#c4pricornc4ts

[c4pricornc4ts]

Sbi + Tommy Rec List

All are non shipping. * = Sbi Family Dynamic Fic

please message me if there is anything wrong with the links and I will fix them. These are some of my favorites to read, I hope you enjoy and remember to leave kudos and comments. <3

Other Lists I have done, please check them out!

Sbi Sickfics ✧ My Top 5 Sbi Fanfics

Sbi + Friends 2 ✧ Sbi + Friends 3

Sbi Comforting Tommy  ✧ Irl Sbi 

Angst 

sometimes i feel tired (but that’s okay) by blasphemmy *

Scared and blind by Katsowo

I think I’ll always wait for you to come home by Luciditylost 

Where’s Schlatt? by mangiemangi 

candy wrappers by elizaa_22 

The Statue in the Park (Oneshot) by sootforbrains [personal favorite, the concept is so heartbreaking I wish it was a movie] *

Dream scares Tommy, Wilbur is not amused. by AlpineWasTaken

careful anger by mwritten * 

Until All is Lost by Subl1m1nal 

World’s End (Oneshot) by sootforbrains

so belittled by maternaljoke 

glitches by trqshlooper

[player] has left the game by anon

the walk back by anon

Happy

Championship Aftermath by sMeXylawyers 

when God had made a host of them by anon [this is how I got the concept for Phil owning a bookstore in my au]

we win these.. after we finish taking care of ourselves by trqshlooper

taking lessons on your old advice by maternaljoke

nethered by mwritten *

A Dream Come True - Brisinger9 *

May the bridges I burn light the way by iwillburninhell 

returned by mwritten *

flowers by mwritten [another personal favorite] *

Runaway Prince by HuntDue *

busy monday morning by statsvitenskap  *

Authors I like :)

maternaljoke - Their fanfics are the first I read for the fandom, really love their angst one-shots but they have some happy ones too!

mwritten - I love all of their concepts, very good at writing both lighter fanfics and more serious ones. 

trqshlooper - if you like fanfics set in the minecraft world, they make some very interesting ones. 

antarctic-bay - We would not have 90% of the family au fics we have if not for her. Wonderful writer who’s created many aus that the fandom loves. Please consider following if you’re not already!

Thank you for reading :) You can find my works here: C4pricornc4ts

[innittowinit]

INNITTOWINIT’S SUPER COOL MCYT FIC REC POST

FIRST OF ALL READ ALL OF MY FICS. THEY ARE POGGERS AND YOU WONT REGRET IT.

DONE? OKAY NOW YOU CAN READ OTHER FICS

(psst also if you want your fic taken off this list for whatever reason shoot me a pm)

Completed- multi chapter

-  kindred spirits by arochill

In which one man leaves his dream job and learns that taking care of three monster children may be better than anything else he could ever ask for.

literally so sweet, some sad parts but its a very soft read i love it

-  (this is home) by Lillian_nator for free_cookiesx

Tommy finally found the thing that he has been missing for the past 7 months. A home. People. A family. Please, just let everything be okay. 

some VERY sad parts but this one is more angst with a happy ending, i love it so much it was one of the first fics i read

-  pick me up, take me home by meridies for manciissuperior

With barely three hours notice, single father Phil receives a new child to foster. And unlike his two other adopted children, Wilbur and Techno, Tommy is seemingly hellbent on creating chaos. As their close-knit family begins falling apart, all four of them are forced to learn what it truly means to have one another.

DOOD literally such realistic interactions between the boys, its so good i felt so many emotions

Ongoing- Multi chapter

-  A Very Odd Family, Indeed by opheliabloo

It all started in the nether, all those years ago.

A retired warrior, father to the most fearsome fighter in the land, a sharp-eyed leader with a dangerous spark, and a boy who could turn mountains to dust if he put his mind to it.

Yes. They were a very odd family, indeed.

!!!!! im reading this at the moment, im on chapter 14 and i love it so much! this fic ripped out myheart but in a good way

-  You're Still Our Brothers, And We Will Fight For You by Your_Resident_Witch

Phil gets a letter from Tommy saying that Wilbur has gone insane and asking him to come and help.

SBI FAMILY AWOOGA deadass though this is such a good read for when you just want some good ol family feels, based in dream smp but its canon divergent

-  Phil accidentally becomes a father - A series of short SBI Found Family stories by CagedPuddle

Phil was an average man who lived an average life. He woke up every morning, got dressed, ate breakfast, and grabbed his fishing pole before fishing for the rest of the day. He was young, barely an adult, and he already had the rest of his life practically planned out. Well… at least until THAT day.

Piglin technoblade owns myheart!!! Each chapter more or less can work on it’s own so its good for when your feeling and you wanna get a really specific part but dont feel like reading a bunch of chapters

-  "It's Like Watching Your Little Brother" by SunOfIcarus

After hearing Wilbur describe Tommy as a younger brother, I haven't been able to get it out of my head since.

A collection of one-shots about Wilbur and Tommy having a sibling dynamic! 

DOOD one of the first fics i started reading, there is a story in this book for any emotion i s2g its so good

-  Where are your parents? by C4pricornC4ts

Wilbur, Techno, and Tommy decide to run away. Tommy is an optimist, Techno likes to disappear for days at a time and Wilbur is just trying to keep his makeshift family together.

Philza notices a struggling teenager and tries his best.

ANOTHER ONE IVE BEEN READING FOR AGES dood im obsessed with this era deadass, this fic is so soft and i love it so much, it made me feel so many things and book store owner phil owns my heart

Oneshots

-  chin up king, your crown is slipping by cryptibs

this is basically just set in a kingdom AU! in the end notes i'll add what the other SBI members positions are in the kingdom! (if you're curious)

SICKFIC POG can’t go wrong with a good sickfic deadass, techno is king in this too!!!! Plus we all know i love wilbur and technos friendship

-  core by qar

Wilbur lashes out. Tommy is a little upset. Phil's on damage control.

A good one to read when someone hurts you, its so good and the perfect amount of hurt and comfort

-  10 Years by amooniesong

Technoblade is touch-starved, Wilbur won't stand for that.

WILBUR TRAVELS TO AMERICA TO GIVE THIS MAN A HUG!!! WE ALL KNOW HOW I FEEL ABOUT WIL AND TECHNO FRIENDSHIP

-  wilbur isn't handling online school well by leggyman

just a one-shot of wilbur not handling school.

Felt this one sm, i am the same wilbur dont worry, also tommy is so so sweet in this, a good one to read if youre getting overwhelmed

-  the art and (mine)craft of war by bluesandbirds

Tommy is a gremlin. An absolute, evil gremlin child and sometimes it's a curse to be related to him. But who is this Dream guy, and why is Tommy suddenly talking about him all the time?

TECHNO JEALOUS god they really were just fighting for his attention werent they lmao, i love this sm

-  Techno screams into the void and the void responds with a fatherly hug by ChipperDotChar

Of all the adventures Techno thought he would have today, having the worst wish possible come true and end up being fantastic was admittedly not on the agenda.

What the genuine fuck just happened?

VOID PEOPLE!!!! such a unique concept and i really hope the author writes more for this au at some point

- home is where the heart is by constantly_anxious

It's midnight, and Techno can't sleep.

No one else can either.

PLATONIC CUDDLES. THATS ALL IM GONNA SAY

A quick list of authors to look at:

qar

Amooniesong

cagedpuddle

c4pricornc4ts

lillian_nator

[chikinan]

c4pricornc4ts ha respondido a tu publicación “need some help, sketching some Tender Cap Stuff TM for tomorrow, and I…”

summer skin mcree but it’s Bucky send tweet

[positivitytoonblranon]

AAA I just want to thank you for doing this, it's so nice to have a bright spot in our community !! 💕💕

im glad i can be that bright spot!!! I’m just here to bring positivity to toonblr!!!

[c4pricornc4ts]

Where’d The Hours go? - DadSchlatt College Au Chapter 1

Read it on ao3 here 

“Sir, a toddler is a lot to take on. Not to mention he’s going to need even more care to help him recover from two years in a bad home. You should consider taking a day to think it over.”

“He’s my kid, just tell me what to do or sign. Please.” The back of his head collides with the wall and he closes his eyes. He has to at least try.

---------------------

Or; Schlatt finds out he has a two year old son, and Quackity is about to win friend of the year.

Schlatt had always been a bit of a mess. He went to messy parties with even messier people. Specifically the group he filmed videos with, the self-appointed ‘Lunch-Club.’ He didn’t mind being a mess, not knowing what he did the night before, waking up in someone else’s room, he never really cared.

So here he is for what feels like the hundredth time, drunk and strung across his friend Charlie’s weird tree pillow. Laughing harder than he should at another one of Charlie’s bad puns.

They’re playing a game of jackbox and Schlatt can no longer keep the words in focus long enough to read. He ends up just typing in something random and lying down.

His turn comes around and everyone shoots him a concerned look when they see his submission. Ted nudges his shoulder.

“Schlatt what the hell does SRHBF even mean?”

“Figure it out Ted, I shouldn’t have to give you all the answers.” He pauses to think and everyone stifles a laugh but waits patiently to hear what else Schlatt is gonna say. “You’re smart, not smarter than me… but smart.”

“Smart enough to know Stal is a good music disc.”

“You take that back.” He goes to get up, his hand sliding across the floor. It’s harder to stand than it should be.

“Or what?” Ted gets up and crosses his arms, standing over Schlatt who’s still kneeling on the floor.

“I-I’ll fight you.” He reaches his arm out to try and push himself off the floor and sighs when he can’t do it. “Later. Is it always hard to stand? How are you doing it so easy? Is it the glass?” He reaches his hand up and grabs Ted’s glasses.

Charlie gets up off the couch next and takes Ted’s glasses from Schlatt. “Alright grandpa let’s get you to bed.”

Charlie helps Schlatt stand up and Ted puts his glasses back on and grabs his other arm.

“I’m not that old, I can-” He jerks his arm out of Charlie’s grasp. “I can walk.”

The shorter throws up his arms in mock defense and rolls his eyes, but stays close incase Schlatt does fall.

He manages to stay upright the whole two block walk to his apartment. Though he leans heavily on Ted. He’s laughing at the way his breath clouds in the cold but stops when they start dragging him up the stairs. Schlatt hates living on the fourth story.

He loses his grip on the rail. “Charlie, Charles slow down I can’t- oh fuck.” He falls up the stairs.

Charlie realizes Schlatt is no longer behind him and hurries back to him, Ted just laughs from the top of the staircase. Doubled over while Schlatt glares at him.

“I hope you remember all this in the morning.”

He gets up with the help of Charlie and the rail before stumbling past Ted to shakily grab his keys out of his pocket to unlock the apartment door. Practically falling against it as it swung open.

He breathes out a sigh of relief, happy to finally be home. Smiling, he turns to the pair. “Same thing tomorrow night? I’ll bring… something, probably.”

“You won’t ever want to do that again when you feel the migraine from it tomorrow.” Ted laughs.

“Bull. Shit.”

Ted closes his door for him and Charlie hurriedly tells him to “Put a painkiller and some water by your bed! Sober you will be grateful!”

His friends can be a lot, but sometimes they give good advice. It’s usually a good idea to take Charlie’s advice, so he opens the cabinet for a cup.

He opens the fridge and pulls out the container of filtered water and, with minimal spill, pours himself a glass.

He wants to turn off the kitchen lights but with the way the wall was moving he wasn’t sure he should bother. Instead just opting to go to bed, throwing his jeans and shirt on the floor and practically falling on the twin bed he had stowed in the corner.

He finally gets comfortable when his phone rings from his jean pocket on the floor. Assuming it's just a spam call or Quackity wanting to do a late night stream, he leaves it to ring.

The problem is once the ringing finally stops, it starts again. Whoever this was must really need him.

So he gets up reluctantly and uncovers his phone from the pile on the floor. Answering it without even checking the ID. Which is never a good decision. “Mm’ hello?”

“Hi, this is the department of social services calling. Is this Mr. J. Schlatt?”

“Yeah that’s- uh me.” He drags his hand down his face in embarrassment. He really wasn’t in a good place to have a professional call right now.

“I’m sorry to call this late but we have custody of your toddler son, Tubbo Miller.”

“You got the wrong number, I don’t have any kids.” He sits on the edge of his bed, feeling nauseous.

“It’s your name in his files, and this is the number the mother gave us for you. I’m sorry if this is a bit of a shock but we need you to make a decision. Tubbo’s mother, Amy Miller can no longer maintain custody of the child due to severe negligence.”

He hasn’t heard from Amy in years. Not since they woke up in the same bed. Schlatt mumbles out a quick, “Hold on.” before going to vomit everything that could have possibly been in his stomach. Thankful the phone had a mute button.

He’s coughing and wiping his mouth with a washcloth when he unmutes himself. Choosing to stay on the cold bathroom floor for the rest of the phone call. And maybe the night. “I- I yeah we- he’s my kid. I just didn’t know he was… born?”

“Then this is probably quite a shock to you.”

“Probably?”

“Let me tell you your options; we can put him in the system, until someone can adopt him. Or I can come over and we can discuss you getting custody. Neither of these choices make you a bad parent, and you don’t have to decide right now-”

“Are you fuckin’ kidding? I’m his, he’s my boy. I want custody, just tell me what I need to do.” He feels rude for interrupting her, since she sounds so nice over the phone.

“Sir, a toddler is a lot to take on. Not to mention he’s going to need even more care to help him recover from two years in a bad home. You should consider taking a day to think it over.”

“He’s my kid, just tell me what to do or sign. Please.” The back of his head collides with the wall and he closes his eyes. He has to at least try.

“I’ll come over in two days for a house inspection then. I’d advise you get supplies and start baby proofing the house till then. And don’t worry, most people in your situation do end up with custody”

“I can do that. Thanks.”

He can hear sniffling in the background, the lady’s voice getting further away as she shushes what Schlatt can only assume is Tubbo gently. “I’ll send you a text confirming everything in the morning. Get some rest while you can, toddlers won’t let you.”

He laughs weakly, trying not to throw up again as he hangs up the phone and goes through his contacts to call Quackity. Though the younger played a loud and chaotic persona, he gave surprisingly good advice. And that’s what Schlatt needed right now.

Thankfully he isn’t streaming when he answers, as Schlatt doesn’t need the whole world knowing he has a kid when he hasn’t had time to process it himself.

“What type of shit do babies need?”

There’s a pause on the other side of the line, Schlatt holds the phone far away from him and waits.

“WHAT?” Quackity shouts, his voice breaking up through the phone.

“Apparently I’m a fuckin’ dad now, what type of shit do babies need?” He knows he should elaborate more but he's exhausted at this point.

“It’s way too late for this. I’ll be there in the morning, and you better explain yourself, Schlatt.”

“Let yourself in, keys are under the mat.”

“Spare no detail, I gotta know exactly how big Schlatt has a little kid.”

With that Schlatt laughs and hangs up without saying goodbye. Quackity never cared if he hung up abruptly.

He passes out on the bathroom floor, not even bothering to turn off the light.

[c4pricornc4ts]

Sbi + Friends Rec List 3

This list is split into two sections; fanfics in the real world and fanfics in minecraft. 

They are in order from fluffiest to heavy angst so if you want to laugh, use the top of each list, and if you want to cry, bottom of the lists. Thank you for all the support and as always, please message me if there’s anything wrong with the links and I will fix them. Enjoy!

Real World

Sisterinnit - amooniesong 

2.1k 1/1 Family, Fluff 

“Wilbur, do you know anything about babies?”

“Tommy, I am not giving you the talk on my stream.”

“Wha-- Wilbur!” Tommy scoffed, his familiar high pitched laugh blasting through Wilbur’s headphones and broadcasting into the ears of the twenty-four thousand people watching Wilbur. “That is not what-- I don’t-- I mean, what do they do? Other than just piss and shit and sleep?”

A Day on The Farms - Moonbear_Meliox 

1.9k 1/1 Family, Fluff 

They're farmers now

the art and (mine)craft of war - bluesandbirds 

4.2k 1/1 Family, Humor 

Tommy is a gremlin. An absolute, evil gremlin child and sometimes it's a curse to be related to him. But who is this Dream guy, and why is Tommy suddenly talking about him all the time? Alternatively: Techno, nobody is trying to steal your little brother, that would be kidnapping, please calm down.

ok maybe ghosts exist - itsjosh 

1.2k 1/1 Humor 

The ghost stream is as much of a success as it can be.

pick me up, take me home - meridies 

24k 3/4 Family, Angst 

With barely three hours notice, single father Phil receives a new child to foster. And unlike his two other adopted children, Wilbur and Techno, Tommy is seemingly hellbent on creating chaos. As their close-knit family begins falling apart, all four of them are forced to learn what it truly means to have one another.

Fever Dreams - RedHairedN3rd 

1.5k 1/1 Family, Angst 

Phil reflects on when his youngest had a fever.

Just a Fluke - kageyamas_meat_dance

4.4k 1/1 Angst, Hurt/Comfort

Tommy is going through it and isolates himself and everyone else gets really worried. 

The child who is not loved by the village will burn it down to feel it’s warmth - ChipperDotChar

1k 1/1 Angst, No Comfort 

Tommy gets tired of being insulted and treated like a toddler by the people he looks up to, and he’s also armed with a lighter.

A little pyromania never hurt anyone.

Kidnapped - MeltingAutumn 

3.7k 2/? Angst, Hurt/Comfort 

“Tubbo?” Wilbur finally shatters the silence with a gentle, broken voice. “Did, um… did you hear?”

Instead of replying, Tubbo bursts into tears.

A Loud Boys’ Guide To Unhappiness - soupstarsandsilence 

3.8k 1/? Angst, Hurt/Comfort 

Late one night, Tommy runs away. He's going to stay with Will (not that the older man knows it yet), and maybe while he's there he'll remember how to be happy.

Minecraft 

family in all its forms - subwaywalls

6.8k 2/? Family, Humor

Philza joins Dream SMP, finds several children, and realizes he is the only responsible adult here.

A Survivor and His Bloodthirsty Son - CakeCleaner 

7.4k 3/? Family, Hurt/Comfort, Angst 

“You’re a strange one aren’t you, mate?” The piglin gave him a huff that sounded way too deep to be a child’s and an indifferent expression, his previously petting hands retreated back to his side and he stared the elder down with no hints of aggression or fear, as if he was the one dawning Netherite gear and not the other way around.

Or: Phil adopts a little piglin and said piglin grows up into what legends would whisper with fear as the Blood God

“You’re What!” - Thing_Of_Trash

300 1/1 Family, Humor 

Tommy sees what's happening to his Older Brother and knows he has to take drastic measures.

A Winter’s Ball - Syverne 

4.9k 1/1 Angst 

Wilbur Soot, Tommyinnit, and Technoblade are invited, among others, to restart an old tradition of celebrating the winter solstice by attending a masquerade ball hosted in Manburg. This is the first winter's ball since the devastating volcanic eruption rocked the world and wiped out most of Earth's population - and had strange effects on those who survived. Despite worries that it might be a trap, the citizens of Pogtopia attend this ball under promises of a truce, and Wilbur comes face-to-face with an old friend whom he thought had long turned to hate him. or; Wilbur Soot and Jschlatt dance.

Turn Back Time - ErrorCode_21891711 

3.2k 1/1 Angst 

Wilbur didn't expect to find Tubbo and Tommy turned into children. An accident with potions leads to Tommy and Tubbo being turned into 9 year old children and it's up to Wilbur and the rest of the people of the Dream SMP to take care of they're youngest members until they find a way to either reverse what's been done or wait until it might wears off. They didn't expect to learn some unpleasant things about Tubbo and Tommy's past along the way.

Even the strongest can be weak - fan_fics_are_life

1.6k 1/1 Sickfic, Mild Angst 

Technoblade wants to train Tommy but his health says no.

flower fields (and the bees that live there) - noahloveszombies

1k 1/1 Family, Comfort

niki, tommy and tubbo finally get away from the war.

or; niki becomes a big sister.

Father Goat & Mother Duck - Valkohai  

6.3k 5/? Family, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort 

Sometimes, a family can be found in even the oddest people. In Tubbo's case, those people were tyrannical dictators. Just his luck, huh?

Don’t hurt him - AlpineWasTaken 

1k 1/1 Angst 

Bad's skin crawled with discomfort and phantom pains as he stood firmly in front of Tommy.

"Don't hurt him."

“Show him the door.” - ViolentVioletEye 

3k 1/1 Series, Family 

Schlatt will do anything to protect his son. Even if it means becoming President for a nation he knows next to nothing about. He's been thrust into stranger situations. He can handle this.

Tar Filled Lungs and Bloodless Hearts. - gayblockz (lizandre)

1.7k 1/4 Angst, Hurt/Comfort

Cigarettes are merely a lousy distraction that keep him from doing what needs to be done. Cigarettes are a futile attempt at keeping warm. Cigarettes are the reason Manburg is still standing.

A story detailing Wilbur Soot's seven last cigarettes.

“It’s okay. I trust you.” - Lilian_nator

1.2k 1/1 Angst

"It's okay Wilbur. I trust you. I trust you will do the right thing."

mother drake (your duckling drowned) - anon

3.8k 2/2 Angst, Character Study

After the Manburg Festival, Quackity takes a walk alone. The thought keeps coming back to him.

Hell Hath No Fury - lavender_macaronss 

900 1/1 Angst 

“Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned” Niki finds out about Wilbur’s plans, and she does not take kindly to them

The trial of Tubbo - EfoxKitty

11k 4/8 Angst, Major Character Death 

It's finally over. They've won and L'Manburg is free once again. The president is dead and his tyrannical regime is over. But now they have to deal with a question: What are they going to do with Schlatt's right hand man? Tubbo, only a child, yet still a murderer. How can they fairly judge his involvement in the new government? By organizing a trial with Tubbo as the main witness/suspect.

[c4pricornc4ts]

Where'd the Hours go? - Chapter 3 Dadschlatt College Au

Read it on ao3 here or on my wattpad here!

Other Chapters: 1 ✧ 2 ✧

WARNINGS FOR: Implied Child Neglect, Smoking, Swearing

The toddler was dressed in an oversized green button down that- from the looks of it, was buttoned by the boy himself given that it's uneven. Everything looks so big on him and his hair is a mess. There's a red pacifier in his mouth and he's looking at Schlatt with wide brown eyes.

He's handed a black garbage bag. "What- why did you bring up trash? The bins are outside."

"It's not trash." Leslie nods to Tubbo. "It's his belongings."

Schlatt wakes up to the smell of smoke. He’s fairly confident Quackity did something stupid to set it off but he still hurries to check. He needed to be awake anyways to finish baby proofing the apartment for inspection.

The ram confirmed his suspicions when he saw Quackity in an apron he didn’t even know he owned waving away smoke coming from a pan with something so burnt Schlatt couldn’t even tell what it was.

“Y’know just knocking on my bedroom door would wake me up, no need to try and burn the damn apartment down.”

“Who knew following Ranboo’s cereal video could go so poorly?”

“That was CEREAL?” Schlatt turns back to his soon-to-be shared room, it was too early to figure out how his friend managed that. Though he’s sure there’s a good story behind it.

He gets dressed and goes to clean up the living room, Quackity focusing on trying to fix whatever crime he committed in the kitchen. They talk while they pick up, Quackity telling him what was happening in law school and Schlatt telling him about how he fell up the stairs.

“You fell UP the stairs?”

“Yes, up the stairs. Do you even listen to-”

They freeze when there’s a knock at the door. Quackity going over and shoving him towards it with a whispered “Charm her.” Before the duck makes himself scarce but thankfully, still in sight if Schlatt should need him.

He opens the door, and looks up at the woman who he assumes is the same one over the phone and steps aside to let her in.

“I’m Leslie, we spoke over the phone, yes?” She holds out her hand, shifting her clipboard further into her side.

He stares at her outstretched hand for maybe too long before realizing he’s supposed to shake it. “Yeah, I’m Schlatt that’s- that’s Alex.”

“Do you want something to drink?” Quackity asks from the kitchen, opening several cabinets looking for the cups. He opens Schlatt’s liquor cabinet and freezes, looking back at him sheepishly mouthing ‘sorry.` towards Schlatt

Schlatt tries to laugh it off, turning back to Leslie who just checks something off on her paper.

“Put a lock on it and you’re fine.” She keeps walking around, telling them a few things they might want to do. Things neither of the boys would’ve thought of like covering the open outlets.

She finishes looking around and all three of them sit at the kitchen table, the social worker passing over a custody form and a file.

“By signing this you’ll be granting custody of Tubbo, the form just needs you to promise you’ll put him in a school and allow the system to make house visits.” She passes him a pen while Quackity takes the manila folder and opens it.

“So Ms. Leslie, tell me what I’m looking at here.” Quackity has his nose almost touching the paper trying to read the small text. At the top is a small black and white photo paper clipped to the page.

“It’s nothing bad, as you can see it’s not very full. Just a few notes about his behavior and his birth certificate.” She reaches over and points at the section labeled ‘Additional comments’ “We’re not sure if he can speak, he has screaming fits over seemingly nothing, and is incredibly shy.”

“What do we do if he really can’t talk?” Schlatt pushed the forms back to her, scooting his chair towards Quackity so they could look at the file together.

“You won’t need to worry about that, he’s been through a lot. He most likely just needs some stability. Somewhere where he feels safe enough to express himself.” She puts the now signed form on her clipboard and stands up. “He just needs someone to make him feel loved, then if that doesn’t work we’ll talk about speech therapy.”

Quackity takes the small photo of Tubbo and puts it on the fridge. “Oh my god Schlatt he has little horns!”

Schlatt walks over to the fridge to get a closer look. Sure enough, even though it’s the grainiest picture he’d seen, the horns were clearly poking through the toddlers head. A hand in his mouth and wide eyes looking right at the camera, the resemblance was there.

“Poor kid, must’ve hurt to get those so early.” It hurt him to know he wasn’t there to help his kid through the painful process of growing horns.

“Remember in middle school when I had to bring you your homework because your horns were always hurting?”

“Don’t remind me.” He shuddered at the thought. He’d rather have a migraine everyday then ever go through the pain of growing horns again.

“I’ll bring him by tonight if that’s alright with you?”

“That’s great, we’ll be here.” Schlatt walks her to the door, they add each other into their respective contact lists before she’s headed back down the apartment stairs.

“She can have him here by tonight? Wow, same day delivery.”

“Didn’t you know? CPS is partnered with Amazon these days.”

“Wait, really?” Quackity slams the fridge closed and looks behind him towards Schlatt.

“No, not really, Dumbass.” Schlatt shakes his head and goes to put Tubbo’s file in the designated important stuff drawer. He hears Quackity shuffling behind him, zipping up his bookbag.

“Oh. Well this dumbass needs to go to class.”

“You’ll be done by tonight right?” Of course the duck would fail to mention he had law school today. Schlatt feels a surge of guilt when he thinks about how much stress he must be causing Quackity. He’s already balancing streaming and school, now Schlatt’s gone and dragged him into this mess as well.

“ ‘Course I will be, gotta meet my new godson.” Schlatt hands him his glasses and he’s out the door with a wave and another promise to be home to see Tubbo tonight.

Schlatt sits on the living room couch, editing a video on his laptop. His hands itch for a cigarette but he really doesn’t want a social worker to smell that on him. That’d be responsible of him, right?

He finishes a new jackbox video and passes out on the couch, only to be woken up by Quackity tossing his unreasonably heavy backpack at him. He wheezes and throws the backpack off his stomach, the books inside hitting against each other with several thuds.

“Judging by how you're sleeping right now, I guess Little T isn't here yet."

"We’re not calling him 'Little T' it doesn't even make sense. It implies there's a big T and last I checked there's only a big Q and a Big man. No T." He sits up fully, putting his elbows on his legs and leaning into his hands. He feels the couch dip as Quackity sits next to him.

"When he's big, he'll be big T, but right now he's little. So… little T."

"I'm not calling him that."

"Suit yourself."

He keeps his eyes closed, and listens to the sound of Quackity turning on the television. He never knew what the duck would play, it was always something different and usually chaotic.

The sound of one of Quackity's intros begins to play and Schlatt laughs and pushes a smug Quackity off the couch.

"Give me that remote, you've lost youtube privileges."

Schlatt leans over the couch and reaches for the remote the now floored Quackity is keeping away from him.

"My videos are not bad, and I will in fact be showing Tubbo every single one of them as soon as he gets here."

He pins Quackity's right arm and grabs the remote. He starts to laugh when he falls off the couch, joining Quackity between the coffee table and the couch.

He grips the remote tightly, careful to keep the remote close to him so the duck couldn't snatch it back. They're both sitting on the floor, facing each other with their knees against the couch base.

It's one of Quackity's older videos, Schlatt lets it play.

Another roblox raid video is about to begin when there's a knock at the door. Schlatt turns off the TV and brushes off his clothes before rushing to answer.

"Hello again." He smiles when he sees the face of the same woman that had come by earlier. He looks down and his eyes widen when he sees Tubbo.

The toddler was dressed in an oversized green button down that- from the looks of it, was buttoned by the boy himself given that it's uneven. Everything looks so big on him and his hair is a mess. There's a red pacifier in his mouth and he's looking at Schlatt with wide brown eyes.

He's handed a black garbage bag. "What- why did you bring up trash? The bins are outside."

"It's not trash." Leslie nods to Tubbo. "It's his belongings."

Quackity comes up to the door. He looks at the trash bag and then to the toddler. "I mean, not what I was expecting but really what was I thinking? Not like he'd have a suitcase."

Schlatt takes the makeshift bag and sets it against the crib in his room.

He walks back out to see Leslie now holding Tubbo against her hip talking to Quackity.

The duck is nodding very seriously and copying the way the woman has her arms. Schlatt is confused about what they're doing till she carefully passes Tubbo to Quackity. His smile reaches his eyes when he manages to not drop the boy.

Tubbo doesn't seem as happy to be held, he's leaning away from Quackity and reaching for Leslie. Whining, and clearly very nervous.

Schlatt couldn't blame him, Quackity wasn't known for being careful with anything. He'd be nervous too in the toddler's situation.

"Careful with my kid, I don't want him to get dropped and then never want to be held again before I even get the chance." He walks past Quackity and Tubbo, headed towards the door. Leslie follows him.

“If it’s too much, you can always give him up.” She looks so serious Schlatt can’t look her in the eyes anymore. “Do what’s best for him, don’t let pride keep him somewhere that isn’t meeting his needs.”

Schlatt wonders if this woman was just that good at reading people or if she gives this speech to everybody. He lies through his teeth when he tells her he’d never be too proud to make the right decision. Everyone who has ever met him will tell you he thinks only with his ego.

She leaves, and as soon as he closes the door he lets out the breath he was holding and goes back to the kitchen.

“He’s light, I read that two year olds were hard to carry.”

“Maybe you’re just strong.”

Quackity readjusts so Tubbo is further up his hip. “You know that’s not true. Should we be worried he’s this light?”

Schlatt reaches his hands out, Quackity awkwardly passes Tubbo over to him. He’s no longer whining but rather is just staring at them both with wide eyes.

“Hey buddy, I know it’s a lot to take in.” He pats Tubbo on the back. “What about some dinner? Get you weighing more with a grilled cheese.”

With the help of Quackity they get Tubbo situated in the tiny booster seat. The duck sits next to the boy, handing a small stuffed animal to keep him occupied while Schlatt cooks.

He makes one for each of them and adds some fruit on the side, setting it down in front of the two before going to sit across from them.

Quackity cuts Tubbo’s into smaller bits while the toddler watches with his hand in his mouth. When Quackity finishes he takes his hands away but Tubbo makes no move to eat on his own.

Schlatt and Quackity exchange a look before the duck picks up a small piece and brings it up to Tubbo’s mouth. Gently prying the toddler’s hand away from his mouth.

Tubbo refuses to eat it. Turning away and putting his hand back in his mouth.

“I promise it tastes better than it looks, I only burned it a little bit.” Schlatt encourages him, before reaching over and taking a small piece of Tubbo’s sandwich and eating it. “See? Now you.”

Tubbo smiles a little but continues to suck on his fingers instead. Quackity and Schlatt continue eating thinking of what to try next. He didn’t want to force the kid to eat it, maybe he just didn’t like that food. Kids can be picky.

“What about some juice? Or-or some apple slices?” Quackity finishes his sandwich and goes over to the fridge taking out an apple and a caprisun.

“Quackity is offering you one of his favorite drinks, you should feel honored Tubs.” Maybe the little ram does, it’s hard to tell what he’s feeling when all he does is stare.

The apple is sliced and placed infront of him and Quackity opens the caprisun before his phone rings. “It’s Karl, I forgot I’m supposed to record with him today. Shit, hold on you two.” He goes to his room, leaving Schlatt alone, sitting across from his kid.

He stares at Tubbo, leaning back and folding his hands on the table. They stare at each other for a moment before Tubbo takes his hand out of his mouth and starts to cry.

Schlatt walks over to him and picks him up out of the seat. “No no no don’t do that don’t uh- don’t cry please?” He bounces him and pats his back but it doesn’t seem to help. The kid buries his head on Schlatt’s shoulder and sobs, and Schlatt cringes from the feeling of his slimy hands on his arm and the noise.

“Oh my god, Quackity!”

Quackity rushes out and relaxes when he sees there’s no danger. Besides the idiot in front of him. But he’s more of a danger to himself. “Maybe he’s bored? I’d cry too if I had to just sit and stare at your ugly face.”

“Bro what the fuck?”

“Just put on some of those weird kids youtube videos! Babies cry, Schlatt. It's like- 90% of what they do.”

And that’s how Schlatt ended up on the couch, watching one of those baby sensory videos with a sniffling toddler who still hadn’t eaten a damn thing.

There’s a rainbow bouncing across a black background with some soft music and for a moment Schlatt finds himself just as immersed in it.

Tubbo’s hand is back in his mouth and Schlatt notes he needs to get him something to chew on later, but for now, the poor kid needs a tissue. He leans over to the coffee table to grab one, careful not to disturb the toddler who is currently clinging to his side like a koala.

He wipes his nose, with thankfully no protest from Tubbo. Before taking another tissue and gently wiping the tear tracks away. “It’s gonna be okay, it’s- it’s okay kid.”

Tubbo puts his head against Schlatt's side, and Schlatt props his feet up on the coffee table. Getting comfortable before leaning his head back on the couch.

By the time Quackity was done recording with Karl, which was quite the struggle to do on his laptop, Schlatt and Tubbo were both asleep on the couch. He considers waking them up, but he really didn’t want Tubbo to cry again. So he brings the untouched fruit over to the living room and turns off the TV before bringing his laptop out to the couch and editing quietly next to the two.

He calls it a successful day, after all everyone was alive, right?

[c4pricornc4ts]

Who Would Ever Want to be King? - Chapter One

Also on my ao3: here

--------

Eret has long decided that his loneliness is worth never hurting people again. He ruined his family, he wouldn't ruin anyone else's.

And so he lived on, and he lived on alone.

Or; two children escape a war that was never theirs to fight and find themselves right where they belong.

Eret lived alone. And not the kind of alone that a hermit or a loner might enjoy, he lived alone not by preference but forced to by his terrible choices.

Betraying the only people who stood by you tends to cause one to find oneself alone. He earned this crown through blood, but not by his bloodline.

Eret Rivera was king, and Eret Rivera was lonely.

He wasn't in complete isolation these past five years, the occasional traveler would stop for the night and tell him stories of the world and update him on the affairs of all the neighboring kingdoms.

He heard of every war, he learned of a place called Pogtopia and how L’manberg and been renamed ‘Manberg’ under new rule.

Sometimes when he hears of these issues, he feels grateful to be alone. He was tired of hurting people, of getting children involved in wars they were too young to understand.

When he betrayed his country, he betrayed war. Becoming a king with nothing to offer but shelter for the wary.

Eret has long decided that his loneliness is worth never hurting people again. He ruined his family, he wouldn't ruin anyone else's.

And so he lived on, and he lived on alone.

He's lying down on his silk sheets, reading by candlelight when it happens. It was storming out, the rain pouring in sheets with the occasional rolls of thunder. Perfect for reading. Not so perfect if you’re outside however.

"Tommy?! Oh God, Tommy?" Someone shrieks from the woods outside. They sound young, and more importantly they sound scared.

Eret snaps the book closed and hurries outside, not caring about his pajamas or the fact he had no shoes on, only grabbing his sword before rushing out the door to find the source.

"Hello?" he calls out. The rain made it almost impossible to see anything. He had to hope someone would reply.

He hears someone gasp, and then the rustle of leaves over the constant downpour. The people were scared of him.

"I'm here to help, this is not enemy territory you've found yourself in." He makes a show of lowering the sword, in case the person could see him.

A few moments later, he sees a brunette in a green shirt step out from the cover of the forest. He looks young, no older than 12. But his body was battered like that of a soldier.

Eret felt sick. He knew the people in that war, either side would've had no qualms with children fighting their battles. He probably was a soldier.

"Help him, please. H-he's not waking up I don't-" The boy is out of breath, even through the rain the king can tell he's been sobbing.

"Take me to him then." He steps forwards, the sword forgotten behind him. There were more important things than a weapon right now.

The boy jerks his head in a nod and starts to walk back into the woods, before long he is brought behind a bush where he sees another boy lying down. His clothes soaked through and his blond hair stuck to his forehead by the rain.

Upon further inspection, he realized the boy was bleeding from a gash on his forehead. It was getting washed away by the rain but there was so much blood it was still noticeable.

That, Eret decided, was definitely not a good sign.

The boy was small, not as small as his friend but still easy enough for Eret to pick up. So he does. Cradling his head gently to avoid further injury.

He turns to the other boy. "We need to get him inside, are you alright?"

The other nods in response, but Eret wasn't expecting anything more. He was shaking so badly he was afraid the younger boy would collapse.

He carries the unconscious boy out of the forest and right through the castle doors. Only glancing back to check on how the other was doing.

He lays the blond down on his bed, and gestures for the other to sit down on the left side.

He'd prepare another room for them soon, but for now he tries not to think about how his sheets were getting ruined by all the blood and dirt.

"What happened?" He was wrapping the gash on the side of the boy's head as they spoke.

"Tommy, he and-and I-- we, we uh well he- h-he tripped and- is he gonna be okay?"

"He's gonna be alright. You're gonna be alright too." The poor kid was scared out of his mind even now that he was getting help. Eret wanted to reassure him, even if he had to make promises he wasn't sure he could keep.

"Tubbo. I-I'm Tubbo. And thank you." The boy smiles but doesn't look up at Eret. Just continues to watch as the bandages wrapped around Tommy slowly turn red.

He goes over to his dresser and gives Tubbo a pair of dry clothes. Before going over to figure out how to get Tommy in something dry before they're dealing with more than a head injury. Tubbo changes quickly and goes to put his clothes on the porch outside the room.

"Are you twins?" Besides their age, they don't really seem to have much in common. Tommy was blond and tall with sharper features than the usual ten year old. Tubbo was short and had brown hair with much softer features. He knows there are thousands of more important questions he needs to and should ask the pair, but those can wait till after the storm.

"No, he's my best friend. I'm from Manberg he's- well he's not. He's from somewhere else I don't-" Eret's eyes darkened. His heart hurts to realize these were children who didn't even know where they were from anymore. He doesn't think he wants to let these two go back to that mess.

"Come help me lift him up, we need to get him in something dry." Tubbo does, he hesitantly takes Tommy's shoulder and helps Eret put a new, much warmer shirt on him. The blond stays dead to the world, which really wasn't good.

They lay him back down and Eret quickly finishes swapping his clothes. Tossing them on the porch with less care than Tubbo had previously shown.

He grabs a spare blanket from under the bed and drapes it around Tubbo's shaking shoulders. Before pulling up a chair beside Tommy for him.

"I'll watch him, you lie down alright? You don't have to sleep but just relax or your body won't warm up." He can't stand seeing the poor boy shake anymore. Children shouldn't suffer like this. He won't let them get hurt anymore.

"What's your name?" The boy lies down on Tommy's right side and props the pillow up so he's facing the king.

"Eret. I’m a king of some sort, I’m not sure if your kingdoms still speak of me.”

“Sometimes Fundy says your name, only when he thinks no one's listening though. Why?”

“I did something bad, I hurt a lot of people. But that’s the past, and everyday I’m trying to make up for it.”

“Once you’re forgiven you don’t need to keep making up for it though.” His eyes close, he’s struggling to stay awake.

“I wasn’t forgiven unfortunately.” He whispers, afraid his voice might waiver if he said it any louder.

“I think Fundy would, he really seems to miss you.” The boy yawns, and this time let’s himself fall asleep.

Eret picks back up his book and settles into the chair behind him. Prepared for a long night. He knows head injuries can be tricky. He’s not so sure he should be letting Tommy sleep right now, but he didn’t have the heart to put the boy through the pain of being awake with this injury.

Around 2 am, Tommy wakes up with a gasp. He tries to sit up to which Eret responds with a hand pushing against his chest. Stopping him from affecting his injury.

“Who the hell are you?” The boy glares at Eret, but thankfully doesn’t try to sit up.

He’s taken aback by how bold the boy is, he wasn’t expecting it after how timid Tubbo had been. Perhaps that’s how the two survived this long. The mean one to get them into trouble, the quiet one to get them out of it.

“I’m someone who is trying to help you. Tubbo’s right there, he’s fine too.” Tommy can’t really turn his head that way and still be lying down so he reaches out and grabs Tubbo’s hand before lifting it up, checking that it's him. Eret assumes it is as Tommy sets down the hand and sighs.

“Thanks, or something.” He grumbles and before Eret could respond he’s already out again.

Eret runs a hand down his face and laughs to himself, what exactly had he just gotten himself into?

[c4pricornc4ts]

The Minors Lunch Club (MLC for short.)

This is a Valentines day one-shot for intruxx <3

Characters: Tommy, Ranboo, Sam, Tubbo

Catagory: Fluff 

Words:2.1k 

For a MCYT writing challenge, join the writer’s block discord here!

----------------------------------------------- It’s a very on-brand thing for Tommy to do- leave getting his friend a gift the day before Valentine’s day. He kept putting it off because he wasn’t sure what to get Ranboo. He has hybrid friends, but Tubbo was easy. He and Sam had taken a break from the hotel to make the boy a small bee necklace that he knew he’d love. 

Endermen were a whole new category. What did enderman hybrids even like? He hadn’t talked to Ranboo much unlike Tubbo. So he was really at a loss for ideas. Are there items that are offensive to give an enderman? He hopes Sam will know. Otherwise, he’s going to have to ask Tubbo and he really doesn’t want to get laughed at. 

Sam doesn’t laugh, even if Tommy knew the question was ridiculous. He wasn’t used to that. 

“What do endermen like?” He’s gathering more wood for the hotel, Sam somewhere behind him. 

“What are you setting up some kind of… enderman trap?” 

He throws his axe down, splitting another log. Trying to keep his focus on his work, embarrassed to admit the truth to Sam. 

“No- I don’t know what to get Ranboo for tomorrow. And I don’t think he’d appreciate me trapping his cousins.” 

“Yeah you’re right, don’t tell him about Philza’s hardcore world then.” Tommy hears Sam shudder, his tail making a slight sound as it puffs out. 

“Didn’t plan on it Big S.” Tommy laughs and cuts through another trunk. 

“Just get him something he likes, we hybrids aren’t that different you know.” 

“That’s the problem! I don’t know what he likes. We barely talk, but Tubbo went and invited the guy to our lunch and now I need to find him something.” He tosses the logs into their wheelbarrow and pushes it towards Sam’s pile to collect his as well. 

“Okay then, get him a grass block or something. Better yet, let him pick. Y’know?” 

“Your ideas are shit, Sam.” He hopes Sam can somehow hear a “thank you” in that insult. Because Tommy just got the best idea ever. “I’ll drop all this off, then I’m off to build something else. I’ll see you tonight yeah?” 

“See you then, good luck with Ranboo. The only way you could mess this up is by giving him water so just- don’t do that.” The creeper hybrid goes back to the rest of the trees as Tommy pulls out his silk touch shovel and gets to work collecting grass blocks and a few other blocks just in case Ranboo likes variety. 

He tucks his new blocks away into his inventory and goes towards the main path of the SMP. 

With how far everything has gone, can he even call this the main path anymore?

He goes into the abandoned Walmart that Tommy for the life of him can’t remember who built it and starts arranging the mostly grass blocks into different piles and sections. Adding a small pile of sand and some smooth stone he mined with a silk touch pick for a little variety. He can’t have a store that only sold one thing, it was bad for the economy. He reasons. 

Once he was finished he went to Sam’s house to find something to make for dinner. He and the creeper hybrid had a deal, he does dinners and Sam lets him stay in the spare room while the hotel is being built. Though he knows Sam doesn’t actually care if he does it, he just wants Tommy to feel like he’s earning his stay. 

He appreciates it. He’ll never say it out loud but he appreciates all the little things Sam does for him. Maybe he’ll try being nicer to the man tomorrow. 

Probably not. 

He tears into his baked potato after wrapping Sam’s in some tin foil before running up the stairs to his room. Tomorrow he would drag a hopefully excited Ranboo to an abandoned Walmart and make the best second impression ever. 

------------------------------------------------

Once he’s dressed and double-checks he has Tubbo’s gift in his inventory he pulls out his communicator to message Ranboo. Leaning against the front door. 

You whisper to Ranboo: Hey, meet me outside Sam’s house, I want to show you something. :)

Ranboo whispers to you: Alright, I’ll be there by the time you read this message. 

Tommy reads the message again, trying to understand what it meant when he hears a small vwhoop and jumps a bit when he looks up to see a slightly disoriented 6’6” enderman hybrid standing on his front porch surrounded by purple particles. 

“I hate teleporting. But Philza says I need to do it more so here I am.” 

Tommy regains his composure as Ranboo straightens out his suit that Tommy can only assume got ruffled in the process. 

“You know, that whole teleporting thing would’ve been useful back when we were fighting for L’manberg.” Referring to L’manberg so lightly with anyone else would be impossible, but Ranboo’s absence from those days made it easier to joke about with. “What were you doing before you came here anyway?” 

“I don’t remember.” Ranboo looks away, Tommy silently berates himself for asking. He really didn’t want Ranboo to hate him. 

“That’s okay tall man! You’re here now and I’m stupid for asking.” He starts walking towards the Walmart hoping Ranboo would just follow. 

He does. “You’re not stupid, most people would remember. I just have beef with memories y’know?” 

“Beef with memories…? You’re gonna have to tell me about whatever that means later. But for now I gotta show you your gift.” 

“My gift?”

Tommy stops and turns to him. “Your valentine’s day gift! I thought you knew, why else would you just teleport to me no questions asked?” 

“I must’ve-” 

“Forgotten. Right. It’s no big deal, but what I’m about to show you inside of this broken down Walmart is.” He takes Ranboo to the entrance which is just the 2x2 opening not surrounded by broken glass. “Welcome to the enderman store! I made it myself because I am just so cool.” 

Ranboo immediately ducks under the doorway and starts moving the blocks around. “You aren’t very cool but this makes you at least 20% cooler.” 

“Does that mean you like it?” Tommy asks as he goes to stand behind the makeshift counter. 

“Of course I do! It’s like- like a block playground.” Ranboo teleports around the store and Tommy looks down because the sight of him appearing and disappearing was making his head hurt. 

“You pick one yet?” He plants his elbow on the counter and tries to give his friend a good impression of an underpaid cashier. 

“Pick one for what?” 

“As your gift.” He says it like it was the most obvious thing in the world but with the way Ranboo stands confused he supposes it wasn’t. “I mean, the whole store is your gift actually. But you gotta like, pick your favorite block or something.”

“That’s kinda stupid.” 

“Whatever, at least I’m not 6’6”, now pick your favorite grass block so we can go to Tubbo’s and show him how cool I am.” 

“Okay, I like…” He carefully considers the dirt for what? Tommy doesn’t know. Maybe endermen have a block grading system. 

He finally picks one of the many grass blocks in the corner and places it in front of Tommy. 

Tommy uses his communicator as a scanner and pretends to ring up the block. Ranboo just seems even more confused. 

“What? This is a store roleplay. I’m just keeping things realistic.” He pushes the grass block back to Ranboo who takes it and immediately holds it out in front of him. “The cost is teleporting Tommy to Tubbos because he’s lazy and doesn’t want to walk.” 

The taller laughs and Tommy climbs over the counter and clings to Ranboo’s arm bracing for the sudden movement. He closes his eyes and stumbles forward a bit when the hybrid brings them to Tubbo’s in under a second. 

He lets go of Ranboo once he’s sure he won’t trip and goes up to Tubbo’s door, instead of knocking he just let’s himself in. Rather he announces he’s here by shouting, “Big T! We’re here for lunch and I brought a very tall man with me. I think his name is Rainbow, not sure though.”

“Tommy it’s-” Ranboo is interrupted by Tubbo appearing from the kitchen, the fur coat he is usually buried in abandoned for a cheesy heart covered apron. 

“Ranboo! Tommy!” He runs up to them both with excitement, but he quickly tilts his head at the grass block Ranboo had brought in that was no doubt ruining his floor. Tubbo runs back into the kitchen and orders the boys to, “Stay there!” and when he returns he is carrying a planter pot with a little note attached that says, “To: Ranboo, From: Me :)”

“This is perfect, you can fill my gift with… wait did Tommy really give you fuckin dirt?” 

“No! I gave him a whole store of dirt you dickhead!” 

“I liked it.” Ranboo adds, trying to help Tommy’s case. 

“See Tubbo? He loves my gift, you are just a hater.” 

“Whatever.” Tubbo rolls his eyes and turns around, leading the other two into his kitchen. 

They take a seat and Tubbo places a basket of bread in the middle of the small wooden table. Tommy runs his hands under it to where he can feel the carvings of his and Tubbo’s name. They had built the table together, hell they had built most of the furniture in this house together.

Tubbo sits down next to Ranboo and places a jar of honey, no doubt from his own bees on the table.

“You know we should invite Purpled next time, then we can call it the MLC.”

“Call it the what?” 

“Y’know the minor lunch club! All the teenagers in one place, hopefully shit-talking the adults.”

“Tubbo can you-” Ranboo is interrupted by Tubbo, who was focused on what Tommy just said.

“We are not naming anything ‘Lunch Club’ ever, pick another name.”

“What? Why not?” He whined. 

Ranboo reaches over the table to grab the honey, knocking over the vase of flowers in the middle of the table. Tubbo pauses, he’s stood up, preparing to lean over and hit Tommy. 

“Tubbo I’m so sorry I’ll-I’ll clean it up.” Ranboo starts to go grab a towel when Tubbo tackles him and pretends to be mad. Tommy just sighs at the scene and goes to actually grab a towel before the water could ruin the table. 

“It’s valentine’s day and you’re fighting.” 

“It’s play fighting, it's a hybrid thing you wouldn’t get it.” 

Tubbo knew what he was doing, get Tommy mad so he’ll come over there and join them too. 

It works, Tubbo giggling as Tommy pushes him off Ranboo and shakes him gently. 

Tubbo headbutts him gently, careful not to actually hurt him. (It had happened once, Philza was not happy.) 

Tommy wraps his arms around the deer and refuses to stop hugging him, Ranboo takes the opportunity to get up and actually wipe down the table before going back to where Tommy was sitting against the door laughing holding a faux annoyed Tubbo. 

“Let me go Tommyyyy.” Tubbo whines, it’s muffled by the blond’s shirt. 

“No, you were mean to me and now I’m sad.” 

Ranboo sits down next to them and whispers “Clingyinnit.” causing Tubbo to laugh and Tommy to let him go opting to go mess with the enderman instead. 

“I am not clingy!” 

“He says, as he clings to Ranboo. His newest victim.” 

They finally get up, dusting themselves off, and go to exchange the rest of their gifts. Tubbo giving Tommy earrings with two purple disks on them. Tommy hands him the bee necklace and then Ranboo gives both of them a pig spawner. 

They go out and help Sam with the hotel for the rest of the day and when it’s dark outside they say their goodbyes and promise to come back tomorrow to see Tubbo’s new ‘project’ which the two no doubt means more nukes. 

It’s almost midnight by the time Tommy works up the courage to give Sam his gift. Walking up to his bedroom door and knocking gently. Fiddling with the letter he had made. He had no reason to be nervous, it was just a card to thank Sam for everything. He owed the man so much more. 

He had avoided giving Sam the card all day, but there was no turning back now. He supposes he could just run back to his room, pretend to be asleep when Sam goes to ask if he knocked. 

“Tommy?” Sam opens the door, yawning. Tommy had clearly woken him up.

He shoves the card towards the creeper hybrid and looks away as he reads it. 

Tommy can tell when he’s done because Sam murmurs an “Oh, Tommy…” before going to hug the blond. Who happily accepts it. 

“Your gift idea wasn’t shit, he loved it actually.”

“I know, I never have bad ideas.” Tommy can imagine the grin on Sam’s face as he says that and it’s enough to make him laugh softly. For the first time in a long time, Tommy finally takes a deep breath. Holding onto Sam a little tighter than maybe he should. Tommy’s tired of letting go. 

Neither of them ever want to let go. 

[c4pricornc4ts]

“Does this help?” And “do you ever stop talking?” With SBI possibly? For the prompt things?If you want no pressure! -🐝

Mellohi and Mooblooms 

Warnings for non-descriptive violence, blood

It had been a pretty good day for Tommy, he passed his Spanish test, ate lunch with Tubbo and Jack and managed to not get any detentions. He even got Phil to let him spend the night with Tubbo on a school night! So tell him why he’s ending the day getting grabbed by one of the kids that’s always a bit snarky with the teachers and pulled into the bathroom?

There’s two of them, neither are taller than Tommy. Perhaps the height advantage is why he had the confidence to joke around. “Gentlemen, please. No need to get aggressive now is there?” He laughs. 

The other boys aren’t laughing. They look annoyed, the same way Wilbur looked when he broke into his office. The real kind of annoyed. “Do you ever stop talking?” One of the boys pushes him against a stall door roughly and he struggles not to fall as the door swings. 

“W-what did I do? Why are you-” The blonde is cut off by an arm pushing him against the actual wall while their friend punches Tommy. 

He holds his nose and hisses in pain. He doesn’t say anything however, clearly the two highschoolers don’t like it when he talks. 

“You’re such a bother Tom, every damn class you never just shut up.” He’s punched again, this time in the stomach. He cries out but focuses on staying on his feet. He meets the eyes of the one holding him against the wall, gripping both his shoulders. He recognizes him from history class. 

He always was a bit loud in history class, perhaps he deserved to get knocked around a bit. 

He’s pushed against the tiled wall once again, his head knocking against it as his hands were too busy holding his stomach to prevent it. 

“You know, there’s a reason Techno pretends he isn’t related to you. You’re always just embarrassing yourself.” He’s thrown around a bit more, he considers fighting back for a moment but instead he just focuses on how bad it hurt to breathe and how he’s gonna explain this all to Tubbo who was probably sitting on the sidewalk by the bus ramp waiting for him.

“Just,” He’s given a firm shake. “Stop,” Another shake, he’s gonna have such a bad headache after this. “Talking.” He’s let go by the boy from class and he drops to his knees. Breathing heavily and watching the two boys leave trying to process all that just happened. 

He keeps sitting, long after the boys have both up and left. He doesn’t have the energy to get a paper towel for his bloody nose, so he just breathes heavily and watches the blood run down his hand. 

He’s interrupted from his thoughts by his phone ringing. He wipes his bloody hands off on his pants and answers quickly when he sees it’s Tubbo. 

“Tommy? Where are you? Did your science teacher make you stay back again?” Tubbo sounded so casual, Tommy wishes he was in science. 

“I-I’m on the bathroom floor.” 

“Huh? Like the bathroom in the science wing?” He can tell Tubbo’s already starting to head back inside judging by the way the sounds of the busses get quieter. 

“Yeah.” He sighs and shifts to holding the phone up to his ear with his shoulder. Holding his arm up was hurting his ribs. He stares at the bathroom door tiredly, waiting for it to open and for Tubbo to help him stop the bleeding. 

“Tommy? What’s happened? Oh my God, you’re bleeding. Oh God um-” He watches as his friend rushes to get a paper towel, wetting one of them to get the dried blood off Tommy supposes. 

He refuses to look at the brunette even as Tubbo cleans his nose off. “It’s nothing, I went too far with one of my jokes, made some boys mad. I’ll be okay.” 

“They just punched you? Geez.” Tommy was really grateful Tubbo wasn’t so upfront like he was. If Tommy found Tubbo like this, he’d go make those boys pay. 

“It’s fine, really. Just hurts. I’d really just like to go home now.” As soon as Tubbo goes to throw away the paper towels, Tommy gets up and pockets his phone. Trying to hide how much it hurt to stand. Hoping Tubbo would just forget this all ever happened. 

“Yeah, we can go home. You sure you’re alright? They really hurt your nose, you should report them y’know.” 

“I just want to go home for now, please.” He’s usually a lot more energetic but hearing what those boys had to say about him, really hurt him. 

They walk to Tubbo’s house which is thankfully only 2 blocks away from the school. Only stopping twice when Tommy’s stomach was hurting too badly.

Tubbo takes the house key out of his pocket and lets them both in, Tommy immediately climbs the stairs to Tubbo’s room while the other goes to say hello to his family. 

Tubbo’s family was always very nice to Tommy, they loved hearing his over-exaggerated school stories. So he did feel a bit bad for completely ignoring them today.

He didn’t want to annoy anyone else. 

He immediately lays on top of Tubbo’s bed, looking at all the posters on the walls. Tubbo hadn’t lived here long but you wouldn’t be able to tell by how decorated it is. The posters were mostly from video games, with a few fanarts of the DreamSMP group hanging next to the photos of their first meetup on a board. 

Tubbo comes in and sits down. “Do you want to talk about it? You seem more bothered than you would be if they just punched you once.” 

Tommy shifts on his side so he could look at Tubbo from where he sat on his desk chair. “T-they said Techno is embarrassed by me. That I should stop talking.” He can feel himself start to get choked up, but he doesn’t plan on crying at his friend’s house. Maybe later in his own room but certainly not right now. 

“Toms, you know Techno isn’t really embarrassed by you. He just pretends to not know you as a joke. Remember all the times he tells you how proud he is?” 

Though it was rare, sometimes Techno would look over Tommy’s shoulder while he was holding a school assignment he did well on and murmur a monotone, “Good job.” Or when they were sparring, and Tommy would manage to win a round, Techno would sound so proud of him and brag about him at dinner to Philza and Wilbur. 

But he still didn’t talk to Tommy at school, and though he pretended to be okay with Techno pretending to ignore him, he always felt hurt by it deep down. Hearing the boys say that Techno wasn’t just jokingly annoyed made Tommy feel like his anxieties were confirmed. 

“Yeah, it’s just- I dunno Tubbo. It just hurt more than the punches. I guess.” 

He wipes his eyes and then buries his face in the pillow as Tubbo gets up and opens his closet, shuffling through it before coming back. 

He feels something plush land by his arm and he looks up slowly to see Tubbo had tossed a yellow moobloom stuffed animal by his arm. 

“Does this help? My sister made it for me but I know you wanted the moobloom to win so I thought maybe it’d make you feel better. I-it’s kinda stupid.” 

Tommy hugs the yellow cow, burying his face in one of the dandelions. “No, it’s not stupid. I appreciate it.” He laughs a little when Tubbo starts playing Mellohi. 

“Well, I didn’t have an as eventful day as you Tommy, but let me tell you what Purpled did in art. It was crazy!” 

They laugh and talk for a bit before Tubbo streams.The whole time they were pretending like Tommy wasn’t with him. Both of them trying not to laugh as chat freaks out insisting Tommy had been in the frame. (Which he had been once, to go get a snack before sitting back on the bed.) Tommy forgets why he was so upset in the first place when Techno jumps in the call to join the debate of whether Tommy was in Tubbo’s house or not.

[c4pricornc4ts]

The Best Prank - SBI One-Shot

This idea is by @bellfort3 ! Thank you for letting me take it. 

Summary:  He’d ask his mom if he could just quickly tweet something funny about him being grounded but really, isn’t a break from Tommy what everyone wants? Even his own fans used to find him annoying. Maybe everyone’s happy he’s gone. 

So he doesn’t ask. 

Tommy is tilting his head back in one of the uncomfortable leather seats outside the principal's office yet again this semester. He’s holding an already very bloody tissue up to his nose and swinging his legs while waiting for his mom to be interrupted in the middle of work yet again to come and take him home. 

He really tried not to get in another fight after how mad his mom was last time, but there were these asshole upperclassmen who just really deserved it for how much of an asshole they are to everyone, but especially him. 

He knew his mom would be livid, and he was completely right. He eyes her warily as she steps in the office and starts switching between apologizing profusely to the principal and lecturing him. The principal just hands her a paper to sign and tells them both very seriously that if he gets in one more fight he’s expelled. 

Tommy’s up getting another tissue when she all but drags him out the office door by his coat. 

“It’s really not that big of a deal!” He whines as she checks him over, before letting him get in the car. 

She leans her forehead against the steering wheel and sighs, gripping it tightly. “Not a big deal? Tom you can’t just get in fights with people! You heard your principal, one more and you’re out.”

“What am I supposed to do? Just let them be assholes?” He snapped at her, though he sounded less angry and more nasally from the tissue blocking his nose. 

“Go tell a goddamn teacher! I’m starting to think you like getting your nose broken.” 

“They don’t do shit!” 

His mom turns to him, he looks away. “Your grades are dropping, you’ve been in a total of three fights just this semester and now you’re snapping at me? What’s gotten into you?” 

“I’m sorry mom.” He mumbles. He does feel kind of bad about it all. But mostly he just wants the  conversation to end. 

“You’ve really left me no choice here you know.” She takes his phone out of his backpack. “No phone for a week, and no streaming either. I’m unplugging the wifi. You need to do some self reflection.” 

“Oh come on now, a whole week? It’s just a bloody nose it’s not like anybody died!” This was completely unfair. Streaming was his job, and how on earth will his friends know where he went? 

“You’ll thank me when you’re not repeating sophomore year.” She starts the car, focusing on the road now. Tommy makes no move to speak to her again not wanting to make anything worse. 

After he’s caught up on his school work it’s almost 8pm. He goes to sit in front of his computer, excited to just hang out with whoever was online and deflates in his seat when all he can do is play that stupid no internet dinosaur game. 

Even though it’s a stupid game he still plays it for at least an hour before giving up and just getting ready for bed. At least he had school tomorrow to keep him distracted. 

School goes by quickly, he complains to his friends about being grounded and over exaggerates the fight he was in and all his teachers give him looks when they see his bruised face but smile when he turns in his late work. 

He opens his front door and starts to head upstairs, preparing to stream before just leaning against the wall and sighing when he remembers his punishment. He has no homework though so really what was he supposed to do? 

Blue eyes look at the cookie mix left on the counter and Tommy makes a plan. He changes out of his school uniform and makes sure to give his mom a pointed look before running back to the kitchen. 

He reads the back of the box, leaning against the counter; 2 eggs, ½ cup of water, and ⅓ cup of olive oil. It sounds easy enough. The only trouble he has is trying to crack the eggs without getting any shells in the bowl. He thinks about when he met up with his friends and how Wilbur and Phil made it a competition to see which of the two could crack an egg with one hand the cleanest. 

Tommy stares at the unmixed bowl, his hands covered in baking ingredients, wondering if any of his online friends missed him. They always seem relieved he’s not around when they stream and Tommy tries to remember they’re talking about his character, but it hurts. There’s only so many times he can hear his pseudo family call him annoying and a problem before it starts to feel more personal. 

It hurt, he always played it off so well on stream but after streams where they were particularly rude to him he always just felt drained. 

He’d ask his mom if he could just quickly tweet something funny about him being grounded but really, isn’t a break from Tommy what everyone wants? Even his own fans used to find him annoying. Maybe everyone’s happy he’s gone. 

So he doesn’t ask. 

Suddenly, he doesn’t want to finish his baking project. He really just wants to lie down and sleep for the week. But he does, though it feels a lot less exciting than it did at first. 

He takes the cookies out of the oven with his bare hands yelling about how that’s his least favorite part before turning around and coming face to face with his very confused mom holding an oven mitt. 

He runs his hands under some cold water and takes a few cookies up to his room, leaving the rest out. He closes the door and plays some minecraft in single player for a while, walking into the house he and Tubbo had built together when his friend had visited. 

Tubbo doesn’t hate him, he liked Tubbo. 

It’s only his fourth day of no internet and Tommy is incredibly bored. He had done just about everything he could think of to do. He feels bad for kids who grew up like this because honestly, how did they do it? 

He supposes it’s different when you don’t rely on the internet for your job, or if you just never knew it was a thing. If he was born before the internet maybe he would write that book he always wanted to write. 

Tommy is staring at a book on knitting and fumbling around the two needles, trying to make his weekend at least somewhat productive. The tv in the living room is turned down and Tommy curls up on the end of the couch with a roll of green yarn.

He begins to get the hang of the whole knitting thing after three very messy rows when his mom messes up his hair, causing him to look up with a glare. 

“We’re going out, don’t you try to get on anything or it’ll be two weeks!” 

“I have ascended past the need for electronics, as you can see.” He laughs and keeps trying to tie off the fourth row. 

The door clicks shut and Tommy tosses the yarn aside and sits up. Sighing hard enough to blow his hair out of his face before flopping back down on the couch dramatically. 

He throws an arm over his eyes and resolves to just lie down for a bit, not bothering to even fix the knitting book which had landed open on the floor next to him. 

He just let’s the colors flickering from the tv wash over him for a while when the doorbell rings. He ignores it, as his parents didn’t tell him anyone would be coming by. Hoping it was just the mail. 

The person at the door starts knocking after a few moments, so Tommy begrudgingly gets up to answer. 

He really wasn’t expecting Wilbur to be standing in his front yard, checking his phone. He looked troubled, as if he was worrying it was the wrong house or something. Tommy takes a deep breath and goes to find out what Wilbur wanted. 

“Tommy! Where’ve you been? Everyone’s been so worried I decided to make a trip here.” Wilbur just let’s himself in, walking right past Tommy and into the kitchen. 

“Oh, just busy with school y’know?” He knows it’s a weak excuse, but it’s worth a shot. 

“Too busy to just send a message to someone?” Of course that didn’t work on Wilbur. Philza or Tubbo would’ve accepted that excuse in a heartbeat. But not Wilbur. 

“I thought no one would care. It’s only a week.” He opens the fridge, trying to act nonchalant about the situation. 

“Only a week? Tommy, you usually text us everyday! Of course we’re gonna notice.” 

“Notice? Yes. Care? No.” He mumbles bitterly. Freezing up right after, hand still on the fridge handle. 

“Of course we care! Wha- Why would you think we didn’t-” Tommy feels a bit bad, Wilbur sounds genuinely hurt by it. But Tommy wasn’t done. 

“You all always talk about how annoying I am, for-fucking-give me for giving you and everyone else a break.” He turns towards the older, and tries to stop his eyes from watering. Trying to tell himself he’s mad, not upset. 

“It’s all jokes Tommy, you know we don’t actually feel that way about you.” Wilbur pushes off the counter and takes a tentative step towards Tommy. Who makes sure Wilbur notices him step back. 

“What’s so funny about it? I go from school where everyone seems to hate me just to talk to more people who act like they hate me. And I’m really, really tired of it.” He falters by the end of the statement, realizing that maybe he is more than just mad. 

He knows he’s crying, his shoulders shake and his face feels hot as he looks anywhere but at Wilbur’s face. Was it so bad of him to just want people in his corner for once? Is he really such an annoyance that someone had to drive all the way to his house because he didn’t just find a way to contact any of them? 

“Oh, Tommy.” Wilbur murmurs, his voice sounds soft. And Tommy leans into his shoulder for support. He should probably just sit down, but he really just wants some comfort right now. Even if the one who made him so upset is the one he gets it from. 

Wilbur pulls him in, enveloping him in an actual hug. And Tommy can’t deny it does make him feel a bit better. 

“I’m being ridiculous, I'm sorry. I-I know you guys don’t mean it. It just- It hurts.” He’s crying again, and he really hopes Wilbur doesn’t make him stop hiding his face. 

“You’re not being ridiculous, we should’ve looked out for you better. I just assumed you were okay with it, but I never even asked you. I’m the one who’s sorry. So you take your sorry back.” 

“Sorry for being sorry.” He whispers back softly, laughing over his own joke. 

Wilbur holds him for a bit longer, and he tries to wipe his face before stepping back. 

“I’ll talk to Techno and Philza if that’s okay. I never want you to feel like I wouldn’t care if you left, I’m sure they wouldn’t want you too either.” 

“That’s- thanks, Wilbur.” 

Wilbur claps his hands together excitedly. “Now, tell me what TommyInnit does when there’s no internet to waste his time on.” 

“Wilbur you won’t believe it but I got to the point of boredom where you learn to knit. To knit, Wilbur!” He’s dragging Wilbur by the arm into the living room to show him the barely finished hat he’d started. And laughing when Wilbur fusses at him for leaving the book sprawled on the floor like it was. The moment earlier was completely forgotten. 

And if Wilbur made a tweet that night, well he’d delete it before Tommy got his phone back so really, no one gets hurt here. 

Wilbur Soot (@WilburSoot)

Tommy’s grounded LMAOO and won’t have his phone for the next few days, quick comment nice paragraphs under his latest tweet to confuse him haha, the best prank I think.

[c4pricornc4ts]

Where are Your Parents? - Sbi Au Chapter One

Also on my ao3 

-----

Wilbur, Techno, and Tommy decide to run away. Tommy is an optimist, Techno likes to disappear for days at a time and Wilbur is just trying to keep his makeshift family together.

Philza notices a struggling teenager and tries his best.

Wilbur crouches lower behind the forest shrubs and holds his breath waiting for the rabbit to come close enough to the trap. The sun was beginning to set and he was having a hard time dealing with his frustration for having such a pathetic amount of food to bring back to his brothers. 

Techno would understand that with winter approaching the food was more scarce but Tommy was only ten, and the last thing the brunette or his twin wanted was to have their little brother be anxious about the lack of food. They’d just have to work harder in town. 

The animals were hiding quickly, winter was going to be cold this year. Wilbur wasn’t sure they were prepared for that. 

For starters, they’re not really brothers by blood, but runaways living in an abandoned shelter right outside a town. Techno and Wilbur were teenagers and had realized their chance of finding a family was with each other. After talking it over,  they decided to run from the orphanage a few months ago, and Tommy had stupidly run after them. 

Whether the blond boy regrets his choice to chase his two brother figures into uncertainty or not is up to him, and this winter might decide it. 

Wilbur had no regrets. He gathered his basket of herbs and the fish from earlier. The trees were golden and he knew his brothers would be back from their respective jobs soon. 

--------------

He nudges the fence door to the side and slips into their makeshift home. He can’t help but be concerned when he sees Tommy already asleep curled under his thin blanket. The younger always waits for at least one of his brothers to make it back. He ran his hands through his hair and set down the basket before heading over to check on Tommy. There’s a moment where the brunette hesitates to wake him up. with all that’s happened to the boy he only looks at peace when he sleeps. 

There’s bags under his blue eyes, there's scrapes on his arms and face from being pushed around in the streets. Techno always gets so angry when Tommy comes home hurt, but there's not much they could do besides steal from the men who do. Wilbur brushes his shoulder and Tommy flinches awake. 

“Wilbur? Why are you waking me up?” he mumbles while rubbing his eyes. 

“Tommy, is your shoulder okay?” Wilbur holds his arm away gently and pushes his sleeve down to reveal several small bruises, as if someone had grabbed him. “What happened?” He searches the sleepy boy’s face for any kind of answer. 

“Just another person who was tired of seeing street boys. It’s nothing really. It’s fine Wilbur.”

He’s a little more awake now. 

The older one takes a deep breath trying to choose his words very carefully. “No it’s not fine, I should be able to protect you from those people. Letting you get hurt should never be okay.” Honestly, what he decides next has been a long time coming. “I’ll go with you tomorrow morning, see if anyone messes with you then, yeah?” He smiles and hopes he looks reassuring.

“Wilbur, it's okay really-” He’s cut off by the sound of the door moving. Both boys turn to see Techno come inside. 

He takes off his work clothes, and puts away his earnings for today. 

“Techno! You’re back.” Tommy is sitting up now, tiredness forgotten and replaced with excitement. “How was the farm?” 

Techno glances to Wilbur to answer for him, He’s always tired after he gets back from one of his trips. Wilbur hunts and gathers, Tommy goes into the town and asks for money, and Techno…

Well, Techno takes any job he can find. He switches between taking letters faraway, to helping on the larger farms. Wilbur always makes him promise he’ll be home before it's been a week. Or else he’d assume the worst. 

“Let him go get clean before you bother him Toms.” Wilbur whispers as Techno shrugs off his red coat and leaves for the river. 

Tommy nods, and settles on the wood floor. Wilbur shrugs off his coat and lays down next to Tommy, blocking the blond from view of the door. He shivers and curls up tighter to try to block it out. He wants to stay up and wait for Techno, but he knows he needs to sleep if he's gonna be in town pickpocketing while Tommy distracts people. 

Tommy is out cold once again and Wilbur is facing him trying to keep warm when Techno finally joins their makeshift bedroom corner. Which, with it being a few blankets and pillows, looks more like a nest. 

Knowing both of his brothers were here, and safe, Wilbur finally sleeps. 

-----------

The sun starts to shine through the cracks and creates golden rays in their house. They shine right across Wilburs face and the discomfort wakes him up. He looks to his right to see Tommy against the wall, his arms hugging his knees and looking right back at Wilbur. 

The sun always made Tommy’s hair look so golden, seeing it makes Wilbur feel selfish for not turning Tommy back into the orphanage. He knew someone would’ve adopted him, kept him safer than the brunette ever could. 

“We have to go to the part of town with the market today, I went to the park yesterday.” Tommy tells Wilbur as he gets up to find his day clothes. 

“I like working there better, you pull off a great lost child ruse. Plus all the crowds make this much easier.’ Wilbur smiles and gets himself dressed. Techno is still sound asleep, recovering from being away so they leave without him. With Tommy dressed in his overalls with a soft white striped shirt underneath, making him look younger than he already is and Wilbur lacing up his boots, they walk towards town. 

Tommy wants to lead the way, as he’s used to it far more than Wilbur who avoids going into town at all costs. But Wilbur was coming today to make sure Tommy didn’t get hurt. 

“Stay close to me yeah? I don’t want you to lose me by walking too far ahead.” Wilbur knows he sounds ridiculous but seeing that bruise last night made WIlbur very anxious about leaving Tommy alone for a few days. Once someone knows they won’t fight back, it can turn into a regular thing. 

They all know that fact from experience.

They arrive and head straight to an alleyway by the market. Since it's still early, the sun hasn’t made it warm enough for many people to be here. Wilbur and Tommy decide to use the morning to look around. Tommy goes straight to his friend Tubbo’s booth, where they play around with his family’s farm animals they bring to sell. 

Seeing how happy Tommy is to see someone his age, to act his age, is another weight to the guilt Wilbur feels for keeping Tommy with him. There've been so many hard nights where Wilbur has told Tommy he could go back to the orphanage, that he could say Wilbur and Techno forced him to leave and he finally made his way back. He wanted Tommy to know they would understand if he wanted to at least try for a good life. 

Tommy being the optimist he is, always said things would get better. That they could get an apartment together, and he could go to school with Tubbo sometime. Wilbur and Techno would exchange a small uncertain look before agreeing with Tommy. Till Tommy’s perfect plan fell into place however, they needed to get their story straight. Wilbur walks over to greet Tubbo’s mother while their boys play. 

“Hello Mrs. Smith, how’s the farm been doing this winter?” He tilted his head, and smiled knowing how much it charmed people when his curls bounced. He really needed the farmer to like him for Tommy’s sake. Didn’t need her finding out that Tommy didn’t just live on the other side of town. 

“Oh it's been well, Tubbo complains about the cold so much it's driving me up the wall however” She laughs as she tugs on her gloves before glancing back at him. “I wish he’d be like your brother, never a complaint out of him when he’s over.” 

That comment stings him, he knows May didn’t mean to. She doesn’t know that he doesn’t have anything to complain about when Tubbo invites him to stay at their farm. It feels like she’s saying he doesn’t do enough when he knows that’s not what she meant. 

He always feels like he’s not doing enough. 

“Well, I’m sure he’ll get used to it soon. You know how boys are.” Wilbur forces a small laugh. 

He hears Tommy tell his friend he’ll be back soon, that he and his brother had some shopping to do. 

“Wilbur can we please go look around now? It’s getting crowded, we need to see everything before it's gone!” He tugs on Wilburs shirt gently and starts pulling him away from his conversation. 

“I’m sure we’ll see you soon Mrs. Smith, perhaps I'll bring Tommy back here this afternoon, our Mother wanted him to pick out some warmer items.” He resists Tommy pulling at his shirt long enough to hear her respond,

“See you both later then. I’ll tell Tubbo.” She waves them off.

“You’re being so pushy, what's got you so excited?” He asks the blonde as they walk down the rows. 

“I want to get the y’know- stealing stuff over with.” Tommy whispers. 

“Alright then, see that lady in the blue dress? Go tell her you’re lost. Sell it too okay? Get her to set down her purse and I'll take her wallet and go stash it.” Tommy nods and Wilbur separates from him. 

They both amble for a few minutes, making sure no one in the area would think they were together. Tommy catches his eye and Wilbur gives him the signal to start. 

He keeps feigning interest in the different satchels and bags the booth in front of him had to display, while watching Tommy pretend to sob. 

Wilbur doesn’t know what he said, but as soon as she sets the bag down and kneels in front of the small boy, he’s shuffling through her purse for a wallet. He feels something leather and grabs it before dashing to the alleyway from earlier. 

This would’ve been the end of it, he would have pocketed it and went to another part of the market and waited for Tommy to pretend to recognize him and thank the kind woman for bringing him back safe (and for the money). 

Little did the boys know, a man had been watching Tommy for a few weeks now. He had been growing concerned with how he’d seen the small boy run off to the woods when he was closing his bookstore. A bookstore on the street Tommy frequented for selling newspapers or whatever he could find. 

So when Wilbur hears a stranger shout and start to run towards him, he does what any animal would do when chased. 

He started running down the alleyways trying to throw the stranger off his tail, but the man was insistent on catching the 16 year old. He makes a right turn where he should’ve made a left and ends up backed against a brick wall. Breathing heavily, Wilbur can’t climb the brick wall, so he decides to face the man and prepare to apologize and give the wallet back. 

The man looks about in his 30s and is blonde like Tommy. He pants and puts his hands up placatingly. “Hey uh, I’ve just- I own a bookstore and your boy, he sits in front of it a lot. Alone might I add, and now I see him helping you steal a wallet-” He takes a step forward. 

Wilbur takes a step back, shaken from all the chaos. “W-what about it.” He glares, frustrated to have been cornered like this. By a bookstore owner no less.

“Where are your parents? He runs off towards the goddamn woods every night, unless I'm mistaken there’s nothing out there. And now I see him stealing with some teenager… ” The older man sounds like he's trying to put together the pieces as he says it.

“Look- I- he doesn’t have any. He has two older brothers though, and we manage.” He spits defensively. 

“Clearly not if you have to steal” The man tries to keep calm as he says it, Wilbur appreciates it as he’s scared enough for the both of them right now. 

“Can I just go back please? I don’t like leaving him out there alone. I’ll give the lady back her wallet it’s fine just please-” Wilbur was stupid to tell the stranger as much as he did, but there’s no taking it back now. 

“That’d be nice of you, but I have a question for you,” Wilbur stands up straighter, curious and really antsy to stop being in a dirty alley. The man continues. 

“Are you okay?”

[c4pricornc4ts]

Where are Your Parents? - Sbi Au Chapter 7

Read it on my ao3 here

-----

The sky was gray and heavy with snow that day but Tommy didn’t really care. He just sat against the trunk of a fir tree and laughed with his brothers. It doesn't take long for Techno and Tommy start fighting with the utensils until an exasperated Wilbur breaks them up.

For a moment, Tommy thinks he’s actually upset. But Wilbur’s laughing at how guilty they both look.

Tommy wakes up first, he sits up and yawns before jumping a bit when he notices someone else sleeping next to him. He crawls over to the body and sees what he’s pretty sure is his older brother’s messy brown hair. Just to be sure however, he pushes the other person's hair out of their face and turns their head towards him.

He jumps a little when Wilbur wakes up from the sudden disturbance and sits up on the bed. Tommy thinks he should have a lot of questions about why Wilbur ended up here too, but he can’t think of any right now. “Wilbur?”

The older boy blinks and runs his hand through his hair tiredly. Wilbur never really was a morning person like Tommy and Techno, but Tommy was feeling pretty patient this morning so he just sits criss-cross on top of the covers and waits for his brother to say something.

“We need to talk Tommy, I want to explain what’s happening before we leave this room and see Phil.”

“What do you mean ‘what’s happening’ Wilbur? I feel like something’s always happening.” He mumbles and looks at his hands.

Wilbur goes on to explain about the shed and how he spoke with Phil last night and arranged for them to stay here. Tommy leans back a bit, trying to take the new information in.

“What about Techno? How will he know we're here?” Techno had just left that morning, Tommy didn’t want him to think they left him out in the cold.

“We’re gonna go back to the woods and collect everything we can. You'll leave him a note and if we see any of his friends we'll tell them too. He’ll find us Tommy.” Tommy watches from his spot on the bed as Wilbur gets up, unsure if Wilbur wants him to follow.

He squeaks when Wilbur locks his arms under Tommy’s shoulders and lifts him up off the bed. “Come on now, let’s go help with breakfast.”

“What was that for?” He questions while trying to get his balance back from the sudden movement. Wilbur laughs before walking out the room. Neither of them had changed from their casual clothes, Tommy hoped Wilbur had been able to bring their outfits.

Their door opens to the living room where they see Phil already up and reading the paper. He quickly sets it down and stands up off the, in Tommy's opinion, ugly floral couch.

He worries that they had slept in late, but the living room clock says it's 7am. Phil must have to open the shop soon.

The boy climbs up on the unoccupied side of the couch and tucks himself in the corner tiredly. He closes his eyes as Wilbur and Phil talk about their plans to go back to the woods today.

He can't be bothered to listen to them, instead he just leans into Wilbur when he sits in-between him and Phil and starts running his hands through his hair.

Though he's worried about Techno, he doesn't quite mind the shed itself being destroyed. Phil's house was nicer. Not that he would tell Wilbur and Techno that.

He feels the couch shift as Wilbur stands up. He's taken by surprise when he's suddenly lifted off the couch and carried to the kitchen.

"Wilbur!" He shouted, surprised to be getting tossed around yet again so early in the morning.

He's set down at the kitchen table, facing the oven where he sees Wilbur open the top cabinet and pull out some bread and jam. Tommy considers going to help him but he's still waking up and the cold feeling of the kitchen table was way too nice on his face to leave.

So he just presses his cheek against the table and watches Wilbur put the bread in the oven and walk over to him and set the jam down on the table.

It was a fairly well kept kitchen, especially for a single person to have been keeping up with. It had red counter-tops and white cabinets. It definitely matched the living room.Tommy thinks if he had a house it'd have more pastel colors. All the dark colors and patterns hurt his head a bit.

"You okay there Tommy?" Phil asks, coming into the kitchen and setting down the newspaper.

"I'm just sleepy still." he mumbles against the table tile.

"You're usually so energetic in the mornings." Wilbur says before coming over to him and putting a hand on his forehead.

Tommy guesses that with the way Wilbur seems more relaxed after checking his temperature, that he doesn't have a fever.

"So the one time I'm not yelling by seven I'm sick?" He laughs and Wilbur smiles too before pulling the toast out the oven.

Phil puts on his shoes and adjusts his outfit. "Alright, I got a store to go open. See you both in a few!"

"Okay, we'll be down in a moment." Wilbur says and Tommy just waves as Phil heads down the stairs.

A slice of bread cut in two triangles is placed in front of him and Wilbur starts putting jam on it.

"I took what was important already. We're just going to see what else is salvageable. And you can leave a letter for Techno okay?"

"Wilbur." He says very seriously as he picks up one of the jam covered triangles.

"What is it Tommy?"

"I can't write the letter. I’m ten how do you expect me to- to just-"

He struggles to explain. His face feels hot, he is upset that he can't write it himself because of course he wants to be the one to write the letter for his brother but Wilbur seems to have forgotten he can't.

To his surprise, Wilbur starts laughing. His shoulders shaking and his curls bouncing. Tommy tilts his head, not really sure what's so funny.

"Toms, I know you can't write yet. It's okay. I'm gonna write what you say to him plus the important stuff like the address. There's no need to be upset."

"Oh, that's a good idea. I like that." With that resolved, Tommy finally starts eating his toast.

-------------

They're on the way to the shed, Tommy kicking the pebbles on the path and gripping the coat Phil gave him tightly. It was November now, Thanksgiving was a week away.

Tommy didn’t miss much about the orphanage, but he really loved celebrating the holidays with such a big group of people. He regards last year’s Thanksgiving as his favorite since it was the first one since befriending his now older brothers.

He remembers getting upset and insisting he sat with the older kids to the point Wilbur and Techno just snuck away and sat outside with him instead.

The sky was gray and heavy with snow that day but Tommy didn’t really care. He just sat against the trunk of a fir tree and laughed with his brothers. It doesn't take long for Techno and Tommy start fighting with the utensils until an exasperated Wilbur breaks them up.

For a moment, Tommy thinks he’s actually upset. But Wilbur’s laughing at how guilty they both look.

Wilbur always seemed to get sad in the cold. He had gotten better with it now that they lived outside, but he never was fond of playing in the snow like Tommy was. So it's no surprise that after Wilbur breaks them up they’re walking back inside to join the other kids. He and Techno stayed in the common area while Wilbur went to his room, mumbling some excuse about needing to write an essay for history.

Tommy wished Wilbur knew that he didn’t have to lie about wanting to be alone.

He hoped Phil celebrated Thanksgiving too. Maybe he’d ask when they were back to the bookstore. “Wilbur? Is it rude to ask someone if they do Thanksgiving?” He feels nervous to bring it up, but he might as well make sure he won’t embarrass himself asking Phil. He'd understand if they weren't, no one in America was really having the best circumstances right now.

“What- no Toms almost everyone does. Even if they don’t have a lot of food to cook.”

“Is that why there’s so many signs about it everywhere?”

“Yeah, you’ll be seeing headlines about it in those papers of yours before you know it with it being so soon.”

Tommy nods, and they both stop walking when they see the half destroyed shed before them. The river is still rushing beside it, the fire pit of rocks Tommy and Techno worked so hard on remained unharmed as well.

The world around the shed would make you think nothing ever happened at all. Tommy could see the remains of the shed, but he had a hard time feeling upset. Perhaps since he hadn’t seen it fall.

However when he sees the troubled look on Wilbur’s face, he realizes how bad this must’ve been for him. Having to decide what to take while the place itself is collapsing would be a hard choice for Tommy. He thinks he would’ve taken something replaceable like their coats.

To be fair, the documents and other things Wilbur was smart enough to take with him to Phil’s were on a shelf Tommy couldn’t reach. So even if he had thought of it, he wouldn’t have been able to retrieve it in time. Especially with how little time his brother had to get out.

He feels guilty about it but, he's grateful Wilbur was home alone instead of him, he couldn’t imagine how scared he would’ve felt if the shed had collapsed and he was the one who didn’t know where Wilbur was or what to do.

Wilbur makes no move to start going through what’s salvageable, still just staring at the place. Tommy takes his hands out of the over-sized coat pockets and walks into what's left of the shed.

The blankets and Pillows are all still wet, and dirtied from the water rushing on the ground.

He picks up a smaller blanket, a blue one with a silky trim. The others were too large or damaged beyond what Techno’s sewing skills can repair.

He takes the baby blanket in his arms, making sure his hands are covered by it. Before walking over to see what Wilbur was doing.

“I think we can save this one.” He holds out the blanket for Wilbur to inspect. He feels a little hurt when Wilbur gives him no response but a nod before picking up a bucket and start walking away.

“Wha- where are you going Wil?” He wraps the blanket around his shoulders before hurrying after him. There wasn’t much to get since there never was much to begin with, but Wilbur isn’t headed towards the bookstore.

“I gotta reset the traps.” Wilbur tells him, his voice didn’t sound right. It sounded shaky like Tommy’s when he was trying not to cry.

“Wilbur, are you sad?” He asks without thinking. He regrets it immediately when Wilbur stops in his tracks and takes a deep breath.

He takes a deep breath too, copying his brother while looking up at him. His brother wasn’t looking back, his eyes were closed while he stood there,

“No… not sad. Just- I don’t know. I feel a lot of things right now.”

They keep walking. Tommy looks at the ground, trying to think of what to say. When he doesn’t know how he feels he just starts shouting till someone figures it out for him. Wilbur isn’t like that though. He doesn’t think yelling is what Wilbur needs to do.

“Overwhelmed. That's how I feel. You were right earlier, it does seem like something's always happening to us huh?” Surprised by Wilbur’s voice, Tommy looks up to see Wilbur sitting fiddling with a ground trap. His coat hood is pulled up and it makes him seem so much smaller as he faced away from Tommy.

He plants himself down next to Wilbur and tentatively hands him the blanket. “Does this help?” He hopes it does, he sees Techno holding the blanket sometimes, especially when he's upset.

He watches as Wilbur covers his mouth with one hand while the other just holds the blanket. “Yeah, I think it does.”

Tommy lets Wilbur have his strange moment with the blanket before Wilbur’s draping it back over his shoulders as it had previously been and pulled Tommy into a hug. He hears Wilbur sniffle and tries to recall what his brothers do when he cries.

“It’ll be okay. I’d feel overwhelmed too if I was the one alone in that storm.”

Wilbur pulls away. “I’m glad you weren’t the one alone. I’m glad you have so many people- good people at that, looking out for you.” Tommy can tell he’s about to cry again by the way his lip trembles when he looks at him.

“You have people looking out for you too. Techno and I are the greatest people! Plus Phil but I still think we’re better.” This earns a laugh from Wilbur. “Don’t tell him I said that though okay?”

“Alright, your secret’s safe with me Toms.” Tommy smiles with relief to see Wilbur finally sound normal again. “Enough with these traps, let’s go write a letter to one of the greatest people.”

He accepts Wilbur's outstretched hand and lets himself be pulled up off the grass. “So, I think we need to start the letter with Dear second greatest person..."

[c4pricornc4ts]

Look how They Shine for you - Sleepybois One-Shot:

Hello everyone! This was a one-shot written for a sbi writing competition on twitter. Forgive me if this post is odd, I am not good with tumblr. You can find more from me here: https://archiveofourown.org/users/C4pricornC4ts

Loosely based on Techno being split from Sbi for MCC. 

It had been a month since he left his hometown to work as crew on a pirate ship. He hadn’t been off the boat at all or allowed to really do anything more involved in fear he’d betray the group, but slowly they had begun to trust him. Even let him spar with some of the more trusted members. 

The masked captain had looked him in the eyes and told him he had so much potential. Something Techno never heard back home. He hadn’t really bothered with learning to read and write, instead focusing his time working on a field and sparring at night. He knew if he stayed home his entire future would be harvesting potatoes and raising his younger brother. 

He felt selfish for wanting to run from that future. He just didn’t want a dull life. Before the captain's right hand man, George, had seen him fighting and offered him a job, he thought he’d have to learn to be happy with a plain life. His dad certainly had. Raising three boys in a house with two rooms and a dirt floor and yet he was always so happy. 

Techno never understood how he was so content to live out his life the way he did. 

Lying down in his cabin, exhausted after a long day at sea, he smiles. Grateful he was shown a different way. Something he could excel at. 

The reason he wasn’t asleep yet was because the place they were headed was back home. Meaning he’d have to face the consequences of leaving. 

Don’t get him wrong, he loves his dad and brothers, but he never told them where he was headed. Just ran off one night, saying he was going to fight with Deo again. Except this time he didn’t come back at midnight like he always promised Phillza. 

He knows Tommy would forgive him, just be happy he was safe, but Tommy was six. Any six year old would just be happy to have their brother back again. Wilbur would be absolutely pissed. He could already hear him calling the brunette a coward and a liar. Wilbur would have every right to be angry.  

Philza, well, he didn’t quite know how his dad would feel. 

They had all already lost their mom, and now the small family had already grieved for Techno. Showing up again just to disappear, and forever this time, would be cruel. Techno wasn’t going to wake any of his family up tonight. He wasn’t even sure he should go. 

“We’re here!” One of the crew shouts. Techno climbs out of his bunk and goes to help them dock. 

This would be an interesting night. 

----------

It was past midnight by the time the captain gave him the all clear to go off the boat. The masked leader, Dream had already told him he was free of his contract. That if he wanted he could stay and never face the seas again. However he also offered that Techno could be one of his swordsmen. 

Techno didn’t need much time to know he wanted to stay with Dream and his crew. The only difficult decision he had made was whether to go see his family one last time. 

If he was quiet, none of them had to know he ever stopped by. None of them ever had to know the boy never really died. 

He walks down the familiar rocky path that takes you throughout their fishing town. Stopping in front of a familiar wooden door. He takes a few deep breaths, closes his eyes and pushes the door open as slowly as he could. 

He sees Tommy curled up next to Wilbur on their pile of blankets they called a bed. Techno smiled at how even though Tommy was quite tall for his age, he still looked like a toddler compared to Wilbur. 

He tsks at the site of messy parchment papers strewn across the floor. Wilbur had a way with words, always writing music to perform at the pier. It wasn’t out of the ordinary for Philza and Techno to be cleaning up after him when he falls asleep writing. 

What was out of the ordinary was the fact that Philza wasn’t with them. For a moment Techno fears he had died too, perhaps while looking for him. 

The fear is short lived when he hears a startled voice from behind. 

“Techno?” 

The swordsman turns around quickly. Philza hurries to set down the firewood in his arms and starts to reach out to him. 

Techno brings a finger to his lips, and nods his head towards where Wilbur and Tommy slept. Philza freezes for a moment, before nodding slowly. He walks outside, Techno follows him quietly. 

“What the hell? How the hell-” Philza grabs his hand, looking at him like he’s a ghost. Techno felt like he was. He wishes he could pretend to be just a figment of his father’s imagination. That felt easier than this. 

“I never went to spar that night.” He begins. 

“I can see that.” Philza goes to grip his face now, checking him over for injuries. 

“This man offered me a job on their ship after seeing me fight. I thought it was a chance to break the cycle, a chance to lighten your burden.” He always felt guilty, he knew it wasn’t easy on the man to try and keep three kids fed. Wilbur was already so good with Tommy. Techno didn’t feel like he did enough for his father.

“You listen to me boy, you are never a burden. If I had felt that way I would’ve ran off years ago.” Techno knows this, he remembers Wilbur’s breakdowns after their mom passed away. Where he’d tell Techno they were gonna be abandoned. 

“I know you never viewed me as one, but I was dead weight, dad. Wilbur takes care of Tommy, he’s gonna marry his childhood friend soon and is loved for his performances. Whether you want to see it or not. There’s nothing for me here.” Philza leans against the stone walls of the house and gapes at him. Techno continues.

“I saw a chance, a place I could finally belong to and I took it. I’m sorry I let you mourn me. Tell Wilbur that too.” He’s getting emotional just as he knew he would. Wiping at the stray tears on his cheeks. 

“What do you mean ‘tell Wilbur’? You’re back now, tell him yourself Techno.” He smiles at the teenager. 

“Dad I-I’m not staying. We’re stopped here for the night, they offered me a main spot on the crew. I’m going.” He tries to sound final but he can’t help the way his voice wavers. He watches his dad crumble. He watches him screw his face tight, and look up at the stars. 

His dad always took comfort in the stars. Insisting that’s where their mother was, watching over them every night. 

Techno knew the stars were nothing more than guidelines for a ship, but he’d let his dad keep his false hope. It was the least he could do. 

“Wilbur will understand this but Tommy? He’s six Techno. He won’t-” He stops abruptly and looks at Techno. They’re both crying. He regrets coming back for a moment, regrets hurting his father all over again. 

“I know I don’t deserve to ask anything of you right now, but please never let Tommy know I abandoned him. It’ll haunt me forever knowing you and Wilbur will know what I’ve done. Please just let him think I died that night.” He shakily reaches behind his neck to unclasp the necklace Tommy gave him. 

“Tell him you found this in the trees, say I dropped it from my spot in the sky.” He’s choking back sobs now, Philza just looks at him with a sad sort of pride. He gently takes the necklace and pulls Techno towards him. “I’m so sorry. I’m sorry for leaving, I'm sorry for leaving again. I’m so sorry you had to be awake, sorry you have to know the truth.”

“I forgive you, Wilbur will too in time. This is your life son. You shouldn’t have to stay here, no matter how much I wish you would.” The swordsman holds on tighter, trying to remember every detail of this moment. “I’ll respect your wish and keep this from Toms. It’s for the best he never knows.” 

Techno pulls back, his dad keeps a firm grip on his shoulders and smiles sadly. 

“I love you. Tell Wilbur I’ll never fully forgive myself for being such a coward. Tell him I always liked his writing even when I teased him for it.” 

“You’ll be happy out there. I know you will thrive. Wilbur will come to terms, seeing you one last time was more than I could ever ask for.” He laughs to himself before putting on the silver necklace. 

“I’ll hold onto it for a few years, give it to him when he knows not to lose it yeah?” 

Techno smiles and sighs. “I hope you can still find comfort in the stars.” With that he turns and walks back towards the beach. The wind made his coattails go wild. 

He reaches the dock and happily accepts Dream’s hand as he’s lifted up onto the ship. He doesn’t take another glance at the beach, instead he faces the ocean. Watching the moonlight bounce off the waves. 

For the first time in 17 years, Techno feels like he’s finally where he belongs.

[c4pricornc4ts]

Where are Your Parents? - Sbi Au Chapter Six

Also on my ao3 

Chapter One here

——-

Every time Tommy goes out into town, and every time Techno leaves for a trip he can’t help but be taken right back to the moment he realized how cold it was on those front steps.

He was tired of being abandoned. He knows they’ll fight tooth and nail to come home, but even 7 years later he still has nightmares of his mom leaving him.

Wilbur could smell the rain before the clouds even came over the sky. He recognized the feeling of warm moldy air filling his lungs before a bad storm. The same way the cold settles on his skin before the sun starts to set.

Now he understood what Techno meant all those nights where he’d return early telling Wilbur it was going to storm.

When they’d all three go on walks together, he and Techno would always sense when the daylight was scarce. They’d nod to each other and tell Tommy they needed to get home. To which Tommy would respond by being shocked and complaining he can’t tell when the sun was going down.

Wilbur was the most comfortable in the woods. He spent the beginning of his life trapped in an apartment with a mom balancing two jobs and a divorce. He always wanted to crack the door so he could just fall out.

When she left him in front of the orphanage in the middle of the coldest January of his life, he never felt so free yet so suffocated.

Even though he was eight, he knew his mother always resented him. He could hear her complaining to her friends on the phone when it was past his bedtime, he saw the way she glared at him when she thought he wasn’t paying attention to his surroundings. She blamed him for his father leaving.

He didn’t know she was planning to leave him.

Every time Tommy goes out into town, and every time Techno leaves for a trip he can’t help but be taken right back to the moment he realized how cold it was on those front steps.

He was tired of being abandoned. He knows they’ll fight tooth and nail to come home, but even 7 years later he still has nightmares of his mom leaving him.

He doesn’t like to talk to anyone but his brothers, preferring to work on his own projects in the woods. Afraid of loving someone else just to be left once again.

Sometimes when he goes to retrieve Tommy from Tubbo’s house and his older brothers tell him he should stay and hang out with them he almost says yes. He knows not having friends will hurt him one day.

Maybe he’ll say yes next time. Till then, he has enough to worry about.

He wipes the sweat off his forehead and sets down his tools inside the shed. He’s shrugging off his jacket when it starts to pour.

It was one of those storms that didn’t start with a drizzle. It fell all at once. The wind picked up quickly and Wilbur could see the ceiling start to drip.

He sighs and puts a bucket under the crack in the roof. He knew the roof leaking already was a bad sign, but even worse was the fact Tommy wasn’t back yet.

It was around 9, the sun hadn’t completely set but the dark clouds made it feel like midnight.

Wilbur props his pillow up and sits against the wall. Partly watching the leak, mostly watching the door.

Of course the first time he let’s Tommy out on his own again is the day it decides to storm. Not to mention that Techno might be caught in this.

He starts to understand why his mom couldn’t raise him anymore. Worrying about his brothers constantly makes him realize how exhausted she must’ve been.

He was grateful he didn’t worry anyone anymore. The last thing Wilbur ever wanted was to burden anyone else.

Sometimes he just wants to sit Tommy down and tell him that he needs to be careful with who he lets in his life. That he doesn’t think his heart could take seeing Tommy get betrayed by someone he trusted.

He snaps out of his sadness when the leak in the roof caves in and water starts rushing in, flooding the shed.

“God dammit.” he mutters before getting up and grabbing clothes out of their basket and anything important off the shelves.

Techno always told them to never grow attached to more than one item. It would only hinder them. Especially when running away.

Techno wanted to take his red fur coat. It was too big to feasibly bring with them so Wilbur grabbed some fabric scissors and carefully cut off a small square and handed it to him the night before they planned to leave.

Tommy was thankfully never much of a material kid, whether that was because he learned everything gets taken or if he just values people more, the brunette didn’t know. He ended up just taking a broken disc turned into an ornament.

Those who don’t know Tommy would find it a very strange choice, but Wilbur and Techno knew how much Tommy loved decorating for Christmas. They were the ones who would pick him up just so he could have the tallest ornament.

Wilbur however grew attached to objects very quickly. So picking just one thing to pack when they left took him the longest. He didn’t really have anything that he’d want to take. He was leaving everything behind for his family, because they mattered more than any keepsake.

He decided he wouldn’t bring anything of his. Rather, while Techno was in another boring meeting he dug through the owner’s file cabinet and took Tommy’s birth certificate and tucked it away in the same, small leather folder where he keeps his songs.

The teen knows this doesn’t mean he’s officially adopted Tommy, but having his records made Wilbur feel more prepared to take responsibility for him.

He pauses on his way out the office and considers taking his and Techno’s as well, but he decides it’s not worth the risk of being caught. They’d be adults soon enough.

Even though Tommy didn’t like going to school, Wilbur wasn’t about to let him quit before even finishing elementary. Once they could find an apartment, he could get Tommy enrolled in a different school where he could have a clean start. Preferably the one Tubbo was in.

He hoped they wouldn’t look too closely into Tommy’s records and if they did, Wilbur would find another school for the boy. For now all he can do is take Tommy’s records and hope he’s making the right decision.

Wilbur sees the wall with their shelves start to lean and he rushes to grab the leather folder. The disc and coat were thrown in too but not before Wilbur was sure Tommy’s official records would be safe.

He concluded the shed was only going to get worse, and as of right now, the water was rushing around Wilbur’s work boots. Only when he thought that the snow was the worst of his problems, now their house was crumbling.

Wilbur felt like he was out of options. He stumbles back when the wall leans dangerously and the roof tries to go with it.

He throws a coat over his bag and takes a deep breath before heading out in the rain to find Tommy.

He wastes no time standing around in the downpour, and keeps his head down as he heads down the familiar path towards town.

The rain is already soaked through his thin coat, he’s numb to the cold with adrenaline now but he knew he was gonna seriously regret this later.

The forest is dark, the occasional flashes of lightning being the only reassurance that Wilbur is staying on the path.

He hated the cold, he hated how cold he’s gonna be wherever he and Tommy end up after this ridiculous beginning to his night.

Hopefully, Tommy went to Tubbo’s house and that’s why he didn’t come home earlier.

Though, it would be very hard for Wilbur to explain to a family who thinks they have parents and a home why he’d come to collect Tommy without an umbrella and a bag.

The bookstore was closer, and Phil would be a lot more understanding. Wil decides that’s a better place to ask about his brother first and takes a sharp right once he reaches the first buildings in the town.

He’s rushing through the abandoned stone streets, trying to avoid the rain however possible. He really hopes Tommy was with someone and not out cold in some alleyway again.

Tommy was a trouble magnet, his extroverted and inquisitive personality always had him running his mouth all over town. Chaos attracted chaos, Wilbur supposed.

He sees the weathered bookstore sign and raps against the wooden part firmly.

“Phil? It’s Wilbur, Tommy’s brother.” He calls from outside, hoping he wasn’t already asleep.

He bounces nervously and waits for a reply, hoping he was louder than the rain. He wasn’t sure how soundproof the apartments on this side of town were.

He huffs in frustration after a few minutes and begins to knock again, as aggressively as he could. The tired boy would apologize for his rudeness later, for now he had a pretty damn good reason to be impolite.

He knows there isn’t much he wouldn’t do to keep his brothers safe. They only had each other, if he didn’t look out for Techno and Tommy, no one would.

If they ever went truly missing, no one would recognize them anyways. No one would care besides the trio.

He’s shivering half from how cold it is, and half at the thought of never seeing his family again when he sees Phil turning his keys and unlocking the shop door.

“Wil? What’s wrong? Come in I’ll go wake Tommy.” He steps aside quickly to let Wilbur in and locks the door back behind them.

Hearing the last part of Phil’s words, Wilbur immediately relaxes. The adrenaline is wearing off now that he’s safe and he starts to realize just how pathetic he must look right now.

“No. Don’t- don’t wake Tommy, please.” He stutters out, which stops Phil on the back steps.

“Alright, we have to be quiet then. The guest room is just off the living room.” He disappears upstairs, hopefully to find Wilbur some dry clothes.

The shivering boy takes a deep breath before walking up the stairs as well. Hoping for somewhere to just sit and figure out what all just happened.

He doesn’t see Phil anywhere so he goes into the kitchen and makes sure the contents of his bag weren’t destroyed. Pulling everything out, the extra clothes and the keepsakes, and lays them down on the small wooden table.

Everything was dry. Thankfully, he hangs his bag up to let it dry and grabs himself a change of clothes.

Phil tosses him a towel and points him towards the bathroom to get dried off.

After he’s changed and attempted to sort out his hair, he leaves his wet clothes in the tub since they wouldn’t get any drier on the clothesline right now. He hopes Phil wouldn’t mind.

He heads back out, the towel still draped across his shoulders like a blanket. He steps into the kitchen to see Phil ladling soup into a white bowl.

“Sit, I reheated dinner. You need to warm up.” He pours him a glass of water as well and sets it in front of him before sitting on the other side of the table.

“Thank you, sorry about all of this. He didn’t tell me he’d be staying with anyone and you-”

“There’s no need to be sorry Wil, I told you this doesn’t bother me.” He laughs slightly, trying to help Wilbur feel more at ease no doubt.

He takes another spoonful before answering. “It’s still rude of us. To keep bothering you like this.” He insists weakly, tired of this night already.

“Tommy was helping me, he came to thank me. Wasn’t expecting that from a child, but talking to you makes me see where he must get it from.

Wilbur smiles at the compliment, and looks down at his bowl. “He really is a polite kid, even when he’s pretending to be obnoxious. I’m glad you noticed that about him, not many do.”

“Why don’t you want me to wake him? He’s worried about you.”

“The shed was collapsing, I don’t want him asking about why I brought a bag of our items till morning.”

“Are you okay? Where’s Techno?” Wilbur sets down the spoon, his appetite is gone.

“He’s in the mountains, he helps the farmers out there. It-It was just me.” He rests his cheek on his hand. “And it’s still just me trying to figure out how to handle this.”

“I’ll help you Wil, you know I’ll watch Tommy, and the guest room is always open.” He stands up to collect the dishes out from a barely tired Wilbur. Who barely noticed the bowl was gone.

“It’s really bad Phil, even if we did try to sleep in it, the blankets and pillows are definitely irreparable. It was always a temporary house. We knew it would give out eventually, just thought we’d already have our own place by then.”

“Stay here then Wil. You can work for me, Tommy can learn to read and Techno can come in whenever he’s back. We’ll fill him in on what happened together. You don’t have to be alone.”

“Just till we have enough money, we won’t intrude for longer than we have to.”

“You’re no bother, I need the help around the store anyways. Besides, it’s too quiet in here.” He closes the door to the ice box and turns to him. “For now, the only other decision you need to make is whether you’re sleeping in the room with Tommy or the couch.”

“Thank you, Phil.”

With that, they go to their separate ways for the night. He opens the guest room door as quietly as he could, to see Tommy completely oblivious to anything that had happened tonight.

The storm had calmed down considerably, only the wind remained when Wilbur finally slept.

[c4pricornc4ts]

Ph1lzA has Joined the Game

"Does this seem normal to you?" with anyone of your choice ! - Anon

Sorry Anon, I posted the draft accidentally and lost your message. So hopefully you see this. I didn’t think hitting enter would POST IT gahhh...

  Philza ends the stream slightly earlier than normal. He tells chat he has a very important event to go to. He doesn’t tell them that the ‘important event’ was finally letting Tommy drag him on a tour of the DreamSMP. 

  He joins the vc Tommy’s in, hoping he isn’t interrupting anything important since Tubbo was also there. Though, they were always in voice chats together so really his only choice to interrupt. 

  “I think it’s finally time for someone to take me on a tour of a very specific smp” He announces, trying not to laugh as Tubbo and Tommy immediately erupted into chaos both boys shouting over each other. Trying to tell Philza about what they were gonna do first. 

  He gets the IP from Tommy and when he joins he’s immediately met by glitched walls. “Uhh, Tommy? I can’t-” he’s interrupted by Tommy who runs up to him in minecraft stumbling over his words.

  “Philza! Welcome, welcome we usually have a party set up but y’know short notice and all.” He laughs. 

  “Does this seem normal to you?” He goes and tries to break the spawn wall, only for the block to reappear milliseconds later.

  “Of course it’s normal big P! It’s a spawn trap, duh.” Tommy hops into the trap with him and starts climbing up a tree.

  “Tommy, why would you also jump in the spawn trap?” He sighs, looking up at the blonde’s spot on top the oak tree. 

  “To get you out obviously.” He sprint jumps onto the spawn wall and punches towards Philza, encouraging him to do the same. “Okay, just do what I did but less good because I’m the best.” 

  Philza laughs and rolls his eyes but does his best to copy Tommy. Sprint jumping to the wall and looking at Tommy, waiting for the other to lead the way. 

  “Right, well this is the community house. But that’s not what’s important.” They run through a house set in the middle of the lake, the floor half crafting table, half just normal wood. There were signs everywhere and random staircases. Philza assumed it wasn’t a very well respected community house.

  They keep running down a pathway, passing many interesting buildings. Philza has many questions but Tommy doesn’t stop for anything. Just keeps sprinting down what seemed like an endless oak path. 

  He opens a gate at the top of the roof. Philza stops to read a sign stating ‘Property of TommyInnit’ before walking through. He was expecting a lot more than a dirt house and some carrots to be Tommy’s base. Especially with the fact he could see a literal castle in the distance. 

  “Ah, you are so amazed you are speechless. I get it, I too am sometimes at a loss for words when I see my carrot farm.” The teen jokes. 

  Philza goes to open the door to his base, and is greeted by the entire floor covered in nothing but chickens and a sign saying; ‘>:) -ponk’ 

  Tommy follows behind him, rambling about how amazing his farm was before stopping mid sentence and just staring at the sea of chickens. “Philza minecraft, I think we’ll have to continue this tour later, I need to have a big chat with Ponk.” 

  With that, the boy had already switched channels and was definitely yelling at Ponk in general 2 by how often the green ring around his profile was lighting up. 

  Philza laughs, he can’t say he’s disappointed the tour was cut short because judging from what he saw just now, this server is a hot mess. 

  However, he was happy to see how much Tommy thrived in all the chaos.