’s and looked at him

“I’m sorry” he said with tears over his eyes “ it should not be you who carries this burden”

Techno shook his head “ and you should not carry it alone. We’re family, we’re here for eachother.”

Despite the tears, Phil smiled softly “ Of course. I was a fool to forget that.”

Fa-mi-ly. Family. What an odd word. He doesn’t know what it means…does he?

Fa.mi.ly.

How can you miss something you don’t know?

Chapter Text

After some convincing, Techno had finally managed to gather the people needed to talk strategy. And so they had convened in what once was the “syndicate” planning room.

It was also Techno’s favourite room (apart from the library).

If the walls that enclosed the space could speak, they would narrate the tales of centuries of plots and plans. This is where history had been made the first time.

This, was were Philza had been made king the first time.

Under much less exciting premises, they now all sat around the round stone table, again. The beautiful and soft red cloth that covered the harsh material from sight was suppressed by the layers of papers and maps that laid open above it. Only the gold trimmings managed to escape, peeking at the edges of the table where the cloth ended.

Surrounding the table, huge slabs of stone had been sculpted to resemble thrones. On the top part of them, a symbol was engraved. A reminder of their owners.

Each member of the council was in their own seat, comfortable as they could be in such a tense situation.

Philza sat in a much similar throne, if not for the royal emblem that towered over his head.

At his sides newer seats had been added not so long ago to welcome Wilbur and Technoblade to the future discussion.

“Could we ask the Badlands to send us some military assistance? They are near the area after all-“ Schlatt proposed, using his right hand to vaguely point at the map.

“That would be like offering ourselves up to them! It would show that we are vulnerable. An invasion is the last thing we need right now.” Wilbur interrupted, his back leaned towards the table as he frantically gestured.

Nihachu nodded

“Will is right, we cannot afford to take risks.”

The prince did not reprimand her for her lack of honorifics. When the council held a session everyone was deemed equal.

 Techno quite enjoyed that part, being able to see the others speak their mind clearly was rare. He had tried many times to make people address him rather casually, but so far very few succeeded.

It was Puffy’s turn to speak.

“Then what do you suggest we do? It is clear that our soldiers are no match for these enemies”

Techno grunted in agreement.

Phil sighed next to him.

“Now, do not feel discouraged, perhaps it is only bad timing. After all, we have only lost a couple of towns so far-“

“And they will only keep going further! What if they aim for the capital?”

the hybrid scoffed. “like they could reach this far-“

“we could hire mercenaries?” Sam proposed. It was a risky idea.

*It is a possibilites, we do have the means...* signed Callahan, the treasury secretary.

Techno shut off the proposition immediately. “No way. They’re untrustworthy. Who says the enemy does not have the ability to offer more than we do?” They had to consider all the possibilities.

“Techno’s right. If the enemy had the possibility to train these many soldiers while we were completely unaware who knows what resources they have” Puffy had a point there.

They had to do something, Techno had a gut feeling that it would only get worse. Maybe he could...

“I could go offer assistance on the field, I’ve already done it before” he said, looking at his father in the eyes. Phil shook his head, Will huffed

“No.” They said at the same time

“you’re one against god knows how many of them there are” Will explained “we need you here.” Phil added.

Techno leaned back into his seat and crossed his arms “it would not be the first time! And i could be of significant assistance out there!” he stated with more aggression than intended. Phil’s gaze tensed

“No. Not until we have more information on the enemy. “ a scoff, but Phil went on, his face melting into a look of genuine concern “ i am not sending you on the battlefield blindfolded.”

Techno huffed a reluctant sound of agreement.

“what do we know about them?” Schlatt turned towards Niki, who was on his right. She had tried to gather as much intel as needed from the injured soldier.

Her jaw clenched

“not much, but given their whole attire and abilities I’d say these are probably the same bastards that took Tommy”

Everyone fell silent. It stretched for an uncomfortably long minute, until Phil interrupted with an idea.

“let’s just send reinforcements” he moved a map around to show and traced a line over it with his finger “ the east division has plenty of soldiers left, we could send some legions to assist the south”

It was not a bad move, it would weaken the east significantly but the mountains provided the area with a good natural barrier so it would be harder to reach for the enemy.

*We should also consider how to send in more equipment and rations. Winter is upon us, it won’t be good for our troops* Callahan had a point. Hopefully the gods would not let the Winter get too harsh.

“It won’t be good for the enemy either” Puffy pointed out “We know our territories, they do not. We can prepare” She continued.

Sam cut in“ i can have the workers make some low level cold resistant equipment. It will take a few weeks but it should be worth it”

“Hm, that’s a good idea.”

“Let us do that for now. We will gather again when news of the South reach us. Meanwhile Niki, please monitor the situation carefully.” Phil said while raising himself from his seat. He opened his arms, an imperceptible shake ran through them, but it was not missed by Techno’s keen eye.

“I shall see you then. The meeting is adjourned, you’re free to go.” He ordered with an huffed breath.

One at the time, each councillor bowed and left the room, until only the royal family remained.

As if a switch had been pressed, the king collapsed onto his throne with an huff, his wings the only thing preventing him from slipping off of it and onto the floor.

Techno and Will immediately rushed to his side.

His skin had a uncanny pale tint to it and it felt cold to the touch. Under the gentle lighting, Phil’s eyes appeared to be lost in the middle of a purple sea that cut through his face harshly. How long had it been since he last slept?

“Father you need to rest.” Techno stated.

“the meeting ran for less time than we had anticipated, you can catch a few hours of sleep before your next appointment” Will prompted, but was met with dismissal. His hand was on his father’s shoulder, rubbing faintly some circles over the fabric. Phil’s sons assisted him while he tried to stand up. The man’s legs shook like a new-born deer.

“Phil, please.” His voice was low, a plea to the man who had raised him so dearly. He wanted to give him the same care he had taken when Techno had been the one in pieces.

Phil looked at him with his eyebrows drawn together.

 He swatted away Will’s hand and muttered “I’m-fine” in a heavy breath. His brother’s mouth thinned in a line and his gaze hardened.

The king staggered to move , Techno gulped

 “ i thought we had talked about this...”

 Phil looked at him again and he sighed

“ do not worry, I am not going to- i won’t patrol the capital, not again” his shoulders slumped and he spoke defeated under his sons’ pitiful faces

 “alright...i will try to sleep”

Techno was sure Phil would not be able to actually sleep, but trying was a start, he supposed.

The corner of his mouth raised slightly “ thank you”

As the king left the room, Techno turned towards his twin, who he knew was going to hole himself up in the library again. “can you at least have some food with me before you isolate yourself again?”

 Will’s eyes were kept on the ground, his jaw clenched. While Techno was ready to be met with dismissal, Will surprised him with a huffed “just a quick snack, then I’m off. I have had some books delivered from a rare seller in the west, i need to look at them as soon as possible.”

Perhaps their father’s signs of weakness had hit a nerve with Will. Perhaps he was realizing the error of his ways.

“Could i help you with that?” an olive branch had been extended

“fine, but you better be quiet about it” Will took it, and Techno sighed with relief. Perhaps it was not all lost yet.

Wrong. It is wrong again. How can he get it wrong? It is all he has ever known...is it not?

The echoes of his mistakes resonate in the darkness. He just wants it to stop.

Techno launched himself forward, his footwork sloppier than it has been in years. Exhaustion clouded his mind, while the nonsensical yells in his head made him forget his steps. He was getting them all wrong, and the chat seemed to agree from the few words he could manage to make sense of.

The hybrid halted mid spar, a heavy sigh shook him from the core, frustration building up in his veins.

The disasters; the battles; the cult; Hannah’s coma;

Tommy...

 Unfortunately for the dummy in front of him, Techno decided to ditch the sword. With a newfound rage drumming in his temples, he charged his fist and then he threw it forward with a grunt. The poor wooden figure broke from the hit, falling backwards.

Technoblade closed his eyes and took a moment to breathe.

“Any news yet?” A loud, and surprisingly close, voice made Techno startle. He rotated in place suddenly, ready to hit. He stopped when a familiar head of curls came into view.

“Holy sh- I could’ve killed you for a stunt like that!” he reprimanded.

“sorry” the boy said, but his face clearly showed he had no remorse. His friend behind him, on the other hand, was profoundly ashamed of the action as Techno could clearly tell from his bowed head while he swatted away some leftover purple particles from his droopy shoulders.

“so, do you have any news on Tommy yet?” Tubbo said with all the hope in the world. Techno flinched, his back was as tense as Will’s guitar strings.

Should he be direct with the kids?

“We are...working on it.” He said briefly. Tubbo nodded “so are we.” He said, surprising the hybrid

“What do you mean?” The older teen asked, afraid of the answer. Tubbo used one hand to push his friend forward “me and Ran have been scouting the whole town!” he rolled his yes “well, i have been mostly scouting the town while Ranboo has been teleporting around the whole area! They even went as far as the Three-way river!”

“That is a long way to be teleporting, even for you. Are you okay?” Techno turned towards Ranboo with wide eyes

The kid curled onto himself “i collapse for like a full day after, but it’s fine” he whispered

“that. is the furthest thing from fine” Techno pinched the bridge of his nose, forehead creasing.

Dealing with children was not an easy task on its own, having a migraine made the whole deal a lot harder.

“listen, this is no matter to be involving yourselves with. It’s not an issue you kids can solve-“

“Kids? You’re barely a few years older than us!” Tubbo complained

Rude.

“But-“ Techno begun to lecture but was quickly interrupted again

“and we have found something!” his train of thought was halted. What?

How could they, barely teenagers, have found something when the royals had been searching with all of their resources?

“there is no way you could have found clues”

“but we did! Ran, tell him” he prompted the enderman hybrid to speak. Shyly, Ranboo took a step forward and with wide gestures he explained

“it happened two days ago. I was searching as i usually do, but i had taken one too many trips that day. But, i felt like going further south. I probably messed up while thinking of the coordinates so when i reappeared i was underground!” he started, meanwhile Tubbo could be heard shuffling in the background.

“it was dark, so i thought it was a cave at first. but the more i walked, the more the stone walls turned into bricks. It looked like ruins of some kind. But i...i heard some noises and people running and i got scared i would’ve been found out. so i left.” They took a shallow breath “ i- i know i should’ve looked more! I could’ve- I” his chest rose and lowered quickly, Techno tried to reassure him, but even his own was beating harder in his chest.

This could really be something.

“It’s okay kid, you have done more than you should’ve. Go on”

“...anyway, i’ve marked a general idea of where the place is, in case it could be useful. “ he turned towards his friend who presented Techno with a map with a big red circle on it. The area was near the villages that had been recently attacked.

It couldn’t be a coincidence, could it?

“as you can see it is a pretty large area, I’m sorry i wish i could’ve been more precise-“ he rambled, Tubbo interrupted him

“As far as i know, which is a lot by the way, there are no discovered ruins in that area which means”

“which means it could be related to the cult” Techno ended the sentence in disbelief

This could a huge break for their case!

Maybe this is what they needed to find Tommy.

Techno quickly folded the paper and put it in his pocket.

“Ranboo, come with me, we need to talk to the council about this.” The hybrid nodded

“What about me?” Tubbo pouted

“you do whatever you kids do these days. Just don’t set my capes on fire again-“

“But i can help! I literally gave you the best clue you have!”

“actually that was Ranboo” Techno pointed out “great work by the way” Ranboo smiled softly, hiding under his hair

“pleaseee~” Tubbo begged. Techno scoffed “Fine, but do not make any messes, and keep your mouth shut.”

“My lips are sealed your highness, i will be as quiet as a-“ a glare “silence. Got it.” Tubbo’s mouth closed.

Techno had a feeling his headache was only about to get worse.

Swift, fast, quick. Barely an huff out of him. He’s better. He’s learning. Something is pleased.

It took just a few hours for everyone to gather in the Syndicate room again. After barely three weeks had passed from their last meeting, no one was expecting another one so soon. After all the reinforcements had yet to arrive onto the battlefield.

However the prince had called everyone in such a haste which meant something had happened.

Phil had been the last to arrive in the room.

 He was surprised to spot Tommy’s friends standing next to Techno. In all the years they had held these meetings, very few times outsiders had been allowed in. Could they have been related to the sudden call?

No point brooding about it, he was meant to find out soon.

Once he had sat down, he gave the sign that started their discussion.

As expected, Techno was the one who spoke first. He invited the teen near him to take a step forward.

“We may have made a huge discovery today, thanks to this kid here. Ranboo, please explain”

The kid gulped down, his hands in front of him as he fidgeted with the hem of his shirt. Their tail behind him rocked with uneasiness. It was clear he was not used to having the spotlight. If it had not been such a dire matter, Phil would’ve spared him the humiliation.

“uhm...so-“ Ranboo began to explain his discovery. He stuttered here and there as he explained, but he surprisingly stayed calm enough to make sense.

At the end of his narration, he had the whole room eyes on him. Then, the gazes shifted to Techno’s hand as he laid on the table the map.

The possibility of finding Tommy was low, but it was more that they had in months!

His whole body jerked forward.

“we need to assemble a squad and survey the place as soon as possible!” Phil announced loudly. Manners be damned, his kid could be there!

They needed to hurry and search that place.

Puffy was quick to steady his excitement.

“The area is right next to the battlefield, we need highly skilled warriors in case they get attacked”

Techno shuffled in his seat “no. We do not” he looked straight at Phil, his intentions clear.

“no. I am not letting you go.” The enemies capabilities were still under observation, sending his son, no matter how skilled he was, was an asinine idea.

Techno, however did not relent “ Phil, you know better than i do that i am the only one suited to do this.

“he is right father. Plus, if you send Techno we do not need to make a whole squad for it. It could be a stealth mission” Will added.

It made sense, Phil knew it made sense. Yet, he felt so reluctant to agree. He had already lost a son, how could he risk another one?

Puffy must’ve sensed his uneasiness.

 “i could go with him, cover his back, not like he needs it. But it could be insurance” she proposed.

He marvelled at her ability to understand him so openly. Years working side by side as his right hand man had sharpened her intuition when it came to his emotions.

Schlatt glared at her “Fy, i know you are strong, but do you really need to be putting yourself at risk?” Phil felt his worry, but he also understood Puffy’s sentiment.

“Hush brother, there will be no risks i won’t be able to annihilate” she shushed him with a chuckle “Plus, our ‘blood god’ Techno will be there, won’t he? I’m sure can keep me safe aplenty” she winked at the hybrid, who grunted in return.

 “fine.” Schlatt relaxed.

“we should begin to make arrangements” Phil concluded.

“wait!” Ranboo jumped in the conversation, surprising even themselves.

“I feel I should come too, i think there might be magic involved. That is the only why the place has stayed hidden for so long. I can somewhat detect it, so-“

“absolutely not.” Phil ordered “we are not putting any more kids in danger”

Ranboo spoke out of turn again

“Unless you know someone else that can feel magic-“

“Sam could do it, can’t you use magic?” Schlatt said, but Sam shook his head “ I am afraid the work at the smithy is keeping me too busy, but if i must I-“

“Actually, i know a guy-“ Techno interrupted.

Phil went wide-eyed. He has not known his son had been in contact with another magic user, they were quite rare to find after all.

“Give me a day and I will let you know if he’s on board. Might actually need some money to convince him though.” He glanced at Callahan, who made a *no problem* sign

Phil applauded their quick thinking.

“then we do not need the kid to join us” he concluded

Ranboo settled down, shame finally rising. Phil shut down a smile at the display. For a second, an image of Tommy’s impulsivity shot through his mind. The smile morphed in a pained grimace

A heavy weight planted on his stomach, but he could not allow guilt to hold him down. He forced himself to replace it with a fire of pure determination.

They would find his son. They had to.

Chapter Text

Techno slammed the door of the library wide open and threw the pouch filled to the brim with gold onto the desk. The coins rattled against the wood.

His intentions were clear.

Karl startled at the sudden intrusion, throwing an annoyed glare at the door that was quickly corrected to a more respectful look as soon as he acknowledged just who was that had intruded.

With a swift motion, he hurried to the center of the table, clapping his hands together and eyeing the gold with a smirk.

Smug bastard.

“your highness, welcome, what information do you require?”

“None. this time I do not need the guild’s help”

“then I’m afraid I-“

“Because I need yours. I have come to know that you can sense magic. Your talent is required for an important endeavor.”

Karl took a sharp breath, ready to rebuke, but Techno interrupted him

“Yes, I know you no longer work in the field, but I had  assumed that, with the right price” he slid the pouch closer to the man “ you could make an exception”

Karl eyes fell onto the gold, then they quickly glanced at his own hand and at a gold ring that adorned it. His fist flexed and his eyes sharpened with a different kind of determination.

Techno could not allow him to refuse, though ordering him around would do no good either. Perhaps he could reason with the man, empathy could get through him. After all, he too knew Tommy.

“listen, we may have a deal breaking clue. I wouldn’t be asking you this if it were not important.” A sharp intake of breath

“ I promise you, you won’t be in any harm’s way. You will just need to locate a building, then you’re done.”

Karl sighed. Victory

“fine, but I won’t be fighting. And I want a week vacation right after. Deal?”

Seemed doable enough.

“Deal. Be ready by morning”

“Will do your highness.”

He weeps. It expects him to be strong but an ocean is pushing his insides, begging to get out.

Someone is displeased. The wet of his eyes melts with the water that surround him. He is learning.

After all the necessary arrangements had been made, one day had barely passed. Time weighted heavily on Techno’s shoulders, each passing second a grain of sand down the hourglass, doomed to make the pressure increase.  What was left now was to depart as soon as possible.

As soon as the sun rose from the horizon, Techno found himself searching for Puffy. He strode with urgency across the busy halls, entering every room that the councilor was used to be seen into. After another bust, the prince made a sharp turn right and headed  towards the infirmary.

He could hear a clock ticking, perhaps the voices were playing a joke on him, perhaps it was just his sanity slipping away.

With the door wide open, the massive amount of white curls had been very visible, even from outside. Despite Techno not trying to be silent, the woman startled when he approached her.

Her gaze widened, falling onto the prince on her right with a soft apology, then it trailed back in front of her. Techno followed her movement, until he finally acknowledged what had been catching her attention.

On the infirmary bed laid Hannah, the guard.

Her skin was pale against the roses that surrounded her face. The petals still fresh and colored with a vivid red.

 Her curls fell orderly on her shoulders and pillow, clearly someone had been taking care of her  making sure she looked as pretty as she always had been.

Hannah’s hands had been carefully posed over her stomach, her nails skillfully done.  If not for the faint rising of her chest, anyone who stumbled in the room would assume she was dead. Her features were expressionless where they used to be alive and her smiling eyes were now indefinitely closed.

The sight made anger bubble in Techno’s heart, a reminder of a terrible night.  He glanced at Puffy and his gaze softened. Her features were tired, full of sorrow.

“Do you need a moment?” he dared to say, softly. A moment was worth so much when time was slipping by so hastily, but how could he refuse Puffy her grief?

  She barely acknowledged his question with a brief shake of her head, then she sighed.

“You know, I come to see her every day at the same time” her body tensed “ I’ve known her ever since she was fourteen. She turned up at the gates one day demanding we’d make her a knight” she huffed out a bitter laugh “ you should’ve seen her, her hair was so short and full of knots and thorns and she was covered in mud. Barely this tall” she mimicked the height with her hand “and yet she had the nerves to make demands. She even tried to pick a fight with a fully trained knight!”

Techno huffed “she sounded like a handful”

Puffy smiled softly, reaching out a hand towards Hannah “ she was, still is sometimes. But her stubbornness is what makes her great. She was the best in her class, a pleasure to teach despite everything.”  With a slow motion, she tucked a stray curl back behind Hannah’s ear.  Puffy’s fist clenched right after and her jaw tightened

“Seeing her like this, I cannot avoid blaming myself. If I  had only done more, If I had taught her more, If I had been there for her, I could’ve protected her- I should’v-“ a chocked sob tore through her, making her shoulders hunch with a shiver.

Techno did not try to dissuade the woman of her opinion, as the familiarity of the feeling hit deep. He knew that, no matter what half hearted words he could manage to throw out, she would not change her mind.

Instead, the prince gave her the time she needed to compose herself. Within a minute, the councilor steadied her breath, straightened her shoulders and relaxed her face.

She turned around, and gave Techno a polite nod

“shall we go?” to which Techno answered with a quick “yes” and they both left the room, with a final goodbye to Hannah.

Someone is talking. He doesn’t hear. It does not concern him, not yet. A name is mentioned and he feels being pulled back somewhere else. He wants to run, warn, yell. He stays put, he will be rewarded.

 Once they had reached the main hallway, Techno took in the sight of all the expected people.

First, there was Karl as promised. Then there was Will, chatting with Schlatt, though the pacing of his words was a bit off. Next to them, Sam and Callahan, both lost in though.

 Niki was the first one to notice them, but limited her greeting to a polite bow.

At last, Phil made his entrance in the room and while a polite smile was displayed, Techno could see the worry in his eyes. Surprisingly he was not alone in his walk. A tall figure shied behind him, but failed in doing so as they towered over the king. Why was Ranboo with the man?

After the councilors greeted the king, he spoke

“I know we have arranged so that you would travel by horse, however, since we can all agree that this is a time sensitive matter, Ranboo here has offered their help.”  His open hand signaled the kid to speak

“I will teleport you, as close as to where I remember being as I can. I will get away as soon as I do, I promise.” He said with enough confidence to impress Techno, it was clear that the teen just wanted to make himself useful.

Puffy however seemed to have a different idea

“I don’t know, your majesty, did we not agree to keep the children out of this?”

Ranboo answered for themselves before Phil could get a word in

“Ma’am, with all due respect, you cannot afford not to use all of the assets at your disposal. I am an asset of this kingdom, and I am sure that I want to assist as much as I can. I won’t be in danger, I will just make matters quicker”

Damn, the kid could stick up for himself if he wanted to. His reasoning was sound and, reluctantly, Puffy couldn’t do anything but agree.

A doubt rose in Techno’s mind.

“Have you ever teleported this many people, as well as the equipment, at once?”

Ranboo looked away, fidgeting with his hands.

“ I mean, I have only carried both Tommy and Tubbo with me a couple of times…but I know I can do it! I will probably sleep a full day after to recharge, but I can get you where you need to. I promise.”

Meh, that was good enough for Techno.

“I will also send a messenger crow after you.” Phil stepped in. “once you are done with your mission, use the crow and we will dispatch Ranboo to come pick you up” as he finished his sentence, a caw resonated in the hall and a small crow quickly flew in, landing perfectly on Phil’s shoulder.

Clearly, it was one of the best crows they had, it would probably barely take him a day to deliver the message.

That was great, once they found Tommy they would need to get him to the castle as soon as they could.

Before that, it was time for goodbyes.

Puffy slipped away from Techno’s side to talk with her brother, while both Will and Phil approached the prince.

“Please be careful.” Phil said with all the worry of a parent sending his kid towards an uncertain future.

“when am I not?” Techno joked in reply, gaining a sincere smile from the man in return

A fist connected with his shoulder.

“Hey, what was that for?” Techno complained

“Oh shut up, like that was not barely a tickle for you” Will replied back “you better come back or I will come to personally kick your ass”

It echoed all the times he had to leave in search for food, back when they had not been royals yet.

Like he always used to do, Techno raised his hand and patted his brother’s hair with a huff “Technoblade never dies am I right?”

Instead of an answer, two pair of arms wrapped around him suddenly. The warmth of his family almost made him regret his decision to leave, but the emptiness that could only be filled by another pair of arms around him kept his mind steady.

The send off was surprisingly quick, despite everything.

Schlatt hid away the tears that were clearly threatening to come out, Puffy did not care about doing the same. Karl was silent, staring at his own hand with a lost expression. Ranboo approached them slowly, holding out a hand.

“Ready?”

Techno was the first to reach out, Puffy held his other hand and Karl holding both Puffy’s and Ranboo’s hands.

Before he could even register it the scenery warped, the walls started spinning and looping around themselves and the faces in front of Techno twisted to the point of unrecognizability until a purple mist  filled the edges of his vision and his ears popped with the pressure.

 Just like it started, it was suddenly over. Techno stumbled to adjust for the new ground, softer than the stone of the castle floor. With the corner of his eye, he noticed Karl bend over and pour out the content of his previous meal with an audible sound.  If it were not for his hybrid body, Techno would have probably ended up in the same way.

The pressure of Ranboo’s fingers around his hand lessened and Techno barely had a second to twist his body and reach out his arms to catch the teen caught by a dizzy spell.

“alright?”

Ranboo’s squeezed his eyes, features in an uncomfortable grimace. They jumbled their words as they attempted to steady himself of his feet.

Instead of a phrase, the kid decided to throw a thumbs up before his eyes snapped  open. He slapped both his hands over his mouth and turned around just in time to introduce his breakfast to the ground.

 Techno looked away and towards Puffy, who appeared to be normal. They made eye contact for a second, then their eyes turned to the two people bent over the grass, then looked back at eachother again

“Two out of four, I’d say that isn’t too baeegh-“

There went Puffy, just like the other two, saying hello to the contents of her stomach.

Ha. Weak.

Techno huffed out a laugh.

While they settled down, he decided to use the time to look around their landing place. From where he stood, he could very well see the beginning of a village.

A place where they could ask for information, great start.

The rest of the area looked strangely barren for being so close to a village. The few trees that adorned the landscape were barren, thin flaky branches attempted to reach the sky, but there were no leaves to collect the sunlight.  Now that he took the time to notice, even the grass had lost its color, creaking under his steps.

Was this place too a victim of the drought?

“something might be off here, I say we head towards that village.”

He turned around, Puffy was now standing upright,  while Karl and Ranboo were still hunched over. She quickly glanced around.

Surprisingly, Karl was the one who replied first

“I agree, something is off” his sleeve had been passed over his mouth to clean the remaining spit “ I can feel some…magic? It is faint but there is definitely something.”

“Then we’re in the right place. We should hurry.” He glanced at the enderman hybrid, raising an eyebrow

“just give me- a sec. I will go as soon as- breathing” Ranboo raised a thumbs up again “ you guys don’t. Don’t wait for me- I’ll be fine.”

Techno didn’t need to be told twice. His steps were hurried towards the faraway houses. On his tail, Karl was quick to keep his inhumane pace, while Puffy took a moment to ensure Ranboo’s safety before running to reach them.

If they had been normal people, it would’ve taken them at least two hours to reach the stone path. Techno , however, was not normal people, and the others were not too bad either.

It took them half an hour to get to the first house.

As soon as the border of the village was crossed, Karl halted in his tracks. Techno, who noticed one less pair of steps behind him, turned around only to be met with a wide eyed Karl. A shiver visibly ran through the man.

“Something is very wrong here.” His tone was hushed  as if he was trying not be overheard.

“We need to keep going” Techno said, continuing his traverse. Karl gulped down with uncertainty, but decided to keep going, albeit reluctantly.

They made their way through a decently kept path, similar houses on both sides.

Once they had reached what supposedly was the center of the village, marked by a stone well, they stopped.

“Why is no one here?”  

“is it too early?”

“Even if it was, there should’ve been at least someone tending to their businesses”

“I agree, it is odd. Perhaps we should try knocking on someone’s door.”

Before Techno could even attempt to stop him, Karl’s fist was already making contact with a nearby door.

The speed of that man, seriously.

The knock echoed in the quiet of the morning. A village should never be this silent.

Upon receiving no answer, Karl knocked again with more insistence.

“We should try another house” said Puffy, going in the opposite direction and mimicking the librarian’s movements. Again, no answer.

“Helloo?!” Karl attempted to call through another’s house window.

“Could this place be abandoned?” he guessed, but Techno grunted, walking towards him

“The houses are all in good state. No rundown walls or mold. No, this place was not abandoned.”

“Maybe it was recently abandoned” Puffy emerged at their sides. Again, Techno refused the idea.

“ We would have seen traces in that case. We should check inside the houses, I’m sure we’ll understand more.”

“But the door is closed” Karl rattled against the doorknob. Techno pulled out a knife and handed it to him, eyebrows raised in suggestion.

“Wait, that’s against the empire’s law” Puffy scoffed. Techno looked at her, pointed at himself and raised his eyebrow. She rolled her eyes

“fine, but I do not condone it”

The lock clicked open and Karl pushed the door.

The house was pretty bare, at least to Techno’s standards. He walked towards the first area, only to be met with a displeasing smell. The dinner table looked abandoned in a haste. Plates were filled with rotting food and the moldy bread was cut into neat slices. The wax of burned candles pooled over the tablecloth.

“I suggest you come here to take a look” Puffy said from another room, her tone icy. Techno and Karl hurried towards her.

She stood next to a bed, two people laid in it straight as if they were in coffins. She bent over, two fingers placed against the woman’s neck

“They’re alive.”

“they look…asleep-“  Karl commented

“-like Hannah” Techno pointed out, Puffy’s jaw tightened at the mention.

“We should check the rest of the houses” her gaze was dark, certainly filled with fury at these poor people’s fate.

They spread out, covering as much territory as they could. Luckily for them, the village was not big. Once done, they reconvened back at the well.

“Everyone is asleep.”

“Surely that weird cult is involved in this.”

“We are one step closer to finding them”

The restlessness itched under Techno’s skin.

“Can you identify the magic?” Puffy tried.

“No, this is no ordinary magic. I mean, yes there are traces of it, but there is also something else? I couldn’t tell you what it is, but it sure ain’t natural”  

Something was truly off about this spell if it had made Karl’s accent slip through at the last words. The way of speak in Las Nevadas was truly unique to its people so he was used to hiding it.

He continued, tone lowered in concentration

“but, I think I can follow it. I mean, I can see some sort of…path? It’s faint but it’s there.”

Techno perked up at the mention of a trail

“show us the way.” His impatience was clear in his order, but, thankfully, Karl knew not to be offended by his way of speaking.

He closed his eyes and begun to walk to the right.

He is alone. He stands in his corner. He waits for orders, he knows none will come today. He waits.

Chapter Text

The walk ended up being longer than any of them had planned. Of course, it didn’t really affected Techno, but he could see it in the way Karl’s steps swayed slightly under the raising sun and by the fact that Puffy’s mane had been messily tied in a high bun with strands sticking to her forehead.

However, they were close. Karl had said so half an hour before, as he stopped to catch a break.

They were very close, and yet nothing was in sight.

“This is where it is.” Karl pointed out, planting his feet in front of an empty space.

Technoblade squinted his eyes. Despite his efforts, the only thing he was able to see were just metres and metres of a barren wasteland.

“Here?” Techno was perplexed. Yes, he was aware that what they were searching was possibly underground, but he had expected at least an entrance? A hole of some kind?

“are we supposed to dig?” Puffy asked, catching her breath “because I. Will need a moment”

While bold, it would make them waste far too much time for comfort and it would leave them (meaning Puffy and Karl mostly) tired and vulnerable to an attack.

“Maybe the entrance is somewhere else?”

It was far fetched, everything appeared the same in every direction. The shine of the sun was growing brighter, Techno’s headache worsened.

Karl whispered, mostly to himself “ no, it has to be here... i can feel the trail end...” his hand reached his chin, lower lip slightly forward.

The prince focused his attention on the man, taking a few steps to reach him. Karl had proven to be reliable many times before, it was not the time to doubt his abilities.

Techno ducked, a few stray strands of pink hair fell all around his face as he bent over to get as close as possible to the ground.

A base underground could not be that easily hidden from all senses, even if they had used magic. Which meant that he could probably tell the difference if something was underneath the floor.

He took a moment to concentrate, attempting to shut down the voices in his head as much as he could.

Then, with his fist he begun knocking onto the floor, his ears trying to pick up anything odd.

There is was.

“it seems vacant. Ground should not be vacant”

Techno mentally thanked Eret’s physics lessons. Despite his brothers shunning them, they had turned out to be useful in many situations.

Slowly, he moved around in a circle around Karl, his knuckles still hitting the ground rhythmically. Then, he moved a bit further, until the knock sounded different, fuller. A round area was gradually being identified.

That must’ve been the entrance.

At some point, he was certain that it was not dirt that met his hand. Techno opened his fist and used it to dust off the floor. Much to his own pleasure, what looked like letters engraved on a stone slab, begun to appear.

“There’s something here!” Karl and Puffy, who had been observing him curiously up to that point, immediately fell next to him. Together, they swept the ground off until the entirety of the slab was brought to life.

One by one, they stood on their feet and studied the phrase in its completion.

Techno rolled his eyes, clicking his tongue. Puffy let out an hysterical giggle next to him. Karl scrunched his nose.

In bold letters the slab read:

*There is but one question that can never be answered with a yes, what is it?*

“That doesn’t make any sense! A lot of questions can’t be answered with a yes.” Puffy stated with a groan

“Out of all the things i expected today, a riddle was not on my list” Karl complained.

“at this point, I am not sure what we should expect anymore” Techno had not been expecting many things during the past year, yet they happened and they had been way weirder than a stupid riddle.

They could solve this no sweat.

... he waits ...

“I’m done with this. It is impossible, I say we try our luck at digging.” Puffy was sitting onto the ground in defeat, the stone slab just ahead of her. Her arms were crossed over her chest and her nose was scrunched up.

Techno understood her frustration. It had been almost an hour since they discovered the riddle, yet they seemed no closer than before to an answer. Each passing minute graved heavily on the prince’s back, whose shadow projected ominously over the engraved stone as he hunched over it.

“Digging will be pointless. If the vacant area had been made only of dirt, the whole thing would have collapsed under our weight” Puffy sighed at his words. She leaned on her elbows and tossed her head back with the movement. Her eyes closed in contemplation.

“A question that cannot be answered with a yes huh...”

Techno exhaled shakily. Why had he spent years devouring one book after another, if it could not even help him find his brother. All of those pages and information and yet he was stuck, helpless against the passing time, all because of a damned riddle. His palm closed around his fist.

Meanwhile, Puffy’s eyes re-opened and fell right onto Karl, who had decided to lay down a bit further back. His jacket had been placed over his eyes to shield them from the sun. Puffy clicked her tongue.

“Oy, any ideas about the riddle yet?” she raised her voice in annoyance. Karl had stopped suggesting anything barely twenty minutes in and had stayed silent ever since.

He stayed quiet at Puffy’s question as well.

Techno mulled over the riddle as much as his throbbing head allowed him to. He was close to a solution, he had to be. Each word repeated in his head, syllable by syllable. He flinched when the letters muffled with the ones already being yelled in his head. If they could just shut up for a minute!

He groaned.

At his side, Puffy threw herself up swiftly at Karl’s silence. She turned around, picked a small pebble and threw it right at him.

Techno felt lost, his attempts at concentrating were proving themselves fruitless. He ignored the woman’s antics and he repeated the riddle to himself once again. Puffy’s voice raised in tone

“oy! What are you, sleeping? Don’t ignore me!”

To her surprise, Karl stopped the small rock without even sparing a glance at it and threw it back at her. She scoffed and rolled her eyes.

“a no would’ve been fine”

Techno’s eyes widened, he turned to the woman next to him “Wait, what did you just say?”

“That i would’ve preferred a no?” her head was tilted and her tone unsure.

Techno shook his head

“no, before that, what did you ask Karl”

“I asked if he was asleep, why?” Techno basically threw himself onto his knees in a hurried motion.

Of course! That was it.

He pulled out a small dagger and used the blade to scratch at the surface of the stone. It came surprisingly easy.

Puffy had hurried to his side as well, but she asked still confused “What? What are you doing?”

“You asked Karl if he was sleeping.”

“yeah, and what about it?”

“I couldn’t have said yes.” Karl had appeared next to them with quiet steps. Techno glanced at him with a brief smirk

“Exactly.”

The realization seemed to dawn on Puffy as well as she let out a small “oooh”

Better late than never.

After finally making the last scratch, Technoblade took a step back, his hands rested on his hips.

“ Are you asleep? That’s a question that can never be answered with a yes.”

As soon as those words were enunciated, the ground started to shake underneath their feet. Techno hurried to where he had previously sensed actual ground.

With a hissing sound, dirt and rocks begun to disappear, raining down a pit that was gradually expanding.

Puffy and Karl were at Techno’s side in an instant, coughing up the dust that was being raised by the vibration.

As the trembling stopped, and the dust settled, the hole revealed a staircase that disappeared into an unknown depth.

It was but this set of stairs that was standing between Technoblade and his brother. He did not hesitate to reach it, the councillor on his tail.

She reached her hand to his shoulder, he turned to face her.

“are you sure we’re going down? It could be a trap.”

“We have come this far, I won’t be stopped now”

She nodded. Karl cleared his throat, making the others turn towards him with a raised eyebrow.

“This is where I leave you.” His hand passed through his hair with a sigh, the golden ring sparkled with the sunshine “As much as I would like to help you further, we made a deal-“

“I understand. “ Techno couldn’t ask him to put his life at risk any more than he already had done. He grunted in agreement, Karl’s eyes sharpened and he nodded in thanks.

“I will wait for your return.” He kneeled, his right hand open over his hearth. A symbol of respect, a wish for good luck.

It was time to take the first step down.

A shiver ran through Techno as the boot came into contact with the hard stone step. He inhaled deeply and glanced at Puffy behind him. Her eyes were focused, a fire burning inside them. Technoblade suddenly felt more courageous.

He took another step, then one more, until the sky became barely visible from their only way out.

They descended for a long time, climbing back up would be a pain in the future. Natural lighting had been slowly abandoned in favour of a magically lit torch. Techno’s eyes could adjust well to the darkness, but Puffy was not as lucky.

Not a word had been spoken since they had departed with Karl. They needed to be on high alert, focusing all of their energy on listening for suspicious sounds.

Finally the last step came. A narrow corridor with a sharp turn greeted them ahead, cracked stone bricks making up the questionable integrity of the whole place. Mould thrived in the corners, spores making the air grow thick and humid.

They now were in enemy’s territory, maximum prudence was required. Sign language came handy in cases like this

*should we go straight?* Puffy signed with her free hand, Techno raised an eyebrow and replied

*There is not much of a choice really* he went ahead of her, approaching the corridor. Everything was silent as they walked, their steps barely making a noise.

Once they turned left, they were met with a door. The prince reached for the handle as his partner closed her fist around the hilt of her sword. She leaned her ear against the wood and nodded at him. The door creaked with the movement and Techno cursed himself for not being quieter.

They stepped at the side of the door, away from sight and peeked inside the newfound room.

No one was there.

Carefully, they stepped in the room taking in the area. It was large, and tall. So much so that Techno was not able to see the ceiling.

Despite sconces being on either walls at their sides, no torches were lit, and, if Techno looked closer, some of them were clearly used recently since a faint trail of smoke raised from them. Nevertheless, the rest of the room was in ruins. Tapestry hung destroyed and torn, pieces of wood were scattered on the ground and what remained of the furniture was covered in a thick layer of dust.

Puffy inspected the ground, bringing the torch closer to it. Dirt and dust seemed to cover it as well but the pattern was off.

She lightly tapped on the ground to catch Techno’s attention.

*someone tried to cover their tracks* she pointed out the floor. Techno pointed towards the torches

*they did a poor job with it as well*

She raised to her feet, looking at the wall opposite to where they came from. Techno followed her gaze, noticing that they had a choice to make. Two doors stood ahead, one on the far right and one on the far left.

*They went this way, we should go.* She made for the left door. Techno reached out and grabbed her arm, he shook his head.

*this is too easy* he felt the gears in his brain turn *it’s like they want us to follow them. We should go the other way* yes, that was the right move. They should not underestimate the same enemies that had broken into the castle with no one noticing.

Puffy thought about it for a second, clearly trying to object something. She seemed to settle down soon enough, though.

*I trust you*

His mouth did not move, but Techno hoped his eyes conveyed enough gratitude towards her.

And so, they walked to the door on the right. If a phrase was engraved on it, neither of them understood it.

Much like before, they opened the door and passed through it.

Immediately, Techno’s senses went haywire.

Something was not right.

 The prince glanced around yet another corridor, extending his arm in front of Puffy. His other hand went to reach for his sword, extracting it from its sheath. The metallic sound echoed in the corridor.

“someone is here” he whispered. Puffy reacted quickly, placing herself back to back with the teen, her sword already out.

Techno scanned the shadows ahead. An outline of a person had barely emerged from it. He did not have time to waste.

Without missing a beat, the prince ran towards them, forgetting about the woman at his back. He would be done in an instant.

It was only when he had gotten close enough to see the weapon of the man in front of him, that he realized his mistake. The shine of an arrow, a crossbow.

However, the crossbow was not pointed towards him, but a bit further behind.

Puffy!

The arrow had crossed the room in less than a second. Techno’s head snapped back following its trail. He let out a breath he wasn’t aware he had been holding once the arrow reached a solid material on the ceiling, instead of the softness of skin.

He scoffed at the archer’s bad aim, raising his sword. Before he could even take one step further, the arrow exploded. Light filled the corridor for a single instant. The prince’s eyes met with Puffy’s, who had taken a few hurried step to reach him. The reflection of the fire shone in her eyes, wide open with shock, before the ceiling came down, cutting her from his line of sight.

At the same time, the archer ran in the opposite direction, clearly taunting the teen to follow him.

With a moment of hesitation, Techno turned his back to the mysterious man and ran at the pile of rubble.

“Puffy!” he yelled alarmed.

No one answered.

With his sword still held steadily in one hand, he frantically used his other one to dig at the pile. However, the more he moved, the more the bricks fell down.

He was supposed to be at her side. He was supposed to-

His breath hitched, he ignored the blood from his nails that were breaking in the process.

Suddenly, he heard a cough from the other side.

“i’m fine! That bastard cut us off”

Techno let out a hiccup in response.

Thank the gods, she was fine. The joy had to be cut short when Technoblade’s sensitive hearing picked up a huge amount of step running towards something from across the debris.

“Puff, someone is coming your way!”

“I heard it.”

“we can move-“

“Don’t worry about me! I can take a few of them”

The sound of steps got louder.

“but-“

“No buts, go follow that asshole before we lose him!” her tone was steady, fearless. He could not refuse.

“You better find another way to reach me.” He said, voice cracking at the last words.

He could hear her heartbeat quicken and the familiar click of a sword meeting another one. Between huffs she talked one more time.

“of course! I’m supposed to- protect you...aren’t I? Now go!”

Technoblade fist tightened around the hilt of his sword.

He had to be strong.

The last thing he wanted was to leave someone else behind. Despite this, time was still ticking, now more than ever, so he reluctantly ran after the archer while the sound of the battle slowly faded out the further he got away from his friend.

Chapter Text

The darkness grew dimmer and the corridor came to an end, opening itself up to welcome a well lit square room. Techno did not bother to look around, focused on following the hooded man, who had just left in sight the trail of his cape, before disappearing.

The prince entered room after room, no doors to stop him. Slowly, the stony walls were being replaced by actual stone, and the ruins begun to look more and more like a cave.

It was when he had just entered a rounded area that he realized, their assaulter was nowhere in sight. He halted abruptly, spinning in place.

Where had the bastard gone?

 All around, holes to different corridors opened up, covered with an unnatural darkness.

His senses tingled, arms covered in tiny bumps from the shivers.

Techno put on a defensive stance.

Perhaps it was better to go back and try to find Puffy...which way had he come from again?

The well lit way that he had followed had been swallowed by the shadows and thus it became indistinguishable from the other ways.

The previous warning given by his intuition turned into a full fledged yell of alarm. Techno winced from the headache the voices brought.

His jaw clenched and his eyes closed.

The room was silent enough and yet he could hear the faintest trace of shoes hitting the ground.

Someone was coming his way, from every direction.

Techno swore mentally, there was no place to run to. He was about to be ambushed.

Right on cue, masked attackers appeared from the darkness of each archway.

Technoblade planted his feet, sword tight in his hands. Ten...no, at least twenty people approached him carefully.

The people moved quietly, with grace. The room was filled with tension.  They were looking at him, analysing him,  taking their time to attack, as if they were assessing the behaviour of a rabid animal.

Techno chuckled to himself, it wasn’t that far off of a description.

He grunted out in warning, but no one flinched.

Instead,  someone had the courage to take the first swing and Techno acted accordingly.

Years on different battlefields showed their fruits as the hybrid was swarmed by enemies. He tried to keep his distance, to avoid being cornered.

He breathed in, took a leap, swung his sword, exhaled and parried on repetition.

A blade grazed his right arm while he kicked at the person in front of him.  He felt his vision redden, the blood of many was being spilt once more.

In the midst of chaos, the voices finally made sense again. He hadn’t realized how much he has missed their unanimous chanting.

Blood for the blood god, blood for the blood god.

He couldn’t help the smile that tore his face as his sword slashed his opponent from shoulder to hip. Blood seeped out, but he had no time to see them fall to the floor as he jumped to the side and avoided a strike aimed at his chest.

Next he ducked, lunging forward and stabbing his enemy in the side. The resistance of the blade against the muscles as he took it out made his skin tingle.

They were all going to pay for what they had done.

He deflected another attack, the sound of metals scraping against eachother shouldn’t have been quiet, but it fell deaf against Techno’s ears.

From the back, someone screamed in anger. He turned around, but not quick enough. The blow was unavoidable.

He shifted as much as he could, he needed to minimize the damage.  

Techno grunted when the dagger came into contact with his body. Then, he growled. The person in front of him let go of the weapon, lodged in Techno’s left side.

Thankfully, experience had taught him that the left side didn’t hold many important bits. He pulled it out, throwing it at the other person’s feet with a challenge.

The inhumanity of Technoblade probably settled in the mind of his aggressor just then. There was a moment of hesitance, just enough for the hybrid to use that as an opening and cut their head right off.

However, Technoblade couldn’t even take his time to breathe that he had to again avoid another blow. He cursed, this time out loud, when he noticed his moments weren’t as keen as he intended them to be.

His body was not keeping up with his intentions and the voices were falling back to their nonsensical chaos.

Another cut appeared on his left arm.

He was starting to lose ground.

Technoblade managed to fend off many of them, but they just kept coming.

Nevertheless, he pushed on. Blow after blow his foes fell heavily on the ground.

The sounds came muffled to Techno’s ears as adrenaline filled his body. Fear was foreign to him, yet he was starting to understand it.

Techno turned around abruptly and flinched, caught off guard by a man that had approached him.

Then, it all played out as if in slow motion.

He saw the man’s cape move, the fabric over their arms crinkle, their sword rise.

At that moment he knew: he wouldn’t be able to dodge it.

Many things came to Techno’s mind in that instant.

He thought about Wilbur and his promise to him. He thought about his father and his worried smile.

He thought about Tommy. How he was failing him again.

He waited for the blow, waited for the moment where the pain would become too much to ignore.

That moment never came.

The masked man in front of him grunted in pain, his arms fell as a flinch shook his body.

As he landed heavily onto the ground, a familiar head of white curls emerged from one of the corridors behind him.

Her clothes were ragged, blood was mostly covering the fabric and he hoped it was not hers. A cut on her cheek was staining her unusually dirty curls, yet she was smiling, a mix of relief and exhaustion.

He then took notice of the dagger lodged in the dead man’s head and could not help but smirk.

“Come this way! We can hold them off!” Puffy yelled, stabbing another man right through with her sword.

Techno ran towards her, doing his best to avoid  blows and parry swords.

Together, they defended the entrance for as long as they could, but Techno felt them both huff heavily. They would not be able to hold them off for longer.

“we gotta go!” Techno panted. Puffy glanced at him, her forehead drenched in sweat and covered in filth.

They pushed a couple of people away and turned their backs on them, running as far as they could.

Each step made the prince’s body burn, the wound on his side pulsated to the rhythm of his accelerated heart.

“Left! I passed a room with a platform, we could use the height to our advantage”

Just like Puffy had said, the room they entered had a higher ground, only reachable by a small staircase at the centre of it. On either side of the platform a pair of twin staircases stood to reach a balcony over it.

If they guarded the staircases and split the people they could do it!

They climbed the stairs and side by side they waited for the strangers to follow them.

One by one they were defeated.  

With Puffy by his side, Technoblade felt safe. The warrior matched Techno pace perfectly, covering his shortcomings due to his injured state without any questions.

They pushed and killed for what felt like hours, until only two remained.

They had managed to climb on  the platform, so Techno and Puffy were now standing back to back, each fighting one.

Technoblade felt his muscles burn as he blocked the hit with his sword. He used what of his strength he had left to push against the metal, successfully disarming his enemy. He charged forward and his blade penetrated the flesh, drawing what he hoped was the final blood.

He heard a sword clutter to the ground and a masculine grunt and he supposed Puffy had done something similar.

His weapon came out surprisingly easy with a disgusting metallic sound. He straightened up, flinched at the pain it caused and he huffed out a sigh. Strands of bloodied pink hair fell over his eyes and he used his, equally bloody, hand to push them away.

A sudden breeze hit his cheek as he turned  towards his friend with a sarcastic remark

“Truly no match for-“

Techno’s blood froze in his veins. Time seemed to slow down, almost coming to a stop as each part of the scene in front of him revealed itself in its horrible details.

Puffy was fully turned around, trying to say something. Her eyes were wide, but her eyebrows were drawn together, as if she was trying to understand why her voice was not coming out.

She gurgled, a trail of blood fell from her lips.

She looked down, suddenly realizing the reason for he loss of words. Techno followed her gaze and his stomach fell.

Her neck was ran through from side to side, both ends of an arrow sticking out, dribbling with blood.

Puffy coughed, her attempts at words barely a pained moan.

Like an apple from a tree, she fell to her knees.

Techno had only a second to wake up from the shock the sight gave him.

In the instant he took a step forward, his senses went haywire. On reflexes, he raised a hand, fingers clutching around a arrow intended for  his head.

He sharply turned towards the source, his vision focusing on the hooded archer from before.

Techno wasted no time in loading his arm and launching the arrow right back to its sender. He was displeased to see he had only managed to hit his leg.

He was about to attempt to reach him, a deep growl leaving his mouth, when a gurgle brought him back to reality.

The prince turned towards Puffy, his gaze softened. With the side of his vision he caught notice of the archer limping away.

He could follow him later, Puffy came first.

He fell next to her, raising her in his arms.  His wound screamed at him, but his friend was his sole focus.

He had to do something to help her, he had to-

Her eyes were open. Despite looking his direction her gaze was distant, her pupils cloudy.  Though he doubted it was bothering her,  Techno still freed one hand from under her body to stick stray hairs away from her face and behind her ears.

Heat rose to Techno’s face. Blood came out from the wound in steady streams. He has seen many soldiers die in battle the same way. His eyes stung as he came to terms with her fate.

Her skin was now paling, matching her usually white curls. Her chest raised shallowly, each breath took more and more effort from her, yet her whole body shook with spasms. The air was punctured from the sound of gurgling.

Techno’s hand begun to caress her face, tears shamelessly falling from his eyes.

“Shhh, you did well” he choked out. It was the only relief he could provide her.

If only he had been faster.

Before he knew it, her body became still and she drew her last breath.

 He gulped down a sob. His hand was shaking, either from the blood loss or the sorrow that was crushing his insides.

His head felt light, spots appeared in his vision,  but he could not allow himself to give in. Especially not after Puffy.

Carefully, Techno placed down the body. Right, it was a body now. No longer the cheerful warrior that he knew, she would not smile any longer. Her face forever disfigured by a pained expression.

Gods, what would he say to Schlatt, to Tubbo...to Phil?

He should’ve protected her, he should’ve-

His nails dug into his palms.

He shut down the thoughts, it was not the time for self pity.

The prince clenched his jaw. The hybrid raised himself to his feet. His own body felt foreign to him.

He ripped up a piece of cloth from his shirt, tying it up around his middle until it hurt.

Yes, hurt was good. It was grounding, it meant he was still alive.

He glanced one more time at Puffy’s lifeless body, a pit opening up in his stomach. He tore his gaze away from her and focused on the emotion that was so intertwined with his being, he focused on his rage and his rage alone.

It put his physical pain in the background.

Like a predator, he begun to follow the trail of blood left by the archer. With a leg in his condition, he couldn’t have gone far.

Technoblade heard muffled breaths before he saw his target. The man was leaning against the wall, dragging his leg behind him as fast as he could.

Techno did not even attempt to conceal his appearance, approaching the man openly, blood boiling in his veins.

When the archer noticed him, it was too late. Techno was on him, pinning him  against the wall, knife dangerously close to his throat.

He saw the man’s confused eyes dart around  for a second, then they widened in fear, finally focused on Techno’s red ones. He looked pretty ordinary, his brown hair fell in a fringe over his forehead and he wore what looked like goggles on his head.

“Who are you people?” the prince spat. No emotion was left transpiring from his tone. Ice was coming out of his mouth, and that, was much more intimidating than any display of anger.

 The man flinched slightly but kept his mouth shut. It was surprising in a way, usually Technoblade made people tremble on sight but he had learned not to underestimate these madmen. 

“What’s your plan?”

Still, the archer did not reply.

Techno tried again, the knife barely drawing blood.

“Where did you take Tommy? Where is he!” Technoblade demanded again, growling at the last words. This time the question seemed to draw out a reply from the stranger, who looked directly at the hybrid, before speaking in an unnatural cold tone.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about” he shrugged.  However, the stranger’s body betrayed him unknowingly. Techno saw his pupils dilate and pushed him further against the wall.

“don’t lie”

The stranger gulped, but still held his place, his lips thinned in a line.

Alright, no more mister nice guy.

Techno grunted, with his left hand he grabbed the man’s collar and threw him on the ground. His boot came into contact with the man’s wound, who let out a wine.

Techno kneeled over the man, planting the dagger next to his face.

“still not feeling like talking?” Techno’s eyes almost shone with red as he smiled and raised his arm.

No reaction.

This time the dagger was planted in the man’s hand and he screamed.

“We can make this quick or slow, it’s up to you”

Techoblade usually took no pleasure from inducing pain (he had always preferred a quick honourable death for his enemies in battle ) he thought he had left these type of behaviours in his childhood years, when it was the only way to survive.  But Puffy’s image came to his mind, her smile, her courage, her kind words, and suddenly he felt like doing so much more.

She had not deserved to die. This man needed to pay for his actions.

It probably showed through Techno’s expression because he felt the archer tremble under himself, suddenly pale.

That was more like it.

“H-He’s-He’s not here-“

The last words came out strangled, as if talking had become difficult.

Technoblade saw red just then, pushing the dagger deeper in the flesh. The man’s face scrunched in pain.

“Then where is he.”

The man opened his mouth to reply.

Finding Tommy was now becoming something more concrete.

However, instead of words, from the man’s mouth emerged a thick dark foam. With a vines like appearance, the darkness slithered on his face, travelling in different directions and wrapping around his neck and head. Choked whimpers left his body as his skin begun to pale, purplish veins climbing up his cheeks.  The archer’s eyes widened, as if the eyeballs were trying to escape the socket. Then...he stilled.

Like it had appeared, the foam left.

And with it, their only lead to Tommy was dead.

The scream that tore through Technoblade was one of rage, one of pain, one of complete and utter desperation.

He shook the man’s collar with no real purpose, clutching tightly until his knuckles hurt and his throat became sore.

Karl was bored out of his mind, in his company only the crow Philza had left them and an half finished book. The sun was very well on its way to set and so far no trace of his teammates had resurfaced from the ruins.

Just as he was starting to grow worried, a familiar head of pink hair peeked from the staircase.

Karl immediately jumped up with a smile. It fell when he truly took in the state of the man.

Soaked from head to toe in blood, stumbling in his climb and pale from the effort, he dragged his feet on each stair.

It was when he noticed the unmoving head of curls in the prince’s arms that Karl felt a knot form in his throat.

It couldn’t be...

The prince took one last step of his climb and attempted to reach Karl, who in turn was full of question.

As the golden light shone softly on the royal’s face, Karl saw his devastated expression: the red around his puffy eyes, the snot coming out of his nose, the frown that wanted to say a thousands words.

Always with a brave face and unmatched fighting skills , it was easy to forget the prince was still a kid.

And yet, at the dusk of this unforgettable day, for the first time in his life, Karl saw the prince crumble down and Technoblade’s true age slip through.

With a sob and a shake of his shoulders, Technoblade fell from the exhaustion, passing out from either the pain or the blood loss.

Karl was next to him in barely a second.

Chapter Text

A shadow was cast over the whole kingdom, as if the sky would never clear again. Somehow, the world appeared to have stilled, quiet in a shared sorrow.

While Tommy’s disappearance had cut through the hearts of the court, Puffy’s death seemed to have taken a piece of the very core of the empire instead.

The streets were filled with citizens, their heads lowered and their hands joined. The procession carrying the councilor’s coffin passed through the capital with ease, as many paid their respect with flowers and tears. The funeral, held in the high temple just right outside the outskirt of the city, was no simple matter. If Puffy could see it, she would be moved to see just how many people were there to send her off.

Among them there were many strangers, many soldiers but also many familiar faces.

 From where he stood, Wilbur could make out Tubbo’s face, tore apart by tears as Ranboo tried to console him through his pain. Next to them, Schlatt was as still as a statue, but what his body concealed, his eyes showed: glossed over and red, clearly already used to the wetness of grief.

The rest of the councilors were lined up at his side. Niki was gripping the hem of her tailored black cape; Callahan’s hands were held together in a prayer; Sam fidgeted with a ring on his hand. On their faces was painted a blur of emotions : anger, regret, anxiety.

Will could certainly understand them.

He glanced over at his right, at his brother. Since he had gotten back, wounded beyond belief and with Puffy’s body in hands, he had yet to say a word. Technoblade’s face was like stone.

Wilbur had tried to beg him to speak, to cry, even anger would have been fine, but to no avail. Now, Techno  was at their father’s left as the king delivered a speech. His words were spoken slowly, each phrase was followed by a sharp intake of breath only his sons could notice.  No one but the coffin was at his right. Even in death she was Philza’s right hand.

Wilbur gulped down a knot in his throat. He needed to be strong in front of his people, so he held everything in.

It was easy to ignore it the past week, too busy with the arrangements and the mindless royal duties.

 Now, in the quiet of the temple, while the king’s words echoed in the crowded space, everything was threatening to come out.

He glanced at the coffin, surrounded by beautiful white carnations.

His breath hitched

After the funeral, he told himself, after the funeral he could finally let it out.

The funeral ended without problems, the casket had been carried to the burying grounds, hymns had been sung through choked tears and then it was over. Just like that, Puffy was no more.

As the crowd started to disperse, Wilbur and Phil approached Schlatt, to offer their condolences

“Take it easy for the next few days, spend them with your son. Gods know you two both need it” Will heard his father say to the man, who appeared disconnected from the words, but nodded nonetheless. He still had to show proper respect to the king, after all.

“we’re here with you, we’ll get through this” Wilbur tried to offer some comfort as well, but it fell bland  against Schlatt’s grief. He didn’t know if he would get through it himself, how could he so blatantly lie to the other man?

Still, it was the best he could do in the moment.

“Come, we should return to the castle” his father whispered, his hand was cold to his shoulder.  Wilbur shook his head

“I- I think I need a moment. Will meet you back in a bit alright?” The last words came out strangled as the knot in his troath grew tighter. Clearly, his father was not the biggest fan of leaving him behind, alone, yet he seemed not to have any more fight in himself left.

With a long sigh he gave in “fine, but be careful”

The prince simply nodded.

Wilbur didn’t know how he had found himself wandering through the streets of the capital, how he had walked all the way from the cemetery without stopping. Perhaps he had ran, it would surely explain his huffed breaths and the ache in his legs.

Speaking of legs, they seemed not to want to do their job anymore. Of course, why would they? There was no point to it, no point to any of it really…

If they were his twins’ legs Wilbur bet they would still hold up his weight despite everything. If he were his brother he would certainly not be shaking on the ground of a dirty alley, covered in snot and tears.

If he were more like his brother, maybe he would have been with Techoblade instead of Puffy. Maybe he would have been able to find Tommy and stop those bastards who took him.

Maybe he would have been able to do the job for once, to be the big guy, instead of letting his brother coddle him and take care of everything as always.

Nothing had changed, after all, from when they were kids. He would always be left behind, hoping that his twin would  eventually come back safely instead of going with him to help.

Newfound anger bubbled deep inside him, he let out a growl . Will’s fist connected with the ground over and over until the gravel pierced the skin in various points, but Will could barely feel it.

He must have looked pathetic to the passersby because a pair of shoes, and what looked like the end of a cane , stopped in front of him

“oh my, dear boy are you quite alright?”

Wilbur barely had the strength to raise his head at this older lady’s voice. Her face was wrinkled with concern (and old age) as her deep green eyes almost shone with worry.

Wilbur simply scoffed, and returned to look at the ground.

This time, instead of the voice, there was a not quite light tap on his shoulder. Wilbur snapped his head up at the old woman, who was concealing a smirk, and he glared at the raised cane.

“I’m sorry to bother you” she said almost playfully “ but you see, you’re sitting right in front of the door to my shop. And I would very much like to go inside now”  she tapped the end of her walking stick onto the wall behind Will, who now noticed it was, in fact, a door.

With heat rising to his face, he scooted over just enough to let the old lady pass. However, she seemed to have other plans

“oh dear me, my bones have grown quite tired, if only a healthy young man could help me bring this heavy bag inside” she dangled a leather bag right in front of his face. Will was so out of it that he had not previously noticed her having it.

With a sigh, he managed to muster up the strength to raise himself from the ground. He used the heel of his hands to somewhat clear his face, then he brushed off some dust and grabbed the old lady’s bag with one hand. She smiled like she had conquered a nation.

How bothersome.

He huffed out at the surprising heavy weight of the bag, so much so that he had to use his other hand to support it. Perhaps the panic from earlier had still not worn off, that might have been why his strength was far from optimal.

“what a kind boy you are, come, come now.” She said entering the shop with tiny steps.

As Wilbur followed, his eyes widened as he took in the purpose of the shop. It was small, yes, but every corner and shelf was filled to the brim with musical instruments of every kind and what looked like…musical sheets!

There were flutes, lutes, harps and even guitars. Will’s gaze stopped at admiring the most beautiful guitar he had ever seen.

 The light of the torches nearby bounced off the nicely polished dark mahogany wood of its body, shining with almost caramel hues. The intricate designs of the copper colored engravings on the sides showed how great the craftsmanship behind the instrument was, each stroke carefully placed to complement the shape. The neck of the guitar appeared delicate, yet so perfectly shaped for the human hand. Wilbur could imagine how it would feel to hold it, the weight of it,  the smoothness.

“truly a beautiful instrument, isn’t it?” Will jolted, having momentarily forgotten the woman’s presence

He nodded, his eyes still on the guitar.

“You play?” she looked at him curiously, he gulped down, still in a daze.

“Yeah, I do”

“Then let’s hear it” she said, reaching out to the guitar. It was enough to snap Wilbur to reality

“what?”

“you can put the bag over there on the counter”

He didn’t know what came over himself, perhaps the desire to hold the instrument had far surpassed any common sense he had, but he did as she ordered. Once back, the woman held out the guitar to him, he hesitated, hands hovering above the neck of it

“Could you play for me please?”

He had never played in front of strangers before, but suddenly he felt the urge to, as if the guitar was begging to be played.

His hand wrapped around the wood, softly, as if it would break underneath his grasps.

“ you can sit there if you would like” she pointed over a stool, he sat.

He strummed some chords, to his great surprise, it was perfectly tuned.

“What should I play?”

“Whatever you desire dear”  

He thought about it, many songs came to mind but he brushed past all of them. At last he came to a decision, he settled the guitar better in his grasp, he pinched the right strings, his calloused fingers used to the pressure, then he started playing.

The familiar tune of the lullaby he used to play for Tommy filled the room, and so did his memories of those nights spent together. The boy’s shy curls popping behind the door, his eyes so eager and curious, his smile as he listened to what he had discovered was music.

If Will focused hard enough, he could almost hear his little brother’s voice hum to the song.

He allowed himself to get lost in the melody.

Once the song reached its end, he was surprised to see  tears fall from his eyes. His shoulders were lowered, as If all the tension he had felt before had vanished with the notes

“truly a magnificent piece, you clearly know your chords” the old lady brushed her glossy eyes with her hands. She quickly demanded an encore. This time, Will tried to play a happier tune, one he had heard many times in taverns.

The air in the room shifted in tone, along the bouncy tune of the guitar.

Suddenly, the woman widened her eyes  and rose up from her seat, her mouth forming an overdramatic O shape. The scrape of her seat against the floor made Wilbur halt his playing

“one more. I think I have a piece that would be perfect for you”

She said, and before Will could stop her, she scurried over to the shelves, rummaging around in search of something.

After a couple of minutes in silence, Will heard her say “Aha! Here you are”

She hurried back to the hybrid, and held out  a rolled piece of paper. Will opened it, reading the music sheet written on it. As he did so, the notes played in his head.

His nose scrunched “ I appreciate the thought, but I don’t do ballads. Not really my style”

She chuckled politely “ Don’t be silly, I find that this is exactly what you need” “go on, I will accompany with lyrics” she insisted.

Again, Wilbur did not find it in himself to refuse. After all it was only one more song.

And so he begun to strum the guitar at the best of his abilities. He flinched ever so slightly, cussing at himself, every time a difficult chord came up, causing him to readjust his grip and mess up the tempo. Nevertheless, the old lady did not seem to mind, and, when it was her turn, she begun to sing the story.

With a surprisingly  melodious voice, although a bit raspy in some parts, she narrated of a long forgotten tale. Despite Will’s focus on the music, he tried his best to listen to the narrative.

Apparently in a time long forgotten a stray kid ended up losing himself in the capital while playing with his peers. A moment of distraction caused the kid to chase a cat. The faster it ran, the farther he went, the more the darkness appeared. As the shadows overcame the streets , he followed the feline inside a church, so big it threatened the god’s reigns. However, as the kid marveled at the creation, forgetting about the cat, he did not watch his steps. And so the poor boy tumbled and tumbled in a place so dark he could barely see the tip of his nose. Lucky for him, the cat appeared again, showing the way to the boy out of the intricacies of  the tunnels that made up the town underneath the ground. As the third day passed, the kid finally saw the light at the end and vowed to never get distracted again.

As the final chords closed the ballad, the words finally settled down between Wilbur and the old lady

“Sometimes It’s wild to see what could be hidden in plain sight” the lady concluded, getting up from her chair again in order to pat Will’s shoulder

“You boy are a true talent”

Wilbur laughed, his cheeks slightly red “it’s nothing really…actually it took my mind off of some things for a while, so I should thank you for that”

The old lady looked at him in thought, but her mouth was in a tight lipped smile “I wonder...well, anyway, thank you very much for helping this dear old lady and keeping her company”

Will suddenly felt the exhaustion on the previous hours collapse onto his shoulder. His eyelids felt heavy, how long had he been here? Father would sure be worried if he had taken too much time.

“it was my pleasure, I’m afraid I will need to leave now” he stood up and made the motion to hand over the guitar still in his hands. The lady placed her hands on the wood and firmly pushed it back against him, shaking her head

“No no, keep it”

“let me at least pay for-“

“shush, think it as payment for your help” she smiled softly “I hope you will feel better, remember not everything is lost forever”

Will’s eyebrows scrunched in confusion, but he deeply thanked the woman nonetheless.

And so, with a polite smile and a new guitar over his shoulder (and a story he would later mull over after a decent nap) he made his way back to the castle.

It was only once he had reached the gates, he realized he had not asked the old lady for her name.

Chapter Text

Technoblade sat at the edge of his bed. His sword laid in front of him atop the small table, still in its sheath. If he took it out, he would still be able to see her blood on the handle.

He took a sharp breath.

His hand hovered over it, it had done so for the past hour or so. Techno tried to lower it so that it would touch the leather, yet it seemed not to want to obey to his commands.

For a moment, crimson had covered it once more. The hand trembled and snapped back, causing him to hiss.

The days following her passing had gone by in a blur, Technoblade felt distant from the world around him. But mostly, he felt distant from himself.

His sword had laid untouched since, gathering dust in his room. What was he without his sword?

And yet, he had been nothing with it either. What was the point of holding such blade if not to protect the people whom you love?

He had believed to be invincible once, the voices accompanied him in each battlefield, fomenting his blood thirst. Without them, he had felt more alone than ever and yet he carried on. The arrogance of a young undefeated hero was his defeat. He had coddled himself in his belief to be the strongest, the blood good. But it was just hubris.

Like Icarus, he had felt immune to the circumstances, but it had not been him paying the price for it.

First his little brother, then…her.

Technoblade squeezed his hands into fists, resting on his knees. The fabric crinkled around it.

Logically, he knew that the proper response to whatever this was needed to be more training, yet he felt helpless against his guilt. His beloved blade looked more like a instrument of death than ever.

If he closed his eyes, he could still hear the sound of the metal piercing the skin, the squelch as the sword pulled away, the thump…of the corpses fall-

He ran to the bathroom just in time for the contents of his stomach to rise up his throat and escape his mouth. Techno’s whole body was racked with shaking and heaves as he coughed out.

Why? Why was this happening?

He almost cried out as another wave of nausea hit him, tears and mucus marking his contorted face.

Why now?

He has seen thousands of battlefields, slayed twice as many enemies. The hybrid was no foreign to the ugliness of war, so why was his body betraying him like this now?

He whimpered, finally done, as he laid against the wall to take a broken breath.

Within that moment of quiet, Technoblade tried to pull himself together.

Since the king’s right hand man was…no longer available, many of her duties had befallen onto the princes, the older one in particular. Therefore Techno had found himself full of responsibilities he was not quite sure he would have been able to handle. Not as well as her, at least. And so, he had delegated them, as much as he could.

He felt sorry to push the burden of taking care of the army apprentices onto Nihachu. Techno was sure she already had a lot to think about, but the idea of holding a sword, albeit a wooden one, in front of other people made his blood freeze.  He was in no position to teach other people how to protect their loved ones.

Once the nausea had completely subsided, Technoblade rose slowly from the ground, taking a moment to wash his own face from the gross fluids that were covering it.

He was still alive and breathing, although his appearance would’ve raised some doubts from anyone who came across him.

In the mirror, his usually bright  irises appeared dull, maroon rather than scarlet, circled  by  swollen eyes and the uncanny pale skin. Instead of a braid, his hair was trying to escape the high bun that he had hazardously put together while vomiting, and that was now half undone with strands sticking in all directions.  Technoblade took a moment to tie his hair in a semi decent low ponytail.

Hey, now he looked almost presentable.

As he had just managed to drag himself out of the bathroom, the corner of his eye took notice of something bright.

He turned towards the nearby window, approaching it to study the landscape in the distance. Technoblade squinted, leaning on the windowsill.

Was that a fire?

Before he could even process it, different loud bangs echoed in the capital and with them, the roar of fires spread throughout the streets. Gray smoke rose in the air from small areas away from the castle, yet still within the capital, tainting the sky with their somber color.

Dread pooled in Technoblade stomach, the faint smell of gunpowder tickled his nostrils.

 In the courtyard many soldiers had  already been deployed to assist the citizens. The prince caught sight of countless apprentices, still round with youth, wearing an armor that was quite not their fit as they staggered to follow their superiors out of the gates.

What was going on?

Without missing a beat  the prince ran to his door. He stopped, looked at the blade discarded on his nightstand and reached for it with a trembling hand. Once it was secured on his belt, he ran out of his room and tried to reach the main hall. In his way, he stumbled upon his brother, his eyes wide in panic and his chest out of breath. Will’s gaze fell on his twin and the tension in his jaw eased slightly.

“What- is going on?” Technoblade coughed out, the first words  since the accident burned their way out of his sore throat.

For a moment, relief flashed on his brother’s face, but it was quickly overshadowed by fear and anger.

“We’re under attack! I was with Nihachu when a messenger came in and” he took a deep breath “ and he said some hooded guys came out of nowhere and set shit on fire!” Will voice rose as he paced back and forth “ there are so many of ‘em all around the capital, we’re outnumbere-“

“woah woah, Will, slow down. Where did Niki go?”

“She went to find father and told me to call you, are you okay?”

“Yeah I saw some explosions go down and I wanted to know what was going on. We should probably find Ph-“  a deafening sound interrupted him. Techno’s ears rang loudly as the smell of smoke overpowered his senses.

This time, the bomb was close enough that he felt the ground tremble under his feet. He gulped down and snapped his head towards his twin, grabbing at his hand.

“we should hurry, Dad’s probably near the main hall”

Their steps were fast through the corridors. It reminded Techno of when they were kids, hand in hand as they escaped some boring class to mess around in the garden. 

It had been a long time since they held hands.

 They swiftly avoided the panicked servants that ran in all directions and the few soldiers attempting to calm them down.

Another explosion almost made them lose their steps and  the sky was now completely tinted red, shining against their sweaty skin.

Technoblade felt the phantom of a headache begin to claw its way in his brain. The voices were yelling incoherently, making him squint his eyes.

 Finally the main hall was right ahead, but inside there was no trace of the king, instead Sam was there, trying his best to order the couple of knights around him. When he caught sight of the princes, his eyes lit up with relief

“Sam! Where is everyone?” Will said, his voice fell flat against Technoblade’s overwhelmed feeling. He tried to listen to the conversation, but something inside him compelled him to glance around.

“What a relief to see you here, your highnesses, I was about to send a search squad for you, we’re under attack. Your father has ordered me to take you to the nearest escape route-“

“What? No! We’re not running away!” interrupted Wilbur angrily “and where is father?”

“I am sure the king is already waiting for you at  the safe house”

“Bullshit! We’re staying here!” Will rebuked, looking at Techno. His brother just grunted in acknowledgment, his eyes scanning every nook and cranny of the room.

“As you know, evacuating the royals is of the utmost priority, I’m afraid I must insist-“

“Fuck that!”

Sam reached out a hand to the prince with a pained expression. However, before it could reach his shoulder, the councilors eyes widened and his mouth opened with a pained grunt.

At the same time, the chatter in Technoblade’s head exploded in disconnected phrases. Some yelling to look, others shouting in joy. He grunted in pain at the sudden outbursts of sounds crowding his judgment.

In his pain, he managed to look at Sam.

His open palm was left in the air for a second, before he brought it close to his chest and screamed. A small knife had ran through it clean.

Both the princes snapped their heads in the direction of the attack, and their mouths fell open.

No…

The throne had been swallowed by a sinister darkness, it dripped onto the ground like water, swallowing the floor where it touched.

From the center an arm stuck out, then a leg appeared as a mysterious intruder joined the fight.

However, it was not a mysterious intruder at all.

Empty blue eyes met gazed in his direction and Technoblade felt his pulse fall. Blonde curls no longer bounced with life as he stepped forward.  A menacing figure loomed behind him, its grip tight on his shoulder.

For a moment, Technoblade thought it all a dream.

The sound of swords clinking from behind him, his twin next to him crying and yelling, the dozens of hooded figured surrounding them, and him.

His brother, or what had been left of him, just a few inches away.

His ears rang, sounds came to him as if muffled by cotton.  Was he still in his bed?

It was a voice, rich like the darkest night of the year and just as dangerous, that shook away all his doubts, silencing the chaos in his mind

“it’s your loss.”

It was not meant to be taunting, the being had just stated a fact that was as plain as day.

The voices were not happy, temporarily finding  just enough coherence to briefly shout insults at it. The prince, however, felt like stone.

Although the figure had its eyes concealed by the mask, something underneath Techno’s skin told him it was looking right at him, as if it was gazing deep inside his soul. He felt chills riding up his spine.

At that moment, something snapped and suddenly he realized the gravity of the situation. They were surrounded.

What to do?

The three soldiers had already been killed, and only one  hooded man was on the ground unconscious, while dozens were standing, eager to fight. Sam was struggling at his side and Wilbur had barely managed to avoid a blow aimed at his head.

Techno felt the gears in his head turn endlessly.

He looked at his brother, then at his twin. He gazed for possible escape routes, there were none.

 His hand reached for the handle of his sword, but stopped. His breathing picked up and his blood run cold.

Above the noise in his own head, a voice tried to rise.

“Techno! TECHNO DO SOMETHING!” his twin begged, pushing away the enemies at the best of his abilities.

The hybrid felt frozen, helpless against the circumstances.

What to do? What to do?

He used his hands to push off an assailant that reached for him, right hook to the jaw.

A flash of his fighting days came back to him when the knuckles met the bone, but what was once adrenaline and cockiness, was now just dread.

What was the point?

His eyes locked with Wilbur. His pupils were dilated and wide, filled with sheer desperation. They clung to Techno, pleading him.

Technoblade watched as they were both forced on the ground, overwhelmed by the numbers of assailants. He felt his strength betray him, drifting away from his body.

He's right there! He could reach him! If he just was stronger he could-

Another failure was about to leave his mark on the teen when, all of a sudden a younger voice rang high

“Watch out!”

The room filled with smoke, and for a moment, Techno swore he heard the creature click its tongue.

From behind, the enemies parted, coughing out confused. At the centre, a familiar pair appeared

Techno sighed, he would have never imagine to feel such relief from seeing the two meddlers

“This way!” Tubbo yelled as he waved, his fingers covered in a dark powder.

The voices erupted into a chant with only Tommy as the  understandable word. Technoblade tried to shut it off.

He turned to his twin “We have to go!”

Wilbur looked at him as If he had just been scorched “What?! Tommy is right there! We can reach him!”

Techno’s eyes darted around. The chat screeched at him.

“There’s too many! We’re outnumbered”

“NO! I’m not leaving! He’s. Right. There! This could be our only chance!” he cried out. Technoblade’s head echoed the words loudly.

Don’t leave! Don’t leave!

He felt as if his heart had been torn. He glanced at Tommy, behind the smoke, unmoving. He looked at the figure behind him, observing quietly, not attempting to meddle. He observed the enemies, already regaining their composure. He stared at his brother, full of cuts and bruises, panting like a dog.

He turned towards Tommy and mouthed “I’m sorry” with the faintest hope it would reach him.

The choir in his head let out an ear piercing wail. He wanted to scream at them as well.

He was on Will in seconds, grabbing at his waist and throwing him over his shoulder.

It was fine, they would be okay.

“TECHNO- WHAT-WHAT ARE YOU DOING! LET ME GO!” he struggled, kicking his feet and pulling at his brother’s arms. The hybrid ignored him, although he felt each punch like a permanent burn on his body.

“NO. TECHNO NO. HE’S RIGHT THERE, WE CAN’T-“ his brother screamed again as they ran towards Ranboo

Technoblade tried to tune it out as much as he could. His ears buzzed, and his eyes burned.

“please let me go- Techno please, he’s right there- we- we can bring him home” each hiccup his brother let out pierced through Technoblade like a knife.

Finally they reached Ranboo. Their hand was held out and within moments the familiar feeling of nausea passed through the prince as the surrounding warped around them.

He wanted to do nothing more than fall to his knees and sob.

His cheek is red. It is upset. He wishes there was a word for a lighter red. It doesn’t matter, this is only the beginning. It’s not over yet.

Chapter Text

The first thing he saw through his wet eyelashes were his father’s arms. They were wide and they threw themselves around him and his brother, back on ground. The warmth of his father’s worry felt suffocating, his eyes fell to the floor.

He had left Tommy behind, how could he dare to look at their father?

Still, he let himself be hugged.

The callouses of his father’s hand scraped against his cheek, the touch was so familiar it burned.

“Are you both alright?” Philza cried, his eyes darting back and forth between his sons. He tried to search for something in their eyes, and must have found what he had been looking for, because he took a step back, his hands still on their shoulders.

“what happened?” his voice came out strained. Technoblade couldn’t help but glance at his brother who was looking at the ground in a daze.

Their father must’ve followed his eyes because he next whispered “Will? Is everything alright?”

That apparently must’ve snapped Wilbur out of his state because his eyelids jerked. Different expressions flickered on his face in quick succession: confusion, panic, grief; However, once his gaze locked in on Techno, his eyebrows furrowed and his mouth turned into a snarl.

The next thing Technoblade knew was the cold stone of the ground against his back and hot knuckles against his cheek. The pain bloomed in his face, but it was dulled by the shock of his brother’s action. It threw him back in time, he could almost hear the cheers of the public as another punch reeled in.

His fists closed in tight, nails deep in his palm.

The hybrid fought against his instincts to attack as he noticed Wilbur lean back and rail his hand once more with a ferocious rage.

It was okay, he would be fine. Wilbur needed this.

He took the next blow on his nose. The sting of the blood as it poured out was familiar, staining the skin in a morbid stickiness.

Before Will had prepared for yet another punch, various hand came to grab him, pulling him away as he kicked and screamed, tears cascading down his cheeks.

Phil leaned over him, talking to him in a soothing tone, trying to calm him down.

Someone reached out to Techno as well, handing him an handkerchief. He looked up slowly to notice it had been Sam, his face showing nothing but sympathy. After attempting to nod in thanks, but stopping at the blossoming pain it caused, he finally took notice of the other people on the room.

Not far from him, Ranboo stood wobbling, their arm around Tubbo who held him up with surprising strength. The teleportation must’ve taken a lot out of them, judging by the way he clutched at his head. His eyes had a hard time staying open, fluttering quickly as they tried to focus.

Techno felt a pang of guilt in his chest, but he was also extremely grateful. If he had just come a moment later...gods he didn’t even want to think about what could’ve happened. On the other hand, the thought of what, or rather WHO, he had left behind clawed at his chest.

He wasn’t sure how his mood could get gloomier, but somehow it did.

Technoblade attempted a glance at Wilbur. He was gripping their father’s shirt like a lifeline as he was lulled through his tears.

It seemed to be working, the hiccups rang lighter and fewer.

His eyes locked in with his father, eyebrows raised with worry and confusion. It was a stare that held many questions, yet Techno could not reply at any of them. His eyes slid away with shame. It was a cowardly move and only a temporary solution, he knew that his father would ask question sooner or later. He was just relieved he would not need to answer them now.

Tubbo and Sam stared at the prince and the king with mixed emotions. Mostly sadness and kinship, but the awkwardness of it all was clear on their faces.

It was not all days you saw your rulers weeping on the ground of a dirty, and poorly lit room, barely hanging by a thread.

Speaking of which, where were they exactly?

He tried to look around slowly to find some sort of clue, but most he could see where some ceramics and huge sacks of something. The decor did not ring any bells, could it be some shelter he had not been aware of?

Begrudgingly, he unsteadily rose to his feet, handkerchief still tightly pressed over his nostrils.

He carefully approached Tubbo to ask him their location, since Ranboo was pretty much KO. However, upon opening his mouth to whisper his throat closed up suddenly. No words came out of it, just a crooked sound. His whole body shivered for the strain as he attempted once more, but again, nothing.

Techno’s teeth snapped together.

He gulped down air, it felt like fire down his windpipe. It was fine before! Why not now?

It was okay. He was fine.

He took a deep breath that turned into a sigh once he tried to speak again. That apparently caught Tubbo’s attention, who moved his gaze from the king to him

“Your highness?” the sudden formality felt stiff, Technoblade was feeling the furthest thing from a royal at the moment, but he did not say it out loud.

He opened his mouth then closed it back again. His eyebrows came together and his lips thinned. He raised his free hand, Tubbo’s eyes followed the movement

*where are we?* Technoblade signed.

“Ranboo moms’ bakery, well...their basement” he replied in a whisper. Out of all the places why here? He did not recall it being on the list of safe houses, it felt odd. Had Ranboo’s mothers been aware of their arrival?

 As if on cue a preoccupied chitter begun from upstairs, followed by the sound of a door opening and hurried steps on the creaking wooden stairs.

In the dim light two women emerged, one after the other.

The first one was tall, and she climbed down the stairs with swift elegance, her steps barely made a sound as her deep black ponytail swished from side to side. Her greyish skin sparkled with freckles much like stars in the night sky, contrasting the white suit with purple accents that she was wearing. Her purple eyes looked ahead with determination as she moved down with her sword ahead of her, ready to swipe if necessary.

Behind her, a smaller woman cowered. Despite her clear fear, she held tight a rolling pin that created a small cloud of dust, probably flour, with each movement. Her face was blocked out by the lady in front of her, but Technoblade could see white curls bouncing with the steps.

His chest tightened as someone else suddenly came to mind. He shut that thought down as soon as it came.

Meanwhile the ladies had basically reached the end of the staircase. The leading one’s gaze travelled across the room with ease.

“What are you-“

Tubbo came forward, holding Ranboo in his arms. Immediately, the woman sheathed her weapon and hurried to the teen, she gently placed her hand on his face and caressed them. The other woman followed her with worry and gasped at the sight.

“is he okay? Tubbo what happened?” her white eyebrows drew closer and her bambi eyes shone with the threat of tears.

Before Tubbo could reply, another voice echoed in the room.

“I apologize for the intrusion, but the situation was dire” Philza stepped closer. Will was in his arms, now asleep. If it were another day the sight might have made Technoblade laugh, after all Wilbur was much taller than their father. Yet the way he was curled up, still clutching at the fabric of the shirt, and the red rims around his eyes only sent a wave of further sadness to Techno, who looked away, back at who he had assumed where Ranboo’s moms.

The taller lady, suddenly straightened up. She turned towards Phil and in a moment she was on the ground, kneeling with respect.

“your highness”

The corners of Phil’s lips managed to raise up slightly with effort.

“Lady Gardenia” he replied politely.

At the name, Techno’s eyes widened. He had not recognized her before, having met her only once at her investiture, but the clear defence stance she had showed while coming down should have been a dead giveaway. She had been a brilliant soldier who shone with talent during the war and eventually managed to re-conquer entire territories pretty much by herself. She had quickly risen in ranks despite her common origins until she finally became a general. He had not met her in the battlefield, albeit he had wished to, yet her name used to echo from the rest of the soldiers many times. Her abilities were a deciding factor in the odds of the war. Truly, a hero.

Technoblade watched as she rose to her feet

“Please none of that, i abandoned the title years ago, call me Sidra”

She had done the right choice, it had been clear that noble life did not suit her, she had relinquished her territories after barely a few months. Techno could not blame her, even as a prince he had felt the intricacies of the court tight on him many times in the past.

Philza nodded, Will shifted slightly in his arms.

“Still, your efforts have never been forgotten, lady Sidra. Please pardon my frankness, but my knees are quite tired: could we move somewhere more comfortable? We should have a chat.”

“Of course, of course.” She turned to her wife “Ersa, my love, please show them to the tea room while i bring Ranboo to his room” she moved to take Ranboo from Tubbo, who breathed out in relief “ and please, remember to close the blinds” she admonished before leaving for the stairs.

One by one, they all left the basement following the lady, Ersa, and they reached a small room. She entered first, fussing over the curtains and the lights. Once done, she politely invited them in.

A short wooden table was at the centre of a black rug, surrounded by a couch and three armchairs, which looked incredibly comfortable. At the sight, he noticed his father’s shoulders relax slightly with an exhale.

After they all had sat down, Ersa left.

Technoblade sat at the furthest end of the couch, his elbow propped up against the arm of it and his head heavy against his hand. His nose had stopped bleeding on the way, leaving behind only the uncomfortable itchiness in his nostrils.

His father had taken up the rest of the couch, Wilbur still in his arms and refusing to let go, not that their father had any intentions of letting go either.

Sam was sitting on the armchair in front of them with his knees propped up. He fiddled with his hands with an uneasy expression .

The silence of the room was heavy, interrupted from time to time by the slowed heavy breaths of his twin.

It appeared Philza had wanted to end it as he turned to Technoblade and opened his mouth to speak. However luck was not in his favour, Ersa reappeared suddenly and the king closed his mouth. The teen sighed in relief.

In her hand she held tightly a tray with a kettle, some teacups and a load of pastries on top of it.

Technoblade stomach rumbled.

“Tea?” she asked and they all nodded, he felt parched. He plopped one sugar cube in the cup and tried to recall how long it had been since he had drank tea last. It did not come to mind.

As the lady served tea to everyone, the door opened and Sidra entered the room. Tubbo, who Technoblade just realized had separated from the group, followed her inside. He opted to sit on the ground at the feet of the couch, holding a pillow in his arms and burying his face in it. His cheeks had puffed up with a youthful expression.

Technoblade looked at the scene with amusement. Tommy had often done that in the library, perhaps he had picked the habit up from Tubbo, or maybe it had been the opposite. Many times Techno had stolen the pillow from him, just to mess around. It always ended with a chase, which more often then not resulted in a playful fight. He had missed those in the past year even if he ended up losing most of them.

He grimaced at the memory, his stomach churned. The pastry he had been eating found its way back to the table.

“The perimeter is secure” Tubbo said suddenly. So that’s where he had gone to. Technoblade should’ve thought of that, he really ought to stop letting the kids take care of everything. He should just snap out of it and be useful for once.

“the whole city is in chaos, what has happened?” Ersa asked, holding her wife’s hand to her chest.

Philza’s eyes darkened as he begun to narrate his version of events.

Technoblade noticed Sidra’s jaw tighten with each sentence.

Apparently the king had been in the courtyard before the chaos had hit. At the first signs of alarm he immediately sent orders to the soldiers to help the citizens. At some point one of the palace guards had stormed in, informing the king that the castle had been overrun as well. Philza had run to the doors, but had been stopped by Sam who had urged him to wait at a safe house.

“The castle can be rebuilt, the life of royals, not so much” Sam commented, halting Phil’s narration. His logic was solid, despite what Phil believed he was immortal, not invulnerable.

“but we all know how stubborn the king usually is, no offence your highness. We got separated and i believed he had headed towards somewhere safe but of course, he was searching for the princes”

“I was not going to leave my sons behind.” Phil reprimanded.“ in one of the corridors i stumbled upon Niki talking to Ranboo and Tubbo”

Oh gods, Niki, how could he forget about her. Was she safe? Had she left the castle in time?

“She had sent Ran to check the shelters” Tubbo interrupted “ we don’t know how they knew, but all the safe houses had been overrun by cultists. This was the only place boo could think of” he shrugged

Phil resumed his tale “ before i could argue, Niki had ordered Ranboo to take me away”

“do we know where she is now?” Sidra asked, worried, voicing Technoblade questions.

Tubbo shook his head “Ranboo collapsed before we could try to find her, all the teleporting really took a toll on them” he said, eyes glossed over.

“Niki is a smart woman, I’m sure she’s fine” Sam commented, although his fidgeting betrayed the confidence in his voice. Technoblade convinced himself to believe the same, although it did not stop his worrying.

“What about the others?” Sidra asked, all of them shook their head.

“I didn’t seen Callahan around, nor Schlatt” Sam looked defeated at that, but Tubbo jumped in

“Dad’s home. Hopefully he’s smart enough to know better and stay hidden” Perhaps they could reach him? It would be better to have more heads when coming up with a plan. As if he had read his mind Phil spoke

“we should reconvene with the others as soon as possible”

Sam shook his head “the castle is still full of those super soldiers, we’re outnumbered”

“and even the town is not exactly...safe” Ersa added, peeking outside “the whole capital is in chaos, there are cultists roaming everywhere, we should wait”

“what we should do is be outside to assist the citizens and come up with a plan to reconquer our kingdom” Phil said sternly, his eyebrows were drawn together and his jaw was tight.

Sam scoffed “ no way, we’re in no position to fight. Do i need to remind you that our only ‘emergency escape’ is passed out upstairs? And your sons aren’t in the right headspace for it either!”

Rude, but not exactly untrue.

“We need to at least wait a couple of days, let the worst of it pass. Let’s rest and come up with a sensible plan” Sam finished

“my people need me” Phil rebuked, Technoblade saw right through that bullshit, he knew his father was just itching for revenge as well.

“What your people need right now is for you to be safe. We can take our time” the smith tried to reason.

“I cant just let my land burn!” Phil scoffed, raising his voice slightly. He moved Wilbur away, letting him lay his head on the couch so that he could enunciate with his hands.

Sam clicked his tongue. Oh no, Technoblade knew that gaze, it was not about to end well. He wished She were here, Phil’s right hand man always knew how to calm everyone down, how to mediate when things got tense in a syndicate meeting. Before he could stop him, Sam spoke

“With all due respect, it didn’t seem much of a problem last time you did it, your highness”

Ouch, this burned hotter than the fires in the capital. Techno could see the king’s eyes darken as he raised to his feet suddenly, stern finger pointed up in a threat

“watch your mouth Sam, this is not the syndicate room. Don’t you dare speak to me that way”

Technoblade tried to warn Sam with his eyes, but his gaze was stuck on the king. These were treacherous waters, he needed to stop him but his voice did not want to come out. The man jumped to his feet as well “or what? You’re gonna run away and let the council do all the work for you again while you run after a children’s tale?!”

The temperature in the room dropped suddenly.

 Techno felt his breath hitch, he slowly trailed his gaze from Sam to the king.

His eyes widened.

The king’s expression was cold and there was a silent fury burning behind it. However his whole body was uncannily relaxed, except for his wings that had puffed up and somehow sharpened at the same time. The hybrid felt shivers run down his body as everyone in the room froze at the display.

All of his senses went haywire sending all one single command to his head. Even the voices had managed to come briefly together just to yell RUN!RUN! in his mind.

The chill the king sent echoed all the years he had lived and for the first time in his life Technoblade saw a glimpse of the creature his father had been in the past, before settling for a quiet life.

He felt the muscles in his legs twitch, he needed to speak, say anything to calm his father down but his limbs wanted to bring him the furthest away from there. The way things seemed, murder was not far of a possibility.

“My my, aren’t we all tense today” a clear voice broke the threatening silence. The general Sidra had slid between the immortal and Sam, her arms open with politeness and a firmness in her expression that truly showed the hero she had once been.

Techno could kiss her right now. Metaphorically of course.

The king seemed to focus on her, his human suit slipping back on as he cleared his throat “my apologies, it seems i might have been carried away”

Lady Sidra smiled tight “ It’s alright your highness, no hard feelings. Now, i believe we all need to rest, don’t we?” she turned to graze at everyone, but didn’t wait for a reply. “darling, could you show his highness our spare guest rooms, I’m sure prince Wilbur would feel more comfortable there.”

 Philza was smart enough to take the opportunity to leave that had been given to him. Not wanting to make a fuss again, he carefully picked Will up again and spoke “By all means, lead the way”

When the king left the room, a thump sounded loudly as Sam’s knees hit the floor.

Before Techno could check on the man, Sidra approached him “Shall we go find you a room as well? You seem like you need it” and Techno did not find it in himself to refuse, so he followed her away.

The hybrid had just managed to settle in the cosy spare room when a quiet knock caught his attention. With a huff, he raised to his feet and dragged himself to the door, only to find his father behind it.

“May i come in?” it took him a moment to answer, but in the end he moved aside, letting the man enter. He closed the door behind him.

Phil looked worse than when he had left the tea room a couple of hours before, perhaps he had cried. It seemed to be the trend at the moment.

“Will mentioned what happened...” his voice was thin and worn.

Ah. Of course, it was time to talk.

Technoblade stiffened at the words, his arms tight against his height. His eyes slid away, finding a comfortable spot on the wooden floor. The intricacies of it were quite jarring actually, and the colour was a nice warm honey, the owners must have had it custom made, no one in the capital sells that type of wood, perhaps-

Coarse hands pressed down on his shoulder, Technoblade gulped.

“Techno-“ it was almost a whisper “Techno look at me” it turned into a plea.

With a great amount of effort, the prince moved his eyes from the floor to his father, finally taking in the sorrow that drowned his cloudy irises. His eyes were bloodshot, whether from crying or from exhaustion, he could not tell for sure. He almost turned his head away from the intensity of his stare, but his father’s hand came up to his cheek and halted his movement

“No, Techno look at me.” He said, this time it felt more like an order than a plea.

The prince expected a scold, a scorching remark, or a hug perhaps. However the words that left his father’s mouth left his breathless.

“It’s not your fault. You hear me? None of this is your fault.”

Techno’s body suddenly felt all the strength of gravity at once and his legs gave out under him. The floor was incredibly hard under his knees. Phil followed his movement, his gaze not faltering even once.

“You did well Technoblade.” He felt tears begin to form under his eyes “my son, you did well. It was not an easy choice to make, it should have not been your burden to carry”

Techno’s hands clutched harder at the fabric of his father’s shirt, when had he put his hands there?

A sob shook through him. “my baby, none of this is on you, you hear me? None of it” his father cooed. His hand was running through his hair, gently combing them with a reassuring touch.

Technoblade was doing a fair job at holding it in, but his father said one more thing in the softest and most heart-breaking tone he had ever heard from the man

 “I’m proud of you”

And so the teen broke in his father’s embrace, loud sobs shaking his very core as hiccups interrupted his wretched breathing.

The headache when Wilbur woke up was not welcomed. At first he tried to let himself be coddled by the warmth of the bed he was in, if he just let his mind wander he could pretend to be in his room, in the castle, back when everything was fine. Of course, it seemed nothing wanted to go his way and so memories from the past days rushed through him like a waterfall causing the pressure on his temples to worsen.

Tommy’s face flashed briefly and for a moment, Will believed he would cry again, but he managed to push the thought aside.

His eyes felt uncomfortably sticky, and his mouth had a bitter aftertaste. His limbs were sore and when he tried to raise his hand it took him a great amount of effort.

Everything was just peachy.

Once he finally managed to open his eyes, he frowned at the darkness that surrounded the room. An sudden spike of panic overtook him, only to be vaguely muffled as he took notice of the drawn curtains. Still, his breathing took a moment to go back to normal. Sheepishly, he dragged himself out of bed and peeked through the curtain.

Yup, town still on fire. Lovely.

Begrudgingly, he carried himself out of the room and tried to find his father. Or anyone really.

He climbed down the stairs only to find himself face to face with his twin.

Okay, maybe not everyone.

He scoffed and moved past him, hitting his shoulder in the process. Anger was still bubbling deep in his chest, although it had significantly lessened.

It was not that he didn’t understand Technoblade choice, but he was mad that he had taken it for the both of them.

His brother’s hand wrapped around his arm, stopping him.

“Fuck off” he snarled and pulled his arm away with a quick motion, ignoring the hurt that flashed on Techno’s face. He saw him raise a hand again, but before could do anything, a knock rang through the house. They both snapped their attention at the door.

With suspicion, Will made his way there, followed by his brother. No one else seemed to be awake, or at least no one else had noticed the knock. He gulped and took a peek from the window and his eyes widened when a familiar swish of pink flashed.

Techno tried to stop him, but Will pulled the door open without a second thought.

Niki stood there, battered and bruised, with a bleeding cut on her forehead , smoke stains on her nose, burns on her arms and a joyful smile on her face

“Hi.“ she greeted and promptly passed out.

Chapter Text

In less than an instant, Wilbur’s arms were thrown forward and his hands were quickly wrapped around Niki. Her weight was light against the strength of the hybrid and yet , Wilbur felt like falling down. His knees met the ground as he cradled her in his arms.

Oh gods, no, not Niki too-she couldn’t, she-

Will felt a squeeze on his shoulder and suddenly realized he was shaking. As his vision cleared, the slow rise and fall of her chest became obvious to him.

He scrolled the hand off his shoulder with a scoff, moved his arms as to have them under his friend and surely raised himself up. A familiar pang of pain resonated in his body, some of his shallower cuts stung with new blood, but it was easy to ignore.

Will kept his eyes on Niki and turned around.

“Go get someone.” He ordered low. His brother hesitated, then Wilbur heard him ran up the stairs and soon enough he came back down, more footsteps following behind him.

Only then did Wilbur look up. Philza was sporting an exemplary pair of eye bags, surrounded by strands of messy blond hair that fell towards the right. He was blinking quickly, clearly trying to shake off the last crumbs of sleep that were still lingering.

“Nihachu!” he croaked. At first his father’s eyes were wide, but as he approached her his gaze fell on her steady, albeit slow, breathing. He straightened up.

“Will, bring her upstairs. First room on the right has a bed, I’ll ask Sidra for a first aid kit. Technoblade, please go wake up Sam for me and get Tubbo as well, he should be in Ran’s room” with the proficiency of someone who had given orders for a lifetime, he quickly sent everyone off and without missing a beat, he left as well.

With huffed breaths, Wilbur climbed up the stairs. Even without looking, e could feel his twin next to him, could almost ear the gears in his head turning ominously. Will didn’t care, obviously.

“stop that.” Will heard himself say sternly as they approached the top of the staircase “there was nothing you could have done to prevent it.” He continued and left for the room on the right, not waiting for a reply. Or at least, not looking if there had been one.

Slowly, he lowered Niki on the sheets. As her forehead filled with wrinkles, he sat at the foot of the bed, gently placing his warm hand on her cold ankle. Whether it was to comfort her, or himself, that was only for him to know.

.

“there was nothing you could have done to prevent it.” Wilbur had said as he left him alone. Had he meant it for Niki? Or could Techno allow himself to hope for forgiveness?

He had tried to ask, but his hand had not been fast enough to do so.

Still, the teen took the sentence like an olive branch, a way to mend things and fix what had been broken for far too long.

As he went to wake Sam, shaking him violently until his neon green eyes opened wide, Will’s phrase rolled around in his head. Or at least, Techno thought it was. Hard to tell when there were people screaming in his head at all times.

Speaking of, it seemed the voices had somehow managed to agree on a word from time to time and now “traitor” echoed over and over in his mind.

Yes, he got it, he had left Tommy behind. Will was already making it hard, he didn’t need the chatter in his brain making it worse, he already managed the job very well on his own thank you very much.

 Begrudgingly, Sam slowly rose from the couch he had been sleeping on. He yawned and Techno signed *first room on the right, Phil called a meeting* Through half lidded eyes Sam nodded, stretching his arms out. He appeared not to be in a hurry, so Technoblade added *Niki’s there*

At that Sam all but pretty much threw himself on his feet and darted out the door, his socks causing him to slip. Luckily he caught himself on the door frame, before disappearing from sight.

Walking at a more decent pace, Technoblade also left, but, instead of heading to Niki’s temporary room, he went to find Tubbo.

Soft sobs were picked up by his hearing and Technoblade gulped down some saliva.

Out of everyone that could’ve been involved in this mess, Tubbo and Ranboo had been the least deserving all this suffering, they were far too young.

The roundness of youth still marked Tubbo’s face and yet he had already given too much. Technoblade should’ve done anything to prevent everything that had befallen onto the child. His mind made a leap and immediately went to Tommy as if the word was just something that only correlated to him. He tried to shoot the thought down.

 Technoblade approached the door to Ranboo’s room with dragges steps. His mind echoed the word “traitor” louder and he almost stopped himself and turned around like a coward. Perhaps Sam could be more suited for the job, surely the crying kid would want someone else to comfort him rather than the man that killed his aunt.

Technoblade almost relented, but he was suddenly reminded of the not so few times Tubbo’s aunt had been there for him, it looked like it was time to return the favor.

He took a sigh, ignored the yells in his head and opened the door slowly. It creaked and Tubbo’s red rimmed eyes quickly darted to him. He was sitting on a chair, hunched over Ranboo’s purple bed. His forehead had a red mark, caused by the weight of his head that had probably been laid over his crossed arms that were still placed on the blanket.

The chair screeched as it was pulled back suddenly.

“Your highness” he greeted stiffly, now on his feet despite the clear shaking in his legs. Technoblade simply nodded in reply with a grunt, averting his eyes. Naturally his gaze fell onto Ranboo’s sleeping figure.

The kid had never exactly looked young, but he seemed so small as he laid there, with his arms along his torso; the deep purple that underlined his closed eyes, so dark it almost looked like bruises, and the small rivulets of sweat that covered his forehead, making his dark side look even more filled with speckles.

*any news?* he pointed towards the sleeping teen. Tubbo just shrugged, but his shoulders barely moved, weighted down by either exhaustion or affliction, Techno couldn’t exactly tell.

“They just need a lot of rest. He teleported a lot yesterday, plus he carried multiple people at once. I’m sure his body is just overwhelmed and they will get back into shape in no time, right Boo?” he chuckled bitterly, not expecting a reply, but perhaps hoping for one. “he always pushes himself too far. He says that it’s fine and he can handle it but then- last time he told us he would just a nap for three days. No biggie they said. Then a week went by and he was still like this, the absolute moron!” Tubbo huffed out, but his voice shook wetly at the last words.

Technoblade lowered his gaze with guilt, it had been his fault Ranboo had been bedridden last time, when they went on a wild goose chase for nothing. He had not even bothered to check how they were when he had come back, what a great friend he was.

His mind supplied the same word that had been screamed at him since before, so loud that it if it were actually spoken, it could have deafened him.

The kid’s voice cut through the noise again, but it felt somewhat distant, like an echo “I had told him he was still recovering, but noo, they never listen to me!” Tubbo’s fists balled up and his shoulders raised to his ears “but I have a duty to help!” He mimicked Ranboo’s voice, turning towards them

“I told you, you don’t owe anyone anything but you just cant help yourself! Now look where that got you” his eyes were clouded over and his hand had reached his head, picking at his growing horn “and the worst part is, you left me alone! I’m alone in this mess.” He took a shaky breath “Dad’s away, my aunt’s gone, Tommy’s gone and you’re here sleeping your ass off because you were too dumb to listen! What am I supposed to do all alone?!”

Tubbo’s voice wavered with anger, but no tears marked his face.

“I don’t want to be alone…” he whispered and he deflated. Techno suddenly wished he had gone to get Sam before, he surely would’ve been able to help. Feelings were not Techno’s forte, especially when most of them were kind of his fault and his head was being overrun by incessant screaming.

He had imagined Tubbo was going through it, with Tommy’s disappearance and Her funeral, but he wasn’t aware it had gotten this bad. Perhaps Ranboo was the only thing holding him together and without them…this was what was left.

A child that had no business being this broken.

Technoblade tried to come up with something, anything really, to offer for comfort, but each sentence that could be said felt like a lie. Before his pained mind could conjure something, Tubbo turned back to him as if he had suddenly remembered his presence. His gaze sharpened and he took a deep breath.

“I apologize your highness-“ the stiffness again, Techno should really say something about it

“you needed me for something?”

The prince remembered the reason he had trespassed in the first place and signed *Niki is here, she’s not in great shape, but she’s alive. The king is calling a meeting and I came to get you*

Tubbo simply nodded and walked towards him “Lead the way big man” he said almost absentmindedly in a hushed tone.

.

Apparently his “talk” with Tubbo had taken longer than expected because they were the last ones to enter the room. The first thing Techno noticed was an awake Niki sitting up in the bed. The second thing Techno noticed was that she was covered in small bandages and plasters, but overall looked healthy enough.

A wave of relief washed over him as he took in her soft smile as she chatted with a worn out, yet grinning, Wilbur. It had been a while since he had worn such an expression last, it made Techno’s stomach churn for some reason. Niki’s smile had lost some of its radiance, but damn it! did it still light up the entire room. The tension from the last day seemed to ease slightly just by her presence alone.

It was a glimmer of hope in the darkness of the despair they all had fallen into.

She seemed to notice the door opening and she halted her speaking to look up and politely greet both Techno and Tubbo.

“Hello-“ her words fell short as Tubbo’s arms encased her rather roughly, leaving her out of breath.

“Woah, calm down mate, she’s still recovering” Philza admonished in his parent voice

“Oh fuck! Sorry” Tubbo hastily pulled back with a chastised look on his face, Niki simply giggled in reply, grabbed his shirt and pulled him back into the hug.

“wha-“

 “it takes much more than this to take me down, your royal highness, plus I feel so much better already!” she playfully stuck out her tongue at the end. The king’s features softened an he chuffed out an agreement.

Nihachu released Tubbo from her grasp and much to his displeasure she smacked a loud kiss on his forehead. He grimaced, pushed himself back and repeated “EW!” over and over.

Despite the reaction, his eyes had gained back a shimmer. There was no doubt Tubbo was feeling slightly better now that Niki was safe. And he was not the only one, the whole room erupted into a soft laughter, the one that fills the area with that comfortable kind of warmth.

Technoblade dared to catch a glimpse of his brother. He was bickering with Niki, as she reached over clearly trying to plant a kiss on his forehead as well while he desperately tried to fight back and struggled doing so.

Color had made its way back on his face, and light was shimmering in his eyes. It would be short lived, of course, but it was much more than Technoblade could’ve hoped to see in a while.

Against his better judgment, Techno’s chest grumbled softly. Heat rose to his cheeks and he hoped he was far enough not to be heard. Maybe he was right and no one heard anything, or maybe that affectionate glance that Wilbur almost threw his way had not been in his imagination at all.

.

Things settled down in the room soon enough. After the brief lunch, bread with some cheese and ham that Ersa had brought them, had been finished with haste, the tone of the conversations shifted. Nihachu begun to tell what had happened to her after she sent Ranboo to check the shelters.

Apparently, enemies had stormed the corridor she had been in right before Phil and Ranboo had left for the safe house, not giving the latter enough time to explain the fall of the known shelters. Still, she had managed to stay hidden long enough to find the syndicate room and take most of the important documents to stash away. There was no way she was going to let the enemy put their hands on secret papers. With that out of the way, she had tried her best to command whatever army had been left in the castle, with no success.

With shame in her features, she admitted leaving her post to reach the others at the first safe house. However, to her horror, the house had completely fallen. As quickly as she could, she had made her way to all the other shelters, one by one, extinguishing fires and battling invaders on the way, until she had no more places to look into. With a heavy sigh and a soft smile she spoke

“I knew you were alive somewhere, I’m glad I managed to find you in the end”

“How did you know where to look for?” Sam asked

“I honestly didn’t. I assumed that, without a certified safe house, Ranboo would head towards the next best place to recover, so here was his safest bet with his mom being a war hero and all that.”

Niki looked at Sidra, her eyes shining but not from tears “by the way, huge fan. You’re like my role model” she beamed with an excited smile.

Sidra on her part looked uncomfortable, much in the way that Ranboo did when you happened to compliment them. Still, she attempted a polite smile and thanked her.

“I dare say it’s enough chitchatting for now” Sam interrupted, before Niki could launch herself into an enthusiastic rant about how much Sidra had influenced her training and goals in life. Technoblade knew she would do that, as he had once too been the victim of said rant, it had taken approximately three hours before the woman had come back to normal. Ever since then, the prince had been very careful not to talk about old battles that featured a certain lady.

“Sam’s right, now that Niki is with us, we can come up with a plan, a serious one” Will enounced, cutting through the pleasant atmosphere that had been created. Technoblade noticed Niki’s gaze harden, much like it did right before the start of a syndicate meeting.

“Before we can come up with a definitive counteraction, we should understand our enemy better” she said, Tubbo scoffed

“What’s there to understand? They’ re a cult, they’re lunatics and they’re strong as fuck!”

“Language.” Philza admonished in his fatherly tone “and Niki has a point there, we know too little about our opponents”

Technoblade cleared his throat to catch everyone’s attention and sign *first and foremost, we know they have the numbers to launch an attack on such scale, but we don’t have a clue where their main base is*

“We also know that one of them, possibly the leader, has an ability that makes people pass out”

*and they can use it on a wide scale, like in the village we found before*

“But if they had this power, why didn’t they use it now? Why make different attacks and set stuff on fire?” Will jumped in, Sam attempted a reply

“Perhaps said ability has some limitations, like Ranboo’s loss of senses if he over does it.-“

*now that I think about it, when Tommy was taken, why were all three of us* he pointed to Phil and Will *awake while Hannah was asleep? Shouldn’t we have fallen as well?*

“That is a good point, so the fires could have been a way to lure most of the army out of the castle and leave the inside vulnerable…”

“and we played right into their game!” Wilbur groaned loudly

“but why are they doing all of this?” Tubbo commented

“ These people have been attacking our territories for months! And now our capital? Seems like an invasion to me, who knows how long they had planned this!”

Niki gritted her teeth. Technoblade pondered her words, the amount of mystery that had so far surrounded these people, their involvement with Tommy, all of it seemed…wasted on a “simple” invasion. Something was off, but the hybrid couldn’t quite put his finger on what it was.

“we’re avoiding the most important question here.” Sidra said, her voice clear and strong “it’s not about why, but How. How did they do this? How could so many of them get inside the borders- inside the CASTLE, completely undetected!?”

Her question silenced the whole room. Right, how had the cult managed that?

*could they have used spatial magic?* Techno attempted, but Tubbo butted in with a strong

 “No, I don’t think it was teleportation. It’s pretty rare to find after all.” He stopped for an instant, eyebrows furrowing “ And even if it was, it’s too many people at once, and in different places too, unless they have like a god on their side or something-I’m pretty sure it would’ve killed the caster” he finished

“Tubbo’s right, and if magic on such scale had been involved I, much like other magic users, would’ve felt it for sure” Sam continued.

Silence fell in the room once more. Techno’s eyes grazed the expressions on everyone’s faces as their gazes darkened with the realization of a far worse possibility. His eyes stopped in the space between Niki and Wilbur. Niki spoke with an hesitant breath

“Could- could have someone helped them?”

Techo watched as a crease formed between Will’s eyebrows.

“Is there another explanation possible?” Sam continued.

Will’s hand had found its way to his chin, his lower lip slightly pushed forward. Technoblade suddenly wished the say about twin telepathy hadn’t been a myth so that he could figure out what was going through his brother’s mind. He frowned as Will’s lips thinned into a line.

“So there’s a mole?” Tubbo asked, straightforward as always.

As soon as the last word was said, something sparked in Will’s eyes, recognition maybe, or perhaps he had finally given in and gone insane. Hard to tell when it came to his brother. Still, crazy or not, Will spoke with his unnecessary dramatic tone

“No, I don’t think there’s a mole” everyone turned to him with an arched brow “What if, and hear me out on this one, they just walked in?”

Technoblade rolled his eyes, insanity it was.

Phil chuckled weakly “ mate, I’m sure if they had just walked in we would have seen them. There’s guards at the entrance of the capital, on each street, they-“

“But what if they didn’t walk on the streets to enter?”

“Are you suggesting they can fly? Because a thousand men covering the sun wouldn’t have exactly been…subtle” Sam deadpanned, but Will simply chuckled like a madman

“But what if-“

“JEEZ CAN YOU JUST GET TO THE POINT BIG MAN” Tubbo, blessed be him, voiced everyone’s thoughts, albeit with less elegance.

Will scoffed and crossed his arms “okay fine. You know how this city is like very old? And you know how Ranboo found that underground base back then? Those connections of tunnels? What if, there’s a similar thing under our city?”

“You mean like catacombs?”

“Yeah! Exactly like catacombs!”

“but we don’t have catacombs here, there’s no record in the maps” Niki pointed out to which Will replied “There was no record about that other underground base either, but it existed!”

Technoblade’s mood soured at the memory, an uncomfortable knot tying his stomach.

Will continued “plus, now that I think about it, a lot of our tales and folksongs talk about kids getting lost in tunnels”

“but that’s just kid’s stories! We don’t know if they’re true!”

“But it’s the best lead we have. If they really exist, we could use them to sneak back into the castle…the cultists don’t know we know so they would be taken by surprise. We could have a chance” Wilbur tried to reason. Technoblade heard Niki sigh

“ok, fine, let’s pretend for a second that there is a labyrinth of tunnels underneath the city. How do we find it?”

“we could dig a hole?” Tubbo proposed. Techno hoped it was sarcasm, because he was in no mood to dig. And knowing Tubbo, said digging would surely involve explosions. Not exactly subtle.

Thankfully, no one seemed to take the kid’s proposal seriously as they all left it without reply.

“we could search the sewers?” Sam tried, but Techno shook his head

*we could but we don’t have that kind of time, plus if the tunnels were connected with the sewers I’m sure the cleaners would’ve have notified the king about it*

“we need to be smart about this” Phil started, his gaze travelled the room slowly, stopping on his son “ Wilbur, you said a lot of folktales talk about them?”

“Yeah”

“then we should remember as many of then as we can, see if they have any common grounds. Maybe we can find a clue about it”

“I’ll go get some ink and parchment paper” Ersa said and left the room in a hurry only to come back a few minutes after to place the parchment on the bed and give the prince a pen

“So, where do we start from?”

.

It didn’t surprise anyone when most of the tales where suggested by either Tubbo, Ersa or Sam.

They all had been involved in city life and so they had known their fair share of the culture, as opposed to the princes, who had spent most of their years either in the hell dimension, the walls of the castle or the battlefield; and the King had not been much help either. He had heard many tales in his endless life and therefore could not pinpoint a single one of interest. Niki, on her part, had never engaged whatsoever on the topic, as she had always preferred to keep her conversation with citizens straightforward and goal focused, avoiding any useless chitchat.

In the end, the group had found out that a common factor in all these legends had been the mention of some sort of holy place. Some of the stories flat out talked about a church.

“Well, how hard can that be, it’s not like we have HUNDREDS of churches in the capital” Will scoffed

“no, no, hold up. It’s not the same thing. We have a lot of temples, yes, but churches? I’ve never heard of one here”

Phil was right. As far as Techno remembered from his lessons, Temples for different gods were the norm.

“what’s the difference?” Will said, as if he had never attended a history lesson in his life. Before Techno could scoff at him, Sam gladly offered a reply

 “Structurally speaking, churches have more of an old type of architecture with many decorations embedded in the structure and they are usually suited for one god, whereas temples have a more simplistic style, build-wise, and they accommodate a variety of gods. There are many churches still standing to this day, but as far as I’m aware they are in the Badlands, which hold a monotheistic religion. History books say that most of the churches in our empire have either been taken down or converted to temples. ”

“enough history please, or my headache will get worse” Niki joked “so, I’ve never seen a church around here, are we sure we’re not mistaken?”

“Oh, wait! There is one!” Tubbo chimed in “it’s in a rundown part of town, pretty sure it’s abandoned. Me and other kids always used to dare eachother to go in- such a spooky place. I remember the walls being all engraved with symbols and stuff”

“if we gave you a map, could you point us to it?” Phil asked. Tubbo nodded.

Great, they could really do this, maybe there was a chance to get back their house after all. Technoblade could not suppress the small glimmer of hope that had begun to shine in his eyes, and he was sure not to be the only one feeling this way, if Niki’s small smirk could say anything about it.

Ersa once again left the room and came back with a map. Why they had one in the bakery? Only the gods could know, not that Techno was complaining.

Tubbo immediately focused on the map, trying to pinpoint the exact location. Meanwhile, the adults begun to speak once more, quieter as not to disturb the kid’s concentration.

“Should we try to reach Schlatt?” Sam asked. Last time Techno had saw him, he had not been in the best condition, perhaps it was better to leave him out of it. Thankfully, Niki, great strategist as always, seemed to agree.

“no, I dare say there’s enough people as it is. This is supposed to be a stealth mission, we can’t afford slipping up because we’re too big of a group-“

“here.” Tubbo interrupted, handing out the paper to Phil with pride in his eyes. It was the kind of look Tommy would sometimes get whenever he felt like he had done good, whenever he felt useful.

Technoblade felt a tug in his head, and the worsening of his headache pushed behind his eyes with a familiar sensation. The word traitor was beginning to be murmured once more. He sighed heavily and tried to stay focused on the conversation.

Phil hummed thoughtfully at the map and leaned to the side so that Niki could see as well.

“So, what’s the plan?” he asked her. She went quiet for a minute, Techno could almost see the gears in her head turning. “so, pretty simple really. Me, you, the princes, Sam and Sidra will-“

“wait, you’re cutting me out?” Tubbo interrupted, his fists tight against his sides. Niki turned to him with a condescending look in her eyes that subtly veiled her worry “kid, this is something serious, we can’t have you messing it up-“

“THAT’S NOT FAIR!” he yelled, jumping up from his seat “I was the one who took you to safety! Hell, without me you wouldn’t even know where the damned church is! You can’t just exclude me like this!”

Phil turned to him with a stern gaze, but Techno could see the softness at the edges “we are thankful for your assistance, but what Niki was trying to say is that we can’t let you kid get hurt. Let us adults handle it.”

Tubbo anger faltered in his expression, but he pushed on. He extended his arm to point towards the princes

“oh let the adults handle it and yet they are going as well!” he mocked “Without me, they would’ve died!”

Technoblade attempted to glance at Will and saw his nostrils flare, Philza spoke again

 “Tubbo, that’s quite enough, Wilbur and Technoblade have had their fair share of experiences in the battlefield, they can handle it.” His tone was tense, leaving no room for arguing. Still, Tubbo spoke out of turn.

“Oh, they can handle it, sure.” His voice was full of sarcasm “if they are so good at it, then why is my aunt dead.”

…

Silence fell in the room, only the ragged breaths of Tubbo could be heard as he pointed at Techno. His voice filled with venom, piercing straight through the carefully crafted façade of the hybrid “it’s his fault Tommy is gone. It’s his fault Puffy died.” He spat

Traitor, Techo’s mind supplied.

Suddenly the room seemed to be spinning. He was pretty sure he heard Will jump to his feet in a fit of anger, but he couldn’t tell what was being said over the loudness of his heart and the shakiness of his breaths.

“HOW DARE YO-“

Traitor.

“-ALONE-“

Traitor.

“I believe we shoul-“

Traitor.

Technoblade could feel the corners of his vision blur, he felt an ache on his scalp and he realized that his hands had reached his hair and were now pulling at the roots. When had that happened?

The yelling had increased, whether inside his head or in the room he could not tell.

He released his hair, lowering his hands.

Blood. Her blood. She-

He should take deep breaths.

How did you breathe again?

Traitor.

He gulped down air, yet it burned as it travelled through his pipe.

He needed an out. The room was suddenly closing on him. He jumped to his feet, but they could not hold his weight. He fell back down.

His chest couldn’t expand, he was on the ground again, assassins pushing on his back to hold him down.

Tommy! Tommy was there! He need to reach him-

Traitor.

He was being chased. The bad men would get him, he couldn’t let them- Will. He needed to go back to Will-

Traitor.

An hand pushed on his shoulder, tightening, pinning him down- he heard the crowd shouting, the adrenaline filled his body.

Traitor.

Where was he again?

He blinked repeatedly. It was fine, he was at Sidra’s bakery. Everyone was arguing, was it his fault?

He glanced at the door, an out he needed to leave.

It had been left open, barely a sliver, had they done that?

Traitor! The voices yelled incessantly mixing with the chaos in the room.

He jumped to his feet again, this time they held his weight, albeit they still shook.

Many eyes were on him. No. No. They shouldn’t look at him. There was nothing to see.

He was fine, he was fine.

He ran out the door, pushing it open with his shoulder.

His nose tickled with something, dust perhaps, he didn’t care.

As soon as he stepped in the corridor his mind went quiet. Leaving behind only a subtle ring and a terrible pain right behind his eyes.

He hurried to the kitchen, suddenly feeling parched. Technoblade filled himself a glass of water and turned around.

He jumped, spilling it all over the carpeted floor.

“Fuck, sorry mate, didn’t mean to scare you”

Oh, he hadn’t noticed Phil had followed him.

He took a breath, placed the glass back on the counter and signed before Phil could even speak

*I’m fine dad.* yet his hand shook with the movements.

Phil raised a questioning eyebrow at him “ you didn’t look fine to me back there”

*please can you just* he halted, trying to come up with the words *can we just let it go please. Pretend it never happened? I want to focus on the mission*

Phil looked at him, like really looked at him. The feathers behind his shoulders puffed up, clearly the event still bothered him. However, he knew better than to push. He gave him a small smile, tight around his eyes

“alright” his lips tightened “but if you need me, you know I’m here right?”

*it’s fine. What happened back there? Did you guys come up with a plan?*

Philza hummed in reply “ Yeah, we calmed Tubbo down, explained to him that it would be better for him to stay and guard Ranboo in case he wakes up. Meanwhile we take tomorrow to rest and prepare, we leave at nightfall, most of us can see in the dark anyway and the lack of light can help us not being noticed by the random cultists in the streets”

Made sense. Even though he didn’t say it, Technoblade was glad for the extra day of rest.

*if we find the catacombs what next?*

“Niki said that we should head towards the castle, a compass should point us in the right way. We have the advantage of knowing all the secret areas inside the walls. We observe, study, see how many of them are there and where. We know each angle of the castle, we have the upper hand. After that we reconvene and decide when to attack. The leader is sure to be there, if we defeat him, we win.”

*what about Tommy?*

Philza’s eyes darkened. Techno already knew he wouldn’t like the answer “ if we find him there, we’ll prioritize his rescue while we seize the castle, but if he’s not there…he’s not our priority at the moment. We can search after the castle is in our hands again”

The emotional side of Techno wanted to argue, scream that yes! Tommy was the priority, but his rational side knew that the king was right. Didn’t mean it hadn’t hurt to hear it though.

He simply nodded. His father’s arms were around him before he could complain, he could barely feel the warmth

“Go get some rest, I’ll have Sidra bring you lunch later”

And Technoblade did. Although getting rest was not exactly something his body knew how to do lately, he grabbed a book from the living room, headed to the guest room and laid on top of the covers to read, or at least to try reading.

Ready. It is time to get ready.

He feels so weak. He needs to get ready. They are coming, it tells him.

Who is coming?

The end is coming.

Chapter Text

Nightfall came.

 As the shadows of the night covered the capital like a blanket, the party begun their mission.

Wilbur led the line, his feet nimble as he scouted ahead. Right behind him was Techno with his ears perked up so that he could listen to any sound around them. Then there was Niki, in the middle due to her disadvantage: unlike everyone else, she couldn’t see in the dark so her hand was joined with Sam’s, who was right next to her. Closing the line were the King and Sidra, both too prideful to leave the other behind and too caring to be in any other position rather than the end. They were the only parents among them, after all.

The capital was quiet, not even footsteps could be heard for miles, except their own.

Still, they ducked in alleys and moved as one through the streets.

Everything was too silent, it felt odd. Could Techno be the only one who felt it?

Something pulled at Techno’s chest, but as he tried to voice his worry the church came into view.

It wasn’t big, and it would have blended right with the rest of the discarded buildings around it, yet it stood out amongst them due to its unique design. Clearly not meant to be inhabited, if the crooked bell tower attached to it had a say about it.

The wood with which it had been made was cracked and filled with mold. Techno’s nose itched already.

The party inched closer to the map, confirming they were in the right place.

A collective sigh was left from all of them and they scurried inside.

The stench of rotting wood assaulted poor Techno’s nostrils. The area was relatively small, filled with benches surrounded by wooden pillars. Some of them had fallen onto the ground, crushing the seats and taking a part of the stone roof with them. It had left a hole in the ceiling which allowed the sky to be seen.

What looked like a marble altar of sorts was tipped sideways, and it had made a dent on the wooden floor. Plants grew from the cracks in the planks, eating at them until almost all of them were covered in either moss or grass.

The ground creaked as they moved in the room.

“that was easy” Sam commented with a whisper. Niki threw him a glare “don’t jinx it!”

“Perhaps it was too easy” Techno was surprised to hear his father say exactly what he had been thinking. He nodded.

“Let’s be careful” Sidra concluded as she rummaged through the debris on the ground.

“So, what does a secret passage look like?” Sam threw a rock to the side. He scoffed when nothing but more rocks were under it.

Wilbur threw a pebble at him

“if it were obvious it wouldn’t be a secret passage wouldn’t you think-“

Sam threw right back at him said pebble, which he had caught mid air. It hit Will on the forehead.

“Hey!”

“Guys please focus” Philza admonished, preventing an argument from coming to life.

Techno chuckled lowly but he stopped abruptly as his ears picked up a sound. Something was coming towards them, and they were hiding their steps on purpose. He promptly held out a hand and placed a finger over his mouth, hissing.

The whole group snapped their mouths shut, narrowing their eyes in the darkness. Before they noticed, the party had moved around Niki, so that she was at the centre of the newly formed circle.

Techno focused on the sounds around him, whoever it was near them, was coming closer, so much so that the prince could faintly pick up their breathing. His hand hovered over the hilt of a borrowed sword attached to his hip.

He gulped down as his eyes scanned the landscape

*only one enemy* he signed for the others. They needed to handle it quick or the person could alert the rest of the cultists.

The sound of a rock falling made them all jolt in place. Phil, Sam and Sidra all pulled out their swords, the swish of the metal cutting through the silence.

The mysterious steps halted. Techno motioned the others towards the supposed sound.

The stranger sneaked again, the sound coming through a crevice in the wall. They were about to cross it. With a gesture of his hand they all split up at both sides of the hole, waiting. Even Niki was in her defense stance, even though she had been left in a corner of the room with Will by her side.

A shadow came forward, curly hair peeking through. The swords were at their neck in less then an instant

“WOAH BIG GUYS, no need to be aggressive”

“Tubbo?!” Philza groaned, lowering his sword, the others followed.

“the one and only I’m afraid” he chuckled.

Technoblade never wanted to punch a child so hard before in his life.

“what are you doing here! You’re supposed to stay home” Sidra reprimanded, a crease appearing between her eyebrows

“c’mon you weren’t really expecting me to listen and stay put-OUCH” he didn’t have time to finish his phrase that Sidra’s strong fingers were clasped at his ear, pulling him along

“You’re going home boy, no. No way-“

“but please, I could be use- ow it hurts! Let me goo~“

“no. No way. Home now.”

In other circumstances, the scene would have been pretty funny.

Niki’s feeble voice echoed in the area as she tried to reach them, trying to guide herself with the wall “guys? What’s going on?”

“we have a little stalker here” Sidra pulled Tubbo up by his ear to make a point, he pouted and crossed his arms “ I wasn’t stalking” he mumbled

“Yeah yeah tell that to the judge, oh wait, I am the judge” Philza joked half heartedly.

Niki visibly relaxed at that “you should go back home Tubs, it’s not safe” she sighed, inclining her body as to lean against the wall, the wall leaned with her.

An odd clunking sound halted their banter. Before they could realized what had happened, the floor caved in under their feet and they all found themselves sliding down a pile of dirt for several meters.

Technoblade was surprised no one except Tubbo made a shocked sound. They all tumbled onto a stone floor covered in moss.

Techno scrunched his nose at the feeling of his wet pants clinging to his legs. He really hoped it was water.

He got up with a groan. His backside ached, but luckily there were no injuries.

“everyone okay?” Phil asked dusting off his pants and looking around at the same time.

“all good” “that was sure a tumble” “ewww someone tell me that this is water please-“ “im fine”

“So I guess I can come with you guys now?” Tubbo said, holding back a laugh in his tone. Techno followed his gaze up and yeah, there was no way this dirt hill was climbable.

Sidra visibly rolled her eyes, but decided not to comment. Instead, she looked around where a long corridor extended forward before splitting up in different directions.

“I will take a wild guess and say these are the catacombs” she said.

“What gave it away? Was it the creepy corridor up ahead or let’s say…the skulls on the walls?” Will said, keeping his voice as monotone as possible.

Huh, Techno hadn’t noticed the skulls. Sick.

He wasn’t the only one thinking it, because from the corner of his eye he noticed Sam promptly grab Tubbo’s casually extended arm with a stern glance.

“Nuh hu. Don’t even think about it kiddo”

Tubbo scoffed and snapped his hand back muttering s “fine” between gritted teeth “still, I can’t believe they really existed, it’s so cool”

“No time to be tourists, we have a mission to complete” Sidra pointed out, Philza nodded

“we should start moving. Niki you can light a torch now, go ahead with the compass. From now on no talking, we don’t know what’s up ahead”

They all agreed and begun their exploration.

They were barely a few minutes in when Techno’s skin filled with goosebumps. He halted his steps and looked around. This time he was in the middle of the line, Will in front of him and Phil behind him, next to Sidra. His father glanced at him with a raised eyebrow, and signaled for the others to stop as well

*did you hear something?* Phil asked, but Techno shook his head *just a feeling, we should be careful*

Phil contemplated the words before they started walking again, quieter than before. Still, Techno’s nerves did not ease and he kept glancing backwards as much as he could

*you will give yourself a headache, if you keep doing that* phil signed with concealed worry in his eyes. Techno’s briefly looked at him, before focusing again at the back of the tunnel *something is not right*

*it’s okay, we’ll reach the castle soon* his father tried to ease him, but his words only worsened his worry. This time even the voices joined in, beginning their echo of the word “traitor” once more.

Techoblade only clenched his jaw in reply and turned around.

His eyes squinted, the road up ahead was still concealed by the darkness.

That wasn’t right, it shouldn’t be too far from him to see, shouldn’t it? Perhaps it was the tiredness.

 It would be fine, Niki was approaching it with the torch, soon it would be close enough to see.

Only it wasn’t

Something settled in his stomach.

Not even the torch seemed to be able to banish the blackness.

Technoblade glanced backwards, vines of black crawled slowly up the walls, encasing the stone underneath and concealing the skulls on them. It approached quicker each second, cursing the corridor to an uncanny shade, swallowing any fleeting attempt of light.

The prince’s eyes widened, his father followed suit, but he was quick to react.

“They’re here! Everyone on guard” Phil yelled.

Everyone halted in their tracks, as if the ground itself had stopped them. Someone was coming. A multitude of them too.

From the darkness, a dozen of hooded figures blocked them from both sides.

“What the fuck! How!” Will scrambled in position

There was no way out. No chance to run. Philza took a shaky breath next to him.

They were unprepared, in a clear disadvantage and the darkness was only getting closer.

Still, they wouldn’t go down without a fight.

Sidra was already charging at the enemies on her side. Niki was doing the same on hers. Tubbo was holding a weapon of sorts in his hands and shifting from foot to foot, but Sam prevented him from diving right in the horde.

Technoblade’s hands trembled. The sword on his hip suddenly felt like it was made of stone, its weight almost brought him to his knees. He looked at his brother, surprised to find him right at his side, sword already in hand. Will did not look back at him, but he had a faint smirk on his lips. It trembled at the edges.

The sword felt both lighter and impossibly heavier at the same time. His back was covered, yes, but he was supposed to be doing the same! He should have his brother’s back as well!

He focused on his hand, opening and closing it repeatedly.

This was not the time for it, c’mon Techno. Still, the cold metal of the hilt did not graze his hand.

Fuck.Fuck.

His fingers closed into fist and he raised his elbows in a defensive stance.

He thought back on his days in the arena, he exhaled. He had been outnumbered at the time as well. This was no different.

His father glanced his way with an arched brow and just the slightest thinning of his lips. He was just a few steps ahead, not attacking, but waiting for the enemies to get close enough themselves. In such tight spaces he was at a disadvantage, and he knew it. Birds were not meant for cages.

Surprisingly, no cultist had yet breached the frontlines in an attempt to reach the king.

Technoblade studied their movements, they took a step ahead and two back. It was an unnatural pattern.

Predators didn’t wait for the prey to come to them themselves, they hunted instead.

And Techno didn’t mean to be a pessimist, but the chances of coming out of this unscathed were pretty slim. So why had the cultists not taken their chance yet?

Was this group enough to fend them off?

He glanced at Niki, barely missing the arm of one of the enemies with the sword, but the retaliation of their part was minimal. The hooded ones stepped back and she followed in another swiping motion.

He felt the gears turn into his head. When had they made a mistake? Were they followed?

No that wouldn’t make sense! If they had entered after them how come they were surrounded now? Nevermind the fact that he would have heard them!

He heard Sidra grunt as the blade of a knife scraped her arm and she stepped forward, trying to avoid further damage.

In that moment of weakness, not a single enemy took their chance and attacked.

 Had they predicted this?

But how could they when they were aware the king hadn’t known about the existence of these tunnels!

So how?

His eyes darted around the corridor, from head to head.

how?

Another swoosh of a sword.

How?

The loud exhale of a swipe

HOW?

His eyes widened as a previously ignored echo in his head claimed his attention once again.

Traitor!

It was deafening.

The color drained from his face and his eyes darted more frantically.

Who?

Who, who, who who?

He felt every single one of his heartbeats with astonishing clarity. Each one rang with the voices’ word. A terrifying echo in the chaos of the room .

No, no, it didn’t matter the who in the moment. But why?

What was the reason?

It wasn’t to kill them all or they would’ve already done so with terrifying ease.

His throat was dry as he gulped down.

Unless?

He watched as Niki and Sidra were baited further away from the group.

They were separating them.

This was not the main attack.

Where, where, where!

Where would the attack be coming from?

There had to be a clue!

His father, he had to get close to his father!

His fingers found themselves closed around his brother’s wrist. Since when had it been so thin?

He dragged him as he took a step towards Phil, too focused on the enemies to look at them.

Techno wanted to scream, to warn him: Something worse was coming! But his throat closed up, choking him. Before his foot hit the hard stone again, something sparkled behind Phil.

Something familiar.

Traitor.

His heart skipped a beat as a well known figure wrapped their arm around Phil, catching him off guard and pulling him back. His father’s eyes widened, his pupils looking right at him.

Fear.

Not for his own life, but for his sons’.

No.

Nononononono

Techno had less than a second to react so he did the first thing that came to mind. He reached forward just as Ranboo’s eyes shone an unnatural purple and the space around him flickered.

Please, please, please, just an inch.

His fingers grazed against the fabric of his father’s shirt.

Just a bit more!

An horrible screeching deafened him, he gritted his teeth and extended his arm to the point of pain.

He clutched at fistful of fabric and the walls warped.

Chapter Text

Technoblade’s ears rang painfully while the settings around him changed. His knees hit the ground suddenly and nausea ripped through him. The black and white tiles of the floor swam in his vision, complicating the already intricate design. He turned to the side to heave, but found nothing came up. Besides the acidic edge of bile, he could taste a familiar metallic tang.

Ranboo had…screeched?

Confusion flooded out of his mind as he quickly looked up from the floor.

Ranboo had been there! He had-and then Phil.

Phil! He was shaking Techno’s shoulders, his mouth was open and he was saying something clearly in a panic. Techno squinted, trying to understand but all his ears picked up was that constant ring that engulfed his senses. Everything else felt…muffled? Like his head was underwater?

He could hear the frantic tone of his father but the words were intelligible. He raised a hand to his right ear, the one that ached the most and his eyes widened when his fingers came back stained with red. His father spoke again, his mouth moving faster.

“-chno!-right?”

The echo of shouted words far too close to his ears to be comfortable burst through the buzzing, and the hybrid knitted his brows together trying to understand. He attempted to soot down his own panic.

It was fine, his hearing would return, surely.

 He brushed his father’s hands away from his shoulders and attempted a smile and a nod. He did his best to hide the flinch when his tongue sent a sharp stab to his nerves, he had bitten it in the midst of the previous chaos.

Philza didn’t look convinced, so Techno signed with his left arm *dad, I’m fine. Just a bit confused*

At that, he seemed to ease, if slightly. He turned his head away from his line of vision and Technoblade noticed he was talking again. He turned his head as well only to find Wilbur standing with his back facing them, sword drawn out and a defensive stance in his feet. Perhaps his twin had said something in reply, judging by the tensing of his shoulders, but the hybrid heard nothing but a buzz, accompanied by the ringing that seemed not wanting to ease off.

Philza turned back at him with a raised brow and Technoblade nodded again. His father helped him up his feet.

Shoulder to shoulder they stood, scanning the room around.

Where were they? Why were they here?

Pillars of carefully carved marble emerged from the ground, towering over them to hold up massive arches. From what he could see, they were in the middle of a wide corridor, so tall that the ceiling evaded his eyes. The columns separated the main body from a narrower corridor on each side, its walls adorned with colorful glass panels. The scenes which were depicted were foreign to his knowledge and the light erupted from them with an unnatural pattern, leaving the whole middle nave cast in shadows.

His eyes scanned the scene ahead in search of something familiar but they found nothing. His whole body shivered.

Instinctively he turned right as if something was drawing him in. A balcony overshadowed the altar there, its borders filled with intricate designs akin to those of waves. Surprisingly, it lacked a railing dangerously taunting whoever had been brave enough to climb it.

At the back of it, Technoblade could make out a smaller archway. From it, a figure emerged, enveloped in darkness. The English language didn’t possess enough words to describe the uncanniness of it. It was as if one went suddenly blind while daring to witness it. Slowly, the shade condensed and it took a shape resembling one of a humanoid creature, albeit with much longer limbs. Still, it was hard to tell apart the figure from the shadows behind.

The only thing visible was a clear white mask, round and sporting an unsettling smile, where one would assume a face would be.

The being came forward while clapping its hands, but the sound fell deaf against Techno’s ears.

However its laugh rang clear. It slithered up his spine and echoed in his brain, bouncing off his skull as if someone had shouted in a cave. The hybrid froze, his mind tried to comprehend the creature up ahead but found itself unable to do so.

Like a rabbit in front of a wolf, Technoblade wanted nothing more than to escape. Not many people had had the pleasure to be stronger than him and even if they happened to be, Techno usually felt a challenge rise up in him, one that sprang him forward.

The only thing that he felt in that moment was dread.

Sheer power was emanating from the creature, swallowing the place with a chilling aura.

The darkness around them felt suffocating, as if the being was everywhere and nowhere at the same time.

As it took one more step forward, Technoblade knew: he would not make it out alive.

He wanted to look at his family, the ground had vibrated telling him that Will had probably dropped his sword in shock.

Still his eyes could not evade from the godlike thing in front of him.

 It had reached the edge of the balcony after agonizing seconds. It had dragged the moment, seemingly halting the world around it, bending its hand at an impossible angle to leisurely reach for its face. Its long talons gripped the mask and pulled it away. The being had spread its arms wide, drapes of pure night falling from them, and bowed like one would do at the end of a play, but its head faced forward. A grin, stretched behind what was physically possible and torn at the edges was the only thing behind it.

“welcome to the final act!” it screamed in their mind, a revolting tone of excitement behind it while the smile remained unchanged.

In his immortal life, Philza had seen many beings. He vaguely remembered meeting many monsters in his path, although details evaded his mind nowadays. He had faced creatures which power had been told to be ancient, others had been compared to calamities, but in the end they all had fallen by his sword.

However, what was in front of him right now could not have been described with words. It was chaos. Chaos in its purest form.

Darkness swiveled around the figure, dancing and spiraling. A sickening crack of bones resonated in the deserted hall as the figure bent over to dramatically announce the start of the final act. It was as if an abyss was staring right at him and Philza daren’t to look away.

He felt grounded in place, sweat trickled down his forehead but his whole skin felt unusually cold.

Fear was an odd thing for him.

When you simply do not die, there was no need for such emotion towards yourself.

Yet he now desperately feared for his life.

The creature made a sound akin to the clicking of a tongue, but it was sharper and closer to a bone snapping.

“it seems some bugs intruded the stage”

Philza’s eyes widened as he felt the gaze of the being trail away from him, its mask back in place.

The king turned to look at the twins. They stood as still and pale as statues, with their eyes wide and their mouths open.

In front of his sons’ terror, Phil remembered what was in front of him. That thing was what had taken his beloved son. That thing was what had brought down his kingdom. That thing was what had caused Puffy’s death.

Slowly, blood rushed back in his veins. All of his fear morphed into something uglier pooling in his stomach instead of his chest. Pure anger raised in his troath, bubbling deep under his skin and he realized he could move again. He was up in the air in less than an instant, his wings wide and puffed up and his sword tight in his hands. He approached the balcony with a swift motion

“you will not touch them.”

The creature tilted his head, amused. Its laugh echoed again

“You shan’t worry. Mere extras are not to be dealt by the lead”

 A sword materialized in its hand, as dark as the deepest night. It quickly clashed against Philza’s own causing him to land on the platform which the being was standing on.

The hit almost left him breathless, but he managed to push back only to attempt a stab on the left and miss.

The being wasted no time and soon they were clashing swords again, bodies closer to eachother, blades crossed between them.

“but a good director always plans for the unexpected”

Philza’s grip faltered when Will’s pained scream reached his ears. With the worry of a father, he dared to glance down at his sons.

Will was pressing against his own shoulder with his left hand, while blood trickled down his right arm. It pooled on the floor around a dagger. Behind him, Techno had a pained expression on his face, one Phil had never seen his son bear before.

His boy looked even worse than earlier and Philza followed his eyes until he found just who had thrown the weapon.

The father summoned all his strength to push away the being and attempt a glide down to reach his sons. All three of them.

He felt something cold wrap against his ankle, it held him in place until he was dragged backwards.

“not so fast birdie. An actor can’t leave the stage until the scene is over”

And he was slammed back onto the balcony. He felt the air forcibly pushed out of his lungs when the floor came into contact with his back, his wings bent in an uncomfortable position. But he could not dwell.

He grunted and pushed himself to his feet once more, squaring his shoulders and opening his wings wide. The sickening creature was the only thing between him and his boys.

Phil gripped his sword tighter, he would get past it.

Another dagger cut through the air. Technoblade threw himself against his twin, landing them both onto the floor, but his eyes never left the kid in front of them.

Tommy. Tommy was here. The voices were screaming louder and louder and Techno wished they would just shut up once and for all.

Tommy, his Tommy.

Except it wasn’t his Tommy anymore was it?

The soft smile that had become almost permanent on his childlike face was gone, replaced by a thin line that wasn’t even a frown, just a line.

Gone was also the soft color that had tinted his cheeks after weeks in the summer sun, spent sleeping on the green grass of the gardens; in its place was a sickening yellowish tone accompanied by the intense violet of his eye bags. Gone were the vivid eyes, so clear in their intentions that they almost spoke, now they simply reflected a dull grey surrounded by the sunken lines of malnutrition. They stared ahead without really being able to see.

His curls, which had been the color of the gold so dear to Techno, were now flat and dry and had lost their shine. It had washed out until only the color of hay had been left behind, hidden by dust and filth.

White, torn and dirty clothes fell on his frail body, covered in bruises and scars, far more than the first time they had met.

Technoblade felt his chest tighten dangerously as the boy took one more step forward with his bare feet. For one silly moment, Techno wondered if Tommy felt cold like that, barefoot and pale against the unkind floor. He wanted nothing more than to bring his arms around his brother and whisper to him “it’s okay, you’re home. You’re safe”

But as the boy kept advancing, his steps mindless and methodical, ready to throw one more knife to those who were once his brothers, Techno knew he had no choice but to resist.

However knowing it didn’t make it any easier to do it. So Technoblade froze. How could he dare hurt the one he so much had cherished?

Even the voices didn’t push him to fight, they were just as desperate to have Tommy back as him. They wailed and cried his name in a discordant symphony of anguish.

Wilbur, his brother, his twin, was screaming something at him, but Technoblade couldn’t hear him.

He was suddenly pushed back, with a force he didn’t know Will had, just before another dagger flew by, cutting stray hairs that were left behind in the movement.

Unable to move, Techno watched helpless as his twin pulled himself up, sword weak in between his hands. He saw how Will’s breathing was heavy, how his shoulders raised and lowered far too quickly. He saw how he approached his-their brother.

Technoblade had sparred with both. He knew Will wouldn’t stand a chance: he was an artist, a poet, a singer, and while he had been in many battles before, he had never truly been a fighter.

It just wasn’t in him.

Still, Techno marveled at how Will was able to hold a sword even now, despite everything. Perhaps he was the strongest between them, after all.

Technoblade felt like floating, his limbs didn’t really feel his. Like everything around him was just a nightmare and he would soon wake up and seek comfort in his father’s arms.

He tilted his neck upwards, saw his father struggle against his own enemy. But it wasn’t because he lacked strength nor experience, no, it was for an entirely different reason. Techno noticed how he barely avoided each attack in a vain attempt to reach the border of the platform. He shifted from side to side in an inelegant dance. The hybrid felt the pit in his stomach widen. His father couldn’t give it his all, not as long as his sons were in danger right next to him.

Techno had the brief thought of running away.

His gaze moved back to his brothers, who were now clashing swords.

Will was fighting smart, drawing back whenever he could in an attempt to make Tommy lose his footing, but it wasn’t enough to match the boy’s speed. While Will barely scratched his clothes, Tommy had already made various cuts on Will’s skin.

The mind was a powerful tool, one that liked playing tricks. For a moment, Techno allowed himself to drift. If he just closed his eyes he could pretend to be in the castle.

He would be laying on the grass, the green stems trickling his palms and the sun warming his face as he laid back to observe his brother’s sparring. Every now and then he would comment on their stance, or mock Will’s lack of focus. He would reprimand Tommy whenever his thrusts would go too close to Will’s stomach or he would admonish Will for playing a dirty trick on the child to throw him off balance. They would all laugh when Will would inevitably fall to the ground, panting and defeated.

When Wilbur fell to the ground this time, there was no laughter.

Philza’s arms wavered under the being’s powerful strikes, but he had managed to land a few hits himself. Whether they had actually drawn blood or not, he was unsure. His sword came out clean, but the being grunted in displeasure. It didn’t last long and the creature launched forward again with a long swipe. Philza moved his wing to push the hit away and followed it by an attack of his own. Again they were head to head, sword clashing against sword

“WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?!” the king roared

The creature simply laughed and drew back. They circled eachother slowly, ready to attack at the minimum sign of weakness.

“WHY US! WHY THIS EMPIRE! WHO ARE YOU?!” the king demanded again, his wings raised behind him.

 The creature lunged at him, a growl in its throat.

“HOW DARE YOU IGNORE MY GREATNESS!”

 Philza rolled left, its sword barely missing his head as it left a dent in the ground. He quickly jumped to his feet again, just in time to block a second attack

“I, WHOSE NAME WAS ECHOED BY THE VOICE OF MANY”

The being charged once more. Phil’s knees trembled against its blow, he glanced hurriedly at the end of the balcony ahead. What was happening down there? His sons were too far out sight, but he swore he could hear the sound of swords clashing. Were they fighting? He needed to be with them, he needed to see them, needed to make sure they were fine.

His babies, his babies, his babies. They were so far away.

He roughly missed the following attack, but his distraction caused him to precariously shift his weight backwards.

“I, THE ONE AMONGST THE MANY”

The being noticed his mishap and promptly pushed forward, Phil’s back knee buckled against the pressure and fell onto the stone floor.

“I AM THE ONE WHO DREAMS!”

Philza’s back bent as he tried to shove away the being, but he felt himself pinned in place. He swallowed and faked a mocking smile despite the tremor in his lips

“Sorry mate, doesn’t ring any bells” the tremble in his voice betrayed his confidence, but the being still squared its shoulders up angrily, the crunching noise puncturing the silence that had fallen between them.

Phil caught the occasion to fall to the side, rolling away once again. However, before he could take his chance, the being had risen and turned towards him. With a impossibly quick motion, he was pinned by the neck against a wall. Its hand, or rather, the grotesque amalgamation of blackness in the vague form of a hand wrapped his throat completely, squeezing his voice out.

“It seems the script has been lost to the years of your mind. Why don’t I help you remember your lines…”

What Phil had expected was the metal of a blade tearing his body, but what actually happened sent chills all throughout his body. The being raised its blackened finger and flicked it against Phil’s forehead.

A painful heat spread from the point of contact and suddenly the avian found himself gasping for air as a surge of images flooded his brain in less than a moment.

Days were monotone up until that point. He woke up, he ate and he slayed. He went wherever he was needed and didn’t ask for compensation. If the gods had put him on earth and gifted him eternity, he wanted to give back to people.

Many mocked his help, but just as many sang his praises, until only the latter remained. And so, his name became known to the public, they said a god had descended amongst them, a blessing from the skies: the god of death

Philza had never liked such epithet. He bitterly laughed at it the more his gift felt like a curse. The god of death, burdened never to die.

His hearth ached as loneliness grew within him. He begun to wonder: if everyone died eventually, what was the point of saving them? Were all of his efforts in vain?

Plagued with doubts he sought quiet in a small village on the outskirts of a town whose name he had not bothered to remember. He spent a few years there. No longer a harbinger of death, he dedicated himself to the arts, finding beauty once more in what was beginning to be a colorful life. But he found that no matter how far you run, death was always right around the corner. It followed him like a shadow and unfortunately, it had cast over the village.

He couldn’t recall how the disaster struck, only that he had found himself amidst the ruins and the fallen. Once more his heart succumbed to darkness.

That was how she had found him. Sitting on a fallen wall of a destroyed house in the middle of a burning village, injured but stubbornly still alive.

She had been like the first ray of sunshine in spring after a particular harsh winter. Despite her cold looks, the blackest of hair that fell down her shoulders and her porcelain skin, she had a warmth that could melt even the toughest of icebergs. Whenever she smiled, her dark eyes shone with the twinkle of a thousand stars.

She treated him, in more ways than one. They spent their days together talking, laughing, exploring. She ranted about old tales and books and he chuckled at her enthusiasm.

 They built a life together, but that too had been short lived.

After barely a year with his beloved, war came and he too found himself drafted to fight in it. He could’ve ran, but his desire to protect what he had managed to built ran deeper. With a bittersweet goodbye, he promised her to be back and she had smiled with that softness of hers.

And so Philza found himself the god of Death once again. He learned about the enemy, the rulers of the land in which he had been staying in. Discontent had been growing amongst the people of the empire. A monotheistic religion, enforced with punishment and death had run the land dry. The people had had enough, it was time to fight back. And fight back he did.

If you had asked him how long he had stayed on the battlefield, he wouldn’t have know how to answer. Death after death after death, he had risen in ranks. The people remembered him and his tales, they chanted for the angel of death on the battlefield and he couldn’t do anything but obey. Enemies paled whenever the shadow of his wings descended upon them.

He feasted on that feeling, and the more he had it, the more he wanted.

He lost many things in the war, but out of all it the most important thing he had lost was himself. His memories had blurred together as he surrounded himself with never-ending violence.

Too soon and too late at the same time he had found himself general of the forces, and when they had finally won, he found himself in charge of the reconstructions along with his most trusted captains. Time passed and he felt himself swept by all the tasks to do, he moved from day to day with the fervor of a man with a job to take care of. Within years, everything was rebuilt again, the last of rebels had been taken care of and there was only one thing left to do: rule.

And so Philza found himself king of an empire he had not wanted, but needed. For, as far as he was aware, it was the only thing he had ever known despite the eons of loneliness and brutality.

Technoblade swore the sound of Will’s body falling onto the ground was the loudest thing he had ever heard and he couldn’t find it in himself to scream. He didn’t move, his eyes trailed from the slumped body of his twin to the scrawny form of his brother towering above him. Tommy turned his head towards him with an uncanny slowness, like it had pained him to do so.

He dragged his feet forwards without a hint of tiredness.

Pools begun to dwell in Techno’s eyes, but he felt strangely at ease. Everything was as still as the surface of the lake of their summer house.

Technoblade simply waited for his brother to close the distance between them.

With each step, a drip fell from the sword marking the ground with blood, his twin’s blood.

Soon Tommy’s shadow was cast over him. The same sword that had ended his brother’s life would now end his as well.

Technoblade supposed there were worst ways to die than by the hand of someone he loved.

He simply watched as Tommy achingly rose his arms, ready to deliver the blow. He took in the details of the boy’s face, glad to be seeing them one last time. He wouldn’t close his eyes, he wanted to imprint his brother’s face in his mind forever.

As the sword begun its descent, Technoblade smiled.

At last, there would be silence.

Something faltered in Tommy’s gaze and the blade halted abruptly.

Before Technoblade could even dare to move, Tommy’s expression shifted into one of confusion. His mouth fell open. The sword he had held clattered onto the ground, and his arms fell to the side. His brows drew together and his eyes fell downwards. Technoblade followed his gaze and-

He gasped. Droplets of blood hit his face, Tommy’s blood.

The glint of a sword emerged from the kid’s stomach, tinted with that revolting color and droplets that stuck onto his skin.

White spots danced in Technoblade’s vision, his head felt as if it was about to split in two due to the piercing volume of the wail the voices had released.

Faster than it went in, the sword came out and Tommy slumped forward, falling onto Techno. Behind him, Will emerged barely standing.

A conversation from what felt like an eternity ago resurfaced in his mind.

“Are you suggesting we kill him?” Wilbur spoke slowly and quietly

Techno’s jaw clenched

“ I don’t know. “

“Dad would never approve of it”

“ he would never know”

He turned his head towards his twin

“ I say we give him a couple of weeks. He’s still a kid after all. If he poses any kind of threat to us we dispose of him”

Wilbur too fell forward onto Technoblade , and that was what pushed him over the edge. He couldn’t hear the sound coming out of his mouth, but from the way his throat burned and his chest squeezed heavy with raw emotion, he was sure it held all the despair he felt.

Chapter Text

What snapped Philza of out the brief trance the thing had sent him in was a terrifying sound. At first, still confused by the flood of memories that were swarming in his mind, he hadn’t quite been able to place it: it started as if a piece of metal had been scraped against a chalkboard, then it soon morphed into the wail of a wounded animal.

The sound rose from the ground and bounced off Philza’s bones, it climbed up to reach his heart, leaving only goosebumps in its trail. It made him recoil from its intensity.

Then, there was a sob. It was only for a moment, halting the sound briefly, but when that noise reverberated in his mind, Philza felt his blood run cold.

It was a scream, Technoblade was screaming.

A surge of emotion and dread rose in his veins, his chest hurt from how hard his heart picked up its  beat.

His babies!

He didn’t even acknowledge the sword that he had dropped when his vision turned red.

The being in front of him had turned, trying to assess the scream, unaware his foe had regained consciousness.

Philza felt his talons grow and a warning caw rose up from the back of his troath.

Still with the being’s hand around his neck, Philza started trashing around. Like a feral animal in a cage, he kicked, bit, and scratched.

Caught by surprise, the creature faltered.

Philza swiped with fury and this time, he felt his talons pierce something soft. Not waiting for a reaction, he swung his right arm as well, it clashed against the creature’s head, a sickening crack followed it. The white mask was flung away, it hit the ground with a deaf sound. The being reached to clutch at its face as if the hit had stung against its cheek.

Philza scrambled forward, pushing with both his arms and the being moved aside with surprising ease. He didn’t stop to ask himself questions, he ran across the platform, feet almost slipping off the floor.

His boys, his flock, his sons.

He froze.

Technoblade was motionless with his knees on the ground, on each of his shoulder laid a brother. The sight of blood on his boy’s hands sent Philza’s stomach into the deepest pit of hell.  The screaming halts, morphing into wet sobs and loud hiccups.

No, no no no no.

Phil watched as Techno clutched his brothers tighter, both unnervingly still. From up there, he couldn’t tell the state they were in, covered by Techno’s wide frame and it only contributes to worsen his anxiety.

He moved to step off the platform, he needed to have his kids near him, he could protect them. Yes. They would be safe with him. They would.

A bone chilling laugh echoed in his mind and his whole body shook with tremors.

“Finally”

Phil didn’t like the sound of that one bit, but getting to his sons was the priority.

Something wrapped around his ankle, yanking him backwards. His chin hit heavily against the floor with a loud clank. He felt none of it.

He launched his arms ahead, gripping at the border of the platform.

Something-something was different. The strength with which he was being pulled back was unlike the one from before.

His knuckles turned white and the corner of his eyes noticed some darkness eclipsing the window.

No. No. No.

At that moment, he made the only decision he could. He yelled with all his force left.

“TECHNO!”

His father’s inhumane voice broke through the ringing in his ears and the sobs of his mouth. Techno’s head snapped up, wet trails on his cheeks and eyes blurry. He blinked a few times, the movement felt slow to his senses.

Up on the balcony, struggling to hold on to the border Philza was yelling something.

Technoblade squinted.

R-U-N

There was desperation in his father’s eyes.

But what was the point anyway? They had lost. And even if the creature was defeated, they had lost regardless.

Technoblade lowered his gaze just as Philza was dragged backwards with a sharp motion, barely a blur until he was no longer in vision.

The boy held tight onto his brothers. He searched for warmth, a foolish hope from a child’s mind. Soon, he would be as cold as them, if he were not already. It was too much of a blur.

He could only think about how lucky he was to be with them at his end. Still, how he wished they could hold him the same, squeeze him with the love he knew they held for him.

Hug him like they would after a particularly good move during a spar, when the world was fine and the sun was still shining in Tommy’s smile. Reeking of sweat they would corner him and-

A twitch

-and he would fight back, faking disgust. Eventually he would let them win, his little brothers. And they would wrap their dirty hands around him, circling him and making it impossible to-

The pressure of fingers on his upper arm

-escape. They would mock him, making the circle smaller until they would be both flush against him and they would laugh, he would laugh with them. He always did in the end and-

Another twitch. This time it snapped Technoblade right out of his thoughts.

Clouds cleared briefly from his mind and his gaze settled on Wilbur. The faintest of movements could be seen from his chest.

Breathing! Will was still breathing.

Will was alive, thank the gods. His twin, his other half, there was still a chance!

What was he doing, staying here, waiting for his death?

Will, he had to save at least Wilbur.

He shuffled from underneath his brothers, turning so Will laid against his back. It seemed he still had the strength to barely hold onto him.  That was good, he repeated to no one in particular.

Technoblade’s calves burned when he attempted to get onto his feet. He staggered, a few times he fell onto his knees while repeating apologies to his brother. Once he was finally up, he turned towards the door.

Something dark was cutting through the light, as if it was slowly covering the scenery around.

Technoblade took a step, Will shifted uncomfortably on his back. As he was about to take one more step forward, his chest squeezed painfully. He glanced behind him, catching sight of golden curls splayed on the floor and a static chest.

His jaw clenched and his fists tightened at his side.

Sharply, he turned around and bent over, albeit his organs screamed at him for doing so. But to be fair, everything, including his head, was already screaming at him so what was one more thing on the list?,

He wrapped his hands around the body of his brother, his troath closed at the sight of his pale skin, which had taken a blueish hue.

He couldn’t leave Tommy behind, not again. He would bury him near a tree in a sunny patch of grass. He owed him at least that.

So, with Tommy’s cold weight across his arms and Will’s suddenly warm body against his back, Technoblade ran.

Before crossing the door of the place, he looked back.  But he could only see a blur of movement up on the balcony that not even his eyes could follow.

The hybrid ran further and further down the honestly ridiculous amount of stairs outside, almost missing a few steps and risking a tumble.

Still, he held on.

His lungs BURNED and he was pretty sure oxygen wasn’t filling them anymore. The air outside felt dry, but his throat was even worse, as if sand was coming down his windpipe instead of air.

His right arm stung with the pricks of a thousand needles, but it only caused him to clutch at Tommy tighter with his left one, but that one too was starting to cause him problems.

Although the weight of his twin caused him to bend at an awkward angle, he could feel Will’s hot breath on his the back of his neck and it offered him an odd comfort.

Once the dreadful staircase was over, he followed a path of gravel. He was unsure of where to go or where they were, but he needed to get as far away from the creature as he could.

He glanced around in a hurry and only then noticed what the darkness that had cut the area really was. A dome, the size of the block and entirely made of a sickening blackness, was slowly wrapping the area.

The idea of being stuck urged Techno to run faster. The sky was no longer visible, nor was the scenery above Techno’s eye level.  

Whether it was night or day, he couldn’t tell. It wouldn’t have made a difference anyway.

He needed to hurry. He would get out, find Will an healer and everything would be fine.

His eyes widened when the wall of the dome was right in front of him, almost too close to the ground to allow him to pass.

His pace quickened far past what he had thought to be possible.

He wouldn’t make it.

Could he throw Will? No! No! That could hurt him further.

He has to go with him.

Should-Should he leave Tomm-

No. No. No. They would all get away, they would.

Tension ran all the way from his feet past his calves and up his thighs. He begged and prayed all the gods he knew.

Please let his body hold on a little longer.

Just a bit more.

The dome was almost closed.

Please.

He launched onto the floor, sliding, gravel picked at his sides and burned his legs. He gritted his teeth.

Technoblade tumbled forwards, hissing when a particularly sharp rock hit his skull.

He quickly got up, feeling lighter.

They had made it, they had gone away!

No, not yet. They needed to get farther.

He turned, ready to move again and only then realized he wasn’t holding neither of his brothers anymore.

Fuck, fuck.

The roll had caused both Will and Tommy to fall off. Shakily, Technoblade approached Will, who visibly groaned, tears marking his face. As he slid him again onto his back he tried to soothe him with the rumble in his chest, it came in hiccups

“I know-I know, baby brother. I’m sorry, hold on a bit longer”

Will’s grip loosened and Techno’s whole body tensed. His hand flew to grab onto his twin’s arms, weakly wrapped around his neck

“No no no. Stay awake! Will! WILL!”

There was no reply, but Technoblade could still feel his faint breathing. The hybrid bent even more, but he still had to clutch Will’s arms lest he fell off.

But he still needed to grab Tommy.

Techno’s jaw worked, driblets of cold sweat dripping from his forehead.

He wouldn’t leave him. He wouldn’t.

An idea spurred in his mind. He carefully placed Will back on the ground. He took off his own shirt and worked the fabric into three thick strips. He quickly braided them, hissing with pain while doing so, his fingers felt numb but he kept working until he was satisfied.

With this new makeshift rope he grabbed Will once again, allowing his arms to dangle over his shoulders and around his neck. Then, he tied his wrists together. He felt sorry at the tightness of the knot, but between a scar and death by falling off he was sure Will would much rather mind the latter.

It took Techno a moment to find the right balance so that he wouldn’t be chocked, eventually it worked.

With no time to waste on satisfaction, he picked up Tommy from the ground and started running again.

His head moved from side to side. Surely there was a place, somewhere they could go seek help.

Outside the dome small streets of gravel twisted and turned around abandoned houses. No one was nearby.

Everything was abandoned.  

The faint glimmer of hope that had begun sprouting in Techno faltered.

Will shivered behind him and Techno’s gaze hardened.

He kept looking around, legs working on their own accord. The world sometimes spun around him, and he backtracked on his steps. He hoped he wasn’t going in circles.

Black and white spots reappeared in his vision and he clenched his teeth, legs still moving.

But the farther he went, the less his legs moved suddenly overcome by a bone deep fatigue that couldn’t be hidden by adrenaline anymore.

He pushed harder, now barely dragging himself forward. He could hear Will’s ragged breaths decrease.

His lower lips pursed and trembled, his eyes stung.

Please, anyone, please.

He was now using a wall for support, his bare shoulder dragging over the coarse stone.

He was barely able to see now, but he didn’t stop. Couldn’t stop.

His head pounded and he couldn’t hold back the tears anymore.

His knees gave out and he slid down the wall. His side pressed to what felt like wood.

Was this where it ended?

He felt the wall disappear underneath him and the last thing he knew was that he was falling. Then, there was darkness.

Air was knocked out of his lungs again as Phil’s back slammed against the wall once more, this time leaving a crack in it.

Phil gathered himself to his feet quickly and his eyes widened. The being in front of him was changing. The shadows swirled around faster and somehow they looked even more tangible than before. It had gained a significant amount of height and it had not bothered to pick up its mask again, sporting its sadistic grin that now conveyed arrogance even without it changing.

Philza heard the loud bang of a door closing and decided it was time.

The being was not the only creature with some tricks up its sleeves.

Primordial rage that had  been forgotten with time resurfaced, it erupted like a flame after being fed new wood again. It spread as quickly as a forest fire, leaving only ashes behind its destruction.

All the heat had condensed to Phil’s core.

The avian opened his mouth, loud huffs coming out of it, as he felt his canines get sharper. The skin around his neck itched as more feathers appeared and puffed up.

He barely noticed his vision closing in, made to be focused only on its prey. His hands curled further, his fingers completely exchanged for long, sharp talons.

His wings opened wide, bigger than he ever knew they could be.

Without his sons witnessing, without the need to avoid collateral damages, he allowed himself to lose himself to his beast.

It was incredibly dangerous, threading the line between human and monster. Were he unable to gain back control, he could endanger everything he knew.

But the price was nothing if it meant his sons would be safe.

It felt somewhat freeing, unleashing what he had carefully kept under wraps for eons.

But now, it was time to remind the shadow being just who it had angered.

Chapter Text

The boy is floating, there is warmth all around him. He doesn’t cry, he doesn’t do anything really…the boy is where he belongs, isn’t he?

At first, there was only heaviness to his limbs, tingles all over them as if he was being squished by gravity.  Techno attempted to open his eyes, but his eyelids stayed still, obscuring his vision. He felt dragged back into nothingness and he found he didn’t have the strength to fight back.

The second time he was aware of himself, something was being wrapped around his arms, someone was touching him, slightly tilting him to the side. Then, a sharp warmth somewhere in his right arm. Again, he was pulled back into sleep before he could even try to make sense of it.

The third time it happened, he was suddenly aware of how cold he had been. Chills shook his body violently and he found himself aching for breaths. This time he forced his eyes open.

His vision received a blast of golden daylight that reflexively demanded him to squint.

Where was he? He-ugh

A pain he had not yet acknowledged made itself known suddenly. Particularly the one in his head. It hammered with a slow and penetrating throb from the back of his skull. Instinctively, he tried to touch said spot, but found he couldn’t move his arms.

Technoblade grunted with effort, fighting back against the pull of unconsciousness. He felt rivulets of sweat sliding against his cold skin.

Then, there was a hand on his head, caressing his hair out the way. Who?

Techno sighed.

There was an outline, but the light was too strong behind it for him to properly see.

Still, he felt instantly warmer and, despite his best efforts, it lulled him right back into a dreamless sleep.

The last time it happened, he didn’t leave the tiredness stop him. As soon as he knew his eyes could open he used all his strength to sit up, albeit his head begged him to stop, thumping with the same rhythm as his heart.

Where was he?

He ignored the wave of nausea while he turned his head to look around. He was in a bed. But it didn’t look like his bed, nor anyone’s bed in the castle. The blinding light from before had dimmed, casting soft shadows on the sapphire sheets. There were a few bandages here and there on his body, but it looked like his arms had had the worst damage.  His right arm was dressed tightly, wrapped around in what looked like a perfect sling. His left one was bandaged as well, but lacked the support.

What was he doing before this? Had he been in a fight?

A fight- the creature, blond curls, blood- Wilbur on the ground- Will!

He threw his legs to the side, glad they still listened to him. He had to find Will, had to know where they all were. He clenched his teeth while the weight shifted to his feet, his left arm ached in an attempt to push his weight upwards. He grunted out of breath when nothing happened. Before he could try again an old woman appeared in front of him.

She glared at him behind her glasses.

 Were it literally anyone else, Technoblade would’ve attempted to flee, but there was a sense of shock in seeing this defenseless old lady standing tall over his seated body with both her arms on her hips and an exasperated expression on her features.

*Seriously you youngsters!* she signed sharply with her wrinkled hand which was surprisingly scarred.

Techno huffed out an hysteric chuckle.

*Go back to sleep before you hurt yourself any further!* she raised her brow in an arch.

Even if Techno couldn’t hear her voice, he could see her annoyance in the way her lips pursed and her hand repeated the movement a couple of times more. He felt at a loss, so he turned to the side and sat back against the headboard of the bed, legs splayed on the mattress. Technoblade turned to her blank faced.

The old lady fussed even more, throwing her arms up and scurrying closer to the bed. Her mouth moved fast, probably muttering something that Techno wasn’t able to catch while she picked up the bedsheet that had fallen to the ground. She dusted it off and carefully laid it on the teen.

What was happening? Was he still dreaming? If so,  how could he feel the heat emanating off of her?

Technoblade expected a sense of unease from the unprompted closeness. Instead, he only felt a slight sense of embarrassment. He hadn’t been tucked to bed in years. Last time it happened was after him and his father had fought when Phil had saved him from the fight ring disaster. The man had visited him before sleep to apologize. They both ended up a sobbing mess.

Somehow, watching this old lady mimic his father’s behavior felt…comforting, if not just a bit odd.

It being a dream was very much a possibility, it would certainly explain the fuzzy edges of his vision and the absurdity of being put to bed by an unknown old woman (and the fact that he didn’t mind that much, but he would never admit that out loud).

Once she deemed it good enough, the woman sat at the edge of the mattress and breathed in.

*Dear, I know this must feel all too confusing, but you must take it slow* this time her movements were mellower and her green eyes shone with something akin to worry. Who was she to show such concern?

*your body has taken quite the toll, with the concussion and the dislocated elbow* she poked at his arm.

Well that explained the bandages and the killer headache and the hallucination right in front of him.

Maybe if he just ignored her long enough, he would wake up.

His eyes slid away from her figure to end up looking at his own hand that now laid in his lap.

He didn’t move for a while. The mattress shifted and a warm hand was placed on his forehead again, pushing away his bangs. His eyes widened at the contact, color rising in his cheeks.

He couldn’t find it in himself to avoid the comfort though. But he did furrow his eyebrows at her with a questioning glare.

She pursed her lips, turned the hand so that the back of it was in contact with the skin and then pulled slightly away.

Techno’s eyes followed her movements.

*doesn’t look like you have a fever anymore. Do you feel dizzy?*

He ignored her again, eyes falling back to his own lap. The hybrid managed to move his left hand to pinch his thigh. He didn’t wake up.

As his head raised he found the woman staring at him with a questioning gaze.

Techno raised his left hand, each movement was slow and heavy but he signed with urgency

*Where are my brothers?*

Her lips quirked in a puzzling smile, she pulled herself up to her feet.

*We might need some tea after all, aren’t you parched?*

Technoblade’s gaze hardened *I asked you-*

The last part of his words was lost to the woman, who, without waiting for a reply, was already out the room. The hybrid scoffed. He wanted to follow her, but his legs had other plans and his body was heavy once more.

Determined not to fall asleep again, Techno tried to keep himself occupied with thoughts.

Truly not one of his smartest ideas. As if he had just opened a dam his mind was flooded with a multitude of thoughts and, given the circumstances, not a single one was positive.

He saw Will again, falling to the ground; he felt Tommy’s blood drip onto his face; he imagined his father’s corpse on the balcony; Ranboo’s vacant eyes-Puffy’s empty ones-Tommy’s void gaze-

There was a hand on his shoulder, steady and warm. He hadn’t realized his breathing had become faster.

He released the sheet that had crumpled underneath his fist and a teacup was placed in his hand. It wasn’t steaming.

He brought the liquid to his lips, relishing in how much it quenched his thirst. He sipped in the quiet.

It was very quiet.

Once the tea was finished, Techno finally looked at her again. He placed the empty teacup on his lap.

*how long has it been? Since I came here I mean*

More wrinkles appeared on the woman’s face when her nose scrunched *three days, give or take*

Techno’s eyes widened and his mouth opened to yell at her, but nothing came out so he just curtly signed *three days?! You must be mistaken! What about my brothers! What about my father! Is the fight over?*

The old lady’s hand wrapped over his, pushing it so that it would lay in his lap. With the other, she replied

*calm down my dear, panicking won’t do you any good.* her green eyes glinted uncannily, staring right at his red ones. She continued * Your brother Wilbur is recuperating quite well, but he has yet to awaken, Tommy on the other hand…*

A wave of uneasiness passed through Techno when she finger spelled some words, it took him a moment then he pulled his hand back with a sharp motion and hissed *How do you know their names?!*

The woman didn’t flinch, but she pulled back her hands * I have met with your brothers in the past, lent them a hand*

Wilbur knew a lot of people so it could be plausible, but Tommy? He hadn’t had a chance to go out the castle to socialize and she certainly wasn’t part of the court. Could she be tied to his past? Wait…an old lady? Why did it sound familiar?

It dawned on him. He pointed at her, then moved his hand from the right to the left with an arching motion, his palm first facing up and then facing down at the end of the movement *you’re the librarian. The one who gave Toms that book!*

*I am many things, but to answer your question: yes, I was*

*But* his hand stopped, trying to find the right words.

How did she know about him, when had she met Wilbur, why did she have that book, how was she here-

*Why?* was all he could come up with.

*Why does anyone do anything?*

*What do you have to gain?* he narrowed his eyes *Do you want money? A title? Fame?*

She erupted into a fit of laughter so loud Techno swore he could hear her clearly in his head. He winced at the sound.

The old lady waved her hand in front of her face

*Oh dear, no no* she settled *Such things would be useless to me* her gaze drifted away and her smile became bitter *let’s just say I can’t really stand injustice-* her movement changed sharply *now, about your brothers*

At that Techno perked up *where are they?*

*In the rooms next door. As I mentioned before, your brother Wilbur is recovering, but he is not yet awake, but there is hope he will be soon-*

A breath he didn’t know he was holding escaped his lips, turning into a relieved sigh.

*Tommy, however, is in quite a predicament-*

Technoblade jumped forward, ignoring the ache in his ribs *he’s alive?!* he signed right in front of her face. She avoided his gaze and puckered her lips

*…not quite*

Techno quite literally threw himself off the bed, startling the poor old woman. He scrambled forwards, knees buckling like a newborn deer.

Tommy-Tommy wasn’t dead.

Much to his disappointment, the woman barred him from going ahead.

*it won’t do you any good. Stay in bed. Recover.*

*I need to see him* he stumbled, she shook her head firmly.  He fell forwards, legs giving in. The woman caught him with surprising strength, he clutched at the fabric on her shoulders, breath hitching

“-P-Please-“ he croaked. The lady looked up at him, eyebrows drawn together. She sighed, moving so that he had his left arm around her shoulder, his back bent at an awkward angle.

They dragged themselves outside the room, only to re-enter another one right next to it. This one clearly wasn’t meant to be a bedroom.

It was small, walls covered in weapons of all sorts and of incredible quality, there were also red drapes covering what supposedly were windows. Any other time, Techno would’ve been amazed by the craftsmanship of the armory, but now all his attention was pulled to what was in the centre.

A raised table of sorts, made with a porous kind of material, colored in pale yellow, was erected in the middle of the room. At both ends some unknown purple crystals floated with a twisting light, spinning in place occasionally. And there, in between them laid Tommy.

He was as still as Techno remembered, but this time the stillness felt…calmer. The soft glow of the faintly escaping light danced delicately on his figure, framing the scene like a painting. Each curl had been combed properly into place, seeming to catch the light just so, creating a glow that floated off of his pale features. His eyes, closed and framed by long blond lashes, his mouth, not a hint of a frown nor a smile. His arms carefully posed over his chest laid on a clean white nightgown, ripples from its soft fabric spilling from the sides, the hem of it brushing lightly against the hard floor. A picture of serenity, one not unfamiliar, his little brother asleep under a ray of sunshine.

But no matter how much he appeared in a deep sleep, his chest did not raise with life.

Techno trashed to move forward and reach his brother, but strength evaded him and the old lady held him firmly in place.

He turned to her, a disgruntled expression on his features. His fist pushed against her repeatedly, but despite her old age she didn’t budge.

*you lied!*

Her emerald eyes gazed upon him. She stared at him like one would do to a child throwing a tantrum and suddenly there was an unrecognizable deepness to her eyes.

She waited until Techno settled, then she moved to place him on a chair nearby. He fell limp on the seat looking up at her. He didn’t move, not even when she left the room and came back much later, a curious book in her hand.

She placed it on his lap. He looked at the book and then back at her

“I do not lie. Tommy is not dead, not yet at least. But he is very weak.” Techno glanced at the still figure on the slab, then back at her at once realizing that the woman was no longer signing. She had spoken and her voice felt like many and yet only one at the same time. Still, her tone was warm, welcoming, not at all raspy like one would expect from a woman her age. When she spoke it did not feel like an intrusion, unlike what had happened with the one who dreams. The sensation was akin to when a memory is recalled, albeit one with very vivid details.

“Your father and your enemy are much more similar than you realize. Both are beings of eternity: trapped outside what it is human and yet not quite divine”

Technoblade shifted in his seat, unsure of the unexpected subject change.  

“Ones like them are rare, very few have been created throughout time. And even less survived as long, eventually succumbing to the madness caused by the passing of time. The divines do not interfere with mortal matters, but occasionally they take pity. Only they can put an end to these beings’ suffering”

Did she just say divines? Did she mean gods?  He wanted to ask, but he felt compelled to wait and learn more.

“And so, no mortal can bring these creatures to defeat. But neither can one of the same kind. The avian and the creature of darkness are destined to a never ending battle, fated to last until one of them eventually succumbs to madness. However, the one who dreams has failed to acknowledge such ending to be possible. It believes that it is worthy of the divine realm, clinging to a power that it's not its to own, arrogantly thinking it can evade fate, but no one has such power.”

Techno’s brows furrowed and he leaned forward.

*what do you mean a power that was stolen?*

She flicked her head towards Tommy and Techno swallowed a lump in his throat.

“Your brother has been in its grip ever since he was an infant and ever since then, the creature drained his very being. That had not been the plan at first, of course. It wanted a weapon, a godly one that could bring an end to his long lasting enemy. An enemy of its own creation, born from jealousy. The One who dreams wanted to be acknowledged as the only god, in doing so it lured a true divine, trapping it away from its source in order to consume their strength. The divine hid, but it was too late. They were found and so was their child”

The hybrid felt himself fill with questions as she went on.

“but the creature did not stop at the divine, it craved more power. One that had transferred over to the offspring. A new life to be shaped much to the being’s desires. But the child was tougher than it expected, repeatedly evading the being’s requests. And so, it was time to rid of it again.”

His hand tensed, gripping the side of the chair, and his lips thinned into a line at the bitter memory. He attempted to turn his head away, but the woman’s hand found its way to his chin, turning him with care. She looked directly into his eyes, green meeting red. He found himself unclenching his fingers and rolling back his shoulders, even the tension in his jaw lessened.

She spoke again but her lips did not shift from the line they formed, nor did they open to allow words out. Regardless, he heard her loud and clear.

“your brother is at impasse: neither dead nor alive. His power is feeble, but it is still his. If he wishes so, he could call it back. But must want it. You have to hope his love for you is enough”

At that, her hand left his face and Techno found himself chasing for the warmth they had provided. She looked at him, her head tilted to the side and so he settled back in his chair, finally given the chance to ask questions.

*Wait, so the gods are real?* he felt foolish to ask after such a lengthy explanation, but he just needed a confirmation. Her eyes crinkled, clearly expecting the question.

“Yes, but not in the way you think. Gods as you call them are not truly a being. We are tied to a concept, we’re both an entity and the concept itself. I, for one, am what is know as knowledge”

That explained a lot. He turned to look at Tommy still motionless.

“Your brother was the son of the End, so he himself is all the ends.
But his phoenix blood also changed something within that power- endings only mean it is time for a beginning.”

Technoblade turned his attention back to her.

“Tommy is he himself the end and the beginning, supposedly tied to the concept of rebirth. That is what the One who dreams wants after all,  to be reborn. And now with Tommy out of the way, it has that power. But it’s not its, not completely at least. It never belonged to it in the first place.”

*Phoenix blood?*

She tapped on the book in his lap titled “The ones that return”. Technoblade opened it only to be met with a carefully made drawing of an avian. Black wings with feathers that faded to red towards the end like the color of the sky during sunset were spread wide on the page, colors so bright it almost came to life.

*my father…*

She nodded

“Truly an amazing coincidence he found himself entangled with the End herself.”

Pieces of mismatched stories came together in Techno’s mind like a puzzle, making sense at last.

“Out of every other immortal, the phoenixes are the ones most prone to losing themselves in the years, that is why your father is the last of his kind, or well, was until Tommy.”

*Why?*

“They are cursed not with immortality but with rebirth. Each death begins the cycle anew but they remain unchanged only physically. Their minds, their memories do not relive with them. Only their strongest bond in their previous life remains vivid in their mind and even then, it is often eroded with time. As such they are fated to remember only those lost. Truly a lonely destiny…”

It made sense…all of it made sense now.

*So Tommy-*

“ is a very peculiar being, it is not unheard of a birthed god, but it is certainly rare. He is, however, the first one between a divine and an immortal. It makes him unpredictable, even for me. “

*wait… if phoenixes can be reborn, does that mean tommy will come back?*

A chance. Tommy could come back. They could be happy again-

“That is something I do not know. The divine blood interferes…I believe it is his choice to make, we can merely wait for his decision”

Techno gritted his teeth, he had faith in his brother. He would come back, he had to.

*What about my father? Will he be okay?*

She smiled softly at that, moving her hand to stroke Techno’s hair fondly “I know he will be. He has a good reason to keep fighting after all.”

The silence wraps around him like a blanket, the silence knows, it understands him. Here, in the darkness he doesn’t have to be, he simply isn’t.

What was he once anyway?

He sighs, but he doesn’t really. There is no more air in his lungs to allow it. It reminds him of being underwater.

Had he ever been underwater?

The image of a sunlit cottage appears, the twinkle of the lake near it.

Must be nice there.

The image disappears and once again there is only darkness around. He doesn’t mind it. How can someone mind themselves?

He is all around himself. One and the same as what surrounds him.

It’s peaceful.

The silence lulls him.

He could stay here forever, couldn’t he?

He doesn’t have anything else to do after all.

Something itches at the thought.

He can’t scratch it, there is nothing to scratch…only darkness…

There is simply, nothing.

But how could there be nothing if he is there?

Can Nothing think?  

Does Nothing think?

What is nothing anyway?

There is always something.

.

.

.

Is he something?

.

.

.

Small lights flicker all around, glittering like stars

Is he a star? Is he the sky?

Does he have to be?

He just wants it to stop.

What was it that needed to stop?

Another image appears, it fades at the edges.

There is a bird. No, a child. They sit on the floor of a stone cage, shackles tight around their legs. Their face is shielded from view, obsidian wings wrap around their frail body.

They seem…lonely

Does he know what being lonely feels like?

The image flickers. The child is still there, white strips soaked in red wrap around their torso as they hug their legs. Their shoulders shake with hiccups and this time, their face is visible…familiar. Loss was visible on their features.

They took something from him.

Him?

The scene changes again, blood now drips from the corners.

Masked men surround the child, they trap them, they cage him again and this time the child would pay for it. They’re being tied, detained face down, unable to move. They trash around and scream.

No, no, let them go! Stop!

A figure enters and everything falls quiet. This quiet however, doesn’t comfort him a single bit. The figure approaches the table, a disappointed tone in its voice. A knife shimmers in its hands.

Please no. Not again. No.

The child’s cries are not heard by anyone. They resonate deep within the room and the figure demands silence.

It was his fault after all.

The first cut is blinding and painfully slow. It burns with the intensity of a fire, eating away all the feeling on their back.

The sound of something falling onto the ground is deafening.  

The second cut is barely felt.

When the second one as well falls to the ground with a loud thump the lightness is what really gets to them.

When the kid gets on their feet, thrown back in their cell, they stumble.

This is wrong, all of it is wrong. Why does he feel so light?

.

.

.

Why does he feel?

The image disappears and the silence is welcoming, but there is a burning on his back. It doesn’t fade.

He just wants peace, why does it hurts so much to exist?

Another scene appears and he wishes he could look away. But he doesn’t have a head to turn, nor eyes to close

He sees the same child, now a teen, running. They cross a path full of trees, only to stumble at the end and tumble on the ground. Regardless, they get up and keep going.

Run, run, run!

He couldn’t be caught, not again!

They come across a battlefield, the teen tries to stay hidden from view and peeks from over the bushes, attempting to find a safe path.

Their eyes catch something, brown curls moving in the midst of chaos, sided by a man with a long braid of unknown color.

Something switches in him.

The burn shifts from his back all the way to his stomach, reaching deep inside.

He wants to grab at it, pull out the ember that is disturbing his peace, but he has no arms to fight back.

The images change with a twirl.

The teen is somewhere else, somewhere safe. There is a fireplace that’s crackling. The teen sits in front of it, holding an empty cup of tea. They’re leaning against a man’s knees, their head tilted backwards, eyes closed while the man carefully works a hand through their hair. Next to them, a guy with pink hair looks at them fondly while another guy twists his hair into a neat braid.

The older man is smiling and making some cooing sounds

“planning to extend the nest old man?” the pink haired guy says chuckling. The older man croons softly “shut up Techno, like you’re not thinking the same thing”

The guy doesn’t deny it and the scene stops.

Techno? Why does it sound so familiar?

The burning ache moves from his stomach, travelling all the way to the center of his chest, spreading with a warmth that quickly envelops his whole body.

His body?

He feels heat passing through his fingers, travelling over his arms, circling in his chest, dropping down towards his legs only to come back up and settle softly in his heart.

It doesn’t beat, but he feels strangely alive.

He wasn’t something. He was someone. He is someone.

But who is he?

A voice echoes, it parts the silence with a lulling voice.

“my child, my beautiful baby”

There’s a comforting hand placed on his cheek and the darkness recedes, as if bowing in deference, to reveal a woman.

Her smile is soft and maternal, her eyes are completely black, shining with the twinkle of a thousand stars, deep as if they hold the secrets of the universe and they look at him with impossible fondness.

And suddenly he knows.

He throws himself forward, welcome in the arms of his mother. They hold him tight and he swears he could lose himself in the embrace forever. He buries his face in her soft shoulder. She smells of summer nights and dreams.

His mother tilts her head and caresses his face, thumb swiping under his now wet eyes.

“My little child of the stars, you’ve been lonely, haven’t you?”

In the silk of her gown he nods his head, nuzzling in the fabric. Her arms hold tight around him and he feels so small.

“Shhhh, you’re safe now. Nothing can hurt you here.”

And he trusts her, trusts her like a child. For he is one, after all.

She caresses his hair, kisses his forehead times and times more. He shifts in her embrace, now being held to her chest like a baby. She rocks him and he feels at peace once more.

He’s finally where he is meant to be.

The darkness fills again with little stars and she points at them with a fond smile, explaining constellations.

He listens.

“That one is Scorpius.” She moves her hand and the sky shifts, another constellation appearing in front of them

“This one is the Boar, isn’t it pretty?”

He nods, but something tugs at his chest.

Time passes, or does it? The darkness doesn’t change after all.

He stays in his mother’s arms. Safe.

Every now and then she tilts her head to relay yet another kiss on the crown of his hair and he melts in the unconditional love only a mother can provide.

Each touch, each tender gesture feels like sanctuary.

The last constellation opens up in the sky “this is the Crow’s constellation. I’m really fond of this one.” She chuckles quietly, the sound is pristine in the quiet of the night. “ Whenever I feel sad, I always look at it. It remind me of the past”

Her hands caresses his hair, brushing his golden curls to the side.

The past huh? Does he have a past?

He thinks of the cottage near the lake and of the man with pink hair.

Such a silly color, pink. Red is a manlier color. Techno was also a really stupid name. Tommy was a much cooler one!

.

.

.

Tommy? Who is Tommy?

“Now that you’re here my little stardust, nothing can keep us apart anymore. We have all the time in the world” she croons and nuzzles his hair.

Tommy. Tommy. Tommy.

It sounded familiar.

His mother begins to hum, a tone he already knew by heart. It spreads in the emptiness around, reverberating through his bones. 

He thinks of shared moments with a guitar, a lullaby in the night, the comfort of his brother’s room.

His brother?

He thinks of quiet moments, stolen instances in the silence of a library, on the couch next to his brother.

His brother…

He thinks of wooden swords clashing, the sun unforgiving in the sky, the laughter of a day’s exercise with his brothers.

His brothers.

He thinks of smeared paint, ruined clothes, his father’s messy tower.

His father!

He’s Tommy. Of course, how could he forget!

Tommy shifts from his mother’s embrace, climbing down to stand on his own feet. He suddenly misses her warmth and fights against the urges to cling to her once more.

 She looks at him, her head tilted to the side and a bitter smile on her face. The stars twinkle in the night of her eyes.

“you won’t stay, will you?” her voice is wet.

He looks at her, bittersweet expression marking his features. He shakes his head and she lowers her gaze.

Tommy’s hands reach forward, landing on her soft cheeks, holding the warmth there, he wishes he could imprint the memory of her comfort on his skin. He leans, his lips gently pressing on her forehead.

He stays there between a moment and forever.

He doesn’t want to let go, but he knows he has to. They still need him. His mother was wrong, he isn’t lonely. Not anymore.

Still, how much it pains him to let go.

When he finally lets go, the darkness is gone. Light has filled the area, but it isn’t blinding in the slightest.

Tommy takes a deep breath. He feels the burning of air as it enters his lungs. He walks for a bit, unsure of what to do. In his walk, he finds a pond and he crouches to its level.

He doesn’t recognize the person in the reflection, but he knows it must be him.

He thinks for a moment about going back into his mother’s embrace: free of everything that’s upsetting.

Then he looks at the reflection again and sees pieces of his people. His nose crinkles in the way his father’s does, his smile is lopsided much like Will’s  and his hair has little braids like Techno.

He had found a home all by himself, it was now time to fight for it.

His hand reaches for the puddle, the surface ripples.

Tommy’s heart begun beating once more.

Chapter Text

Tommy’s eyes opened and his whole body shook with a sudden fit of cough, it stung and itched his insides. He felt his lungs expand in his chest, revived by fresh air.

Before he could regain his bearings, a pair of arms assaulted him and he found himself squeezed.

“Woah woah, easy now. I just came back from the dead, at this rate you’ll send me down again!” He chuckled, there were no replies.

“C’mon mate seriously, let me breatheee” Tommy wiggled in the hug so that he could gain more space. That seemed to do it. The arms retracted, although one hand stayed on his shoulder, the touch comforting.

He looked up at his brother, an eternity since he last saw him.

He looked truly worse for wear. His pink hair was frizzled, held in two poorly made braids that dangled from behind his ears. Some strands stuck out from fabric that covered part of his head. His face was a mess of scratches and purple bruises, coordinated with the humongous pair of black eye bags that sunk in his skin. One arm was trapped in a sling while the other was wrapped in bandages. Techno stood a bit crooked, as if even simply breathing hurt. Despite everything, his eyes still shone with the light that he had grown to associate with Techno

“Don’t you look peachy. Anyone would believe you’re the one that kicked the bucket” Tommy said with a smile so wide it hurt his cheeks.

Technoblade looked at him, eyes puffy and red rimmed and smiled as well. He did however also punch Tommy softly on the shoulder in reply and stuck his tongue out at him too for good measure.

At that, Tommy feigned injury, clutching at his shoulder and exaggerating the sentiment. Techno’s eyes widened with genuine concern that soon turned to annoyance when Tommy broke into a fit of laughter. The older boy rolled his eyes at his antics, but there was relief and fondness written all over his face. That simple look completely undid Tommy’s attempts at normalcy.

All the feelings that had been put on halt in that dark limbo hit him like a ton of bricks.

Tears streaked his face, messy and heavy and he hugged his brother so tight he hoped he hadn’t hurt him further. Techno’s arms around him grounded him. He couldn’t remember everything, his memories were fuzzy and spotty but there was a weight on his stomach that screamed guilt.

He sobbed in his brother’s safe embrace muttering apologies while a hand made circles on his back.

He had hurt him. He had hurt Techno in more ways than one and yet how could he hold him so softly still?

When the tears finally stopped, Tommy sniffed, cleaning away the snot with his wrists. Technoblade scrunched his nose at him, but did not move away otherwise.

The knot in Tommy’s stomach had lessened slightly. He cleared his throat.

“so, what did I miss? Where’s Wilby?” Tommy croaked and Techno looked away, lips tight, lower one quivering. He stepped back and opened his mouth, only to close it back again with a pitiful look.

Okay, that was certainly odd on his part…

Tommy tried to remember but his mind was jumbled and most memories were still blurred as if his brain needed time to process them.

An older woman appeared from behind Techno and Tommy beamed, opening his arms.

“Theresa! Fancy meeting you here!”

She chuckled “glad to see you too again Tommy dear” The woman looked as he remembered: lively despite her old age and with a caring glint in her vivid green eyes.

He did not question her presence, somehow he felt it made perfect sense.

“Where is here anyway?” he glanced around and whistled at the amount of weaponry that decorated the walls.

“We have a lot to talk about, fancy a cup of tea?

“Death surprisingly does makes you very thirsty huh, who would have known”

Tommy jumped down from where he had laid and eyed his bed curiously, only to realize it wasn’t a bed at all. It was a slab, of course, nothing weird there. Not at all.

As he finally stood, he found himself steadier and for a brief moment he distinctively felt something burning underneath his skin. He looked down at himself, colors rising to his cheeks when he noticed he was only wearing a nightgown. The boy scanned himself quickly in an attempt to find the injury that had caused him to loose consciousness. Instead, he only found a huge scar across his stomach,  his fingertip trailed over the raised bump, a foreign feeling accompanying it.

The prince is safe !

Tommy turned abruptly at the sound. “did you say something?” he asked Techno, but the other did not reply, only stared at him with puzzled look in his eyes.

“Sorry, must be-“ he shrugged “I dunno, death’s side effects or something” again, Techno did not speak.

Tommy was about to comment on it when Theresa re-entered the room carrying a tray filled with pastries and teacups and guiding them to a little table. The steam danced in the air releasing a tantalizing aroma.

If the smell was good, the taste was to die for. Not even a minute after she had passed him his teacup and offered him the goods, Tommy had inhaled both.

Meanwhile at his side Techno slowly sipped his tea, a grimace marking his bruised face.

Tommy settled the empty cup on the table and brought his hands together “So…”

Theresa released an heavy breath and her eyes darkened. She threw a glance at Techno, then back at him.

“Let’s bring you up to speed, shall we?” she started telling everything that had happened ever since Tommy was taken.

Most parts Tommy was not aware of, others were coming back to him in bits and pieces.

“Your brother is recovering well. He hasn’t woken up yet, but his injuries are healing steadily” 

When the memory of his fight with Wilbur came back to him his stomach churned with nausea as guilt washed over him. Tommy lowered his head, eyes buried on the table. His knuckles turned white, hands clutched together and the air begun to feel thicker as if it attempted to evade his lungs.

Then there was a hand on his. He clung onto the warmth and deepened his breaths. The boy looked up at his brother on the side, not a hint of hatred nor blame in his eyes.

Techno’s hand stayed there until the end of the tale, even when the topic shifted to his brother’s effort to bring both Tommy and Will away from the creature.

Tommy’s jaw clenched and his blood boiled every time the being came up in the story. And every time, Techno’s thumb swiped in circular motions on his knuckles, grounding him.

Then, the narration shifted again.

“wait, wait, wait hold up” he interrupted the old lady. “I’m supposed to be a god?” he pointed a finger at himself with a raised brow. Theresa nodded in reply.

“Any chance you’re not…ehm confusing me for someone else?”

She threw him a stare with a raised eyebrow, looked him up and down and let him take his own conclusion.

Okay fine, maybe coming back from the dead was not your usual normal person shenanigan but did it really mean he was a god?

Sure yeah, maybe a tiny bit.

Woah, Tommy was… a god.

Like “people pray you so you grant them your blessing” type of god.

“the believers build temples in your name” type of god.

Was he taking it too well? Should he scream just a little bit, get it out of his system?

…

No, no he was fine. He was a god.

Well, of course he was! He had always been the coolest ever, this just put a name it.

Huh. Tommy the god. That didn’t sound too bad.

Theresa continued her story. She told Tommy about his father and the one who dreams, about his phoenix heritage and his divine right.

His heart skipped a beat.

Philza, a man who had become the closest thing Tommy had to a father in so little time, was his actual father.

The king who had taken him in with kind gestures and warm smiles, who had taught him how to paint, who had told him stories and let him preen his wings, who had taught him what it really meant to love, was his flesh and blood.

There were butterflies in his stomach, fluttering around and hitting all the corners inside him. He felt giddy. He felt betrayed.  Too many emotions fought for dominance in his mind, spurred on by just as many questions.

Why had he left him then? Why had Phil not been there when him and mom needed him? Did he know? Was that why he had taken him in? Or had it been yet another scheme made by the creature?

And yet, when his mind quelled, there was only warmth inside because it didn’t make a difference. Tommy had grown to acknowledge the man as his father, not by their blood relation but by his actions, his words, his love. So did it really matter?

Maybe.

Still, Phil had a lot to answer to. They were due for a very late father-son talk.

Tommy exhaled heavily.

Boy, that was sure a lot to take in.

How many more existential revelations would be relayed to him in the span of a day? Because if he got one more, Tommy was sure he would thread the edge of insanity.

The boy refocused on the conversation just as Theresa proceeded to tell him about the eternal fight. He jumped up to his seat, slamming his hands on the table.

“Wait, so you’re telling me that Phil is still fighting that thing?! What are we waiting for then!” his voice raised sharply, veins pulsating with newfound strength. Techno’s hand wrapped around his forearm, trying to pull him back down, unsuccessfully.

“No! I won’t stand here while dad is risking his life out there!” he snapped, snatching his arm away “We have to do something!”

Theresa stared at him and shook her head “Be reasonable Tommy, you’re still weak. That being has stolen most of your power, you need time to reclaim it again. Jumping recklessly into battle would do you no good”

But Tommy heard no reason, he pulled back his chair violently and strode away. Again, Techno held him back. His better arm had been extended, hand wrapping around the teen’s wrist with its knuckles turned white.

Tommy turned to him, eyebrows pursed together “How can you ask me to stay here and wait!” he snarled “Philza needs me, I can’t-“ his breathing faltered “I can’t just leave him there. It shouldn’t be his fight!” his shoulders hiccupped.

Call them- something echoed in his mind

“I have to go Techno, I am the only one that can save him now” he said and Techno’s eyes shone with stubbornness and grief. The hybrid shook his head repeatedly, planting his feet to the ground. However, as Tommy pushed on, Techno’s feet slid against the floor.

Call them! The echoes ran louder

“Dear, it is not wise to throw yourself into battle so early-please listen to us, stay.” Theresa butted in, taking a step closer to approach him.

“NO!” Tommy snarled “You don’t get it! I have to-“

Call them.

There was a sudden rush of power coursing through his veins. For a moment everything around him sharpened, his senses picking up even the faintest breath from his brother.

There was a pull, or rather a call. An energy demanding his attention. He tugged at the thread he sensed, almost unconsciously.

He freed himself from Techno’s grasp and stepped back, his brother chased him in response.

“DON’T!” the boy ordered and Techno halted with his arm outstretched.

There was a cracking sound behind Tommy, a pair of steady hands holding his shoulders.

“Dad will be back soon” he said, bitter smile on his face and the walls warped, leaving only a flutter of purple particles behind.

When the surroundings made sense again Tommy was hit by memories of his fight with the twins. He pushed the thought away and focused only on the goal at hand.

Noises bounced off the walls, a cacophony of animalistic growls and screeches, so far removed from the sounds a human being could make. The fight had shifted to the lower floor, rubbles from what once had been a balcony, now laid scattered on the ground which had also collapsed partly.

Not so distant from Tommy two figures fought. On one side, what he assumed was Philza heaved and huffed  before propelling himself forward. Feathers and blood covered his body and his wings moved fast with swinging motions, mirroring his hands, which had grown talons, in a flurry of beastly movements.

There weren’t any traces left of the man Tommy had grown to love. None of the softness nor the warmth, only despair.

Tommy hoped he wasn’t too late.

On the other side the creature of stood tall, taller than the boy remembered. The shadow around it had grown thicker, oozing and slithering with grotesque fluidity as if it had a life of its own. It spread through the ground like roots, claiming everything for its own. Around its arms the inky blackness had sharpened, shining like obsidian and it dripped with a blood that was not its.

 The being would have been unrecognizable to the boy if it weren’t for the sardonic pearly grin that contrasted the figure.

At the sight Tommy gulped.

Ranboo stood beside him, eyes clouded in purple and sounds pouring from his mouth. Somehow, they made sense to him now.

“Get Phil out of here, bring him to Theresa’s place now.” He ordered and Ranboo disappeared with a bow, only to reappear further away. He grabbed Phil’s hand and before anyone could react they were both gone.

The interruption meant the being fully turned its attention onto Tommy. Its gaze snapped with a sharp crack towards the boy.

Despite himself, Tommy shivered.

“it’s you.” it growled, the sound scraping at Tommy’s brain  “Came to ruin my final act?” it laughed, fully turning towards the boy. It towered higher than Tommy remembered and he felt the air escape his lungs.

“Or did you miss me already?” it took one slow step, the darkness dragged behind it like sickening sludge accompanied by a visceral sound of pops and cracks as if its very essence was just fractured limbs and shattered bones.

Cold sweat dripped from Tommy’s forehead and his body felt heavier and heavier by the second. The ground almost opened to swallow him whole.

The revolting grin, so fresh in his memory now, grew darker as it approached. And with it, years of teaching followed.

Tommy’s body slipped back into old patterns  engrained in his soul through years of punishments.

His arms fell useless at his sides and he gulped down a whimper when the being raised an arm.

He flinched, turning away and his eyes betrayed him, shutting on their own. Its palm made contact with Tommy’s skin, chilling him all the way to his bones. Its thumb moved caressing his cheek and all Tommy wanted to do was run but his body failed him. The touch felt branding and it carried with it a twisted familiarity. For one powerless moment, Tommy almost leans into it.

Suddenly, his cheeks were squeezed and his face was turned with a sharp motion, nails buried in his soft skin

“Look at me”

And Tommy felt compelled to do so.

“See? Easy.”

His heart thumped in his chest to the point it hurt.

The being’s hand moved higher, now laying on his head and patting. The action sent a jolt of electricity through the boy’s body, setting his nerves on fire and his muscles tensed in reply. It was a well known pattern to him and Tommy braced himself for the next step.

“little baby chick came back to his nest huh?” it said, a patronizing tone in its voice. The hand shifted lower, claws burying themselves in Tommy’s air.

“Look at you, all on your own. Destined to be alone.”

Tommy wanted to scream. He wasn’t alone, people cared about him! But then another part of him, hesitated. It was barely a whisper but it was there nonetheless. What if the being was right?

The thing pulled at his hair with a sharp tug, Tommy hissed.

“I’m the only one that knows you Tommy. I am the only one that can take care of you” and there was a sweetness to its voice, it flowed like syrup in the boy’s mind.

“I raised you. Made you what you are.”

Its words strike him like a venomous arrow. Tommy’s breath stilled and tears begun burning at the corners of his eyes.

“You belong to me.”

 The hand released its hold and the child tensed. He watched as it reeled back finding himself stuck in place.

His mind went back to all the times he was punished, too many to count. In all of them he took it like a blessing, fully believing he had deserved it.

Did he deserve it even now?

The hand drew closer, the boy stared at it with wide eyes awaiting the blow, unable to move even a finger.

DUCK!

A sudden energy frizzled in his body, little fireworks spreading in his limbs and before he knew it, the hand had passed over him.

There was a growl, followed by another swing.

ROLL!

Driven by an unknown force, the boy rolled to the side, finding himself at the edge of a pit where the ground had collapsed.

“Stop escaping your punishment!” shivers were sent  all over Tommy’s body at the words and another blow was thrown.

DOWN!

Tommy looked down, then back up at the creature. Prayed every god, including himself, and threw himself off.

Caught off guard, the creature launched itself forward, one limb stretching in an attempt to catch him.

Tommy rolled mid air, stomach facing the upcoming ground. That’s how cats landed safely right?

The floor neared and for a moment the teen saw himself splattered on it.

Then, there was an urge…an itch between his shoulders. He chased the feeling, grabbing at it as a last resort.

The ground stopped its approach.

Confused, Tommy focused on the feeling around him. There was a fluttering coming from behind him, the sensation spread against his back accompanied by a gentle ruffling of his clothes.

He gulped down hope and reached behind himself. His fingers made contact with something familiar and foreign at the same time, a feeling he had long forgotten.

Tommy dared to look. A surge of exhilaration overcame him at the sight.

His wings! He had his wings back!

He felt joy bubbling up in his chest and he wanted to release a giddy laugh.

Tommy tentatively flexed these new appendages, drinking in the feeling as the forgotten muscles itched at the rediscovered movement.

A grunt from above shattered his excitement, but the remnants of the emotion fueled his reason.

His feet safely touched the floor and Tommy looked up, eyes narrowed but he couldn’t help the cocky smirk on his features.

You need to focus. Something urged in his mind.

Everything sharpened around him again and he sensed a connection once more. He followed the thread, grabbing at it and pulling, feeling stronger with each tug.

“STOP!” the thing screeched and there was a sudden pull on the opposite end of the thread. The boy fell forwards, knees and hands on the floor and the being landed heavy in front of him, darkness sloshing all around it.

“That power is mine!”

It kicked at Tommy, causing him to roll to the side, breath escaping his lungs. The thing turned him, pinning him to the ground with its foot, shadows spreading from underneath, trapping Tommy in place.

“Fuck off you slimy bastard!”

There was a crack and Tommy’s vision filled with white spots. The teen gritted his teeth and quickly grabbed at the being’s foot pushing it upwards. He felt the thread again and pulled at it once more.

The creature was launched backwards, darkness retreating behind it to cushion its fall.

Go!

Tommy gave it no time to react and he threw himself forward. It was his turn to pin his enemy on the floor. It trashed and scratched like a rabid beast, but Tommy held on.

The point of contact became warmer, his palms almost burning from the sensation. Liquid heat coursed through his veins, quickly followed by a rush of adrenaline.

When the being managed to escape his grip, Tommy felt clearer. The thread was faint, almost gone but the thing pulled at it with inhumane strength.

“Give me back what I deserve!”

They circled eachother. The creature moved slowly, curved on itself, barely an inch from being on all four, its smirk had widened, but there were small gaps in it. From them, black goo dripped all the way onto the floor leaving spots of shadows in its trail. Each step was followed by crackles and cracks that echoed horribly in the quiet of the room.

On the opposite side Tommy proceeded with careful steps. His wings were splayed open, shoulders rolled back and chin high. The feathers had turned to sharp scales at the end, ready to slash. A foreign calmness had overcome his senses and the being’s actions were explicit in his vision.

When it launched another attack, Tommy was ready.

Right!

Tommy shifted to the right, using the momentum to pivot and hit the being with his wing. The thing avoided the blow with a step back, but its equilibrium was precarious.

Now! Attack now!

Tommy turned to the other side, sharp wing ahead of him and he felt it as it slashed through the being’s body. There was a choked sound, then the creature pulled back again, now steadier in its stance.

Wait.

Wait.

Now!

His wings closed in front of him, he hissed at the force of the being’s strike. Tommy took it as a chance to attack, curling his blade-like wing. He thrust it forward. The creature’s limbs attempted to wrap around it to halt the blow, but it wasn’t fast enough and again Tommy felt it pierce something soft.

They danced around each other once more. The darkness around the creature was getting dimmer, but its fury did not lessen.

Suddenly, it sprinted on all fours with its mouth open, sharp teeth full on display.

They sunk into Tommy’s right wing, making him scream.

There was a snap and the being recoiled.

The thread completely disappeared, power fully going to its rightful owner.

The thing roared and snarled, running at Tommy.

Had it gotten slower?

Left

Tommy evaded the blow with ease and he replied with a swing of its own, faster than before.

With each attack Tommy felt himself grow stronger and quicker, while the being begun dragging itself more and more.

The shadows around it had started to dissipate, leaving an empty shell that moved out of instinct.

Tommy advanced first, a quick run forward. Both his wings were pointed ahead and they pierced both sides of the being, nailing it to the floor.

The thing’s jaw worked as its teeth snapped repeatedly. Tommy sat back slightly, nose scrunched in disgust. He wouldn’t let this thing control him, not anymore.

He reeled one wing back.

Suddenly, some sense seemed to return to the one who dreamt.

Its grin returned, familiar and cold and Tommy faltered.

“Tommy please, you know you care about me. If you do this you will regret it for the rest of your life!”

The boy’s jaw clenched, the fury behind his eyes burned hotter than a fire but there was a knot in his stomach.

“Who will be there for you when they all leave you huh? Because that’s what they all do! They leave! Be honest with yourself, you need me Tommy. I’m your only family!”

A huff escaped Tommy’s mouth and his lips tightened in a half smile.

“you don’t even know the meaning of that word.”

The wing came down, putting an end to the Dream.

The darkness around it vanished completely and its body melted into a mixture of different clays clinging to a round stone.

Tommy’s hands trembled and fell, buried in the mud from the sudden loss of a solid surface.

Everything fell quiet and in that silence Tommy expected to feel guilt, remorse. Instead only a blanket of numbness covered him and underneath it there was rage.

Years of abuse, of manipulation, suffered at this monster’s hands all for it to end in a pile of dirt.

His family endangered for the rambles of a creature who was so weak against true power.

The laugh that escaped Tommy’s mouth was loud and erratic. He clutched at the wet clay and raised his fists, but the fluid slipped between his fingers, leaving behind a dirty-red stain.

His stomach churned from the laughter that appeared to have no end, it slowly shifted into bitter giggles but he didn’t found himself out of breath.

“I can’t-“ a chuckle “ I can’t believe it!” another chuckle “You thought you were the most powerful being in existence! Look at you now! Went down so easily” another giggle “just a stupid. Pile. Of. Dirt” his teeth gritted at the last part and his shoulders hiccupped. Tommy’s punch made contact with the clay covered ground.

Soon enough the giggles turned into hysterical sobs. He punched, threw and splattered the clay between each hiccup.

“I- I was TERRIFIED FOR YEARS-“ he yelled, troath closing up on him “- and you were just- just- “ a loud sob interrupted him and he went back to wailing.

His once pure white gown had turned brown from the dirt and it had torn in some parts. It was wet around the arms from tears and snot.

When his hand hit against the perfectly round stone in the pile, Tommy contemplated it, tears finally settling.

He picked it up and crushed it with surprising ease.

He dusted himself off and rose to his feet.

His family was waiting for him.

.

At last, Techno and Theresa had managed to make Philza settle down. When he had come back, suddenly appearing with a dissociated Ranboo in toe, he had been almost unrecognizable. He had moved with fury, huffing and puffing until Techno had held him in place and Theresa had given him a stern scolding.

Slowly, he had retreaded back into his old self, shame creeping up on his face.

He apologized for the trouble caused to Theresa and she had simply smiled in return, welcoming him back. Then, the man had turned to Techno and hugged him so tight the teen swore he almost died from breathlessness. He had asked about Wilbur and when he was presented with his ill figure he had burst out crying like a baby. Technoblade hugged him all throughout his outburst, until the sobs turned into snores.

It mustn’t had been easy fighting for days with no time to catch a breath. It was only fair he rested.

Meanwhile Ranboo had been put to bed, collapsing right after Philza had settled. Theresa had assured Techno that the boy had no injuries, only an accumulation of magical exhaustion that could only be solved with lots of rest and some weird concoction to speed up the process.

With Theresa fussing for said concoction, Technoblade was left to his own devices. With nothing better to do and a gnawing anxiety in his stomach, he had decided to wait by the door. The floor was uncomfortable for his injuries but he found it distracted him from his worrying, if slightly.

What also distracted him was the newfound quiet. It had taken him a while to realize it with all that had happened ever since he had awoken, but the voices were gone. Not a single peep nor a mumble the whole day.

It felt…lonely.

He would lie if he said he didn’t miss them. They had been a part of him ever since he remembered and now that they were gone he felt at a loss. He couldn’t help but grieve them.

Without both his hearing and the voices he had only silence to keep him company.

He huffed, leaning his head on his palms.

Would Tommy be back soon?

Would Tommy be back at all?

He should go look for him, Theresa was distracted, he could definitely make a run for it.

Technoblade rose to his feet with difficulty and made a move to open the door.

The door opened before Techno could touch it.

Tommy stood on the doorsill, smiling goofily at him

“Hey Techie, I’m home!”

The day after the ending of it all, with all of them well rested, Tommy had met with his father again. It was a tearful reunion accompanied by Tommy showing off his cool new wings that sharpened at will. He then proceeded to narrate, with some artistic liberties of course, the whole fight. Techno tried his best to follow.

“Can you believe the big bad guy was just a bunch of clay?!” Tommy had said with an exasperated sigh, and the whole room erupted in laughter. Though, when he had said it, there had been a weird glint in his violet eyes ( apparently having his powers back meant his eye color changed) that only Techno had been able to spot.

That night, Techno had laid with him and held him through his tears while the poor boy was plagued by guilt and visions of the past. In return, Tommy did the same to him the day after when Techno woke up from a nightmare and the silence was just too much to bear.

A week after the ordeal both Ranboo and Will had yet to awaken, but Techno and Phil had almost fully recovered so they decided it was time to go back.

Theresa kindly offered them a “ride” home (she had magically moved the location of her shop in the capital) and she also reached out to Niki and the others. Apparently they had all survived the attack from the cultists since, after the royals disappeared,  they had retreated without a fight. After that they tried to come up with a successful plan to assault the castle, but they were too few for the mission and were waiting for a chance to flee to another kingdom and ask for assistance.

Both Tubbo and Ranboo’s moms cried when they reunited with the teen, even though he was still unconscious. Tubbo apologized for not having kept a close eye on Ranboo, but the ladies had just hugged him in reply.

Everyone had welcomed Tommy back with open arms, some with more reverence than others, amazed by his newly found god status. Tubbo, for one, was elated at Tommy’s new appearance and they had already begun planning new elaborate pranks with it.

The month after the whole ordeal was all about fixing things.

First, they had the castle to reconquer but with a literal god on their side it was child’s play. Techno had not partaken in the fight, but he had helped with the reconstructions. There was a lot to repair both in the capital and the court itself.

He was still getting used to the whole “silence” thing and every now and then he caught Tommy throwing him a guilty look but he promptly hid it when he noticed he was being looked at.

Two months after the final fight the court was back in action and the empire had regained its lost territories. They held a commemorative funeral for the losses in the town plaza, everyone was there to show support.

Ranboo had awoken for a couple of hours before falling back asleep, but Theresa said it meant he was recovering.

Wilbur was still asleep.

On the third month Theresa finally said goodbye. She mentioned not wanting to involve herself with mortals matters any further than she had, but she made Tommy promise he would visit her. By then Ranboo was spending more time awake than not.

One day Tommy was sitting at the foot of Will’s bed, strumming messily at his brother’s guitar and humming a song for him.

“god please stop you’re disrespecting my poor guitar.” Wilbur had croaked from the bed with a faint smirk on his lips. Tommy had discarded the instrument and had thrown himself at him. It was a day filled with tears but also laughter.

Four months in, Philza had sat down all three of his children around the dinner table.

“Tommy, I know we’re past that, but I would like to welcome you to the family. Officially I mean.”

Tommy had raised an eyebrow and Wilbur had clarified for him “he means officially presenting you to the people, as a prince” and the boy had beamed.

The coronation was held a week later, not a single one of them wanting to delay it any further. The day was filled with joy and festivities with a banquet that lasted for three nights. That day also became a yearly holiday for the empire and every corner of it welcomed back the lost prince.

Five months after the fight, Tommy hit a growth spur.

*Can you guys stop shedding his feathers all around the room please, can’t you do this outside?* Techno complained while he sat on the library’s couch. He had gotten great at reading lips after weeks and weeks of practice, but he was still working on the talking part, only managing to say a few words out loud per month. Nobody pestered him for it of course, but he wanted to gain back what little bit of normalcy he could.

“Don’t be cruel Techno, Tommy needs to be warm while we preen him. Outside’s too cold” Philza replied and chucked a feather at him in retaliation. Techno rolled his eyes.

“Yeah Tech, we don’t want our little baby brother getting a cold now do we?” Will had butted in from his side of the couch.

*little or not, I’m not even sure he can get a cold!*

Tommy huffed out “ Stop calling me little! Technically I’m older than the both of you! Show some respect.” He pouted and their father ruffled his hair in reply

“Doesn’t matter how grown you are, you’re still our little one” he said with a coo in his words.

“Daaaad, not you too! Traitor!” Tommy feigned indignation, but Techno could see the smile on his face that tugged at his lips.

Six months in this new life and Tommy had gained full control of his powers. He had yet to tell anyone, but every now and then there was a chorus of voices in his mind, advising him on what to do with surprising wisdom and clarity.

He wanted to know more about them, so he had decided to take up on Theresa’s offer and went to visit her. They spent the whole day catching up. Even though the divine of knowledge already knew everything, she had mentioned she enjoyed chatting with Tommy to hear his spin on things.

In the afternoon, he had told her that before he had regained his powers, there had been a mumble in his head but now it had turned into actual voices who, sometimes, had conversations between themselves. Theresa had calmly explained that, as the guardian of the end, Tommy was also the guardian of those who had ended. They lived through him and shared their wisdom to help him prosper.

With time, Tommy grew to appreciate them and eventually opened up to his family about it. Technoblade had smirked and wished him good luck with them.

Nine months in, the royal family had finally time to take a break. They went to the summer estate near the lake and enjoyed their time together fully. Tommy, particularly, couldn’t stop flying left and right while taunting his brothers. 

On the last day there, Phil and Tommy had visited the grave. His mom’s grave. He ended up crying while telling his father about his meeting with her. In return the man had told him about some memories he had managed to recall with her.  That night, they had all slept in a pile of pillows and blankets on the floor, huddled up together. Philza couldn’t stop chirping.

On the anniversaries of the fight, Tommy could be found roaming the halls of the castle in deep thought and everyone had soon learned to leave him be for the day, or he would snap at them in cold fury.

Technoblade could be found in a similar state around the time of Puffy’s death. He had been training again, albeit with a wooden sword but he had hopes for the future.

Whenever all four of the royals were brooding at the same time, they seemed to gravitate towards eachother. On those days Philza made them all hot chocolate and they sat quietly in the library in front of the crackling fireplace, sharing the comfort and warm of one another.

On those days Tommy found himself pondering his mother’s words. In the end, he always found the same answer.

He wasn’t lonely, not anymore.