Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It isn’t the first time Ranboo spent the night in a police station, head pillowed atop his brother's thighs as the two of them cuddle for warmth. The thin blankets they had on did nothing to chase away March’s midnight chill from seeping into his bones. His eyes keep drooping every few seconds, exhaustion pulling on his mind and demanding that he sleeps. He knew it wouldn’t be long until it finally took him.

“Are they going to separate us again?” Ranboo whispers, though there was no point. The quiet was deafening, causing any noise to sound louder than it was.

Techno’s hand stills in his hair. It was a nervous habit Techno had, he’d play with strands of hair, comb it out with his fingers while placing simple three part braids in. Ranboo isn’t bothered by it, though by the end he tended to look like a porcupine.

“No.” Techno states, voice hush as he continues playing with Ranboo’s hair. “I won’t let them.” Techno adds on in a louder voice. Ranboo hums, his eyes growing hazy. “Tired?” Techno asks, leaning forward a bit to try and look at him.

Ranboo rolls onto his back to stare up at the other. “No.” He mumbles. His eyelids were as heavy as stones.

Techno snorts as he places his hand on his eyes. “Go to sleep, I’ll be here when you wake up.” Techno states.

Will you though? Ranboo wants to ask but then decides to keep his mouth shut, moving back onto his side. He knows Techno would, he doesn’t lie. Not about leaving him alone. Never alone. “Okay…” Ranboo yawns, his bones turning to jelly as he lets himself slip into unconsciousness.

The road is bumpy, unkempt pot holes every few feet causing the car to jump. Ranboo keeps a hold of his backpack. It was once full of school supplies but now it was now filled with clothes, a toothbrush and anything else he thought he needed at the moment of hastily packing. Techno was more prepared then he was, having had a duffle packed with essentials.

There were trees stretching out across the road, foliage peppering fences and signs. They were an hour outside the city, in a town he didn’t remember the name of. It didn’t matter, they were only going to be here for a few months anyways.

“You two are going to like it there, promise.” Sara comments from the driver's seat. Her fingers tap to the tune playing over the car radio, eyes scanning the road as she drives. She wasn’t the same social worker they had last time. If she was she’d know that they didn’t care if they’d end up liking it at the new home.

Techno was sitting beside him, his duffel bag on the ground. He was staring out the other window, hands playing with the ends of his hair. “From what I understand Phil and Kristin have two boys your age Ranboo. You’ll have some common ground while there.” Sara goes on to say.

Ranboo stiffens at the words, hugging his backpack closer to his chest. He’s not had many experiences with other kids while in the system. The last time they were in foster care Ranboo had been alone, separated from Techno because no one wanted to take two kids at once. It was just him and the two foster parents, no other kids.

Techno didn’t talk about his time then, only stating that it was over and they’d never be separated again. He was right, since then they’ve never left each other's sides. “We’re fine on our own.” Techno huffs, turning his attention to their social worker. “But thanks.”

Sara’s bright smile dims slightly, shutting her mouth as she continues to drive. Ranboo lets his shoulders sag, returning to looking out the window.

Sara only speaks up once they get close to the foster home. It was nestled between trees and one other house, a long road connecting them back into the town. “We’re here!” She says, parking in the large driveway. She unbuckles herself and grabs two folders from the passenger seat before leaving.

Techno quickly unbuckles himself, Ranboo following suit as the three of them get out of the car. The first thing Ranboo notices is the large peach tree in the yard, purple flowers planted around it. Then he notices the house, his breath leaving him as he stares. It was a pretty big house, a stone path leading up to the front door. Two cars were packed ahead of Sara’s, a black one and a gray one.

Techno finds his way next to Ranboo, duffle swung over his shoulder. “Don’t let your guard down.” He says as Sara leads them up to the door.

“I won’t.” Ranboo replies with a sharp nod, grip tightening on his bag. This wasn’t some vacation away from home, it was meant to replace it. Permanent placement, they had said. A cage, Techno whispered the night they were removed from home. Meant to jail them. He couldn’t forget that.

Once at the doorstep to the house Sara knocks on the door. It doesn’t take long until the door opens. A woman answers the door, with long dark brown hair and kind looking eyes. She smiles upon seeing them. Techno grabs his hand and Ranboo squeezes back.

“Hello, you must be Sara.” The woman greets, reaching her hand out to shake the other’s hand. Sara returns the gesture. She then turns to Ranboo and Techno, her smile not once fading off her face. “Hi, I’m Kristin. You two are Techno and Ranboo, right? Am I saying your names right?” Kristin asks.

Ranboo squeezes harder on Techno’s hand, mouth going dry with the sudden attention. Techno clears his throat. “Yes, that’s our names.” Techno replies.

Kristin hums and gestures for them to follow her into the house. Ranboo spares a quick glance at his brother, who gives him a nod. Techno leads the way as they follow her into the house. “My husband is in the kitchen if you want to talk to him, Sara. I can show these two around.” Kristin speaks up as she points down the hall.

“Of course.” Sara nods, heading down the hallway she was pointed to with the two folders still in her hands.

Kristin turns her full attention on them then. “Would you two like a tour or would you guys like to head to your bedrooms?” She asks.

Bedrooms? As in multiple? Biting the inside of his cheek Ranboo looks over to Techno, who seems to have caught onto the same thing he did, eyes narrowing slightly. “We’re fine taking a tour.” Techno decides.

“Would you like to come along on the tour Ranboo or would you rather go to your room first?” Kristin asks, bypassing the fact Techno already answered for him.

“I…” Ranboo takes a breath, looking at the ground. “I’ll come along.” He says quickly. What was he going to do in a room all by himself anyways? Sleep? He does enough of that already!

“I’ll show you two upstairs then.” Kristin states as she leads them towards the stairs. The house was clean, the smell of cigarettes nonexistent on the walls.

Pictures line the walls as they pass, Kristin being in most of them standing beside a man with blonde hair. There were others with two teens standing beside each other, height different as clear as night and day. The taller one looks more like the man next to Kristin while the shorter boy looks more like Kristin herself. They were always smiling. It was a weird scene.

“This is where the bedrooms are.” Kristin points out at a few doors once there on the upper floor. The landing was spacious, a bin full of toys sitting next to a small couch. There was a colorful carpet in front of the couch, a few more bins of toys against the walls. “Over there is where we keep the toys everyone can play with. You're free to use them whenever you like.” Kristin explains.

He wasn’t going to get caught dead using the toys in there. Anything can be used against you, it’s something he has to remind himself a lot. The simplest thing can be taken away. Nothing was personal property if it wasn’t hidden. Even then he was too old to be playing with toys. If Dad caught him playing with children’s toys he’d be getting the belt.

“This one is mine and Phil’s bedroom, he’s my husband. These two are our boys Tommy and Tubbo’s room. These two are yours.” Kristin points out, landing on the last two halls. They were on the left side, opposite from the small sitting area. She bipases the bedrooms and opens up the sixth and final room on the main floor, revealing a pretty well kept bathroom.

The walls were light blue while the shower curtains were seafood green. There was a cup on the sink with four toothbrushes, three sets of toothpaste set beside it. The shower curtain was drawn, revealing a removable shower head. It had one of those wire shelves connected to the wall, the top two shelves filled with different soap bottles. There was even a hair brush squished among them.

“You two can keep any of your personal soaps and things for the shower here if you’d like.” She points to the shelf space at the bottom, which held a set of shampoo, conditioner and body wash that looked to be untouched. “We got you some already, in case you didn’t have any. No one will touch them. Just tell me or Phil when you're running low and one of us will buy you another. Or if there’s a specific brand you two like I can get you that tomorrow when I go shopping?” Kristin explains, silence spreading between the three of them.

It was a lot to remember. Generous too, he didn’t trust it. “What’s there is fine. Thank you.” Techno speaks for both of them, tight lipped.

“There’s also spare towels underneath the sink in the cupboards if you need them. We got you fresh ones, they're red ones.” Kirstin adds as she leads them back out of the bathroom. Ranboo spares a final glance at it before being led out of the room. Kristin goes to one of the rooms she said we’re theirs and walks in.

Techno leads him deeper inside the room. Kristin stays near the door, resting her back against it. Instead of a cramped space and gray toned walls he’s met with soft eggshell walls and a very spacious area. The bed was pushed into the far right corner away from the door, a widow on the same wall the head was facing. The sheets were space themed with stars covering it. The pillow cases were solid dark blue.

There was a desk underneath the window with a chair pushed in. The dresser was on the other side from the bed, a basket full of things inside. Turning around he saw where the closet was. It was a sliding door closet on the same side of where the door was, at the foot of the bed. It was…a lot compared to Ranboo and Techno’s old room.

“We have a couple nightlight options if you want. We have a small one that you can just plug into the outlet underneath the desk. We also have one that shines stars on the ceiling if you prefer one that lights up more of the room, Ranboo.” Kristin says, directing the question to him.

Ranboo goes to face her, surprised. “Pardon?” He asks. Why was she asking him this? Was this some sort of test?

“Me and Phil thought this could be your room. Phil said teens your age love decorative bed covers. Though we do have an extra set if you wanted them too, Techno. For your own room.” Kristin says as she heads towards the closet. She opens it and bends down, picking up a still packed bed cover. Though this one had robots on them. “If you two don’t like any of the ones we have we can always buy different ones.”

“Oh uh…” Ranboo looks over to his brother at a loss for words. This was too much, too many options. His head was starting to spin.

Techno looks back at him before quickly going back to looking at Kristin. “I’m fine with whatever is on my bed, and Ranboo doesn’t need a nightlight.” Techno explains, his thumb rubbing the top of Ranboo’s hand.

“That’s all right, they’ll be in the closet if you guys change your minds.” Kristin puts the extra bedding back and closes the closet. “That’s pretty much everything upstairs.” She ends with, returning to stand at the entrance to the room. “I’m going downstairs to check in with Phil and Sara, you can come with me if you want or stay here?”

“We’ll stay here.” Techno answers. Kristin nods, closing the door behind her softly. Ranboo waits a few seconds to see if she will turn around and come back in. When she doesn’t he lets go of his brother's hand, moving to go sit on the bed.

“I don’t want to go downstairs.” Ranboo sighs, finally putting down his bag on the bed beside him. Techno drops his duffle then kicks it underneath the bed with his foot.

“Then we won’t.” Techno replies. He grabs the chair from the desk and places it in front of him before sitting down. “We can just stay here, they probably won’t even care. Less work for them.”

Ranboo hums, his vision becoming slightly blurry. “They split us up.” He comments, gripping the sheets.

“They tried to, yeah. I’ll just take the blankets and pillows from the other room and bring them here.” Techno shrugs, leaning back in the chair. Ranboo lets himself relax. Looking over at the basket on the dresser he wanders what was in it. It looks like a bunch of snacks and sweets. Maybe one of the teens living here left them by accident? He’ll have to tell someone before they go stale.

.

Blinking open his eyes Ranboo was met with Techno shaking him slightly. Grogginess clouds his mind as he shifts, stretching his arms above his head. Techno moves from beside him, going back to sit on the chair. The light in the room was on, which it wasn't before.

Frowning, Ranboo looks up at the window, finding the sun lowering towards the horizon. Oranges and yellows playing across the window. “I fell asleep?” He yawns, moving to sit up. “How long?” He questions, trying to rub the tiredness out of his eyes.

“A couple hours I think.” Techno shrugs. He was sporting a few more messy braids then he was before Ranboo passed out. He had his phone out, his little pig charm swaying with his movements. “I decided to let you sleep, you’ve been up since ten.”

“So?” Ranboo groans as he stands from the bed. He shakes his legs out, slight anger crossing his mind. He didn’t want to sleep. If he did he would have laid down, thrown the covers over himself. He side eyes Techno, pouting.

“Don’t look at me like that, you're lucky I didn’t snap a picture of you drooling.” Techno snarks, a smirk on his face as he waves his phone around. “I would have made that my new wallpaper.”

“You're evil and I hate you.” Ranboo huffs, walking over to poke at Techno’s cheek. Techno suffers the consequences of not waking him up, trying to sway his hand away from his face. “Did…what were their names?” He pauses, blanking at the two foster parents names.

“Kristin and Phil.” Techno supplies.

“Yeah, did they come up here while I was sleeping?” Ranboo asks. If he’s been out for hours they should have at least come upstairs once, right? Or did they just not care about them being here? His last placement practically forced him to be social, making spiteful comments anytime Ranboo spent too much in his room. Then there were their actual parents, who would go days without even a hello.

“Kristin did, she wanted us to meet her kids and husband. Something about dinner too, I think. Told her you were sleeping and she said we can come down whenever for food.” Techno explains quickly, shifting on the chair. “So if you're hungry we can head down.”

“Are they nice?” Ranboo questions, shoulders hiking up slightly. “The other kids?”

“I’m not sure. Don’t worry about them, it’s not like it’ll matter in a few months anyways.” Techno huffs as he stands. Which was true, if Mom and Dad did what they did last time they wouldn’t have to stay here any longer than necessary. Maybe a month or two before everything goes back to normal. But Techno promised that’d be all, that it wouldn’t be any longer than a few months.

Techno never goes back on his promises.

“And if they are cruel I’ll step in, what are they going to do? Cry?” Techno snorts, rolling his eyes. Ranboo couldn’t help but laugh at his brother's optimism, following him out of the room. No one was upstairs, voices floating in from downstairs somewhere. Ranboo couldn’t pick apart the conversation from here, so he just continues to follow Techno down the stairs.

Techno has a way of just not caring how much space he takes up. He draws attention purposely with his bubblegum pink hair and unintentionally with his tall stature. Ranboo has to force himself into hiding, hunching his shoulders so he could be shorter, smaller, less of a target. It was easier with Techno, safer.

Once on the main floor they both follow the voices, the hallways light making it easy to find where the family was. Techno was first to breach the kitchen, and when he doesn’t get immediately struck by lightning, Ranboo follows suit. It’s not long before they are noticed by one of the teen boys, the brunette. He doesn’t know which one he was. “Hey!” The boy greets, drawing the attention of the others.

They look to be almost finished dinner, two untouched plates covered in plastic wrap on the counter. “Hi Ranboo, Techno. I don’t think we’ve met yet.” Kristin’s husband, Phil he thinks his name was, greets. He was sitting at the head of the table, Kristin on the other end.

“I’ll warm you two up a plate.” Kristin is quick to say, standing up from the table.

“You don’t have to!” Ranboo blurts, only to immediately duck behind Techno. He can feel Techno stiffen in front of him, breath hitching as the two stand stalk still. Crap, he spoke out of turn. Crap crap crap—

“It's no problem, really.” Kristan says, waving him off as if he didn’t just interrupt her. Neither him nor Techno loosen up from their stance at the doorway. He looks over towards Phil. He couldn’t tell if he had a belt on which causes nerves to shoot up his spine. He didn’t look upset though, so maybe Ranboo hadn’t completely messed up their chances.

Kristin places one of the plates, now uncovered, into the microwave to warm it up. “You can come sit down if you want.” The blonde teen speaks up, pointing to two seats at the table. “There’s enough space for everyone.”

Ranboo clings onto the back of Techno’s shirt, mentally pleading with his brother to somehow get them out of this. “Thanks.” Techno failed him, he’s doomed. “Come on Ranboo.” Techno tugs him forward, cementing his future of sitting in awkwardness. He didn’t want to sit down among strangers. He’d rather starve at this point.

He doesn’t get a choice as Techno leads him to one of the open chairs, practically shoving him down into it. He ignores the stares it garners as Techno sits down beside him. Phil leans forward, closer to Techno then he was to him. “Are you boys settling in alright? If there’s anything you need or want, you can always come to me or Kristin.”

“Dads cool like that.” The blonde, who’s sitting across from him, announces before either of them could reply to the man’s question.

His brother elbows him in the side, causing Ranboo to flinch. “Let them answer Phil, Tommy!” The other, who he now knew was Tubbo, yells.

“Boys, indoor voices.” Kristin cuts in as she sets down his and Techno’s plates along with a butter knife and fork.

“We’re fine.” Techno answers, ignoring his dinner. Ranboo bites his tongue, eyeing his brother. He never ignores free food. Kristin sits down in her seat at Ranboo’s left, the two teens across from him continuing to eat their dinner. After a few seconds with no further conversation Ranboo starts to eat as well.

Techno only takes a few bites, gaze centered between Phil and Kristin. Once everyone but him and Techno are done eating, his brother clears his throat. “Yes, Techno?” Phil asks, smiling at the taller boy.

“Just so you know, it only took our parents a couple months before they got us back last time, so we won’t be your responsibility for very long.” Techno states, head high as if he was demanding anyone to disagree.

Ranboo sinks down in his seat, wanting nothing more than to disappear. It wasn’t a lie, it’s happened before. When Ranboo was eleven and everything was far too much, too new. When his foster parents told him to call them dad and mom. When they said they only wanted one well behaved child, when two was too many.

Phil looks like he’s out of words, straightening up in his seat. He spares his sons a glace, who look seconds from wanting to hide themselves. It was silent, awkward and Ranboo could tell that Techno couldn’t care less.

“That’s good to know, though the both of you are free to stay here as long as you both need to.” Phil ends up saying. “We’re happy to house you both.” Ranboo doesn’t believe, doesn’t let himself feel the weighted emotions behind the words. It never mattered, nothing did. Because at the end of the day Techno was going to make everything better. Because he never, ever, broke a promise.

“Sure.” Techno replies, dissbelief soaking up his words. He takes a bite out of his dinner, turning away from Phil. Ranboo looks around the room, anxiety pooling in his stomach. “Ranboo, eat you dinner.” Techno commands after a few seconds, nudging him with his foot.

“…Right.” Ranboo replies as he sits back up, stabbing his dinner with his fork. “Food.” Kristin gets up to collect her son's dishes, the kitchen loud with awkward silence.

Chapter Text

That night Tehcno sleeps next to him, arm thrown over his body as the older teen uses him as a pillow. Ranboo doesn’t mind it when he wakes up in the morning, finding Techno still glued to his back like a baby sloth. He does mind it however when someone knocks on the door, startling Techno so much Ranboo ends up getting kneed in the back.

Ranboo yelps, Techno shooting out of bed with his hair a mess and eyes wide. “Yes!?” Techno yells, already throwing the blankets off of himself. Ranboo rubs the middle of his lower back groaning.

“Sorry—“ Phil is cut off by the door opening, Techno standing there in the doorway. Ranboo moves so he can watch the interaction from the bed. Phil looks at Techno then at him, before returning his gaze to Techno. “I didn’t mean to wake you two if you were still sleeping, I just thought you’d like to know that whenever you want breakfast you can come downstairs and I can make something for you.” Phil says.

Ranboo fights the urge to yawn, going back to laying in the bed, going as far as to grab a pillow to smother himself with. “Is that it?” Techno asks, his voice gravely with morning voice.

There’s a pause then. Ranboo lifts the pillow off his face slightly so he can hear better. “Me and Kristin would like to talk about house rules later, whenever you two are fully awake. And if there’s anything we should know about medically. We didn’t get much when it came to any sort of history.” Phil adds.

He looks hesitant, Ranboo realizes as his sleepiness slowly drains from him. It was hard to read Phil, with him being a stranger and all, but he was good at guessing. He had to learn to predict mood swings like the weather man, toeing the line of wanted and unwanted with ease. No one wants him a hundred percent of the time. No one but Techno.

“We’ll be down in half an hour.” Techno states, shifting between his feet.

Phil smiles, like the fact that even talking to him was a gift. Usually they were an annoyance, not a gift. “Great! Is there anything you two want to eat for breakfast? We have eggs, pancakes—“

“Cereal is fine.” Techno cuts him off. Before Phil could say anything else Techno closed the door. “Get your clothes on.” Techno turns to him, already heading to grab his duffel bag.

“I’m tired.” Ranboo huffs, kicking the blankets off of his face.

“Then do laps.” Techno huffs bag, grabbing today's clothes from his bag. “You don’t want to see Phil and Kristin mad at you for sleeping in, do you?” He asks, voice harsh. It felt like a bucket of ice water was suddenly thrown onto him, his limbs locking up. Ranboo throws the pillow off of his face as he sits up.

Techno tosses his bag over to him. “I’m sorry.” Ranboo apologizes, unzipping his bag. “I-I’ll be better about this. I promise.” The lie was easy to tell, not because he was a good lier but because he genuinely believed it. He was never a morning person, never will be.

Techno takes off his pajama shirt and tosses it into his duffle. “I just don’t want to see you get punished.” Techno supplies as he changes, throwing a worried look his way.

Ranboo quickly changes, making sure to grab his toothbrush out of his backpacks side pocket. “I’m ready to brush my teeth.” He announces once he’s done. Techno holds up his own toothbrush and walks to the door.

They make their way to the bathroom and quickly brush their teeth. Techno doesn’t allow him to use the toothpaste they provided, saying “We don’t take handouts like that.” Which he gets, he does, but the toothpaste was strawberry flavored. He loves strawberries. Either way, they finish brushing their teeth with time to spare, heading downstairs to meet Kristin and Phil in the kitchen.

The first thing Ranboo notices is the plethora of cereal boxes on the counter, then the many different coloured bowls. Why did someone need so many bowls? Phil was next to the counter, setting yet another cereal box on it. “Good morning, did you two sleep well?” Kristin asks. She was sitting at the table, eating her own bowl of cereal.

“I…Slept okay.” Ranboo replies. He didn’t know how good Techno slept last night, as he’s always the first to pass out.

Though the rings underneath his brother's eyes didn’t give him much of a good impression. “You wanted to talk to us about something?” Techno says as he sits down across from Kristin, getting right to the point.

“That can wait until after breakfast.” Phil speaks up. He looks over to Ranboo. “You can pick whatever bowl you like along with cereal. There’s both regular and lactose free milk in the fridge.” He explains, picking up his own bowl and pouring cheerios into it.

That was too many options. What were the right ones? The wrong ones? Was he going to be punished if he chose the same one that Phil took? That must be his favorite if he was eating it. He better steer clear of that one. Walking over to the counter Ranboo picks a bowl at random - a dark blue plastic one - and pours in the chocolate lucky charms. He likes surgery cereals, sue him.

“What do you want, Techno?” Rnboo asks, turning to face his brother.

“Anything is fine.” Techno replies. Which actually meant that he’d be having the same thing. By how Phil didn’t yell at him he must have chosen the right cereal and bowl. Choosing a pink plastic bowl for his brother, Ranboo quickly fills up the bowls with milk before settling down.

Phil sits down across from him, the room lulling into silence. Techno nudges his foot with his. Ranboo picks up a spoon and starts eating, Techno following suit. Then they forget the presenters as they shove spoonful after spoonful into their mouth. He doesn’t even taste the chocolate cereal as he eats. He’s too fast for them, he’d get every last bite in before they try to take it away.

Once both him and Techno are done, the two finally look up from their food. Techno wipes his mouth on his sleeve. “You can have seconds if you like.” Kristin says.

“We’re good.” Techno says, shifting in his seat. “What did you want to talk about?” He asks again.

Phil sets down his spoon. “We just wanted to ask if either of you have any medical needs we should know about? Allergies, medication you used to take, things like that.” Phil explains.

Ranboo clenches his hands in his lap. There it was, their weakness. Biting the inside of his cheek he keeps his mouth shut. Nothing good came out of people knowing your busyness. They couldn’t keep it from their parents but they could keep it from these two.

Both Techno and him had an iron deficiency, it was genetic from their understanding. It’s why they were paler than they should be, more fatigued and in Techno’s case, more irritated. The only energy they had was put into making sure they didn’t step on any of their parents' toes.

They had pills for it before but after the third refill their parents stopped paying for them. It is too much of a hassle. The ones at the drug store weren’t nearly enough for them, so Techno didn’t bother buying them. It wasn’t worth the money.

Then there was Ranboo’s narcolepsy, or well, maybe narcolepsy. He was never fully diagnosed, something about needing to be over eighteen. He had done all the tests years ago, his mother declining any medication for it. It was something she was ashamed of, shouting that he didn’t have it.

All he needs to do is go to sleep earlier, wake up later, pay harder attention and be better. It was harder said than done. He got over eight hours of sleep and he was still tired, falling asleep during the day. No matter how much he tried to stay awake it was never enough. It was a weakness that Ranboo couldn’t ever fully ignore.

“There’s nothing to say.” Techno shrugs, lying for both of them. Protecting both of them.

“Are you sure?” Kristin asks, voice sweet and soft. It wasn’t at all like Mom’s voice, which was sour and loud.

“We’re sure.” Techno doubles down.

Ranboo remembers when he told the foster parents that took him before that he might have narcolepsy. It was near the end of his stay with them and they were asking him why he was always falling asleep. If he was going to bed on time. It had since been a year from when he found out, he hadn’t yet known to keep his mouth shut.

They treated him weirdly after that, and asked him not to call them mom and dad anymore. He was a good kid, they’d say, but he was no longer for them. They wanted an energetic kid, a lively kid, a different kid. Ranboo didn’t care, he never wanted them, he wanted his real parents. And he got them in the end.

“If anything comes to mind feel free to tell us.” Phil says, opening the floor for future discussions. One that Ranboo slams shut, locks and throws away the key.

Ranboo stands, scooping up his and Techno’s dishes and moves to put them in the sink. He’ll wash them and then they can go back upstairs. “Oh sweetie, you don’t have to do that. I can wash them.” Kristin stands, stopping Ranboo in his cracks. Did she…

Did she just call him sweetie?

His heart flutters at the word, so simple and yet so grand. He hasn’t ever been called that before. Pig? Lazy? Ungrateful? Yes, all those things. But sweetie? Never has he heard those words directed at him. The sound of metal clanging against the floor snaps him out of his thoughts. He dropped everything, the leftover milk spilling all over the floor. His heart stops, something becoming stuck in his throat as he looks down at the mess he made.

He wants to say something, anything to make them forgive him. To let him go unscathed. But his voice didn’t want to work, frozen in his throat. Phil was standing. Did he have a belt? No, he was wearing joggers. That wouldn’t stop him however, a palm is just as effective. He needs to apologize, no he needs to run, wait that’ll just make everything worse. Beg, he needs to beg—

Techno’s chair screeches against the floor as he stands, shoulders up as he grabs him by the elbow, wrenching him away from Phil. “He's sorry!” Techno yells, shielding Ranboo from the older man. “I’ll clean up the mess, and wash the dishes and sweep the floor just—“ Techno takes a deep breath in, voice at a dangerous volume. “Just don’t hit him, he won’t do it again. I promise.” He rambles out, shoving Ranboo towards the doorway.

Ranboo gets the message, his legs moving before his brain could. This is how it always went. Techno was a good brother and Ranboo ran away, metaphorical tail between his legs. He was a terrible brother and a horrible son. But he couldn’t force himself to be any other way. Phil and Kristin call for him but he ignores them, running up the stairs to the room. 

Techno has a small medical kit in his duffle, he’ll need to get it. It’s the least he can do. Running into the room Ranboo is careful not to slam the door behind himself. He drops onto his knees and scrambles towards the bed, dragging Techno’s duffle out from underneath it. He unzips it with shaking hands, pulling out clothes and Techno’s phone charger.

Grabbing the medical kit, Ranboo holds it close to his chest and waits. He waits for the pleading, the screaming, the sound of leather against skin. He doesn’t hear any of it. It’s worse not hearing Techno crying for their Dad to stop. Worse that he doesn’t know what’s happening.

“I’m sorry.” Ranboo sobs, fat tears rolling down his cheeks as he rocks back and forth in the corner of the room. “I'm sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry…” 

Ranboo runs and the only thing Techno could think about was how proud he was of his baby brother. He didn’t need to see this, not again. He didn’t deserve to witness this type of Techno’s love, no matter how guilty the other would feel afterwards.

Kristin goes to head after Ranboo and he steps in the way, blocking the doorway from the two adults. He wasn’t going to let either of them near him. “Don’t touch him.” Techno albeit growls, his breathing quickening with each passing second.

His heart was racing, eyes jumping from thing to thing in the kitchen. There weren’t knives out on the counter, there were chairs though, that would hurt. He’s not seen Phil with a belt yet but that didn’t mean he didn’t own one. It was getting hard to breathe. Why weren’t they shouting? They should be shouting.

Kristin takes a step back, Phil raising his hands. Techno flinches away from him, eyes now glued to them as Phil slowly moves them so his palms are up. “Techno—“

“Just punish me already.” Techno spits, limbs locked and ready for a strike. He’ll have to cover his face to protect his glasses, it took almost a year before Mom replaced his last broken ones. He can’t afford to lose another pair so soon.

Phil’s face falls as he takes multiple steps back until his back is against the wall. “I’m not going to punish you Techno.” Phil states, voice level and clam. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I know.” Techno says, which seems to garner surprise from the man. “Ranboo messed up, so I’m going to take his punishment.” He huffs. Looking down slightly he stares at the mess his younger brother made on the floor, milk continuing to spread out.

Kristin’s face falls more than it already had. “Ranboo’s not in trouble either. It was an accident, it’s easy to clean up.” She says as she looks over his face. “If anything I should be to blame, I startled him somehow.” 

They weren’t upset, that’s good. He can still fix this. Techno lets himself take deeper breaths, holding them for longer then he was. He’s an idiot, a complete fool. Who starts to hyperventilate over spilled milk? “I’ll clean this up.” Techno states, already moving to grab the paper towels on the counter. He moves robotically, grabbing the towels before anyone could say anything.

“Techno, really I can do it.” Kristin says, though she keeps her distance.

“I said I can do it.” Techno grits, already on his hands and knees wiping up the spill. Neither more is said, Techno quietly cleaning up the mess as he tries to keep his breathing under control. Ranboo’s probably going through worse right now, thinking he’s getting beaten. He had to do this first, make sure everything was actually okay. Smooth over the mood.

Ranboo was safer with both of the adults' eyes on him. Phil slowly comes over, squatting down across from him. He grabs a paper towel, Techno moving to say something, anything. He said he’ll clean it, the other didn’t have to do anything. “None of us are going to hurt you or your brother, Techno.” Phil says as he wipes up some of the spill. “I will never put my hands on you like that.”

“Sure.” Techno says, grabbing a new paper towel. He doesn’t believe it, can’t believe it. That’s what his last foster parents said. We’ll never hurt you, at least until you deserve it. Just tell us when you're hungry and you’ll get food, until it gets too annoying. Lies, lies, lies. The only good thing about them was the fact Ranboo wasn’t there with him. He had a good family, one that wanted to keep him.

That is until their parents cleaned up their act enough to pretend like they ever cared about them. Then they both went back. It was easier at home, at least there were rules to the madness. At least their parents actually loved him.

“I’m trying to help you, Techno! If you don’t smarten up where the Hell do you think you're going? Huh? Mama’s not always going to be here to save you!”

“Stop your fucking crying! Man up!”

“I love you so much Techno.”

“I’m proud of you son.”

After cleaning up the floor Techno throws the paper towels away, going to pick up the dishes so he could do them. Onto to turn away and see Kristin picking them up and starting to do them herself. Techno freezes in place, not knowing what to do with himself.

Phil’s attention is on him, though his eyes keep wandering towards the doorway. “I can go check on—“

“No.” Techno snaps, shuffling towards the doorway. “I-I’ll go check on him. I’m sorry for the mess.” Before Phil could reply, Techno's speed-walking out of the room. He takes the stairs two at a time, making a beeline to the room. He hears his brother's sobs from the other side of the door, loud and gasping.

Opening up the door he’s met with Ranboo curled up in the corner of the room, his emergency kit clutched in his arms. “I’m here.” Techno calls. Ranboo’s head lifts up, fat tears rolling down his face. He makes his way over in a few strides, Ranboo’s arms shooting up to cling onto him. “I’m okay, Ranboo, I'm okay.”

Techno sits on the floor, Ranboo’s hands lifting up his shirt to check for injuries. He’s babbling nonsense through his sobs, nose running all over his face. Ranboo was never a pretty crier. Techno shushes him, swatting his hands away to grip Ranboo by the shoulders. “Ranboo, Ranboo look at me. I need you to breathe, like we practiced.” He says slowly.

Ranboo sniffles but he does take a deep breath in, sobs breaking through. “Tec’no.” Ranboo hiccups, gripping onto his shirt.

“Shhh it’s okay, everything is okay.” Techno soothes, running his hand through Ranboo’s hair. “You did amazing, I’m so proud of you.”

“I ran away.” Ranboo sniffles, crawling closer so he was practically sitting in Techno’s lap.

“You did.” Techno agrees, wrapping his arms around the teen. He kisses the top of his head, beginning to rock the both of them side to side. “You did exactly as I taught you to do.” He says, rubbing Ranboo’s arm.

“I’m sorry.” Ranboo cries, shoving his face into his chest. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry…”

“I know, but it’s done, alright? We can’t change anything about it, so don’t worry about it. I just need you to breathe, okay? Just keep breathing.” Techno whispers, holding onto the other for dear life.

“I’m a bad brother.” Ranboo sniffles.

“You're the perfect brother.” Techno corrects.

Chapter Text

Ranboo doesn’t know when he fell asleep, only that when he wakes up he’s on a bed with a blanket thrown over him. His eyes and nose were crusty from crying, mental exhaustion making it hard to want to move. Techno was sitting at the deck watching YouTube on his phone. His hair fell down his back in one big braid.

Slowly pushing himself up he rubs his eyes, grimacing when he has to run away his dried tears. “Techno?” Ranboo mumbles, stretching his arms above his head.

“I’m here.” Techno says as she shuts off his phone, getting up from the chair. He makes his way over and sits on the edge of the bed. “How are you feeling?”

Shifting so he was sitting next to his brother, Ranboo sighs. “Stupid.” He huffs, looking over at the door. Why did he always have to make a mess of everything? He could never behave, never do what’s right, what was wanted of him. Then he went and got them into trouble with Phil and Kristin. They haven’t even been here a week yet.

Techno flicks him on the forehead, Ranboo yelping with surprise. “Stop it. You're not stupid, okay? You just made a mistake.” Techno states. He looks seconds away from winging him out if it means Ranboo believes it too. “We’re not even in trouble.” He adds.

“We’re not?” Ranboo asks, looking over at his brother. Techno didn’t have any forming bruises on him, he had checked, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t hurt. They could have yelled at him, hurt him emotionally. That was still painful.

“They said it was fine.” Techno shrugs.

He doesn’t like how simple it sounded. But it was an accident for crying out loud, he needs to grow a pair. “What time is it?” Ranboo asks. He looks out the window, it's still light out.

“Twelve something.” Techno answers as he checks his phone. “You were out for a while.”

Ranboo huffs and stands. “Let’s do something.” He states, whirling to face his brother.

Techno raises an eyebrow, head tilting to the side. “Like what?” He questions, looking around the room.

“Ummm.” Ranboo pauses. What could they do? Surely they couldn’t stay locked away in the room forever. Kristin or Phil would be sure to come looking for them. They probably already had after the incident this morning and Techno dealt with it to let him sleep. “Are we allowed to watch the tv?” Ranboo asks. 

“We can ask.” Techno gets up from the bed and pockets his phone. “And if not we can always just watch my phone.” He adds. Techno gets up from the bed as Ranboo leads the way out of the room. The house is quiet as he opens the door, not even Kristin and Phil being heard.

Ranboo creeps out from the room, Techno not far behind as they head towards the stairs. He couldn’t help but catch sight of the bin of toys in the play area. Looking at the bin Ranboo had half the mind to walk over and open it. He could see cars, dolls and even stuffed animals in the bin. The other half of his mind forces his gaze away, reminding him that he wasn’t a child. He was fifteen, he didn’t need to be playing with toys.

They head downstairs, Ranboo making sure he is light on his feet. It was stupid and unnecessary given the fact they were going to watch tv. It was more fun this way though so he didn’t care. It wasn’t as if Techno wasn’t being quiet either, walking on the sides of his feet to make as little noise as possible.

Ranboo goes to where he thinks the living room is, taking a step inside. Only to pause when he spots Phil on the couch typing away on his laptop. There goes their spy mission. Looking back at Techno Ranoo mouths “Phil.”, pointing into the living room.

Techno nods then nudges him on, whispering out. “I’ll ask him.” Ranboo nods back as he finally crosses the threshold into the living room.

Phil notices them instantly, looking up from his laptop. “Hi you two.” Phil smiles at them, acting nothing like what Ranboo thought he would be. He expected a coldness from the man, an annoyance. He doesn’t get that from him. “Are you doing okay Ranboo? I didn’t get the chance to check on you.” He asks.

Ranboo looks away from him and over to his brother. He didn’t want to answer that. “He’s fine now.” Techno answers for him, then glances over at the tv. “We were wondering if we could watch the tv?” He asks then, moving the topic along.

“Of course you can. The living room is for everyone.” Phil replies as he gets up, setting his laptop to the side as he walks across the room. Hey grabs a remote from the tv stand and hands it off to Techno. “Just make sure it’s not too loud.”

Techno hums, clutching the remote in his hand. Walking over to the loveseat Ranboo sits down, bringing his feet up to sit sideways onto it, back against the armrest. Techno follows suit, sitting on the opposite arm rest.

“You can sit on the couch if you want, Techno.” Phil speaks up, his laptop once again in his lap. “There’s enough space.” And he was right, there really was enough space. But that meant Techno would be closer to Phil and further from his side. They were better like this.

“I’m okay.” Techno says, raising the remote to turn the tv on. Ranboo turns his attention towards the tv, trying his best to not overthink about what was running through Phil’s head. It’ll only distract him. Techno switches it to channel twenty five and leans back onto the back of the couch.

As time went on Techno slid down the armrest until he was squishing him, Ranboo stuck underneath the weight of his brother. He didn’t dare complain. He would rather Techno squish him then be away from him.

Focusing on the tv and whatever show was on at the time let Ranboo take a breather. Let his mind calm down and remind him that Phil wasn’t like his dad. He wasn’t stupid enough to believe they were the same person. People were nice, caring, Phil and Kristin were no different. It just got confusing sometimes.

Hours pass with the three of them in complete silence, Ranboo watching the tv as he ignores everything else. Soon enough another set of credits rolled. “Techno.” Phil calls.

“Yes?” Techno answers, looking over at the older man. Ranboo tears his gaze away from the screen as well.

“Can I get you to look something over for me? It’s about schooling for you two.” Phil asks as he sets his laptop to the side. “It won’t take long.” He adds.

Ranboo bites his tongue as Techno peels himself off of him. Techno pats his knee before he follows Phil into the kitchen. Ranboo watches as they go, curling more in on himself. “He’ll be back soon.” Ranboo whispers to himself, eyes stuck on the kitchen doorway. He can hear their muffled voices and if he really tried he could even eavesdrop.

He doesn’t get a chance as the door opens, two loud voices announcing themselves. Pressing himself into the loveseat, Ranboo tries his best to make himself look invisible. Tommy and Tubbo walk into the living room, backpacks being thrown onto the couch. “Oh, hi Ranboo.” Tubbo smiles as he walks over, sitting on the end of the couch closest to him.

“We didn’t get to see you this morning.” Tommy says as he sits behind his brother, looking over at the tv. “What are you watching?” He asks.

It was an opening to a conversation, Ranboo could see it clearly as day. Pleasantries to hide the fact they wanted something more. He didn’t know what to give them. What part of himself was necessary and what was dead weight? How much does he say? What if he says something wrong? He wouldn’t know if he had.

Ranboo looks away from the two. “Lab Rats.” He replies. It was a rerun but he still loves it the same. He’s watched Lab Rats a hundred times by now.

“I love Lab Rats!” Tubbo states, moving so he was leaning closer towards him. “What’s your favorite bionic ability?” The shorter boy asks, hands tapping on the couch's arm rest.

“Oh uh…” Ranboo tries to think about it, there were a lot of them. Super speed, smarts, strength. Those were the basic ones, it got complicated in the later seasons. “I like the heat vision.” He settles on. It was a pretty cool ability. He’d never have re-run the bath, he could just warm up the cooking water. 

“That one is so cool. Personally I love super intelligence. Never have to study for a quiz again. Season one is really good.” Tubbo comments, thinking over Ranboo’s words. 

“I like the early seasons too.” Ranboo replies. He loses the stiffness in his shoulders, a small smile forming on his face. He never met someone who likes Lab Rats. Techno wasn’t ever into the show. “I have a poster in my room back home.” He adds as an afterthought. It was tapped to his inner door. Mom had gotten it for him a few years ago for his birthday.

“I wish I had a poster, though I don’t think I’d have room for it.” Tubbo says.

“We should hang out tomorrow since it’s Saturday!” Tommy yells, interrupting the conversation as he jumps up from the couch. He turns to face them, a giant smile on his face. “We could go to the mall and you two can buy things for your rooms here.” Tommy add’s, now looking at where Ranboo was on the loveseat.

At the suggestion Ranboo freezes, hangs gripping onto the end of his shirt. Shopping? They couldn’t go to the mall to shop, they didn’t have any money to pay for the trip. At least here they had food and if push came to shove Ranboo could ask Kristin or Phil for food, but at a mall he’ll have to pay for himself.

Last time he checked his balance he only had a hundred dollars from Christmas. Techno had had a part time job before they were taken into the system so he was doing better than Ranboo when it came to money. But he didn’t like to spend it because he was trying to save up for college.

“That’s a great idea.” Tubbo chimes in, pausing the movie they were all watching. “Dad doesn’t have work tomorrow so we can ask him to drive us there!” Tubbo suggests.

Ranboo goes to say no to the shopping part of this spontaneous trip, that he can’t possibly pay for anything, when he’s interrupted by the man in question. “Drive who where?” Phil asks as he walks into the living room, Techno following behind him. Techno scans the room before landing on him, immediately leaving the older man’s side to come over.

Techno sits on the armrest of the loveseat, leaning over onto Ranboo’s side. He’s squishing him, but Ranboo doesn’t really care. They have more important things to think about. “Mall trip tomorrow.” Tubbo speaks up, Phil moving to sit next to his son. “We can all hang out and spend all your money.”

“A trip sounds fun.” Phil agees. “But have you asked Ranboo and Techno if they wanted to go?” Phil then asks as he turns his attention towards the two of them.

Techno looks down at him, a question in his gaze. What happened when I was gone? Ranboo tries to convey his inner turmoil to his older brother, which doesn’t seem to work as Techno looks even more confident. “…It’s fine?” Techno guesses, to which Ranboo mentally face-palms.

“I’ll let Kristin know we’ll be out tomorrow.” Phil says, taking out his phone to text his wife the news.

Techno leans in to whisper. “What did I sign us up for?”

“Going to the mall. Shopping.” Ranboo whispers back.

Techno stares at him, then over at their two foster brothers. Who are currently trying to plan the whole day somehow centered around one mall trip. “Fuck.” Techno groans, fully letting himself fall onto him.

Ranboo huffs, digging his elbow into Techno’s side to try and push him off. “Swear jar.” He huffs, now fully smothered with brother.

“Mom has it.” Techno replies, forcing more of his weight onto him. “Doesn’t count.” 

Ranboo rolls his eyes, trying to climb out from underneath his brother. Who’s now purposely being annoying. “But it does—“

“Nope.” Techno cuts him off as he grabs him, keeping him from moving. Ranboo huffs, becoming a pillow for the other. Looking around the room Ranboo wonders if this peace would end. It doesn’t seem to be. It could very well be like last time. He hopes it was.

He couldn’t wait to see Mom and Dad again.

~ <> ~

“You two shouldn’t need to worry about this.” Mr Cooper says. Mr Blade and Ms Beloved sit across from him in the closed off room, both sporting frowns as they talk to the lawyer. Mr Cooper was the best when it came to cases like these. Where reconnecting families was a delicate dance in the face of the justice system.

Didn’t make him a justice following man, only that he knew how it worked.

“Techno’s teacher saw some bruises.” Ms Beloved says, her words clipped and low. “It’s her fault we’re here after all.”  She adds, frustration in her tone.

Mr Cooper hums. “Techno refused to say where they came from.” He says, smiling over at the women. “And unless Techno files a criminal complaint they can’t keep you separated from your children for long.”

“How long can they?” Mr Blade asks, hands clasped together atop the table.

“If they can’t get either child to testify, a week.” Mr Cooper replies, then pauses. He looks over at the other man, his smile turning strained. “Though I’m concerned about Ranboo. There’s been multiple reports from his past teachers about some things he’s mentioned that could allude to emotional abuse and neglect.”

“He’s fifteen, what could he possibly say that’ll give him any credit?” Ms Beloved scoffs, folding her arms on her lap. “I take him to school, I cook and clean. He doesn’t know neglect.” 

“If the judge believes him you can lose custody.” Mr Cooper explains slowly. “If he even comes forth that is. Like you said, he’s fifteen, he won’t want to say anything.”

“Good.” Mr Blade hums, leaning back in his chair. “I want my sons back.”