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Ranboo’s crown means a lot to them. It’s the only thing she has left from the Ender, from her kingdom. Forged from end crystals and obsidian made from their mother’s breath, it holds a lot of value in the Overworld. Despite this, Ranboo knows nobody from the Pub(e) would ever dare to touch their crown.
Not out of fear (no matter how hard Ranboo tries, it seems no one is afraid of her), but more of the fact they…respect it and its belongings? That’s what Niki says at least.
That’s the strange thing about the Overworld, these weird customs of theirs. Back home, privacy isn't a thing. It was something Ranboo never had to question, used to being forced to share with ten other siblings plus any cousins that lingered around during travels. And this is no different from the Overworld and the Pub(e), with twenty people living around the area and causing mischief. The difference, however, is that while personal items were free-for-all in the End, in the Overworld, with the Pub(e), if Ranboo says to not touch something, usually this is respected.
Keyword being usually, because there’s still pranksters no matter where Ranboo goes. And no one pranked Ranboo more than Tommy himself.
♢
Ranboo’s relationship with Tommy was a weird one in the beginning. They were certain that Tommy hated them, always glaring its way and scoffing anytime Ranboo would open her mouth. And this hostility didn't bother Ranboo at first, after all, why would they care for a peasant they just met?
But then they started hanging out more, during mining trips and foraging for berries and herbs. It turns out Tommy was never hostile, and didn’t hate Ranboo. Tommy was just playing around, playing up his annoyance because that is what he always did with his brothers. Tommy, similar to Ranboo, never ventured far from home, and as such, wasn’t familiar with social cues around new people much less that of Enderman.
“I forget not everyone is like them ,” Ranboo remembers Tommy's bashful face as he explained, shame lightly coating his words. Ranboo easily accepted his apology, knowing how strange it is to try to fit yourself into a new dynamic with new people.
♢
Days passed after the event, and then weeks, and Ranboo found itself growing closer and closer to Tommy. Tommy soon became her best friend, and like all best friends, Ranboo started noticing distinctive behaviors the Avian has.
One of these behaviors was the fact Tommy was obsessed with shiny materials. It made sense, as an Avian of course he would be obsessed with anything that catches his eyes.
Including Ranboo’s crown.
Ranboo would watch out of the corner of its eye as Tommy would pick up their crown, lifting it under sunlight and marveling with wide pupils as purple light twirled around the cave she called home. Tommy was always cautious when he did it, looking around for Ranboo, before gently admiring it.
He was always gentle, and Ranboo didn’t know Tommy—always rash and impulsive—knew how to be gentle. But without fail he would lift the crown with careful movements, twist it this way and that with slow movements, and always put it down with soft fingers.
It wasn’t until they caught Tommy putting on the crown that she realized that oh , this was more than just Tommy admiring a shiny object. Ranboo remembers one day when Phil explained some Avian behaviors, about nesting behaviors and how sometimes they go beyond nesting grounds. “Sometimes the need to have flock nearby gets too strong. We have to carry parts of them with us ,” he had explained. At the time it was with the memory of a younger Tommy, wings barely the length of his elbow, carrying carrots and sweaters too big for him everywhere, because he couldn't deal with the fact that sometimes Wilbur and Techno had to be away.
Ranboo didn’t know what to do with this knowledge. Its crown is all it has left of home, and means the world to her. But Tommy…Tommy saw them as flock, and wanted something to remember her by. Ranboo couldn’t just take that away from him, they might as well yell to Tommy they didn't want to be flock and rip apart its friendship with the blond.
But they couldn’t let the blond have their crown. Ranboo’s friendship with Tommy meant a lot, but that crown… Ranboo can’t give it to him. She just can’t.
♢
It was at the nearby village with Phil, Tommy, and Tubbo when the idea came to fruition. The group was separated: Phil and Tommy shopping for more vegetables for Tommy and potion ingredients for Wilbur, Tubbo needed more metals for a project and Ranboo was, in all honesty, bored.
The Pub(e) was nice, don’t get her wrong, but the same sights and routine everyday were a drab sometimes. There was only so many times Tommy or the others could drag Ranboo away for some mischief before everything felt the same.
Originally Ranboo was planning on going to a boutique. It’s been meaning to get a new dress, something more casual for days out gardening with Tommy and having picnics with Tubbo. Maybe it can even find a nice hat for Wilbur or Shubble, something wide to hide them from the sun.
But before Ranboo could even shift her feet towards the direction of the nearest store, Tubbo immediately grabbed their arm and dragged her away from the others, claiming he needs Ranboo’s height to reach the shelves. Which was such an obvious lie everyone was too stunned to even protest the separation.
Ranboo hates shopping for metals. The metals were located next to the blacksmith, which made the air too hot. The shop itself was too small and too loud and the streets were always overcrowded and overall it was an awful location and experience.
Tubbo knew Ranboo hated the metal shop, he just didn't particularly care at the moment.
♢
“Something’s troubling you,” Tubbo said after some time spent in the shop. Just as expected, he didn’t need Ranboo’s help at all getting the metals. Ranboo watched as he glided down from a high shelf, dense blocks hanging easily in Tubbo’s arms as if he was carrying a dog. Perks of insect strength, Ranoo mused. “What is it?”
Ranboo tilted her head up at him, lips pursed as she voiced her confusion, “What do you mean?”
Tubbo has always been a blunt individual, never sugar-coding his words to the point where sometimes he provided no context to his sentences, saying things like they’re the most obvious thing in the world. This conversation was no different.
“You’ve been distant to Tommy. I’m just trying to figure out why,” he huffed.
“No I haven’t?” Ranboo asked with a tilt at the end, unsure where Tubbo got this impression. Ranboo was literally going to spend tomorrow helping Tommy plant the new seeds he would get from this trip, which Ranboo only does for Tommy because it hates the feeling of dirt under their claws. Not only was it gross, it was improper for an End Prince to do labor work. But they did it anyway, only because it made Tommy happy.
“Sure, sure,” Tubbo shrugged. “Yeah, you guys hang out still, but you’re not—it’s like you’re not present with him.”
“What?” Ranboo sputtered. “I….I haven’t been distant? Have I?”
Tubbo gave her a blank look. “Ok, so clearly this hasn’t been intentional,” he muttered to himself. He was still carrying the metal blocks, extra limbs reaching down to dig into his pockets for change. “You just haven’t been, y’know, here . It’s obvious your mind is elsewhere, and it's starting to stress Toms out.”
“Oh,” Ranboo said quietly. “I never meant to hurt him.”
Tubbo gave it a gentle smile, “He’s not hurt, just worried. He didn’t do anything that upsetted you, did he? Just say the word and I’ll beat him up for you.”
Ranboo watched as the cashier collected the money, waving them bye as they exited the shop. “No no,” it dismissed. “Tommy hasn’t done anything. I just—I’ve been thinking.”
Tubbo put the blocks into his inventory, and followed Ranboo as they finally started heading into the hobby section of the village. This was her favorite part of the Overworld. In the Ender, there’s not many hobby’s one could dabble in due to limited space and resources. But in the Overworld, there seemed to be infinite possibilities on things one could create.
There was the gardening section, next to the quaint flower shop. Ranboo was familiar with the family that owned the thread shop, Tommy sometimes dragging her there to shop for various threads and needles for his projects. There was woodworking and wood burning, a shop that sold (and bought) local paintings and, last she heard, someone was in the process of opening a ceramics store. Niki is excited to show her that one when it opens, claiming that it would enjoy painting pottery and painting figurines.
Tubbo stayed silent as Ranboo opened the door to the boutique, giving her time to organize her thoughts.
♢
It wasn’t until it was trying on a new cape—a midnight purple that blended into a deep blue with stars made from white thread—that Ranboo finally got the courage to ask Tubbo her question.
“You’ve been friends with Tommy for a long time, right?” they started.
Tubbo was fidgeting with glasses, but paused at her question. “Yeah, since childhood.”
“Right. Has…what do you do when—when his hybrid instincts do something that you don’t like?” Ranboo hated how hesitant their voice sounded. It prided itself in being confident—they were royalty for Prime’s sake—but Ranboo was walking through an unknown path here. Ranboo could ignore Tommy’s need to have something close to Ranboo, but for all they knew, that could cause emotional distress in Tommy. Or worse, maybe denying that was extremely offensive and she could destroy her friendship. It didn’t want to lose Tommy, but it didn’t know what to do.
“I talk to him about it,” Tubbo turned around fully to face her. “Usually it’s something easy to fix, sometimes it’s not. Sometimes it takes a while for things to calm down, but Tommy always takes my concerns into consideration,” Tubbo said the last part sternly, and Ranboo briefly wondered if he was worried it thought Tommy wouldn’t listen to them.
She knew he would, and that was the problem. (Tommy was the type of person to give up flight if Ranboo so much complained about it. They both were aware how unhealthy this was, and were working on it.) Ranboo didn't know how to communicate her boundaries, the reason its crown had such a high value to them, and how it didn’t have a clue how to compromise with Tommy about this. Ranboo wanted to compromise, Tommy saw her as flock and they didn't want to lose that. They wouldn’t be able to move on if it lost Tommy as horde. It already lost the rest of their family, she couldn’t risk losing Tommy too.
“But you already know this,” Tubbo continued, “so what’s the real issue.” Ah, direct as always. Didn't even give Ranboo a chance to lead up to that.
“You know how Tommy’s instincts manifest in…strange ways?”
“Is he trying to make you go in the nest again?” Tubbo was well aware how strong Avian and Elytra instincts can be, once arguing the two species had the strongest instincts, barely surpassing Fundy’s fox-hybrid instincts. “If you don’t want to be in the nest, putting a piece of clothing in the nest will calm him down for a bit.”
Ranboo exclaimed, “That’s the thing! Not the nesting, but his love for clothing.”
“Ah,” Tubbo said, “What about it?”
Ranboo rubbed its fingers against the cape. It was soft, but still had a scratchy texture to it. Ranboo had hoped it would be velvet, it really was a beautiful cape. “Tell me Tubbo, what do you know about Ender culture and our crowns?”
“Not much,” Tubbo said with a tilt to his head. “But I know your culture means everything to you. I’m assuming this has something to do with that?”
Ranboo sighed, putting the cape back where she found it. “Yes. I know that sometimes Tommy’s need for flock manifests in unconventional ways. And—and I think he wants my crown. But I can’t give him my crown,” she warbles in distress.
“Just get him a replica.”
“A replica?”
“Yeah! He doesn't need the exact item that reminds him of you. Ranboo—” Tubbo fluttered up to meet Ranboo, grabbing its face but careful to not look directly in her eyes —”Tommy loves you. Anything you give him, he would literally worship.”
“He won’t be mad?”
Tubbo chuckled, “No, of course not. One time when we were younger, Tommy got infatuated with my creations, but specifically with my tools. In his head, if he kept my tools, it meant he was keeping my memory with him. But I can’t have him keeping my tools, I need those! So I bought him some extras, and that was enough to keep him happy for a month.”
“He wasn’t upset it wasn't the original ones?”
Tubbo shook his head. “I don’t know if it's different for you Enderman, but for Avians, it's not the item that matters, but what it represents. If you want, you can explain to Tommy why he can’t have your crown. But trust me, he’ll be more than happy with a replica, because it still means your flock.” And flock means family, like Enderman's hordes.
Ranboo’s tail flickered back and forth as they thought, noting down another culture difference they weren't aware of existing. When Phil talked about his nest and the items found, he only mentioned how it was the original items. But maybe that’s why it was different for Tommy. With Phil, the items were articles of clothing and fabrics—things that can easily be replicated and made again.
With Tommy, it was crowns and tools and carrots and actual items .
“Can…” Ranboo started, “Can you help me pick out a crown? For Tommy.”
Tubbo beamed at Ranboo, more than happy to help them.
♢
Ranboo hoped sitting on its tail would make it less obvious she was nervous where it was sitting. But the distinct sound of it shifting the grass was loud enough to alert the ducks swimming in the lake.
It’s been two weeks since the trip to the market. Two weeks since Tubbo helped Ranboo find a crown for Tommy. In Ranboo’s sense, the crown was a bare thing; simple in design made with silver swirls and pearls, amethyst making the majority of its design. Ranboo liked it for the rubellite, it made the crown feel distinctly like Tommy. It was simple, but perfect.
Tubbo said it wasn’t necessary, that the crown should feel more like Ranboo because it was Ranboo Tommy wanted. But for Ranboo, the crown should also represent the person who wears it. They hope Tommy accepts it. It’s why they made plans to see Tommy so soon, despite knowing all the time the Avian's been putting into gardening and training and being with his family.
She let out a huff, glaring at her tail to stop its agitated movement out of pure will. They wanted the crown to be a surprise, and it can’t be a surprise if their tail gives them away first.
Her ears swiveled at the sound of stumbling footsteps, a mumbled curse before the footsteps pace quickened. “Hey Ranboo!” Tommy’s loud voice announcing his appearance. Ranboo wonders if he simply messed up his landing, or if his training earlier in the day tired his wings out.
“My favorite Enderman, how have you been,” Tommy gretteed, quickly slotting himself beside Ranboo. He was making grabby hands towards the picnic basket Ranboo held.
With a roll of its eyes, Ranboo handed Tommy the basket. “I’m the only Enderman you know,” they said with a smile.
“Exactly!” Tommy said with a mischievous glint, “But that doesn’t mean you're my favorite. I could find more, get more Enderman. Then I’ll have all the Enderman as my friends, and you'll have to fight to be my favorite.”
“That is not how that joke goes,” Ranboo said, laughing at Tommy’s dumb antics. “Why can’t you just say you miss me, like everyone else.”
“Because big man,” Tommy shuffles a sandwich into his face, not even pausing to chew and not caring for the disgusted face Ranboo shoots his way, “I am simply better than everyone else. I mean why else would you hang out with me.”
“It’s moments like these that make me question it as well.”
Tommy sticks out his tongue, like a child, before facing Ranboo with a more serious expression. “Seriously though, how are you? You don’t usually instigate our hang outs.” Ranboo knew there was more to it than that. Tubbo’s words came back to her, about how Tommy was worried about Ranboo and the distance they unknowingly put between the two.
Ranboo also knew drawing it out would freak out Tommy more. It just wanted a more private place to give him the crown, to face either acceptance or rejection. Her tail started moving again at the thought of the possibilities, and they clumsily clamped their hand over it and onto the ground to make it stop.
It wasn’t as subtle as it hoped for, and at the sight of Tommy’s furrowed brows and pursed lips, she sighed and sat up straight again. “It’s nothing—I just—I have a gift for you,” they blushed as they stuttered, ears pinned back in nervousness.
It refused to make eye contact with Tommy as it opened up the bag beside it, hidden underneath her cape deliberately. The crown was wrapped in a red-and-white box, and she cradled it against her chest as she rushed to explain when she saw Tommy’s confused face. “I know you’ve told me you see me as part of your flock, and Phil has been explaining to me what that really means. And I know nesting—I don’t really get it right? But I think it’s like Enderman with hoarding. And I–I know you wear my crown.’
She smiles reassuringly at Tommy, seeing the horror on his face. “It’s fine, by the way. I’ve seen the care you handle it. I know you would never purposely hurt it. But, well. I can’t risk…risk anything. It’s the only thing I have left of home.” She knows she’s rambling, and she knows it's not helping Tommy understand. It wishes it can better explain its culture, the meaning behind its crown and its clothes and the very way of life of Enderman. But now's not the time, she remembers with a shake of her head.
She places the box into Tommy’s hands, black claws gently curling over Tommy’s hands. Holding, but not hurting. Never hurting.
“I bought it,” she says with a nod to her head, giving Tommy permission to open the box. It watches as Tommy’s pupils go wide, black filling out where sky blue used to be. Trills and coos escape Tommy’s throat, and Ranboo lifts its head high in pride. Tommy already loves it, and Ranboo hasn’t even finished explaining.
Tommy may not understand the significance of the crown, but watching Tommy, Ranboo has the urge–no, the need to explain. The reasoning behind the gems, the materials, the care that goes into making a crown.
The Overworld has been so kind in sharing its many cultures to Ranboo. Maybe it's time Ranboo explains their own culture.