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Tommy couldn’t name the day Phil stopped talking to him, or the day his older brother shifted into his father. He could, however, name the day his other brother swallowed a bunch of pills.
Six months before Phil Watson adopted him, he was staying with him as an emergency foster placement…
“This won’t be like your last placement, this will be temporary. Just until we can get a place open at the group home.” Sam always spoke like that, like he was trying to reassure himself. Like he was the one who had bandages along his neck and back.
Sam pulled his stupid fucking car along the street of a regular suburban home. Those were always the worst. The ones that could look normal, that no one would suspect murderers live.
Stepping out, and tugging his bag against his back. He followed Sam to the door, where he rang the bell. It was late, maybe nine o’clock in the evening.
“Phil has two kids, Wilbur, his bio kid. and Technoblade, an old foster.” Sam told him before the door opened. A tall brunette opened the door, and looked them both up and down.
“Dad! Sam’s here” he said, before opening the door to let us in. Sam stepped through first, Tommy followed.
‘I could survive this place for a week, maybe a month.’ he thought to himself. Taking a look around carefully, photos of a brown haired woman and a blonde man were near the entrance, next to them was a photo of the same blonde man, a kid with brown hair, and a younger kid with a lighter brown color.
The blonde man in the photos turns the corner and smiles, it was warm. “Hello, I’m Phil Watson. Me and Sam will get the paperwork done, Wilbur here can show you your room.” He smiled, still too warm
Wilbur nodded and waved him up the stairs, walking past more photos.
“Me and Techno’s rooms are up here, along with your room. You and me will probably share a bathroom” Wilbur spoke, he pointed to two doors, pointing one out as his, and the other being the bathroom. Down the hall, three more doors, Wilbur opened up one and let the shorter boy enter.
Bedroom wise, one of the bigger ones he’s had. It had a wooden wardrobe, a night stand and a bed. Tommy figured this wouldn’t be too bad if he had to stay here for who knows how long.
“We’ll let you get settled, Me or Tech will probably get you if Dad wants to go over house rules. They won’t be too bad” Wilbur said, before closing the door. Left alone in the room, he looked around. It had a working light, a bed that didn’t look too uncomfortable, and I could spread out on the floor and not touch any of that.
It was a shame that this room would only be his for a while, but he still didn’t know what the Watson family was like. They had a foster, who Tommy guessed was adopted by them. If anyone was going to be the safest person to be with, it would be Techno.
Tommy didn’t know how long he sat on the floor for, but he heard a knock on the door. He waited for a moment for someone to come in, but just another knock came, so he went over and opened it, to see a boy with long brown hair, not as dark as Wilburs, but not as light as Phil’s. This must be Technoblade.
“Phil wants you downstairs” Techno told him, then walked away, leaving Tommy to scramble behind him to catch up.
Now, Tommy was a very big man, especially for his eleven years of age, and Techno wasn’t very tall, he just had very fast steps.
They reached the kitchen, with Phil at the table, and Wilbur leaning on the counter eating something that appeared to be diabetes in a bowl. Thechnoblade joined next to him, and Phil cleared his throat.
“So, my name is Phil, my children over there are Technoblade and Wilbur. Wil is a Junior in highschool, and Techno is a freshman” Phil looked nervous, his eyes darted to Tommy’s neck. Sam must have told him about the last place.
“We should go over house rules, okay?” He phrased it like a question, as if Tommy had a say in the matter.
“First, right of privacy, your room is your space, no one can go in without your permission, or unless they are certain that you are in danger. So knocking is a common thing here. Secondly, not touching other peoples stuff without asking, goes both ways. Not in a way you can’t pick up someone's bag without permission, but asking to borrow a book.”
Tommy nodded, wondering how long the “two way” thing will last.
“You’re going to be starting school next week, depending how long you stay. You and Wilbur will be sharing a bathroom, my bedroom is down here. Past the hall under the staircase. Okay?”
Nodding again, Tommy kept his hands in his lap. Part of him was wondering why he and Wilbur were sharing and not him and Technoblade. The other part was wondering why the cabinets are green.
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Two weeks after being placed with Walter, Sam game for a check in.
“So, Thomas. How are things working here?” Sam asked, pulling out a notepad he seemed to have brought everywhere. Tommy liked to think it held the secrets of the universe inside.
“It isn’t the worst place I’ve been” He muttered with a smile while pulling down the collar of his sweater. The bandages were still on, and Tommy still had a few more wraps for the injuries.
“Thart brings the question, do you want to stay here or go back to the group home?” Sam asked, writing another universal secret the world doesn’t know.
Thinking about it, Tommy didn’t yet see a reason to leave. The actual kids don’t bother him, and phil works most days. It was better than fighting for food and attention at the group home.
“I don’t hate it here, if Phil is okay with it, I’d like to stay”
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One month after being placed with Walter, Tommy, Wilbur and Technoblade became close.
It happened in the afternoon, two weeks after Tommy started at the middle school, he was pacing the room, because he had no clue how to do a literary analysis on The Outsiders. He sighed, slowly building up courage. What was worse, getting beaten because he’s failing school, or maybe being denied help.
Techno was probably the safest bet, he most likely knew the fear Tommy was having. Not that he got scared.
Creeping through the evening hallways, he approaches the door at the end of the hall. Sighing, he knocked softly, he heard shuffling on the otherside, before the door opened.
Technoblade had his hair braided, and a hoodie on. He blinked, like he wasn’t expecting to see Tommy, but tilted his head. “Yeah?”
“I” Tommy started, fiddling with his paper. “Can you help me? I don’t know how to write a literary analysis"
Technoblade looked at him, before opening the door so Tommy could enter. The room itself wasn’t what Tommy would think, It was a light blue, and neatly cleaned. On the wall, two swords hung there, and a violin case propped up on the dresser. Issac sat on the ground, and grabbed two pens from his nightstand.
“You chose the right person, Wil would have been useless. Come sit.” Techno hummed, patting the spot next to him.
Over the month Tommy has been here, he figured a few things out of Technoblade. He was quiet, he wasn’t touchy feely like Wilbur or Phil. But he showed affection in other ways, he insulted Wilbur like sport, but corrected him when he got stuff wrong. He wasn’t a jerk as much as he would look.
He also really cared for his hair, it wasn’t curly like Phil’s or Wilbur's, more sleek and perfect. His overall appearance was important to him. Tommy figured he kept control of the things he can, to make up for the things he can’t. Tommy knew some kids in the group home who did that with grades.
Techno was also really smart, like he had stuff to make up for. He had a lot of scars, at least on the visible parts of his body. He wore them prouder than Tommy ever could.
“So can you help me?” Tommy asked hesitantly. It didn’t seem like he was doing anything wrong.
“Yeah, what book would it be? You’re in 6th? That would be Outsiders, or Striped Pajamas” Techno muttered to himself, tapping a pen against his knee.
“Uh, yeah” Tommy whispered “The Outsiders, we read the book in class, I just don’t know how to do an analysis"
Technoblade explained the basics of what the analysis could be. Tommy slowly started adding in commentary.
“So fire, they become stupid and save some kids?” Tommy asked, looking at Techno. He nodded, and glanced at the door a moment before a knock”
“Tech?” Wilbur’s voice came through. Issac called for him to come in, and Wil’s head poked through. His expression lit up slightly when he saw Tommy.
“I’m gonna tell you about me day” He sang a song and flopped onto technoblades’s bed, before going onto a long blab about stuff that happens in the Junior class theater. He went on for who knows how long, Techno sighed and kept working with Tommy, occasionally making a sarcastic remark about Wilbur’s friends. Tommy liked listening to them.
“And then Fundy and Niki forced me to team with them during improvement-” Wilbur stopped suddenly, turning to Technoblade “Binder?”
Techno muttered something about taking it off an hour ago. Wilbur glared at him, before going back onto the story he was on about.
Tommy met Trans people before, there was a girl he knew at one placement, she went by Payten instead of Preston. Tommy guessed that Techno was like her, but different. That was probably why he had his own bathroom.
By the end of the night, Wilbur got Technoblade and him downstairs and onto the couch to watch Hamilton. Tommy slowly throughout that night felt more and more comfortable with them. He would say that this was one of the best foster sibling relationships he’s had.
“I guess we should get to-” Wilbur started, before breaking into a smile, when his eyes landed on Techno asleep on Wilbur. “-Bed. Tom, do you want to stay down here and sleep? Dad won’t be back until tomorrow, and I doubt I can carry My dear nerd brother”
Tommy considered it, before leaning against the arm rest and nodding. Wilbur shifted so Techno was next to him, and closed his eyes.
Tommy somehow fell asleep there, around people he barely knew
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One month after Phil took him in, Tommy made a friend at school.
“I happen to notice that you sit alone in the library” A short brunet boy said to Tommy one day in third period. Tommy tensed up and looked at him wearily, he didn’t look menacing, but neither did house four.
“What of it” Tommy sneered, maybe a little too harsh”
“How would you like to sit alone in the library with me and my friend Ranboo?” The boy asked, he was wearing a plain green shirt, and his hair was soft and fluffy looking, like a sheep. “I’m Tubbo”
Tommy considered it, before nodding.
Turns out, Tubbo and Ranboo were also outcasts, both were alone in the library for lunch. They were also both the kind of funny that Tommy was. Loud. It was an instant click. He shared the first two periods of his schedule with Ranboo, and his last class with Tubbo.
Tommy learned that he could make friends as easily as he did when he was a kid. That Ranboo was also a foster kid staying with Tubbo’s family, and that their Mom works with Ph.
Tommy had friends
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Six months after Phil Watson started fostering him, he put the offer out there.
“Do you want to be adopted?”
Tommy sat at the table in shock, he didn’t realize that Phil had any opinions on him other than the kid who stays in the guest room.
Tommy nodded, and a week later, the paperwork was done.
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One month after Tommy had officially been adopted, they went to the beach.
Apparently it was a family tradition to go to the beach on Wilbur's birthday. One that was in place long before his mother died. Tommy challenged Techno to a sandcastle building contest and beat him by a mile. Wilbur dragged Phil into the water and Techno and Tommy followed.
That day was the most Tommy has ever seen his dad smile. It was also the first day Tommy outwardly called Phil dad. It made him smile, and Issac laughed and bullied Walter about being soft.
Techno bought Wilbur and him ice cream. Tommy got vanilla, and Wilbur had chocolate. Technoblade had strawberries, Phil told them that mint was the best, and Wilbur looked damn near punching him. This was the closest Tommy has ever been to an actual family.
Tommy had a place, with friends and family.
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Three months after being adopted, Phil got busy.
He started coming home late, usually after dinner. Wilbur and Techno said it was normal, that he was always like this during this time of year. It still got Tommy concerned, but He, Techno, and Wilbur could still hang out.
They had a lot of take out during this time.
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Tommy had friends, he and a group of weird kids started a club at lunch, where they hung out and did fun stuff. Toby was the president of it, and Tommy was his right hand. They didn’t do much except organize hang outs, but he felt important. Ranboo was nice, they got adopted by Tubbo’s parents, but all was okay.
“Tommy” Tubbo said, he was wearing one of Ranboo’s sweaters. “Do you want to come for a sleepover at my house this Friday?"
Tommy lit up. “I can ask my dad, but im sure he’ll say yes”
Phil wasn’t home that night, and Wilbur said he probably wouldn’t be back until tomorrow.
“Do you think I could go to Tubbo’s on Friday? Stay the night?” He asked hesitantly. Wilbur smiled and ruffled his hair. “If Dad isn’t back by then, then I’ll say yes, only if a parent is there though.”
Tommy smiled, and ran upstairs to his room, he passed Tech’s and heard the Violin playing. He paused and listened outside the door, and Wilbur came up behind him. A sharp knock and a sigh later, the two were listening to Techno play.
“Aren’t you doing the opening to the band concert?” Tommy asked, he heard Techno mention it a few times, and when the short boy nodded, Wilbur cheered and told him he would be there.
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Wilbur wasn’t there, but Tommy got a ride from Tubbo’s mom because Tubbo’s brother was playing in the actual band.
Tommy snuck around back where the practice rooms were. He opened the one Techno was in and smiled.
“Dad is home, he smells like alcohol. Wil is taking care of him” Tommy said, he could see his brother’s smile fall, but he picked it up quickly. Tommy sat with him, offering to braid his hair. He did a very fancy ponytail with braids along the side.
When Technoblade Watson was called to come on stage, Tommy sat straighter and his smile grew.
Tommy swore he cheered louder than everyone there combined. He had to cheer for two others.
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Wil was locked in his room, so he and Techno were watching Dead Poets Society on the olders laptop.
The anniversary when Wilbur’s mom died was coming up. So Tommy and Techno kept to themselves while Phil and Wil grieved.
“Hey Theseus,” Techno murmured, looking at Tom from the corner of his eye. Techno started calling Tommy after the first day dad came home drunk.
“Hey Icarus”
“Why don’t you see if you can have a sleep over with your friends? I can set up a tent in the yard”
“I’d like that”
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Tommy hated Quackity.
He smelt like drugs, and Tommy swore he was a bad influence for Wil. With Techno still at school, and Phil at work. Tommy came home from school to smell weed.
After that day, Wilbur rarely smelt like anything else.
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Two years after Phil first took him in, Tom called Techno dad for the first time.
It was a joke at first, giving his brother a card on fathers day. Wil wasn’t there, and neither was Phil.
“Happy fathers day blade” Tommy said with a shit eating grin.
“Thanks Theseus”
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They didn’t go to the beach for Wilbur's birthday.
Phil just forgot. Wilbur told them that he was going out with Quackity and other friends of his. Techno and him hung out at home.
That was when Technoblade truly became a father figure to Tommy.
“How did you realize you were trans?” Tommy asked. He was writing in an old leather journal he found in the attic.
“I kinda just did,” Techno said, stirring a pot of potatoes on the stove. “I always felt weird being called she, so one day, I just told Phil ‘hey, don’t call me that’ and it worked”
Tommy smiled, he imagined what Phil’s face would have looked like.
“Icarus, what do you want to do when you're older?” He asked, his eyes wandering to the scribbles on the page
“I plan on doing something in English, I’m not sure what. How about you, Theseus?”
Tommy never thought he would get this far in life, and he certainly never thought he would make it to adulthood.
“Something to make a difference”
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Phil and Wilbur were arguing. Technoblade was in the middle trying to calm them down, Tommy was hiding in Techno's room.
The volume downstairs was putting Tommy on a nervous scale. He pulled out a phone, asked Tubbo if he could spend the night.
He brought Techno along when he came upstairs with a bruised eye.
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Techno was graduating. Tommy and Wilbur both showed up, Phil was asleep on the couch.
Techno claims he hated that day. Because three hours after he went out to celebrate with friends, Tommy called an ambulance. He begged Wilbur to wake up, trying to get him to throw up.
The ambulance arrived five minutes after Tommy called. Wilbur had taken the pills for who knows how long before.
Techno and Tommy hated that day. June 16th.
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Technoblade got emergency custody of Tom. They got a shitty little apartment near Tommy’s school. Techno worked a lot, he and Tommy didn’t see each other often enough. But little sticky notes could be found in Tom's lunch. And an occasional Letter to a dead person was burned in a firepit.
Tubbo and Ranboo became even closer with Tommy.
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Five years after Tommy’s brother killed himself, Tommy cheered as Techno got sworn in as a Paramedic. Dare he say louder than he’s ever cheered for Techno.
Tommy was scared, but eventually Tubbo and Ranboo moved to their own place. Weekly calls to Techno were constant.
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Tobbo went into an engineering course. Ranboo studied Psychology. Tommy Went into English.
He wrote a short story, it ended up in a newspaper, and an internet website. He wrote another about a boy named Tommy, and Techno told him to publish it.
He chose the pen name Theseus. Techno cried.
The story was about a kid who ended up at a foster home. And eventually became close to the brothers there. They had a father named Peter. The boy’s names were Wyatt, Terrance, and Timothy. It had allusions to Greek tales, and political hints. The dedication was to someone named Icarus.
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It has been eleven years since Tommy was first placed with Phil Watson
Ten since Tommy was adopted by him.
Eight years since his oldest brother killed himself.
Three years since his older brother chose to make a difference.
Three years since Tommy went into English in honor of what his brother couldn’t do
Three years since he wrote his first book
Two years since Tommy finally stopped going into therapy
One year since Tommy last visited the grave of his brother.
Two months since he last hugged his older brother
And in two weeks, Tommy and Techno were going to celebrate the fact that they’re alive.
With a blue flower in hand, and a grave of a suicide victim in sight.
In a weird way, Tommy was glad that he was removed from an abusive household into a neglectful one.