Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The sun shone brightly in the summer sky. The wind offered a cool breeze as the heat of the day came down. Not that it bothered Joel any. He was used to much hotter weather, even during the winter season. But what else would be expected of a prince from a kingdom in the mesa?

The heat was the exact reasoning that Joel was in the Avian Empire rather than Mezalea. It was a tradition started when Joel was five years old, his parents had worried that the summer heat of the mesa would harm their young son. Especially with how bad it had been to him the years before. So they started to send him off to their strongest ally, the Avian Empire.

That was many years ago, and Joel could handle the heat much better now. But he still visited every summer since then. Causing mischief and mayhem and overall being a bad influence on the avian princes and princess. Not a terrible one, but not a good one either.

Speaking of mischief, Joel had just snuck out of the castle and into the large town surrounding it. It was something he did at least once every summer, and even though he was a grown man now, it was still fun to sneak off when Etho wasn’t paying attention.

Usually he’d be joined by Grian or Pearl, even Jimmy or Tango a few times. But they were all too busy for Joel to be able to grab their attention and drag them away without being caught.

Instead, this time he had a more unusual companion.

“Ooo! Look at those! We don’t have anything like that in Sanctuary!” Sausage said excitedly, pointing in the direction of whatever it was that caught his eye.

Joel didn’t know Sausage that well. This was the first time he’d met him actually. Sausage had caught Joel sneaking away from Etho and that somehow led to him inviting himself along.

Sausage was the Protector of Sanctuary, a beautiful jungle land that was unlike any other. Or at least from what Joel’s been told. Sanctuary had started to become a noticeable… well it wasn’t really a kingdom or an empire, Joel didn’t actually know what to call it. But whatever it was, it had become noticeable to the kingdoms and empires around it over the past year.

So, Sausage had been going to each kingdom and empire in hopes of forming some allies. So far it seemed to have been working. They had good resources to trade and offered, well sanctuary, to any and all people in need. So his diplomatic trips have turned out to be very successful.

Sausage spent most of their time excitedly chatting about whatever he could think of, Joel piping in every so often, adding his own incredible thoughts that the world just needed to hear. Often this led to Sausage laughing at him jokingly and the two bickering playfully. It was clear that this man didn’t come from a nobel background from how he acted, and Joel was thankful for that.

While Joel was a prince, that didn’t mean that he cared for the stiff nature and expectations that came with the title. Sometimes he just wanted to have some fun and tell stupid jokes. He found himself disguising in common clothes and spending more time with the commoners of his kingdom than any nobles or officials because of this.

“Oh! What’s over there?” Sausage asked, pointing at whatever it was he saw. Joel looked over and found that Sausage was pointing at the starts of one of the many trails that were scattered around the town.

“Oh, that’s just one of the short trails that goes through the Pistis Woods. They don’t go very deep and let out not far from where they start.” Joel told him with a shrug. Sausage's eyes sparkled with excitement.

“Well let’s go!” Sausage exclaimed, grabbing ahold of Joel’s arm before he could get a single word in. Sausage practically dragged him towards the beginning of the tail.

“What’s got you so excited about a trail?” Joel asked as Sausage let him go.

“They’re so fun! I used to go on trail walks all the time when I was little!” Sausage explained happily. “We don’t have any in Sanctuary yet, but you bet that they’re gonna be there soon!”

Sausage continued to talk about his love for tail walks and Joel just listened. It was usually Joel that was the loud one in the conversation, but it seemed that Sausage was too. Just with more excitement than snark. It was honestly nice for someone else to be the loud one.

Not that Joel would ever admit that.

Joel had just told, in his opinion, an incredible joke, making both the men laugh brightly when there was the sound of a baby crying up ahead. They both stopped their laughter once the noise reached their ears. Sausage gave Joel a worried look, as if he would have any answers.

“It’s probably just someone taking a walk with their baby,” Joel told him, waving off the other’s concern. “Kid probably just hates how boring it is.”

Sausage nodded, but the worry remained on his face. Their conversation was much quieter after that. Especially as the cries grew louder.

~*~

It didn’t take long for them to find the source of the cries. And when they did, Sausage didn’t hesitate to run towards it.

Because instead of a tired parent trying to comfort their young child, there was a purple blanket wiggling about on the side of the path. Joel jogged after Sausage as he picked up the blanket and the child barely hidden inside it.

Sausage gave the baby a comforting hush before whispering things to them in Spanish. Whatever the words meant Joel had no idea. Most people would just learn to speak Common if they wanted to communicate with someone who wasn’t from the same place as them, even royals such as Joel.

The purple blanket stopped crying as much not long after. Sausage lightly pulled the blanket away a bit to get a better view of the child.

They had little hair on their head, but the bit they did have was a pale blond it seemed. Their tiny eyes had the lightest of purple hues to them. And sprouting from their back was the littlest pair of wings Joel had ever seen. The feathers were the same pale blond as the hair on the baby’s head.

“What’s a baby doing on the trail?” Joel asked dumbly. Sausage frowned at the tiny avian before offering an answer.

“They must have been abandoned,” Sausage said sadly. He let the baby rest their head on his shoulder before making sure they were covered by the blanket again. The baby went quiet, seemingly to begin to fall asleep now that they were in the comfort of someone’s arms. “Poor thing.”

“What should we do?” Joel asked, completely lost with the situation at hand. It’s not like he knew what to do with a baby that they found, quite literally, off the side of the road.

“Well!” Sausage began, sounding determined. “We’ll just have to take care of him!”

“What?"

“It’s not like they have anywhere else to go,” Sausage told him, then began to speak quietly to the sleeping child. “Yes, that’s right. Papa Sausage and Papa Joel will take care of you now.”

“Woah, woah, woah!” Joel said, holding his hand wide in front of him. “Who said anything about me taking care of a baby? Because I’m not doing that.” Sausage looked at him blankly for a moment before simply shrugging.

“Oh well,” He said before speaking to the baby again. “Looks like it’s just you and me, little one.”

~*~

When they walked through the castle gates the first person they saw was Etho. leaning against the entrance with his arms crossed. He gave Joel a light glare as he came into view, no real anger behind it.

But any plans he had of halfheartedly scolding Joel were immediately forgotten when he saw Sausage holding the baby they found. His eyes grew wide.

“Did you steal someone’s kid?” Etho asked, shocked.

“Wha- Of course not!” Joel shouted at him. Sausage giggled at the accusation.

“We found the baby,” Sausage corrected, cuddling the child closer to him. “They were abandoned in the woods.”

“Why was us stealing someone’s kid the first thing you thought!?” Joel asked, his arms crossed and offended at the mere suggestion.

“Honestly? It seems like something you’d do.”

“What!?"

~*~

“What are you gonna do with him anyway?” Jimmy asked, handing Sausage an old shirt from when he had been a baby.

Sausage had insisted on giving the child a nice bath and asked if there was any clothes he could borrow. King Richard had been more than willing to offer some from when his children were little when he was informed that the two had found an abandoned baby.

“Well, I plan on raising him!” Sausage said brightly as he dressed the young child. They were in the room Sausage was staying in. Sausage sitting on his bed as he dressed the small avian, Jimmy standing beside him, and Joel sitting in a chair he’d dragged away from the desk in the room, that he set nearby the others.

“And how are you gonna do that? Do you even know anything about avians?” Joel asked accusingly. He’d been told earlier that he was free to go, that he didn’t need to stick around if he didn’t want to.

Joel had stayed regardless.

Sausage laughed at his questions. As if he’d just told a joke of sorts.

“Oh, I don’t know a thing!” Sausage answered. Jimmy and Joel gawked at the confession. “Don’t know anything about babies either! But how hard can it be right? It’ll be easy!”

“What!?” Joel shouted. Sausage shushed him quickly.

“You’re gonna scare him if you keep being loud like that!” Sausage told him with a minor pout.

“You can’t take care of him if you don’t know how!” Joel shouted again, ignoring what Sausage had just told him.

“Well, I don’t see anyone else volunteering,”’ Sausage said, picking up the now dressed baby, who let out a cute babble at the action. Joel was at a loss for words, he turned and looked at Jimmy who was now surprisingly silent. Joel’s gaze was practically begging Jimmy to say something about this.

“Well, uh- would you look at the time! I should, uh, probably get going,” Jimmy said, stumbling over the words before quickly leaving the room.

“I- Jimmy!” Joel called as he left. Sausage just laughed at the princes’ antics.

“Well if you’re so worried, why don’t you take care of him?” Sausage asked, knowing full well that Joel did not want to do that.

“I can’t take care of a baby!” Joel told him, making Sausage giggle.

“Well then we can learn together!” Joel groaned, shoving his face into his hands. He didn’t let Sausage say anything else to him before getting up and leaving as well.

Chapter Text

Sausage woke up early in the morning, as he normally did. He stretched and got up from the bed and was just about to start his morning routine when something caught his eye. Just a few feet away from him and the bed was a crib.

He was confused for a moment before he remembered what had happened the day before. Him and Joel had found a baby avian. The cutest one that he’d ever seen… also the only one he’d ever seen, but that didn’t matter!

The crib was moved into his room not long after Jimmy and Joel had left. It was a simple wooden one made of spruce. Everything about it seemed to scream birds nests.

The King had personally delivered it to Sausage’s room. King Richard warned him that it was easier for young avians to sleep with their parents, but since the two had only just met, it would take a while for that bond to grow. The only reason the royal family had the crib in the first place was because it was used for naps, specifically when the baby was a bit older and the parents weren't constantly worrying.

The King must have been right about it being easier for baby avians to sleep with their parents because it had taken hours for the little one to fall asleep. He cried and cried, clearly tired, but just couldn’t seem to sleep. Sausage was surprised at how awake he was with how late he stayed up trying to help the little avian sleep, but didn’t put it into question.

“Well hello, little one,” Sausage whispered to the sleeping baby, not wanting to wake him but still wanting to talk to him.

“We’re gonna have so much fun together!” He whispered excitedly. He just couldn’t wait for all the fun they’d do together! He was about to start thinking of all the things they could do for the day when he remembered that he had plans.

Sausage was supposed to have a meeting with the King and Crown Prince about how their alliance would work if the Avian Empire were to accept, which seemed to be very likely. But this was an official meeting that was scheduled to take at least a few hours, if not longer. Not exactly the ideal place to take care of a baby.

“Hmmm, seems like we’re in a bit of a predicament,” Sausage muttered to himself. Then his eyes lit up with an idea. “Oh! That’s perfect!” The little baby wiggles uphapply at his loudness.

“Oh! Oh no, shhh,” Sausage hushed him quietly. Whispering apologies to the little avian till he settled.

“There we go,” Sausage whispered happily once he did. Then he turned to the rest of the room, he still needed to get ready for the day after all.

~*~

Joel was sitting at his desk that morning. He still felt tired but he had things to get done. Specifically, he needed to go through the papers that his parents had sent him, it was part of his duties as the Crown Prince of Mezalea. Some were letters of complaints, some were request, and many other things. All of which needed to be dealt with as soon as possible.

Etho was there as well, sitting in one of the plush chairs in the room. A book was in his hand and he seemed to be fully entranced by it.

They sat in a peaceful silence together, only the sounds of pen on paper and pages turning being heard. It was quite calming, something that Joel didn’t get to experience very often.

If only it could have lasted.

The silence was broken by the door to his room crashing open. Etho shot out of his seat, dropping his book and quickly drawing the sword that was at his side. Joel stood up as well, preparing to run and grab his own from where it leaned against the wall back beside his bed.

But they quickly relaxed when he saw who it was.

“Hello!” Sausage greeted happily, the baby the two had found held in one arm and a bag in the other. Etho let out a sigh, returning his sword to its sheath before grabbing his book from the ground and sitting back in the chair.

“What do you want Sausage?” Joel asked, his voice slightly tense. Technically there wasn’t much of a problem with Sausage barging into his room. Grian, Jimmy, and Pearl did it all the time.

But the difference was that Joel had told the three that he had work to do that morning and to leave him alone so he could focus. He hadn’t realized that Sausage was now one of the people he needed to tell this to.

“Oh! I just thought that I could stop by for a moment,” Sausage said as he strolled into the room. Joel gave him a suspicious look. This wasn’t a normal thing for someone to do, but then again Joel still didn’t know Sausage that well. Maybe this was normal behavior for him?

Sausage’s eyes glanced around the room, taking it in. It may have originally been a guest room, but over the years Joel had truly made it into his own. There were a few art pieces on the walls, most of Joel himself, but there were also ones of his family and friends. His desk was cluttered with knick-knacks and had papers spread about. There was a fireplace with a bookshelf not far from it, a set of chairs close by, and Etho sitting in one of them.

His bed had the head of it against the far wall and the blankets were a deep forest green. Sausage walked over to it and sat on the side of it. He placed the bag he was holding down on the floor beside him.

“How have you two been this fine morning?” Sausage asked brightly. Joel sat back down in his chair, but turned to face Sausage as he spoke.

“Alright,” Joel told him. Etho only gave a hum in response as he turned the page of his book. Sausage smiled at them as he readjusted his hold on the little avian in his arms.

“Well that’s great!” Sausage said. He gently placed the small child to lay in Joel’s bed. His tiny wings gave a little flutter but otherwise he didn’t seem to move, sleeping peacefully it appeared. Joel was about to tell Sausage to get him off his bed, but didn’t get the chance. Sausage shot up from where he sat and spoke quickly. “Well anyway I’m going to an important meeting so you’re in charge of the little one for now!”

“Wha-” Joel was about to ask, shocked at what the other was saying. But Sausage opened the door once more and quickly stepped through it, only leaving his face peering in.

“All his little baby things should be in that bag there! I’ll be back once the meeting’s over! Okaythanksbye!” Sausage said, speaking faster as he went.

Then he was gone, the door shut.

Joel just stared at where the man had once been, not quite sure what had just happened. He was brought back to reality to the sound of Etho’s muffled laughter, clearly trying not to but still escaping him.

“Oh, you hush it!” This only made Etho laugh more.

~*~

They decided that they would just go with it, it wasn’t like they could get Sausage to come back. He was more than likely already in the meeting and wouldn’t be able to leave.

It was fine for a while, Joel got halfway through his papers before there were any problems. The problem being the baby beginning to wake up, a fussy whine escaping his tiny throat. Joel immediately got out of his seat and over to the fussy child.

“What do I do?” Joel asked quickly, looking over at Etho with wide eyes. Etho let out a soft chuckle.

“Pick him up,” Etho told him, a smile could easily be heard in his voice. Joel’s eyes only got more desperate as the little avians fussing started to turn more towards crying.

“How?” Joel questioned. He’d never held a baby in his life, he didn’t know a thing about how to properly care or comfort one. Etho gave him an odd look from where he sat before rolling his eyes and getting up.

He walked right past Joel and gently lifted the upset child, holding him close to his chest. Etho bounced him gently and let out little hushes as the baby started to calm.

“There we go,” Etho said quietly to the young child once the cries stopped. Joel let out a sigh of relief once they did.

“Just wanted to know if someone else was there I guess.” Etho told Joel as the baby cuddled up to him, little wings fluttering softly. Then Etho looked at Joel with a mischievous glint in his eyes. “Now it’s your turn to hold him.” Joel’s eyes widened as Etho stepped closer, but Joel didn’t back away.

“Woah woah woah! How about we don’t?” Joel asked, trying to hid the nervousness that was clear in his voice. Etho rolled his eyes at him and proceeded, guiding Joel’s hands to hold the little avian.

“If you’re gonna take care of him then you need to know how to hold him. Among other things,” Etho told him, muttering the last sentence. Etho gave Joel some soft instructions as he handed off the child, Joel did as he was told as he watched the little one with a nervous gaze.

“There we go,” Etho said once they were all settled. Joel’s whole body was on edge, scared to make the slightest movement. Etho laughed lightly at him, and Joel gave him a glare for it. That glare quickly disappeared as the baby wiggled softly. “You know he’s not an infant, right? You don’t have to worry about him being fragile. At least not that much.”

“No! I don’t know anything!” Joel told him, his voice quiet but harsh as he spoke. Etho rolled his eyes again as he began to inspect what was in the bag that Sausage had brought. Joel let out a huff before asking Etho a question. “How do you know how to hold a baby anyway?”

“Eh, was around them a good bit growing up,” Etho said, but didn’t explain further. He set a few of the things that were in the bag onto the bed before looking up at Joel again. “Now, time for you to learn how to actually take care of him.” Joel glared at Etho, but didn't protest.

~*~

“Alright, I’ll be right back,” Etho said, getting up from the chair again and placing his book on the seat.

“Wait what!?” Joel asked quickly, his head turning so fast he was surprised he hadn’t hurt himself. He was once again trying to get some work done at his desk, but only had gotten halfway through one paper. The avian baby was laying on the bed again, this time awake and with a rattle in hand. He was shaking it gently, letting out quiet babbles as he did.

“You’ll be fine,” Etho told him as he began to walk towards the door. Joel shot out of his chair immediately and grabbed ahold of Etho's hand before he could get too far.

“Nonononono. Let's not do that,” Joel told him, his voice shaky. Etho looked at him with surprise. It wasn't like Joel to be so outwardly nervous, and he’d been so multiple times that day.

“...You're really worried about this, huh?” Etho asked gently. It was Joel's turn to be surprised, seemingly only then realizing how openly scared he was acting.

“What? No,” Joel said, pulling his hand away quickly. He glanced over to the baby, who was babbling in delight. “I just- Uh-”

“Joel,” Etho said gently. Bringing his own hand to Joel’s and holding it. He gave Joel a soft look and Joel couldn't stop the sigh of defeat that left him as his shoulders sagged.

“Yeah. Yeah I am,” Joel finally admitted, looking down at the floor.

He hated it when he was scared of something, it just wasn’t like him. He was used to taking things head on and making fun of others when they were afraid. Now look at him, terrified to be left alone with a baby. A baby of all things. How pathetic.

“Hey,” Etho said, his other hand taking Joel's chin lightly and guiding it upward. Making Joel actually look at him. His gaze was a caring one, not an ounce of judgment within it. “It's okay.” Joel rolled his eyes at the lacking reassurement.

It made him feel a tiny bit better regardless.

“But what if something happens?” Joel couldn’t help but ask. Etho gave him a quiet chuckle.

“Well, you'll be here to take care of it,” Etho told him. Joel gave him an annoyed look, making Etho chuckle again. “Really, I told you all that you need to know for now.”

Joel grumbled and didn't meet his gaze. Etho watched him for a moment, seeing how that reassurance hadn't helped. He moved his hand towards his face, the one not holding Joel’s hand, and slowly began to pull down his mask.

Joel’s eyes snapped onto him as his face was slowly shown. He'd seen Etho’s face plenty of times at this point, but it still left him surprised anytime Etho removed his mask in front of him. Etho gave him a gentle smile once it was off his face and instead resting around his neck.

“I'll be gone for no longer than 20 minutes, okay? Can you take care of things till I'm back?” Etho asked. Joel looked over at the baby, still playing with the rattle on his bed, and worried his lip between his teeth. He let out a sigh before nodding his head the smallest amount. Etho smiled at him kindly.

“There we go,” Etho said. Joel scoffed at him as a small smile spread across his face. The hand that had been holding Joel’s started to head up to his face, cupping around his cheek. Etho brought him closer and tilted his head a tiny bit before leaving a soft kiss to his forehead.

It wasn’t long after that they said a quiet goodbye to each other, Etho opening the door and walking out. Leave Joel alone with the tiny child he and Sausage had found.

Chapter Text

The first few minutes Joel was unbelievably anxious. His head constantly turned from the papers on his desk to the babbling baby on his bed. But thankfully he was able to get somethings done before things went south again.

Which they definitely did, if the baby starting to scream out of nowhere said anything.

Joel jumped at the sudden sound. He immediately got up, once the surprise passed, to see what might be wrong with the little avian. The little one must have thrown the rattle before Joel reached them, it now laying on the floor. The baby screamed. He hesitated to even pick up the little avian, but knew that it would more than likely be something he needed to do.

So with a deep breath Joel carefully picked up the crying baby, who squirmed in his grasp. The child’s wings flapped wildly as Joel tried his best to secure him comfortably. Joel tried hushing him like Etho had, but it didn’t work. He tried giving him the rattle, but it went ignored. He tried giving him a bottle, but it wasn’t what the kid wanted. And he didn’t need to be changed either.

“What is wrong?” Joel muttered tensely. The baby avian just kept crying and crying. Joel wasn’t sure what to do, nothing that Etho had shown him was working. If only Etho was back already, then he could just have him figure it out. But he was still gone and wouldn’t be back for a while it seemed.

Joel sighed defeatedly as the baby screamed. Joel desperately tried to think of something that might help.

Thankfully, something did come to mind.

Joel looked around the room and looked at the door, as if there was someone else nearby that might overhear. Once he was satisfied, he started to let out a gentle hum. The baby’s cries stuttered slightly at the sound. This gave Joel the encouragement to go on. His gentle hum turned into quiet singing that seemed to start to calm the baby in his arms.

Joel wasn’t the biggest on singing to people, but it was something his mother did whenever he was upset when he was young. He thought that he might as well give it a shot. And it seemed to work quite well as the baby’s screams turned to a quiet fussiness.

The baby’s wings, that had been flapping violently the entire time he was crying, finally calmed. Only giving a small flap every now and then.

Joel was finally able to see the problem.

One of his feathers was twisted.

Joel had lived with avians long enough to know that normally that would be just a minor pain, something that could be tolerated for a while. But this was a baby. He wouldn’t have the tolerance for it yet.

It must have hurt so much.

“You’re lucky I know how to preen,” Joel whispered to the child once he stopped his quiet singing. The baby just let out a short fussy sound.

Joel laid the baby down on the bed once again, having him lay on his stomach so that he could reach his wings. Joel cringes at the thought of having to pull out the feather, he hated the idea of having to hurt the little one, but if he didn’t then the baby would only have more pain.

Joel smoothed his hands through the feathers gently, not yet pulling out the twisted one. He sang quietly as he removed tiny bits of dirt from the feathers, most of the grime was removed the night before it seemed but there was still some there.

The small avian calmed some more as the gentle feeling of being preened fell over him, only a few tiny upset sounds leaving him every now and again. Joel’s heart broke a bit once he reached the rude feather that was causing some much pain. But he didn’t hesitate to remove it. Doing it quickly, like one would a bandaid.

The pained cries that followed only broke Joel’s heart more.

The baby’s wings started to flap wildly again with his violent cries, making it impossible for Joel to continue. So instead he picked him up again and held him gently to his chest.

“Shh, shh. It’s okay, it’s okay,” Joel whispered gently. The cries thankfully didn’t take too long to die down, turning to quiet whimpers.

“There we go. Doesn’t hurt anymore, does it?” Joel asked, gently brushing his hand through the little avian’s feathers again. Getting the grime that he missed out and bringing the little avian a bit more comfort.

Joel began to sing quietly again as he held the child, who’s eyes started to grow heavy.

Joel’s singing stopped when he heard the door open behind him.

He looked over his shoulder, to see Etho standing there. He had a surprised look to his eyes as he walked in, the door closing behind him. Joel gave him a glare as he made his way over.

“That was longer than 20 minutes,” Joel muttered to him. Etho ignored his words, and instead looked at the baby he was holding gently in his arms.

“It seems that you had everything handled,” Etho told him, his tone teasing. Joel rolled his eyes in annoyance.

“Didn’t for a while. You were gone too long,” Joel told him. Etho gave him a curious look. “Had a blumin’ feather twisted. The kid was crying up a storm.” Etho let out a noise of surprise.

“Didn’t realize that was something that would happen,” Etho said, more to himself if anything. Apparently not having any experience with avian babies.

“Yeah, had to pull the thing out,” Joel explained more, nodding his head in the direction of the tiny feather that had been left on his bed. Etho picked it up and gave it an inquisitive gaze. “It wasn’t a fun experience.” Joel’s voice sounded more sad than annoyed as he admitted the last bit.

“Well it seems like things are fine now,” Etho told him, putting the feather back where it was. He gave Joel a teasing look as he spoke.

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever,” Joel said with an eye roll. “Now hush up. Little guy’s trying to sleep.”

~*~

Sausage came back to Joel’s room. His meeting turned out successful, leaving him and Sanctuary with a new ally. He happily opened the door to the room, with much less force than he had before.

He was pleasantly surprised by what he saw.

Etho was sitting in the same chair he’d been in before, though with a different book this time. And Joel was seated at his desk, still working on whatever papers he was going through.

The difference was that the baby avian was nowhere to be found on Joel’s bed. Now instead held in one of Joel’s arms as he wrote on a paper.

“Well, isn’t this a sight to see!” Sausage said brightly. Etho looked up at him briefly, before looking back down at his book and turning the page. Joel didn’t bother to look up at all as Sausage walked over to him. “I have to say, I’m proud of you Joel!”

“You’re not taking the baby with you to Sanctuary,” Joel said without looking up.

Sausage looked at him with shock for a moment before responding.

“Wait what?” Sausage said blankly at first. Then he shook his head a bit and spoke again, this time with more emotion to his voice. “What do you mean!?”

“You don’t know a thing about babies or avians,” Joel told him, giving his paper one final once over before finally turning to face Sausage. Giving him a confident look.

“Well you don’t know anything either!” Sausage said accusingly, crossing his arms. Joel gave him a raised brow.

“I might not know much about babies, but I know a lot about avians,” Joel told him. “So, for now at least, he’ll stay with me in the Avian Empire. He can go with you to Sanctuary when you actually know how to take care of him.” Sausage’s eyes grew surprised for a moment as he realized what Joel was implying.

Joel wanted to take care of the tiny avian.

Sausage couldn’t help but smile excitedly at the news.

“Oh I knew it! I knew it!” Sausage exclaimed brightly as Joel began to get up from his seat and walk over towards his bed. “I knew you cared! You want to be his daddy Joel, don’t you!”

Joel rolled his eyes at Sausage’s teasing as he pulled a bottle from the bag Sausage had brought at the beginning of the day. The bottle had a magical aura that sparkled around it, the magic making sure that the milk inside didn’t go bad.

“Oh, I gave him a name by the way,” Joel said offhandedly as he began to feed that child in his arms. Sausage looked at him with surprise and curiosity.

“Oh? What is it?”

“Hermes.”

Chapter Text

Joel smiled as he looked at the tiny pale blond feather from that day. It was hanging on a leather cord necklace, one filled with many intricate knots, on the wall of the Mezalean Palace. In a hallway that was in constant use. It was an avian tradition to take one of the first feathers that were preened from a child and create a beautiful necklace with leather cord, to honor the beginning of their life, then put it on display.

Joel and Sausage were happy to do so once they were told about the tradition.

They’d spent weeks learning how, before actually making the official piece. Sausage had one from when he first preened Hermes hanging on the wall of his home in Sanctuary as well. Everytime he had guests over he’d point it out before gushing about the little avian and how he was growing.

“Daddy!” a voice exclaimed brightly, bringing Joel out of his thoughts. He looked over to see his son running towards him. Joel crouched down a bit and easily caught the young avian, lifting him off the ground with a smile and a laugh.

“And what are you up to?” Joel asked with a smile. Hermes giggled, before cupping his hand around Joel’s ear and whispering to him, like he was telling a secret.

“I hid Etho’s sword, and now he’s trying to get me to tell him where it is,” Hermes whispered, his wings fluttering with glee.

Joel laughed lightly at his son’s antics. It was only a moment after that when Etho came running from the very same way Hermes had come from.

“Please,” He began with a huff once he reached them, speaking to Hermes. “Just tell me where it is.”

Hermes shook his head in disagreement with a wide grin. Etho gave Joel a desperate look for help instead. The Crown Prince rolled his eyes in fake annoyance at him.

“Alright, let’s go find it,” Joel said, even with how much he was trying to act annoyed he couldn’t help the smile that grew on his face. Etho let out a sigh of relief, but Hermes gave him a tiny pout. “It’s probably somewhere in his room.”

“Nooo!” Hermes exclaimed disappointedly. His wings puffing out slightly. Joel took notice of how dirty they seemed. The little avian was going to have to be preened before bed that night.

“Hermes, Etho can’t do his job to protect us if he doesn’t have his sword,” Joel told him as he started walking, son still in his arms and Etho following right beside him. He couldn’t help but find the child’s disappointment more cute than anything else.

“Alright,” Hermes muttered with his pout.

“Sorry bud,” Etho said as he ruffled the hair on his head. His voice sounded barely sorry at all.

“Besides,” Joel began with a smirk, giving Etho a mischievous side eye. “If you want to hide things from Etho, just choose something that he doesn’t need to do his job. Like one of the books he’s reading.”

Etho gave him a betrayed look, but there was slight amusement too. Hermes’s eyes lit up with excitement as he let out a cheer. More than likely already thinking up a scheme to hide Etho’s books from him.

They soon did find Etho’s sword, hidden in Hermes’s nest like bed. Etho let out a sigh of relief, and Joel teased him for getting bested by a six year old. Or a six-ish year old.

They never would truly know how old Hermes was, but that didn’t bother them any. They were still a family, with or without being related by blood.

Joel didn’t regret for a moment choosing to sneak off that day or choosing to take care of Hermes. Even when Hermes’s tricks and schemes were turned onto Joel himself. Hermes was one of the best things that ever happened to him and he wouldn’t have him any other way.