Chapter Text
The End was quiet.
Not peaceful.
Quiet.
There was a difference.
There was no wind sweeping through the empty void between islands, no birds calling from distant trees, no footsteps in the grass, no laughter carried from a nearby house. Only the occasional crackle of End crystals and the low, distant hum of a world that seemed to exist without needing anyone in it.
Purple light spilled across the obsidian pillars.
The void waited beneath everything.
And somewhere between the towering islands and the endless black sky, something very small was wandering around.
It had wings.
Tiny ones.
They were not particularly impressive yet. They were more like oversized pieces of skin attached to a child who had absolutely no idea what he was doing with them.
The child himself was covered in dark scales.
Two little horns curled backward from his head.
A tail dragged behind him, occasionally knocking against rocks.
He had no name.
No home.
No idea where he was going.
He just kept walking.
His little claws clicked against the endstone.
Click.
Click.
Click.
He stopped.
Looked at a chorus plant.
Reached toward it.
Decided he didn't like it.
Kept walking.
He had been wandering for a long time.
Long enough that his little legs were beginning to ache.
Long enough that his stomach had started making increasingly offended noises.
He looked down at it.
“...”
His stomach growled again.
The tiny dragon frowned.
He had no idea what that meant.
So he kept walking.
Eventually, he reached the edge of one of the islands.
The void stretched beneath him.
Wemmbu leaned forward.
A little farther.
A little farther.
His toes slipped over the edge.
He squeaked and jumped backward.
His wings flapped instinctively.
Nothing happened.
He stared at them.
Flapped again.
Nothing.
“...”
He tried a third time.
Still nothing.
Apparently, wings were useless.
Wemmbu decided this was stupid.
He turned around.
And walked directly into something.
Not a wall.
A person.
A very tall person.
Wemmbu stumbled backward.
The stranger looked down.
Wemmbu looked up.
Neither moved.
The stranger was unlike anything Wemmbu had ever seen.
Tall.
Dark.
Strange.
There was something unnatural about him, something that belonged to the End as much as the purple sky did.
MinuteTech stared down at the tiny dragon.
The tiny dragon stared back.
Minute blinked.
The dragon blinked.
Minute looked around.
There was nobody else.
He looked back down.
“...Where did you come from?”
Wemmbu tilted his head.
Minute waited.
Nothing.
The child simply stared.
Minute tried again.
“Are you lost?”
Nothing.
“Do you know where your parents are?”
Nothing.
Wemmbu's stomach growled.
Very loudly.
Minute stared at him.
Wemmbu stared at Minute.
His stomach growled again.
Minute sighed.
“Right.”
He crouched down.
Wemmbu immediately took one cautious step backward.
Minute stopped.
He didn't reach for him.
He simply lowered himself until they were closer to the same height.
“You're hungry.”
Wemmbu didn't understand the words.
But he understood the tone.
Minute pointed toward himself.
“Minute.”
Then he pointed toward the child.
A pause.
Wemmbu looked at the finger.
Then at Minute.
Then at himself.
He made a tiny noise.
“...Wem.”
Minute's eyebrows rose.
“Wem?”
The child nodded.
Minute waited.
“Wemmbu.”
Minute repeated it carefully.
“Wemmbu.”
The child's eyes widened.
Something about the sound seemed to please him.
He nodded.
Minute looked at him for several seconds.
Then, very carefully, he held out his hand.
Wemmbu stared at it.
Minute didn't move.
After another few seconds, tiny claws wrapped around one of Minute's fingers.
That was it.
That was the moment everything changed.
Minute had found a child.
And the child had found someone willing to stay.
The first few days were strange.
Wemmbu followed Minute everywhere.
Not close behind.
Not several steps away.
Everywhere.
If Minute walked somewhere, Wemmbu followed.
If Minute stopped, Wemmbu stopped.
If Minute turned around, Wemmbu nearly walked into him.
The first time Minute tried to leave the room without him, he made it approximately seven steps before hearing:
“Minute!”
He turned.
Wemmbu stood in the doorway.
Minute stared.
Wemmbu stared back.
“You were asleep.”
Wemmbu didn't understand.
Minute pointed toward the bed.
Then toward Wemmbu.
Then toward himself.
“Sleep.”
Wemmbu shook his head.
Minute sighed.
“Come on.”
Wemmbu immediately followed.
That became the pattern.
Minute would go somewhere.
Wemmbu would follow.
Eventually Minute stopped trying to leave without him.
The language problem became obvious on the fourth day.
Minute had spent the first few days assuming Wemmbu simply didn't talk.
Then he discovered that the child talked constantly.
Just not in any language Minute understood.
Wemmbu would point at things and make sounds.
“Esh.”
“Va.”
“Rii.”
“Ke.”
Minute eventually realized it was a language.
End language.
It was simple in some ways and complicated in others, built around sounds that felt strange in a human mouth but came naturally to a child born from something connected to the End.
Minute knew enough to understand him.
So he began teaching him.
Slowly.
Patiently.
One word at a time.
“Food.”
Wemmbu repeated it.
“Food.”
“Good.”
“Good.”
“Water.”
“Water.”
“Home.”
Wemmbu paused.
He looked around.
Then back at Minute.
“Home?”
Minute nodded.
“Home.”
Wemmbu looked toward him.
Then smiled.
“Home.”
Minute didn't correct him.
Flying took longer.
Wemmbu had wings.
That didn't mean he knew how to use them.
The first lesson lasted approximately thirty seconds.
Minute took him to a large open area.
“Try.”
Wemmbu stared at him.
Minute gestured toward the wings.
“Fly.”
Wemmbu looked behind himself.
Then back at Minute.
He flapped.
Nothing.
Again.
Nothing.
He frowned.
Minute folded his arms.
“Again.”
Wemmbu flapped harder.
His feet lifted approximately two inches off the ground.
His eyes widened.
He looked at Minute.
Minute nodded.
“Again.”
Wemmbu tried.
This time he rose higher.
His wings beat awkwardly.
His body tilted.
He spun.
“Wemmbu.”
The child squealed.
He was going down.
Minute moved.
Wemmbu fell straight into his arms.
There was a stunned silence.
Minute looked down at him.
Wemmbu looked up.
Then he grinned.
“Again!”
Minute stared.
“You almost broke your neck.”
Wemmbu didn't understand that either.
“Again!”
Minute sighed.
“Again.”
And so they practiced.
Every day.
Wemmbu fell.
Minute caught him.
Wemmbu tried again.
Eventually, the falling became less frequent.
Then it became rare.
Then one day, Wemmbu flew.
Not far.
Not gracefully.
But he flew.
He shot upward, wobbling wildly, and immediately began circling Minute's head.
Minute looked up.
Wemmbu laughed.
Actually laughed.
The sound echoed through the End.
Minute watched him.
For a moment, the empty dimension didn't feel quite so empty.
Months passed.
Wemmbu grew.
Not much.
He was still tiny.
But he was stronger.
He learned more words.
Then sentences.
Then questions.
Lots of questions.
“Why purple?”
“Why tall?”
“Why End?”
“Why void?”
“Why you glow?”
“Why dragon?”
“Why me?”
That last one made Minute pause.
“Why what?”
Wemmbu pointed at himself.
“Why me?”
Minute understood.
He didn't have an answer.
“I don't know.”
Wemmbu frowned.
Minute crouched beside him.
“I found you.”
Wemmbu listened.
“You were alone.”
A pause.
“So I kept you.”
Wemmbu considered this.
Then he leaned against Minute.
Minute looked down.
The child had already decided the matter was settled.
Minute smiled faintly.
“Okay.”
Their life became ordinary.
That was perhaps the strangest part.
Minute woke up.
Wemmbu was usually already awake.
Usually doing something he wasn't supposed to.
Once, Minute found him sitting on top of a pillar.
Another time, he found him trying to bite an Enderman.
Another time, Wemmbu had somehow gotten himself stuck inside a chorus plant.
Minute stared at him.
Wemmbu stared back.
“Help.”
Minute sighed.
“How did you even manage that?”
“I was exploring.”
“You're five feet away from where I left you.”
“I explored quickly.”
Minute pulled him free.
Wemmbu immediately ran off again.
Minute watched him go.
“Little menace.”
Wemmbu looked back.
“What does menace mean?”
“Nothing.”
A year passed.
Wemmbu had changed.
He was still small.
Still a dragon hybrid.
Still endlessly curious.
But he was no longer alone.
He had a home.
He had a father.
He had a language.
He could fly.
And he knew exactly where he belonged.
Until the day he didn't.
It happened quickly.
Too quickly.
Wemmbu had been exploring near one of the End's portals.
Minute was nearby.
Wemmbu had seen the portal before.
He knew what it did.
He just didn't know what would happen if he fell.
He stepped closer.
One claw touched the edge.
The portal shimmered.
Wemmbu leaned forward.
“Wemmbu.”
He looked back.
Minute was walking toward him.
Wemmbu smiled.
Then his foot slipped.
His wings snapped open.
He grabbed for the edge.
Missed.
And disappeared.
“Wemmbu!”
The world changed.
Purple became darkness.
Darkness became light.
And suddenly Wemmbu was falling.
He hit something soft.
Then hard.
Then soft again.
He rolled across grass and came to a stop.
Silence.
Wemmbu slowly lifted his head.
This place was different.
There were trees.
Buildings.
Paths.
People.
Humans.
Wemmbu stared.
He had never seen so many people.
He stood.
Looked around.
Then noticed a large building nearby.
A library.
His eyes widened.
It was enormous.
Books.
Shelves.
Windows.
All sorts of interesting things.
Wemmbu stared at it.
He tilted his head.
Then opened his mouth.
A tiny glow began forming in his throat.
A voice came from behind him.
“Absolutely not.”
Wemmbu froze.
He slowly closed his mouth.
He turned around.
A human stood there.
He had a book tucked under one arm.
He stared at Wemmbu.
Then at the library.
Then back at Wemmbu.
“Were you about to breathe fire on my library?”
Wemmbu blinked.
He didn't understand a single word.
The human sighed.
“Of course you weren't.”
Wemmbu tilted his head.
The human crouched.
“Where are your parents?”
Nothing.
“Do you understand me?”
Nothing.
“Can you speak?”
Wemmbu stared.
The human rubbed his forehead.
“This is going to be a long day.”
He reached toward Wemmbu.
Wemmbu backed away.
The human stopped.
“Okay.”
He lowered his hand.
“I'm not going to hurt you.”
Wemmbu didn't understand that either.
But he understood the gentleness.
After a moment, he stepped forward.
The human carefully picked him up.
Wemmbu immediately grabbed onto his shirt.
The human blinked.
“...Right.”
He looked down at the dragon child in his arms.
“Well.”
A pause.
“You're coming home with me.”
Wifies learned two things that first evening.
The first was that the dragon child had absolutely no idea what Human language was.
The second was that the dragon child had apparently decided Wifies was safe.
Wifies had no idea why.
He had never taken care of a child before.
Especially not one with wings.
Or horns.
Or a tail.
Or the ability to potentially burn down his house.
Yet somehow, by bedtime, there was a tiny dragon asleep on his couch.
Wifies stood over him.
“You know I do have a spare bedroom, right?”
Wemmbu slept peacefully.
Wifies sighed.
“Of course you don't care.”
He grabbed a blanket.
Covered him.
Then hesitated.
He adjusted the blanket around Wemmbu's shoulders.
“...You're lucky you're cute.”
Wemmbu shifted in his sleep.
Wifies walked away.
Five seconds later, he came back.
He checked that the child was still breathing.
Then left again.
Teaching Wemmbu Human language was an adventure.
It started with basic words.
“Water.”
“Wah-ter.”
“Good.”
“Food.”
“Food.”
“Bed.”
“Bed.”
“Wifies.”
“Wi...fies.”
Wifies smiled.
“Yeah.”
Wemmbu pointed at him.
“Wifies.”
“That’s me.”
Wemmbu grinned.
Then pointed at himself.
“Wemmbu.”
“Yep.”
“Wemmbu.”
“Yep.”
“Wemmbu.”
“I know your name.”
“Wemmbu.”
Wifies stared at him.
“You're enjoying this.”
Wemmbu smiled wider.
“Wemmbu.”
Wifies laughed despite himself.
“Okay. Fine.”
The weeks became months.
Wifies taught him Human.
Wemmbu learned quickly.
Too quickly, perhaps.
Because once he learned enough words, he discovered that language could be used against people.
Especially Wifies.
“Wifies is old.”
Wifies slowly looked up from his book.
“I'm not old.”
“You're old.”
“I'm not.”
“You read old books.”
“That doesn't make me old.”
“You smell old.”
Wifies stared at him.
“Go away.”
Wemmbu giggled.
They developed routines.
Wifies woke up.
Wemmbu was already awake.
Wifies made food.
Wemmbu stole some before it was finished.
Wifies worked.
Wemmbu sat nearby.
Sometimes he read.
Sometimes he asked questions.
Sometimes he simply existed in the same room.
That last part was something Wifies slowly came to appreciate.
He had spent so much of his life alone.
His parents had money.
They had resources.
They had everything except time.
They rarely noticed when he came home.
They rarely asked where he'd been.
The house was enormous.
It was also empty.
Until Wemmbu.
Suddenly there were footsteps.
Questions.
Books left open in strange places.
Food disappearing from the kitchen.
A tiny dragon asleep on the floor because apparently the couch was “too far away.”
The house was no longer quiet.
Wifies discovered he liked it.
He never told Wemmbu that.
Wemmbu probably would've teased him.
Four months passed.
Wemmbu knew Human now.
He knew Wifies's habits.
He knew which books Wifies liked.
He knew which cupboard contained snacks.
He knew exactly how to annoy him.
Wifies knew Wemmbu's habits too.
He knew when Wemmbu was tired.
He knew when he was hungry.
He knew when he was upset but pretending not to be.
He knew the difference between Wemmbu's normal silence and the kind that meant something was wrong.
Somewhere along the way, neither of them had noticed what had happened.
Wemmbu had stopped thinking of Wifies as the strange human who found him.
Wifies had stopped thinking of Wemmbu as the strange dragon child who had appeared in front of his library.
They were just...
Brothers.
Neither had said it.
They didn't need to.
Then Wifies made the mistake of taking Wemmbu to a carnival.
There were lights everywhere.
Music.
Games.
Food.
People.
Wemmbu was fascinated by everything.
Wifies kept one hand on his shoulder.
“Stay close.”
“I am.”
“You're already walking away.”
“I am walking near you.”
“You're twelve feet away.”
“That's near.”
“No, it isn't.”
Wemmbu laughed.
Wifies shook his head.
“You're impossible.”
Wemmbu smiled.
Then someone bumped into them.
Wifies turned for one second.
One second.
That was all it took.
When he turned back...
Wemmbu was gone.
His heart stopped.
“Wemmbu?”
Nothing.
He pushed through the crowd.
“Wemmbu!”
No answer.
He checked the nearby rides.
Nothing.
The food stalls.
Nothing.
The paths.
Nothing.
He searched again.
And again.
And again.
Wemmbu was nowhere.
Wemmbu, meanwhile, was crying.
He had no idea where Wifies was.
There were too many people.
Too much noise.
He turned in a circle.
Nothing looked familiar.
He wiped his face.
Then he saw two children nearby.
They had wings.
Birdlike ones.
Wemmbu stared.
They looked different from his wings.
But they were the closest thing he had seen to someone like him.
So he did what any lost child would do.
He walked over.
And grabbed onto Parrot.
Parrot nearly jumped.
“Uh...”
Theo looked down.
“What?”
Parrot looked at the tiny dragon clinging to him.
“...I think this kid is lost.”
Wemmbu sniffed.
Theo crouched.
“Hey.”
Wemmbu looked at him.
“Where's your family?”
Wemmbu pointed vaguely behind himself.
“Wifies.”
Parrot exchanged a look with Theo.
“Who's Wifies?”
Wemmbu started crying harder.
Theo's expression softened.
“Okay.”
He looked at Parrot.
“We can't just leave him.”
“I know.”
Parrot crouched.
“Hey, little guy.”
Wemmbu looked at him.
“You're okay.”
Wemmbu didn't know why.
But he believed him.
Parrot looked toward the crowd.
“Someone's looking for him.”
Theo nodded.
“We should stay here.”
They waited.
Minutes passed.
Then more.
Nobody came.
Eventually Theo looked toward the sky.
The flock was preparing to leave.
Parrot frowned.
“We have to go.”
Theo looked down at Wemmbu.
Wemmbu's hands tightened around Parrot's clothes.
He clearly had no intention of letting go.
Theo sighed.
“...We're taking him.”
Parrot looked at him.
“You sure?”
Theo nodded.
“He can't stay here.”
Wemmbu looked between them.
“Go?”
Theo held out his arms.
“Yeah.”
Wemmbu hesitated.
Then climbed into them.
Theo adjusted his grip.
Wemmbu rested his head against him.
Parrot looked at the tiny dragon.
Then at Theo.
Then toward the distant crowd.
Somewhere out there, a human was still searching.
But they didn't know where.
And Wifies didn't know where Wemmbu had gone.
The carnival lights continued glowing behind them as the flock began to leave.
Wemmbu looked back one last time.
He didn't know it yet.
But he was about to have another home.
And somewhere far away, Wifies was still searching for his little brother.