Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Ready?” Wilbur asked, a wide grin on his face as he hugged Techno closer to his side.

Techno nodded, though even through his excitement he seemed a little worried. Wilbur was holding onto him tightly though and had yet to let him fall. He trusted his older brother to keep him off the floor.

Wilbur looked out the bus window one more time before turning back to his little brother, smile almost bubbling off him as he started to count down from five. Techno having to wait until he reached ‘three’ to count with him. Techno was a little behind and as he was saying ‘one’ both he, Wilbur and the rest of the kids in the small bus were heaved into the air as they hit a pothole with bit too much speed to be really safe.

A round of giggles and laughs erupted from the bus, the kids all being used to the bumpy ride. Techno had been scared of the bus rides to and from school for the first few months before Wilbur had thought to make a game of it. Bouncing just in time to get more air as if on a mini roller-coaster. Techno wasn’t the biggest fan really, but it was better then tensing up and waiting for each jolt or jostle from below. It hadn’t taken long before the other kids were joining in the game. However, Techno was the only one with an anchor for it. Techno was the only one with a ‘Wilbur’.

It was a good thing too, because at the age of 5 Techno was still on the smaller side than what was expected for a kid his age. This tended to make him more timid around others and far more prone to be pushed around by even a slightly uppity breeze. It had been of some concern, of course, between Phil and Kristin on if Techno should still be enrolled in Kindergarten despite this, or to wait a year in the hopes he would grow into his age. However, at seeing Techno excited and chattering to Wilbur about being able to finally start school like him both parents had decided to let him try it out at the very least. After all, Wilbur was there to look after him.

Wilbur, now wheezing with his laughter as he held Techno against his side, slid them both to the back spine of the seat. That last bump had almost tossed them both down, but he’d stopped them, of course, by bracing his legs at the last second on the back of the seat ahead of them. He’d almost forgotten to do so since the last three bumps had been smaller. Still, Techno didn’t seem to notice and was still smiling, so he figured it was okay. Just this time.

Leaning up Wilbur peered out at the passing buildings, trying to recall when the next bump would be. He had to be prepared. He had to count down to it. It made Techno feel better to know when they were coming. If Wilbur was entirely honest, he could understand that, and so, as the elder brother by three years, it was his job to memorize what he could to prepare them. By the age of 8 Wilbur knew most of the pothole locations for the bus route to and from school.

Outside the window a blue and gold sign passed by that Wilbur still couldn’t read all the way. It made him relax though and look down at his little brother as he settled back against the seat. Techno looked up at him confused for a second before he seemed to realize the ‘bump-bump-game’ was paused. Wilbur knew they had at least one street and one dropped off kid to go before he’d need to worry about the next one. In the meantime they could just sit and enjoy the ride for a little.

“Techno, do you remember what day it is?” Wilbur asked after a few minutes of just swinging his legs.

Techno looked at him and shook his head with a questioning frown. He wiggled his feet, but unlike Wilbur, Techno’s own reached just to the end of the seat but no further. Wilbur smirked at the fidgeting and placed a hand on his brother’s head. He brushed back a bit of the sandy brown hair as he angled Techno’s face so that their eyes would directly meeting. Techno beamed, knowing this was good news by the action.

“It’s Friday!” Wilbur replied with extra enthusiasm as he let his smile grow wider, though he still was drawing it out and making Techno wiggle in his seat for what came next, “I didn’t get into any trouble this week and you came home with another gold star.”

As he mentioned the gold star Techno’s hand ran over the sticker that was pressed into the front of his jacket. It was starting to peel, but Techno wouldn’t dare lose it. He loved his gold stars.

“So.” Wil started again, Techno’s attention back on his brother as he started to wiggle in place once more trying not to giggle with his own excitement, “Sooooo-”

“-We get cookies!” Techno finished, unable to withstand the suspense his brother was building.

Wilbur laughed, ruffling the gently curling locks of his younger brother’s hair a bit harder than needed to make his whole body sway at the action. Techno laughed but also tried to push Wilbur’s hand from his head, though he wasn’t successful.

”You stole my thunder. Little brat.” Wilbur teased as his brother gave a short whine.

“I’m not a brat.” Techno huffed out, he spoke low so only he and Wil could hear him, but it still made Wil smile a bit.

Techno had a hard time speaking, especially outside of the house. His voice always seemed so small and sometimes it left him breathless. Their parents seemed a bit concerned about it, but Wilbur was sure that with a big of growing he’d be fine. Until then, Wilbur would make sure Techno got plenty of talking practice between rests.

“You so are a brat. A short little brat that still can’t count to ten without his fingers.” Wilbur pressed on, this time pulling his hand away as Techno swatted at him now.

“ You still count on your fingers too.” Techno huffed back at him with the start of a pout.

Techno wasn’t fully annoyed yet, but Wilbur was sure he could fix that with his next sentence. The bus pulled into a stop and Techno as leaning now against the seat with his little arms crossed in mock anger as he waited to see how Wilbur would reply. It took everything in Wilbur to make his decision for words, going back to kicking his feet under the seat.

“Maths is hard.” He stated plainly, feeling the passing of opportunity to make Techno devolve into his ‘I’m really mad’ whine.

Techno’s way of throwing a tantrum had always amused Wilbur. A firm glare that was mixed somehow perfectly with a pitched whine that rose and fell as if Techno were somehow part whale or something and was trying to communicate his distress to any possible nearby sea life. Techno hated being compared to a whale call and that only made Wilbur more eager to do so. It was a brother thing for sure.

Techno, seeming to sense that the next tease wasn’t going to arrive, turned back to poking at his little golden star on his coat.

--

The rest of the ride was mostly the same. A few bumps interrupted by chatter from Wilbur while Techno either nodded or shook his head. They were just about the last stop and by the time they were due to get off both boys were antsy and eager to dash up the aisle to escape. Wilbur lagged behind to help Techno as he stumbled over his bulky shoes.

Jumping off the last step of the bus and onto the pavement of their bus stop they boys looked around for the familiar sight of their of their mother. Expecting to see her long dark hair tousled by the wind as she hugged close a thick winter coat around her well pregnant belly to battle the seasonal chill. It was well into spring but she insisted she was absolutely freezing. According to their dad it was just something that happened during a woman’s pregnancy.

Speaking of their father, both of the boys were confused when they caught sight of him, his blond hair roughly tied back and sporting an excited smile as he waved the two over. They both greeted him with a hug, though he started speaking before they could get a word to him about their mother.

“I know what your probably thinking, but just wait. Okay? We’ve got a surprise for you two.” Phil stated, his smile widening as he tried to contain his joy.

It was contagious and both Wilbur and Techno looked at each other with bursting grins. This wasn’t just ‘cookies for snack’ energy. Their dad was proper giddy about something and they wanted to know what.

The trio walked the few blocks to their house, Phil keeping them from running even if he most likely wanted to as well. He trusted the neighborhood enough to live in, but that didn’t mean he didn’t take precautions. It was the city after all. They had gotten lucky to get a small house with a workable space for a backyard, but they were almost walled in by apartment buildings packed with strangers. Excited as he was, Phil would rather walk and be mindful than to sprint ahead and teach any bad habits the boys might exhibit later on.

Wilbur made sure he was the first through the door, bursting through despite his father calling a warning to be quiet. Wilbur managed to get a few rushed steps into the house before stopping with a furrowed brow. He peered into the kitchen to find it empty, both of his mother and the delicious treat she’d promised. It didn’t even smell like anything was or had been cooked at all.

Techno burst past Wilbur and stumbled towards the living room, find that too was empty. At this he looked back at his older brother and father questioningly. Wilbur could only stare back in similar confusion before likewise looking to their father. Phil opened his mouth to direct them but he never got past the initial ‘come on’ before a small cry broke into the air.

Wilbur and Techno looked at each other, startled, before moving to look down the hallway that lead towards the bedrooms. Phil barely had to raise a hand to motion them forwards before both children were darting down said hall, once more ignoring their father’s calls to be careful.

Upon reaching the door to the parents room Wilbur had to brace himself for a moment as Techno had ran into him full steam, not having slowed down at all. There was another cry from inside the room which caused Wilbur to hesitate further before slowly opening the door and peeking his head in. Techno bounced impatiently at his side.

Kristin was sat in her bed, well covered with blankets as she held a small bundle in her arms. She was rocking it gently with a light hum, clearly tired but also contented. At hearing the sound of the door she looked up and over at Wilbur, her smile growing as she assured him he could enter.

“I-is that-?” Wilbur cut off, his brain momentarily stuttering as he processed the moment.

Kristin smiled at both boys before nodding her head, glancing at Phil at the door who was likewise watching the two. Up until now Wilbur had been unsure of the idea of having another sibling while Techno didn’t want to not be the youngest anymore. It had been an ongoing back and forth and now as the real moment of truth. How would the two truly greet their new sibling.

“Wilbur! Be careful.” Phil scolded, remembering to lower his own voice as Wilbur swiftly scaled onto the bed and crawled up to his mother.

Phil helped Techno up, placing him beside Wilbur as the older was peering over his mother’s arms at the small child. Kristin had lowered the bundle down as much as she dared, earning a somewhat displeased whine from the infant that lay within.

Wilbur could only stare down at the tiny wiggling pink skinned newborn resting in the soft nest of pale yellow in his mother’s arms. The wrinkled face was contorted in discomfort as it weakly writhed with another small sound. Without thinking he reached towards the babe and lightly, almost as if he scared to, he ran the back of his finger down the infants cheek.

“He’s so much smaller than Techno.” Wilbur muttered as a tiny, uncoordinated fist rose up and haphazardly moved towards its face.

“I wanna see!” Techno complained as loudly as he dared, a huff of breath leaving him as he bounced at Wilbur’s side.

Wilbur turned to warn Techno not to jump around like that but stopped short as he felt something against his hand. Looking back he was surprised to find a set of tiny, oh so very very tiny fingers grasping onto his own. It was a tighter hold than he’d thought a baby could have, but at the same time it felt so…small.

Kristin watched on, a sort lived look of concern on her face before it was replaced with a more assured one as Wilbur brought his thumb over to lightly hold onto the smaller. Phil gave her a matching look as he picked up Techno, allowing him to better see without the threat of him accidentally leaping onto the bundle by accident.

“Why is he pink?” Techno asked as he looked up at Kristin with a furrowed brow.

“All babies look like this when they’re first born.” She answered with a light laugh, “You were too.”

“I’m not pink though!” Techno argued as he looked from the baby to his parents.

“You were. We have picture proof of it.” Phil replied with a chuckle as he lifted Techno off the bed a moment since he was fidgeting so much.

There was a moment of silence here as Techno seemed to take this in, either to accept or brush off.

“You said we’d all together when the baby was born.” Techno stated after said moment had passed, his final decision kept to himself, “You promised.”

“I know, but it sort of just, happened without our say.” Phil tried to explain.

“Sometimes babies are just so eager to be born that they arrive earlier than intended.” Kristin added with a smirk, “You almost did yourself Techno. Though, admittedly, you weren’t trying to come this early.”

“We were going to name him together!” Techno complained once more, this time getting a light shushing from Phil who rocked him a bit to calm him.

“We said we’d let you tell the nurse his name, not that you’d name him. He isn’t a dog Techno.” Phil laughed, “We already had one picked out.”

“Its not ‘William’ is it? Pleased tell me you didn’t name him that.” Wilbur asked with a look on his face of actual worry.

“No Wil, we didn’t name him ‘William’.” Phil replied with an eye roll.

Both he and his wife had gotten many a speech from their eldest about why ‘William’ was the worst name ever and that him being a ‘Wil’bur was already too close for his comfort. He just ‘wouldn’t stand for a William in the family’. It was funny and impressive the fight he put on on it.

“His name is Tommy.” Kristin informed in a softer tone as she watched Wilbur gently wiggle his finger that the tiny hand held onto.

“Tommy.” Wilbur stated before his eyes darted between the parents, “So…so it IS a baby brother, not a sister? I- I guessed right?”

Phil and Kristin shared an amused look before nodding while Techno gave a huff.

“I wanted a little sister.” He mumbled as he tried to cross his arms.

“Maybe next time bud.” Phil consoled with amusement while Kristin gave them both an exaggerated mock look of bewilderment.

“Excuse me, ‘Next time’?” She asked, a brow raising as Phil tried not to snort laugh at the response.

“I mean, you never know.” Phil stated as he tried to tease back.

“I know a few ways to safely know.” Kristin hinted though with no real intent behind it.

It was a short laugh between the adults that the two boys didn’t get. Techno huffed again in his father’s arms as he looked down at Wilbur and his new baby brother. Wil was still holding the child’s tiny fist between his fingers, now looking at the babe with a new wonder. The child let out another whine and Kristin started to raise him back up to rest against her chest, carefully freeing Wilbur from he finger hold. He didn’t seem happy at the freedom, but he accepted it.

“...Does this mean we don’t get cookies?” Techno asked suddenly just as the room was about to go into a lull, “I got a gold star an’ everything.”

At this the parents were laughing again, Phil being the one to speak up as he gave Techno a gentle rocking once more.

“No cookies today, but will ice cream do?” Phil asked, already knowing the answer.

From both boys there were furious head nods. Cookies were good, of course. Especially the ones their mother baked. However, ice cream was something else entirely and they both could firmly agree on that.

Phil was chuckling to himself as he carried Techno towards the door and out towards the kitchen in turn. Meanwhile Wilbur hung back a few more seconds to stare at the bundle now pressed against his mother’s chest.

“Are you okay Wilbur?” Kristin asked as she tilted her head ever so slightly.

“...I-y-yea. Yea, I’m okay.” He nodded before moving to slide off the bed.

”Are you sure?” She pressed, trying to keep too much worry from her voice.

Wilbur fidgeted in place once he was on his feet, debating something before he looked his mother in they eyes.

“I have two baby brothers.” He stated, to which Kristin nodded with a smile, “Does…does that mean I’m like, a super older brother now?”

Kristin paused to give him a soft smile, an airy laugh at her lips.

“You already were.” She assured him.

It took a moment for the grin to spread over his face before he darted out of the room at his father’s call.

Chapter Text

It was well past bedtime as Wilbur tossed himself onto his other side, squishing his pillow hard against his ear. It didn’t matter though. Baby Tommy’s piercing cries still found their way to him, rattling his eardrums and making his head pound. From the noises to his left Techno wasn’t having any better luck.

The younger boy let out a whine as if he too were close to crying and Wilbur finally sat himself up in bed. Looking over he could see Techno had been attempting a similar idea as him, though he’d equipped himself with stuffed toys and was all but jamming them against his ears. He looked utterly distressed and Wilbur understood perfectly. Though Techno was far more sensitive to his sleep being messed up than Wilbur was it was still cause for concern.

Getting out of his bed Wilbur started to walk over towards his younger brother to try to comfort him. However, at seeing the movement Techno looked towards Wilbur with a pleading look as he lowered the toys in defeat.

“Make him stop Wil. Please” He begged, voice wavering and ready to break.

Wilbur stopped in place and stared at his brother, seeing the quack of his lower lip and the rising of tears in his eyes. Techno was close to joining the newest family member and Wilbur didn’t think he’d be able to survive that.

He gave a nod to Techno and turned towards the door with a fearful determination. Just before he reached it though he heard movement behind him. Turning he saw Techno shuffling towards him, a blanket clutched to his chest.

Techno wasn’t a fan of the dark and hated being alone in it. Even with the nightlight he couldn’t stand to be in the room if Wilbur wasn’t there past bedtime.

Turning to face him Wilbur pulled the blanket up to wrap around Techno before facing the door once more. Techno held onto one of Wilbur’s sleeves as he lead them down to the parents room where the crying was coming from. The nursery for Tommy wasn’t finished yet, but that hardly mattered. With all the crying Wilbur was sure Tommy would have been brought into the parents room regardless.

Carefully pushing the already cracked door open Wilbur was met with the very tired forms of his parents. Kristin was currently sipping at some water and rubbing at her temples while Phil gently rocked Tommy on his shoulder trying to gently shush him into any sort of calm.

Little Tommy was red in the face from his screaming with tears rolling tick down his face. He sounded absolutely tortured despite the softness of the comforts around him. At the end of his cry there was a gasping wheeze that seemed to make both of their parents tense up, right before a fresh scream filled their ears.

Neither of the adults seemed to notice Wilbur and Techno’s arrival until the door was opened fully, exposing them and their own exhaustion. Kristin pushed herself to her feet to meet them at the door, a look of guilt on her face as if Tommy’s verbal assault on the night were somehow her fault.

“Hey boys.” She greeted, not needing ask why they were up.

The walls of the house were thinner than they like.

“Why is he doing that?” Techno asked before Wil could, sounding even more distressed at being closer to the source.

Kristin moved to pick him up, tucking him tight with his brought blanket.

“I’m sorry baby. Its not his fault. Tommy isn’t feeling well.” She tried to explain.

“I’m not feeling well and I’m not crying.” Techno countered, though he was closer to tears now than he was before.

Kristin wiped at his eyes as she tried to sooth him, rocking him a bit as well as Phil moved further into the room hoping that small distance might help.

“I know, Techno, I know. But, Tommy is still so small. He doesn’t know how else to show he’s not well.” She tried to explain again, “To him, this is worst thing he’s ever felt before.”

“Well this is the worst I’ve ever felt before.” Techno huffed as he tried to bury his face into his mother.

“Is he sick?” Wilbur asks as Kristin busies herself with Techno.

“A small cold.” Phil nods, tilting his head away from Tommy as he lets out a short but shrill whine in between his longer cries, “Probably feels like the end of the world to him.”

Wilbur fidgeted in place as he watched both his younger brothers being held and comforted in the late night. He honestly wouldn’t have minded some of that himself, but he wasn’t the one in or near tears. Instead, he was the only one just standing still, watching instead of helping. He was the eldest, the ‘super big brother’. He had to be able to do…something.

Having a hard think on it Wilbur finally turned to leave the room. Neither parent noticing as their hands were quite literally full. It was a short lived absence and soon Wilbur was back with his most prized plush orca, Jubilee, in his arms. He gave it a hug as he worried his bottom lip between his teeth. Whenever he felt ill or upset his Jubilee always made him feel better. So…maybe it would help Tommy too?

With a tentative step forwards towards his father and Tommy Wilbur cleared his throat to get his attention as the elder man facing away at the moment as he rocked the distressed infant. As Phil turned he tried to hide his exhaustion but Wil could see it on his face all the same. Crows feet grew at the corners of his eyes and stole a good portion of his youth, pocketing it into the darkened bags that grew underneath. His pale skin made it easy to note even for young Wilbur.

“Whachu got there, mate?”Phil asked, his words dragging together a bit.

Wil hesitated for a moment more before lifting up the plushy from his chest, presenting it with mild uncertainty. His brow was furrowed a bit as he watched his fathers face for his reaction as he spoke.

“I-I, um, thought Tommy might, might feel better, with Jubilee.” He offered as explanation, his voice wavering.

There wasn’t a long wait at all before Wilbur relaxed at the sight of his father’s face softening, a smile turning up the edges of his mouth. Honestly if it weren’t for Tommy’s hellish screeches into his ear Phil might have let out a small ‘aw’ at the gesture.

“That’s very sweet of you, Wil.” Kristin stated before Phil could get a word out, “I’m sure he’ll appreciate it.”

Techno huffed against her chest, turning his head to face his brother’s and father, the scowl and distressed look on his own face not lessening. He scowled at Tommy tiredly as Phil closed the small distance between himself and Wilbur to accept the toy.

“It might not help him stop crying, but, its worth a shot.” Phil stated, not wanting to get anyone’s hopes up, even his own.

Don’t get him wrong, Phil was a hopeful guy. However, third kid down the line and he’d learned enough to take each potential fix on a case by case basis. In this case, Tommy was burning up with a fever and feeling very unwell, and of course was letting them know all about it. Phil was starting to freak out a bit about it in all honesty. All this shouting was bad for the tiny vocal cords and the more air Tommy used to cry with the less he had going to his lungs proper.

Fingers closing around the stuffed orca Phil took in a breath. Despite himself he was crossing the mental fingers in his head that this would work. Bringing the toy up to Tommy carefully Phil tucked it beside him, trying not to smother Tommy or make him panic at the new sensation.

At first touch Tommy’s small body jerked away from the toy, his scream getting more shrill for that moment. It was enough to make Techno tuck his head back against Kristin’s chest once more as she placed a protective hand over his exposed ear.

Wilbur held his breath, hands tightly scrunching up the hem of his nightshirt. He watched as a tiny fist swung in the air avoiding the orca toy as if polarized against it. Assuming it was poor coordination from baby Tommy Wilbur acted swiftly in stepping closer. He took the small wrist into his own hand softly, as if Tommy were glass, and uncurled the angry miniature fist until the dainty digits were trying to wrap around his own. However, instead of letting latch onto him he moved Jubilee’s soft fin into Tommy’s hand.

Phil had a warning fresh on his lips for Wilbur but held it back as he watched Tommy in his arms. The orca plush lay on the child’s stomach as he wasn’t strong or developed enough to really ‘hold’ anything just yet. The red faced infant was still crying, the foreign feeling in his hand seeming to have stunned him some. Or at least confused him enough to dull down his hollering. Tommy’s fingers dug into the soft flap of fin as he let out a furious hiccup that caused his face to scrunch in fresh discomfort.

Wilbur stared as his still weeping younger sibling and let out a heavy breath as he frowned.

“It didn’t work.” He muttered dejectedly.

There was a hand on his shoulder which had him looking up at his mother. She was giving him a comforting half smile but her eyes showed an understanding for his disappointment that almost made her look sad.

“Comfort doesn’t always come quickly, Wil. Tommy still doesn’t know what be sick is.” She tried to explain.

“He’s not as loud now. So its not like it didn’t do anything.” Phil tried to offer as well.

It wasn’t wrong, but Tommy was still balling his eyes out and wriggling in distress in his father’s arms. His father had moved the plush back to the side of little Tommy, but close enough that the child was still able to grip the fin for all he was worth, and was. Wil watched the pair and even if he could agree that Tommy had, in fact, stopped screeching, it wasn’t exactly what he’d hoped for. Still, he nodded at his father in response, a frown resting heavy on his face.

In this time Techno had wiggled his way down out of his mother’s arms and had fled the room. Apparently the lack of resolution to the crying child had been too much for him. Techno had proven to be a sort of sensitive child when it came to sounds and all this crying and screaming late in the night was probably stressing him out a great deal. Kristin was surprised he’d not started to cry himself in truth, though she wasn’t going to look that gift horse in the mouth at the moment.

“I think its time we try to get you two back to bed. Its really late.” Kristin stated as she reached a hand towards Wilbur, preparing to lead him back to his and Techno’s room.

With another heavy huff Wil turned, hand midway to taking hold of his mother’s when the door to the hallway burst a little wider. Techno stormed in, his face red but set firm with anger as he approached Phil and Tommy. The closer he got, though, the slower his steps were and the more his face turned into one of worry.

“Got something there too, Techno?” Phil asked as he raised his brow, a now amused smile trying to peek out as he tilted his head at the second youngest.

It had been hard to see at first with the blanket Techno was still using to hug himself with, but squished to his chest was a small pink object. He was hugging it tightly and there a fair air of doubt if he’d let it go. However, after a sharp inhale from Tommy at the end of a sudden hiccup Techno started to move.

He wasn’t as careful or mindful as Wilbur had been as he shoved his hands out towards his father, and mainly Tommy, with a pink plush pig he held so dear. Techno’s pig, aptly named ‘Technopig’, was a chubby thing that was only just barely as big as Wilbur’s orca was. It had two flopping ears and a stout curled tail that Techno was watching with a quivering lip as Phil caught the offered item and looked between it and its owner.

“You sure? You never sleep without him.” Phil asked with genuine concern.

Techno nodded as he looked between his pig and Tommy and then his father.

“If it makes him quieter then…then that’s okay.” Techno replied as he fidgeted in place, hands tightening on the blanket around him.

Phil and Kristin shared a look for a few moments, a short silent conversation taking place between them before he nodded.

”Okay then. If you’re sure.” He stated, once more watching Techno to see if he would change his mind in a panic.

Techno just watched his pig, Tommy’s hands and Wilbur’s orca in turn as the infant was still haphazardly holding and flopping the toy. It seemed to be taking some effort for Tommy to move the stuffed thing, his arm muscles not developed enough for even this small thing.

As before Phil placed the stuffed toy to the side of Tommy instead of directly on him to keep him from startling. Jubilee was tucked in between Phil and Tommy, with it leaning mostly against Phil’s chest to avoid smothering. Which left Tommy’s far side to be invaded by the new arrival. However, Tommy seemed to understand enough that the addition beside him was to be touched this time. His hands were no more coordinated than the first time around though and so Phil maneuvered the pig to Tommy’s searching clumsy fingers.

Jubilee’s fin was discarded as tiny Tommy pulled ‘Technopig’ by the ear, the only part he could latch to, closer to himself. Once more it was Phil holding its weight in truth, but Tommy’s itty bitty arms and hands thrashed about just as he had done with Jubilee’s fin. As if he was in full control of it. Techno watched, his lip quivering at the sight but he kept himself from reaching for his toy back.

While there was still an occasional shrill whine Tommy seemed at the very least ‘contented’ enough to maintain a manageable sobbing instead. It was enough of a relief that Kristin could feel her shoulders loosen ever so much. It was far from over yet, but any improvement for any given time was a blessing.

She looked to her elder boys; Wilbur standing half to the door and rubbing tiredly at his eyes, and Techno still eye locked on the baby and the plush toys offered. It was very big of her boys to think of something like that, and to act on it no less. She was so very proud of them, and if she wasn’t so tired she’d have greatly praised them for it. For now, that would have to wait until tomorrow.

“Okay boys, I think you’ve both been up for long enough.” Kristin stated to regain their attentions with what she could muster for a smile, “Time for bed, round two.”

“I think it might be closer t’three.” Phil muttered, a grin spreading half over his face as he peeked at his wife.

Kristin let out a short laugh before looking at him with a raised brow. He shrugged in return as much as he could with Tommy in his arms, his grin growing just for her.

“Really, Phil?”

“I might be tired, but I’m still funny.”

“ ‘Still’?”

“Oi!”

Kristin laughed as walked the boys out of the room, her husbands own laugh lightly filling said room after her.

Techno turned onto his left side for the third time with a low whine. Even as he hugged onto his pillow he just…didn’t feel right. It wasn’t the same soft and safe feeling he’d known since…well, if he had to guess, since forever.

Technopig was his very best friend, they even shared a name. They shared a name, a room, a bed, they shared the same pillow together every night an-

“Hey-”

Techno gasped and turned sharply to look over his shoulder, back towards Wilbur’s side of the room. However, his brother wasn’t’ on his side, but rather was standing right beside Techno’s own bed. Surprised by this Techno sat up, his breath catching as he brushed his hair from his face to see better. He made to ask Wilbur what he was doing, but found his voice wouldn’t come out. In fact, aside from short wheezed breaths he couldn’t get much out.

Thankfully Wilbur didn’t bother waiting to be asked anything, already climbing up into brother’s bed. Techno didn’t fight or argue on it as it wasn’t exactly uncommon for two share a bed on nights where they had trouble sleeping. He tried shuffling to the side a bit to make more room, but that was hardly needed seeing as he was small on the somewhat large mattress to begin with.

Once Wilbur had himself settled down and covered with the blankets enough to snuggle under he looked to Techno. His expression, in the semi darkness of the nightlight lit room, looked to be of a serious face to little Techno.

“I can’t sleep without Jubilee. So you’re Jubilee tonight.” Wilbur stated without room for argument even if Techno could or would muster one.

Despite this Wilbur didn’t make another move and waited for Techno to do something instead. After another hitched breath Techno leaned forward and curled into his brother’s chest with a wheezed whine. Wilbur didn’t need any more then that. Reaching his arms around the smaller boy he hugged him close and pulled them both under the warm covers.

Techno shuddered with a small sob, but it was far quieter than their newest sibling. Especially muffled into Wil’s night shirt as is was, and buried by the ice blue duvet they were both squirreled into. Wilbur could feel the wet patch forming but didn’t much care. Not just because he was tired, but because he really didn’t mind. Out of his two younger siblings he was only really able to comfort one of them just yet. He wasn’t going to let a little damp fabric ruin his being a good brother. Besides, he couldn’t bear it when Techno cried.

Chapter Text

“D- Da-, Come on Toms. Da-”

Tommy barely looked at Phil’s face before blowing wet sounding bubbles at him and sticking his fist into his mouth.

“Ick, no.” Phil huffed with amusement as he reached to remove said hand.

“Maybe he’s getting hungry Phil.” Kristin suggested, smirk on her face as she watched the pair beside her.

She was currently sorting through and folding a large pile of clothing on the bed. Phil was sitting on his side of the bed and taking his turn to hold Tommy while she did so.

“I don’t think so. He usually screams when he’s hungry.” Wilbur pointed out bluntly as he placed one of his socks into his own pile.

He and Techno were seated at the end of the bed, each with a small pile of their own clothing as Kristin handed them off. She folded Techno’s for him still, but Wilbur was now expected to at least fold his own. Though he never bothered to match his socks up, tossing them into his dresser drawer to later fuss over when he couldn’t find the right ones.

“He isn’t fussing, he’s just distracted.” Phil stated with a nod to Wilbur’s words, “Aren’t you Tommy? How can you possibly focus on dad with all these others here? Ah-”

He was cut off as a now partially unfolded shirt dropped down onto his arm after Kristin had thrown it at him. The startled noise had caused Tommy to look up at him with alert eyes before a smile burst over his face, a laugh gurgling out of his mouth.

“Oh, you like that? You like when things get thrown at me?” Phil asked, lifting Tommy up so they were at eye level and smiling at each other, “You are so you mother’s child.”

“And you are procrastinating.” Kristin stated as she raised her arms up for a Tommy transfer, “Go put your stuff away, we need more room.”

“You see how I’m treated Tommy? I think she’s just jealous of our bond.” Phil ‘whispered’ to Tommy before moving to hand him over.

Tommy found it hilarious and reached for Phil’s face while they were close, wiggling his feet in the air when he was moved away.

“Jealous? Whose the jealous one here again?” Kristin asked with a raised brow as she tucked Tommy against her chest and looked down at him, “Your father’s just mad because both your brothers said ‘Mama’ first.”

She made sure to emphasize the word ‘mama’ of course, as she tickled Tommy’s tummy earning a squeal of delight from the youngest.

“That, has nothing to do with it.” Phil stated as he paused in his standing up to stare at her.

She looked over at him and offered nothing but a proud and innocent smile in return. God he loved this woman.

“Why does matter who’s name he says first?” Wilbur asked as he tucked the sleeves of one of his sweaters between the crooked folds.

“Well, I wouldn’t say it…’matters’-” Kristin started, considering her words carefully here, “Its more of an exciting thing for parents to go though. A baby’s first words only come around once and are precious. Its, sort of a selfish thing that each parents wants to be that first word out.”

Wilbur tilted his head as he thought on this, his brow furrowing. Techno though looked more confused than contemplative.

“Being selfish is bad.” He stated with a frown at Kristin, waiting for an explanation without forming a question.

“Sometimes its okay to be selfish, Tech.” Phil answered instead, coming back to sit in his place, “So long as its not hurting anyone else usually.”

“How do you know its not hurting anyone?” Techno asked, hand fussing with his pile and slowly undoing the folding his mother had done.

This one had both parents pausing and looking at each other as if asking each other how best to explain this one. The older Wilbur and Techno got the harder it seemed to get to answer them. Explanations requiring more complex ideas to be filtered down to a learning level. Kristin at least had some idea of how to do it thanks to her job as a Children’s Care Aid. Phil, however, was mostly flying by the seat of his pants.

“You can’t always know for sure.” Kristin started slowly as she looked back to Techno, “That’s why its usually best to try to avoid being selfish. In this case, its fine, because your dad and I love you all so much that no matter who’s name is said first, we still love you.”

“Exactly.” Phil agreed with a nod before reaching his arms out to take Tommy back from Kristin.

Tommy was chewing on his fist again, staring up at the sounds of speaking but for the moment remaining silent. Well, as silent as a drooling, babble body can be. He gave a wide open smile to Kristin as she looked down at him, his free hand reaching up to her at the eye contact.

“I think I want to hold him for a while.” She stated with a grin as she took the offered tiny hand into her own, “I think Tommy wants to spend time with ‘mama’ too~”

Phil let out a mock whine as he leaned back.

“ Kristiiin , he’s never going to say my name if you keep taking my Tommy time from me.” Phil complained loudly and making Wilbur laugh, “You keep stealing all the love!”

“Don’t be sad. We love you, dad.” Techno assured him, quickly shuffling his way around the bed to hug his father.

“Aw, thanks mate. I love you too Tech.” Phil replied with a coo as he lifted Techno up to hug him tighter.

“Pft, suck up.” Wilbur muttered with a snicker.

“This is why Techno doesn’t need to fold his clothes and you do.” Phil stated with a grin at Wil from over Techno’s head.

“Phil, that is not true.” Kristin laughed as Wilbur’s face had fallen into an open mouth look of indignation.

“It is for me.” Phil insisted, clearly teasing as he slowly lowered Techno back to the floor, “Don’t know what your reason is but-”

“Mooom!” Wilbur whined, looking at her with a frown and a furrowed brow.

“Its not true, Wilbur. He’s just messing with you.” Kristin insisted.

“Prove it then. Prove it isn’t true.” Phil encouraged, nodding towards the pile.

Kristin looked to the pile, to her husband and then to her son. She knew he had her beat on this one. For now. She let out a sigh before lifting Tommy up and holding him out to Phil once more. Phil let out small noise of victory that almost had her pulling Tommy back, but she resisted.

“Cheater.” She huffed out to Phil as she tried to keep her grin off her face.

“Takes one to know one.” Phil replied sweetly as he happily bounced the returned infant on his knee with a coo to the happy babbling face.

Kristin picked up one of Wilbur’s nearby sweaters and began to fold it for him, with him watching her somewhat impatiently. He was fidgeting in place with his pout still firmly set, hands fussing with an unmatched sock before him. It was only when she handed the item over to Wil that his frown broke and his smile returned.

Even if she knew his mood right now wasn’t entirely real, she just couldn’t resist that face. His little pout with his wide eyes making him look close to crying. It was always the eyes that got her. He was so much like his father in that respect.

“See? Mom still loves you. Even if dad doesn’t.” Kristin stated, a pointedly teasing look at her husband as he faltered at her words.

“Oi! I never said that!” Phil denied quickly, stopping in his bouncing of Tommy as he looked to Kristin and then to Wilbur who looked just as surprised, “Don’t believe her lies son!”

Kristin laughed at the panic in his voice, leaning over as she hugged her middle. Wilbur wasn’t far behind her, bursting into high pitched hysterics as his body swung forward onto the bed. As he laughed he rolled around half on the bed and half off, tossing his pile to the floor and almost following it himself. Techno looked between his laughing family members, a smiled wide on his face as he started to giggle and laugh even if he didn’t understand why.

He wasn’t the only one catching the contagious laughter. Tommy was thrilled at the merriment around him and was swinging his arms around as he bubbled out delighted squeals of his own. Phil himself was now well into the fits with his family and for a next few minutes the room was a chaotic din of cackling and wheezing.

When the hysterics finally started to subside, the family panting and puffing as they recovered, the only one still making noise was Tommy. He was looking around as best he could at his family, eyes wide and excited as he babbled on waiting for the next person to make a noise. However, with everyone still regaining their breath the relative silence in the room stretched on.

Not if Tommy had anything to say about it.

”Mmm-” He started to hum-mumble.

“Ah! No-no-no!” Phil rushed out, almost choking on his own breath as he looked down to Tommy with wide eyes, “No, Tommy. Da! Da for ‘Da-da’. For ‘Dad’. Please Tommy!”

And with that Kristin was laughing all over again, wheezing into the clean laundry as she fell over onto it. Techno and Wilbur joined her return to hysterics, this time Wilbur falling onto the floor fully as his legs gave out on him.

Phil could only focus on Tommy, trying to convince him that ‘Da’ was far more fun to practice than any ‘M’ sounds he ‘might’ be thinking of.

“Hey, hey, listen to me okay? You can do it. Wuh-wuh-Wiiilbur.”

The eight year old had his face pressed against the bars of Tommy’s playpen, where the smaller child had been placed just earlier. Once Wil had been sure both parents were sufficiently busy he had abandoned his chore in the room and had started talking to him. Or, talking at him. Really just repeating his name at the other with various tones and emphasis.

If his parents said being selfish in this act was ‘harmless’ and ‘okay’, then he wanted in on it. He couldn’t imagine what it would feel like to be Tommy’s first word, but he was excited to find out. If he could manage it. The look of surprise on his parents faces would also be worth it he thought.

Except Tommy wasn’t being very cooperative. Right now he seemed far more interested in soaking the stuffed toy beside him in his spit as he tried to fit as much of it into his mouth as he could. He offered Wil barely a look aside from when he changed pitch. It was small, but it was something. Which is why Wilbur had been speaking his name in progressively strange ways. Surely something would stick.

Wilbur let out a sigh of defeat as he stared at his baby brother. The blond child wriggled in place, blue eyes drifting around the ceiling as he gummed at his toy. He kicked his feet once in a while, his eyes lowering to the non-working mobile just overhead. He reached a fist up towards it and let out an amused giggle before once more being distracted by the plush in his mouth.

“Wilbur, stop staring at your brother like that. He needs to nap.” Phil directed as he walked through towards the kitchen, “Did you finish your chores yet?”

”Yes.” Wilbur lied easily as he peeled his face from the pen.

”Good. Your mother is doing a walk round to check.” Phil stated which made Wil’s eyes widen.

Phil fought to keep a straight face when he looked in Wil’s direction, the ‘deer in headlights’ look all to clear for him to see. Phil was quick to turn into the kitchen fully after that, allowing himself to grin openly when he heard his sons’ now hurried feet shuffling around the living room.

Wilbur had been tasked with picking up his and Techno’s toys from said living room and putting them away so it shouldn’t take him too long. Wilbur would most likely finish before he even realized his mother wasn’t, in fact, making rounds in the small house. Something proven as Phil listened to Wilbur’s just shy of running stride head down the hall and towards the kids’ room.

It wasn’t two minutes later that Phil stopped gathering the ingredients for dinner as he heard something in the living room. It wasn’t Tommy babbling and Wilbur had yet to return from down the hall. But…that was clearly a voice.

Peeking his head out of the kitchen Phil had to over his mouth to keep his laugh contained. There, sitting before Tommy’s playpen where Wilbur had been just minutes before, was Techno. He had a hand reached inside but Phil couldn’t see what he was reaching for. He could, however, hear Techno repeating his name slowly to Tommy in a not entirely quiet voice. From what Phil could hear Tommy was opting to blow bubbles in response.

With an internal sigh Phil turned back to the kitchen, a grin spread wide on his face. Apparently he had more than just his wife to contend with for Tommy’s first word. Phil didn’t mind the competition though, and if Tommy’s giggle from the other room was anything to go by the youngest was hardly unhappy with the attention.

Chapter Text

Wilbur let out a sigh as he leaned back in his chair at the kitchen table. Before him lay three now completed worksheets from school. Two of them he was fairly certain were mostly correct, but the third he was sure was the opposite. If he had to hazard a guess, maybe three answers were right.

Wilbur hated math.

Just as he was about to mentally tangent his hate for all things numbers Wil’s attention was grabbed by a frustrated huff to his left. Glancing towards it he was met with Techno’s pinched face staring down at his own paper.

It was a basic worksheet that Wilbur remembered having to do when he was younger. Techno had, despite being small for his age, been able to start preschool on time with the other kids his age. He had anxious at first, but quickly had been lost to the world of learning. Wilbur recalled the first few days as Techno had actually babbled on and on about learning his letters and numbers.

Looking at his little brother now though Wil could only see the growing distress on his face as he started the paper down as if it had insulted him.

“What’s up, Tech?” Wil asked as he leaned forwards again, “Is it all moving about the page again?”

Techno frowned but shook his head at the question. It was a bit of an issue on occasion when Techno was trying to do his worksheets that, as he described it, the words ‘didn’t stay still’. Wilbur didn’t know what that meant, but their father had assured him that it wasn’t uncommon. They had come to the habit of reading the page with Techno slowly to help him out and it seemed to work well enough. Not always, but, it was a start.

“I don’t know what to do.” Techno huffed out, flopping against the beck of the chair in his annoyance.

“What do you mean? Let me see.” Wilbur directed as he scooted his chair closer.

Without hesitation Techno unceremoniously shoved the paper towards his brother, kicking his feet under his chair enough that they banged against the legs of it audibly. The paper was mostly empty, of course, as most worksheets were. But it had lines in one column and then empty closed boxes on the other. The title at the top read ‘Alphabet Artist’ with the directions listed under it. They read ‘fill in the Alphabet and then draw a picture that starts with that letter’.

Wilbur stared at the paper and then looked to his brother, brow raised.

“Tech, you’ve done harder then this before.” He stated, not understanding his brother’s issue.

“But, there are a lot of letters.” Techno complained as he leaned forwards again, grabbing his paper back, “How am I supposed to draw for all of them? It’s front and back of the sheet!”

Wilbur looked at his brother for a long moment before speaking again.

“You only have to do part of the alphabet. Look, at the top. It says ‘part one’.” Wilbur pointed out just under the title and before the instructions, “There isn’t enough room for the whole alphabet here.”

Techno only huffed again and looked at his brother flatly that said all too clearly that Wil’s current input was hardly helpful to him.

“Ok, ok. Look, I’ll help you come up with ideas. But you have to draw them.” Wil placated as he crossed his arms as if to be stern.

Techno thought for a moment on this before nodding his head.

“You also have to write in the letters yourself.” Wil added as he moved to stand up, “I’ll be right back while you do that.”

Techno opened his mouth as if to protest before snapping it closed again as Wilbur walked towards the doorway leading out of the kitchen. His brother was gone before Techno even bothered looking back down as his awaiting worksheet.

He knew his alphabet, he did. He could…he could easily do this before Wil got back. He looked over the empty lines on the one side and fidgeted in his seat. Glancing towards the door briefly Techno reached for his pencil and placed it lightly at the first line.

A

Second line

B

And then C on the third.

Techno tilted his head at the forth line. It was…a letter. A letter he knew. Of course he knew it. He knew his alphabet. He did. It just…sometimes sounded like another letter too.

Biting his lip Techno started to draw a straight line before he paused. Staring at the line he furrowed his brow at the lone line that now sat there.

He hummed to himself for a second the tune of the ‘Alphabet Song’ he and his classmates had been learning since starting Preschool.

He drew a curved big belly off the line with confidence before looking down proudly at his paper. Wiggling in place he continued to hum, restarting the tune over and over until, front and back, the lines on the paper were filled in.

Looking up from his work Techno’s brow furrowed again as he realized Wilbur hadn’t come back yet. Had he finished his paper that quickly, or…was Wilbur just being slow?

Techno looked down at his sheet, stared at the empty boxes that demanded to be filled in. It…it wasn’t like he didn’t know things that started with the letters, it was just…he knew a lot of things that started with those letters.

Techno looked towards the doorway once more and waited, listening for sounds of footsteps. He fidgeted in his chair as he looked towards the clock. He recognized the numbers but…he still couldn’t really make sense of it. Not like his parents could. Though, he was still certain that Wilbur only pretended to understand it.

“Wiiiiiiil!” Techno called as he looked back to the doorway impatiently, “I’m all done with the letters!”

There was a momentary continuation of silence before a rush of thundering footfalls could be heard from down the hall. In a moment Wilbur came sliding into view, slipping as he tried to coast to a stop in his socks.

“Okay, I’m here.” Wil confirmed as he shuffled back to the table just slightly out of breath.

Techno debated asking what he was doing, but decided he didn’t really care. Wil was just being Wil and if it was something fun he’d tell Techno about it after their homework was done.

“So, what do I draw here?” Techno asked as he pointed to the first box next to the letter ‘A’.

“Dunno.” Wilbur replied in a deadpan as he looked at Techno.

The smaller boy frowned and huffed, crossing his arms for good measure like their mother did when Wilbur was being ‘difficult.’ Wilbur, for his part, put his hands up with a smile on his face.

“No, no I mean it. I was rubbish at this one. I just sort of, cheated by redrawing from my other worksheets. Like, ‘A for apple’ and all that.” He explained, “I was going bring out the letter book from when we were younger to copy off that, but Tommy is currently drooling on it.”

Techno thought on this a moment. He did have a lot of worksheets from school that had pictures on them. He…he could use those. But-

“I don’t want to draw an apple. Apples are boring.” Techno replied bluntly, staring at Wil for his next idea.

Wilbur frowned at this. He thought he’d had this in the bag and that homework time would be done with. They both need to be done before snacks and t.v. time. But, if Techno was going to be difficult and choose not to draw things then-

“Alligator.” Wilbur blurted out without thinking.

Techno looked at him as if he’d just spoken a different language.

“What’s that?”

“Its…well, its like a lizard, but for water. Big nose and sharp teeth.” Wilbur explained as best he could, “I think they might be green as well.”

“Do they do the flippy tongue thing?” Techno asked with interest and Wilbur tilted his head in thought.

“I…I think so? I mean, its a lizard innit?”

Techno scrunched his nose at Wilbur now.

“You’re doing it again.” He stated bluntly.

“Doing what?” Wil asked, broken out of his thought on the ‘water lizard’ and its potential flipping of the tongue.

“The thing. Talking like dad.” Techno replied, “The funny words.”

“Alligator isn’t a funny word….I mean it is, but its a name of an animal-”

Techno huffed shook his head. Wilbur was doing it on purpose, Techno was sure of it.

“How do I draw an Allgaitur?” He asked, stopping Wilbur and whatever he was saying.

“Dunno. Just, draw a green lizard with big teeth?” Wil suggested as he leaned on the table.

Techno considered this before he shuffled out of his seat and darted down the hall to their bedroom. He needed his crayons for this after all.

--

All in all the green squiggle of a lizard with an open mouth and sharp teeth fit oddly well in the formerly empty box. It was like it was meant to be there Techno decided.

“What about ‘B’-”

“Bat.” Wilbur stated before Techno even finished speaking, “Fuzzy black ball with wings.”

“...Ok.” Techno nodded as he picked up the black crayon next.

It was a quick drawing of course. A circle with protrusions for wings. Still, it made Techno smile a bit.

“C?”

“Chameleon” Wilbur supplied, a smile on his face as he waited.

Techno looked at his brother once more, brow knit together.

”What’s that? It doesn’t even start with ‘C’.” Techno puffed out, crossing his arms again.

“Yes it does. Its a lizard that can change colors.” Wilbur explained, waving his hands a bit as if to show of imaginary colors before himself.

“No it can’t, and, and no it doesn’t. It’s the wrong sound for ‘C’.” Techno insisted.

“Its still a ‘C’, its just hugging an ‘H’.” Wil explained, knowing he’d need to convince Techno of that much before moving on, “And its real. Its a small thing with a curly tail. I’ve seen pictures. It can turn all sorts of colors.”

“I don’t believe you.” Techno stated firmly as his pout got bigger.

“Are you calling me a liar?” Wil asked with a raised brow of his own now.

“Yes.” Techno replied without hesitation.

Wilbur paused for a moment before standing up as tall as he could and puffing out his chest.

“I’ll prove it to you.” He stated plainly before turning on his heel.

“B- W-wait, Wil! What about my drawing!” Techno called after him, now panicked at losing his help.

“Come on. I’ll help you after this. Chameleons are real and you need to know it.” Wilbur insisted as he walked into the living room.

Techno hesitated as he looked back at his paper. It was only part done and he didn’t know how long Wilbur would be in ‘proving’ anything. But…if there was a lizard that could change colors then he’d want to see it. Surely mom and dad would understand.

By the time Techno walked out the kitchen doorway and into the living room area Wilbur was already in front of the computer that was stationed at the leftmost corner of the room. It was where their dad worked most of the time, and sometimes their mother too. But right now it was taken up by Wilbur who was opening up a video sight and typing something in.

“Come here Tech, you need to see this. Its, kind of horrible.” Wilbur stated, smile wide as he ushered his brother over.

Techno furrowed brow once more at the term ‘horrible’ but approached all the same. On the screen was a…well, it was a lizard for sure. However, Techno couldn’t get over the long stretchy looking but…scrunched squat eyes. As if someone had been going to make them long and decided against it at the last second, pushing them back down without success. They stuck out weirdly on the lizards head, which as far as Techno could tell was just like a dinosaurs. Its eyes traveled around rapidly, rotating in a way that made Techno both shiver and lean closer with interest. Techno had never seen anything like it before and it was…Fascinating, It hadn’t even changed color yet!

“Look! Look, look, look!” Wilbur excitedly pointed at the screen as if Techno could look anywhere else right now, “Look at its feet!”

With that directive Techno stared at the three chubby looking toes partially raised in the air. The creature had barely seemed to take hold of the pair of sunglasses set before it when the feet shifted from a vibrant green to a matching bright orange.

Techno’s mouth dropped open.

“Watch! Keep watching, it gets cooler!” Wilbur insisted, once more without needing to.

Wil kept jabbing his finger at the screen and was now jabbering excitedly to Techno about the creature. Techno, though, was far to absorbed with watching the scaly beast swap from orange to yellow, to a deep blue and then red. Each time it stepped on a new pair of glasses it was swift to change to match. Even to the point of being multiple colors at once as it walked over them set side by side. He could sit there all night and watch this.

“Boys? What are you doing?”

Techno jumped at the sound of their father’s voice behind them. Wilbur had too, moving to stand in front of the screen to hide the still running video. Their father, with Tommy being bounced in his arms, walked closer to investigate before either boy could begin to answer him.

“I-its nothing Dad. We were, we were just…study…ing?” Wilbur trailed off as their father peeked around him at the video.

“Chameleons? What are-” He started to asked before his eyes widened with mild surprise at seeing it change color as well, “Oh. Oh, wow, that’s quick innit?”

Wilbur spun around, grin back on his face.

“It does so many colors!” Techno pipped up and now pointing at the screen, though by now the video had ended.

“I’m sure. Its what they for camouflage.” Phil nodded as his expression shifted from interest to a slightly more stern look, “Did you finish your homework yet?”

Techno’s smile faltered as he glanced back to the kitchen, the table with his worksheet on it just within his sight.

“We were working on it.” Wilbur started to explain, “But, he didn’t believe me about the Chameleon.”

“Okay, but you know homework come before computer time.” Phil replied as he shifted Tommy onto his other hip.

Little Tommy was wiggling and puffing up with a fresh fuss as he whined into his pacifier. He was looking between his siblings without much interest as Phil started to motion the two older boys back to the kitchen.

“I know, but-”

“No ‘but’s about it mate. We don’t want it forgotten until bedtime again.” Phil cut Wilbur off with a short ruffle of his hand through the eight year old's hair.

“It was Techno’s worksheet!” Wilbur insisted with a pout as he looked up at his father.

Phil tilted his head at this before he looked down at Techno, who had crawled back up into his seat by now.

“What worksheet needs chameleons?” He asked moving over to peek at the paper himself.

“All of them.” Techno stated with confidence, still thrilled with the newly discovered creature.

“Okay, but why here?” Phil specified with a chuckle as he skimmed the paper, “So, animal alphabet then?”

“Techno didn’t want to draw an apple.” Wilbur supplied as the only explanation.

“...Why is there a fanged snake for ‘A’?” Phil questioned with amused bafflement.

“Its an alugatur.” Techno tried to answer, stumbling over the sounds as he looked at his paper.

“Alligator.” Wilbur corrected as he flopped down into his own seat.

“I see.” Phil nodded, turning his head a bit more at the next image as well, “So…uh”

“Bat.” Wilbur supplied as he looked over Techno’s paper from his brother’s other side.

“An then ‘Chameleon’?” Phil continued, now looking at the waiting empty box.

“I can use all the colors and still be right.” Techno stated, picking up a blue crayon with giddiness.

“Well, you’re not wrong.” Phil nodded before leaning away from the table to adjust Tommy again, “Okay, okay, mate. Hold on. Goodness you’re impatient today.”

“Its 'cus mum isn’t here.” Wilbur stated as he started to kick his feet.

“Probably.” Phil nodded, “But, most likely he’s just hungry. Just woke up from his nap after all.”

Wilbur looked at the counter where Tommy’s bottle sat cooling nearby, placed there just earlier in preparation. He was about to get up to grab it but Phil was already moving for it.

“Once I get your brother sorted I’ll get your snacks set up.” Phil assured the boys, though neither were worried.

They knew Tommy had to eat first when only one parent was home to look after the three of them. Tommy was, after all, a baby. Wilbur and Techno were big kids. Big kids could be patient. Plus they both knew Phil would give them extra for waiting without a fuss.

Phil paced the kitchen with Tommy as he ate and Techno went back to his worksheet. Wilbur, though, had nothing to do now as his own work was finished. He stared at the papers, glaring a bit at the math one he tucked to the bottom with distaste.

“D” Techno stated bluntly to the air, a hand reaching for a crayon.

Wilbur grinned.

“Dingo”

“...What’s a-”

“Wil”

Chapter Text

It was a Saturday and the Watson household was positively rumbling with the sound of rushed thudding foot falls of the two elder boys. Wilbur burst out of the hallway into the living room with a shrill laugh, darting directly forwards towards the large armchair on the other side. Techno was close behind him, arm outstretched as he tried to catch hold of his elder brother’s shirt.

Wil swiftly dipped between the armchair and the sofa, careening through the room with the grace of a hurdling newborn fawn. While he stumbled over the carpet he was still better coordinated than Techno, who had bounced off the corner of the sofa taking the turn into the heart of the living room. He hadn’t been able to adjust his speed well, but he wasn’t giving up just yet.

As Techno corrected himself Wilbur had time to gain ground, rushing past Tommy’s playpen where the small blond child watched the pair. Tommy’s eyes were following the two with upmost excitement, a peel of laughter dancing into the air as he reached for his speeding elder brothers with both hands. It was a grabby motion he had picked up recently but at the moment neither sibling was paying much attention to it.

Instead Techno, without even glancing towards the pen, tore passed it in the hopes of catching up to Wilbur once more. The two thundered back into the hall and back down towards the end, the echoes of there feet and giggles quieting only a small bit. As they reached the end there was a short shout from their father about calming down, but it was ignored.

There was the swinging of doors, the sound of bed springs and then racing feet back towards the other end of the house. Tommy waited in his pen, watching the opening to the hallway with giddiness. His hands tried to make a clapping motion in his excitement but it was haphazard at best. He was close to shoving a hand into his mouth just as both boys re-emerged into the room.

Tommy squealed at the sight, laughing loudly and once more doing ‘grabby hands’ as Wilbur turned to make the same pass he had through the living room for the last few laps. Techno was close on him again, fingertips almost brushing his elder brother’s back. He stumbles for a second as he tries to turn in time with Wilbur at the furniture, but the carpet almost does him in. Again, Wilbur gains a few precious seconds of time.

However, this time around is different. As he goes to pass by Tommy’s pen again Wil’s eyes glance over at the smaller bubbling baby. Warm chestnut brown eyes meeting bright baby blue for the barest of second. A spark of mischief ever present flick behind Wil’s eyes as the older boy turned sharply without any warning.

Techno ran headlong into Wilbur, almost sending both boys to the ground. If Wilbur hadn’t had the briefest of seconds to brace then they might well had toppled over. As it was, they remained upright with Wilbur holding the pair of them on their feet.

Without a word and with a grin spreading over his face rapidly Wil wrapped his arms around Techno’s middle and lifted upwards. Confused as to what was happening Techno could only wiggle with a startled squawk before he was sent sideways into Tommy’ pen.

With a soft ‘oof’ Techno landed on little Tommy’s nest of blankets and stuffed toys. The smallest child let out a delight string of gibberish as he jerkily started to crawl over towards the five year old. By the time Techno was pushing himself up enough to peer out at his elder brother with a disgruntled frown he was surprised to see the other was already gone.

Quickly, and ignoring Tommy trying to tug on him in their proximity, Techno stood and peered out of the pen as he tried to locate the eldest sibling. It didn’t take long as Wilbur stepped out of the kitchen, panting for breath but with the same while grin as a moment prior.

“H-hey! That’s mine!” Techno shouted as he spotted the item in Wilbur’s hand.

It was a small chocolate ice cream pop that was meant to be his snack for later, Wilbur having already eaten his own.

“Not now it isn’t.” Wilbur panted out as he moved to open the wrapping, “Ice pops aren’t for babies, and your in the baby jail. So none for you.”

Techno huffed and stomped his foot at that, an annoyed whine crawling out of his mouth.

“Give it back!” He demanded, reaching out for it from where he stood.

Wilbur only hummed an ‘uh-uh’ at him before turning to walk down the hall towards their shared bedroom.

“H-hey! Let me out!” Techno shouted after him, a mix of angry and distressed, “Come back and let me out! And- and give that back!”

All his shouts and calls were ignored by the elder as he vanished out of sight. Techno watched him with another whine, this was more distraught sounding.

Looking down at the weight on his leg Techno shook Tommy off, sending the smaller child back down to the pen floor. Tommy didn’t seem at all put off by this, smiling up at his brother and giving fresh grabby hands at him. He wanted to play not realizing how upset the other was growing.

With a huffed breath Techno looked back to the hall where Wilbur had been. He wasn’t a baby. Tommy was a baby. Techno was a big kid, just like Wilbur. He’d show him. Techno would escape and take his ice cream back like a real big kid would.

Pushing Tommy off of his leg once more Techno gripped onto the top of the playpen bar and tried to pull himself up onto it. He struggled and didn’t get far though. Looking around himself he took up the bundle of Tommy’s pen things and made a pile. Standing atop of it he was…honestly not all that higher, but it would have to do.

Tommy let out a strange noise at this, presumably at seeing his things all tucked in and stepped on like that. He still reached for Techno even as the other hoisted himself up with what passed for his arm strength. Techno wheezed as the railing dug into his stomach, but he didn’t care. He was so close to freedom. So close to proving his brother wrong.

And then the world tilted quickly.

In the next moment there was a heavy ‘thud’ that seemed to echo though the house, followed by a silence. It was brief though as in the next second the air was split by a sharp shrieking.

Rapid footsteps rushed down the hall and Wilbur slid into the room with wide eyes. His bewildered face promptly scrunched with worry as he saw his brother struggling to push himself up off the floor from before the playpen. The smaller boy was shaking and his body heaved with the sobs that tore from his lips.

Moving to help his brother up to comfort him Wil froze and his face paled sharply. Techno had picked his head up in a cry, eyes pinched and overrun with tears as crimson dribbled down his chin. Wilbur’s heart fluttered with a fresh panic as he dropped beside his brother, hugging the smaller distraught boys head to his chest.

Techno pushed away at first, the hug pressing painfully onto his mouth which hurt so so much at the moment. Wil moved a hand over Techno’s mouth in an attempt to stop the bleeding but he was afraid to press down at all sounds of pain his little brother was making.

“Mom! Dad!” Wilbur shrieked towards the hallway.

The footsteps that had been coming up the hall already shifted into a faster pace at hearing the panic in his voice. Within the next heartbeat both of Phil and Kristin erupted into the room with a look of fear over their faces. Seeing their kids curled up with the younger one bleed had Phil cussing under his breath as he rushed towards the two. Kristin having turned sharply towards the kitchen.

“Shit. Techno, are you okay? Come here mate.” Phil breathed out hoping he sounded more comforting than panicked as he dropped before his boys.

He made to pick Techno up but he was currently clinging onto Wilbur, his body shaking but his grip firm.

“Its okay Tech. I got you. I need you to let go of your brother, can you do that?” Phil tried to coax, trying to slid his fingers between Techno’s hand and Wil’s shirt.

“I’m here to Techno, but, but you need to go with Dad. Okay? He’s-he’s going to make it all better.” Wilbur tried as well, shuddering for a steady breath as e tried to be brave like his father.

It wasn’t easy, but Techno allowed his hand to loosen just enough for his father to detach him from Wilbur. Less than a second later he was lifted into the air and pressed firmly against his father’s chest. Latching on Techno continued to sob, mouth agape and red leaking far too freely over his lips.

Kristin met the pair at the doorway of the kitchen, a damp washcloth in one hand and a the small emergency medical kit in the other. Techno was brought to sit on the counter beside the sink as both his parents fussed and inspected the damage.

Wilbur remained at the doorway watching from a distance, both hands tightly gripping at his shirt where Techno’s hands had been moments before. He pulled in a breath with a bit of a struggle, air fighting to even reach his lungs. He was shaking badly, but not nearly as much as Techno was. He was terrified and the pit of his stomach sat heavy as if he’d been eating stones all morning.

Behind Wilbur in the living room Tommy was crying in his playpen, the whole ordeal having scared and confused him. Wilbur looked back at the pen and the crying child and swallowed hard. He wanted to go comfort Tommy, he did. But he also wanted to make sure Techno was okay. Glancing back at his preoccupied parent Wilbur made his decision.

With a weight on his chest Wilbur turned and made his way to the playpen. Still shivering he reached a hand between the bars for Tommy to grab.

“Shhh, its okay Toms. Its okay.” He tried to sound reassuring even as his voice broke.

Tommy continued to cry, but he held onto Wilbur’s hand tightly, looking up at him with pleading eyes. He didn’t know what to. He just…didn’t. All Wil could do was hold Tommy’s hand and mutter words at him. With the bars between them he couldn’t even offer a hug.

Wilbur wiped at his face as tears started to fall from his own eyes, a hiccup on his breath as a warm hand gently settled on his back. Looking up Wil was met with the half worried and yet half relieved eyes of his mother.

“You okay Wil?” She asked as she moved to pick up the still crying Tommy.

Her eyes remained mostly on her eldest son as she started to rock Tommy back and for soothingly. The youngest, not understanding the fear that had just passed through the room, quieted quickly as he grabbed full fists of his mother’s shirt and listened to her gentle hums of assurance.

Wilbur watched them a moment, his lower lip quivering as he tried to nod a ‘yes’ to her question. She didn’t seem convinced though and, shifting Tommy onto one hip, she offered a free hand to Wilbur for a hug. He didn’t even fully consider it before standing and pressing into her arms wrapping around her tightly. He was still trembling and now, with the added consoling hand of his mother on his back, Wilbur let his tears fall freely. He cried into her side as she rubbed calming circles on his back.

Techno swung his legs lazily, letting his heels thud against the cabinet he was seated above. Phil had cleaned him up for the most part at this point, aside from his shirt which currently was spotted near the collar with red. The pain in his mouth was far duller after the warm salt water his father had insisted he rinse with. Truly, now that the initial pain and panic were gone Techno couldn’t help but think that the ordeal as a whole wasn’t even all that scary. Though, most of that might be due to Techno’s newest fascination.

With a lingering sniffle Techno watched his father with interest as the man shuffled through the kitchen as he struggled to locate something. It only took him another moment or so to return, a clear zip lock baggy in hand which housed a now freshly washed off tooth. Phil was looking at it with a mild grimace before looking back to Techno with clear reluctance.

“You sure, mate? We could just, tuck it under your pillow for the tooth-fairy later.” Phil asked as he held the bag up a touch higher.

Techno nodded with a grin, a gap now clearly visible at the front of his mouth.

“I’m gunna make a collection.” He stated with a disturbing confidence.

“No.” Phil replied bluntly as he fought a shiver down his spine at the far to vivid thought of an actual collection of baby teeth in his sons possession.

“But-”

“Techno, we are not collecting your teeth as they come out.” Phil cut him off before the younger could even try to make a case, “I will allow _one_ tooth. The rest go to the tooth-fairy when its time.”

Techno huffed and crossed his arms with a pout.

”Its my teeth. I wanna keep ‘em.” The boy argued as he stared at his father in full seriousness.

“But why?” Phil questioned, a tone of begging in his voice to understand what phase Techno was about to go through that made him want to keep TEETH of all things.

“Cus their mine.” Techno answered him simply.

“Tech” Phil breathed out before pausing.

Technically….he had a point didn’t he?

“...We’ll talk to your mother about it.” Phil caved easily bringing a fresh tooth gaped smile to Techno’s face as he handed over the bagged incisor.

Wilbur sat on the sofa alone staring at his feet and tugging at the hem of his shirt. Kristin had gone to put Tommy down for his nap and his father had insisted Wil remain there while he helped Techno pick out a new shirt to change into. It wasn’t a time out officially, but the longer it took his father to return the more it felt like one.

Wilbur couldn’t help the tension that grew in his stomach when he heard his father returning from down the hall. He turned to watch the man enter the room, Wil’s heart dropping at not seeing Techno with him. While his brother had seemed fine in the brief moments he’d walked through the room to the hall Wilbur was still worried. A feeling that only grew as he took in the serious look on his fathers face.

Phil let out a sigh as he took a seat on the sofa beside Wilbur, facing him with a look that was just shy of being ‘scolding’. Wilbur held his breath as he tried to swallow the awful feeling building up in his chest.

“So, what have we learned?” Phil began, looking at his eldest expectantly as he crossed his arms for good measure.

His voice was even and bore no hint of sign anger, but Wilbur still couldn’t help the sense of dread at the question. He had always hated tests and the question before him felt like a pop quiz he’d never studied for. He didn’t know what he was supposed to say, what he was supposed to have learned. He just knew he felt horrible and scared and just wanted to go back to playing with Techno again.

The silence between the two grew and Phil’s brows shifted from expectant to confused as Wilbur failed to respond.

“Wil?” He prompted, uncrossing his arms and reaching a hand towards Wil’s shoulder.

“’m srry” Wil’s voice came out small and mumbled before he bit his bottom lip.

He hoped it was the right answer because he didn’t have anything else.

Phil paused, looked his son over and then let out a breath. He slid his arm around Wilbur’s shoulders and pulled him close into a light hug.

“You’re not in trouble Wil. It was an accident.” His father assured him with a squeeze.

Wilbur nodded his head to his father’s words because, yes, of course it was an accident. He hadn’t meant for his brother to get hurt. He’d never mean for that. Not ever!

“I just-” Phil trailed off, taking a deep breath before he leaned out enough to be able to look down at his son once more, watery brown eyes meeting his own, “While it was an accident, it was also an avoidable one. We’re lucky he only lost a tooth-”

“He lost a tooth?!” Wil blurted out as his eyes burst open.

“Yeah. Front tooth.” Phil nodded, pointing at his own to emphasize before getting back on track, “He fine now, but that might not have been the case. This is why we keep warning you two to be more careful. Its a small house Wil, and your brothers are both much smaller then you. Running around and throwing your brothers around can be dangerous.”

Wilbur sat still, barely daring to nod as he listened. The pit in his stomach tightened again and he bit his lower lip once more.

“Its your job to help keep them safe. Just like ours.” Phil went on as he placed a hand on Wil’s head to ruffle his hair lightly, “You’re a good brother, Wil. But please, just be more careful with them. Okay?”

Wilbur nodded, unable to get words to form just yet. His father seemed to accept the answer all the same, pulling him into another hug and placing a kiss on his head.

“Okay, go on now. Techno’s in your room playing…with his tooth.” His father informed him as he shiver of disgust seemed to travel down him, “Do not take it out the bag.”

The rest of the day was spent far calmer than before, the two boys mostly remaining their room. Techno spent a good portion of it inspecting every part of his outed tooth, kept in the bag mostly due to Wilbur’s intervention. Along with that Techno took great pride in showing off his new gap with each smile, doing so more often just for the chance to flick his tongue over the weird space that now rested at the front of his mouth.

As excited at Techno seemed by the change Wilbur couldn’t help the feeling of guilt that bubbled up each time he saw empty space in his younger brothers smile. Enough so that later that night Wilbur ended up giving Techno the majority of his dessert as an apology. If any of the family noticed him do this for the next few days as well no one mentioned it.

Chapter Text

With a deep sigh Phil leaned back in the computer chair and stretched his back until it gave a satisfying pop. He’d finally manage to finish up his modding work load for the week, which was a great load off his shoulders. It had been a bit heavier than usual though he wasn’t surprised. The company he worked for was preparing for a large update after all.

Swiveling in his chair he took account of the household that was currently under his sole care while his wife was off at work herself. Techno and Tommy were seated in the playpen together, the five year old sounding out the words in his newest book for the other. It was the story of the three pigs, which Techno was currently enamored with. Phil smiled at the pair as Tommy tried to stick one of Techno’s hands into his mouth when the other tried to turn the page. Techno didn’t seem to mind and instead began to point at the pigs on the new page.

Shifting his gaze to the kitchen doorway Phil could see Wilbur still seated at the table alone. He was still working on his homework by the look of it. With how quiet Wil was being Phil wondered if he was spacing out if he were honest. He’d give his son a bit more time to work before going to check on him. He didn’t want to hover after all. It would only the other anxious.

Instead, Phil decided, he would use this time to catch a short nap. With three days of looking after the boys alone and the all-nighter he pulled just last night looking after a fussing Tommy Phil felt he truly deserved one. Even if it was short, anything would do.

Lifting himself from his seat Phil gave a quick smile to Techno once more as he moved to lay on the sofa. The younger likewise offered a short smile back, though he was more focused on Tommy as the youngest insisted on trying to put either Techno’s hand or the book he was holding into his mouth. Taking a deep breath Phil stretched himself out and relaxed his rather achy body. Within a few breaths he could feel himself beginning to doze off.

“Dad?”

A voice called from somewhere in house, though it was slightly muffled as Phil had his head pressed against his arm as a pillow. He didn’t move an inch as, for a moment, his brain didn’t connect word with its intended function.

“Dad.”

This time it spoken from above him it seemed. Louder and more clearly spoken why Wilbur Phil opened his eyes with a small squint upwards. Wilbur was leaning over the armrest of the sofa, his fluff of brown hair hanging loose from his face due to his leaning. The younger boy’s eyes were a gentle mix of uncertainty and mild frustration.

“What’s up, Wil?” Phil asked as he fought off a yawn sitting back up.

“...I need help.” Wilbur admitted awkwardly after a brief pause as he stood straight once more and cast his eyes away from his father.

“With what?” Phil pressed as he prepared to stand up.

“...I can’t get the numbers right.” Wil answered, his voice quieter this time.

“Okay, mate. Let me take a look.”

Getting to his feet Phil took a second to stretch again, his back having already developed a small kink in it. Or, that might still have been from being sat at the computer for the last hour straight. God, he was already starting to feel so old.

Wilbur bit his lip but nodded as he walked back to the kitchen table and slid into his seat, his father not far behind him. Before him sat a paper with various scribbles on it and erase marks. His father slid it just partially to the side to get a better look, skimming over it briefly. It made Wil’s stomach do a small flip-flop at the idea of his father seeing all the signs of his mistakes, even if they were mostly removed now.

“Ok, so, you’re solving to find ‘x’ in these.” Phil stated as he leaned over, pointing to the first equation on the page, “What do you do first?”

Wilbur looked at the paper, the mix of numbers and letters and held his breath as he stared. Some part of him hoped that the answer he needed would just, appear for him, but he knew better. Instead he just looked up at his father with a pleading look.

“I don’t know. I keep getting the wrong answers.” Wilbur huffed as he pulled a second worksheet from under the first one.

Taking a closer look at the new paper Phil could see it was the same sheet that was currently being worked on. However, this one was littered with red marks and a note at the top that ‘suggested’ he try it again. Phil didn’t exactly care for the tone of the words, but… even he had to admit the abundance of incorrect answers was concerning.

Phil knew Wilbur was smart and he also knew he was trying his best. Numbers and most things related to math tended to give Wil a hard time and so he and his wife tried to be more lenient in regards to his grades in it. They didn’t let him slack off in his efforts to learn it, but they also tried to keep him from burning out trying to force answers.

“Hm, in that case, show me how you’re doing it. I’ll be able to help better if I know what’s going on in there.” Phil stated as he gave Wil’s hair a short ruffle.

Wil huffed a breath at him as he grimaced back down at the papers. Biting his cheek he picked up his pencil again and tugged the eraser rubbed sheet back to rest before him. He didn’t like the idea of showing his father how he was failing at ‘simple math’, but he knew in the end it would help. His father was super smart after all. Once he could see what was happening, he would just be able to correct it.

Xx--xx--xx--xx

For the next few minutes Phil sat beside Wilbur and worked through the worksheet with him. He continued to have Wil do the heavy lifting of it of course, only correcting for order of operation when needed. They were almost halfway through the paper when Phil leaned back again.

“Think you can try the rest without me? See if you got it.” Phil gently suggested, waiting to see if Wilbur felt comfortable with that.

There was a visible hesitation on his face, but in the end Wilbur nodded his head.

“I think I got it.” He tried to sound assuring though it didn’t come out that way.

All the same Phil took at answer for what it was. If Wilbur needed further help with anything Phil was sure to be nearby so there wasn’t much harm in taking his son at his word. Besides, it was getting a bit late now and the boys had yet to have their after school snacks. Tommy would also need to be fed soon as well before Phil could think to start making dinner properly. Though…if he where honest he was really considering ordering pizza for the night.

Leaving Wilbur to his work Phil peeked back out of the doorway and into the living room at the younger two. Techno was still seated in the playpen with Tommy of course, but by now Techno had apparently stopped trying to hold Tommy back from chewing on things. Namely on his arm as the boy was far too protective of his books to let even his baby brother drool on them.

With the ‘child check’ finished Phil decided it was best to get their snacks in order before they start to actually eat each other. Tommy was already starting in on that after all.

Looking into the fridge Phil starting to pull out what he’d need to make the boys their snacks. Fridays were special snack days usually and today the two were set to have pudding cups topped with sliced fruit. Originally Phil had planned something a bit more filling, but had realized too late that the ingredients for it had gone off. It was fine though. Really. He’d just….order them dinner earlier than usual.

A few minutes later and Phil was just about finished with snack making when he heard Techno’s voice calling him from the living room.

“Daaaad!” The small boys voice called with a mild urgency.

“Coming!” Phil called back, quickly setting down what was in his hands and rushing towards his other son.

Techno was standing in the playpen, Tommy beside him as he tried to pull himself up as well. Techno was looking uncomfortable as he wiggled around in place. Phil knew that wiggle.

“I need to pee.” Techno announced before he lifted his arms up expectantly.

Phil gave a soft amused chuckled as he quickly approached and lifted the boy up and over the pen walls. Tommy huffed and whined at being left behind as Techno called a ‘thank you’ back as he darted down the hallway.

“You can call me sooner next time you know.” Phil called after him, this time with an open laugh.

“Ahbabablrrrrr-” Tommy rasp-berried out angrily, his own hands grabbing up at Phil in demand.

“Yeah, yeah, I got you too mate.” Phil sighed as he leaned down to pick up the fussing child.

Within an instant Tommy’s huffing attitude fell away and he lit with a smile. Phil took a moment to boop him on the noise, making Tommy laugh and reach for the large finger before trying to pop it in his mouth.

“Okay, I get it. You’re hungry.” The man laughed as he turned for the kitchen again, “Got a treat for you today.”

Back in the kitchen Wilbur still sat at the table, though he seemed more tense than when Phil stepped out. He didn’t think much of it though as Tommy continued to nom on his finger. First things first, feed the cannibal child.

Reaching for one of the bowls of made pudding Phil made sure it was one that had extra milk in it to make it a bit thinner than normal. Sliding Tommy into his high chair Phil placed the pudding before him. Yeah, it was going to be a mess after, but for the time being Tommy would enjoy himself with a new treat.

Moving back to the partially sliced fruit Phil paused. There was…less then he thought he’d grabbed out. And he was sure he had already cut up the banana- There was a crunch from behind him for a second before it paused. He didn’t turn around as an amused smile broke over his face. He could hear the familiar sounds of apple slices being munched on, slowly as if trying to remain undetected. He couldn’t really be mad could he?

“Oh no. Looks like I forgot a few things.” Phil stated with a false surprise before making a show of shrugging, “Oh well, I guess this’ll have to do for now. Wil, you don’t mind if Techno gets more fruit in his, do you?”

He didn’t turn to look at his eldest as he asked, trying to keep himself from laughing as he heard a startled noise from Wilbur at being addressed. From the sounds of it he still had a mouthful. There was a hummed noise for affirmation…but Phil wasn’t going to leave it at that. After all, he wanted his sons to grow up speaking clearly. That was surely his reason for his next words.

“I can’t understand you if you don’t use your words, Wil. We’ve talked about this.” Phil stated as he started to cut up a fresh apple.

“...I d’nt m’nd.”Came the attempted response.

“Speak up, Wilbur. Mumbling isn’t a habit you want to form now.”

Phil placed a hand on the counter to brace himself, biting his lip as he could hear noises of stifling panicked motions behind him. He was tempted to turn and ‘catch him in the act’, but another part of him wanted to see if Wilbur would give himself away in the end. Also, it was just funny.

“I-I said, ‘I don’t mind’.” Wilbur stammered out after a moment with a slightly wheezed breath.

“O-okay then. That’s, that’s very nice of you, Wil.” Phil praised as his tried to force his breathing back to normal and not laugh between his own words.

He chanced to look back at his eldest now, his amused grin clear to see. Wilbur was fidgeting in his seat looking like a deer in the headlights. His arms were crossed in front of him, no doubt hiding what was left of his pilfered snack. Phil just…couldn’t help himself.

“Sounded like your mouth was full for a minute there.” He started with, smile spreading as he saw Wil’s face pale a bit, “I thought you’d started to eat your homework or something.”

Phil finally allowed himself an out, though he didn’t laugh nearly as hard as he felt he needed to. Wilbur tried to laugh along, but his own was weak and uneasy. Phil decided to leave it at that though. He wasn’t sure why Wil was so worried about being found with the fruit, but he’d let him have this one as a win.

“Daaaaaaaaaaad!” Techno’s voice called from down the hall.

“What is it Tech? I’m making your snacks.” Phil shouted back as he moved to once more start on the apple.

“The toilet is spilling!” Techno’s now clearly panicking voice hollered back.

“Oh shi-”

Xx--xx--xx--xx

It was an easy fix thankfully and hadn’t had the chance to overflow too much. Still, that was panic Phil hadn’t needed in his day. So, here he sat, once more on the sofa in the living room. The boys were fed their snacks and Wilbur had finished his homework with few errors, now able to play with his brothers. The three could easily entertain each other for like…an hour without him, right?

Laying back and resting his head on the spine of the sofa Phil closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He was so tired. He debated making himself a coffee to get through the rest of the day, but he didn’t want to risk scaring off sleep later. Also, Kristin had also told him to stop drinking caffeine so late if he was going to keep pulling all-nighters. He agreed it was a bad habit to form but…jesus he could use a pick-me-up right now.

With another deep breath Phil shifted his thoughts onto his wife specifically. He missed her so much and she’d only been gone for a few days so far. It was never easy when she went away, but it was necessary for her job and he was so proud of her and her achievements. The fact she had even found a job in the field she enjoyed was amazing. The fact she was one of the best child care specialists around was just extra icing on that cake.

…He should make her a cake when she came home.

He couldn’t wait for her to come home.

Phil was just moments from dozing off, thoughts of his wife and ideas of cakes with her name on it drifting in and out of his head, when a small hand placed itself on his leg and gave a shake.

“dad” A small voice whispered in front of him.

Lifting his head up and forcing his eyes back open Phil was met with the sight of Techno. He looked at Phil with a mild uncertainty, one of his books tucked to his chest.

“Wuss’up Tech?” Phil slurred as he gave a yawn, trying to cut it short and wake back up.

Techno fidgeted a second before moving to climb onto the sofa beside his father. Once in place he flopped his book down on his lap and opened it up.

“I don’t know one of the words and Wilbur wont tell me what it is.” Techno replied as he flipped the pages.

“Did you give him the ‘look’?” Phil asked, referring to ‘puppy eyes’ without saying it outright.

Techno would never admit to using ‘puppy eyes’ since Wilbur called it the ‘baby face’ once Tommy came along. Techno still used it, but less and it was now deemed ‘the look’ instead.

Techno puffed his chest and pouted hard as he flopped his hand down on a page.

“No I don’t need to use the ‘look’.” Techno stated firmly as he kicked his feet, “…he also said Tommy’s ‘baby face’ was more…”

He trailed off he tried to recall the word his brother had used. It was a long one he hadn’t learned yet.

“It was just ‘more’.” He concluded as he looked up at his father.

Phil nodded with a sigh. He’d have to talk to Wil later, though even now he wasn’t sure what he’d really say. Wil hadn’t exactly done anything wrong. Just…being a big brother really. Eh, he’d let it go. Kids would be kids after all.

“So, what’s the word to defeat today, Tech?” Phil asked, peering down into the book his son had open.

“This one….here!” Techno pointed out the word before looking up expectantly at his father.

“...Larder?” Phil asked, unsure really since he’d seen Techno read harder words before.

“What does it mean?” Techno specified with a slight tilted of his head.

“Oh, uh, well-” Phil paused, trying to consider how to explain it, “Its..sort of, a place to store food. Like a pantry I guess. Back before people had refrigerators it was where they put their food.”

“So, the ogre was gunna put him in a pantry? Couldn’t he just, walk out again?” Techno questioned as he looked at the picture in his book.

The image was a childish drawing of a boy hiding in a pot as a giant ogre of a man seemed to be searching for him in the kitchen they both in. Jack and the Beanstalk. By the look of the books age this…wasn’t one of the new ones he and Kristin had gotten for Techno. This was an old one Wilbur had received when he was in Kindergarten.

“Well, maybe they’d lock the door.” Phil suggested as he ruffled his son’s hair, “You reading this to Tommy too?”

“No. Wilbur’s playing with Tommy right now.” Techno replied with a hum in his voice, “He said the story might scare him.”

Phil nodded. He could honestly see that happening, if Tommy understood enough or paid attention long enough. Both things he doubted for the one year old, but still, it was nice to know Wilbur had put in the thought.

“I wanted to read this one myself cus Tommy keeps tryin to eat the pages.” Techno added with a frown.

“Babies do that, mate.” Phil nodded with a chuckle, “You kept trying to eat Wilbur’s toys when you were that small.”

Techno made a face at his father before the man ruffled his hair once more with a laugh.

“Its getting late. Should we order pizza?” “ Phil asked, watching as his son’s face lit up and nodded quickly, “Lets decide on the order then.”

Standing up Phil moved to grab a pen and paper to write on while Techno scurried off down the hall calling for his elder brother.

Xx--xx--xx--xx

Three ordered pizza’s later and Phil let out a heavy sigh as he leaned forwards at the table. He really should have thought ahead a bit more. It was a Friday, of course the place was going to be busy. Instead of the usual twenty minute wait from the place up the street they were now queued up to get them in something closer to an hour to an hour and a half. Sure, it wasn’t the worst wait they’d had, but it was still less than ideal with the two hungry young boys in the house.

Speaking of his boys, he’d have to tell them dinner would be later than they planned. He was sure they’d understand of course. Though, that was mostly because they knew they’d be getting an extra snack now to make the waiting easier. Wilbur was never one to let the opportunity go.

“Boys!” He called out, pushing himself to his feet with a bit of effort now.

The later it got the more he could feel it in his bones. He wasn’t particularly religious, but in the moment he prayed to all things holy that Tommy would sleep through the night tonight so that he could as well. He didn’t think he’d make it another day without an actual nights rest.

“Dad? Something wrong?” Wilbur’s voice spoke up from behind him.

Turning to the doorway any words Phil had started choked out at the sight of Wilbur holding Tommy. Wil had his arms hugged around the youngest from under his own arms, but Tommy had slid down enough so that it was less of a ‘hug’ and more akin to a choke hold.

“W-Wil, You Can’t Hold Him Like That!” Phil cried out in mild panic as he rushed over to scoop Tommy up himself.

Wilbur had startled at the shout and allowed his father to lift Tommy from him. He didn’t know what he did wrong and so he fidgeted awkwardly in place as he stared up at his dad, who was looking Tommy over briefly. Relief filled the elders face before the man looked back at him.

“Sorry for shouting, Wil. You just, scared me for a second.” Phil explained as he rested Tommy on his hip, “You have to be careful how you hold him. Carrying him around like that could be dangerous.”

Wilbur shuffled his feet a moment as he nodded, trying not to look down at his feet. His hands curled around the hem of his shirt as he bit the inside of his cheek trying to force out at least a few words.

“sorry dad.”

Phil took in a deep breath before his expression softened further. He hadn’t meant to shout, really. It had just caught him very off guard. He certainly hadn’t meant to scare Wilbur, nor guilt trip him with his reasoning. Luckily, he knew something that would cheer him back up.

“Dinner is going to be a bit late.” He started with, smile on his face already, “So, I think its only fair we have something to snack on while we wait. What do you think?”

It took Wilbur a second to process this before a smile returned to his face.

“Anything we want?” He tested, watching his father’s face with a growing excitement in his eyes.

“Within reason, but yeah.” Phil laughed, shifting Tommy to his other hip as he walked into the living room, “If it’s already in the house. I’m not making a trip to the store just for a hold over snack.”

Wilbur was following his father closely and Phil could almost hear the gears turning, debating what exactly he would try weasel into the realm of ‘reasonable’. Phil was in the middle of placing Tommy into the bouncy-walker when Techno entered his line of sight.

“Can we have popcorn?” He questioned easily.

“We could. I think we have a bag or two left.” Phil nodded before he looked back at his older son, “Popcorn sound good to you?”

Wilbur was already making a face at the suggestion, giving Techno what passed for an exasperated face. Techno didn’t seem to see the problem with it and pouted at his brother in turn.

“What?” The smaller asked as he made to cross his arms, “I like popcorn.”

“What about ice cream?” Wilbur proposed instead.

Techno’s eyes widened at that and he dropped his arms. Both boys set their eyes on their father for his word on the matter. An eagerness rested openly on both of the small faces and even if he were feeling strict Phil doubted he’d maintain a ‘no’ stance for long. Luckily for the boys, he was feeling rather agreeable.

“Fine, but then no dessert after pizza. Unless its fruit or yogurt.” Phil answered as he looked at both his sons for their response to his conditions.

“That’s fine. We can do that.” Wilbur quickly agreed, Techno nodding his head as well.

“And, only one bowl, I pick the size.” Phil added as he started back towards the kitchen, “If you get your jams on and wash up now we can watch a movie while we eat.”

Techno was off and rushing for his bedroom before another word could be said.

“Just don’t make it too small.” Wilbur warned before he too started off for the bedroom.

Phil didn’t bother shouting after him, but laughed loudly enough that he didn’t need to. Part of him was tempted to put a single scoop into a small ramekin just to test his sons reaction. Maybe he would. He looked down to Tommy, who was bouncing along at his heels, looking up at Phil and watching his every move.

“It would be funny wouldn’t it?” Phil asked with a lighter chuckle.

Xx--xx

It certainly didn’t take long before both of his elder boys came charging back down the hallway, Techno shouting something as Wilbur slid with his socked feet into the doorway. Wil wore a large excited smile on his face as he entered the room, darting for the counter to collect his frozen treat.

“What did you do to your brother?” Phil asked him point blank, making sure the bowls remained outside his sons reach.

“He pushed me into the wall!” Techno tattled the second he was in the room, pointing at Wilbur with a firm scowl.

“I did not.” Wilbur denied swiftly.

“Yes you did. You pushed me!” Techno insisted before looking to his father, “Dad, he shoved me. He did. Just cus I was faster then him!”

“I did not you little brat. You just tripped because you couldn’t keep up.” Wilbur countered as he crossed his arms.

Phil let out a sigh and turned to both of them with a flat look.

“This doesn’t seem like ‘ice cream’ deserving behavior. Wilbur, apologize to your brother.”

“But- Dad! I didn’t-” Wil started but was cut off by a firm look from his father.

Techno was stood now in front of Wilbur, arms crossed and waiting. Knowing not to press his luck further Wilbur let out a heavy sigh and lowered his head as he faced his younger brother.

“Sorry, Tech.”

Techno continued to frown at his brother for another moment before he let his arms drop to his sides.

“Okay.” He replied easily enough, “I want the first bowl.”

“What? No! It was my idea to have it in the first place!” Wilbur argued but Phil was already reaching for one of the bowls.

”Shouldn’t have pushed him then.” Phil stated with a shrug.

Wilbur mumbled something under his breath at that but snapped his mouth closed quickly when his father looked at him with a warning in his eye. There was a pause before Phil handed Wil his own bowl.

“thanks dad.” Wilbur softly said as he started to shuffle backwards towards the table.

“You’re welcome Wil.” Phil acknowledged with a nod.

“Thanks Dad!” Techno called from around a bite of ice cream.

“You’re welcome too, Tech.” Phil chuckled, “Ah-”

Phil winced as there was a suddenly tiny wheels over his toes and a plastic cart bashed into his leg. Tommy had decided he was done being patient and had charged the man spilling out his ‘angry babble’ as he reached up towards the man.

“Yes, yes, Tommy. I know. I haven’t forgotten you mate.” Phil tried to placate as he glanced at Tommy’s high chair.

He hadn’t forgotten to clean it, thank goodness.

“Ubadinnnn-” Tommy babbled out, bashing against his father’s legs once more.

”Okay, Tommy, okay. I get it. Up.” Phil breathed out heavily as he winced again, cursing the small baby mobile.

In a swift motion Tommy was lifted up and transferred into the high chair once more. Though there was a moment of struggle as Tommy thrashed his legs in delight making it hard for his father to place him down. Once done Phil went about grabbing a smaller plastic bowl for the child. The moment Phil turned with the now with the baby sized ice cream scoop Tommy was lit up with excitement, grabby hands once more wildly a go towards it.

“A-ahbaba gahabuh” He bubbled out, eyes fully on the food, “Dibibi dada”

Phil froze as he stared at Tommy’s eager face. He…he didn’t just-

“Dibibi dada” Tommy repeated louder this time, hands furiously reaching for the bowl still in Phil’s grip.

“Tommy. Tommy, say that again. Say ‘Dada’.” Phil babbled out himself and he darted the half step distance to his youngest and knelt down.

Wilbur and Techno shared a look before staring at the two. Wilbur grinned as Techno just watched with surprise. Tommy, though, huffed a breath as he flailed his hands towards the bowl not yet in his possession.

“Say ‘Dada’, Tommy. Please. Just one more time mate.” Phil begged, his free hand gently trying to direct his sons attention off the food and onto him.

Tommy refused to listen at first until his smile dipped into a frustrated frown. He stared at father as his lower lip quivered in debate of either anger of upset. Phil caught on to this and slipped the bowl onto Tommy’s tray, still waiting beside him.

“Say ‘Dada’.” He pleaded one more time, softer than before.

Tommy babbled out a few sounds as he reached for the bowl, mood restored at no longer being denied food. He looked to his father, baby blue eyes meeting cornflower. It was enough to bubble up a fresh giggle of joy from the smaller.

“Dabadi Dada” Tommy squeaked out at the man before turning his attention back to the ice cream.

It was all Phil needed though to melt what was left of his composure. He let out a coo as he leaned for ward to place a kiss to Tommy’s head, a joyous laugh rumbling up from inside him. He was ecstatic and wanted nothing more than to pick Tommy up and squeeze him in the tightest of hugs. He doubted it would be met well as Tommy was enthralled by the cold treat before him, but that didn’t mean his father couldn’t get his.

“Aw, Tommyyyyy~” Phil gleed as he wrapped his arms around his son and hugged.

Tommy let out a noise of annoyance at first, but was soon giggling as Phil was placing kisses to his head with exaggerated smooch noises. This went on for a fair few minutes before Phil eagerly pulled out his phone. He needed to brag to his wife.

Chapter Text

“Boys, come on. We’re going to be late.” Kristin called from the kitchen as she tightened the lid on her coffee mug.

“You worried about today?” Phil asked from the table where he was currently feeding Tommy.

“Yeah, but good worried. I’ve heard nothing but good things about this family so far.” She nodded even as she took in a calming breath.

“Meeting new people is hard, especially when you’re going to be working with their kids. Knowing their going to be judging you on first impressions and-”

“Thank you Phil. That’s very helpful.” Kristin cut him off with a nervous laugh.

“But," Phil started again, turning to face her fully with a large smile, “You’re going to go, meet them, and knock their socks off. They’re going to love you.”

“You’re just saying that because you have a biased opinion.” Kristin replied, though now smiling as well.

“I do, but that doesn’t mean I’m wrong.” Phil countered with full confidence, “I think my beautiful, talented and smart wife is going to have a great day today and feel oh-so-silly for worrying so much later.”

“And I think my handsome, clever and charming husband is fishing for affection.” Kristin sent back as she stepped closer to him.

“I am, but that doesn’t mean I’m wrong.” Phil grinned at his perceived witty wordplay.

Kristin hummed back at him as she leaned down to give him a kiss.

“Eww” Wilbur’s note of disgust lilted into the air from the kitchen doorway that lead into the living room.

His parents chuckled but otherwise didn’t react to the sound, though they broke apart as Kristin went about checking over things once more. Phil turned to look at his sons as Tommy let out an impatient noise from beside him.

Wilbur was standing beside Techno with the youngers bag in hand and open. He was listing the things inside while Techno fussed with getting his jacket buttoned up. They looked just about sorted out and so Phil went back to focusing on Tommy, who was reaching with another whined huff for the spoon in his father’s hand. Filling it with applesauce Phil lifted it high before making an airplane noise. Tommy’s eyes widened with excitement as he kicked his feet and opened his mouth wide with a smile.

“-and you’re sure your homework’s inside?” Wilbur asked Techno as he tried to define said item in the puppy shaped backpack.

“Its there. In the green ‘homework’ folder.” Techno replied with some distraction.

“What about your snack?” Wil moved on as he set the bag on the ground.

“I have it here, Wil.” Their mother called as she opened the fridge and pulled out two containers, “I have yours too. I’ll put it in your bag for you.”

“Okay. Thanks, mum.” Wil nodded as he took the one for Techno from her and tucked it into his younger brother’s bag.

Once it was secure and he was sure nothing was forgotten Wilbur zipped it up and waited to hand it back to the other. However, the top button, as usual, was giving Techno trouble as his fingers kept sliding off of it. Without a word Wilbur stepped up and overlapped his fingers with his brother’s and helped him push the stubborn plastic circle through the hole.

Techno looked at the button and then back up at his brother, a smile on his face.

“Thanks, Wil.” Techno nodded to his brother before giving him a quick hug of appreciation.

It was short, but it made Wil smile all the same.

“Okay, we really need to get going now. Are you two all set?” Kristin called from near the doorway, hands full with both her own bag and Wilbur’s.

“We’re ready.” Wilbur confirmed with a nod, though he quickly glanced down at his and Techno’s shoes quickly just to be sure, “All set.”

“Okay then, good. Say buh-bye then and we can go.” Kristin directed as she moved to peek back into the kitchen herself, “I should be back around six if everything goes well. No later than eight.”

“Got it. I’ll make something simple so if it needs reheating it wont be gross.” He assured her with a nod and a smile.

“Buh-bye, dad.” Techno interrupted, running into the room to hug his father as well.

“Goodbye for now, Tech. See you at the bus stop later.” Phil promised as he returned the hug.

“Bye, dad. See you after school.” Wilbur bid off as well with a wave instead of a hug, not wanting to try to step over Techno for one.

“Yeah, see you then, Wil. Behave for your teachers.” Phil added with a smirk.

“Of course.” Wil shot back with an almost indignant tone, but a smirk on his face all the same.

“Buh-bye, Tommy.” Techno offered the smallest Watson with a wave as he headed back for the door.

Before Techno got too far he stopped as the rest of the family paused as well as Tommy’s hand waved back, smile wide as words bubbled out of his mouth.

”Bu-buhy” Tommy babbled with a hum of excitement.

He repeated the words twice more and in that time Phil started to gush over the words as the other three drew near. Techno was first, being the closest, and was now hugging onto the front of Tommy’s chair, a grin breaking wide on his face as he waved back to Tommy close enough to almost touch hands. Wilbur wasn’t far behind him, almost pressed to the side of the chair as he repeated ‘buh-bye, Tommy’ to the child, his own voice pitched and enthused.

Over the both of their heads stood Kristin, leaning over and cooing over her youngest as well. Little Tommy was delighted at the attention and continued to wave at his family, face split with a wide and gummy smile as a squeal of a giggle burst of his tiny body and filling the room with even more sound. Wilbur tried to get Tommy to say goodbye to him specifically, but Tommy was freely giving his ‘bu-buhy’s’ to all of them without care. His little legs kicked at his seat as he bounced and celebrated being in the sole spotlight of his family.

Chapter Text

It was late in the night and the Watson household was quiet and still. Well, mostly quiet and mostly still. Techno rolled over in his bed with a frown already on his face. No matter what he tried he couldn’t force himself back to sleep. He just couldn’t. He…he really need to pee.

Biting his lower lip he sat up in his bed and looked around the room. The glow of Wilbur’s seahorse nightlight painted the room in a soft pale ocean blue but it didn’t do much for Techno at the moment. He looked over at his brother’s sleeping form, tucked under the blankets in his own bed and facing the wall. He was sound asleep.

Taking a breath Techno looked towards the partly cracked door that lead into the hallway. Even at this distance he could hear the faint rumble that drifted in. It made Techno shiver and reminded him why he hated being awake at night. Thankfully his plushie, Technopig, was in his arms and able to remind him to be brave.

Trying to swallow his fear, though more urged by his bladder, Techno slipped from the safety of his covers and sat at the edge of his bed. His feet hovered over the stepping stool he used to get in and out of his bed, squinting into the darkness below as he reasoned how grab-able his feet would be from anything lingering in wait. Wiggling in growing discomfort Techno decided that sure the light from the seahorse was enough to keep them away. After all, why else would they use it if it didn’t keep monsters away?

Carefully as he could, and with his plushie still in his arms, Techno slid off his bed and tip toed to the door, hesitating when he heard the noise again. He looked back at his brother once more, but Wilbur was still solidly asleep. Despite being closer to the door he didn’t seem at all affected by the sounds drifting in from it.

Looking between his brother and the door Techno decided to peek out of it, wanting to see if he could see the thing making him shiver. He just wanted to be able to get to the bathroom so he could go back to sleep. If it was just a small…whatever it was, then…then maybe he could just…run for it.

The thought made Techno shudder harder and hug his plushie to his chest for comfort. The sound rumbled again and Techno couldn’t help but whine and back up a few steps. He didn’t like it. He didn’t want to have to run away from something and then run away back after. He didn’t want there to be something to run from. But, more then that, he didn’t want to try to run, and fail. He didn’t want to be eaten by whatever traveled their hallway at night.

With a second small whine Techno turned to Wilbur’s bed and shuffled over to it. Wilbur didn’t have a stepping stool and so Techno did the only thing he could think of besides bringing his over. He pulled on Wil’s blankets to try to wake him up.

“wil….wiiiil.…wilbur….Wilbur” Techno whispered with a growing desperation to his voice.

After a few more sharp tugs of the blanket he heard Wilbur let out an unhappy groan as he started to shift. Not wanting to risk his brother going back to sleep now Techno tugged extra hard on the blanket, pulling a fair bit of it off of the older.

“Wilbur” Techno called a bit firmer this time, notes of pleading still in his voice.

This time Wil’s head rose up as he squinted around him with some confusion. Turning over to his side he faced Techno with a raised brow and a sleepy frown on his face.

“Tech? What’r you doin’ up?” He asked with a slur to his words as he rubbed at his eyes with his fist.

Techno bit his lip as he glanced at the door and back to his brother. His plush was once more tight to his chest as he released the blanket. He fidgeted in a mix of nervousness and the potty dance.

“I have to go to the bathroom.” He whispered.

“...Okay? So go to th’ bathroom.” Wilbur replied as he furrowed his brow, “You know where it is.”

At this Techno let out a distressed sound as he wriggled in place as the need to pee grew along with his anxiety at going into the hall alone. The noise was enough to make Wilbur sit up, his frown growing.

“Tech?” Wilbur questions as his brother’s eyes linger on the door.

“there’s something out there.” Techno informs him with a scared shake to his voice, “it keeps growling. i think its hungry.”

Wilbur looks to the door himself now, both confused and a bit scared himself now if he was honest. He crawled down his bed to be closer to it and tilted an ear to hear better. He waited. Techno held his breath.

A moment later a soft rumbling came from the hall once more making Techno whine and hug Technopig tightly. He wanted nothing more than to crawl back into bed and go back to sleep. Monsters couldn’t eat you when you were sleeping. Dad said so. It was why sleep was so important at night.

Wilbur let out a breath and chuckled tiredly under it. He didn’t’ say anything though as he nodded and moved to slide off his own bed as well. His feet thumped onto the wood floor, the round carpet not reaching all the way to his bed. With a sigh he holds out a hand to his younger brother, once more rubbing at his sleep filled eyes with his other.

Techno didn’t hesitate to take it, lower lip trembling as he did so.

“Come on, before you pee yourself.” He smiled before leading them both to the door.

Techno paused as the sound came again, but Wilbur just held his hand tighter and pulled him along gently. Tucking himself closer to Wil’s side Techno followed along, taking as careful of steps as he could.

It was a short walk and Techno was quick to duck inside once Wilbur promised to wait for him. With a small laugh Wilbur did indeed lean against the wall to do just that. Every so often the rumble could be heard down the hall, making him snicker under his breath. As funny as he found it he didn’t want to laugh in front of his brother. He was clearly scared and didn’t want to make him feel worse.

Before long the door peeked open once more, Techno peering out to spot his brother first before risking sticking a hand out to him. Wilbur took it in his own and started to lead the pair back to their room. When another rumble came from down the hall Wil could feel Techno’s grip tighten.

“Its okay, Tech. You don’t need to worry about that noise.” Wil tried to comfort, but he could tell his brother didn’t believe him.

He looked back at Techno and could see the clear doubt and fear in his face, his eyes slightly watery. With a unhappy hum to himself Wilbur decided this wasn’t something he wanted his brother to keep being afraid of.

“I mean it Tech. Those noises are…they are keeping the monsters away from us.” Wil tried as he pulled his brother close enough to put his arm around his shoulders, “As long as you can hear that at night then you don’t need to worry about any monsters being around.”

Techno shook his head, lips curling into a pout.

“How do you know? Cus it sounds like a monster to me.” Techno huffed out, his voice quiet in case their talking attracted the thing.

He just wanted to go back to bed until morning, where the sun would chase all the scary things away.

“I know because….because I’m older.” Wil responded weakly, which his brother seemed to take note of.

“Being older doesn’t make you know things.” Techno reasoned, thinking immediately of Wil’s struggles with homework.

“No but…but I’ve-” Wilbur trailed off, brow furrowed as he tried to think of something, anything that would convince Techno he was telling the truth, “…I can prove it.”

This seemed to get his brother’s attention and Techno looked at him with doubt, but also hope. Techno tilted his head slightly as he seemed to fight a mental battle there. Wilbur waited, fidgeting his toes impatiently. He wanted to be able to show the other the truth, but he wasn’t going to try to force Techno to come with him if he didn’t want to. He didn’t want to make Techno cry after all.

After a moment longer Techno nodded his head in agreement, though he still tensed as the rumble drifted down the hall once more. If…if what Wilbur was saying was true, then he wanted to know. His brother wouldn’t bring him to a monster to get eaten. He was sure of that…He was mostly sure of that.

Wilbur gave his brother a soft smile before nodding to follow along, though it wasn’t needed as they were still hugged together. Wil kept his arm around his brother’s shoulders until Techno himself moved away so that they could hold hands instead. Techno wasn’t big on hugs so Wil wasn’t surprised and gave their hands a squeeze as they continued.

Wil stopped in front of their parents room and Techno looked at his brother in confusion. Wilbur just placed a finger over his lips in a ‘shush’ manner and they waited. Techno did as directed and stayed quiet, but was startled when not a moment later the rumbling noise came from the room before them. It was louder and clearly from beyond the door.

Before Techno could even think to question it, Wilbur pushed the door open gently, slowly, before stepping a tender foot inside. Peering around the room a moment he finally brings Techno in after him. He gives his younger brother another warning for silence but Techno had no plans of making noises anyway. Monster or not he didn’t want to know what would happen if the two of them ere found out of bed so late in the night and sneaking into their parents room.

Techno was further confused as his brother seemed to be leading him closer and closer to their parents bed. Specifically to their father’s side of it. Wil brought them right to the side, placing Techno in front of him and pointing towards their father. Techno’s brow furrowed before his face shifted into one of surprise.

Deep rumbling echoed through the room from directly before him. He looked to Wilbur with wide eyes, but his brother only nodded forwards and pointed again. Looking back to their father Techno waited and stared. After a few beats the sound came again as his father breathed in, though this time it was quieter than the one before it.

Techno opened his mouth but before a single sound could come out Wilbur tugged on his hand. As careful as they entered the pair left. Wil lead them back to their room where Techno stared at him in bewilderment.

“Huh?” Was all little Techno could get out, words not forming just yet.

Wilbur grinned at him and crossed his arms, partially smug, but mostly just proud of himself. Techno’s face no longer held the same apprehension as it did earlier.

“I told you. Its not a monster and it keeps monsters away.” Wilbur restated, now more confident in his words.

“But…how?” Techno asked, drawing closer to his brother as he hugged Technopig.

Wilbur shrugged at this, much to his brother’s annoyance.

“I don’t know. But its a ‘special dad noise’ that keeps scary things away.” Wilbur concluded vaguely.

“...all the scary things?” Techno asks, his confusion turning into awe.

Wilbur lets out a laugh before he nods his head.

“All the scary things. But,” With a breath Wilbur leans over to give his brother a hug and pat his head like he’s seen their parents do dozens of times, “If you want, I’ll still walk you to the bathroom at night. Until you’re not scared anymore.”

Techno didn’t say anything as he considered his brother’s words, a wash of relief coming over him. He let out a breath and nodded his head, hugging his brother back.

“Thanks, Wil.”

“You’re welcome, Tech… …Do you want to sleep in my bed tonight?”

“Can I?”

“I don’t think Jubilee would mind.”

Xx--xx--xx--xx

The morning arrived with the smell of fresh cooked eggs and bacon along with the familiar smell of coffee. The boys, unlike on schooldays, woke easily and were quick to take their spots at the table. Their mother was already half through cooking everything while the boys squirmed in their seats behind her. Wilbur was munching on toast while Techno stared at the half made plates of eggs. He would have preferred pancakes, but eggs with bacon was good too.

Their father could be heard down the hall still, dealing with a fussing Tommy by the sound of it. Their brother had slept through the night for once it seemed, though he’d not waken up in a good mood. Or perhaps he just really didn’t want to put clothes on today. Either way, by the time their father managed to join them their mother had finished cooking and setting the plates on the table.

“Okay, I dressed him, you’re feeding him.” Phil stated with a tired breath as he set Tommy into his highchair.

Kristin only chuckled as she watched, giving her husband a wide smile when he looked up at her.

“Okay. Deal.” She stated simple before placing a paper plate of eggs before the small child.

Tommy, after Phil managed to get his fists unlatched from his shirt, didn’t hesitate before digging in. Fists closing around the gooey substance before lifting to his mouth. Phil let out a defeated breath as he looked to his wife, who was staring back with a beaming pride.

“I swear they all love you more than me. They barely fuss with you.” He stated with a smirk as his wife laughed.

“Its just ‘mom’ powers. I’m amazing.” She stated easily before handing him his own plate.

“The most amazing ever.” Phil agreed readily, and not just because there was more bacon on his plate then usual.

As he sat down he noticed Techno was looking at him curiously instead of eating his breakfast like his brothers.

“What’s up, Tech?” He asked as he reaches for his fork.

“Mom has special ‘mom’ powers.” He states as if he’s deeply considering the conversation he’d just overheard.

Phil chuckled but nodded his head in agreement.

“All mothers have special ‘mom’ powers. But, yours is especially powerful.” He adds on, facing lighting up once more as Kristin brought over two cups of coffee and handing him one before moving to sit down herself.

“Dad’s have special powers too.” Techno once more stated instead of asked.

“They do. It wouldn’t be fair if only mom’s had them would it?” His mother nodded with a smile as she reached over to move a few strands of hair from his face.

“How does the ‘special dad noise’ power work?” Techno asked point blank which instantly had Wilbur choking on his mouthful of eggs as he started to laugh.

Phil was quick to pat him on the back even as he looked between both boys with visible confusion.

“My what noise?”

Chapter Text

“Hold still, Wil, or I might get your ear by mistake.” Phil warned with a frustrated breath as he pulled the scissors away for what felt like the millionth time.

“But my legs are falling asleep.” Wilbur complained with a deep sigh.

“You’ve been sitting for less than twenty minutes, Wilbur. Your legs are fine.” Phil stated plainly as he moved to once more try to trim the curls just over Wil’s left ear.

“But-”

“I just need to finish around your ears and the back of your neck and your done. Its going to take longer the more you make me stop.” Phil cut in, once more having to adjust Wil’s head his son had started to turn.

“But, I’m bored.” He sighed out, almost slumping in his seat if it weren’t for the hold on his head.

“I asked if you wanted to do this in the living room and you said ‘no’. You chose having food over entertainment.”

Wilbur huffed again and crossed his arms. He was told he only needed a trim and had decided that something like that would be done in the time it takes to eat a sandwich. He was wrong though, apparently, and now was stuck staring at the mostly empty counter until his father decided he was done.

Despite the warning from his father Wilbur continued to fuss and kick his legs below him. He tensed up at the sound of the scissors snipping just above his ear though, instinctively pulling away from the noise.

“Wil, please sit still.” His father breathed out above him.

Phil honestly didn’t know how his wife managed to do this alone with the boys without trouble. Unless she just wasn’t telling him about it. Whenever it was his turn to trim the boys hair and his wife was away it was like a battle.

Wilbur was the most challenging of course, though not always. Sometimes, if Phil was lucky, Wil could be distracted long enough to finish the cut with minimal fuss. Most of the time though it was like Wilbur was suddenly inspired by some spirit of chaos or restlessness. The moment he was sat anywhere and told to sit still suddenly his legs needed to be moving, his hands needed to touch everything and any sort of sound was of great interest.

At least with Techno he tried his best to squirm as little as possible. It only really became an issue when they got close to his ears. Other then that he was perfectly fine sitting in one place so long as he had a book in his lap.

“Am I done yet? My neck is all itchy.” Wilbur complained with a whine at the end.

Phil let out a breath as he brushed off his sons neck of all the trimmings that had gathered there. It wasn’t all that much, but Phil doubted that mattered at the moment. It was like ‘Princess and the Pea’ syndrome.

“Almost done. Just a little longer, mate.” Phil assured his son, though he knew it would mean little to him at the moment.

Wilbur let out a dramatic, his head tilted as if he were going to throw it backwards until Phil stopped it with his own hands. He really could have had this finished five minutes ago if Wilbur merely cooperated without the attitude.

Techno watched from the living room, peering into the kitchen over the back of the sofa every few minutes. His book was barely helping his anxiety settle as he ran a hand absently through his own hair. It was a bit messy, but it wasn’t as bad as Wilbur’s had been. Wil’s curls were far more defined than his own and with the length now they were more like lazy waves. While he wasn’t particularly involved with what his hair got up to, he didn’t see why it needed to be cut. It was only just barely reaching past his jaw. He’d seen people with far longer.

Biting his lip Techno looked over the sofa again. Wil sat with a grimace on his face as his head was angled forwards. Their father was stood behind Wilbur, expression set firm as he careful brought the scissors closer to his bother’s neck. Though, at least it was the scissors and not the ‘hair buzzer’. That thing made his head hurt with it screaming its noise into his ear at a constant. The scissors at least were mildly pleasant to listen to…at a distance at least.

“Techno, get ready. Its almost your turn.” His father called over, disrupting his thoughts.

It made his stomach tighten but he didn’t say anything. He knew one way or another he’d be sat in that chair. Not even Wilbur could worm his way out of it. Though, he hadn’t really seen his brother fight against it. Only growing impatient a little after it started.

With a breath Techno moved to slide off the couch, looking into the playpen where his little brother sat. He envied Tommy at that moment, in his own little world of toys and without a care as to what a ‘hair cut’ was or what it entailed. Tommy didn’t know what it was to sit in a chair as still as possible as a pair of sharp scissors danced around your head cutting things off at random. Tommy didn’t know what it was to feel and watch as itchy bits of your hair slowly coated you until your parents brushed you off and said you were done.

Techno envied Tommy for every ounce of not knowing his tiny body held.

“Techno, come on mate. Seats open.” His father called from the other room.

Wilbur’s feet could be heard as he popped out of said seat, slapping out of the tiled kitchen and into the living room quickly. He was scratching at his neck with a frown.

“It still itches.” He complained loudly with a huff.

“Then go shower, Wil. There isn’t much more I could brush off.” Their father stated with a mildly exasperated tone.

It was a voice Wilbur often was able to pull from the man, often times without trying…but far more often when he was.

Techno padded over to the kitchen and looked at the seat with a frown. His father was moving it slightly closer to the table to make it easier for Techno to prop his book on, which was usual. However, that didn’t make the event any less uncomfortable. He walked over slowly as he stared at the offending chair.

“Get comfy, mate. I see a few snarls we’ll have to get rid of before I can start cutting properly.” His father informed him with an audible frown as he looked Techno over from where he stood.

Techno squirmed in place as he continued to stare at the chair. He never liked to hear the word ‘snarl’ when it came to his hair. It meant lots of painful brushing until the tangle came loose. His mother had a way of doing it where it wasn’t so bad, but his father…His father tried, but there was always more tugging than Techno cared for.

“i don’t want to.” Techno stated in a small voice as he refused to look up.

“We have to, Tech. Your hair is getting really long.”

“What’s wrong with long hair?” Techno asked, this time looking up at his father.

The man was looking back at him with an expression he couldn’t identify. He wasn’t angry or frustrated that Techno could tell.

“Nothing’s wrong with long hair, mate. But yours is tangled and starting to look like a nest. You don’t take good care of it.” The man explained as he once more motioned for Techno to get into the chair, “Since its a mess, we cut it to make it easier to deal with.”

“What if I take care of it?” Techno asked quickly, hugging his book with a new hope in his voice.

“Its a bit late for that, Tech. We have to cut it.” His father insisted, though his tone softened as Techno’s face fell, “But, I’ll make a deal with you.”

Techno looked up at his father expectantly and with focus, waiting to hear whatever ‘deal’ might save him.

“You let me cut it right now without a fuss and then start taking proper care of your hair, then I’ll talk to your mother about letting you grow it out as long as you like.”

Techno’s eyes widened at the proposal.

Hair as long as he wanted.

He’d never thought about it before but, no more hair cuts. No more needless sitting in place. No more itchy, scratchy feeling over his shoulders. Not more snipping by his ears. It could be over.

“But, I mean it. You have to take good care of it. If you start looking like a hobo then we cut it all off and go back to regular sit downs. And no matter what trimming it is still important.” His father stated as he extended his hand, “We got a deal?”

Techno didn’t even need to think on it for another minute. He reached his hand out and took hold of his father’s as best he could and shook on it. Techno smiled and rested his book on the table so he could climb into the awaiting seat.

His father got into place and started to go about brushing the tangled mop atop his head when Techno suddenly turned to look up at him.

“Tech-”

“I don’t want it short like Wilbur’s.” Techno stated bluntly causing his father to pause in some surprise.

“Well, I can try. But your hair isn’t that long to begin with compared to your brother. Its probably going to be just about the same.” Phil stated as he glanced over at his elder son.

Wilbur was sitting on the arm of the sofa and scratching at the back of his neck with a frown. He knew he wasn’t supposed to be sitting like that, but Wil like to press his luck. The only reason Phil wasn’t saying anything on it at the moment was because Wil was already close to ‘chaos mode’ and he really didn’t have enough hands to handle that and hair cut day.

“...Tell you what, if I can get the snarls out with the brush then I’ll try to leave it as long as I can.” The man offered looking back down to younger child.

Techno was still staring up at him, the flecks of red in his brown eyes more noticeable at the angle. It always caught him off guard when it happened. Almost like something out a of a horror movie or anime.
Techno let out a deep breath and nodded solemnly, as if he had just agreed to fight in a war.

“As long as you can keep it.” He repeated before looking back down and towards his book.

“What’s so wrong with hair like mine?” Wilbur asked from his spot on the sofa arm, “Why didn’t I get a deal to keep it longer?”

“Because you didn’t ask.” His father replied simply as he began brushing Techno’s hair, “You could have gotten the same deal-”

“I don’t want the same deal.” Wilbur cut him off with a frown, “Long hair would be annoying. Short is better.”

“Then what are you complaining about?” Phil asked with a chuckle at this point.

“Because I wanted ‘short’ hair, not ‘shaved’. This is practically to my skull.” Wilbur stated as he tugged on his hair as if to prove his point.

However, seeing as most of his hair was still a fair length aside from the sides of his head and back of his neck, it was a failed point. This didn’t deter Wilbur at all though as he now got to his feet and returned to the kitchen to stand in front of his brother with crossed arms.

“You should keep getting it short like mine. Its just easier.”

“Wil, don’t pressure your brother. He’s stated what he wants.” Their father scolded lightly.

“I don’t want it short.” Techno added with a frown.

“But-”

“Wil-”

“Just hear me out-”

“Wilbur, either leave it alone or go play with Tommy.” Phil directed, leaving no room for Wil to weasel in one of his arguments that always seemed to sway Techno to his side.

He wanted Techno to be able to bring up things he wanted and to have the chance to actually try them. While he knew Wilbur meant no harm in it, the elder boy was terribly good with persuading Techno to his way of thinking, even if only in the moment.

“Short hair is too cold.” Techno stated, breaking into the brief silence.

He was staring at Wilbur as he said this and the two maintained a matched gaze for a few moments before Wil gave a shrug and a sigh.

“Okay. Just don’t complain to me when you have to brush it all the time.” Wil countered with before he turned towards the living room.

During all the talking Tommy had apparently realized he wasn’t the center of attention and was stating to make it the households problem. He was letting out distressed whines from his playpen and was gearing up for what sounded like one of his growingly infamous tantrums.

Taking one for the team Wilbur placed himself in front of Tommy’s pen and stuck his hand inside for his brother to latch to. Tommy was quick to grab hold, sticking Wilbur’s fingers into his mouth to his older brothers disgust.

The short clip of hair shears could be heard from the kitchen.

Chapter Text

“Your foot touched the ground, Tech. You’re out and I win!” Wilbur cheered with a wide grin.

“I did not! I’m on the pillow, see?” Techno protested as he pointed towards his toes.

He was, in fact, still on the pillow he’d tossed on the floor in order to traverse it. It was deflated under his weight, but he was technically still safe. However, Wilbur wasn’t paying this fact much mind and was already celebrating his victory as he wiggled a small dance from atop Techno’s toy chest at the foot of the youngers bed.

It was their usual game of ‘lava’ where in any contact with the floor would result in their immediate ‘death’, or loss of the game. They each needed to do laps of the room however they could until one of them inevitably fell. Techno had using his reliable method of tossing things on the floor to step on while Wilbur, being taller and a bit more daring, was climbing over whatever furniture he could struggle up onto. While this left Techno closer to the floor it also made the smaller boy more careful, which is why he knew full well he wasn’t out.

Not that Wilbur cared. He was already climbing back down onto Techno’s bed.

“I’m not out yet, Wil.” Techno continued to protest, stamping his foot as he continued to point to where his toes were, “Wil. Wil, look. I’m not out!”

“Too late, Tech. Toe touching counts.” The older boy grinned.

“ I didn’t touch my toes!” Techno shouted in annoyance, stomping his foot once more, this time off the pillow so that it made a louder noise against just the carpet.

Wilbur snorted as he grinned with satisfaction.

“You did now.” He stated smugly.

Techno let out a whine as he pouted at his brother, scowl set firm on his face as he crossed his arms. Wilbur flopped onto Techno’s bed with a short laugh.

“New round. Do you want to start from your bed again, or mine?”

“I don’t want to play ‘lava’ anymore.” Techno stated with a huff.

“One more round.”

“No. You cheated. You always cheat when you start losing.” Techno accused as he turned to face away from his brother.

“Hey, I don’t always cheat.” Wilbur protested this time as he sat a bit straighter.

“Yes you do. You do all the time.” Techno insisted, looking back at his brother with a deeper frown than before.

Before Wilbur could get his next words out a familiar cry rang from across the hall. Both boys looked towards the door for a moment as Tommy’s voice rose into what was sure to be another fit. He was supposed to be taking his nap right now and so the boys opted to ignore him. He was with their mother anyway. Surely she would have him hushed up and back to sleep soon enough.

“You’re just a sore loser, Wilbur. That’s why you cheat.” Techno started in again, now moving off towards his toy chest, “Dad and mom say cheating it wrong so I don’t want to play with you anymore.”

Wilbur let out an insulted huff as he jumped to the floor from his brothers bed.

“I am not a sore loser cus I didn’t lose. Besides, I don’t cheat.” He insisted once more as he followed the other, “Lets play something else then if you don’t want t-”

“I’m playing by myself now.” Techno informed his brother as he started to pull a few dinosaur figures from his toy chest.

Wilbur let out a puff of a breath as he watched, brow furrowing.

“Come on, Tech. Playing alone is no fun. You can choose the next game if you want.” Wilbur suggested as he leaned beside his brother.

“No.” Techno replied bluntly as he started to line up his figures beside the chest.

“Technooooo-” Wil started to whine before a sharper cry from Tommy echoed into their room.

Wilbur stopped and looked towards the door as Techno just frowned deeper and continued what he was doing. With a tilted of his head Wil listened for any signs of his mother dealing with their brother. The only noise coming from outside their room was from Tommy and…oh. Right, their mother had mentioned taking a showed while Tommy napped. He could hear the water running, just barely.

Looking towards Techno for a moment Wilbur sighed and stepped away. If Techno was going to ignore him now and his mother was busy he might as well try to see what was making Tommy upset when he should be sleeping.

As he left his room he winced at how much louder Tommy sounded in the hallway. He dreaded to think of how shrill that voice would be once he reached the parents room, where he was usually placed for nap time. Mostly because their mother worked in there on her laptop while he rested, or so he’d been told.

Pushing the door open gently Wilbur peeked into the room in question, once more wincing at the volume. Tommy seemed to have noticed the light from the now partly open door because he twisted his head in an effort to face it. His face was red and twisted in distress from what Wil could see. Wil froze up at the sight as he felt his chest tighten and strain with a feeling he didn’t know how to describe. It was the same feeling he got when Techno cried.

He hated it.

Without waiting another moment Wil shuffled over to the bed, reaching a hand out to lay on his brothers back with a few short and soft ‘shush’s on his lips. Tommy’s hollering subsided into harsh hiccuping sobs instead. He was still upset of course, but at least Wilbur’s presence seemed to calm him somewhat.

“What’s wrong, Toms? What’s wrong?” Wilbur whispered at him, trying to keep his voice low like his parents did when putting his brother to sleep, “Don’t you know you’re supposed to be sleeping?”

He didn’t expect much of a reply from his brother of course. The baby could only get a few small sounds out that could be words. No, he didn’t expect an answer, but his parents seemed to ask Tommy all sorts of things and Tommy seemed to like that. Usually anyway.

Tommy rubbed his face on the bed under him sloppily as he once more tried to turn enough to face Wilbur. Wil kept his hand on Tommy’s back, patting him in the hopes that that would help. He could feel how heavily his brother was breathing and he wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not. Biting his lip he debated running to get their mother, but even if he did, she was in the shower. Tommy needed comforting now.

Taking a deep breath Wilbur moved to climb up onto the bed with Tommy, though be moved further from Tommy himself so as not to accidentally fall onto him or something. Their parents had given both he and Techno plenty of warnings about that.

Tommy had started to fuss when Wilbur moved out of his sight, but the boy was quick to offer a verbal assurance he was still nearby as he climbed. The shaking of the bed that followed seemed to help inform Tommy of his brother remaining with him and so his noises once more returned to a more manageable crying.

“See? All fine. I’m still here, Toms.” Wilbur stated as he crawled back to Tommy’s side.

Tommy turned his head to look at Wilbur, his eyes filled with tears and his mouth open in huffed panting between whines. With his brother beside him Tommy seemed to be settling down further, thought his fit didn’t seem to be over just yet. Wilbur was at least glad that Tommy seemed to accept him as a source of comfort.

“See? Nothing’s wrong. You’re all fine and not hurt or anything. Just awake when you shouldn’t be.” Wil stated as he put on what he hoped would be an assuring smile.

He didn’t know what to do really and he doubted talking to Tommy would keep him quiet for much longer. His fits were never that easy to deal with. At least, not usually.

Wil reached out a hand and this time tried to take hold of Tommy’s tiny little fist, hoping his brother would hold onto it like he usually did. It was cute and made Wil’s heart feel like it was melty and gooey. A strange but oddly nice feeling.

Tommy, however, did not at all seem interested in the contact. He tugged his little hand away with a gargled noise of distress before his face once more warped into one if anger and upset. Wil wasn’t sure what to do or what was wrong with little Tommy, but whatever it was he didn’t like the faces it made his baby brother make.

“Shhh, sh, Tommy. Please.” Wil pleaded, this time rest his hand back on Tommy’s back and patting him.

Tommy kicked and cried hard for a few seconds before sucking in a deep breath once more and taking time to just breathe. Again his breaths were shaky and gasped and made Wilbur anxious hearing him, but he kept patting for lack of any other idea of what to do.

“What are you doing?” Techno’s voice came in from the doorway.

Looking up Wilbur was met with his other brother, Technopig in his arms, and staring from the left open door. He looked confused and worried but remained at a distance. He really didn’t like it when Tommy cried, the noise hurting his ears.

“I’m trying to help him back to sleep. Mom’s busy.” Wilbur explained simply as he bit his lower lip once more, “I…think this is helping.”

“He’s still loud.” Techno stated just shy of a complaint.

“He’s still upset.” Wilbur replied with as he shifted his legs to be more comfortable.

“Is he sick?”

“No, I…I don’t think so? I think he’s just…” Wilbur trailed off as he furrowed his brow.

He had no idea what Tommy was feeling. His face was scrunched up and Wil couldn’t tell anything by just the tears alone. Tommy cried about most things so there wasn’t really much for him to grasp onto for an answer.

“Is he sad?” Techno asked, slowly inching into the room.

“I..don’t know. Maybe? Seems more angry than sad though.” Wilbur considered as he tilted his head.

How was he supposed to know what to do if he didn’t know what the other was feeling? He didn’t want to hold Wil’s hand so, he wasn’t lonely or anything…Maybe.

“Is that what’s wrong with you? Are you sad, Tommy?” Wilbur asked, just like their parents would.

“He can’t answer you. He’s a baby.” Techno informed his brother as if the older might not be aware.

“He can’t answer, but he might feel better if we ask anyway.” Wilbur reasoned, or at least parroted his parents reasoning.

With a hesitant hand Wil moved his fingers until they were at Tommy’s sides. He had to try something to cheer him up and what better to do that than with a tickle? It made him and Techno feel better when their father did it to them when they were upset. Though….not all the time. Wil could only hope that his father’s trick would work on Tommy now.

“Tickle, tickle, Tommy.” Wilbur said with a false cheerful voice as began to wiggle his fingers into his brother’s side.

The reaction was instantaneous and absolutely not what Wilbur intended. Tommy had flinched at the feeling and had tried to jerk away from him. He screamed out louder with a fresh shrieked sob bursting from his mouth. The tears fell heavily as struggled to get away from Wilbur.

Wil had pulled his hand back as if Tommy had somehow slapped it away, his expression falling as he started to panic.

“Tommy, Tommy, shhhh! I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I wont do it again!” Wil apologized, hesitating to pat his baby brother on the back.

“You’re make it worse.” Techno huffed as he moved closer despite the displease expression on his face.

As he approached the bed Techno lifted his plushie up to set down first, taking a firm hold of the blankets in his fists.

“I’m gunna help.” He declared before trying to pull himself up onto the bed with the other two.

“W-wait, Tech-” Wil panicked as he felt and saw the baby blanket beneath Tommy start to shift.

The second Techno tried to lift himself off the ground and his full weight was on the blankets in hand everything seemed to move rapidly. Techno’s feet left the ground as he reached up further onto the bed, Tommy’s blanket ending up in his fist as he climbed. The blanket and Techno suddenly pulled backwards towards the floor, little Tommy sliding along with it. Wilbur’s heart stopped at seeing the small fragile body heading towards the edge of the bed. Within the space of one gasped breath the choked noise of surprise that came with it Wilbur had snatched up Tommy into his arms, the end of the blanket vanishing from sight not a moment later.

There was a small thud and an ‘oof’ from below the edge of the bed, but Wilbur didn’t fully hear it. His heart was pounding in his ears and his breathing was tense as he hugged the warm and wiggling body to his own. Sparked by fear Wilbur awkwardly shifted away from the edge of the bed, glancing between it and his brother in his arms. Tommy was…heavier than he looked but…but he was….so small too. Just a tiny little thing.

Techno let out an irritated whine as he picked himself up off the floor, but Wilbur didn’t even pass him a glance. His attention was fully on Tommy who was, despite the tense moment, quieter than he had been just before. Even with the wiggling he was calmer then he’d been since Wilbur had arrived.

Wilbur had Tommy rest on his lap, using his knees to support Tommy’s back while he used his arms to keep his upper body and head in a position that looked comfy enough. Wil stared down at the tiny form, running a free hand over Tommy’s head until his finger rested on the babies cheek.

Tommy was still panting for breath but looked far better than before. He didn’t seem to mind Wilbur’s face touching despite the tantrum he threw at not wanting to hold hands. In fact, Tommy had reached out a hand to Wilbur and now had a fist of his shirt tightly trapped in a vice grip.

Tommy let out a warbled cry, but it was nothing like the ones before. This was seemed as if he was unsure if he was still upset or not. Wil did the only thing he could think to do in this position. He leaned down and placed a small kiss to his brother’s head, giving a few more gentle ‘shush’s as well. Techno watched from off the side of the bed, sore at his failure to climb and unwilling to try again so soon as he’d bumped his head.

After another minute or so Wil’s sense came back to him as stared down at his brother. Tommy retained the redness of his face from his fit, but was now looking up at Wilbur curiously. Neither seemed to know what to make of the moment, but Wilbur at least decided not to waste it. Not when it took so much effort and failures to reach this point.

Taking what he could remember about how his parents took care of Tommy and Techno both Wilbur, careful as he could, started to rock back and forth. He couldn’t do it the same way his parents did since Tommy was half in his arms and half in his lap, but this would do for now.

“that’s it, tommy. all soft and quiet time now.” Wilbur whispered as he tried again to smile comfortingly.

Tommy stared back up at him, red puffy eyes just looking into Wil’s own uncertain ones.

“Boys? What are you doing in here?”

Wilbur peeled his eyes off of Tommy’s face and Techno turned quickly to face the doorway. There, hair wrapped in a towel and dressed in new set of house clothes, stood their mother. Her expression was one of concern and confusion as she took in the scene before her.

“What’s going on? Its supposed to be Tommy’s nap time.” She stated as she made her way to the bed.

“He started crying and Wilbur was making it worse.” Techno explained simply as he took a step towards his mother and raised his hands to be picked up.

“I wasn’t ‘making it worse’.” Wilbur huffed with a sour look on his face towards Techno, “I was trying to help.”

“You made his cry more.” Techno pointed out as he was lifted into the air and held against his mother’s hip.

“That doesn’t sound good.” Their mother replied, but in a tone that Wil recognized as her ‘I am listening to you’ voice even if she didn’t believe what was said.

“I didn’t know what was wrong so, I just sort of, tried things.” Wilbur informed truthfully before he was even asked.

“I appreciated the help, Wilbur, thank you.” His mother praised him with a smile and a nod, “Babies can be fussy about sleep. I doubt anything was ‘wrong’. Seems to me like he just wanted to be held a bit more.”

She nodded her head down to the baby, Wilbur following her gaze. Tommy’s eyes were drooping a bit as he kicked weakly with a bit of babble on his lips.

“I’ll put him back to sleep now if you want to take Techno back to your room to play.” Kristin offered as she gently placed Techno on the edge of the bed.

She reached her arms out to pick Tommy up from Wil’s hold, but her son pulled away from her, arms wrapping around Tommy more.

“I-I’m fine here. I…I think he wants to stay with me anyway.” Wilbur protested awkwardly as he once more looked down at his youngest brother.

Kristin stared at her son a moment, taking in how gently he was trying to hold onto Tommy without dropping him. Wilbur’s shoulders were tense, but his expression was held in a state of both awe and anxiety. Tommy, for his part, did look content to be held by his brother, if not a bit uncomfortable. It honestly made her heart squeeze with affection for them both.

“Do you want me to show you how to hold him?” She offered as she sat on the bed now, right beside Techno.

Techno was looking up at her, glancing between her and Wilbur with a small frown.

Wilbur looked down at Tommy a moment before meeting his mother’s gaze with a nod. He didn’t think Tommy was exactly comfy how he was and if he was going to be able to rock him properly he’d need to know how to do it.

It took a few minutes, his mother having to pick up Techno and use him as an example, but Wilbur managed to shift Tommy up and into his arms properly. He gently rocked Tommy side to side instead of backwards and forwards, which instantly had Tommy’s eyes fluttering. All his crying form earlier having tired him out a great deal. Though Wilbur considered it might just be a magic thing because even Techno was starting to look sleepy as their mother continued to rock him as well.

Wilbur couldn’t help the smile that stretched over his face as he watched little Tommy slowly close his eyes, a large yawn leaving the small bean of a baby. Tommy’s little fist was still holding onto Wil’s shirt even as he nodded off. Wilbur believed he could sit in this moment for hours and still be awed by this new ability of his. He had learned how to put his babiest brother to sleep.

Chapter Text

It was a Sunday and Wilbur sat on the carpet of the living room, little Tommy resting in his lap. He had managed to convince his mother that he was careful enough to keep his brother safe without being in the playpen or his bouncy walker. She’d been doubtful at first but had conceded to give him a chance. After all, he’d been doing really well with both Tommy and Techno recently when it came to being gentle with them.

With a small warning she’d allowed him to take Tommy from her arms as she went to answer her phone. Work something or other he guessed. Wilbur currently had Tommy wrapped in his arms as they watched cartoons together. A colorful mash of animal character flitting across the screen doing all sorts of shenanigans. Techno had been with them up until a moment ago, but Wilbur wasn’t sure where he’d gone off to now. He was at least sure it wasn’t far though.

Wilbur laughed at the screen, two characters having bonked each other at the same time and causing their faces to squish flat. Despite Wil’s attention to the screen Tommy didn’t seem all that interested. He watched and giggled on occasion, but he seemed far more preoccupied with shaking the set of plastic keys he had in one hand and tugging at Wil’s arm with the other.

Without thinking Wil let his brother pull and move his arm wherever the smaller wanted, keeping his other one firmly on Tommy’s torso to keep the tiny form leaned against his own chest. Wil had more or less gotten used to Tommy’s pulling and thrashing when he anyone’s limbs were in his grip. Their mother said it was Tommy’s way of learning about gravity and that it was normal. Wilbur wasn’t sure about that, but he didn’t mind either way. He just kept his arm limp and loose like a rag-doll. Tommy wasn’t all that strong so Wil didn’t worry about any sort of injury or such occurring.

“Ouch!” Wilbur yelped suddenly as he jerked his hand away from Tommy.

Tommy let out a noise of angry disapproval as Wilbur looked over his hand. There was no mark he could see, but it still hurt. Wil looked between his hand and his brother in shock.

Tommy had just bitten him.

“Everything alright, Wil?” Their father called from down the hall, entering the living room with a fair sized box in his arms.

“He bit me!” Wilbur stated incredulously, holding up his hand as if it would bare the evidence.

“He bites you all the time, Wil.” His father replied with a chuckle, “I don’t see why your surprised-”

“It hurt this time.” Wilbur cut him off with a frown, tearing his eyes away from his father to look down at Tommy once more.

His little brother had distracted himself with trying to pluck Wil’s other hand from his middle, his tongue hanging out of his mouth making his intentions clear. The little monster was hoping to do it again.

“Like, proper hurt?” His father asked, setting the box down on the sofa and crouching down with the two.

“Yes.” Wilbur huffed out as he once more tried to shove his ‘wounded’ hand towards his father.

The man looked it over for about a second before he focused in on Tommy. Without hesitating he lifting the baby’s head towards him and carefully stuck a finger into the child’s mouth. He ran just his finger tip over Tommy’s lower gums but felt nothing. However, with the appendage readily available Tommy was quick to move his head and bite down on the digit caught in his jaws. With a minor wince of his eye Phil let out a snort of a laugh before pulling his hand free, once more with angry protest from Tommy.

“Yeah, he’s going to be more bity now I think.” He stated as he lean back again, though he made to pull Tommy up with him.

Wilbur didn’t protest this as hew as still rubbing at his hand.

“He’s starting to teethe.” His father informed him, making Wil tilt his head to the side with a frown.

“What’s that?”

“Means his teeth are coming in. It can be uncomfortable for babies so they start to chew on things to make it easier.” His father replied, giving Tommy a small bounce on his hip though Tommy didn’t laugh this time round and instead gave another sound of displeasure, “Guess he thought you were the best looking chew toy around.”

“I’m not a chew toy.” Wilbur defended with a stronger frown himself now.

“Good luck telling your brother that.” Phil laughed as he turned back to the hallway, “I’ll let your mother know. We still have the toys from you and Techno’s teething time. We can dig them out and make sure they’re still safe.”

“What if he doesn’t like them. He’ll start eating all of us.” Wil huffed out as he followed close behind, forgetting about the cartoons still bashing each other on screen.

“Wil, he’s a baby. He can’t eat us. Even if he likes the toys he’ll still try to chew on us too.” His father turned enough to look at Wilbur, this time with a softer smile than before, “He’ll chew on things that make him feel better. If he keeps trying to bite you then it means you make him feel better doesn’t it?”

“But….it hurts.” Wilbur complained, though with hesitance at the implication his father placed before him.

“I’m not saying let him. I’m just saying, he wont be doing it to make you hurt. He doesn’t understand that part.” Phil explained further, “You’ll still need to be careful. But once most of his teeth are in he should be better about what to and not to bite.”

“How long with that take?” Wil questioned earnestly.

He didn’t want to miss out on his time to hold Tommy, but he also didn’t want to be bitten.

“Dunno. It really depends per person. Maybe his will grow in quick, or take ages, like Techno’s did.” His father replied with a shrug, “Only thing we can do it wait and see.”

Wil nodded his head with a heavy sigh. He crossed all his fingers that Tommy’s teeth would be quick to grow in…either that or he’d need to start wearing more sweaters when he held his brother.

Chapter Text

A peal of laughter lifts into the air as little Tommy is rolled across the bed, coming to a stop at his mother’s lap. She uses a hand to gentle bring him to rest on his back facing up at her. She gives a wide smile and make a face before moving to tickle him. Legs and arms are flailing as he giggles uncontrollably.

“Muuuh-muh-muh” Tommy hums out the moment he’s given breath to do so.

“That’s right. ‘Mama’. Mama Tickles Tommy~” Kristin laughed out as she poked Tommy’s cheek with a finger.

He reached for her hand, but before he could grab hold his mother slide her hand under him and was rolling him back from where he’d started from. Fresh laughter lit the air at this and a moment later a dizzy Tommy came to another giggling stop, this time at his father’s leg.

“Dadadadada” Tommy babbled before letting out a delighted squeal.

“Yeah, that’s right, Toms. ‘Dada’, your favorite parent.” Phil grinned, moving a finger to boop at Tommy’s nose.

“You guys are barely doing anything but play with Tommy.” Wilbur complained with a huff as he tossed a pair of mismatched socks back onto the pile, which was directly between his parents and currently being flattened more and more as the baby was rolled over it.

The family was each positioned around the parents bed, a large mound of laundry placed in the middle. It wasn’t uncommon for ‘family laundry time’ after a few weeks of it being ignored for various reasons.

Beside Wilbur was a small pile he’d managed to fold himself of his own clothes, as he was expected to do by now. Techno, however, had a dilapidated mound near him of what he was attempting to fold. Not because he was expected to, but because he’d decided he was a ‘big boy’ like Wilbur and could therefore fold his own as well. It was most likely going to have to be refolded by one of their parents, but for the time being they were content to let Techno practice.

Both Kristin and Phil had larger and far more stable piles of their own near them. However, Wilbur hadn’t been lying when he called them out. The pair of them had been rolling Tommy back and forth between them for the better part of twenty minutes or so, ignoring any further progress to the chores. Tommy himself seemed thrilled by this. Wilbur not so much.

“Our piles are farther ahead, we can afford the break.” Phil chuckled as he proceeded to make little ‘boop’ noises every time he poked Tommy either on the nose or cheek.

Tommy’s hands weaved back and forth in an attempt to catch his father’s hands in his own, however, his grabby little fingers were easy to dodge. It wasn’t long before He was rolling back towards his mother anyway, giggling all the while.

“How’s he not dizzy?” Techno asked with a small frown as he watched, discarded shirt sitting in his lap.

“Being dizzy is half the fun.” Their mother replied as she paused Tommy once more on his back staring up at her, “Isn’t that right?”

Her ‘goo-goo’ baby voice have Tommy’s face beaming in joy as he reached up to her. Tommy tried to roll himself onto his stomach, one arm still stretched out towards his mother. It was a clumsy attempt to right himself that ended with him barely getting on his side before his mother was rolling him back towards his father.

This time his peal of laughter came out garbled and a trail of drool was left in his wake…right over the socks. While neither parent seemed to either take notice or care of this Wilbur most certainly did.

“Ewwww! My Socks!” He whined loudly, trying to grab at the few socks in the pile that he could see were his.

He looked at one particular sock he’d pulled free, a favorite cat patterned one, that had an obvious moist line already seeping into it. He looked up to his mother with a clearly repulsed look on his face. When he failed to have her attention he made short huffed pitched grunt noise to show his displeasure at the situation. When his mother looked his way he made sure to hold his sock up to be clearly seen.

“It’s only a bit of spit, Wil. Its fine.” She tried to assure him, but this only made his frown grow more firm.

“Its not! Its gross! I don’t want to walk around in baby spit!” He complained, now shaking the sock in the air for good measure.

“Wil, don’t yell at your mother. She’s right. Its just a bit of spit. You wont even notice.” His father tried to likewise assure his son.

However, his eldest just wasn’t having it. Wilbur set a firm scowl on his face, aiming it at his parents both with his sock now tight in a fist in his grasp. He did not want to wear baby spit. End of story. It was gross.

However, before Wilbur could unleash his impending rant at his parents his other brother spoke up first. Techno, who sat almost between Wil and their mother, was looking at Wilbur with a raised brow of genuine confusion.

“You let Tommy eat your fingers all the time. You already wear his spit.” He stated bluntly, earning a snorted laugh from their father.

“B-but-that’s different!” Wilbur insisted, his attention now on Techno, “I can wash my hands after that so I’m not wearing it!”

“Wilbur, lower you voice. There’s no need to shout. Its just a sock. If it bothers you that much just toss it back in the bin.” His father stated with a slight sigh in his voice.

“Not sure when I’ll get to do another full load though. Unless your father gets to it earlier in the week.” His mother warned him as she started to dig for the match.

Wilbur breathed deeply at this, both to keep his angry words in and to consider his mother’s warning. He loved his cat socks. They were cozy warm and the cats were cute. He wanted to wear them…he wanted his cat socks.

“Why can’t we just wash them now?” Wilbur asked, is former scowl now dipping into a pout.

“Because we just did all this and there aren’t enough dirty clothes to make a full load.” His father replied in between making noises at Tommy as he patted the child’s tummy.

“...I can make-”

“Do not make dirty clothes just to make a load, Wilbur, I swear to god-”

Kristin couldn’t help but laugh at that, even if she thought it might encourage Wilbur to do it anyway. It was certainly a ‘Wil’ thing to do.

“But-”

“No ‘buts’, Wilbur. You can either accept they aren’t dirty, or wait for the next load to be done.” His father stated firmly and leaving no room argue further.

Wilbur’s pout morphed his whole face to show his annoyance and upset at the whole situation. However, his parents didn’t seem to be budging on the matter. With an agitated huff Wilbur threw his sock down into formerly empty laundry bin by his side.

He was notwearing baby spit.

“Btha-btha-ba” Tommy babbled, eyes looking around at his gathered family, not understanding the mood going on.

Why would he care about that when there was a soft fuzzy in his hand that was just begging chewed on? He was having a bit of trouble pulling it up, but he didn’t mind. He giggled up at his father, a bright smiling face that made noises just for him. The soft was just about at his mouth when his hand was tugged sharply, the soft almost leaving him.

“That’s mine!” Wilbur was complaining again as he tried to pull the sock from Tommy’s hand, “You already spat on my cats, you don’t get to eat the puppies!”

“Wilbur! Be careful, he just a baby!” His father scolded, a hand going out to try and catch his son’s hand before anything bad happened.

Little Tommy also was yelling at Wilbur, a bubbled sound of disapproval as he tried to tug the soft thing back to himself. His face was now twisted into an annoyed frown, his brow furrowed and matching his eldest brother’s own.

“Btha-btha-ba!” Tommy whined out as he tugged once more, mouth open so as to stuff the soft into it as soon as he had it back.

However, it wasn’t meant to be as with another sharp tug Wilbur reclaimed his footwear with an angry grunt. With a sharp scolding from their father about being careful of Tommy’s hands, the small child in question flailed his now empty fist with a huffy grumble.

A torrent of angry baby sounds were made as Tommy attempted his best glare at his brother, his face growing red from his building irritation at the loss of the ‘soft’. Even the soft words from above him and the patting to his stomach wasn’t enough to quell the growing storm in his gut.

“Come on, Tommy. Its just a sock. Look, you can have this one. I’m used to wearing baby spit anyway from your brothers.” Phil tried to comfort the now very displeased infant by handing him a green colored sock.

This wasn’t enough, however. Tommy had wanted that ‘soft’ and was ever so insulted that his brother would take it from him. How dare. The absolute nerve.

Tommy opened his mouth and let his brother know all about his displeasure at the turn of events. Wilbur wasn’t at all bothered and instead ignored the child as he worked to dig out any other of his socks before the small little monster got his hands on them.

This was certainly not going to work. Tommy needed his brother to know his anger. He tried to reach for the other, but his father’s hand on his stomach kept him still. Hands flailing out uselessly Tommy could do little aside from his shouting. That was, until his brother had dig into the pile right beside him.

An uncoordinated hand was quick in bumping against Wilbur’s wrist before the familiar tiny fingers gripped tightly however they could manage. Opening his mouth again Tommy stared with heat at his brother who was now partially leaned over him.

“Btha-ba!” He shouted with a grumble, “Ehi hi ahgarra eiyei-”
Once he started it didn’t seem like he was going to stop now that he had his brother’s attention.

Wilbur was rolling his eyes as he tried to pull his hand away. However, his mother stopped him with a gentle hand over his. When Wil looked up at her with confusion he was met with a look of excitement and joy on her face. This only made his confusion grow of course.

“Tommy. Heeey, Tommy.” She started to coo, getting an almost begrudging look from the child as he panted from the effort of his ‘rant’, “Tommy. Who is this?”

As she asked she took her hand off of Wilbur’s and placed it instead on his head. Wilbur tilted enough to show his mother his raised brow before looking back down at his little brother. Tommy was looking back up at the pair, still huffing but his eyes moved from their mother and down to Wilbur.

“Who is this, Tommy? Can you tell me?” Kristin asked again, her heart tight with a fluttering feeling from what she’d thought she’d so clearly heard.

She patted Wilbur’s head again to emphasize her question and looked at the small being with barely hidden giddiness.

With his rant over and anger seeming to pass quickly Tommy’s face rippled with a newly forming smile, catching it from his mother’s own face. He reached upwards as his lips parted.

“Btha-btha-ba” He stated with a confidence of all his months alive.

Phil looked to Kristin as she looked to him, his a look of bewildered shock and hers of unyielding elation. Wilbur looked down at his brother with a look to match his father’s, lips parted in shock and eyes wide. Tommy continued to reach up towards him, a giggle escaping him at the look his brother carried.

“Btha-ba” Tommy stated again, this time with an added squeal at the end as he felt his father’s hand on his stomach moving again.

Tommy’s attention was pulled from his brother and to his father, the words ‘Dada’ falling from him with ease.

“What’s going on?” Techno asked, unsure of why both his parents were now acting thrilled.

It wasn’t like Tommy hadn’t baby talked at them before. He does it all the time. Honestly he rarely seems to stop.

“He was saying Wilbur’s name.” His mother cooed out, though Techno didn’t believe it.

“It didn’t sound like his name.” Techno pointed out as he tilted his head.

“He doesn’t know many sounds yet. But that was him trying.” His mother tried to explain as she moved to pick Tommy up.

“My name?” Wilbur questioned in a quiet breath.

It…it hadn’t sounded like his name but…Tommy had reached for him. Was…was he really trying to say his name? His name?

Shifting to be closer to Tommy, who was now being held in their mother’s arms, Wilbur brought his hands up against Tommy’s cheeks, making sure the child was looking at him.

“Tommy. Say ‘Wilbur’.” He directed, only for the small being to bubble up spit at him before laughing at it.

Wilbur gave a disgusted look before taking a breath.

“Wil, he’s not going to be able to say it properly yet. He’s still just a baby. He’s only got so many teeth to use.” His father tried to console, but Wilbur didn’t seem to care.

“Toms.” Wil started, his voice more serious as he looked directly into his youngest brother’s face, “Say Wilbur.”

“…Btha-btha-ba-bfffph-” Tommy babbled out with a spray of more bubbles at the end.

He seemed rather pleased with himself about that.

“He’ll get the sounds eventually, but he’s trying.” Kristin assured her son with a giddiness in her voice that refused to fade.

“I want him to say my name.” Techno suddenly insisted as he attempted to crawl over the mound of abandoned clothing in his way.

“Even if he says it, he still said mine first.” Wilbur bragged with a grin to Techno.

It wasn’t what Wil considered his name to be, but if it was Tommy’s best attempt, then he could still be excited about that. If the fluttering mess in his tummy was anything to go by, he could, by all means, still be excited about that.

Xx--xx--xx--xx

Much later in the day, just before it was time for bed, Phil walked through the house with a mild confusion and spark of concern at the lack of one of his children. Wilbur had already been cornered by his wife and was in the middle of being prepped for sleep. But for the life of him Phil couldn’t seem to get eyes or ears on where Techno had gone to. He’d assumed the five year old was in his room like usual at this time, but when he’d gone looking Phil found nothing.

He was on his second pass over of the house and just about to check his own room if, for some reason, Techno had decided to sneak in there. However, as he drew closer a sound managed to catch his ear. It was an exasperated tone, one he knew well but…it was coming from Tommy’s room.

Moving towards the door with care to be quiet Phil opened the door the tiniest crack and peered inside. Tommy was supposed to be asleep by now, but he wasn’t exactly surprised when he looked in and saw the child sitting up in his crib. What did surprise him though, was that Techno was sat before it, face practically pressed against the mesh wall of it.

“Tech-no” He huffed out with a frown at the child before him.

“Ehi-ei-ei-o” Tommy tiredly trialed out, barely paying attention to his brother.

While he was awake and sitting up he was clearly exhausted and disinterested at this point. Techno let out another annoyed sigh at his perceived failure, leaning further forwards and now pressing his face against the mesh entirely.

While a chuckle to himself Phil entered the room and moved to pick Techno up. He didn’t say a word and Techno didn’t fuss at being removed from the floor, hugging to his father with a pout.

“Lets give it another try in the morning, after you’ve both got some rest.” Phil suggested, to which he was met only with a slow nod from his son.

Before he walked off with Techno Phil made sure to reach down and pat Tommy on the head, carefully try to get him to lay back down. He’d have to send Kristin back in to him once Wilbur was in bed.

Chapter Text

“Your turn.” Wilbur announced with a smirk to his brother.

Techno frowned at the board in front of him, the red and black pieces scattered about seemingly in a haphazard fashion. Which it mostly was really. He’d only just started learning how to play. Wilbur loved playing against Techno for this reason and so far the five year old did not carry the same enthusiasm for the game.

It was with a huff that Techno picked up his charcoal colored piece and plopped it down one square ahead of its former placement. It being the only piece he had that Wilbur didn’t have one of his nearby ready to snatch it up.

Just as Techno placed his piece down there was a whine from the living room once more, but Wilbur only huffed at the sound. It was Tommy, he knew. And Wil also knew that he was fine. Just fussing as usual. Techno looked towards the doorway at the noise as he had every time so far, but, just as with each other time, Wilbur shook his head and motioned for his brother to just leave the younger be.

The pair were currently situated in the kitchen at the table for their game, mostly because when the fighting broke out it was easier to hear and break up for whichever parent was home. Today that was their mother. She was usually pretty lenient with their fighting, allowing them time to try to sort themselves out. However, she had to agree with her husband when it came to board games. Public spaces until they could learn to lose to each other without combat being involved.

It also helped her out as she could leave Tommy in his pen for his own playtime while she handled certain housework or work-from-home tasks. She kept these tasks short usually, preferring her home time with them spent actually with her boys. However, some things just came up short notice.

As it were she was currently on a work related phone call, meaning Tommy was left in his playpen for his brothers to keep an eye on. The tiny child was sat and watching through the gaps in the mesh pen walls at his brothers. They were just barely in his line of sight, but he could hear them chattering. It was usually enough to keep him satisfied with not being left alone. However, today just wasn’t so easy for them.

For the past few minutes, Wilbur wasn’t quite sure how many, Tommy had been making his ‘fussy’ noises and babbling out at them. He’d initially gotten up and checked on his brother a few times, just to be sure nothing was wrong. But, after what felt like a dozen times of checking only to have the baby stop all noise and stare at him with a giggle Wil had had enough. Tommy could sit and play with his toys while he and Techno played a game or two.

When Tommy let out a longer whine than before Wilbur only rolled his eyes and glanced over at the pen. The child was mostly obscured by the meshing of his pen, but Wil could still see he was sitting up and just fine. Heck, by the look of it he was trying to stand up again using said wall. He’d started doing that lately. Perhaps Tommy was just getting mad at failing again. Didn’t matter. It was Wilbur’s turn.

Looking back to the game board in front of him Wilbur smirked. Taking his red piece from the far end of the board he began to hop over Techno’s pieces, with a small ‘mine’ being said with each jump. By the time Wil was done Techno was scowling up at him.

“You have one piece left.” Wilbur bragged as he picked up all the pieces he’d just claimed.

“I give up.” Techno huffed as he flopped back in his seat.

He couldn’t even call Wilbur out for cheats as he wasn’t aware of what was a cheat in this game yet.

Yet.

“You sure? I mean, you never know-” Wil started to say with a smug tone before Techno slid of out his chair with enough force to make it scratch backwards on the wood floor.

“I’m going to the bathroom.” Techno announced, not even entertaining the idea of continuing.

Wilbur laughed aloud at this point, only adding to Techno’s bad mood as he stormed down the hall with his feet stomping. Tommy made a noise out to him, but at this point Techno didn’t even toss his baby brother a look. Tommy watched him go with a whine and a garbled protest fumbling off his tongue.

While Techno was away Wilbur began setting up the board once more when he heard Tommy make a more frustrated whimpering noise. With a huff he turned from the table and made his way into the living room. When he reached the pen he looked at the small child within it expectantly.

“What is it, Tommy? If you want out then too bad. Mum’s busy.” He stated, doubting his baby brother could even understand him.

Tommy, using all the strength he had in his tiny body, pulled himself up until he was just almost on his feet, looking up at Wilbur. Opening his mouth he made a few urgent vowel sounds before pointing at the floor ahead of him, just a bit past where Wilbur had come to stand.

Looking in that direction, which was more towards the sofa than the kitchen door, Wilbur saw toys from the pen tossed about. Looking back in with Tommy Wil noted that he in fact didn’t have any toys with him.

Wilbur looked at Tommy with a frown while the tiny child stared at him and waited.

“Well, what do you want me to do? Clean them up for you?” Wilbur asked as he crossed his arms at his brother, similar to how his mother would stand when scolding him or Techno for making a mess, “If you wanted your toys to play with then you shouldn’t have tossed them out.”

Despite his words Wilbur leaned down and picked up the closest toy to him, a simple stuffed yellow dog or something. He really couldn’t tell. Tommy gave a smile at seeing Wil pick it up and wiggled with delight as he reached up to his brother for it. Wil brought the toy close to the pen opening, but stopped just shy of Tommy’s fingers.

With a sound of confused frustration Tommy reached, and reached and reached but no matter what he couldn’t get hold of the toy. Wilbur was watching with a wide smile on his face, bringing the toy just close enough so that Tommy’s fingers could brush over it but not grab it.

“You want it back, Tommy? You want this toy?” He asked mockingly as he raised it up just a bit higher.

Tommy tried to pull himself onto his feet fully with the pen for support, but his legs just wouldn’t take his weight, leaving him half heaved onto the mesh wall with his hand held up as high as he could get it. He let out a distressed whine now on the continued denial of his toy.

By the time Techno was walking into the room Wilbur had gained a second toy and was playing ‘keep away’ with Tommy with them. Tommy himself was red in the face and babbling his anger to their elder brother who only seemed to find it amusing. Wilbur had turned at the sound of the other’s feet and was quick in dropping Tommy’s toys back to the ground and heading back towards the kitchen.

“I’ve set it all up again. You can go first this time if you want.” Wilbur was saying with a chipper and smug tone, “You can even have two moves, I wont mind.”

Techno furrowed his brow as his brother walked past him, ignoring the disgruntled noise of anger from Tommy. Not having caught full sight of what Wilbur had been up to, and hearing that Tommy was still rather bothered, Techno turned away from the kitchen door. Besides, he wasn’t in a rush to play another round with Wil anyway.

Coming up to the pen Techno leaned forwards so that his and Tommy’s faces were closer together through the meshing. Tommy’s face was beet red and his eyes were teary and filled with anger as he looked up to Techno this time. Techno tilted his head as he stared back.

“What’s wrong Tommy?” He asked genuinely.

“Just leave him be, Techno. He’s being a fuss pants.” Wilbur called from the kitchen.

Tommy blew an angry raspberry at the sound of Wilbur’s voice as his furious gaze landed on the kitchen door. Techno placed a hand on the pen wall to regain the child attention as his own brow furrowed.

“What’s wrong?” He asked again the moment his brother’s eyes were back on him.

Tommy hesitated, a fist coming up to rub away the tears that threatened to fall. He pointed sharply at the floor outside the pen and Techno’s eyes were quick to follow. Seeing the toys at his feet and then the small trail of them a bit further out Techno understood.

Without another word Techno crouched down and started to fill his arms with the stuffed things and plastic bite toys. Wilbur protested from the kitchen one more time, but Techno didn’t even listen enough to hear what was said. Once his arms were full Techno made his way to the pen and, careful of Tommy, dropped them inside.

Tommy plopped down onto his butt as he picked up the returned items with a happy smile on his face. He looked at the pile and then to Techno babbling out a few happy sounds with a squeal at the end. Techno couldn’t help the smile that came across his face as he nodded to the other.

“You’re welcome.” He stated simply before he turned and finally made his way back to Wilbur.

Wil was standing in the kitchen doorway with a frown on his face as he waited. Once Techno was closer he let out an annoyed sigh.

“He’s just going to throw them out of the pen again. Its pointless.” Wil stated bluntly.

“Its not pointless. Tommy wanted them and now he has them.” Techno stated in much the same tone.

“If he wanted them then he shouldn’t have tossed them out.” Wil insisted.

Techno only shrugged at this as he moved back into his seat. Wilbur remained in place for a moment before he huffed again and finally headed back to his own chair.

The two had barely started on the next round when Tommy’s shouts came from the other room once more. Techno turned in his chair while Wilbur let out an annoyed groan. From where he sat Techno could see a few of Tommy’s toys once more scattered on the floor. This time tossed towards the doorway instead of the sofa like earlier. Wilbur turned only enough to offer a flat unamused stare as his younger brother. Techno, however, was slipping out of his seat without a word.

“Tech, just let him alone. He’s just doing it to be a brat.” Wilbur protested even as his other brother ignored him.

Picking up the toys as he got closer Techno showered them into the pen once more, pausing so he could watch Tommy smile back at him. He knew Tommy was going to keep doing it, but he didn’t mind. Especially when he could hear how much it bothered Wilbur.

Tommy bounced in place and clapped his hands at his elder brother, pleased at least one of them was paying him attention. He reached his hands upwards with grabbing fingers at his brother, a bright smile resting easily on his face.

“Dak” Tommy called out with glee.

Techno waved back at him and started back towards the kitchen even as Tommy called out again. Wilbur huffed impatiently as he watched. When Tommy met his eyes the small child only beamed with pride back at him.

Tommy was fully pleased with himself.

Chapter Text

“Boys! Come on, time for bed.” Phil called as he walked back down the hallway.

The house was not exactly the largest and so it made him a fair bit impressed along with his annoyance whenever his sons managed to vanish on him. Up until five minutes ago he knew both his older boys had been in their room playing a card game Wil was trying to invent by the sounds of it. The moment his wife had called out for bedtime though the pair disappeared like rabbits in a magicians hat.

Phil had Kristin had already checked over the house once, even going so far as to make sure the doors were still locked, and had come up empty. So now it was time for a deeper search. Kristin having to even go down and check the small basement despite knowing both boys were afraid to go down into that area. It was Phil’s job to start clearing the upper rooms in the meantime.

It only made sense to start with the bedrooms as they were smaller and easier to be sure on. It would also be harder for the boys to slip down the hall without him noticing once he started digging through the larger rooms after.

Pausing before his own bedroom door Phil tilted his head at a sound. It was a giggle, but not from Techno or Wilbur. It was from Tommy. Tommy, who had been put down to sleep at least a fair hour ago if he was guessing right. Certainly enough time for the small child to be properly out by now. Though, given the night he was having he couldn’t find it in himself to be surprised that Tommy was also up.

With a sigh Phil changed direction and headed to his youngest’s room. Pushing the door open Phil peered inside the nightlight lit room. Tommy was sitting up in his crib, rubbing at his face in exhaustion despite the lazy smile that tried to settle across it. His free hand was reaching for the mesh wall of said crib, no doubt to pull himself to his feet as he was prone to do now.

“Hey, Toms. What are you doing up?” Phil asked as he entered the room fully seeing as Tommy was no likely to roll back into sleep on his own, “Its late, mate. You must be tired with all your fussing earlier.”

He kept his tone soft as he spoke, lifting Tommy up the moment the child raised his arms towards him. He chuckled and rested Tommy against his chest as he started to sway back and forth with him. Compared to his brothers Tommy was by far a ‘comfort by contact’ child, more so than even Wilbur had been.

“Nnn” Tommy started to speak before Phil gave a gentle shushing and patted his back.

“Sh, sh, sh. No talking for now, Toms. Its sleepy time.” He stated as he eyes carefully scanned the crib below and reaching in for the soft blue blanket within it.

“No-no” Tommy hummed despite his father’s words, wiggling a bit against him as he tried to sit up again.

“Yes-yes, Tommy. Bedtime. Sleeps. The sleepy times.” Phil tried to confirm, now wrapping the small blanket around his child, “Don’t be like your brothers already. At least one of you needs to be cooperative with us.”

Phil laughed while Tommy only continued to fuss, even after letting out a small yawn.

“No-no.” He said again, swiveling his head around as his father continued to sway with him.

Phil let out a small groan at this and let his head roll back with a sigh. He’d been hoping the ‘no’ stage would come a bit later for Tommy, yet here it was. Far sooner than it had come to either of the other boys and matched with the already fussy and clingy personality that his child was already blessed with. Perhaps it was karma for Phil assuming that after the other two raising Tommy would be a breeze.

“Please, Tommy. Please just, give me this. Give me this one night of an easy bedtime from you and you can fuss up a storm tomorrow. I won’t even mind that much.” Phil sighed out as he turned and continued to rock Tommy.

He still needed to be looking for the other two, knowing that once found the pair wouldn’t try this two nights in a row. Phil could deal with either the older boys or Tommy being fussy on a given night, but not all at once. He just…he wasn’t prepared to handle all three causing problems at once, even mild ones.

“No-nooo” Tommy whined as he looked up at his father with a frown.

Phil gave a deeper sigh here as he stared back at Tommy, moving a hand to brush the growing golden curls from his face.

“Your brother’s are being a bad influence on you already.” He stated with a chuckle.

Phil almost jumped when at the same time he heard a scoff in the room. Turning sharply he looked around the room, the dim light making him have to squint to see clearer. He almost leapt clear out of his skin when he saw a pair of eyes staring back at him from behind the rocking chair.

“Techno, oh my god.” Phil wheezed out after a second, his body remaining tense as he held Tommy tight his chest.

Techno was crouched low and tucked up behind the wooden seat, almost perfectly hidden due to the cushions placed there. Forcing himself to relax again but with his heart still pounding in his chest Phil motioned for Techno to come out. With a defeated sigh the boy listened and started to crawl forwards.

“What are you doing in here, mate? You know its past your bedtime now.” Phil began with, starting with something easy while he still composed himself from the mild fright he’d just gone through, “Nearly gave me a heart attack while holding your brother.”

“...Sorry dad.” Techno offered, his tone genuine as he looked up at man.

Before more can be said Tommy was reaching out a lazy grabby hand towards his brother, a lopsided smile on his face.

“No-no” He stated with a tired hum.

Techno reached up to take his brother’s hand carefully while Phil snickered with a raised brow.

“Sounds like your brother was selling you out the whole time.” He laughed, biting his lip to keep from being too loud, “He certainly started that young.”

Techno couldn’t help but laugh as well, a free hand going to rub at his own droopy eyes. Phil lifted Tommy up higher and tucked him a bit more snug on his chest.

“Okay. Lets go find your brother. Bed time for all of you.” Phil directed as he nodded his son towards the door.

He’d just have to make due until his wife came back up to help him. Shouldn’t take too long. Who knows, maybe Tommy will spot Wilbur hiding as well and call him out for it too.

Chapter Text

It was another day in the Watson household and should have been filled with the usual sounds of bickering boys and mild parental reminders to be nice. Instead, the air was split by the sound of a very displeased Tommy.

Tommy Watson, the small bean of a human being that he was currently found himself held securely against his father as the man paced between the kitchen and living room. His mouth was open and out poured an agitated whine as he kicked against the man. The child had been fussing since the early morning and refused everything from toys to food to napping. It didn’t matter if it was his father or mother that held him, but they had at least learned that putting him down was absolutely unacceptable.

Tommy was upset, and so the whole house needed to be upset.

Wilbur and Techno had taken to hiding in their room for most of the day to avoid the screaming. They’d wanted to play outside but poor weather kept that from being an option. At the moment the boys were seated unhappily at the kitchen table eating lunch while Kristin tried to prepare something she thought might entice her youngest. The longer he refused the more worried she became.

“Here, see if he’ll at least drink something now.” Kristin suggested as she handed a bottle of warmed milk over to her husband.

The bottle barely even exchanged hands before Tommy was screaming again, tears in his eyes.

“No, no, no, no, no, no, no!” Tommy whimpered as he rubbed his face against Phil, muffling anything else uttered.

Techno had looked up at the pair, half expecting the small child to be looking a him. But, as he should have expected from the day, Tommy wasn’t. He had ignored both siblings since waking up. Still, Techno couldn’t help but glance at his brother every time the word ‘no’ passed his lips. Ever since they’d all realized Tommy used it to refer to Techno just as Wilbur had been noted as ‘Btha-ba’ most of the time.

Phil let out a sigh as he took the bottle anyway and moved to the sofa. If he was going to fight with Tommy about drinking something it was best to do it while sitting since he was most likely going to start thrashing about. It wasn’t the first time they’d had to struggle with Tommy eating something, but this was getting to be the longest span of time between their successes. If he was honest Phil was about an hour away from calling a doctor. While Tommy didn’t feel warm to the touch or look pale there was clearly something wrong.

At first he and his wife had assumed it was having another teething episode, but no toy or chew-able item they gave him was accepted. He’d barely even tried to put any item at all in his mouth, which in and of itself seemed odd. Kristin had already brought up the potential for a stomach issue and had barely managed to get Tommy to take the baby safe medicine earlier. If that were the case it should have kicked in by now, but here they were, no closer to getting the infant to settle down than they were that morning.

“Come on, Toms. At least drink this for us.” Phil tried to coax, bringing the bottle closer to Tommy’s face.

Tommy continued to press his face against Phil’s shoulder, refusing to even look at the thing. His protests were muffled but still audible enough to know he wasn’t silent. When Tommy moved his head to breath he was immediately making another long whine of discomfort.

Phil tried bouncing him on his lap but Tommy, unlike usual, quickly fought against that action as well. When the child looked up at his father with red rimmed eyes and a distraught expression all the man could think to do was hug his son close again.

“Maybe we should call the doctor now, Kristin.” Phil stated as he tried to look back at his wife.

“Its a hard ‘no’ on the milk then?” She asked with an audible frown.

“He’s said ‘no’ to everything.” Techno cut in as he pushed away from the table, barely having eaten anything himself.

“It was worth a try.” Kristin breathed out a heavy breath before patting herself down for her phone, “I’ll put in a call now, see if we can get his actual doctor before just heading to the office.”

“Is Tommy sick again?” Wilbur questioned from his own seat at the table, his food likewise mostly untouched as he watched his parents.

“We don’t know, Wilbur. That’s what we’re hoping to find out.” His mother answered as she headed into the hall, “I think I left my phone on the charger. I’ll be a minute.”

“We’ll be here. Not sure Tommy would let me stand up again right now anyway.” Phil called after her as he leaned back on the sofa and gently patted Tommy on the back.

It seemed to help somewhat as Tommy wasn’t screaming or writhing as much. Instead he’d moved into whimpered mewls of discomfort.

Wilbur continued to stare at his father’s head from where he sat at the table, chewing his lower lip. He didn’t feel right about the situation going on, but he also didn’t know what to do about it. He could see both his parents were growing more bothered by it too. Tommy wasn’t just being his bratty self this time. He could hear it in the noises Tommy was making, even if he didn’t know why.

Scooting out of his seat Wil shuffled down the hall while Techno sat limply in his chair at the table. With all the noise going on Techno’s head was starting to hurt and that made him not want to eat at the moment. He knew he’d not be able to leave his plate without it being at least half gone, and so he was stuck sitting there until either he could manage a few more bites or he was allowed an out and to come back later.

With an annoyed breath of his own Techno looked towards the living room where the source of the noise was. He didn’t blame Tommy, but he also still was very bothered by him right now. It was days like this that he wished he could go to school to escape it. Too bad it was a Sunday.

As Tommy let out another whimper Phil rocked him gently, pressing the child’s head to his chest.

“Shhhh, its okay, Toms. We’ll figure it out soon and you’ll feel loads better. I promise, mate.” He whispered to his son as he tried to ignore the twisting of his heart at the sounds the younger was making.

It was always hard for a parent to see their child in pain. Harder when there was nothing you could do to help them.

Phil was broken from his thoughts when he realized Wilbur had come to stand just off the side of him where he sat. Looking over at him Phil could see the ever familiar stuffed orca in his son’s hands. Wil didn’t wait to be asked before he was leaning forwards and pressing the toy against one of Tommy’s hands.

“Here, Toms. To make you feel better.” Wilbur informed in a soft voice, waiting until the tiny fist took hold.

The toy seemed to get Tommy’s attention better than the ones before it. At least in that he entertained it long enough to hold onto, looking it over slowly. His whimpered noises were softer now as his eyes drooped, no doubt his prolonged fit having tired him out.

“You can hold onto her until you aren’t sick anymore.” Wil added as he stood back up, fidgeting in place.

“You sure, Wil?” Phil asked even as he watched Tommy give the toy a weak tug.

“...Yea. Yea, I’m sure.” Wil nodded, “It worked last time…a little.”

“A little is better than nothing.” Phil replied with a smile and a nod in return to his eldest.

Shifting into a better position Phil moved Tommy so that he’d be more comfortable if he actually managed to nod off. There was no protest at this and instead Tommy was trying to stuff one of the orca’s fins in his mouth. Taking this as a good sign Phil patted around for the bottle he’d placed down just earlier. If Tommy was willing to chew on the toy perhaps Phil could get him to latch onto said bottle as well.

Unable to find the bottle blind Phil turned to look at the last place he’d assumed he’d put it. It was for the barest of seconds that he’d taken his eyes off his son when he felt the small body tense paired with a thick almost belching noise.

Phil knew that noise well.

Looking back sharply Phil was met with a familiar sight of baby vomit coating his and Tommy’s front, Wil’s orca included.

“Kristiiiin!” Phil called, not daring to move least he spread it around more.

He could hear her footsteps from down the hall, but it was a smaller pair of them that reached him first.

“Jubilee!” Came the mournful cry from Wilbur as he looked upon the scene with various levels of disgust.

“Wil, go back to the kitchen. We’ll deal with it.” Phil directed as he tried not to cringe at the feeling soaking deeper into his shirt.

“He threw up on Jubilee!”

“Wilbur. Go. Now.” Phil reinforced with a sharp look just his wife entered the room.

She moved around Wilbur, using a hand to nudge him away from the room as she did so. She picked Tommy up swiftly and held him with care enough so that he was upright with his messy side facing away from her. He was starting to cry again, his body still tensed. He most likely wasn’t done which meant she’d need to get a towel and fast before the mess grew.

Phil, meanwhile, was left to get himself on his feet as his wife moved off, leaving him also with the messed orca. It was fine. It could be washed. There were more important things going on that what happened to the stuffed toy.

Xx--xx

After roughly twenty minutes later Tommy was sat in his highchair and happily being fed oatmeal with fruit. Despite his recent sick he was now babbling away without a care as if the first half of the day hadn’t happened. Kristin was by far relieved of course, as was Phil. It had certainly been a scare. After a quick call with a doctor it was determined to be ‘most likely’ a small upset stomach. Seeing the change in the infant now the pair were hard pressed to believe otherwise.

While Kristin was feeding her youngest the other two boys were in their room. Techno was playing a silent sort of game with a few plastic figurines on his own while Wilbur was pouting on his bed. He’d been entirely upset since earlier when he’d seen his soft and lovely Jubilee covered in…gross. He didn’t want to think about it. He didn’t…He couldn’t seem to think about anything else. His father said he’d take care of it but part of him feared it had been a lie. He didn’t want to lose Jubilee. Not like this. Not at all if he could help it. But certainly not like this if he couldn’t.

“Wilbur…do you think we could fit all these in the window?” Techno asked suddenly.

Wilbur didn’t respond.

“Wilbur?” Techno looked over towards his brother with a slight tilt to his head, “Wilbur, do you think they could all fit?”

When he was met with further silence Techno let out a huff at being ignored and got to his feet. For the next few minutes there was shuffling in the room as Techno moved back and forth from his toy pile and the window.

Xx--xx

Phil took another deep breath as he pressed his face against the stuffed toy. He could, by all means, confirm it no longer smelled, looked off, or in any way showed a sign of what had happened to it. Wilbur wouldn’t have anything to complain about on it once it was returned…except perhaps how long it took. Phil wasn’t sorry though. He’d rather run the toy through the wash a few times then to risk his eldest’s favorite toy either being stained or haunted by the sour smell. As it were little Jubilee currently smelt like a bundle of fresh roses.

With a low jog up the stairs Phil’s first order of business was to return the missed stuffed toy to its owner. After that he’d check on Tommy and Kristin again. Without knocking Phil opened the door to his sons’ room and paused.

There, before him, was Techno standing at the window setting up a line of army men and Wilbur, standing on the toy chest as he set up yet another row on the mid point of the window. Both boys had stopped at the sound of the door and were now facing their father, waiting for his reaction.

The silence stretched on.

“They needed a better vantage point.” Wilbur offered awkwardly as he slowly started to move down from his stop on the chest, where he knew he shouldn’t be.

Phil stared at him an extra moment before pushing the door open a bit further so he could come in. Or, at least part of him could get more in. Without a word Phil lifted his hand up and tossed Wil’s orca at the window. It hit with a soft ‘thonk’ before tumbling down over the lines of men. Both boys were shouting in surprise as their father quickly shut the door with a laugh.

Chapter Text

It was a typical day in the Watson household as far as a general weekday went. The boys had gone to school, Phil had made a short few hour trip to the office for the one non-remote task he had and Kristin had been able to spend the day with Tommy and work on her art. She’d just returned from a few days away from home for her own job and was eager to get in as much family time as she could.

Everything had gone smoothly and aside from a few huffed complaints from Wilbur about his homework all of the Watson’s appeared to have had a generally decent day.

Currently the family as a whole was all situated in the living room, the largest space in the house and it only was just large enough to fit them all. It was cozy at least. Techno and Wilbur were seated on the floor at the coffee table, a cushion placed under them for comfort as they worked on their homework. Normally it was a kitchen table task, but since both Phil and Kristin were in the living room with Tommy as well their mother had decided that the rule could be forgotten for the day. So long as the tv remained off until homework was done.

As for the elder Watson’s and Tommy, the three spaced out with Kristin sat on the floor in front of the sofa and Phil was pushed back as far as he could be against Tommy’s playpen. Tommy sat on the floor just a few inches ahead of Phil, having plopped to play with his toes the moment Phil had let him go.

With the house being as small as it was Tommy didn’t really get a lot of ‘floor time’ to practice getting around on his own. Especially with the two older boys zipping about and not paying proper attention. A few hand squishes from his brothers now had Tommy flinching at the sound of running feet if he wasn’t being held. Sure, there was the bouncy walker, but it was large and often left the poor boy stuck in a doorway more often than not. Wilbur even once wedging Tommy between the sofa and lounge chair after getting angry at the child for running over his feet with the thing.

Even if Phil thought it was understandable that didn’t mean he approved of it.

So here, on a decently good day and in decently good moods the family got to watch as Tommy was coaxed into making his first real step.

“Come on now Tommy. We know you can do it.” Kristin tried to encourage as she stretched out her arms to him, Phil lifting Tommy up by his hands.

Tommy’s feet dangled in the air a moment as he pulled them up, letting them drop down only from gravity’s insistence. Very clumsily he put some of his weight on his feet, his body swaying and jerking as his father steadily lowered him more and more to the floor. With his father still holding most of his weight up Tommy smiled giddily at his mother as he took a wild step in her direction.

“That’s good, mate. Just like that.” Phil nodded as he inched forward just a tad to keep hold of his son’s hands.

As his mother was just starting to cheer him on again, Phil slacked up so that Tommy was mostly on his own, the tiny diapered booty plopped back to the ground in a heartbeat. With a shrill giggle Tommy immediately rolled onto his knees and scurried towards his mother. Phil let out a playful groan as he lowered his head in defeat.

No one expected this ‘walking’ session to end with Tommy actually taking steps on his own, but the small blond seemed to be making a particular point of taking no steps at all.

Phil recalled Wilbur being a stubborn one as well, opting to remain stationary until eyes were off him. The second either he or Kristin had looked away Wilbur had been off and chugging in any direction that seemed to scream ‘danger’. Techno had been far easier than both his siblings and Phil was now thinking he had either taken that for granted or that Techno had set his parents up for failure, believing they knew what they were doing.

In any case, Tommy was more than happy to crawl into his mother’s lap, looking up at her expectantly as his growing curls started to lap at his face. He awaited the praise of his mother who was all to eager to coo back, squishing his cheeks and pulling him into a hug. She poured out words of love and congratulations as much as she would have if he’d actually walked the distance, snuggling her face into his hair.

It wasn’t about progress in skill, it was about spending time with Tommy and she wanted him to know just how much love she had for him. That they all did.

“He’s never going to walk if you keep letting him crawl.” Wilbur complained dully as he watched, ignoring his worksheet before him.

“Oh? Is that right?” His mother asked with obvious amusement as both parents looked over at him.

“Yea.” Wilbur nodded with confidence, “You keep telling him ‘good job’ when he didn’t even try. He wont ever try if you do that.”

“And when did you become an expert at teaching how to walk?” Phil questioned with a rather amused look of his own as he raised a brow at his eldest.

“Since I learned how to walk first.” Wilbur supplied as he puffed out his chest and crossed his arms.

“You’re older, Wil. Of course you were going to learn how first.” Phil laughed.

“I still mastered it first.” He stated as his expression set into a determined one.

“Didn’t you trip on your way to the bus this morning? On the tuft of grass?” Phil asked as he tilted his head ever so much, the edges of his eyes crinkling in good humor.

Wilbur huffed at that as his face fell into a annoyed pout directed at his father.

“I told you we weren’t going to talk about that.” Wil stated in a scolding manner as he stared his father down.

Phil raised his hands in mock surrender as he let out a little sigh of his own for dramatic flair.

“Right, right. How could I forget?” Phil toned out as he eyed his wife with a crooked grin.

She wasn’t hiding her own laughter but it was Phil that seemed to hold Wil’s ire at the moment.

Wilbur stuck out his tongue at his father then, only making the man laugh outright. With a huff Wilbur turned back to his homework with a scowl on his face.

“I just don’t understand why he doesn’t want to walk.” Wil muttered under his breath.

“It’s not that he doesn’t want to, Wil. Its just easier for him to crawl so he’s sticking with it.” Phil tried to explain, “For all we know his balance isn’t even developed enough for it yet. That’s why this is just practice.”

“Your brother seems impatient for you to be running around, Tommy.” Their mother chuckled down at the small blonde.

“Am not.” Wilbur lied with a grumble, “But if he can walk normal then he wont need the stupid walker anymore.”

“Even when he starts walking we’ll still use it, Wil.” Phil stated, though once more he understood and even half agreed with the mindset, “It’ll be a good way to keep track of him on the loose.”

“But-” Wilbur began to protest with a whine before a low rumbly noise was heard.

It was small but loud and seemed to come from Techno’s direction, the middle child wiggling in place as his face grew red. He kept his eyes down at his paper clearly hoping that it wasn’t as audible as it sounded.

“Sounds like snack time.” Phil stated after a short pause.

Wilbur laughed and gave his younger brother a nudge to his shoulder while Techno let out an embarrassed whine and placed his head on the table.

“You should have said you were hungry, Techno.” Their mother stated as she lifted Tommy up so she could shift to face the other boys better.

“i wasn’t finished yet.” Techno replied in a small voice, still keeping his eyes lowered.

“If you’re hungry your hungry, Tech. We can have snacks a bit earlier when we need to.” Phil informed, a bit of worry in his tone, “Besides, your brain will work better if its not distracted by thoughts of food.”

Techno nodded, only looked up when Wilbur gave him a stronger nudge, this one not as teasing as the last one had felt. When Techno met eyes with his brother he could see a question in the other’s eyes, or at least he thought he did.

“Did you not have your snack at school?” Wilbur asked with a tilt of his head.

Techno paused and stared a moment before nodding his head, and then shaking it as his brow knit.

“I dropped some of it.” He admitted, which for some reason seemed to make Wil relax a bit.

“Well, you’re in for a good treat today. You mother was trying her hand at a new recipe.” Phil informed them from the kitchen doorway before disappearing through it.

Both boys looked over to their mother with questioning and excited eyes. Their mother, though, just smiled at them and shook her head that she wasn’t going to spoil the surprise. The boys shared a look as they heard their father rummaging in the kitchen, both craning their necks to see what he was going to bring out. They weren’t in a position to see anything over the sofa, but that fact didn’t deter them from staring. Neither moved to get up, either waiting to be called to the table or for the snack to be brought to them.

They didn’t have to wait long as their father’s figure strode back into the room, a small plate in either hand and a grin on his face. He kept the plates high up to make seeing what was on them impossible to the two boys, who squirmed excitedly in their spots.

“What do you say to your mother, boys?” Phil asked with an amused look as he could see the growing impatience in the two.

Wilbur whipped his head around towards his mother, though his eyes remained on the plates above his and Techno’s head. Techno managed a glance at her but maintained his focus above him. A duet of thanks mom/mum, came from the pair making said mother laugh aloud at them.

“You’re welcome boys.” She chuckled, nodding to Phil with a look that warned him not to press his teasing much further.

With a matching chuckle in response Phil lowered the plates and placed them before his sons, careful to not put them on any worksheets.

“Scotched eggs?” Wilbur questioned as he stared at the food before him.

The snack was a bit misshapen, but it was clear what it was. Kristin liked trying her hand at cooking in a general sense, but as the boys grew she tried to give specifically a fair mix between foods she grew up with and those more common to the area.

Despite having grown up in the country Phil wasn’t as helpful as she’d hoped in picking out what to make. However, whenever she came to him with a recipe she looked up he was always willing to be the guinea pig for her until she got it where she roughly wanted it to be. Judging by the look on her boys faces and look of pride on Phil’s own, she had done well.

There was an excited squeal from Tommy that had the family briefly looking at him, his tiny fists raised in the air at his brothers. Kristin cooed at him and raised him up to blow a raspberry against his cheek, delighting the youngster. When she lowered him back towards the floor he kicked his legs out, making her hold his weight mostly while she carefully held him on his feet.

Techno tilted his head at the pair as he watched.

“Was I that slow when I learned to walk?” He asked, looking up towards his father.

“Hardly.” Phil chuckled with a shake of his head.

“You learned pretty fast actually. Trying to keep up with your brother.” Kristin added with a grin over to both her sons, “You kept trying to follow him everywhere around the house.”

Wilbur smiled wide at this too as he sat a bit straighter.

“I should have run faster then.” He states earning a huff from Techno as the younger boy frowned at him unamused.

The flat look didn’t last long before he started laughing, Wilbur joining in.

“Ok, you boys need to wash up before you eat. Homework can be finished after.” Their mother stated, lifting Tommy up for Phil to take him.

Wilbur let out a deep sigh as he’d just about grabbed at his food when she’s said it. Techno was first on his feet and shuffling off quickly, Wilbur hurry after him only to ‘not be beaten’ back to the food after. Kristin walked with them to make sure they washed up right with soap and all while Phil was left to look after Tommy.

Phil rocked Tommy on his hip with a small swaying dance that had the child beaming and giggling happily. He let out an off tune half song about ‘why, do you, not walk, for us?’ as he danced them around Tommy enjoying the whole affair.

The intermission playtime was cut short by the scream of the microwave. Tommy’s bottle now being ready. Leaning down Phil placed Tommy on the floor with his toys and hurried off to grab it, hoping it wouldn’t be too warm. The last thing they needed was a fussing Tommy because he had to wait while his brothers were already eating.

It was hardly any time at all before there were thundering footsteps from the hallway. Not a run, but a touch faster than just a jog. Wilbur, as usual, tried to slide his way out of the hallway and into the living room. Once he arrived though he let out a shout of annoyance instead of victory as Techno entered just behind him. Confused, the smaller boy tried to peek around his elder brother who was tensely staring ahead of him.

At the coffee table stood a shaky Tommy. Using the table to hold himself up with one hand his other was reached across over Wilbur’s plate, a fist tightly curled and squishing the life out of what was once a scotched egg. Bits of meat, crumb and egg matter oozed over the small hand as the blond child let out a cooed sound of delight.

Phil, having heard Wilbur’s cry, had come to the doorway just in time to see the poor snacks’ demise. He looked over to Wilbur who looked equal parts angry and crushed. It was as Tommy was lifting the gooey remnants that hung slick on his tiny fist to his mouth that Wilbur managed to get actual words out as he started to storm over to the coffee table.

“You-you-You little monster food thief!.” Wilbur grumped at the small child, who looked over at him with a wide smile on his face, now smeared with egg yolk.

“You should have run faster.” Techno laughed as he moved quickly to his own plate, thankfully untouched.

Wilbur had stopped in his tracks to stare at Techno, mouth open at the audacity of the other. It was at this point that Tommy reached his messy fist out towards his eldest brother, a bubble of words on his lips. With his wide smile still in place Tommy let go of the table and took a step towards his brother. Or he would have if he hadn’t immediately flopped onto the carpet on his tummy with a soft ‘oof’ noise and a tiny little burp.

Chapter Text

1.

Tommy lay on his back nibbling on his toes as best he could manage while his brothers were darting through the living room. Normally he would be trying to stand up and watch them, but today he had decided his feet were far more interesting.

“Eeew, Tommy, no!” Wilbur’s voice sounded from above him.

Tommy didn’t look up at the noise this time as he continue to struggle to reach his mouth properly. However, his efforts were made moot by Wil reaching in and tugging the chubby little leg back down where it belonged.

With a garbled sound of annoyance Tommy looked up at his brother, a disgusted look on the older boys face, and proceeded to babble heatedly at him.

“No feet in your mouth, Toms. They’re gross.” Wil stated at him with a frown as if his brother was going to understand him.

“Gbrrrraba digeege-aha Btha-btha-ba!” Tommy huffed back at him as he rolled trying to get on his stomach now.

Wilbur paused at the sounds before rolling his eyes.

“Feet-” Wilbur started, pointing at Tommy’s feet.
“Mouth-” He pointed to Tommy’s mouth, “No-no.”

Wil shook his head hoping the smaller words would help. Though at the last words Tommy merely looked over towards Techno, who was watching from Wil’s far side at the two. Wilbur followed Tommy’s eyes before looking back and shaking his head once more.

“That’s Techno. Not ‘No-no’. ‘No’ means-” Wil paused trying to think of how to explain ‘no’ to his brother, “It…it means ‘no’.”

“No-no.” Tommy bubbled out as he now tried to pull himself up the wall of his playpen.

“Techno.” Wilbur tried again, earning a look from the blond.

“No-no-no.” Tommy repeated with a grin as Wilbur huffed and looked up at the ceiling with something like defeat.

“Btha-ba.” Tommy giggled out next, reaching for one of Wil’s hands and awkwardly gripping at his fingers.

Wilbur didn’t bother correcting him this time as Tommy repeated his ‘name’ as well. Wil was almost startled when he felt Techno’s hand suddenly hold over his fingers that Tommy was grabbing at, effectively hold both hands…somewhat.

“Wilbur.” Techno said slowly to Tommy, who blew a raspberry at him for his effort.

Xx--xx--xx--xx

2.

Tommy was on the carpet crawling from toy to toy as his mother watched from her seat on the computer in the corner of the room. She was working on some work related matter but was in no rush to finish, enjoying watching Tommy play between pages.

Wilbur sat in the room as well on the sofa eating his snack while Techno finished his homework at the kitchen table. It was almost time for their favorite show to come on and Wil was getting anxious the longer Techno took to finish. He didn’t want to start watching without him, but he also didn’t want to have to help Techno with his homework again. The last time he tried to finish it for his brother in order to get to tv time he’d gotten scolded and he wasn’t in a rush to repeat that mistake.

“Tech-” Wil started before his brother’s voice cut him off.

“I’m almost done!” He called back, sounding just as anxious as Wil was.

Their mother chuckled as she looked over to the kitchen doorway, seeing her middle child squirming in his seat.

“Don’t rush it. The tv will be there when your done regardless.” She tried to assure him though she doubted in this case that it helped.

Kids would be kids.

“Btha-ba, Eieha buh-buh-buh-” Tommy babbled out as he jerkily crawled towards the couch.

Wilbur paid him no mind until he felt a small fist tugging at his foot which he left dangling. Looking down he made eye contact with his baby brother, who was still making sounds at him.

“What’s up, Toms- Don’t eat my feet.” Wil quickly warned as he curled his toes instinctively when Tommy started to lean down a bit close for his comfort.

However, Tommy didn’t pay his brother’s feet any mind and instead had placed his head on the floor beside the couch. He made a few distressed noises before raising his head again to the other.

”Btha-ba a-bebe buh-buh-buh.” Tommy stated once more, a few sounds Wilbur recognized around all the 'b's.

Wil tilted his head, watching as Tommy let out a huff and placed his head on the floor once more, staring under the couch. The small child made another distressed noise as his free hand dipped into the small space and coming back empty.

Kristin watched from her seat, smile on her face as she observed her children. It was one of the best things about being home with them. Seeing them grow and watching as they learned how to interact with each other. It was a part of parenthood no one really talked about. Watching ones children grow up, sure, but watching siblings specifically was like a special treat in and of itself.

Wilbur stared at his baby brother a moment longer before pulling his foot from the other’s hold and moving to slide off the couch, careful not to step on said brother. Tommy had looked up at him and almost started to shout more gibbering before Wil was plopping down beside him.

Pressing his head to the floor Wilbur peeked under the sofa. It was dark and held more than a few ‘lost’ items under it, though Wil doubted Tommy cared much about most of it. Instead Wil’s eyes landed on a small baby blue squeeze toy that seemed the most recent addition to the secret stash. It was one of the teething toys Tommy had recently been given and it was just outside the small babe’s reach.

Twisting his head to look over at Tommy once more he was met with a growing look of distress, the bright blue eyes starting to mist over with tears of frustration.

“Btha-ba, Buh-buh-buh.” Tommy mumbled out this time, his voice wavering.

Without another moment of thought Wilbur tucked his own hand under the sofa and tugged the small item free. Despite it’s limited time under and short distance beneath the furniture the ball came out with a visible layer of dirt on it. As Tommy reached to take it from Wilbur the older boy instinctively pulled his hand back, earning a noise of betrayal from the smaller boy.

“Its dirty, Tommy. We have to wash it first.” Wil tried to explained as he got to his feet.

“Give it to me, Wilbur. I’ll take care of it.” His mother stated with a light chuckle on her breath, now on her feet and reaching for the toy, “That way he wont be mad at you.”

Wil hesitated only a moment before handing it over. He looked down at Tommy who was now staring at their mother with a dissatisfied pout. Giving his mother a furious set of ‘uppy arms’ Tommy pushed himself as high up as he could, refusing to be denied. With a chuckle Kristin leaned down and picked him up in her free arm.

As his mother and baby brother left the room Wilbur stared after them. He didn’t understand the feeling of disappointment in his chest when he’d handed over the toy to his mother and not Tommy. However, with a small barely notable perk of a smile at the corner of his mouth Wilbur felt at least a warming of pride in his chest as well just under that.

He’d understood Tommy’s baby talk.

Xx--xx--xx--xx

3.

Wilbur bushed his hand over Tommy’s head once more, pressing down the fluff of golden curls that looked already like they were going to be a hassle to deal with later. It was so similar to Wil’s own aside from the color, and if Wil cared to admit Tommy’s hair felt a bit softer too.

Tommy was sitting on the floor of the living room with his back pressed to Wil’s chest and the older boys legs drawn up on either side of him like guardrails. Tommy was playing with a few block toys while Wil opted to play with his hair. Tommy didn’t mind, in fact, he rather enjoyed it.

The two had been left to play together while their father had to take a work call that came in out of the blue. The man had tried to ignore it at first seeing as it was his day off, until the person merely kept calling and calling until answered. That left Wil to watch Tommy until their father was finished. Wil didn’t mind. He rather enjoyed being able to look after Tommy.

Or rather, he usually did.

Resting his hand on Tommy’s head Wil looked anxiously to the living room door that lead to the hallway. A hallway that held the door to the bathroom.

Wiggling in place Wil kept the whine of desperation from leaving his mouth. He’d thought he’d be able to hold it easily enough, but as his father remained preoccupied the need grew bigger and bigger. He couldn’t just leave Tommy alone, he’d promised his dad to keep an eye on him. But….

But…

Wil looked towards the small sliding door that lead outside to what passed as a backyard for their house. His father had taken the call outside and even from where he sat Wil could see the man’s shadow pass by the door on occasion, voice muffled by the glass.

He didn’t seem to be near ready to come back in.

Peering behind him Wil was met with, of course, a view of the sofa. However, he knew that on the other side of it, through the door across and in the kitchen his other younger brother sat. Techno was busy eating his cereal as he read the new book their mother had brought him recently, opting to eat it dry to protect said new book.

Wil didn’t want to ask him to watch Tommy or anything. But…Techno was an older brother too. Surely he wouldn’t let anything happen to Tommy while he used the bathroom…

A shiver traveled down Wil’s body as the call of nature peaked.

He leaned forwards, making sure Tommy was safely upright and distracted with his toys before sliding from his spot behind his baby brother. Once on his feet Wil sprinted down the hallway and almost crashed into the door of the bathroom itself, hitting the frame of it with a small ‘whump’.

Techno jumped a little at the sound of a collision, but when he didn’t hear a shout of pain or the accidental cuss he shrugged it off. It wasn’t the first time his older brother would have run into something. Like the time he tried to see how fast he could sock surf down the hall and ended up slamming into the wall, giving himself a bloody nose.

No, Techno wasn’t concerned. Unless Wilbur called for help he’d assume the other was fine. Instead he turned back to his book. He was almost halfway through it already and had only found two words he didn’t understand.

Reaching into his cereal bowl for a few more pieces Techno pressed on, the dancing of words on the page not as distracting as they had been the day before. However, before he reached the end of the page once more he was jumping in his seat.

Looking down Techno was met with a tiny chubby hand that was gripping onto his toes under the table. He’d been swinging his feet a bit and he was really lucky he’d managed to miss kicking Tommy in the face. Said boy’s face was situated right near Techno’s foot with an amused giggle escaping him, presumably from having caught the flying toes.

“Tommy, what are you doin under there?” Techno asked the younger with confusion.

Tommy reached a free hand up towards Techno with a fresh giggle on his lips.

“You’re going to get all dirty.” Techno stated before tugging his foot back so he could slide out of his seat.

Tommy shuffle-crawled the bit of space between them just as Techno was leaning down for him. With careful hands he tried to pick up Tommy like he’d seen Wilbur do before. Unfortunately, being a smaller than average six year old made the action less than successful. He managed to get Tommy hugged to his front, the smaller child hugging back with a sqee of delight, but Techno couldn’t seem to get any further than that. Much to his annoyance of course.

“-ak” Tommy started to say, face half muffled in the awkward embrace.

With a sign Techno let his hold go, letting his brother slump back down to fully rest on his bottom. Tommy looked up at Techno, face beaming up at the other. Tommy’s grip had slipped as Techno initially stood back up and so now his hands were out and forward with the usual ‘grabby hands’ going excitedly as he blew a few bubbles.

“Tak!” Tommy called out, a mostly toothless grin aimed directly at his brother.

Techno paused, his eyes widening a bit. A warm and jittery feeling swelled in his chest as he stared, mouth slightly agape. Tommy continued to wave his hands forward in demand, slowly scooting forwards on his butt as he repeated the ‘tak’ sound at the other.

“That’s…that’s me. That’s me, Tommy.” Techno breathed out as a smile overtook his own face.

He didn’t bother looking around for anyone else to hear it. Techno just reached down and gave his baby brother a tight and true hug, just barely keeping in mind to be careful. Tommy let out a fresh squeal of delight at the action, holding on tightly back.

Upon pulling back once more Techno grinned at Tommy, the small blond smiling back. Without another word, aside from more ‘tak’s as Techno moved away from the smaller child, he darted over towards the fridge. Opening it and digging into the ‘baby drawer’ Techno pulled out a cup of sliced bananas that had been made earlier for his snack. Normally their father gave Tommy his snack, but Techno decided that today Tommy deserved to have it early.

X-xx-x

Phil let out an annoyed sigh as he turned towards the sliding door to re-enter his home. He didn’t mind helping people, he actually quite enjoyed it. However, when something work related comes up and he’s on his day off and he knows there are people in the office that could handle it, he gets a bit…salty about it. He himself is a work-from-home guy, he shouldn’t be called about office issues at all really.

Still, he’d been able to help so…he guessed that was great. But now he just wanted to refocus on his kids and enjoy his day. His wife would even be home soon so they could have a full family dinner together a day earlier then planned. Which he hadn’t told the boys yet to be a surprise.

The thought made him smile.

Sliding the yard door open and stepping back into the living room Phil’s brows furrowed in confusion. Wilbur and Tommy had been left on the floor before the sofa to play while he took the call. Tommy’s toys were still in place, but both boys were gone.

“Wiiiil?” Phil called out as he tried to assure himself that in the small house they couldn’t be far or in much danger.

When the sound of a door swinging open met his ears and thundering feet a second later Phil felt a knot of anxiety nest in his gut. Wilbur popped into view looking both startled and alarmed…or was that guilt?

“Where is your brother, Wil?” Phil asked, hoping he’d be told his youngest was merely moved into the boys room to play something else.

Wilbur’s face shifted into a confused one as he quickly darted over to the sofa to see better the spot where he and his younger brother had been earlier. His face paled as he looked up at his father with a now decidedly fearful look.

“I-I, I left him right here.” He stated, his voice raised a few octaves.

“What do you mean you ‘left him right here’? Wil, I asked you to look after him-”

“I needed to pee! I was quick!” Wil cut his father off trying to explain as the man started to move deeper into the room, head swiveling about to spot missing child.

“Wil, I-” Phil started again with frustration before he was interrupted a second time.

“I got him!” Techno’s voice called from the kitchen, half distracted.

Both Phil and Wilbur paused before the pair moved towards the doorway. Without even making it the full way they could see Techno sitting on the floor with his back supported by a table leg. He was hugged around Tommy, who was contentedly mushing a bite of banana in his mouth as Techno tried to continue reading his book around the smaller childs head.

It was certainly a picture to see and had Phil fighting the urge to coo at them, least Techno frown and huff, ruining the comfy look of the two. The feeling of unease left him as Phil approached the younger pair.

“What are you doin all the way out here, mate?” Phil asked Tommy as he reached down to pat said child on the head.

Tommy looked up at his father, all smiles and raised what was left of another banana piece.

“Got your snack then?” Phil asked with some amusement, nodding to Tommy’s showing off.

Tommy only beamed more before his banana mushy hands swung to bump Techno on the chest, to the other’s mild annoyance at best.

“Tako bnm-nm-nm” Tommy replied, mostly in a hum.

Techno’s annoyance melted away as a fresh smile spread over his face instantly.

Tommy was going to say his name right far before he’d get Wilbur’s.

Xx--xx--xx--xx

4.

Kristin was sat beside the table feeding Tommy his lunch as her older boys were just finishing their own. It was a Saturday and Phil had unfortunately been required to go into the office at the last minute. It wasn’t ideal for their family time, but there had been nothing they could do about it.

Unlike with Phil, however, the boys rarely caused a fuss with their mother in charge. At least, not often enough that she felt the need to be on her toes. A fact she liked to tease her husband on often. Even Tommy, small, itty bitty baby that he was, was currently seated in his high chair and eating his bowl of smashed peas and carrots. So long as he could squeeze it messily through his fingers first Tommy didn’t mind it.

Kristin smiled down at her youngest child, watching him smear the green and orange goop across his cheek before finding his mouth. Out of all her boys Tommy was proving to truly be the messiest no matter what he got into. It was endearing as much as it was dreaded for his later years. She honestly couldn’t wait despite the ever present want for him to stay tiny and young forever.

“He’s all slimy now. Why do you let him do that?” Wilbur asked as he moved to place his plate in the sink, watching his brother with a slight wrinkle of his nose.

Wilbur wasn’t exactly the cleanest eater when he was younger, but as he grew Kristin could see her husbands care in teaching their eldest the importance of keeping tidy. Something Wilbur liked to toss back at his father when the man was less than careful himself. A side effect of that being that Wilbur had started to take on a role of ‘clean police’ when it came to his brothers as well. Sometimes correcting or wiping Techno off before either parent could even mention it.

Kristin chuckled as she could see Wilbur gearing up to add Tommy to his ‘keep clean’ list.

“Because, Wil, sometimes babies need to play with their food before they are ready to try it.” She replied as she picked up a spoon to help scrape some of it off her youngest child’s face.

“How is rubbing food on his face making him want to eat it?” Wil pressed as he now walked a few steps closer to the pair.

“Its just how babies explore things. All this food is something new to Tommy. Touching it and playing in it is just…part of the learning process.” His mother replied giving Wil a teasing smile, “You used to do the same with beans.”

Wilbur’s face instantly scrunched up at her words as he gave a frown.

“But, I don’t like beans.” He stated bluntly, “They feel weird.”

“I know. But how do you think you realized that?” His mother countered with as she leaned back in her seat a bit, “You had time to discover that by messing around with them.”

“Dad says its not good to play with your food.” Techno stated from the table, part of his sandwich laying untouched before him.

“When you reach a certain age and have better ways to learn about your food then yes, its best not to play with it.” His mother nodded with a small laugh on her breath, “Tommy has a few years of mess making in him before he reaches that point.”

The frown didn’t entirely leave Wil’s face but he seemed to accept that his baby brother was going to be a slime monster during meals. Speaking of, Tommy was currently looking towards Wilbur with a large smile on his face. When Wil met his eyes the smaller child wiggled his feet and held out a messy clenched fist towards him.

“Bith-by! Ahm aum um mmmmm-” Tommy hummed out before opening his fist and dropping a smattering of pea goop to the floor.

Wilbur couldn’t stop the wrinkling of his nose at first before he started to laugh.

“I think he’s trying to share.” Their mother commented with a laugh of her own, not bothering to wipe up the mess for now.

“You can keep it, Toms. I’ve already eaten.” Wilbur informed his brother as his grin stretched across his face.

Chapter Text

Wilbur kicked his legs as he peered out the window of the car. He recognized the area but hesitated to confirm with his parents where they were going. They’d said it was going to be a surprise after all. Still, he knew what was nearby and it put a smile on his face despite how bad he’d been feeling earlier.

Today was Wilbur’s ninth birthday.

His parents had initially planned to throw him a party, at Wilbur’s insistence of course. He wanted to invite his friends and classmates over, have fun and play games in the backyard and all that. But, if he were honest, he wanted to show off his baby brother more than anything.

Wilbur was the only one in his class that had a baby sibling right now. More than that though, Tommy had started to follow him around whenever he wasn’t penned or in their parents arms. While Wilbur hated it when Tommy was in his walker he was more than thrilled when Tommy crawled after him, trying to keep up. He was even trying more and more to be on his feet, Techno helping him when the younger allowed. Not that Tommy didn’t follow Techno too, but he’d seemed to latch onto Wilbur more often than not.

A birthday party would have been perfect to show off. Not only Tommy’s affection, but with how good of a big brother he was. He could understand some of Tommy’s baby talk now and had so much wanted to brag about how he could get Tommy to stop eating his feet or hands, which was a real feat that his parents expressed with pride.

But… There would be no party.

No matter the invites he’d given out, or friends his parents had called, no one had come. According to what his parents had explained, they had all been busy with prior plans. Though, Wilbur knew at least a few of them plain didn’t like him. It was mainly stupid Sasha Keeting and her brother Liam. They’d not liked Wilbur since he joined their class and had made that fact well known. Wilbur, while he didn’t understand, merely did his best to avoid them.

It wasn’t like he hadn’t been able to make any friends. He had two that he got on with really well. But...they were away visiting relatives for the weekend. This he at least trusted. His friends certainly would have come if they’d been able to. He…he trusted them. He-

Wilbur was shaken from his thoughts by a tug on his hair. With a small surprised yelp he turned to see Tommy, in his car seat just beside Wilbur, a tiny fist gripping on the bit of hair he could reach. A new habit Tommy was forming, wanting to hold and tug on any hair that got close enough. Wilbur rarely expected it seeing as his hair was fairly short and Tommy was much shorter. However, that didn’t take into account when sitting beside one other in a car apparently.

“You alright, Wil?” His father asked, peering through the rear view mirror at his sons.

Wilbur, bringing a hand up to carefully detach Tommy, nodded to his father. Techno, sitting on Tommy’s other side, was smiling with a light chuckle as he watched. He’d seen Tommy’s little hand go searching and had almost laughed aloud just before the tug.

“Tommy’s got my hair again is all.” Wilbur explained, mock annoyance in his voice despite he small smirk that threatened to grow into a smile.

“Probably jealous how fluffy it is today.” Phil chuckled as his wife turned to face the kids from the passenger seat.

“I think it looks super handsome being that fluffy.” She stated proudly, having been the one to fluff it up in the first place.

Wilbur smiled at that and nodded his head, rather enjoying the bouncy feeling of it if he were honest.

“So, know where we are yet?” Phil asked, eyes once more glancing to the mirror before flickering back to the road, smirk on his face all the while.

Wilbur’s grin grew as he tried not to squirm in his seat. He nodded his head though as he prepared to speak, hoping to keep his voice controlled and ‘mature’. He was nine now after all.

“L’manburger.” Wil stated, his smile growing with excitement as he noticed his father smiling wider at being called out.

It was a gimmicky food joint that was only a few years old at this point. It geared itself towards children and families, but made sure to make fun of itself enough that even parents could get a laugh in. Though that part went over Wilbur’s head.

What Wilbur knew was that the place sold burgers, hotdogs and fries and had an open fountain drink area. But, more then that, it had a ‘play palace’. It was a large room with foam covered walls and what, in Wilbur’s opinion, was the largest jungle gym structure he’d ever seen. It had four slides and tunnels spanning across said room in every manner of direction. There were two ball pits, a small maze like structure on one end and a large hanging next section in mid air over the larger of the ball pits.

It was glorious and Wilbur was determined to tame the thing by crawling through every tunnel and calling them his. Techno could follow him though. He didn’t mind sharing with his brother.

Wilbur looked to Tommy beside him, the smallest of the siblings once more trying to reach for his hair, but now was out of reach. Wil offered his baby brother his hand instead, which seemed to appease him. He couldn’t wait until Tommy was big enough to join them in the tunnels. He could just imagine rolling his brother down the netting similar to how their parents rolled the child across the bed during laundry day. Or pushing him down the large spiral slide, dumping him into the ball pi-

“Have you thought of a wish yet?” His mother’s voice broke into his thoughts making Wil look over at her.

“Huh?”

“Your wish. For your birthday. Have you thought of one?” She asked again, smile as warm as ever, “You were torn between two of them last year. So, do you know what you want this year, or are you still debating it?”

Wilbur paused, head tilting in thought at the question. He’d…he’d not really thought about his wish since last night. He knew better than to share what it was, but…at this point not even he knew what it should be.

“I’ll think of something.” Wil stated with what he hoped sounded like confidence.

His mother only nodded to him as her lips curled up a bit more, turning back around in her seat as her husband turned into the parking lot.

“Well, you’re on the clock for it now.” She teased.

Xx--xx--xx

The moment the family had stepped through the door Wilbur had been itching to run to the play room. A move his parents seemed to be aware of as Phil had made sure to enter the building first, standing perfectly between the hall leading towards said room and the dinning area.

Biting his tongue and trying to keep both his excitement and mild annoyance in check Wilbur just smiled, looking between his family as his mother led them forwards. They had been quick to find a booth to sit at, Wilbur, Techno, and their father on one side with their mother on the other, Tommy being placed in a wooden high chair. Both Wilbur and Techno were squirming in their seats while their parents, namely their father, had gone through menu options with them. The second both boys confirmed what they wanted their father had shifted out of the booth, allowing them both free.

Wilbur had almost smacked into the doorway of the play room not a minute later, Techno hot on his heels. Bracing himself Wilbur waited until his brother had slammed into him, unable to sop himself properly, before entering into the room fully. There were other kids in the room, but still less than there were in his class. For the large area they were in they’d barely meet each other.

The thought made Wilbur pause. If…if they had planned the party to take place here in the first place…would the other kids had been more interested? Would they have showed up then?

Before Wilbur’s brow could even fully furrow he felt his brother tug on his hand. Techno was dragging him towards one of the foam matted slopes that lead up into the jungle gym portion of the room. He didn’t speak aloud as to what he wanted, even at the age of six he was still nervous to speak in public areas. However, following his line of sight Wilbur could see his intention.

The first of the four slides. It was dragon shaped and would dump them into the first and smallest ball pit.

Allowing a smile to break across his face once more Wilbur took hold of Techno’s hand firmly and darted forwards, now being the one in the lead. He was careful, but pulled his brother along to the point of Techno almost stumbling up the ramps leading to the slides with an excited giggle. When they were just a few steps away from the slide he let go of Techno’s hand and grinned as he himself darted towards the slide mouth.

“Me first!” He shouted out, hearing a small gasp from his brother who tried to scurry after him faster.

He quickly settled on the slide and was just pushing off to go down it as he felt his brother’s hands reach his back. He looked over his shoulder with a laugh just in time to see Techno’s face split into a wide amused smile just before he slipped out of sight.

It was a short ride and within moments Wil was dumped into the small ball pit with a rustling of thin plastics. He quickly struggled to roll out of the way so that Techno wouldn’t crash into him when he came down, knowing his brother wouldn’t have waited long to follow. He was proven right as not a moment after he was clear his brother’s tiny form came shooting out the green colored tube, launching him a bit further into the pit than Wil had been.

His younger brother was laughing freely as he tried to push himself back into an upright position, Wilbur wheeze a bit himself watching said struggle take place. When he moved to help his brother up Wil’s attention flickered to the far side of the pit. A few of the other kids present had gathered and were all laughing together as they threw the small plastic orbs at one other.

He watched as the group started to spread out, each armed and hurling the colorful plastics at each other like dodge ball or something. It looked fun, but he doubted he could get Techno to play something like that with him. He was too small to really keep up and one or two hits with the orbs would have his brother changing his mind. Wil also couldn’t just ask to join their game for similar reason. Besides, Techno wasn’t comfortable speaking as it was in public. Wil didn’t want to make that worse by putting strange other kids into the mix.

“wil” An almost whispered plea came from his side catching Wilbur’s attention.

Techno had failed to regain his balance and was reaching for his brother in order to get fully upright. His expression was anxious as he bit his lip, most likely from having to speak instead of just motioning to his brother like usual.

Wilbur offered an apologetic look as he moved closer, wrapping his arms around Techno a bit more than was needed and lifting him up, taking a step or two to the side of the pit as well.

“Sorry, Tech. Got distracted.” He explained, not mentioning when he felt Techno’s arms hug around him a bit tighter as well as they moved.

Wilbur let Techno go once he was sure the other’s feet were fully on the ground, automatically giving him a pat to the head. Something their parents did to help comfort them when they were, or had gotten, upset. Techno didn’t mention it but looked back at Wilbur with a small smile. Without a word Techno pointed to the next closest slide.

Wilbur smiled.

Wilbur nodded.

Xx--xx--xx

The pair were darting around the edge of the larger ball pit, Techno just shy of grabbing onto Wilbur’s shirt as he’d run out of the plastic balls to tag him with, when they were both stopped by the voice of their father. The man was standing in the doorway to the play area, a smile on his face as he watched the two as they came to a less than graceful stop.

Wilbur had screeched to a stop first, grin on his face as he braced himself. Not a second later Techno crashed full body into him at full steam. It made Wil stumble and for a second he thought they were both going to tip over into the ball pit, but he managed to regain his balance just in time, an arm around his brother to hold him up as well.

“Come on boys. The foods ready.” Their father called out to them, a hand raised to usher them over.

He was laughing at them openly as the two proceeded to dart towards him. Techno ran into his father’s waiting arms as Wilbur waited beside him. As much as he wanted to rush back to the table himself he knew his parents would prefer he remain close to one of them at any given time out in public. Even at the age of nine he was content to listen for now. He would just prove to be more responsible that way, right?

Reaching the table Wilbur plopped down into his seat, making sure to pat Tommy on the head as he passed the high chair. Tommy didn’t so much as look up at him, far to invested in the fruit salad that was splayed over his food tray.

Sitting on trays before both his and Techno’s seat were burgers ready to be eaten, though Wil’s had a little flag atop his. His brother is soon to join him as their father takes his own seat across the table.

“Getting tired yet?” Their mother asks with a half teasing smile.

Techno shakes his head at her, a wild smile on his face before he focuses on his burger instead.

“We only got through some of the tunnels so far.” Wilbur stated with a shake of his own head, “We didn’t even go across the net yet. But, that’s cus Techno is scared to.”

Techno, in response, let out an insulted huff of air as he gave Wilbur a push on his arm and a frown. Wilbur only laughed back at him.

“Its true.” He stated before puffing out his chest, “I’m not afraid though. I’m going to go across it after we eat.”

“You sure this time? You’ve only managed to get on it once so far.” His father asked, amusement in his voice clearly, “If Maxi hadn’t made you-”

“I can do it by myself.” Wilbur insisted with a small but determined frown as he crossed his arms, “I’m nine and not afraid of anything. I can get across the nets.”

Despite his words and his very real determination there was still a tinge of anxiety resting in his gut. The net was really high up and it swung about once you were on it. His best friend Maxi had forced him across the last time they had been here but…Wil hadn’t been able to do it again since. Not only just from not going to the place often, but because the swinging of the ropes made Wilbur feel far too unsteady. But, if Maxi could do it then so could Wilbur. He could. He could do it and…and not need Maxi to help him. He didn’t need any help. He…he could do it.

Wilbur wasn’t so sure he could do it, but he wasn’t going to let his family know that. After all, he was a big kid now. A super big brother. He needed to be brave like his dad for when his brothers needed him.

There was a bit more chatter before Wilbur moved to eat his burger, Techno already having dug into his own. As Wil was removing the flag from the top though Tommy’s little fists were aimed in his direction. Apparently the small colorful item had grabbed his attention.

“Wiby, ib! Emba muh muh!” Tommy jabbered out, his hands grabby as he wiggled his whole body excitedly.

Wilbur smiled as his heart warmed at hearing Tommy’s ‘w’ sounds once more, a recent achievement, and lifted the flag up higher to be seen, but not towards his brother any closer.

“Tommy, want give?” Wilbur baby talked back what he could make out for Tommy’s words.

Tommy smiled wide back at him with a giggle, fingers clenching and unclenching at the desired item.

“Don’t give that to him. Its pointy at the end.” His father warned, but it was light and with a smile as he held out his hand, “If you don’t want it though, we can remove the stick so he can have the flag bit.”

Wilbur didn’t think on it as he handed the item over to his father. He didn’t care about the flag itself, but he did want to be the one to hand it over to his brother. Tommy’s eyes remained on the flag, brow furrowing as it went into his father’s hands and not his own. He let out a short huffed whined, but it wasn’t his ‘warning’ sounds just yet.

Wilbur looked to his baby brother, his lips pouted up as he blew a spittle bubble. While his gaze remained on the flag his father was working on Tommy’s hand was down in the fruit mess on his tray, squeezing a sliced grape until the juicy insides were squelched into pulpy mess and oozing down his fingers. Wil’s nose wrinkled at the mess, but he laughed too. Even covered in fruit gunk or whatever, Tommy was still his cute baby brother who wanted nothing more than to play with the colorful thing.

His father handed back the paper part of the flag to Wil, who then promptly handed it out towards his baby brother. Not too close though, so Tommy still had to wiggle forwards for it with some effort. The little gushy bubbly noises he made doing so had Wilbur laughing once more as the paper item, soon to be mulch, left his grip.

Just as Wilbur was about to take a bite of his food he was distracted by a cheering further into the dinning area. Back in the far corner was a sizable group of people, including a few of the kids he’d seen in the play area just earlier. He could clearly hear the birthday song they were singing, the kids cheering out and the adults clapping hands. It made Wil’s chest hurt and his stomach churn.

He stared over at the group for a moment longer before looking back at his burger with a small frown. It wasn’t lost on his parents who shared a look between one other. Phil lifted his hand in the air to flag down a worker at the counter while Wil wasn’t looking, while his mother leaned forwards on the table.

“How are you feeling, Wil?” She asked, gentle but also trying to keep the mood light.

“I’m okay.” Wil replied automatically even as he slowly picked a bit of lettuce from his burger.

“You sure?” His mother pressed, reaching a hand out to brush a bit of hair from his face.

Wilbur huffed a breath before he dropped his arms to rest crossed in front of him on the table.

“Its just- Not even Maxi wanted to come.” Wilbur stated as his frown came out in full force.

“Its not that he didn’t want to, Wil. His parents took him out of town. You know if he was here he’d-”

“They know what time of year my birthday is cus he was here for it last year. So why couldn’t he be here for this one? And- and everyone else-” Wilbur started to huffed, tears forming in his eyes even as he desperately wanted them to not be there.

He was a big boy now and big boys didn’t cry.

Arms were wrapping around him before he realized his mother had gotten out of her chair. A hand was running soothingly through his hair as she hummed above him.

“Sometimes, things just don’t work out how we want them to.” She stated in a soft voice, “It can hurt when that happens, and you aren’t wrong for feeling the way you are, Wil. Just know that it isn’t intentional on their part. It was just, bad timing. We should have planned something a bit earlier to make sure everyone was available. I’m sorry.”

Try as he might Wilbur could feel a few tears run down his face, which he tried to wipe away quickly. From his other side he could feel smaller arms wrap around his middle. Peeking over Wil could see Techno had slide from his seat and was pressed against him, head resting against Wil’s arm as he looked up to his older brother.

“it’s okay. i’ll always come to your birthday.” Techno stated softly.

Wilbur shifted enough to pull Techno into a one armed hug, his other one still pressed between him and their mother. He nuzzled his face into Techno’s hair to make up for it as his younger brother squeezed him back. Wilbur could feel his father’s hand reach across the table to ruffle his hair as well since both hug spots were taken and there wasn’t much space left for him to fit. It was enough though.

“Thanks, Tech.” Wil said with a short sniffle, reigning in what he could for his emotions.

It wasn’t easy, but he didn’t want to spend his birthday crying in L’manburger. Especially when his family was trying to make him feel better. When he looked up and over to Tommy, who had gone quiet he noticed, he was met with curious eyes staring at him. A half crushed orange slice was in his tiny fist and at the return of attention Tommy had it halfway in his mouth and paused. With a small noise he brought it back out and held it out to Wilbur like a gift.

“N-no thanks, Tommy.” Wilbur snorted, nose wrinkling at the idea of eating baby spit fruit.

Xx--xx

The family takes a few minutes to eat, but Wilbur can tell his father is anxious about something. He keeps looking over his shoulder and his leg is bouncing under the table. He tries not to think about it though and instead tosses one of his fries at Techno, who laughs and tosses it back.

Their parents don’t scold them as they’d normally do and so the game continues. Right up until Techno tosses a fry around Wil and at Tommy instead, an invite for the smaller to join them. Tommy is startled by the new addition to his tray mush, but grabs at it quickly with a gleeful sound.

“Te-no!” Tommy squeals out as he kicks his feet, attempting to toss the fry back.

It just dropped down to the floor though, directly in front of Tommy’s chair.

“Okay, that’s enough of that.” Their father states with a short lived chuckle and a mild look of tiredness on his face.

“Oh, its fine Phil. Its just a few fries. We can pick them up before we leave.” Their mother argued, picking up her own fry and tossing it at the man as if to prove her point.

Their father let out a snort of a laugh before looking at his kids, to his wife and then picking up two fries and tossing them back at her.

Wilbur and Techno watched with amusement, Wil with his mouth agape with shock that his father would do that in public. Techno picked up two fries of his own and tossed one each at either parent and the game seemed to go on. That is, until Wilbur, a wild grin on his face, picked up a whole a fist of fries. His father paused as an alarmed look appeared on his face as he paled slightly and an arm stretched out in an attempt to stop the claymore of spuds about to be launched his way.

“No! Wil don’t even-”

Wil did even.

With a pitched cackle Wilbur flung the spudy ammo across the table, pelting both parents in a wave of potato twigs. His mother was laughing heartily, almost to the point of wheezing, while his father looked like he was perhaps dying inside just a bit. It lasted only a second before the man was also laughing, though his defeated look was still there under the surface.

Wil knew it was because of the mess, but like his mother had said, they’d just clean up before they left.

“Wilbur.” His father stated in a warning tone, though no real intent behind it as his smile failed to be held back.

Wilbur returns the look with an almost proud grin of his own, no shame or regret in the mess he caused.

“Chaotic little shit.” His father muttered, earning a gasp from Techno and a laugh from his wife who nudged his arm.

“You can’t say that in here. You’ll get us kicked out.” She warned, though it was clearly teasing.

Even so, she wasn’t wrong. The establishment was family oriented and there were actual signs warning about ‘harsh language’ with the actual phrase ‘adult words’ in bold on some of them. It wasn’t like they made it a habit of swearing in front of the kids anyway, but really, Wilbur had earned it today. Something that only seemed to make the boy smile all the bigger as he laughed.

“Incoming!” A far too chipper voice called out suddenly from up the isle from the family.

Looking towards the voice Wilbur could see a group of three on their way towards the table. Their table. His mother and father were grinning, his father seemingly in relief, as the trio approached. The group was only halfway to them when Wilbur’s confusion turned to excitement seeing the rounded cake in their hands, a colorful candle shaped like a nine on top and already lit. Wil couldn’t help but bounce in his seat as it drew closer. Techno, similarly giddy in the seat beside his elder brother, looked between the cake and Wilbur. Smile wide enough that his teeth were easily visible. Tommy himself hadn’t seemed all that interested in the group until they were nearly to the table and the bright and flicking candle drew his attention to the cake in their hands.

Ignoring Tommy’s fresh surge of ‘gibs’ and grabby hands at the cake the Watson family managed to survive the ‘happy birthday’ song that accompanied the arrival of said cake. It was over the top and dramatic and sung loudly as if the whole of the establishment were required to bear witness to it. Something that only proved to be more truth than not as one of the trio called out for all those in the eating area to shout a ‘happy birthday to the birthday boy, Wilbur.’ Wilbur was sure he would die of embarrassment even if part of him ate up the attention.

During the song and subsequent shout out to the dinning area, Techno had managed to sink down in his seat to the point of almost vanishing off of it. However, Wilbur held his hand firm, keeping his brother from taking full shelter under the table.

Once the overly energized trio had left the family to their celebration both Wilbur and their father had to coax Techno back into his seat. Their mother, at this point trying to calm a steadily agitating Tommy as he was still being denied cake just yet. The small boy had yet to ever eat cake but he seemed to be naturally inclined to desire it all the same.

“You want a family only birthday song?” Their father asked with a large grin on his face as Techno adamantly shook his head at his brother.

Wilbur let out a snorted laugh, a toothy smile wide on his face as he nodded to his brother with amusement. Not only was one birthday song good enough for him, but he didn’t think he could survive another one. Especially if it encouraged the entourage to return for round two with them. Besides, he really wanted some of that cake. The frosting was glistening with a sugary sheen that promised regret to the parents that let him eat it.

“Have you thought up a wish yet?” His mother asked this time, Tommy now being bounced on her knee and for the moment content enough.

Wilbur bit his lip and stared at the lit candle before him. The top of the nine was now melted down enough that it was almost starting to look like a four instead. The colored wax oozed together muddling the shades into an oddly fascinating drippy pattern.

What was his wish going to be? What should it be? There were plenty of things he wanted. Plenty of things he could ask for. However, Wilbur liked to make his wishes count. If he only got one real wish a year, then it should be something worth it.

Glancing towards his younger brother Techno Wil could see how the other’s eyes were almost stuck on the candle. Techno always loved blowing out the candles on his own birthday cakes, and even last year he’d tried to blow out Wilbur’s when he was taking ‘too long’ to do it. Wil couldn’t help but smile at the memory. He’d been upset at the time, but now it was more funny to him.

“Do you want to blow it out with me?” Wilbur asked, catching Techno’s attention as the smaller boy perked up at the question.

“c-can I?” He asked slowly, looking towards their parents as well.

Phil watched Wilbur a moment before nodding to Techno, his wife doing similar. Just last year they’d had to explain to Techno why blowing out his brother’s candles had been rude. But, if Wilbur was offering-

“If Wilbur’s says its fine, then you can blow them out too.” Their father confirmed with a swell of warmth in his chest as he watched the two.

Wilbur was sure to nod extra when Techno’s gaze returned to him.

“If we both blow them out then we both might get a wish, right?” Wil asked his brother who didn’t seem to find fault in the logic, “So, we just have to make sure it’s at the same time.”

Wilbur looked to his mother to confirm his statement even though his mind was made up on the matter. His mother offered a warm smile to him as she nodded.

“That makes sense to me.” She stated with such a sure tone that it made Wilbur feel smarter for having guessed it in the first place.

Looking towards his younger brother Wilbur gave his hand a squeeze as they both leaned forwards.

“One.”

Wilbur counted off, a smile on his face as he felt Techno wiggle excitedly beside him.

“Two.”

He knew what he would wish for this time. Either it would come true or Techno’s would so no matter what the wish wouldn’t be wasted.

“Three!”

Sucking in a deep breath Wilbur puffed his cheeks and waited until he could hear his brother blowing out a breath beside him to let out his own.

The candle never stood a chance against them.

Chapter Text

October had arrived swiftly on the heels of Wilbur’s birthday. The ‘spooky season’ wasn’t as big here as it was in America, but none the less the Watson family found themselves partaking in it all the same. It had always been a bit of fun season in general, but since having kids it was a whole other ball game.

Kristin just loved dressing her boys up and showing them off a bit. While trick-or-treating here wasn’t what she herself grew up with it still had its charm and the boys seemed to enjoy it. This year they were closer to a neighborhood that seemed to take the holiday in a more…for lack of a better term ‘American’ form.

Decorations lined the streets just two lanes down from the Watson’s household, making it easy to spot even from a distance. From the look of it the small street was communally creating a ‘spook zone’ that included the traditional kids games like bobbing for apples and the like. But what made Kristin want to go was the Haunted House that was advertised on hand made flyers.

Which is why when Tommy started fussing at the noise and the boys refused to go into the haunted house without their father, Kristin felt slightly spited by the universe as she stood by the exit of the attraction with her youngest son. (It was just a side door, but its function was clear). She didn’t regret it or blame anyone of course. It was just one of those things that happens. She took the time instead to point out all the cute costumes to Tommy as older kids passed them, trying to distract the child from his earlier upset. It was rather nice actually, taking in the crowd and seeing the variety of cute or ‘creepy’ designs the people came up with. Tommy seemed pleasantly distracted as well.

It was not so much the same for his older siblings.

Phil was leading them along slowly, trying to keep on pace with the small group they’d entered with as the people hosting played out their best scares for them. They were certainly effective judging by how tightly Wilbur was clinging to his younger brother.

Techno was placed between Phil and Wilbur to be ‘protected’, but as they walked Techno was far more interested in taking in the sights and sounds around him. He’d been scared at first, of course. He still jumped and screamed a few times as they continued on as well. However, it was nothing like how Wilbur yelped or jumped at any given moment. He had tried his best to be brave at first, but at some point Wil’s bravery melted under the weight of his growing anxiety and fear. He hugged Techno like a teddy bear and winced as an over-dramatic creaking noise sounded to their left.

A door was opening to reveal a semi-dimly lit room garnished with tarnished looking furniture from what could easily be seen. Wilbur let out a whimper as his father and younger brother led them on. Phil reached a hand out to ruffle soothingly in Wilbur’s hair, but it did little as the room before them came better into the boys view.

It was a kitchen. Grungy and covered with rotting sacks and entrails hanging from the pan rack. A center island was haphazardly baring what looked to be a sawed off leg and other human parts. Counters splayed with dead animal bits and bloodied tools and rags. There was a table set up just near where the group was to pass through, a tray in its center covered with a metal dome. There was a haggard looking witch figure beside it, the woman giving a wide and almost painful looking smile as they all drew closer.

When the woman seemed to zone in on the children Wilbur let out another whimper, burying his head in his younger brother’s hair. Techno could feel his brother shivering beside him, but…he didn’t understand why.

…

Okay, he could understand why. The woman was sort of creepy looking, but, she was smiling. A bit much, but smiling still. The house so far had been spooky, but, it was a fun sort of spooky. Even the parts that scared him were…well, they were kind of fun too. Even there dad had jumped and screamed a few times, though he’d laughed it off after. Wilbur didn’t laugh, but, that was okay. His older brother was holding onto him and Techno didn’t feel nearly as scared as he thought he should be. Not that he minded. He knew what being scared felt like. But, their father was there and their father had the ‘special dad noise’. If any real monsters were there they’d be scared off really quickly.

Techno didn’t have to worry about the monsters with his dad and brother there.

There was just the scary smiling woman an-
“Would you like a snack?”

Techno looked startled at being addressed by the woman, Wilbur shivering again against his side, face almost hidden behind Techno’s head entirely. He was clearly shaking it, Techno could feel that much.

The woman only smiled wider as Techno stared up at her with a bewildered confusion. She moved to lift the top of the silver dome on the table, revealing a severed head sitting on a tray of scattered brain matter and a few fruits for show. Techno’s mouth dropped open, eyes going wider at the sight while his older brother tensed up.

It was as the head turned to look at the two boys that Wilbur let out another terrified yell, reaching for their father around Techno. For his part, Techno just stared with his mouth agape as his father tried to sooth his brother. There were a few noises from the other group members with them that were a mix of teasing laughs or coos. But Techno didn’t hear any of that. His eyes were busy taking in the plate the severed, but apparently living head was situated on.

The woman was still staring at him when he turned his gaze back to her. In her hand now was a bit of the brain matter and she leaned over to hand it to him in some grotesque manner.

He wasn’t sure why he did it, or really how. But before he could stop himself he could feel his mouth opening.

“n-no thank you, but-” He paused as he looked directly at the lady, his hand pointing to the tray, “can I have an apple?”

His voice was small as usual, but he managed to speak loud enough to be heard.

There was a moment of silence in the room before the head on the plate started to snort laugh, which triggered the rest. The woman let out a cackle, far more joyous than spooky. The group they were with all were belting out sounds of amusement of their own as well. When Techno turned to his father and brother he was met with looks of both surprise and, in his brother’s case, utter bafflement.

Wilbur’s jaw was dropped as he stared at Techno as if he’d grown an extra head.

With a proud smile on his face Techno managed to turn about towards the woman and her severed head. He was surprised to be met with her handing him the apple he’d requested. Taking it in hand he smiled up at her as bright as he could and offered a quiet ‘thank you’ in return before backing up into the legs up his father, looking up at the man with a new giddiness in him.

His father still seemed wrapped in the absurdity of the moment, laughing hard to the point of almost wheezing now. The smile that settled on his face as he regained his breath bore a firm pride as he brought a hand down to rest comfortably on Techno’s shoulders.

The woman leaned towards Wilbur next, brain matter once more on offer. Wilbur’s gaze flickered to it, eyes going wide as he shook his head ‘no’ almost hard enough to unfurl the curls on his head. He was latched to his father’s side now as the mans protective free arm came down to cover him partially from view.

The tour moved on once more after that, only two more rooms to be seen before the lot of them were ushered out the side exit. Techno was happily munching on his apple, checked over by his father of course, by the time they were halfway back to their mother.

She and Tommy had moved to sit on a small bench just near the ‘exit’ in the side yard. Tommy was playing with a bat decoration when the rest of the family joined them.

“Kristin, you wont believe what you missed.” Phil laughed out, breath still wheezy as he ruffled a hand in Techno’s hair.

She let out a small pout at first, a tease at his words, before her face instantly brighten. For all of a second before she realized Techno was eating something.

“Where did that come from?” She asked with a slight twist of her head to the side.

Techno beamed at her with a mouthful of apple.

Chapter Text

It was well past nine thirty and Phil couldn’t contain the tired sigh that left his body. It really was his own fault. He got too comfortable. He allowed himself to hope.

For the last week his boys, Tommy included, had been relatively easy at bedtime. Tommy falling to sleep with little trouble aside from the occasional whine halfway through the night. He’d thought they were in the clear. He had thought, had hoped Tommy was finally settling down enough in the routine that falling asleep would now become commonplace instead of a battle.

Phil Watson, father of three, was a fool.

Tommy’s bedtime was well since past and the small child was as awake as ever. He wasn’t screaming or crying so at least Phil could be grateful for that. However, it wasn’t enough to keep the tiredness from his bones and he paced the room bouncing his youngest gently. The rocking chair had been no help, warm milk had almost worked before the tiny blond had somehow managed to snap back into his fussing.

Phil didn’t regret his fatherhood, he didn’t. Truly and deeply. However….it would be somewhat of a lie to say he didn’t dearly miss the nights where he could walk into his room at any hour, fall to his bed, and sleep through until the following morning. Good gracious, was that even a thing that still existed in the world? Just, falling asleep? The moment you wanted to?

Tommy let out a whine and a huff as he wiggled with frustration in his father’s hold. Looking down at his son Phil let out a softer breath than before. He could tell Tommy was tired, that wasn’t in question. The question, plainly, was why didn’t Tommy just allow himself to fall asleep? Phil didn’t know and he had no idea at this point what to do to find out.

With a deep internal breath Phil admitted defeat and made his way for the door of Tommy’s room. Keeping Tommy in a bouncing or rocking motion while he walked Phil lean into the slightly open door of his older boys’ room. Within it Kristin was seated on Wilbur’s bed, their eldest son also having chosen this night to refuse sleep.

Where did his boys get their energy if they kept up with this on the regular? Once more Phil was left without an answer and just a tiny bit of jealously.

“Kristin. My love, my light, my goddess. Help.” Phil begged in a quiet tone so as not to wake the only sleeping child in the house.

Despite both his brother’s fight against the peace of slumber, Techno lay in his own bed tucked to his ears in a cozy blanket. His small squishy plushie, Technopig, hugged to his chest safely.

Kristin turned from her talk with Wilbur to look at her husband with a small smirk on her face and a glint in her eye. While he knew she was most likely just as tired as he was Phil knew his wife's skill at putting the kids to bed were far more refined than his own. Calling it ‘Mom powers’ didn’t seem to do it justice. He was sure it was purely a ‘Kristin’ thing.

“Trading me a fussy Tommy for a fussy Wilbur? That seems fair enough to me.” Kristin replied, her tone teasing though Phil suspected that was more for Wilbur than him.

“How is it ‘fair enough’. He’s a baby and I’m not.” Wilbur countered with a frown as his mother stood up from her place on his bed.

“You both fuss the same.” Phil stated before his wife got the chance to respond.

Wilbur fixed him with a pointed pout but Phil didn’t pay it much mind. Handing Tommy off to his wife he was sure to give her a peck on the cheek as they passed one other. Wilbur didn’t make a sound at the show of affection as he normally would, but Phil could still hear the huffed breath he let out.

Not wasting much time aside from shutting the door behind his wife Phil moved to take a seat on Wilbur’s bed where his wife had just been. Wilbur was propped up on his pillows, presumably the closest Kristin had gotten to getting the boy to lay down at all, and had his arms crossed ready for a fight.

With an internal sigh once more Phil braced himself for whatever contrarian mood had overtaken his son this time. Had some thought of an animal disturbed him enough to ‘anger’ him out of wanting to sleep? Had he recalled some conversation from the past few days that stuck in his mind with a bloom of new questions that robbed him of his need to rest? Was he just annoyed at the fact that Techno seemed to wake with such vivid dreams and he himself did not?

“What’s up, Wil?” Phil asked, prompting the start of what was probably going to be an interesting rant or ramble.

Wilbur frowned deeper as he stared his father down, arms still crossed as he pressed back against his pillows. Phil had to fight to keep the smile on his face at a neutral state and not filled with any sort of amusement as the sight. Perhaps if Wil’s face wasn’t still so cherub looking with his full youthful cheeks and fluff of disheveled hair drooping just so over his eyes. Phil could possibly see one day that scowl becoming something to wither its target just like Kristin was capable of in the right setting. For now, Wilbur just looked too much like a pouting kitten to take too seriously.

“I don’t want to to sleep.” Wil stated after he deemed his glare had lingered long enough.

“And why’s that, mate?” Phil pressed with a calm tone.

Wilbur took a moment to deepen his scowl and to mold his face to appear as insulted as he could manage it.

“Its break.” The boy started with, his tone properly indignant, “We don’t have school for the next two weeks. So, we shouldn’t have bedtimes either.”

Phil sighed lightly as he nodded to his sons logic.

“Well, bedtimes aren’t all about school, Wil. Even your mother and I have bedtimes.”

“But you get to pick and choose what those are!”

“Shhh, careful, Wilbur. Don’t want to wake your brother.” Phil warned with a short glance to the other bed as Wilbur’s voice had raised.

Wilbur also looked over to the other bed, a touch of guilt at the thought of disturbing his younger brother’s sleep. He’d seemed pretty tired earlier after all.

“I’m just saying-” Wilbur started up again after a moment, voice softer than before, “That we should get to choose our bedtimes too during break.”

“Oh? And whys that?”

“Because…because you get to.” Wilbur answered, partially forgetting the argument he’d thought out barely a hour before his due bedtime.

“Wil, me and your mother don’t just pick and chose our bedtimes. We just learned by now how much sleep we need and plan to make sure we get it.” Phil tried to explain.

“I can do that too though. I can read a clock and everything.” Wilbur tried to argue his case.

“When you’re older, Wil, we can talk about this. But for right now the bedtimes you have are made for your benefit. For your health.”

“I’m old enough now. I’m nine.”

“Not old enough I’m afraid.” Phil replied with a light shake of his head, “You need your sleep now more than ever, Wilbur. Otherwise, Techno is going to start outgrowing you from all the rest he’s getting while you sit up late arguing about it.”

“That- He wont-” Wilbur huffed and puffed out his words, unable to stop himself from looking over at his younger, and clearly smaller brother, “He’s so tiny compared to me.”

“For now. But, by getting all this rest in his body is able to keep growing. He’ll be towering over you in no time.” Phil repeated, this time with a bit of pride in his voice as he seemed to have hit a point of interest.

“He, he can’t…he wouldn’t outgrow me.” Wil stammered out, voice getting quieter as he started to doubt his own words, “He’s Techno. He’ll be my little brother forever. Just like Tommy.”

“Well, they’ll be your younger brothers forever. ‘Little’ though?” Phil tilted his head as he gave an exaggerated ‘doubt’ face, “Though, if Tommy keeps up his fussing you might be right for him at least.”

Wilbur hesitated as he looked back over towards Techno’s bed. The steady rise and fall of the blankets that covered his body. The soft snoring noises that were just barely audible in the mostly quiet room. The other boy was still soundly asleep, rarely waking in the night aside from the occasional bathroom call. He was a far more sound sleeper than Wilbur was.

Wilbur let out a deep breath that seemed to deflate his entire being, sagging back against his pillows once more. He was grumbling his displeasure to himself as Phil stood to tuck him in.

“We can talk more about this in the morning, Wilbur. Though don’t expect much to change until you're older.” Phil informed his son while the other tried to pin him with another scowl.

However, now that he was laying back against the soft cushions and his blankets were moved to cocoon against him, Jubilee tucked to his side Wilbur’s eyes fluttered against his will. Okay so, maybe he was a bit tired too. But that wasn’t the point. The point was he- that he…the point was…

Wilbur forced himself to blink, squinting up at his father who was looking down with soft eyes and an easy smile. The man reached to brush his hair from his eyes, an action that had Wilbur instinctively closing his eyes once more, even of only for a second.

“Go to sleep, Wil. Rest.” It was softly spoken before his father leaned down to press a soft kiss on Wil’s forehead.

Once more Wilbur blinked his eyes closed. This time, he didn’t reopen them.

Xx--xx

In the end not even Kristin could seem to get Tommy to fall asleep in a timely manner. With little other options the parents brought their youngest into their room, snuggled him safely between them and settled in for the night. They took turns between sleeping or watching over their drowsy child as he gripped and tugged at random fabrics around him.

It was three am by the time Tommy finally fell asleep in both his parents arms.

Xx--xx--xx

The morning had been a true struggle. Tommy had woken up as Kristin rose to dress for work. A simple into town appointment, but still an early one. Of course he refused to go back down after, forcing Phil to rise as well.

His other boys were left to sleep in a bit longer and when they woke they seemed perfectly fine. Even Wilbur didn’t seem to suffer much from his late night debating. However, their good mood was partially dampened by Tommy’s mood swings and refusal for any kind of nap.

It was by some luck that Tommy was even slightly entertained enough by his brothers to play with them for short periods of time without yelling of crying. It was during one of these times that Phil had taken his chance to get the boys lunch ready. However, when the call to eat was given he was somewhat concerned by the lack of thundering feet he’d been expecting.

He called again but to no better response than the first time. Worried, Phil left the kitchen to search the small house for his missing offspring. Of course, he checked the boys’ room first as that was where they’d all been playing last.

He wasn’t expecting the sight that greeted him, but he certainly wasn’t opposed to it.

Situated on Wilbur’s bed was a heap of both his and Techno’s blankets and pillows. Like a nesting fort. In the middle was Tommy, squished between Wilbur on one side with Jubilee crushed between them, and Techno on his other, Technopig likewise between them. The three were tucked and snuggled together so tightly that Phil briefly couldn’t tell if they were stuck or not.

Needless to say he took so many pictures before retreating back to the kitchen to pack away the food for now.

Chapter Text

“Techno, have you seen your brother?”

Techno looked up from his coloring book to stare at his father. The man looked worried, too much so for him to be talking about Wilbur. Not surprising really. Now that Tommy had started to walk around he was proving to be rather fast at getting out of sight.

“He’s not in here. Want me to help look?” Techno offered, already pushing himself off his bedroom floor.

Normally he would wait until being asked specifically to help if he was doing something, but today the family was planning for an outing. Something that, if they couldn’t find Tommy, they’d not be able to do.

“That would be great, mate. Thanks.” His father replied as he was already backing out of the room.

At first Techno wasn’t sure why his father seemed so rushed this time. Losing sight of Tommy was pretty common, even if they were due to leave soon. However, as his father pushed the door open wider for Techno to join the search he noticed a familiar green turtle patterned t-shirt in his dads hand.

Ah.

Tommy had managed to strip off a few layers again.

Something else his little brother had learned to do rather effectively. Not only could he slip out from under a watchful eye but he could get himself almost entirely unclothed in a matter of moments after doing so. Techno didn’t know why he did this. It was mid fall and heading into winter. Even with the heating the house itself could still get chilly sometimes. If anything Tommy should be burrowing into any warm fabric he could find.

Distracted by his thoughts on the matter Techno tugged at the hem of his own sweater. It was a nice shade of blueish green that Wilbur had given him when Techno’s own favorite ‘actual blue’ one got torn. Wilbur had been adamant on him taking this particular one and even if Techno didn’t know why he was fine with it. It was soft and fuzzy and so warm that Techno actually would start to sweat in it even on the colder days.

With a slight startle Techno was once more pulled from his head as he looked down. He’d stepped on something squishy that he didn’t much care for and it had him reeling back quickly.

Was that-

“Daaaaaad!” Techno called out, his little feet pattering quickly down the hall.

Phil popped quickly out of his own room, having been checking under the bed as Tommy could really have tucked himself anywhere at this point.

“What’s up, Tech? What’s wrong?” He asked quickly at the sound of worry in his songs voice.

Phil’s face paled as he took note of what Techno was holding up by a single fist, his own face looking proper concerned as well.

It was Tommy’s diaper.

His youngest son was traipsing around bare bottomed unsupervised.

What’s more is the diaper in Techno’s hand was still clean. If Tommy hadn’t gone yet today before removing it then…

“Wiiil” Phil called out down the hall to where his eldest child was due to look over.

Xx--xx

Wilbur was just closing the last of the kitchen cabinets, now sure Tommy hadn’t crawled into any of them. He jumped a bit as his father called out to him, stress in his voice. Quickly scurrying to the doorway Wilbur peeked his head out to be looking down the hallway. His father and younger brother were both there and both looked less than at ease.

“Yea, Dad?” Wilbur question with a slight fidget of his hands.

“Your brother is proper naked. Hopefully he hasn’t… watch your feet.” Phil warned, taking the apparently discarded diaper from Techno and turning back into his own room.

Wilbur could hear his father muttering something about Tommy and a word he could only assume was ‘leash’ but Wil was too far to grasp it fully. Before Wil could question Techno on it the other boy was pushing into to Tommy’s room and calling out for the babe.

Swallowing his growing anxiety Wilbur turned back towards the kitchen. He’d looked in all the cupboards and there wasn’t much else in the room that Tommy could hide in or around without being noticed. At least that meant Wil could move on swiftly. This was the longest they’d ever lost Tommy before and it was honestly starting to scare him.

Walking into the living room Wilbur first bee lined it to the play pen for the third time. He’d put a few extra of Tommy’s toys down hoping they might attract his baby brother if he were to scuttle past them. However, they remained undisturbed in the slightest.

Turning towards the sliding door Wilbur logically knew that it was far too heavy and big for his baby brother to ever open on his own. But his panicking mind kept asking him if he were really sure about that. His thoughts came to a screaming halt as he caught a sound just under the thundering of his growing heart beat.

A giggle.

It was muffled and hushed, but Wil had heard it. He knew he did. Darting around the coffee table Wil perked his ear up to see if he could hear it again, though it proved unnecessary. As he brushed past the end of the sofa movement caught his eye.

Wilbur’s jaw dropped as he spotted the form of his baby brother, tucked behind the sofa chair at the wall and the large house fern pot that blocked most of said chair from view from the front door. The space itself was small, barely a crevice. But Tommy was there, squatted at the base of the plant and covered in the potting soil.

Face, hands, arms, full body, there was no part of Tommy that the toddler hadn’t managed to cake in the crumby brown. His golden locks as well slightly matted with it, as if he’d dunked his head into the dirt and rolled it around like a paint roller. In his fist was a clump of dirt that he was currently shoveling into his mouth. Though, when Wilbur entered his line of sight he paused and stared the other down.

“T-Tommy!” Wilbur choked out, darting forwards with his hands out to try to stop the dirt feast that was in progress.

Tommy seemed to know this was coming though because before Wilbur even reached him he’d opened his mouth just enough for the now soggy soil to drop out. Not that a lot of it did. Without thinking Wilbur was reaching into his baby brother’s mouth with two fingers and trying to unshovel what the other had already packed in.

Tommy let out a whine of disappoint but didn’t pull away from the action. It wasn’t the first time his elder brother had had to removing something from his mouth. While he didn’t appreciate it he seemed to at least accept it more often than not.

Phil, hearing Wilbur’s shout, came running down the hall, fear built in his chest as he wasn’t sure what to expect. Certainly not the mud golem that his eldest was pulling from behind the large potted fern. What further concerned him was that Tommy’s mouth was smeared as well in that ever telling way to show he’d done more than just dress himself in it.

“Did he pee?” Techno questioned having come up behind his father, eyes widening as he saw hos baby brothers state.

“Not sure.” Phil replied as he approached the other two with a deep sigh, “We were so close to leaving on time, Tommy. You couldn’t sit still for five more minutes?”

Wilbur looked to his father as the man picked up Tommy, who was now giggling as if he wasn’t guilty of a thing.

“Your mother is going to be wondering where we are while you get a bath.” The man sighed as he tucked Tommy, dirt or not, against his side.

“Why don’t we just say Tommy needed a bath cus of the dirt?” Techno asked as his father walked back in his direction.

Phil paused as his shoulders tensed. He looked to Techno, then to Tommy, then to Wilbur and then back to Techno again. He leaned in with a serious look on his face and his voice in a ‘whispering’ tone.

“We don’t ever mention this to your mum. Okay?”

He looked between both his boys as the two seemed confused and worried. Techno was the first to nod, Wilbur shortly after with a furrow of his brow.

“A secret?”

“She never needs to know.” His father stated with a nod before heading once more towards the bathroom.

If he was quick then they’d still be able to make it on time to the bus station. If they could manage that then maybe, just maybe they’d be on time.

Chapter Text

Tommy was having an incredibly rough day. At least, as rough as he’s ever felt it before in all his barely two years of life. At least, that’s what their parents had told them.

Wilbur had known the day was going to be something terrible when he was woken up early by Tommy’s screaming. It was still dark out at the time and while it only took his parents roughly an hour to put him down again Wilbur’s own sleep was properly ruined. He’d not been able to fall back to sleep as hard as he tried.

Which is probably why when he got up to get dressed for school later he was proper mad at seeing his baby brother now refusing to wake up for breakfast. In fact, his mother was still trying to coax him into eating by the time Wilbur and Techno were being walked out the door for the bus by their father. The last he heard was a familiar plastic bowling hitting the floor while his mother let out a tried sigh.

Wilbur’s day at school was mostly a blur as he was honestly struggling mostly to stay awake for the more dull subjects. Though he opted to just sleep through maths. He crossed his fingers that Tommy was taking a nap too and wouldn’t be so grumpy when they got home.

Xx--xx

Tommy was not, in fact, napping at all.

He’d been placed in his playpen after once more refusing to eat much more than a few bites of food for his breakfast. Kristin had given him a bit of medicine, assuming he perhaps had an upset stomach or something.

However, the problem seemed far more then that as no matter what Phil tried to do Tommy refused any cooperative action. He didn’t want to play with his toys no matter what Phil brought him, even shouting ‘no’ when the man touched anything already there. Heaven forbid he try to tickle the boy as a tantrum was fresh at the ready.

At his wife's suggestion Phil left Tommy in the pen to his own devices for a while. Choosing to get a bit of work done while his son potentially settled his mood with some alone time. It seemed fine…for all of three minutes before Tommy was standing at the end of his pen and huffing at his father for leaving him. Reaching his hands out and calling for ‘dad’ with a sharp demand.

Phil was quick to give in…the first time. Despite literally calling for attention though Tommy refused to engage for long, quickly dissolving into a dissatisfied fit. The cycle of ‘try to play’, ‘try to talk’, ‘give him some time’, ‘try again’, played out almost four times before Phil opted to do as his wife had suggested the first time. No matter the fussing, screaming or angry gibberish that came his way Phil forced himself to remain at his desk.

It broke his heart really, especially when Tommy had started to cry. Thick angry tears welled up and rolled down the babe’s puffy cheeks and Phil had to use all his power to not give in. He couldn’t stand it when his boys cried, but he knew that this was something that he couldn’t encourage by giving in either. When Tommy finally gave in and curled into a little bean shape to sleep Phil let out a breath he’d been holding for what felt like the better part of the last three hours.

Xx--xx

The nap hadn’t helped.

When Tommy woke up it was to his brothers being home and getting help on their homework from their father. With a scowl Tommy garbles out his displeasure at that and begins to demand further attention.

He first calls for Wilbur, who had made eye contact with him first. However, when the elder boy didn’t get up immediately to see him, and instead even frowned at him, Tommy huffed and shook the wall of his playpen. Soon he was onto calling for Techno, but the boy was out of view as their father stood in the way. Not that it mattered though. As soon as the man moved he was turning towards Tommy.

Watching him approach Tommy frowned at him, letting his father know he was not, in fact, who he was calling for. Phil paid the look no mind and instead lifted Tommy from his pen. He was rocked and bounced and promised that it was fine. That his brother’s would be free to play soon. Tommy, however, understood none of it and only knew that he wasn’t being given what he wanted. Even if he didn’t know what it was he was after.

At this point Kristin opted to take Tommy into her own arms. She’d been trying to swap out with Phil during the day but even she couldn’t get her charms to work on her youngest. Even working together the pair had only managed to get Tommy in a good mood for about twenty or so minutes before he soured up again. He didn’t seem sick or in pain, which was a great relief. As far as Kristin could tell Tommy was just having a very uncomfortable day.

She hoped it would pass soon. It hurt to know he was having such a hard time and neither she or her husband could sooth him.

Xx--xx

Wilbur struggled through his homework, but this time it wasn’t due to the work itself. No, this time his issue was trying to concentrate while Tommy fussed and whined in the background. His parents had tried to bring him into the back of the house to give the two older boys peace to work in, which did help fair enough. At least for him.

Techno, however, being more sensitive to the sounds of the crying child, struggled with his own worksheets. Enough so that their father switched from snack making to help the younger boy finish it all off.

Wilbur looked down the hall, not even wanting to go to his own room if it meant getting closer to that sound. Though he felt guilty for thinking that since his baby brother still seemed to be having a hard day. As angry as Wil had been that morning his parents had taken the time to explain at least that Tommy was just, not feeling his greatest. Not sick, like the last few times, but just, not well either.

Worrying his lower lip between his teeth a moment Wilbur takes in a breath. There was really only one thing to do that he knew of.

Heading into his room Wilbur hopped onto his bed and reached for Jubilee.

Xx--xx

Wilbur tried to put a smile on his face as he handed Tommy the toy he’d been playing with. Wil tried not to let his annoyance rise, and when it did he was doing his best not to let it show. For the last hour, since Tommy had refused any kind of nap or rest, the youngest child had been repeatedly flipping between toys. Not just opting for different ones, but specifically to the ones Wilbur himself was trying to mess with.

The second Wil seemed to be interested in something Tommy had crawled close and reached out in demand for it. The one time Wilbur had tried to refuse it had caused Tommy to practically have a meltdown. He and Tommy were in the youngest’s room as Techno had wanted to tuck away into their own. He’d tried coming to play with his brothers earlier, but Tommy’s mood had made that impossible for the middle sibling. Techno just couldn’t handle the noises and tension.

Wilbur himself wasn’t thrilled with Tommy’s actions and moods at the moment either, but he also didn’t want to just ignore his baby brother. Not only that, but Wil could see the exhaustion in both his parents. He could handle Tommy on his own, like a good big brother.

Wilbur sat back and watched as his baby brother stuck the duck shaped toy he’d just obtained into his mouth with a bubble of sound that wasn’t even quick baby talk anymore. There would be no point in picking anything up really, but if Wil didn’t for too long then Tommy would still end up fussing. He’d wait a minute or so before taking something else into his hands. He knew Tommy would be taking it either way so it didn’t matter if he pretended to play with it or not.

Offhandedly Wil wondered if he had ever been this bad for his parents. If he had been, who had distracted him when they had needed a break? Though, Wil reasoned, he didn’t recall Techno being this bad…from what he could actually recall. So…had he been an easy child? Or had he been like Tommy?

Wil sighed as he picked up a yellow lion looking…thing. He wasn’t sure what it was exactly, but it came from Tommy’s toy bin. He turned the item over in his hands, the semi soft material reminding him of a rubber foam mat. He didn’t care for the texture, but Tommy usually ended up chewing on it happily. Which he was reaching out most likely to do now once he noticed Wilbur’s attention was on the painted on face of the toy.

Wilbur didn’t wait for the sound of Tommy’s demand before handing it over to him. However, Tommy paused, tiny brow furrowing as he looked over the toy. His lip curled into a pout as he squeezed the toy in his hand. Before Wilbur could even really see the shift in mood Tommy was flinging the toy to the ground with a dissatisfied shrill whine that climbed up almost like a whinny. Tommy’s mouth opened up and suddenly a surprisingly wet sounding cry popped out of his mouth.

Wilbur was sitting up straight suddenly, eyes wide but his body frozen as tears welled swiftly and fell from Tommy’s face. His brother was reaching out for him with grabby hands and Wilbur had no idea what to do. Tommy had been fine a moment ago but at the moment he sounded utterly devastated.

Phil took over ‘playtime’ after that.

Xx--xx

Bedtime that evening was just about as fun as it had been the night prior. Only this time Tommy was openly wailing and screaming his discontent. It wasn’t at a constant, but it was often enough that Wilbur and Techno both were finding it near impossible to fall asleep. Techno had gotten close once or twice, but every time he seemed to finally be nodding off Tommy’s cry would rip into the air and spoil the attempt.

Wilbur had already tried to give Tommy Jubilee, but the toddler was entirely disinterested in the plush. He still left it with his little brother, just in case, but as the night wore on and Wil grew more tired he regretted it. He wanted to snuggle into the whale himself for comfort since rest was out of the question apparently. Though, he supposed he had, really, the next best thing.

Looking down Wilbur sighed as Techno pressed closer to him, face scrunched up with a irritated pout as he hugged Technopig all the tighter. Wil gave him a squeeze as well, as he tried to curl around him a bit more. They were in Wil’s bed and tucked deep in the thick ocean printed duvet. It muffled only so much, but at least they were toasty warm.

Xx--xx

It was barely ten thirty when Tommy finally knocked out. A full day of fussing with limited sleep the night before being his undoing in the end. Kristin watched with relief as Phil tucked in their youngest, planting a kiss on his forehead. She could see her husbands shoulders relax as he stood back up, the nightmare day finally seeming to come to an end.

Carefully she moved back from the door of Tommy’s room and made to peek in on her other boys. She wasn’t surprised to see them sharing a bed tonight. She smiled at seeing the steady rise and fall of the blanket cocoon they had made showing that, despite the noise earlier, they had also managed to find sleep. A nudge at her back had Kristin turning to face her husband, Phil sharing a similar look to her own as he lifted up the ever so loved whale Jubilee in his hands.

“You think we should tuck it in with him? Since Tommy didn’t want it?” Phil asked her in a hushed tone.

“You don’t think it would wake him up again?” Kristin counter asked.

“Well, if he does he’ll be happy to see it back. I have no problem taking the credit for-”

“Give me that.” Kristin cut him off with a crooked smirk, “Go get ready for bed yourself. I’ll be in in a minute.”

“Of course, love.” Phil chuckled, making sure to place a kiss on her cheek before turning to do as directed.

Kristin watched him go for a moment with a settled smile on her face. Even when entirely exhausted, and she knew he was, he never hesitated on being sweet. She rolled a finger over her ring as a warmth welled in her chest.

Taking a breath she turned back to her boys room. She had a delivery to make.

Tucking the plush carefully into Wilbur’s arms she suppressed the ‘aw’ that wanted to pop out at seeing her oldest sons arms subconsciously pull it to his chest. With a light breath she leaned down to carefully place a kiss on both of her boys heads.

It had been a rough day for them all, but they had handled it so well. She hoped, despite knowing better, that days like this one would be either rare or nonexistent. Hopes and wishes don’t get rid of the ‘terrible twos’ though. So, instead, she and her family would just have to press on and battle the worst of the days together.

Chapter Text

It was a rather hot day and the Watson family in its entirety found themselves in what currently was serving as a backyard. It was wasn’t the worst space but, for a family of their size it was not ideal. For now it would do, and for now the family would maintain what they could of it. After all, small as it was it was still useful for family home days or, in this case, hosting a small celebration. It was going to be a surprise for Techno though, so they called it ‘spring cleaning’ despite it being well into the summer. The boy deserved a good proper surprise.

Which is why, despite the heat, both Phil and Kristin were busying themselves with the yard work. Kristin was pulling up anything growing that either didn’t look safe, alive, or particularly tamed in the small space. Phil had been originally working on picking up the dead branches or blown in trash, but was now instead attempting to fix a few loose boards in the surrounding fence that separated them from the alleyway that rounded the back and left side of their house.

Wilbur, who had been originally helping his mother, was now doing his father’s former task while Techno and Tommy played. Too small to help really. Though, that didn’t stop Techno from being interested in it. He had, some minutes ago now, situated himself at his mothers’ side and was happily listening to her explain what she was doing.

This left Tommy to play on his own. While the child preferred the company of his family, or rather, their attention in general at any given time, he seemed content enough for now. It was his first time being out in the yard since learning how to walk fully on his own and was currently stumbling forwards quickly after kicking a large soccer ball. He and Techno had been rolling it back and forth between each other earlier, but Tommy was more than willing to play solo with it for a change.

Every time Tommy seemed to get close enough to pick the ball up his little foot would collide with it, making it punt forwards once more. It seemed to amuse him more than annoy him for the time being. His family would look up at him on occasion at his little noises of surprise or delight at the continuing ‘game’. Wilbur had even redirected the ball a few times when he was close enough to do so. Tommy would flash a large smile at him when he did making it honestly more worth it to Wil than just the idea of messing with his brother.

The day was going well and it was only just barely reaching midday. Almost time for lunch and a proper break.

Stopping in his cleaning to wipe the sweat from his brow Wilbur turned to watch Tommy once more. The small boy was toddling as fast as his stumbly legs could move, the ball having come to a rested stop on a tuft of grass that honestly needed mowing.

Eager to catch up to the ball this time Tommy had his arms outstretched as he trundled along. Perhaps a bit too focused with far to little experience though as he grew closer and closer to the ball without pause. It was almost too fast for Wilbur to really comprehend as having happened. One second Tommy was rushing the ball, and the next his tiny feet were flipping in the air as he full body rolled over said ball. Tommy lay still on the ground facing the sky for almost a full second before Wilbur was busting into hysterics.

Holding his middling Wil wheezed hard and fell to his knees. Tommy still wasn’t moving as he stared up at the sky, a small questioning ‘huh’ noise slipping out past his lips and that only made Wil laugh harder, tears pricking at his eyes.

Behind Wilbur his family stared at him with confusion.

Chapter Text

“Dad, please? I’m serious! I wanna play!” Wilbur pleaded at his father side once more as the man was trying to finish up the dishes.

“Wilbur, I’ve already told you we can’t afford a guitar right now. Even if you ‘really really mean it’.” His father sighed having listened to the same set of pleas for the better part of the week.

Wilbur had come to both he and his wife one day after school insisting that he just needed a guitar. While it had been true that his oldest child had shown great interest in music for some time, it wasn’t a purchase they could make easily. Not only that, but it wasn’t one they could make just to have the item in question bashed around for a few days and then forgotten from either boredom or frustration.

“But!” Wilbur started again, no doubt with a fresh argument about why it was, in fact, ‘needed’ in his life.

“Wil.” Phil cut him off, picking up the drying towel to wrap his hands in while he turned to look at his son, “I’ve given you my answer and your mother agrees. Begging more and more isn’t going to get you anything.”

Wilbur stared up at his father with a wavering pout, his lower lip trembling as his eyes began to water. This time Phil couldn’t tell if it was for show or not either.

“Listen, I’ll make you a deal, okay?” He asked, Wil perking up at least to some degree at that, “One year.”

He pauses, giving his son time to take in that bit of information first.

“In one year, if you still ‘really really need’ a guitar in your life, we will consider it.”

Wilbur’s face broke into a wide and excited smile that had Phil instantly raising a hand towards him.

“Not ‘get you one right away’ mind you. I said ‘consider it’. Okay?” He reiterated before the boy could go off with a half baked promise never fully made.

He’d learned to clarify specially after three instances of ‘promised cookies for dinner’ almost got him in trouble with his wife.

None the less Wilbur was nodding his head and lurching forwards to wrap his arms around his father’s waist.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you! I promise I’ll be good and everything.” Wilbur rushed out as he smiled up at his dad.

“Well, lets not go making promises you can’t keep.” Phil teased him before giving a small ‘boop’ to his noise, “Now, go find your brother’s and make sure they are getting ready for bed. Your mother is going to be home soon for bedtime.”

Xx--xx--xx

In the follow weeks Wilbur made mostly good on his promise of ‘being good’. Though that was mostly due to him spending an absurd amount of time talking to his brothers about all the songs he was going to learn once he had a guitar of his own. He pulled up videos on the computer and played along on an air guitar and hummed out tunes while doing homework and chores.

It was honestly adorable, though it made Phil feel a bit guilty as well. He couldn’t just promise Wilbur something as expensive as an instrument even if he wanted to. Seeing his son so happy over the mere idea of one made that sting just a little worse.

Wilbur, like most nine year old kids, had interests that burned bright for a while before fading into the next big thing. But so few things before had made him this happy. It was like, he just clicked with it in a way his prior interests hadn’t. It was a joy that was contagious too as Tommy would happily join the invisible band with Wil, wiggling around in an excited dance. Even Techno would hum along at times despite his usual shyness when it came to his voice.

That was why, when his wife came to him with an idea Phil was all for it. Kristin’s brilliance never failed to astound him.

Now, here he sat, drinking a cup of coffee in the kitchen doorway and watching as Kristin and Wilbur were making a guitar out of shoe-boxes and rubber-bands. Techno had opted to make a drum which he and Tommy were now bashing away on.

The smile Wilbur wore as he lifted his mostly finished product off the table was almost enough to split his face in half.

“This is going to be so cool. Could you teach me how to play something on it?” He asked excitedly to his mother.

“Well, I can’t play anything myself. But, I can look up playing tutorials with you.” She nodded with a chuckle, “We have to finish building it first.”

“Can we paint a whale on it? Then I could name it after Jubilee.” Wilbur replied as he placed his creation back in front of him on the coffee table.

“Wont that get confusing? Having two things named ‘Jubilee’?” His mother asked with a slightly raised brow.

“But, all the good musicians name their instruments.” Wilbur insisted.

“I’m not saying not to name it. I’m only saying that it might be best to pick something unique. So it stands out.” His mother explained as she worked the next rubber band into place.

Wilbur tilted his head at this as he considered it.

“No need to rush it right now if you need time to find a good name. Its always an option to wait until the right one finds you.” His mother stated as she started on the last band for the homemade instrument.

“I’m going to call my drum ‘The Baby’.” Techno stated with a mischievous grin.

“ ‘The Baby’? Why that, Techno?” Phil called over to him with a furrowed brow.

“Cus me and Tommy are gunna ‘hit The Baby.” Techno laughed as he brought his hand hand hard on the stretchy top.

It made a twanging thud noise that had Tommy letting out a squeal at as he slapped it as well.

“Hit da baby.” Tommy repeated with glee as he continued to bang away at the drum.

“ Techno, No. You are not calling it that” Their father wheezed, almost dropping his coffee mug as he tried not to laugh too hard.

Wilbur and Kristin were likewise having a hardy laugh, though unlike Phil, neither were trying to keep it contained. Techno looked proud of himself and Tommy smiled wide at his ever so happy family. He swat at the drum some more, looking back at their beet red and grinning faces and assumed it was all for him.

It took a fair minute or two for the family to regain themselves. Phil moved into the room fully and took a seat beside his younger boys, planning to help form a different name for the drum. While it was funny in the house, he couldn’t avoid the feel of dread at the thought of any of his children saying they were going to ‘hit the baby’ out in public for whatever reason they could come up with. With the chaos the two already created it was a fear he had rightfully developed.

“Is it done yet?” Wilbur asked his mother, now that his residual giggling had subsided.

He was watching eagerly from her side as she made the final adjustments on the final bands, giving the creation a once over. He was practically shivering in place with his eagerness and she couldn’t help the smile that formed on her face. He was so open and expressive with his joy that it was rather contagious and she loved him ever so much for it.

When she looked back at him with an equally eager and happy smile she didn’t even need to verbally answer him before he was bouncing up out of his sitting position and reaching out with grabby hands. It honestly made him resemble Tommy for a moment and Kristin had to hold in her chuckle at the thought. Wilbur didn’t notice though, far too focused on obtaining the cardboard instrument.

It consisted of a shoebox, the core from a roll of paper towels and rubber-bands. There were a few small things Kristin had added on to make it feel more ‘real’, but other then that she left it plain for Wilbur to decorate as he saw fit. He’d already drawn a few things on the body while they had waited for the glue to dry earlier on the ‘neck’. But aside from that it was still a blank canvas more or less.

None of that matter to Wilbur right now though. Right now his only thought was to hold the shoebox body to his own and to strum down the rubber chords. They released a snappish twang that had Wil’s face lit with an ecstatic joy that had his smile nearly splitting his head in two.

“Thank You, Thank You, Thank You, Thank You-” Wilbur rattled off as he rushed in for a strong hug, almost knocking Kristin backwards from the force.

“Of course, Wilbur.” She laughed as she wrapped her arms around him, squeezing him just as tightly back before adding a light warning, “Careful not to be too rough with it.”

At that Wilbur leaned back, glancing at his newest most precious belonging. The instrument was already slightly crooked from when he kept messing with it during the initial glue drying, but other then that it still looked fine. He had managed to hold it just away enough during the hug that it hadn’t been crushed, which had him sighing in relief inside.

“Can I go play it? Can I?” Wilbur asked, eyes practically bursting with his newly unmatched enthusiasm.

“Of course you can. Its yours now.” His mother nodded, reaching out to pat at his wild curls which were bouncing with his every motion.

“Just keep in mind lunch is going to be ready soon. It’s your turn to set the table.” Phil stated as he absently bopped his own hand onto Techno’s drum for Tommy’s amusement.

“I can set it now and then-” Wilbur started before being cut off with a raised hand from Phil, the ‘parental pause’ button.

“No setting up early. You’re going to have to balance time between playing and doing your chores just like before.” Phil stated plainly.

“It’s no different from before, Wil. You just need to keep the time in mind. We’ll call you like usual, but no putting it off.” Kristin agreed.

Their boys were usually good about chores and such. However, they were young and easily could vanish into their own little worlds. With this she could easily see Wilbur struggling to maintain chore balance for a while. Which was fine. It was another part of growing up and she and her husband were patient. They trusted their kids, as smart and clever as they were distractable, to find a balance that worked for them.

Wilbur let out a short annoyed huff but nodded all the same. His defeated expression didn’t linger at all long before he was grinning again, letting a hand strum down the body of the Ukulele. The fake rubber tones bringing him joy as if it were the genuine article.

Xx--xx

The noise was constant.

Absolute.

It was either the strumming twang of rubber ‘strings’, or the popping noise of them breaking followed shortly by a call from Wilbur to whatever parent was closest.

Don’t get Phil wrong. He loved his kids dearly. He did. He loved them and their hobbies. However, trying to focus on work when the sounds wildly strummed rubber was snapping against thin cardboard and echoed through the house…it was like he could feel his sanity chipping away piece by piece. He knew he wasn’t the only one either.

On more than one occasion Phil had found Techno, or had heard the resulting argument between the boys, hiding the torture device that his wife had made for their eldest. Wilbur had decorated it now and called it ‘Boxulele’, making him only more protective of it. It had been hidden, or attemptedly hidden, so much now that whenever Wilbur couldn’t easily find it the younger was sought out.

Kristin, as much as she didn’t regret making the thing, had never been more relieved when having work outside the home. Half of the time she truly enjoyed listening to Wilbur practice and having fun, just as her husband did. However, for the other half part of her would wish that something of interest would pop up, at least for a short while. The longest grace periods they had outside of bedtime and school were the occasions where a band broke. She didn’t have the heart to not fix it, but that didn’t mean she didn’t drag her feet to do so every few times.

The only one in the house that didn’t seem to mind was Tommy. Though, that was probably less true than it appeared. He still had his moods after all and it was hard to say what was triggering what. Though, when Wilbur was close enough to him or when Tommy managed to seek him out while the other was playing the youngest boy always was reaching for the instrument. On one occasion he’d managed to get to it while Wilbur had gone to the bathroom, slamming his pudgy little hand down on it like it was a drum. Wilbur had been less than pleased when he returned and the resulting ‘scolding’ he gave Tommy for it landed him with his own punishment.

Boxulele had been put on shelf that day and everyone had been relieved aside from Wilbur.

X--

Understandably, then, Phil was more than a bit dread filled when he saw his wife come home with a small case printed with the local music stores logo. It was small and child sized and the beaming expression on his wife’s face meant it was either a really good purchase or something even more chaotic than her first ‘solution’.

The boys had been in the living room when she’d come in. Wilbur, of course, had been ‘practicing’ a new song that Techno was supposed to be judging for him. By the look on the younger boys face it…wasn’t going to be a good review. However, at seeing their mother and noting the item in her hand halfway through their greeting she received a mix of responses.

At first it was a look of relief from Techno, before it shifted into one of almost defeat at the sight of the case. From Wilbur it started off with a usual happy smile before morphing into something bubbling with energy. He was bounding off the couch to greet her while Techno lagged behind.

It wasn’t long before the family as a whole, minus Tommy who was currently down for a nap, was surrounding the kitchen table. The new item was placed on top of it with Kristin facing the eldest child. Wilbur was bouncing on his heels excitedly as he looked between her and the case.

“I know its almost Techno’s birthday and all, but-” She started off with, giving a look to Techno briefly before going on, “With how much you’ve been practicing so far and with how much your ukul-”

“Boxulele’ Wilbur corrected with a proud grin.

“’Boxulele’” Kristin corrected with a smile and a short nod, “-has been breaking. Well, this just seemed to make sense.”

She moved the case so that the latch on the side was facing Wilbur.

“Go on.” She encouraged with a hand motion towards it.

She hardly needed to though as he was eager to pop it open an see what was inside. Phil laid a hand on her shoulder, giving it a squeeze and she could tell he was anxious. Which was fair. She’d talk with him later about it, though she figured that in a moment some of his worry would put to rest.

Inside the case was a small plastic body Ukelele. It had a rounded out body that was designed to look like a coconut and the neck was colored to be a straw going into it. The strings on it were pale, almost clear looking and, by a best guess, were also plastic, or something similar.

Wilbur wasted no time in taking it out, running his hand down its body, and then pressing it against himself. His brother and father tensed, waiting for the coming noise while his mother just looked at him with her usual ‘I’m happy for you’ smile.

His hand came down.

The notes that came out were…muted. At least in comparison to what Wilbur was used to. The nylon of the strings was far more pleasant to hear than the rubber had ever been, and it was also far quieter. It also hurt his fingers a bit less too.

Techno beside him let out the breath he had been holding, his body visibly relaxing at the new sound. Where ‘Boxulele’ had grated his nerves and gave him headaches, this one…It sounded far more relaxing. Much closer to those learning videos his brother had been watching and ‘learning’ from. He could see himself getting used to this sound.

Phil’s own sigh was more audible and Kristin could only imagine how much his shoulders had just relaxed as well. The hand on her shoulder squeezed twice before he leaned down and placed a kiss on the top of her head. She’d done good and she knew it. The other worries he might have over it could be talked about later and easily settled she was sure.

X-

Wilbur wasn’t dumb. He knew his family weren’t exactly a fan of ‘Boxulele’. But, that was all the more reason he needed to practice as much as he could. If he could learn how to play quickly then they wouldn’t hate it so much. He’d be able to play songs for them for real and they wouldn’t wince or cringe or scowl. He could play and they would enjoy it and he could make them happy with something that made him happy.

But, he had to fully admit, and he would, that his new ukulele, ‘Cocolele’, was superior. It rested better against his side, the neck didn’t bend when he held it too long and the strings didn’t snap at his fingers if he strummed too quickly. The best thing though, was that when he played his family didn’t seem to frown quiet so deeply anymore.

When he asked Techno to listen his brother didn’t fight him on it as much, nor did he try to hide the instrument in question. His mother didn’t have that strained smile on her face that made her eyes crinkle wrong when he showed her what he managed to learn so far. His father didn’t shout down the hall for him to practice outside for a bit when he kept at it for ‘too long’.

Though that last part Wilbur hadn’t fully minded so much. The weather was nice enough out and playing outside was always relaxing. Sure the yard was small and odd shaped, and sure they weren’t normally allowed outside without supervision. But as long as the door, or a window now since Tommy was more mobile, was cracked open for their father to hear from, it was fine. Or, fine enough. It might have been an acceptance of desperation, but Wilbur was going to keep rolling with it.

Currently Wilbur found himself sat outside the sliding door, sitting beside it so that he could be heard from his parents inside, and also make sure Tommy didn’t sneak out. He was trying a set of chords his mother had helped draw on the body of ‘Cocolele’ , in marker so it could be washed off later. It was a simple set, but he wanted it to be perfect.

Techno’s birthday was coming up soon and he wanted to be able to play something for his brother. His brother had already opted out of having any sort of party this year. Wil wasn’t surprised. Techno hadn’t been too happy with the one he had last year, though that was probably due to having to invite classmates he wasn’t familiar with. It was a whole big thing that both their parents had agreed on never putting their son through again. Any of their sons.

That meant they were going to do a small sort of family thing instead and Wilbur was eager to play something special for him for it. So far Techno didn’t seem to know, which was good. Wil wanted it to be a proper surprise.

He ran his hand down the strings again and wrinkled his nose. Looking down at each finger he adjusted them and tried again….still not right.

“What are you doing?” A voice asked from nearby and making Wilbur jump at the noise.

Snapping his head up and peering around Wilbur spotted the source. Off on the right side of the yard, on the other side of the fence and a few feet away, was a person. Well, a kid really. They were just about a full head taller than the fence itself, which came to Wilbur’s chest at this point.

From what he could see of the other he had sandy brown hair that sat like a loose wind swept mess on his head. He had a happy yellow smiley sticker stuck to his left cheek and wore a light lime t-shirt that looked either old or slightly tie dyed. It was hard to tell at their distance.

The two stared at each other for a moment before the other furrowed his brow at Wilbur at his continued silence, tilting his head as well. It seemed to remind Wil to use his words though instead of just gazing at him.

“I’m playing the Ukulele.” He stated plainly.

Where had this kid come from? Why was he in the alleyway beside his house?

“That’s not what is sounds like to me.” The boy stated in a matching tone.

At this Wil only grew more confused, his own head titling to the side to match the other, his brow furrowing for good measure.

“What do you mean? I’m clearly playing it right now.”

The boy only gave a wide grin before opening his mouth again.

“It sounds like you’re killing it to me.” The boy said with a confidence.

Wilbur’s mouth dropped opening instantly as an indignant gasp left him.

“You little-” Wilbur started to shout at the other before he was cut off.

“You should have heard him with the last one.” Techno laughed out from his place in the partly opened door.

Wilbur rapidly turned to face him, mouth agape once more. One, because his brother had just insulted him greatly, and two, because he’d just spoken aloud to a stranger. True, they were in their own home still and probably out of sight from the other, but still.

Techno was laughing still, as was this new and strange boy across from the fence. Wilbur could do nothing bit sit between them and suffer the burning red that had taken over his face.

If that was how his brother felt then…then maybe he’d just…not play around him then. At least until he could…really play something.

Chapter Text

Saturday was Wilbur’s favorite day for the weekend for a few reasons. Firstly, it was the first day of the week that he didn’t need to get up early. Second, he and Techno got to choose what was for breakfast, ‘within reason’ of course. Thirdly, they could watch cartoons in the morning and not have to worry about chores until after lunch usually. If they even had any that day.

But the biggest reason he favored Saturday’s above Sundays? Family movie night. It wasn’t every Saturday, it couldn’t be. Between both parents work schedules and three kids? However, it was always either the first or last Saturday of each month where it was planned for. Special treats, a specially picked movie and a later bedtime so that they could all snuggle in together without worrying about the length of the film.

Granted, since Tommy had come along the last one didn’t really apply since Tommy got cranky early usually. Though, over the last year he seemed to be getting better. Instead of crying or fussing he would just snuggle into the nearest body and fall asleep, leaving the rest of the family to their movie.

Wilbur found this far preferable to his baby brother’s former antics. Especially since Wilbur himself was more often than not the pillow Tommy ended up on. It was inevitable with how they were seated. A parent at either end of the couch or beside one other, leaving the siblings to curl around one other of their own accord. This, of course, usually had Tommy in the middle of them unless the youngest chose to held by one of said parents.

Tonight was a night where the parents had opted to sit beside one another. Their father was against the arm of the couch with their mother rested comfortable against his chest. Techno was leaning against her a bit, her arm on his shoulder and ready to pull him into a hug the moment he seemed to be getting tired. Next was Tommy, a nest of blankets around him to help keep him from accidentally tumbling over when his brothers shifted position around him. This left Wilbur to lean against the other arm of the couch, his legs being used like a barricade to keep Tommy in place as well.

Wilbur didn’t mind of course, aside from the fact that he was, by default, the furthest from the snacks now. Not usually a problem when he could move freely and not have to worry about a sibling tumbling off after him. Or if Techno was awake enough or willing to keep handing him things when he needed or wanted it. It was usually about halfway through a movie that Techno started to become more unwilling, and that point had come and gone some time ago.

So, if thought about like that, then Wilbur was fully in the right. Of course he was. He had gone ages into the movie now since he last had a snack in hand. So, when his father, coming back from a bathroom break, had handed him the popcorn bowl upon request, Wilbur felt he fully earned a fair portion of it for himself. Tucking it carefully on his leg within the thin layer of blanket he also was under, Wilbur began to munch happily enough.

It wasn’t long though, before a small pudgy little hand was tugging at the blanket on his leg, causing the bowl resting on it to tilt ever so slightly before Wil grabbed it back up again.

“What do you want, Tommy?” Wilbur asked with a huff as he popped a few more bites of the popcorn into his mouth.

“More.” Tommy answered as he raised his first up in his usual ‘grabby’ motion at the now lifted up bowl.

“No. No more for you. Its late and I’m eating it now.” Wilbur replied casually.

There wasn’t even that much left. Why would he bother giving Tommy more when he was about to be put to bed anyway? Tommy, of course, didn’t care for the denial and puffed up his cheeks at his brother with a frown. Both hands were now in the air and wiggling fingers at the desired bowl.

“Want more.” He stated again, once more being denied.

“Its almost gone anyway, Tommy. Just, have another juice or something.” Wilbur suggested with a frown at his brother.

Tommy gave a big huff as he dropped both hands audibly into his lap. He was pouting at Wilbur firmly, reddening cheeks round with his youth and making him look adorable rather than threatening in any sense.

With the threat of hands now placated, he assumed, Wilbur replaced the bowl on his lap, though it was more of his hip at the angle he was at, and continued to munch away. Though, not for long.

“I want some more popcorn.” Techno stated, his voice a bit heavy with sleep, but awake enough.

Wilbur laid his head back with a more dramatic breath than was needed before he sent a frown at his other younger brother now.

“No, Tech. It’s-”

“You just said it was almost gone. I want some more before it is.” Techno argued, gaining a frown to match his elder brother’s.

“Boy’s. If you can’t share then I’m taking it back now.” Their father warned lightly as he glanced towards them for a moment.

“Just have something else, Tech. You’re closer to the snacks than I am.” Wilbur tried to reason, but Techno just wasn’t listening this time.

“I don’t want ‘something else’ I want more popcorn. I’ll trade you something else though.” Techno shot back as he crossed his arms.

“No, I didn’t get nearly as much popcorn as you did earlier. This is mine now.” Wilbur stated firmly.

Techno let out an annoyed sound before he started to reach for the bowl anyway. He managed to get one hand on the rim of it before Wilbur could pick it up again, his hand having been full of popcorn a second prior.

“Come on, Wil. You don’t even need that much.” Techno whined at him.

“Neither do you, its almost bedtime anyway. Eat like, the fruit gummies or something.” Wilbur shot back as he tried to pull the bowl high and out of the others range.

Techno’s fingers remained on the side though, keeping it low.

“I just want a little more.”

“And I want my fair share!” Wilbur shot back, now trying to twist the bowl free.

“Boys, enough. Its late-” Their father started, but it fell on deaf ears at this point.

“You don’t even like popcorn that much.” Techno huffed out as he tried to bring the bowl just close enough to grab some.

“That doesn’t mean I don’t want any.” Wilbur argued back, pulling harder at the bowl in order to fully reclaim it.

“Want more!” Tommy’s voice called from below the two, arms once more stretched upwards.

Tommy had been reaching for the bowl earlier when Techno had gotten to it first and now, with both older siblings fully squabbling over it, he was putting in his best attempt at well. Unable to reach Wilbur’s arm with as high as he had it Tommy instead was pulling on Techno’s trying to lift himself up to stand for a better advantage.

“Boys, listen to your father.” Their mother warned, a hand going to Techno’s back to try to calm his current growing frustration even as he kept fighting.

“But, he’s supposed to share the popcorn!” Techno whined angrily as he gave another tug.

“You were supposed to share, and you didn’t. So now its mine!” Wilbur countered with, his voice rising the longer the battle went on.

“Its not my fault you sat so far from the food!” Techno returned in kind.

“Okay, that’s enough. No one gets any popcorn now.” Their father huffed as he started to get up once more.

“That’s not fair! I barely had any!” Wilbur protested as he shifted, trying to keep his grip on the bowl.

“Watch your brothers!” Their father shouted as he lunged down quickly.

When Wilbur had moved his legs it had jostled the partly standing Tommy just as Techno, who was carrying most of the youngest child’s weight, pulled down on the bowl one final time. The two smaller boys wavered a moment before flopping down, Tommy landing face first back into the blanket pile, which was now covered in the spilled popcorn. The upended bowl had bounced off the top of Tommy’s head, thankfully being a light plastic and thus harmless to him.

Techno had been caught mostly by their mother, who had quickly tugged the boy to her side just as he started to go down. Their father hovered at the front of the couch still, looking between both of the younger boys as if just processing that they were, in fact, safe. His arms were still out ready to catch them, slowly lowering after a moment.

Wilbur looked between his siblings, his father and the mess now scattered over the couch and Tommy. He felt bad for almost causing his siblings to fall, but he was also still angry at them for causing the fight in the first place. Still, he chewed his lower lip as he looked at his baby brother. Tommy had, since landing, started to pop the dropped treat into his mouth as fast as his hands could shovel it.

“Wilbur.” His father started, his tone serious as he looked towards his eldest with a set frown.

“I-I didn’t mean to. It wasn’t my fault!” Wil started to defend but his father raised a hand.

“I’m not going to say it was your fault, Wil. But you had a part in what could have been a bad accident just now. You and Techno both.” Their father scolded as he moved to pick Tommy up.

Techno looked between Tommy, Wilbur and his father in turn as well now, a look of guilt on his own face.

“What would you have done if Tommy fell and got hurt? Over popcorn of all things?” Their father went on, his voice just slightly pitched upwards to show the tension he was feeling.

“Phil, everything is fine, okay? Take a breath and give Tommy to me.” Their mother, now also having gotten to her feet, directed him in her soft ‘Lets Keep Calm’ voice.

That tone, mixed with her stern and yet gentle expression was enough to have him taking a deep breath and doing as directed. He had a habit of winding up like a tight spring when his worry and fear kicked up in regards to the kids and he knew that. She knew that too, and so helped him to refocus his attention when she could see it. It wasn’t often needed, thankfully. Right now though? Some soft redirection wouldn’t hurt anyone.

Wilbur looked between his parents as he continued to worry his lower lip between his teeth. His mother was rocking Tommy as she brushed off extra kernels out of his hair, their father taking a moment for a second deep breath.

“Okay….okay, so, movie over.” The man began, his tone returning to his more common ‘dad voice’, “We’re going to clean this mess up and then its straight to bed with you lot.”

“but…we didn’t finish the movie.” Techno lightly pointed out, voice small and with a finger aimed at the still running screen behind the man.

“And we’re not going to. Not tonight.” Their father stated with a firm shake of his head as he crossed his arms, “You decided fighting over food was more important, so now cleaning it up is top priority. We can try to finish it another night.”

Wilbur started to let out a whine but was quick to cut it off when his father hit him with a sharp look that warned ‘Don’t Even Start’. So, instead, he let out a deep huff of his own before peeling himself from his seat, Techno slipping off the couch as well.

“I’ll go put Tommy to bed then. I’m going to need to change his onsie since its all buttery now.” Their mother commented with a light chuckle at the end, right before she plucked a final piece of popcorn from Tommy’s hair and popped it into her mouth causing Tommy to laugh at her with a large amused smile.

Wilbur puffed up a fresh irritated breath at the sight, leaning over to start pulling the messed up blankets off the couch. He barely started when he heard a familiar call from near the hallway.

“Wilby! Techy!"

Both boys raised their gaze to their baby brother, Wilbur with a firm frown and Techno with a tired but curious one.

“What do you want now, Tommy?” Wilbur asked as he tried to keep at least some of his mood out of his voice.

Tommy was struggling a bit in their mothers arms, his own outstretched to them. He seemed to catch something in Wilbur’s tone though despite the effort made, because Tommy paused a moment before giving them both ‘grabby hands’.

“Want huggy” The toddler demanded, a worried frown on his face as he continued to reach out.

Their mother smiles down at Tommy before she holds him out, just a bit closer to the other two. Techno was the first to offer a smile back and head over, giving a quick embrace to the smaller boy. Tommy’s face had broken into a bright grin as he hugged as hard as his tiny arms could.

Wilbur, however, took a moment to respond. He hadn’t been expecting the words, nor the instant effect it had in melting the anger he had in his chest a moment ago. He didn’t know why. It was two words, three if he counted his nickname. But…it had been enough. Even after getting into trouble because of him Wilbur just…couldn’t bring himself to be mad at Tommy.

Especially not when he was demanding his ‘goodnight huggy’.

When the hug with Techno ended Tommy’s eyes instantly were on Wilbur, who hadn’t seemed to move. He looked confused but expecting all the same, his arms out and waiting impatiently for him. Not fighting the smile that started to break over his own face Wilbur moved into give Tommy what he wanted. A tight ‘goodnight huggy’ that would, in their parents own words, ‘last until tomorrow’.

It was a practice they’d started to help the boy go to sleep and, so far, it hadn’t failed them other than when he got sick.

“Goodnight, Tommy.” Wilbur said lightly into his baby brothers ear, “See you in the morning.”

With huggies given their mother once more moved to bring Tommy back to his room, the small child offering a final wave around at his family.

“Night-night!” He called out, his voice already growing heavy with sleep as his mother continued to rock him gently.

“Night-night!” His family calls back, dad included.

Chapter Text

It was almost reaching noon and the Watson family were mid bustle to get out of the house. In place of a birthday party Techno had decided that he wanted to do a museum trip and then dinner afterwards. Something simple, quiet and fun.

They were running a bit late in leaving, though Techno wasn’t overly worried about it. He had spent time with his father looking up their plans the day prior, making sure it was what Techno had wanted and all. While Techno didn’t understand all of what his father had gone on about he knew the man had accounted for some ‘delays’.

A fancy word he’d learned meaning something like, ‘things that take extra time’. Things like, Wilbur not waking up in time, or Tommy refusing to eat breakfast. Surely that had been accounted for. Or their mother catching her pants pocket on a door handle and tearing her jeans, making her have to find something new and ‘presentable’ to put on.

Surely those things had been accounted for.

Techno wasn’t overly worried at all.

… He wasn’t worried.

“Dad, are we leaving yet?” Techno asked as the man passed him quickly, dashing into the living room for a third time.

“Soon, Techno. I promise, soon. We’ll be leaving as soon as we find your little brother.” His father informed him in a rush.

Things like Tommy going missing.

Techno took a quick breath in, puffing it out as his frustration grew. Why was everything trying to be so difficult today? He just wanted to have fun with his family at a museum he heard about at school and then have something good to eat.

Crossing his arms Techno tried to keep his lower lip from trembling. He was a big boy now and he wasn’t going to cry. He wasn’t.

X-

“Come on, Tommy. You little brat. Where are you?” Wilbur muttered as he stepped out of his baby brothers room.

He and his father were on the hunt for said youngest child while their mother was busy getting ready with her last minute replacement outfit. Tommy had originally been sat at the living room coffee table to snack on a sliced banana while the last minute readying was done, food usually holding him in place. They had barely taken their eyes off him for a minute before he was gone.

So, while their father checked the larger rooms in the house Wilbur was sent to check the bedrooms. He’d just cleared Tommy’s own room, the place being small with only a few places for the toddler to hide easily. Wilbur looked to the door that would lead to his parents room, but with the sound of his mother inside Wilbur doubted Tommy would be in there, otherwise their mother would have said something.

That left either his and Techno’s room, or the bathroom. Shuffling quickly Wilbur pushed the door to his own room opened and was hardly surprised to see the writhing form of his baby brother inside. Tommy had managed to pull one of Wilbur’s drawers open apparently and was currently stuck half body in one of his sweaters.

Relief mixed with annoyance Wilbur walked over and attempted to pull the fabric off his brother.

“Come on, Toms. We’re going to be late.” He sighed out as he tugged at one of the twisted sleeves.

“No!” Tommy shouted taking a wobbly step backwards.

Wilbur had to quickly grab Tommy by the shoulder to keep the unsteady child upright. Once he was sure the other wasn’t going to fall over he frowned at his brother despite Tommy’s face being hidden.

“Tommy.” Wil started, attempting to use their fathers ‘dad tone’ to get him to listen, “We’re already going to be late and Techno is waiting for us.”

Wilbur tried again to get a firm hold of the pilfered sweater, only to once more have Tommy try to wiggle out of his hold.

“Wanna wear it!” Tommy protested, only just managing to get his face to peek out of the neck hole.

Tommy’s face was flushed a deep red, a determined frown on his face as he pouted up at Wilbur.

“Its not going to fit you, Tommy. My clothes are too big for you.” Wil tried to logic.

“Wanna wear it.” Tommy repeated, this time his lower lip quivering just a bit, “Warm.”

It wasn’t his most convincing ‘gunna cry’ face, but it didn’t need to be. Looking back towards the door and then to his brother Wilbur let out a sigh. It would really just be easier to just give in.

…Besides, Tommy really seemed to want to wear his sweater. His sweater.

“Okay, hold still. I’ll pull your arms through.” Wil directed as he started to dig into the tangle that Tommy had made in his own effort.

It only took a minute or so before Wilbur had it sorted out. The sweater was big on Tommy, as Wil had predicted, but it wasn’t impossible for the other to wear. The body of the sweater swallowed up Tommy down just past his knees, the neck of it resting crooked but not enough to slip off his shoulder. The sleeves were long and hung like loose vines at his sides.

This seemed to amuse Tommy as he immediately tried to swat at Wil with one. This only had Wil rolling his eyes with a smile as he caught the sleeve and shoved his hand up into it. Taking hold of Tommy’s hand within the sleeve he tugged his brother along with him.

“Come on now, Toms. Techno is going to be upset if we take any longer.” He said with a nod towards the door.

Tommy didn’t fight this time, but held onto Wil’s hand and let him lead the way. He got what he wanted and Wilbur was fine with that. In fact, when the two of them came walking down the hall towards the front area of the house he was beaming with pride.

Tommy just looked too adorable swimming in Wil’s clothing.

Xx--

While the beginning of the day had been less than fun Techno was quick to forget about it the moment they had arrived at the museum. There weren’t too many people around despite the weather being nice and Techno was grateful for that. It meant he could enjoy the place in peace with his family like he’d wanted to.

The exhibit was of Medieval History, which included a whole section on Knights of Myth that Techno was honestly more invested in. His class had been learning about the knights and kings and such for the past two weeks, and that was fun he guessed. It was interesting even if a bit confusing. But the stories of King Arthur and his Knights are what really caught his attention.

As they traveled though the various rooms looking at all the old tools, weapons, armor and gowns of the royalty, Techno and his father took turns reading the plaques. Wilbur would take Techno’s turn reading if there were other people too close for the middle child’s comfort, but aside from that he seemed content enough just listening and pointing things out on the display itself.

Halfway though their visit and Tommy had started to overheat in the sweater he’d stolen from Wil. They all had to stop while their mother tried to sort him out as Tommy kept refusing to take said sweater off. In the end though, he’d been convinced to let her tie it around his waist when Wilbur himself had done so with his own. Granted, Tommy had needed it rolled up a lot more, resembling a backpack more than anything, but he seemed happy enough that it was still on.

The museum touring path ended with a ‘Kids Exploration Room’, which consisted of a puzzle table, a dress up area with a picture booth and even a small jousting ‘arena’ among other things. Wilbur was quick in heading towards a large plastic dragon that was set up in the corner, Techno close behind him.

The dragon was almost taller then their parents and was raised up as if about to breath fire on them. The two boys were ecstatic and bouncing at its feet. Wilbur wanted to try to climb up it but was quickly shot down by their father. It was their mother that suggested they ‘fight’ the dragon. Enough to take pictures for them to the show off to their friends.

With barely a look between each other both boys darted off to the dress up area.

Wilbur, with some help from their father, managed to get on some armor and carried a sword back to the dragon. Techno, however, had opted for a shield, an axe and a bright red kings cape and a crown. He was King Arthur and he was going to slay the dragon with his brother, a Knight from his table.

It was perfect.

Until Tommy got in the way. He’d waddled towards his brothers while their parents were trying to take pictures and was currently yelling at Techno and giving him grabby hands. He was demanding the crown from Techno’s head as Techno tried to get him out of the way of their picture. When Tommy refused to be moved and the adults just chuckling instead of doing anything about, Techno came up with an idea.

Techno handed over his crown and moved Tommy to be sitting at the dragons feet. Repositioning himself so that Tommy would be seen in the picture, it now looked like he and Wilbur were rescuing him. A Prince, captured by a dragon and a King and Knight coming to his aid.

X-

By the time the Watson family reached the gift shop the kids were decently tired. They were each told they could get one thing, though in Techno’s case he could get two since it was his birthday. He knew what he wanted already, but he browsed a bit first anyway. At least, until he reached the items he was hoping for.

He plucked a cape that was more his size then the last one he’d worn. This one was a shade of blue instead of the royal red. If Techno were going to be a king, he thought, he’d want a cape in his favorite color. Next, he just needed a crown, which of course were nearby. There were only a few left and some of them appeared to be broken, but that was fine. The one Techno wanted was on top-

The second he had the crown in hand he felt the tug on the back of his shirt. Tommy had come up behind him and was, by the look of it, inspecting Techno’s choices.

“Want that.” Tommy stated as he pointed to the crown in Techno’s hands, looking up at the other expectantly.

“No, Tommy. This is for me.” Techno tried to explain as he hugged the crown closer to himself.

“Want it!” Tommy insisted, hands reaching higher as he pulled on Techno’s cape harder.

“There are other crowns, Tommy. I’ll get you one of those.” Techno replied with a frown as he reached for one of the others in the bin.

“No! Want that one!” Tommy repeated with an irritated huff.

“You can’t have this one though. I want this one.” Techno returned in a similar tone.

“Hey, give me that other one.” Wilbur’s voice cut in suddenly, making Techno jump a bit.

He hadn’t heard Wilbur come into the isle with them and it spooked him that his brother got so close without his notice. In Wil’s hand was some kind of instrument that Techno didn’t care to look into. Instead he furrowed his brow at his older brother with a fresh pout.

“No, really. Give me the one you don’t want.” Wilbur directed again with a small grin on his face as he put down what he was holding.

Tommy was still demanding and tugging at Techno’s side as he handed off what Wil wanted. Without hesitation Wilbur placed the crown on his head and then leaned down towards Tommy with an even wider grin than before.

“Hey, Tommy, look!” Wil called to his baby brother, “Don’t you want this one here?”

Tommy looked over at Wilbur, his eyes glancing up at the crown on his head. He looked almost interested in it, but it didn’t stick. Instead Tommy just turned back to Techno and frowned, a hand reaching towards the one he still held.

Wilbur let out a mild insulted sputter at this, a frown taking over his face.

“Tommy. Tommy, look. Mines better!” Wil tried to insist, but his youngest brother just didn’t seem to care.

Still though, it gave Techno an idea.

Placing the crown he wanted back down into the pile Techno picked up a new one. This one was smaller than the one he wanted but as he picked it up, looked at it for a moment, nodded his head at it and then put it on his head.

Tommy had stopped his tugging as he watched. His eyes hadn’t followed the first crown at all, but instead were glued onto Techno. When his brother crossed his arms and looked down at Tommy the smaller child bounced on is little legs, an arm reaching up once more.

“Give. Want that one.” Tommy demanded now, reaching for the new crown on Techno’s head.

“traitor.” Wilbur mumbled as he started to take the one off of his own head.

Techno smiled with pride as he lifted the crown up and placed it on Tommy’s head. The blond child letting out a squeal of delight as he reached up to pat it. While Tommy was distracted Techno reached back for the one he wanted, placing it on his head finally.

Wilbur debated between the crown or the instrument he’d originally picked up when he seemed to have a thought. Picking up two more crowns he headed over to where their parents were waiting by the registers.

It took very little convincing for the Watson family to each leave with a crown, like the true royals they were.

Chapter Text

It was the start of a fresh week at the end of summer break making it Kristin’s turn to hold down the fort. Her husband had had no choice but to go in to work at the office for a change. Though, it was really growing a bit too common for comfort.

With her older boys back off at school she had fully planned to fill her day with playing with Tommy and relaxing from the stresses of her own job. She was really hoping to try and set up some painting activities for her and her youngest if she was honest. His coordination was good enough now and she’d been dying to get his first work up on the fridge. Though, that would really depend on if he could refrain from trying to eat said paint once she had it set up.

That, though, was something for later in the day. She had to see where his mood would be by then.

The morning had been usual chaos with the boys all prepping and leaving for school, Tommy shouting his ‘goodbyes’ at them as their father walked the two to the bus stop that was just down the street. Tommy had sat in front of the thin window beside the door, staring out of it for almost twenty minutes after the trio had left. He usually did so until Phil came back in and picked him up on his way inside once more. This, of course, usually gave Kristin all the time she needed to clean up the kitchen. Enough to be able to ignore it for the majority of the day.

When it reached about the twenty minute mark Tommy moved closer to the window, pressing his face against it as he started letting out impatient humming noises. He didn’t generally like days where his father failed to return, and already he was starting to hit at the glass as if the noise would draw him back.

“Dadadada.” Tommy mumbled out as he continued to try to spot the man from the gap.

Scooping up Tommy before he started to work himself into a mood, Kristin proceeded to tickle at his tummy. It had the desired effect and Tommy let out a trilled laugh as he wiggled in her arms. He was beaming up at her, his steadily growing in teeth peeking up at her from his open smile.

“Its okay, Tommy. Dad will be home soon. I promise.” She assured her son with a bright grin of her own, “For now, though, we get to play whatever we want~”

She said it with such enthusiasm that Tommy couldn’t seem to help but kick out his legs and wiggle his little feet some more. The pair then proceeded to play a few small games with cartoons running in the background. They were kept low to be more for background noise instead of a distraction, but she didn’t fight when he got sucked into something. It was just a breather for her between their playing after all.

It was just a few hours later when Tommy started to get fussy. Toys that had been amusing to play with earlier were met with a pout and an angry whine before being thrown to the side. Games were refused and even the cartoons were shut off a few times when Tommy stated they were ‘too much’ or even just met with a shake of his head.

Assuming Tommy had grown tired and was ready for his nap early Kristin picked him up and walked him towards his room. Tommy, of course, protested this with a whine that didn’t exactly work in his favor.

“Its okay Tommy. A short little nap and you’ll feel better. I promise.” His mother assured as she rocked him in a lazy side swaying motion that he usually seemed to find soothing.

“No!” Tommy protested with a huff as he weakly pushed at her arms, “No nap-time!”

“Yes, nap-time. Just a little one, and then we can play some more. We can try painting, remember?” His mother tried to coax him into settling without too much fight.

“No. No paint. No play.” Tommy huffed out once more with a shake of his head.

“Well, if you don’t want that then what are we going to do with our day, Tommy?”

At the question, instead of being met with a demand of some kind Kristin was surprised to instead be answered with a whine. A distressed whine at that. Pulling Tommy off of her shoulder enough to look at him she rather concerningly took note of his expression. His brows were furrowed and his lower lip quivered as his eyes watered. He didn’t look angry or frustrated though, he just looked…sad.

“Aw, baby, what’s wrong? What’s going on today?” She asked, her voice softer than before as she adjusted her hold from ‘sleepy rocking’ to a more firm and comforting one.

“S-sad.” Tommy replied as he brought a hand up to rub at his eyes.

“Why are you sad, sweetie?” She cooed at him gently.

Tommy continued to scrub at his face a moment before looking at his mother, hiccups already starting to build. She brushed a tear from his face as it started to fall which only seemed to make his trembling lip worse.

“W-want-” He broke off as his breath caught sharply, “Want, W-wilby. W-want, Techy.”

He shivered as he stuttered over his ‘w’ a few times, tears now falling down his face as he spoke.

“W-want daddy.”

“Shhhh, sh, sh, sh-Its okay, sweetie. Its okay.” His mother soothed, rocking him with a soft hand at his back, “Its okay. I miss them too.”

Tommy didn’t try to get any more words out, letting out his tears with a little sob as he hugged into his mother’s shirt. She pressed him to her chest and ran her fingers through his hair as she tried to hum a song or tune for him.

She felt guilty really, for not expecting something like this. This was the first day the older boys were back to school after so long of being home and around constantly. This was the first year Tommy was aware enough to notice their absence. Of course he was going to feel lonely without them. Even Phil was gone, making the home seem all the more empty.

“They’ll be home soon, Tommy. I promise. I’m sure they are missing you too.” She tried to sooth, keeping him tucked against her.

Tommy continued to cry, once in a while managing to blubber out the words ‘want’, one of the missing family members names, or the word ‘home’.

“They’ll be home, Tommy. I promise. They’ll be home.” She continued gently.

It took almost an hour, but Tommy did end up crying himself to sleep in her arms.

Xx--xx--xx

Tommy ended up sleeping a long time that day. Which was fine really. He had been stressed after all, and he’d been doing better about his bed times lately. She checked on him often but left him to wake of his own accord today. It also gave her more time to prepare her other son’s after school snacks.

Today she had opted to try her hand at colored grilled cheeses. A cute idea she’d been given by one of her clients. They didn’t have much in the way of food coloring in the house and so it was a ‘whatever is on hand’ sort of thing. Neither of her sons seemed to mind. Wilbur even suggesting they cut their sandwiches in two so they each get a slice of each color.

The two were mid trade when a groggy voice called from the living room. Both boys turned to look, Kristin included, to see a still sleep logged little Tommy trying to pull himself onto his feet and scrubbing the sleep from one of his eyes. He seemed to be trying to rapidly wake himself, but only really made him unsteady against the wall of his crib.

”Good morning, Tommy!” Wilbur called out to him, slipping from his seat to go out to him.

Techno wasn’t far behind his elder brother, a smile on his own face as he waved.

“We were waiting for you, Tommy. Mom made grill cheeses.” Techno informed their brother while the child reached out them both with grabby hands.

“Uppy Wilby! Uppy!” Tommy demanded as he pulled on Wil’s arms the moment he was in range, “Want huggy!”

“I can’t pick you up from in there Toms. But I can still hug.” Wilbur laughed, leaning forwards to give the best hug he could with the barrier between them.

“To your seats boys. I’ll bring Tommy out and after snacks you can all play.” Kristin chuckled as she watched from the doorway, allowing them all time to get their hugs.

“Okay, mum.”
“Okay, mom.”

The boys had called out, but had not begun returning to their seats until, as predicted, Tommy got a hug from both of them. Even still being sleepy the blond was beaming at the contact, arms raised up and waiting for his mother to grab him. She gave a boop to his nose before picking him up and bringing him towards his high chair.

“Lets get you all fed. Then you can play until your father comes home.” Kristin started to speak before Wilbur cut in with a grin.

“I’m going to tell him he missed out on the cheeses.” He stated bluntly which made Techno laugh a bit beside him as he chewed.

“Oooh, he’s going to be sad about that. I don’t have enough left to make him one either.” She added with a chuckle of her own.

“His fault for not being home on time.” Wilbur concluded as he took an extra large bite of his perfectly wonderful and colorful grilled cheese.

Chapter Text

It’s the middle of the week and the Watson children are gathered together in the living room. They older boys had recently gotten home from school and were thus placed at the coffee table to do their homework. They would have been at the kitchen table, but the pair had been asked to keep an eye on Tommy while their mother went to take a shower. She would have to leave for work the second her husband returned home so it was a tight time crunch for her.

They boys didn’t mind much though. Tommy was surprisingly easy to watch once the pair came home from school. He’d stick by their side at any given time so they only really had to make sure he didn’t put anything bad in his mouth. Speaking of-

Techno looked up from his paper for a second as he heard the sound of munching. He could see Wilbur had looked up as well, both of them feeling sort of relived to note Tommy was just crunching away at the crackers on the shared snack plate. Something that was newly put in place since Tommy otherwise would just try to steal off of either Techno or Wilbur’s snack regardless of having his own. They would still have personal snacks of course, just, usually once the two could eat them outside of their youngest brother’s reach.

Techno went back to his paper, carefully drawing out the lines of his letters to fit between the solid and dotted ‘road’. He liked this worksheet better than the one he had to do before it. The one where he had to put the numbers on the clocks right, and then say what time they each were. It took so long to do and got confusing.

Before he could get halfway through this preferred sheet, however, Techno felt a little hand bunch into the fabric of his sleeve at his side. There was a little tug even as he turned to look at his baby brother.

“Techy. Play wiv me.” Tommy said with an expectant look on his face.

“Can’t. I have to finish homework first, Tommy.” Techno replied with a small shake of his head, “You know we have to.”

Tommy gave a sad little pout as if he really hadn’t expected to be told ‘no’. It wasn’t like this was new, but he always looked so sad at being denied early playtime.

“Sad.” Tommy stated as his brow furrowed up, “Come play.”

“Tommy, use all your words. Like mom said.” Wilbur directed from his own seat, though his own gaze remained low at his own paper with a frown.

Tommy’s cheeks puffed up at him with a pout.

“I wanna play.” Tommy stated once more, this time with a bit more firmness to his tone, “Sad to play alone.”

Wilbur let out another sigh as he looked over to his younger brother.

“We don’t really want to be stuck doing homework either, Tommy. But until we finish it we can’t play.” He tried to explain as he frustratingly erased an answer he could see now wasn’t correct, “You bothering us right now is only making us slower. Go away until we’re done.”

Tommy let out a whine and stomped his foot as he pouted up at his older brother. He didn’t like being told ‘no’ in the slightest and paired with logic? He wasn’t pleased.

Techno glanced from his paper down to Tommy as the smallest Watson flopped himself down onto his butt and crossed his arms. A tiny little huff added for good measure as the child sulked. At least it wasn’t a tantrum though.

For the next few minutes…more accurately, for the next barely two minutes, there was a silence in the room. Aside from shifting from Tommy as he kicked his feet across the ground ahead of him in his upset. He also let out short little displeased grunts from time to time. Still, it wasn’t enough to cause the two older boys issue with their focus, by now used to such noises around homework time.

Wilbur lets out an annoyed breath of his own as he practically slams his eraser into his paper, scrubbing at the sheet almost hard enough to rip it. His worksheet was, of course, maths, his least favorite subject. He was hardly halfway through it and already stuck. No matter what he tried he couldn’t seem to get the right answer.

The bottom of the paper had a word puzzle on it that only the right numbers from the equations above would reveal out of a small box of jumbled letters. No matter his effort though, Wilbur couldn’t seem to get the right numbers and he was close to just, trying to guess the word to get it over with. Though, he knew his parents wouldn’t let him get away with that.

It wasn’t long before he was slamming his pencil down on the able, hard enough that it had Techno jumping for a second.

“I’m going to the bathroom.” Wilbur stated sharply as he pushed himself up from his seat, the pillow he was sat on almost flipping out of place from the force.

Techno watched his brother leave the room before turning back to his own work. His brother could be so dramatic. If it was so hard then they could always ask their father for help. Techno didn’t understand why Wilbur waited until he was so angry before doing so. But, that was his brother’s problem.

Refocusing on his own sheet, which he was almost done with, Techno didn’t notice the other movement in the room. Honestly it took him a fair few minutes to realize he could hear furious scribbling to his side. Glancing over he was startled to find Tommy in Wilbur’s place.

The toddler was flopped onto the cushion on his knees as he leaned over the table. Wilbur’s pencil firmly gripped in his tiny hands as he scribbled and scrawled over the paper. Loops and curves and zigzags danced over the page so that even the answers Wil had managed to get right earlier were growing more and more obscured.

Techno didn’t move, didn’t speak up or anything. He just watched, glancing to the hallway entrance, and then back to his little brother. Eventually he gave a shrug before going back to his own work.

It wasn’t his paper to worry about.

Techno found himself suddenly more aware of the sounds in their small house. Such as the sounds of flushing, of sink water rushing and the humming of his brother as he washed his hands.

Tommy set down the pencil as he looked over what he’d scribbled. He gave a smile at it before turning to look at Techno with pride. Techno, of course, smiled back with a nod. This had the toddler pushing himself from the table with a satisfied hum, moving back to his pile of toys not far off.

Techno fidgeted in place, fighting the smirk that grew on his face as he heard the water shut off and the bathroom door open.

Counting out the footsteps Techno didn’t lift his head as his older brother came into view. He couldn’t risk showing off his amused smile or the stifled laugh behind his lips.

He risks glancing to the side once he feels his brother sinking back onto the cushion. Wilbur is staring over at Tommy, who is apparently trying to pick up every toy he had out in the room. Wil was laughing at him lightly before finally turning back to finish his work.

A strangled gasp fills the air as Wilbur’s jaw drops. Eyes wide the brunette looks over his now rather well ruined work sheet. Techno lets out a snort of his own before he loses it, laughing openly at Wil while the other continues to stare.

Wilbur was slowly bringing a hand up towards his paper, mouth still agape, when he was interrupted. Before any sort of word or whine could be uttered Wilbur sat with a lap full of toys. Tommy was standing at his side with a proud and eager look on his face.

“Wilbur all done. Come play now!” Tommy insisted, eyes bright and smile unwavering.

Techno watches, curious as to how his older brother was going to deal with this. Wilbur, however, as his shock seemed to wear off, only grinned back at their baby brother. It was wide enough that it showed off his teeth for good measure.

“Well, it is all filled in.” Wilbur stated as he shifted to be facing more towards Tommy at this point, “So, what are we playing?”

Tommy let out an excited gasp before clapping his hands, thrilled to have his big brother’s attention.

“We- we can- we can play with-” Tommy stammered as he dropped down onto his butt.

Tommy was leaning forwards and picking through the items he’d dumped onto Wil just moments ago. Wil just laughed and started to pick through them as well. He would happily play anything his brother wanted right now. Though, if he were honest he was more excited at the idea of handing in his homework the next day.

Chapter Text

Sounds of giggling filled the room of the Watson children, echoing down the hall and into the rest of the home. The two younger boys were cackling together as they hopped, bounced and tumbled across Techno’s bed. It was just about reaching the evening and the boys were left to their own devices as their mother was off making dinner for the family, their father not yet home from some kind of work apparently.

Wilbur sat on his own bed, looking up to watch them when they got particularly loud. He didn’t stop them but nor did he join in. He wasn’t allowed too. Not until he finished part of his mandatory reading for school. He’d put it off for all of the break and had just barely four days to make up for it. Still, deadline or not he couldn’t help but look up at the two and grin.

Tommy’s face was split into a beaming smile as he laughed with reckless abandon. He had jumped up at the same time as Techno had, but had landed sooner, having smaller legs and barely enough muscle built to properly push off with. This meant he bounced an extra time as Techno came down, destabilizing the smaller boy and sending him down onto his side. With a pitched squeal of a laugh of his own Techno stumbled before falling down as well just behind his baby brother.

The two lay in a giggling pile for a few minutes, delighted in their little game.

“If you’re not careful mum is going to come in here to check on all the noise.” Wilbur warned teasingly as he made to go back to reading his book.

So far their mother had come into the room just about four times at the sounds of a ruckus. However, each time the younger boys had been flopped onto the bed and rolling around. It hadn’t been intentional, but it had given them an apparent ‘all clear’ from said parent. It was only a matter of time before they would be caught mid jump though and Wilbur knew it. He could tell his mother suspected some sort of ‘chaos’ was going on.

Part of him wanted to see the two get caught if he was honest, but the other part was eager to see how long they could go on for. A feeling that probably would have been stronger if he was joining in the fun.

“W-we’re fine Wilbuh.” Techno panted out with a slight slur as he struggled to prop himself onto his hands to look at said sibling, “Wont get caught.”

“Wiwbuh!” Tommy panted out with an amused smile as he looked at said brother as well.

Wilbur just rolled his eyes and shook his head at the two. He normally found it cute when Tommy attempted their names, getting pretty close a fair bit of the time now. However, lately Tommy had started to imitate Techno, who would purposefully say his name wrong. Wil was pretty sure Techno was trying to get their baby brother to get his name right first by sabotaging Wil at every turn.

Wilbur wasn’t worried though. After all, Tommy seemed to struggle with ‘k’ sounds, especially if they were beside ‘n’. There was just no way Tommy would get Techno’s name first. All the sounds in his own name Tommy had already seemed to learn, it was just a matter of putting them in the right order.

Still, that didn’t stop Techno from grinning at Tommy at the messed up name. Perhaps Wilbur was leaning a bit more on the side of wanting the two to get caught. He wouldn’t even have to do anything, which meant he wouldn’t get scolded with them. He would call that a victory, absolutely.

“Come on. Up, up, up!” Techno urged as he looked back to their little brother as he himself struggled to get to his feet, “Bouncy time!”

Tommy squealed happily with a clap as he soon started to also try to get back on his feet. Both boys were ready for the next round of hopping it seemed. Wilbur said nothing as he tried to keep his eyes on his book. Tried to keep them from wandering up at the sound of bed springs and giggles. The less he watched the less he was involved…or something.
…

Wilbur was pretty good at watching over the top of his book.

“Up, Tommy. I gotta show you this!” Techno puffed out as he excitedly started to not only bounce, but actually jump.

Tommy wasn’t even close to being on his feet yet, but that didn’t stop Techno at all. The older boy was gleefully jumping around his bed, blankets and pillows that hadn’t already been kicked off becoming more askew. With each bound Techno pushed himself to go higher, as much as his short legs would allow. He almost looked like a lemur going in circles.

“Look! Wilbur, look!” Techno called to his older brother, showing off to both siblings at once.

“I can’t Tech, I have reading to do.” Wilbur answered, using his book to hide his grinning face.

“But look it! I got super high! Almost higher than you!” Techno insisted which only made Wil snort.

“No it wasn’t.” Wil replied with an eye roll, “I can jump much higher than that.”

“Nuh-uh.” Techno said with a shake of his head, “I’m much much higher than you.”

“Are not.”

“Am too.”

“Are not.”

“Am too!” Techno was bouncing in place now, still going as high as his legs could possibly get him.

He was grinning at Wil, practically beaming with excitement as he saw the brunette lower the book in his hand.

“Techno, my legs are longer than yours. My jumps are always higher than yours.” Wil tried to explain as he just itched to join in.

“Prove it” Techno shot back, clearly goading him into a false contest.

Wil tilted his head to the side with a huff. He wanted to, he really really wanted to. But, Wil also really really didn’t want to get in trouble again for not getting his reading done. Once was enough for him, thanks. Techno was just going to have to wait.

“Not right now, Tech. I have to finish this chapter.” Wil stated with an edge of defeat in his voice, “We can play after. I promise.”

Wil lifted his book back up and Techno frowned, his hop getting a little shorter than before. He hated it when Wilbur had his reading, or extra homework, or chores. As much as he liked to play with Tommy, the boy was small and couldn’t really do much. It was much better with all three of them playing together.

“Taki.” Tommy called out himself now, attention being off of him for far too long apparently.

The smaller child had managed to find his footing and was now up and bouncing himself. His feet weren’t leaving the bed just yet, needing to gain more momentum first. However, that didn’t mean he didn’t want to be observe doing so.

Tommy let out a fresh pitched giggle as he awkwardly hopped a few times, wavering on his feet but not slowing or pausing in the slightest. He reached out his hands towards Techno as he made to leap over to him on the opposite side of the bed. With his little itty bitty legs it was going to take Tommy a few hops to get there, but that didn’t matter. Tommy threw himself into it as if his legs were springs and might lurch him over in a single bound.

The first hop was the shortest and almost had Tommy tripping over the corner of the comforter that had bunched up during their playing. The second one was a bit bigger and had Tommy curving towards the center of the bed as he tried to correct his path. The third hop is where he went wrong.

Uncoordinated feet, a tangle of blanket around one ankle and arms flailing haphazardly was enough to send Tommy careening a bit to hard to the right. His footing lost Tommy flopped awkwardly on his tummy on the edge of the Techno’s bed, his feet flipping in the air as is upper body vanished over the side. There was just enough force to bump Tommy away from the bed a few inches before he landed with a heavy thud.

Wilbur’s book was tossed to the side in a heartbeat at the sound of one of his brother’s hitting the floor. He was leaping from his own bed all the faster when he saw the mess of blond hair on the carpet below. However, he still wasn’t fast enough to beat the screams that erupted from his baby brother. Wilbur paused for the briefest of seconds at Tommy’s side, hand hovering as memories of Techno laying in a similar position came to his mind.

Tommy had just managed to grow a full set of teeth. It would be really bad if he was already loosing some.

“T-Tommy?” Wilbur said as he mustered up enough courage to try to pull his brother up into a sitting position.

Tommy was awkwardly splayed on the floor, his feet curled upwards from the ground and hands pressed before him. He was crying hard enough that it almost looked like he was hovering and that scared Wilbur a great deal.

By now Techno had slid himself over the edge of his bed and onto the floor, sitting beside Wilbur as fear spread across his face. Tears were already forming in his eyes as he fidgeted anxiously, unsure of what to do to help his baby brother. Wilbur looked just as scared and it only made him feel worse.

Before either boy could start to fully panic the door to their room burst open. Their mother was rushing towards the trio, her eyes landing quickly on her downed child.

“Aw, Tommy, baby. Shhhhh, sh, sh, sh, Its okay. I’m here baby.” She soothed as she lifted her youngest up with ease and hugged him to her chest.

Tommy’s cries muffled slightly as he gripped onto her, shoving his face into her as he continued to holler. Wilbur had stood up and was watching closely, Techno hugged to his side. The pair keep their eyes on their mother as she calms Tommy down, somehow managing to give him a once over while doing so. Before too long Tommy was reduced to hiccups and an occasional whimper. He kept hold of his mother and seemed to be nodding off at her gentle swaying.

Wilbur had moved him and Techno to be sitting on his bed, out of the way but still in full sight. Wil couldn’t help the tension that formed in his shoulders when his mother finally looked at the two of them.

“What were you getting into this time?” She asked casually, her eyes darting over the room and piecing things together herself at the same time.

Wilbur swallowed. He knew he wouldn’t be the one to get in trouble. He was doing what he was told to earlier. Getting his reading done. But…he could feel Techno shaking against his side. He couldn’t just, toss him under the bus.

“We- we were just-” Wilbur started, pausing to swallow his nerves, “It was just some jumping around.”

“On the bed?” Their mother asked, here eyes back on her older sons.

Wilbur hesitated before nodding his head.

“Is Tommy gunna be okay?” Techno asked just as his mother was about to speak once more.

She looked at Techno and her expression softened as she looked between her youngest boys. A small smile drew up on her face as she nodded.

“He’s going to be fine, Techno. He wasn’t hurt, just a bit scared.” She answered kindly.

She let out a small breath as she walked over to her other sons, motioning for Wilbur to scoot over so she could sit between them. He did as directed, both boys pressing against her sides a second later once she was situated. Holding Tommy with one arm and wrapping her free one around Techno she gave him a squeeze.

“I’m not mad at you boys.” She started off with, her voice soft as she looked between them.

Techno looked up to meet her gaze while Wilbur was softly running a hand though Tommy’s hair. The blond was mostly quiet now, barely kicking a foot to try to keep awake. He looked tiredly up at Wilbur at the touch, but could only blink blearily at him for a moment before closing his eyes again. It brought the smallest of grins to Wil’s face.

“This is why your father and I tell you not to jump on your beds. Its dangerous and one of these days one of you is going to get hurt.” Their mother stated with obvious concern in her voice, “Falling from any height can be a scary thing and you never know what injury you could get.”

Techno kicked his feet awkwardly as he averted his gaze from his mother’s face. Guilt sank further into his stomach despite the reassuring hug from his mother.

“You boys also need to remember that Tommy is much smaller than you. It won’t take as much to hurt him. Even a tiny tumble could do it right now.” She added.

She didn’t want to scare them or guilt them, but they needed to understand. She would rather have this conversation now rather then after one of them got seriously hurt. Their fear and guilt then would be far heavier in that unfortunate happenstance.

“We’ll be more careful, Mum. I promise.” Wilbur assured as he looked her in the face.

His eyes were still watery from before, but he held her gaze firm. He meant it. They would try to be more careful with Tommy. Of course they would. He was their adorably loud and annoying baby brother. They’d do anything to make sure he was safe.

Techno was nodding to his words on their mother’s other side for good measure. The woman could only let out a chuckle in response.

“Okay, I believe you.” She stated before her smirk grew, “I won’t tell your father about it this time. But, maybe wait until Tommy is older before trying this game with him again.”

She gave both her boys knowing looks. She wasn’t stupid. Even if they meant their words, they were young boys full of energy and a need to be on the move. Jumping on beds was just a part of their life, against the rules or not. She’d rather they at least be safer about it.

When both of her sons shared a look with each other before nodding vigorously in return with wide grins she couldn’t help the laugh that formed. Tommy barely stirred from his impromptu nap as she leaned in turn over both her older sons, giving them a kiss to the top of their heads.

They would continue to be rowdy and reckless, but they were her boys. She loved them and would be there to sooth their wounds with hugs and kisses until the end of days.

Chapter Text

It was the beginning of spring and the air was finally out of the freezing range. The nights were still cold and the days were still fairly chilly, but the mounds of snow that had been hanging around forever were finally mostly gone. The Watson children were finally able to play in their normal sweaters, jackets and woolly pants instead of full snow gear. Wilbur was thankful for that over all else. His own snowsuit was getting to be too small for him and made it hard to move and play around in more than normal.

Speaking of play, Wil was currently trying to zip up Tommy’s brown teddy-bear coat while Techno tried to get one of the many knitted hats onto the small blonds head. The two were eager to get out into the yard before either parent could call them in for chores. It was Saturday and even though the yard wasn’t fully free from the melting remnants of winter there were games and fun to be had. Fun which would be lost if they were roped into the spring cleaning their parents seemed to be setting up for.

Each year around this time their parents would attempt to do a full house cleaning, including having the boys go through their toys and clothing for things they no longer wanted or needed. It was right tedious work in Wilbur’s opinion and so he’d come up with an idea. If they all managed to get outside before being put on a task then their parents would most likely leave them too it. After all, it would only cause more mess to clean if they made freshly muddied boots and hands come inside to help. Wilbur himself didn’t even need to get particularly dirty either, since he was technically ‘watching over’ his younger siblings at play.

If only Tommy would stop fussing and fighting their efforts.

“Come on, Tommy. Just, just sit still a moment.” Wilbur hissed under his breath at his brother.

“Hot” Tommy protested with a whine as he once more tried to wiggle out of Wilbur’s weak hold.

It would have worked if Techno hadn’t been behind him, still trying to get the hat on the younger. It was a green one with little turtle shell patterns on the top. It had been the present Techno had picked out for Tommy on his last birthday. Whenever it was cold enough to warrant hats he insisted on getting Tommy to wear it. The blond normally didn’t argue against it…until the complaints of being ‘hot’ came up. In those instances Tommy would immediately start to strip off all clothing bit by bit, usually until he was naked. Their parents had said it was a phase that would pass, but so far it had yet to.

“Its only hot because you keep struggling. Once we get outside it wont be hot anymore.” Wilbur tried to explain, pulling his baby brother back into a full standing position.

“Noooo, too hot, Wi’by.” Tommy whined again, a note in his voice that warned of a proper meltdown at his discomfort.

“Only for right now, but-” Wilbur paused as he tried to think of what to say.

“Its colder outside. So the sooner Wil can get your coat the on the sooner we can go out.” Techno offered as he gave the hat a final tug down.

Tommy dropped his head backwards so that he was staring up at Techno, a large pout on his face as his lower lip quivered.

“Don’t wanna.” He continued to protest as he leaned back into Techno more and away from Wilbur.

Wil wasn’t bothered so much by this as he could easily follow Tommy forwards, trapping the small boy between the two all the tighter.

“But, once we go outside we can play games. All the games you want. There’s even some snow left that might be good to eat.” Wilbur said as he swiftly pulled the little zipper up quickly to his youngest brother’s chin.

Tommy made a huffing noise as his hands were just as quick to rise to his neck, tugging that the coat’s collar. Before he could let out another distressed noise Wilbur took the zipper back between his fingers and slid it down an inch extra from where he’d first got it to. He waited for Tommy to take a deep and rather annoyed breath, gauging if he’d need to adjust it further. When Tommy only threw him a slightly agitated pout Wil let out a breath and took a step back.

“Eat snow?” Tommy asked with more than a bit of interest in his voice.

Wilbur grinned at that. He knew that would get a response. Tommy hadn’t been a fan of the cold from most of the winter. That is, until he found that he could eat the snow and no one stopped him. At least, so long as it was clean snow. He certainly had a blast trying to catch the flakes on his tongue like Wil and Techno had been doing. Though Tommy had fallen over repeatedly in his attempts it hadn’t stopped him from getting up and trying again.

‘Determined to put anything in his mouth’ their father had said as he had brushed Tommy off for the dozenth time.

“Yea, we can eat snow. If we can find clean stuff. It can be like a treasure hunt.” Wilbur answered as he started to pull both his siblings towards the sliding door, “We can eat snow, have a slush fight, or we can teach you to play leapfrog now since we can reach the yard now.”

Tommy’s face lit up at that. He didn’t fully understand the game, but he’d seen Wil and Techno play it once and ever since had been trying to get them to play it with him. Usually by just running up to them and tossing himself on top of them. It was close enough.

“Ribbit, ribbit!” Tommy chirped out as he gave a small awkward hop.

Tommy’s little jump hadn’t been big, but still he managed to come down wrong on his foot. If it hadn’t been for Wilbur holding his hand he most definitely would have fallen to the ground. Wil managed to hold them both up with only a small lurch forwards as he hadn’t been expecting to need to brace.

Techno took this moment to rush ahead of both his brothers and slide the glass doors open for them. As expected the air from outside was chilly and crisp but refreshing. The smell of mud and damp air filled their noses, right along side the familiar scents of wet stone, smoke and mild car exhaust from the nearby road. It wasn’t strong enough to be unpleasant and they were used to it enough to just barely notice it. Tommy still wrinkled his nose at it though and Techno fought against an instinctive sneeze.

The yard, as predicted, was still partially covered in slushing mounds of snow that were more sludgy than anything. Chances were there would, in fact, be no snow eating today. What was left of the former frozen wonderland was tinted various shades of brown and gray denoting the dirt and grime held within it. Not that Tommy would know that. The younger was already looking around at the nearest piles with bright and hungry eyes.

Wilbur perhaps regretted making that particular promise to his brother. He and Techno would have to come up with a good distraction or reason for him not to eat it. After all, he didn’t want Tommy to get sick. Their father had made it very clear to them before about how bad it was to eat snow that wasn’t pure white. Tommy was too small for the lecture just yet aside from basic warnings, but that was okay. Wilbur would make sure his baby brother was safe. Just like always.

“Come on. Lets go see if the snow angels are still there.” Wil suggested first, giving Tommy’s hand a tug to follow along with him.

The snow angels had been their mother’s idea during their last proper snowfall. To dig the angels down as deep as they could and then see how long they lasted into the spring. To help them with that their father had thrown Techno and Wilbur each into the snow with a full on toss, using gravity to do half the work. Wilbur had tried to get Tommy tossed as well knowing how much his baby brother liked to be bounced around and all. However, much to Tommy’s frustration he’d been the only sibling to not thrown into a snowy crater. Apparently that wasn’t good for babies.

As much as Wilbur could understand the logic and reason for it he couldn’t help but be a bit disappointed. Not entirely for Tommy missing out, but because he sort wanted to see his baby brother’s face of shock when he would plop into the snow. Tommy’s shocked or startled looks were always so funny.

Wil was pulled from his thoughts as Tommy’s hand pulled out from his own. Looking at his brother he watched as the toddler waddled his way through the slush and towards the deformed divots that used to be the snow angels.

“H-hey! Tommy stop! That ones mine!” Wil called out as he darted forwards, grabbing the blond by the back of his coat and tugging sharply.

Tommy stumbled a step or two before dropping down onto his butt into the cold slurry of mud and water. Before him was the barely recognizable hole that had once been Wilbur’s snow angel, now with one of the few remaining walls destroyed by Tommy’s feet trenching right through it. Wilbur grimaced as he let out a disappointed and annoyed whine. He gave a flat look to his littlest brother, his frown curved notable into a look of displeasure.

Tommy, however, was far more interested in the substance in which he was now sat. He didn’t react to the cold much, instead dipping his hand into it and making a fist. A grin spread over his face as the fresh mud squished between his fingers and ran down his tiny little fist. He held up his filth covered hand to show off his work to Wil, who only stared at him with a furrowed brow. It had taken less than a minute and less than five steps for Tommy to discover and coat half of his self with dirt.

“Ucky!” Tommy proclaimed proudly, a word their father used in description of mud.

Wilbur couldn’t hold onto his full annoyance at the ruined angel experiment. With a short huffed sigh he rolled his eyes and smirked.

“Yea. ‘Ucky’, Tommy. So no putting it in your mouth, okay?”

Despite the warning Wil knew he’d most likely be digging some measure of muck from his siblings mouth if he didn’t watch close enough. The idea made him shudder. He didn’t know how his parents managed to just do that when Tommy managed to eat something he shouldn’t. Wilbur wasn’t looking forward to learning how, so instead he’d just…pay more attention. Speaking of-

“Tommy, no.” Wil warned as he saw the dirty little hand raise up towards the toddlers face, “Put down. No eating mud.”

Tommy paused as he looked up at his brother and the authoritative tone he spoke with. Their eyes locked before slowly the tiny hand was moving upwards once more. Before it could reach Tommy’s mouth Wilbur had leaned over and gripped the other by the wrist. Carefully, and ignoring the agitated protests of his brother, Wil forced the hand open. The substance was thick and clung on regardless, but that was no real issue. Using his jacket Wil wiped the majority of the mud away.

When he stood back from his brother Wil watched as Tommy inspected his now mostly wiped down hand with a frown.

“If you eat mud I’m bringing you back inside and you can play in your playpen without us.” Wilbur warned as he crossed his arms.

“Baby Jail.” Techno chuckled from nearby.

Wil glanced over at his other sibling. Techno had managed to find his remaining snow angel and was sitting in the hollow were it was mostly melted down to murky grass. By the look of it he’d laid down once already to check its ‘melting progress’. Now, however, he was up and watching Wil and Tommy with mild amusement.

“You could help me with him you know.” Wilbur huffed out with a deepening frown.

“Nuh uh. You’re the one that wanted to bring him out without mom and dad.” Techno replied with a widening smile, “That means you’re on mud duty.”

“If he eats it then we’ll get in trouble.” Wil tried to persuade.

“You’ll get in trouble. I’m just here for the snow angels.” Techno replied with even more amusement.

“Stink-face.” Wilbur said as he was at a loss for further argument.

Techno wasn’t wrong.

“Butt-sniffer.” Techno returned in kind.

“Fart-master.” Wil countered as a crooked grin grew on his face.

“Foot-licker.”

“Toe-sucker.”

“Mud-mouth.”

At this one Wilbur’s brow knit in confusion, staring at his brother who only nodded towards him in return. Or, not towards him but-

Wilbur’s eyes went wide as he turned sharply back to facing Tommy.

During the small insult battle Tommy had entertained himself by slapping his hands full of mud. One full fist was buried half into his mouth, the dark ooze running down his face freely as he snacked away.

“Noooo! Tommy, why?!” Wilbur cried out as he once more got to tugging the small dirty hands from his brother’s face.

Tommy fought only a little, apparently having enough in his mouth already to not mind the rest of his fist being removed. Wil held a hand to Tommy’s cheek, holding the blonds head still as he debated trying to dig out the muck already within with naught but his fingers. A disgusted shiver traveled up Wilbur’s spine at the thought of having to do so just knowing how drooly everything would be.

A little mud wouldn’t hurt him…right?

It was just a little bit.

“Tommy, spit it out now.” Wilbur demanded, squishing his brother’s cheeks to force them open.

Already a mix of spittle and dirt ran out and down the toddlers chin once more adding to the mess he already was. Tommy let out a displeased whine as he tried to free his face, hands up and trying to fight Wil’s grip.

“Spit it out or you go back inside.” Wilbur demanded a bit louder now, starting to shake Tommy’s head a bit as if that would cause the rest of the muck to leave his brother’s mouth regardless of the toddlers wishes.

Tommy tried to protest, but could get no words out as his mouth was squished up with Wilbur’s efforts.

“He’s going to bite you.” Techno warned, though he was closer now and seemed a bit nervous at the fight taking place.

“He wont bite me, and he needs to spit it out.” Wilbur repeated, anger and fear growing in equal measure, “Come on, Toms. Just do it. I’ll bring you back inside if you don’t, and I wont play with you for the rest of the day.”

Tommy’s eyes met Wilbur’s again, his anger melting into upset tears threatening to fall. Wil wasn’t letting up nor was he taking back what he said. This was supposed to be a way to get out of doing cleaning, but if Tommy was just going to make himself sick with dirt then it was hardly worth it. Wil was not going to stick his fingers into the child’s mouth just because he refused to not eat the soil.

“Spit” Wilbur demanded, his temper peaking for a moment as he wiggled Tommy’s cheeks harshly once more.

Tommy, with his eyes still moist with unshed tears, pushed out what he could of the mud he’d eaten with his tongue. A thick roll of drool globed out and down his front as he tried to look into Wilbur’s face again.

Wil grimaced at the sight of the spit, but at the same time was relieved. If most of it was out then Tommy probably wouldn’t get sick now. He wasn’t’ unaware of the look Tommy was giving him, like a kicked puppy with his large baby blue eyes. Techno moved in to place a hand on Tommy’s head, giving him an awkward but attemptedly soothing pat.

“W-wilby, play with me?” Tommy asked, his voice shaky with fresh uncertainty.

After taking a moment to take a deep breath Wilbur leaned down to give Tommy a hug, pulling him onto his feet with the same embrace.

“Yea, Toms. We can play.” Wilbur nodded before taking on a firm look and holding up a finger like their mother would to make sure she had their attention, “But no more mud eating. Got it?”

Tommy’s lip quivered but he nodded, bringing up a dirty hand to wipe at his face. Wilbur was half tempted to stop him, but really? Looking Tommy up and down, it was sort of too late to worry about keeping him any sort of clean.

“If we roll him around in it they won’t be able to tell he was eating it.” Techno suggested even as Will attempted weakly to use the corner of his coat to smear off what he could.

“We are not rolling him in the mud, Tech….Not unless we can make it look like an accident.” Wilbur replied as he looked around them briefly.

The chances were good that Tommy would be falling and sliding around a bit, they would hardly even need to bump him.

“Want to play tag?” Wilbur asked Tommy, his tone far lighter than it had been just minutes ago.

Tommy stared up at him with wide eyes, his worried expression dissolving into a fresh smile as he nodded his head vigorously.

“Tag! Tag! You it!” Tommy called out as he pushed hard at Wilbur’s stomach before turning to rush off in whatever direction was away.

Wilbur didn’t stop him and a far more genuine smile took over his face. He looked to his side for Techno, but his other brother had likewise taken off when Wil had been ‘tagged’. Neither of his brothers were particularly fast, which Wilbur was fully aware of. He didn’t mind being ‘it’. It just meant he could spook his brothers repeatedly before handing off the title once he wanted a rest from running.

Without another word Wilbur took off after them.

Xx--xx

Wilbur’s heart was pounding in his chest, fear and a guilt swelling painfully and almost taking his already shallow breath away.

It had all happened so fast.

Even now he wasn’t entirely sure what had happened. One second they were all playing a game of tag, laughing and screaming in good humor, until they weren’t. In the middle of a full sprint Wilbur had skidded to a sharp halt at the sound of a pain filled wailing. Tommy had been on the ground, head raised as fat tears already fell freely and streaked through the caked mud that coated his cheeks.

He was at Tommy's side almost instantly and trying to pull him up to see if hew as actually hurt or perhaps just startled by the fall. It was a pointless endeavor though as the muck was layered so thick that no amount of wiping of brushing off with Wil's coat was going to remove it. If anything it just smeared and made it worse. Tommy also didn’t seem to be a fan of Wil’s attempted at cleaning, his cries growing louder as he tried to push his elder brother away.

The fact that Tommy was refusing to calm down only made Wilbur more worried and fearing the worst. He wouldn’t be able to spot anything wrong without cleaning his brother off, and for that he’d need to trudge the pair of them, trio if Techno insisted in following them, through the house and to the nearest reachable sink.

Wilbur barely spared a thought to the state of the house, current or imminent, before he was picking Tommy up as best he could. He tried to rest Tommy on his side like he saw his parents do all the time, but it didn’t come out quite right. Wilbur’s arm was wrapped around Tommy’s back like a tight hug, while his other fussed about trying to figure out where to hold onto to keep the blond from sliding down. It was awkward but it was enough to start walking with. It honestly helped a lot at Tommy was gripping tightly onto Wilbur’s shirt with both tiny fists.

Wilbur’s chest grew tight at the shuddering breath Tommy gave, rubbing his face into Wil to wipe the tears from his face.

“Shhhh, its okay, Tommy. You’re not hurt.” Wilbur stated, wishing more than anything that he wasn’t lying.

If he said it enough maybe it wouldn’t be true.

Techno ran ahead of Wilbur and Tommy, having been awkwardly standing to the side not knowing what to do since Tommy had fallen. He reached the door first and waited for his brother’s to get closer before sliding it open for them.

"Thanks, Tech. Go get a washcloth for me so I can clean Tommy up.” Wilbur directed as he reached said doorway.

Techno nodded without a word and quickly shuffled into the house. He messily kicked his shoes off but it meant little as he still tracked mud from his pant-legs.

Wilbur set Tommy down on the floor just inside the living room, shutting the door once his hands were free. While he waited for Techno to return Wil got started removing Tommy’s soiled coat and shoes. It would be easier moving about the house without them.

By now Tommy’s crying had slowed into choked hiccups at least.

“I got it!” Techno called out as he rushed back into the room from the hallway, their yellow ducky face cloth waving in his hand.

As he handed the cloth over to Wilbur the elder boy frowned mid thank as he looked at the item.

“Did you not get it wet first?” Wilbur asked as he furrowed his brow at the other.

“...you said to get a washcloth, so I got one.” Techno stated, his voice quieter than a moment ago.

Wil let out a short huff before moving away from Tommy and kicking off his own shoes. He wasn’t ‘angry’ really, but he was a bit annoyed.

“Help get his shoes off. I’ll be right back.” Wil once more directed as he now turn his back to quick shuffle through the house himself.

He didn’t want to full sprint as he didn’t want to get in trouble for running in the house. There was no rule against rapid shuffling and floor sliding though.

Techno looked over to Tommy as Wil left them alone. Tommy was rubbing uselessly at his face and making the mess all the bigger much to his frustration. His tears were still falling down his face, but much quieter than they had been outside. The toddler was stood before the door leading out, his coat removed and discarded on the floor and one shoe half un-velcroed.

“Ok, no more shoes.” Techno stated, though his voice was deeply uncertain as he moved towards his brother, “If you sit down I can pull them off.”

Tommy didn’t move to sit down in the slightest as he swiped his hands over his snotty face with a wet stuffy sniffle. Techno waited a moment more before drawing closer. He needed to get his brother’s shoes off but he didn’t want to try to force them off least Tommy begin wailing again. Honestly, Techno was surprised that neither parent had rushed out to them the first time. Though, that might just be due to the fact that the door had been closed to keep the cold air out of the house.

“Sit Tommy. Shoes off now.” Techno ordered, using smaller words hoping that Tommy would understand better and actually listen.

It did seem to do some kind of trick for it because with barely any pushing or pulling Tommy allowed himself to flop onto his butt on the floor. There was no care at all for the mucky puddle forming under them, pooling on the wooden part and seeping into the small foot carpet they were half off of.

A problem for later.

Despite his best effort Techno struggled to get even one strip of velcro undone before Wilbur’s footfalls reentered the room. Tommy, sniffely and upset as he was, was wiggling his feet in discomfort of the well damp shoes he wore.

At least the blond seemed to be further calming from his tears, giving Wil more hope that it was, in fact, just a fear response. He didn’t want to jinx it though so he kept it to himself for now.

“Okay. Now Tommy, I’m going to need you to stay still.” Wilbur started to say, mimicking their father’s words as he raised the cloth up once he was back in arms reach of the smaller.

Tommy’s gaze lifted from Techno and up to Wilbur, meeting his eye with a shaky look. When the watery baby blue met with the vivid yellow of a duck patterned washcloth held in his oldest brother’s hands that vulnerable expression shifted into one of immediate determination.

“No.” Tommy said firmly with a shake of his head.

The smaller seemed to wince a little but Wil assumed it was just from having whipped himself with his mud dampened hair.

“Yes, Tommy.” Wilbur countered with an already tired sigh.

Tommy was going to have his face washed whether he liked it or not.

“No” Tommy insisted, this time kicking himself back away towards the door behind him, catching Techno’s hands in the action and causing the other to cry out from surprise and pain both.

Wilbur wasn’t having it though. Ignoring his brothers protests he leaned closer and used one hand to hold Tommy’s head still while his other, with the cloth, moved towards the muddied face. Tommy let out a indignant whine as he continued to fight.

The two continued on like this, Wilbur snapping at Tommy repeatedly to calm down and stop wiggling, for almost three solid minutes before Wil managed to bring the washcloth into actual contact with Tommy’s face. Not looking to waste the small victory Wilbur began to quickly wipe what he could off.

It didn’t last long.

The moment Wil actually began to scrub at all the shouts from Tommy grew much louder. Instead of being the angry or displeased shouts Wil assumed he’d hear, they were instead right back to the pained ones from before. It was enough to make Wil pause and jerk his hand back.

“Tommy?” He asked, but at this point Tommy was open mouth sobbing once more and pushing him away.

On instinct Wilbur tried to shush Tommy, patting his head to calm him before their parents were alerted. Though, judging by the footsteps in the hall behind them it was a bit late for that.

“Wil? What-” Their mother’s voice cut off as she caught actual sight of her messy trio of boys, “What the heck happened here?”

Kristin’s voice was pitched up in surprise but her eyes were soft as they zeroed in on Tommy himself. The toddler had large tears clearing paths down his face as he absently seemed to be reaching for her voice in his distress.

“Tommy fell over.” Techno offered as he remained on the floor where he’d been helping with the smaller boys shoes, now rubbing his stinging hand where he’d gotten kicked.

Their mother nodded as she side stepped Wilbur and Techno both, reaching down without hesitation to lift Tommy into the air and resting him against her hip. Her formerly clean and warm looking sweater was quickly soiled but she didn’t even blink to it. Instead she turned and brought Tommy with her towards the kitchen where the larger sink was.

“He- he didn’t look hurt.” Wilbur tried to explain as he followed behind her.

“Hard to tell with all the mud though.” She stated back, her tone carrying no anger, annoyance or even bother.

All she had was mild concern that kept her movements smooth and steady. She placed Tommy down on the counter beside the sink and tried to look over his face quickly. True to her recent words though, it was hard to see any of his face under all the dirt. As Kristin reached out towards the drawer that held the extra cleaning cloths she was halted as the yellow ducky wash cloth met her fingers. Wilbur was hovering a bit and had shoved it towards her hand in an instant.

“Thank you, Wilbur.” She said with a soft nod and smile at him which seemed to ease just a sliver of tension in him.

“Tommy. Tommy, baby, look at me.” Their mother coaxed as she put on a brighter smile than before.

Tommy did, in fact, look up at her. His eyes were still a teary mess and his runny nose was leaking down his face just as much as his tears were. She only beamed at him as she reached to her chest and lifted up a sizable half heart shiny pendant. An anniversary present from her husband who wore the other half. Tommy loved to play with it while being held so it was easy enough to catch his eye even now.

It took only a few beats of breath and a hiccup or two before Tommy was reaching for the offered jewelry, gripping it in his slippery fingers. He tried to give it a short tug but their mother paid it no mind. Instead, while his attention was grabbed she quickly raised her other hand with the ducky cloth and swiftly began wiping Tommy’s face. Tommy only let out an annoyed whine at first as he aimed to focus on the necklace in his hands. He only really let out a pained noise when she reached the blonds left cheek. With a bit more care she still managed to mostly clean him off while he was distracted.

Wilbur pouted seeing how quickly she’d managed to get it done when it had taken him so much longer to do so much less. It had almost been in a singular motion as well.

“Looks like just a small scrape on his cheek. Can one of you go grab the med-kit from the bathroom for me?” Their mother asked back at the older two boys.

"I got it!” Techno called out before Wilbur even made to react.

He had been sulking really, though now he was moving to his mother’s other side in order to look at the scrape she’d pointed out. Knowing what he was up to Kristin move enough so he could see, but not so much that Tommy would be bothered or feel crowded.

“He, he barely fell though!” Wilbur protested as guilt and annoyance both swelled in his chest.

“It doesn’t always take much, Wil. But he’s fine. Just needs a band-aid and a bath.” She smirked at this point down at him, “In fact, you could all use one.”

Wil tensed a moment as he stared at her. He almost debated making a battle plan out of it, but…honestly the cold and slimy feeling of the lingering mud was already enough for him to agree it was a good idea. He let out a sigh as he nodded.

“I’ll wash Toms and Techno up first. You’re going to be putting all the muddied clothing into a basket for your father to take care of.” She informed him, not needing to bring up the ‘why’ of it.

Wilbur had technically snuck out with his siblings in the first place after all.

"Where is dad anyway?” Wil asked as Techno’s pattering feet came back down the hall towards them.

“Moving a few boxes to the basement so we can bring the summer clothes back up.” She answered him easily as she turned to her returning child.

“Got it!” Techno announced as he shuffled across the floor to them.

“Good work! I really appreciate it. Thank you.” She beamed at him, leaning down carefully to give his head a kiss while not losing hold on Tommy.

Techno smiled just as wide in return as he lifted up the med-kit into her hand.

“He’s not going to want a plaster on. He never lets dad do it.” Wilbur informed his mother as if this would be news to her.

“Well, he might have trouble, but I wont.” She stated with confidence that left Wilbur tilting his head at her.

Techno didn’t seem confused at all and instead he just watched as his mother singlehandedly opened the kit and plucked out one of the many super hero stickers inside. She pulled out something else but Techno didn’t understand what it was, only that she used it to once more wipe over where the scrape on his brothers face was.

Tommy started to whine at the second whip over, but it was over quickly and his mother was swift in leaning down to plant not one, not two, but three kisses over the area. At the third one Tommy had began to giggle at the gentle yet firm presses to his cheek. He didn’t even seem to notice the small plaster being smoothed into place.

This had Wilbur watching with a slightly opened jaw. He had literally watched their father struggle and bribe Tommy before into letting him put one one any sort of injury. Kristin only lifted Tommy off the counter with a swing before replacing him on her hip.

“Bathtiiiime~” She half sang as she started for the door.

She’d have to replace the plaster after most likely, but it wouldn’t be a problem, not for her.

Techno was grinning at Wilbur’s expression before he gave an amused giggle.

“That’s moms super power.” He stated matter-of-factly.

Wil could only shift his gaze between each family member for a moment before nodding. How could he even begin to deny such a claim after that?

Chapter Text

“No!” Tommy’s voice rang out through the house along with the scraping of chair legs on the floor.

“Tommyyyy.” His father’s exasperated tone followed shortly after.

“No!” Tommy shouted again as his little feet pattered quickly out of the room and down the hallway.

Phil looked towards the door his son had just taken off down and gave a heavy sigh. He had really hoped that past the age of two the whole ‘shout no at everything’ stage would be done with. Once more his youngest child was proving just how much of a fool he had been to believe that.

“You going to chase after him?” Wilbur asked from his own seat as he stared at the man.

“No, I don’t think so. He’ll come back when he’s hungry.” Phil stated as he went back to his own meal.

“What if he doesn’t? Mom will be mad if he goes to bed without dinner.” Techno pointed out before taking a large bite of his baked potato.

Phil let out another breath as he leaned his head forward slightly in thought. While Techno wasn’t wrong Phil knew he had nothing to fear from his wife...from this…which would resolve itself. Even if Tommy, on the very off chance, didn’t return to finish his meal and went to bed hungry Phil only would have to explain that it was toddlers own choice. Kristin, while not a fan of this particular parenting method, at least understood it.

Tommy was at an age where he needed to learn to eat the family meals with them instead of demanding his own separate sort of food. One, they didn’t want him to become spoiled, and two it just wasn’t practical for various reasons. Considering both he and his wife made sure the meals had something for each of their boys to eat and enjoy Phil really didn’t think it was too big of an ask for Tommy to eat his veggies before he had a second helping of the noodles.

Tommy, however, seemed to feel different. Even now as Phil lifted his head to take a bite of his own lingering vegetables he could hear shuffling and things being tossed from somewhere down the hall.

Apparently Tommy was aiming to do some cleaning up before bed as well. Phil was not going to clean up after his tantrum.

“He’ll be back.” Phil finally stated out loud, half for himself as well as in answer to Techno’s comment, “It worked on Wilbur.”

At this Wil snapped his head up towards his father with a small frown.

“Huh?”

“You used to run from the table too, when there was food you didn’t like.” Phil stated with a slight chuckle, “You’d come back after about five minutes or so.”

“I don’t remember doing that.” Wil stated with a full pout this time.

“You were small, but its true. Your mother can back me on this.” Phil insisted before pointing his fork at Wil, “You almost got me in trouble a few times because of it, you little shit.”

Wilbur’s pout vanished in an instant, replaced with one of surprise and amusement as Techno let out a gasp from his own seat. Phil only continued to grin at them for a moment before going back to eating. He knew what he said and he meant it. He knew Wilbur wouldn’t repeat it to their mother and Techno himself wouldn’t dare let out a ‘bad word’. At the tender age of seven his middle child was still at a point where he would sooner call someone out for bad language than to use it himself. Tommy was the only real concern he had and, well, Tommy had stepped out hadn’t he?

“Dad, you said a bad word!” Techno reported as if the man himself might not have known.

“That I did, Techno.” Phil nodded as sent his son a grin.

“You have to put a money in the ‘bad word’ jar.” Techno informed him ever so diligently.

“Of course. I’ll do that right after dinner, okay?”

Phil fought to keep from laughing but did nothing to hide the smile on his face. A smile that Wilbur nearly matched over his giggling. The swear jar had been put into place by his wife when Wilbur himself had let out a few choice words at some neighborhood kid roughly a year ago. They hadn’t seen the kid, but Wilbur insisted he’d earned it while Techno only supplied confirmation about there being another kid and Wilbur cussing at them. Considering his wife took special care with her words around kids, theirs or not, they didn’t really have to wonder what the source was.

Phil was…less careful with his language. Not on purpose and not even all that often….anymore. It was mostly muttered to himself, he assumed, when his work had been giving him trouble or when he was playing playing games with his friends online. Not something he considered being enough to pass it on to the kids.

So, yea, the jar was mostly for him. Occasionally for Wilbur, but from the look Kristin gave when their son made a deposit, it was still just for him. His wife often teasing that the jar doubled as an ice cream fund and Phil honestly saw no reason to correct her. So long as Wilbur didn’t get any ideas on that.

“Tommy?” Wilbur’s voice broke into Phil’s thoughts and had the man glancing up at his eldest before following his line of sight.

In the opening that lead from the kitchen to the living room Tommy stood as he struggled to pull on one of his coats. A little bear one he’d grown fond of. At his feet was an old schoolbag of Techno’s that looked to be stuffed with Tommy’s toys and one of Wilbur’s sweaters if he had to guess at the sleeve poking out.

“Where do you think your going, mate?” Phil asked, now shifting in his chair to stand up.

“I’m going away.” Tommy replied bluntly, voice heated as he gave up on the zipper.

“Away?” Phil questioned with a tilt of his head.

“I’m runnin’ away.” Tommy replied as he stooped to pick up his bag.

“Running away? You don’t have anywhere to go, Toms.” Wilbur stated from his seat, though he seemed tempted to get up as well.

Phil motioned for his eldest to remain where he was as Phil himself approached the youngest.

“Why are you running away, Tommy?” Phil asked gently though greatly amused more than concerned.

“You can’t run away, Tommy! Then we can’t play anymore!” Techno protested from his own seat but Phil just smiled back at him.

“Its okay, Techno. Keep eating your dinner boys.” He directed before dropping down to be more at level with the younger blond, “Now, why are you running away, Toms?”

Tommy, who had paused and was starting at Techno now with a fresh uncertainly on his face. Both of the older boys were staring at him and it seemed to breaking his will a bit. Still, Tommy was certainly one blessed with determination and before his will could crumble further his eyes were back on his father.

“I don’t like you anymore.” Tommy replied bluntly.

It caused Phil to blanch a second, not having expected it in the slightest. He wasn’t the only the one apparently as sounds of Techno suddenly choking on his drink could be heard. Wil moved quick to help by the sounds of it, Tommy’s eyes only briefly darting to his siblings before refocusing on his father.

Stormy sky blue eyes locked with a startled set of shaded cornflower ones. Phil couldn’t even help the pause he gave as words failed him. In all his years of being a dad he’d not had one of his boys yet tell him something like this. Not even when Wilbur was at his most upset.

Even knowing Tommy didn’t mean it, it still hurt to hear.

Tommy seemed to realized something in his words was wrong, but he didn’t know what to do about it. So, instead he puffed up his chest and cheeks and stared at his father with the strongest frown he could manage as he hugged his bag to his chest.

“Why, why do you say that, Toms?” Phil asked with a slight stutter, his voice a bit softer from before as he himself felt uncertain now.

What were you exactly supposed to do when your child declares they don’t like you?

“ ‘Cus-” Tommy hesitated here as if he himself had no idea what to reach for, “ ‘Cus you're mean, and stinky and I don’t like you!”

It was easy for the feeling of ease to return to Phil at his youngest's reasoning. The same reasons having been used many times against Wilbur or Techno if the boys failed to share enough of their time, toys or snacks with the small blond.

“Okay. So, your solution to not liking me is to run away?” Phil asked, nodding along as if this were making perfect logical sense.

“Yes!” Tommy confirmed with a sharp nod of his head before he turned for the door, “I’m going to run away now.”

“Hm. What about your shoes?” Phil asked as he pushed back onto his feet, following his son.

“I can do it!” Tommy declared as he approached the shoe shelf.

The boy paused as he looked over the groups of footwear available. He wasn’t, in fact, able to get his own shoes on just yet, but that hardly seemed to deter him. In fact, he seemed to find his own solution easily enough.

Grabbing a pair of Techno’s blue rainboots Tommy dragged them to the stool used for getting their shoes on and off. It was a bit awkward but Tommy managed to get his feet inside, the edge of the boot tops just shy of Tommy’s knees, making it a task to walk in.

“Are you going to be gone for long?” Phil asked as he tried very hard to stifle to coo that wanted to slip from his mouth.

“Forever.” Tommy replied in a wobbly tone as he worked to keep his balance, “Or until you stop being mean.”

At this Tommy looked up to his father, pausing as if there were to be some sort of chance for the man to plead for him to stay.

Phil just stared back and shrugged.

“I don’t think I’m mean.” He replied simply.

This wasn’t what Tommy wanted to hear at all of course. The small child seemed even further insulted by the idea that his father was, in fact, not at all a mean or stinky man.

“Then forever.” Tommy repeated as he turned for the door.

“If you really want to then.” Phil replied casually as he reached for the handle Tommy himself couldn’t fully reach yet to pull down.

“What?!”

“You’re gunna let him leave?!”

Phil whipped his head around to see that both Wilbur and Techno had followed the pair out of the kitchen and had been watching around the wall of the hall that bent towards the door. Wilbur’s mouth was still dropped in shock while Techno pleaded for some sort of answer.

“If he wants to go boys, then we let him. Tommy is the one making the decision.” Phil stated, though he shook his head ‘no’ to them and hoped they understood.

Tommy was too busy staring with shock back at his siblings to even bother looking up at the man. Wilbur continued to gape, his mouth opening and closing for a moment as he tried to process what he was seeing and hearing at once. Techno didn’t seem to have that ability at the moment as he moved towards his little brother.

“But, its dark out and cold and you’re small and we’ll miss you!” Techno blurted out as he reached for his brother.

Phil picked Techno up quickly and gave him a hug even as the boy struggled to be put down. Phil was, perhaps, starting to feel bad about this little ruse. The whole ‘let them try to run away’ method didn’t really seem to work when you had worried siblings around, let alone two of them.

Phil rocked around so they were slightly more away from Tommy, who was standing by the door still and looking more guilty than before.

“it’s okay, tech. he wont make it far. i am not actually going to let him go.” He tried to assure his middle child, adding a pat on his back.

Techno let out a thick sniffle as he looked at his father with a small measure of doubt.

“Really?” He asked, his voice wavering with his worry and fear.

Phil nodded, once more stabbed with a measure of regret he didn’t recall feeling the last time he did this. Though, the last time it had been Wilbur and Techno was too small to even know what was going on.

“You sure you want to go, Tommy?” Wilbur asked, his own voice softened by uncertainty as he continued to watch his baby brother.

Phil could see the conflicted look on his eldest sons face, but he seemed to have grasped what Phil was trying to do. He didn’t rush forwards or yell out reasons to stay like Techno had. But Phil could see the boys hands flexing as if he wanted to.

Looking to Tommy Phil could now see a far stronger doubt on his face than there was before. His expression flickered between a stubborn grimace and a guilty frown with a trembling lower lip. Honestly Phil was surprised Tommy hadn’t cracked already, but the boy shook his head and turned for the door once more.

“I’m runnin’ away.” He insisted, though his voice was unsteady as he spoke the words.

Tommy reached for the door handle, quickly giving a frustrated punch against the door when it failed to open for him. Phil reached out and opened it, keeping Techno on his hip for now.

“Okay, Tommy. You be safe out there, mate.” Phil supplied, though a lot less amused than he’d originally planned to.

He couldn’t help but feel bad now as he seemed to be the only one finding the humor in the moment. His older sons far more worried than he was, not yet knowing the lack of seriousness in Tommy’s attempt to run.

“Okay, bye-bye.” Tommy offered back, his voice more tense with his mixed feelings instead of his original anger.

At Tommy’s ‘bye-bye’ Techno’s hands tightened in Phil’s shirt as he turned his head to watch his little brother. The door creaked as Phil pushed it open enough for the small blond to get through, offering another ‘bye’ and met with one in return.

As the door shut behind him Tommy stopped and fidgeted in place. Phil thought, and honestly hoped, that this would be it. That Tommy would lose his nerve and come back inside. They’d all sit back down at the table and Tommy, despite all the fuss, would eat at least one vegetable before Phil caved and gave him more noodles. His brothers would tease him about his attempted…or maybe just scold him for it. At this point Phil wasn’t sure it would be.

Tommy turned around to look in through the screen of the outer door. He lifted a small hand up, shaky and uncertain, but fueled with a barely holding conviction.

“Bye-bye, Wilby. Bye-bye, Techy.” He offered both his brothers, waiting for their reply with something in his eyes that was either hope or just plain tears.

Phil could feel Techno’s hand tighten further as he started to shake. He was about to bring it to an end just there but Wilbur spoke up from behind now.

“Bye-bye, Toms. Don’t lose your coat.”

Wilbur put on a weak sort of smile, but he played along all the same. He glanced up towards Techno, who still seemed far more unsure. But, Techno trusted his brother and father and so he turned to look at Tommy as well.

“Bye-bye, Tommy.” His voice was much quieter than the other two but Tommy heard all the same.

The small blond only frowned back at them, waiting a bit longer before turning away from the door once more. Phil could hear little mutters of ‘bye-bye’ under Tommy’s breath as the child took a step forwards down the paved walk, then another.

Phil, despite knowing Tommy wasn’t really going anywhere, couldn’t help the anxiety building as the toddler passed over the first full stone, and then the second. It was like a timer was building in his head, telling him just how many seconds it would take for him to reach Tommy at the growing distance.

Techno was hugging tighter and tighter as Tommy progressed as well. Wilbur’s hands finding their wait to Phil’s shirt as he had moved to stand beside the man in order to see Tommy better as he moved away. As Tommy reached the fourth stone, only one more away from reaching the main sidewalk Phil reached a hand out to the door, ready to chase his stubborn youngest down and bring him back.

It hadn’t been necessary.

Just as Phil’s hand reached the door Tommy had come to a stop. He stood still, staring ahead of him and making Phil hold his breath. With another small beat of a pause Tommy looked back at the house. The sight that would have met him being his father and two older brothers staring at him, most likely with various expressions of worry.

The silence that settled between the family was awkward more than anything. Phil knowing what was going to to happen, but three young boys that really had no clue. Tommy let out a single breath of a whine as he started to turn towards them.

The toddler dared one step in the family’s direction but seemed to force himself to stop. Phil could see the crumbling of all that was left of his resolve. He could also feel Wilbur’s hand flinch against him making the man wonder between the two who would fully break first.

Tommy took his next step towards the house and then another, by the third his mouth was open in the beginning of a sob. Wilbur was moving faster than Phil thought and had shoved the door open as Tommy was starting his awkward run back towards them. Wilbur held onto Tommy tightly and Tommy held back just as much. With a short sniffling of his own Wil lifted Tommy up and worked to carrying him back inside.

Phil held the door open for the pair, letting a wiggling Techno down as soon as Wil had Tommy back near the shoe station. Techno added himself to the hugs and Tommy continued to cry into his brothers’ arms. He was sobbing out the words ‘I don’t wanna go’ and honestly Phil was evenly divided between his amusement and his heart breaking.

This was definitely not supposed to be this heart-wrenching.

With a sigh Phil moved towards his kids and placed his hand on Tommy’s hair, giving it a reassuring ruffle.

“You’re okay, Toms. You don’t have to go. In fact, I think this shows just how much we all prefer you here.” He tried to sooth, hoping he wasn’t too later to start doing so.

“Don’t leave, Toms. Don’t leave ever” Wilbur was demanding through his own now falling tears, though he wasn’t sobbing like his younger brothers were.

“We don’t want you to go!” Techno added in agreement as he rubbed his face into Tommy wherever he could reach.

It took a few minutes of similar words before Tommy calmed enough to respond. He was slow to nod his head to them, a small and softly spoken ‘ok’ just barely audible.

X-x

At that point Phil had lifted Tommy up and taken him to wash up and undress from the outside gear he’d gathered. Both Techno and Wilbur had been sent back to the table to finish their eating, but the two, of course, didn’t touch a thing until Tommy was back with them.

Phil had waited a good few awkwardly quiet minutes before asking Tommy to at least try one of the veggies on his plate. He wasn’t in the slightest expecting the boy to finish all of them. Tommy hadn’t even tried to pawn them off on his siblings or drop any on the floor. Though, Phil had at one point noticed Wilbur sneaking a piece for broccoli away from Tommy when he thought their father wasn’t looking.

Honestly, the whole thing had made Phil feel so bad he didn’t even hesitate to offer them ice cream for dessert. So what if Kristin had made fruit cups for the night. After he explained what they’d gone through he was sure she wouldn’t at all mind. Right after she gave him a talking to about his letting it get that far that is.

Chapter Text

It was early spring with the temperature finally lifting out of the frost range. The perfect time to get the majority of spring cleaning underway. Kristin and Phil had been using their time carefully for the past week or so between them to get it mostly done. The boys being asked to help on the smaller tasks every so often. Today, however, was sort of a treat despite it being another cleaning day.

It was yard work day.

With the sun out and warming everything up it was too fine a time not too. Also, with it being the second weekend in April both of the Watson adults were home and thus able to coordinate their efforts. By getting at least a handful of it done over this particular weekend it guaranteed the place would be in order come the start of summer vacation for the boys.

That fact didn’t seem to make Wilbur any more thrilled to be helping out with it. As usual it had been his job to go around collecting the small sticks and branches that had fallen from the large tree over the winter. Apparently the cold season had been harsh on the old thing as Wil had made quite a few trips to the stick pile since starting.

During this time Techno had been entertaining Tommy out of the way of the rest of the family. The two were kept to the center of the yard while the others were spread out with their tasks, though Wil was quick to join them the second he dumped the last visible stick off with the others.

Phil could see a few left here and there but he didn’t say anything. It was too nice a day to not allow Wilbur the chance to fully enjoy it with his siblings. He would just make sure his son did one last walk around before lunch or something.

Phil looked back to his own task with a bit of a sigh. Now, Phil will say he wasn’t incapable of building things, he could work his head around the basics easily enough. However, if anyone asked if he considered himself a ‘handyman’ he’d probably have laughed in their faces. If he had a useful secondary skill set like that he’d not be nearly as worried about the future.

That didn’t mean he wasn’t going to put in his best on building up the fence around their yard.

A few places had come loose enough to create gaps and so it was on him to fix that. One might ask why he didn’t call in a carpenter or someone in a more ‘build it/fix it’ line of work? Well, after looking up prices for those very skills Phil decided it wouldn’t hurt for him to learn his way around a hammer. How hard could it be?

“Ah! Shi-” Phil was quick to pop his finger into his mouth before the throbbing pain in his thumb released the string of curses dying to fall from his tongue.

“Careful, Phil. Tommy repeats after you enough.” Kristin laughed from where she was kneeling on the other side of the small yard.

“i kno', ‘m tryin’” Phil replied from around his finger as he turned to look at her.

He pulled his thumb out and held it up as if she could see some sort of cartoonish pulsing to show off his pain at all. Instead it just looked like he was giving her a thumbs up with a grimace.

“You try not to curse after cracking your thumb with a hammer.” He stated defensively but with no actual heat.

“Maybe hit the nail then instead.” She supplied casually, a large teasing smile growing all the more across her face.

“Thank you so much. I hadn’t thought of that.” Phil huffed with a roll of his eyes.

“That’s why you have me here~” Kristin said with a particular brightness to her tone as she continued to smile at her husband.

“I thought I had you here for your pretty smile.” Phil returned with a cheeky grin of his own.

Kristin let out a short laugh before going to speak again, but was cut off by Wilbur letting out a long ‘ick’ noise. Glancing towards the boys the older Watson’s were met with the scrunched up face of their eldest child facing them.

“Are you going to make ‘goo-goo’ eyes at each other now?” Wilbur asked with obvious disgust.

“What if we were?” Phil asked with a chuckle, even more so as his answer earned him a further wrinkling of Wil’s nose.

“That’s gross though.” He protested, his arms drawing up to his chest with a little shiver.

“Its not ‘gross’, its ‘cute’.” Kristin tried to explain, but it fell on deaf ears as Wilbur just shook his head.

“Old people being all ‘lovey dovey’ is weird.”

“Oi, we’re not ‘old’, we’re barely twenty-nine!” Phil defended with a bigger laugh than before.

“Yeah? So your old.” Wilbur concluded with a nod.

“We’re not even thirty yet, Wilbur. We don’t even qualify as ‘middle aged’. We aren’t ‘old’.” Phil tried once more, this time with a mild sigh.

He thought he’d have at least until Wil’s teen years before hearing the ‘old folks’ commentary.

“That’s doesn’t mean you’re young.” Wil said as he uncrossed his arms to place them confidently on his hips.

“Yes it does!” Phil couldn’t help but blurt out.

At this point Kristin was laughing into her hand as she watched. Honestly, the pair of them could go on for hours back and forth with Wilbur leading the way with outlandish claims and even more outlandish logic behind them all. She truly enjoyed watching and listening to them go about it.

“-so then you’re ‘old’.” Wilbur was just finishing some explanation or other that seemed to have dug at a nerve in Phil.

Phil, of course, was taking this all in good humor. That didn’t mean the tattered and childish rational didn’t cause his brain mild frustrations trying to keep up at times with his eldest.

“We’re not ‘old’ and we are perfectly allowed to show affection in our own home.” Phil sighed, head tilted up at the sky as if asking some higher power for added patience.

“Why though? Its weird.” Wilbur insisted with a huff as he once more crossed his arms.

“Careful, Wilbur, or we might blow kisses at each other next.” Phil stated in a teasingly warning tone, though he fully meant it.

Wilbur had a talent for causing his brain to stutter with odd arguments and reasons for any given subject that caught his fancy in the moment. However, Phil was more then aware that he and his wife had their own kind of power that could cause Wil’s entire work to crumble into his own discomfort. All they had to do was show open affection, something Phil was more than happy to do.

From the sudden look of shock on Wil’s face Phil knew his words had stuck something. Almost like a fear or dread. Wilbur knew his father would go through with it.

“Next we’ll hold hands and give actual kisses.” Phil went one until Wil was covering his ears.

“No!” “No!”

Two shouts came about from that one, both Wilbur and Techno speaking at the same time. Tommy looked surprised by all the shouting, looking between his siblings as if waiting for it to go on.

At this both of the parents began to laugh, Tommy joining in for lack of understanding. It took a minute or so before his brother’s each cracked a smile.

The short laugh break was nice but soon enough Phil was getting himself back to work. While cleaning up the yard could be spread out over the coming weeks, fixing the fence could not. Especially when it ran along the side and back alley of the house and nearby taller buildings. While the neighborhood wasn’t exactly ‘dangerous’ it was still a city and it was better safe than sorry.

Wilbur had taken up post with Tommy, pulling the smaller boy to his feet in order to start kicking the old and worn soccer ball around. Tommy’s coordination was frankly terrible, but he enjoyed chasing the ball all the same, which made Wil honestly laugh when it skittered to the far side and Tommy trundled after it.

Not wanting to play a chase and running game right now Techno had opted instead to go and peek in on what their mother was doing. The kids had all been sent away from her earlier as she had been digging into a large bag of dirt and depositing it into two medium wooden boxes.

At this point the boxes were full and the bag was tightly rolled and pinched closed, resting just beside Kristin’s leg as she continued to press into the freshly laid soil.

“What are you plantin?” Techno asks as he squats down to watch more closely.

“I’m planting us a vegetable garden.” She replied with a cheerful lilt in her voice.

“Why?” Techno pressed further as he reached out to prod at the soil with his own fingers.

“Because its fun and we get fresh food out of it.” She answered without missing a beat, lifting a hand to bop him on the noise with a dirt covered finger.

Techno laughed as he swiped at his face with his other hand, pushing hers back but missing the dirt her action left behind.

“I was thinking of starting with some bell peppers, sweet peas and perhaps broccoli.” She continued to inform him, using her fingers to measure out distance and create small dips for seeds to go.

“Not broccoli. Broccoli’s gross. Techno protested with a wrinkled face, similar to the one Wilbur had worn earlier.

“You like broccoli though. Remember? We steamed some up just the other day.” His mother insisted, though leaving out the part where it had been smothered in cheese to get the kids to actually eat it.

Techno, however, only shook his head at her with a continued frown.

“Okay then, if we don’t plant broccoli then what do we plant?” She prompted as she leaned back on her heels to look at him fully.

Techno tilted his head to the side as he considered this. He stared down at the dirt as if it would give him give him some kind of suggestion.

“Can we plant pumpkins?” He asked as he looked up at her with a small glimmer of hope.

Kristin couldn’t help the small snort that left her as a sudden laugh.

“I don’t think we have enough room for pumpkins, Tech. Sorry.” She replied with a mild shake of her head before motioning to the boxes, “We have to do something smaller. What about carrots?”

Techno once more took on a pensive look, head tilting in the opposite way now. It lasted almost a minute before he was shaking his head with another scrunching of his nose.

“What about-” Techno paused, having spoken sooner than his brain had pulled in another option, “Potatoes?”

This time it was Kristin who tilted her head, brow furrowing lightly. She looked down at the boxes before her. They were a bit shallow for potatoes…but adding a quick new layer of boards at the top of one could fix that. Potatoes were a good staple to have too.

“I think…I think we could manage that.” She finally answered with a smile and a nod at her middle child.

She let out another short laugh as he let out a victorious ‘yes’ hiss into the air.

“Do you want to help me plant them? You can be my little garden helper.” She suggested after watching him go back to poking at the dirt.

“Can I?” Techno asked as he looked up at her with wide and hopeful eyes.

“Of course. I would love to have you garden with me~” She said as she leaned down to give him a quick peck to the top of his head.

He wiggled in place for a second, a smile beaming on his face, before he scooted over to be directly beside her. He was practically in her lap but she didn’t mind.

Techno looked up at her ready and waiting, bouncing a bit in place.

“Okay, so, first we start off with pressing holes into the soil where the seeds are going to go. Some seeds need different depths and distance from both the surface soil and from each other.” She started to explain, using her hands over Techno’s to guide him how to do it.

X-x

Despite his usual troubles with paying attention Techno soaked up all the knowledge his mother gave him about their current venture. He learned better with the more hands on stuff, but that didn’t stop him from asking questions about the things his mother had to do herself, Techno only being able to watch.

At one point Wilbur had come over to try to convince him to play again, but Techno was far to invested in this lesson. Wil would just have to teach Tommy to hula hoop by himself. They only had the one anyway.

“Now, since this box is done we cover the seeds with some top soil and give them a bit of water. After that we’re going to cover them with the burlap and we’re done for the day.” Kristin stated as she started to carefully roll the excess soil from the walls of the box back over the seeds.

“What about the other box? We only filled one.” Techno asked as he tried to mimic her moves with the dirt.

“Well, if we’re going to plant potatoes we need to adjust it a bit. But, after that I’ll have you help me plant them, okay?” She tilted her head at him, smirking at the smears of dirt on his cheeks.

“...If we already planted veggitables in this one, then, why not put flowers in the other one? Like Mr. Major has in our classroom.” Techno asked as he glanced back at his mother curiously.

“Well, a flower garden is something I certainly want to have.” Kristin started with, hesitating when she considered how best to explain to her child, “But, for now its just more practical to grow veggies. One day when we have more space perhaps we can start a flower garden together too.”

“Can we grow the big yellow ones? The ones that look at the sun?” Techno asked, once more bouncing in place as he talked, “We just learned about them. Mr. Major says that they, that they always know where the sun is!”

Kristin chuckled as she nodded.

“We can grow sunflowers, for sure. Maybe while we wait we can both pick out the others together. That way when its time to plant we’ll already know exactly which ones to go for.” Kristin leaned down once more as she placed another kiss on her sons head, pressing down the light fluff of mild curls he had.

“I can ask Mr. Major to be the class garden helper, then, I can help better here!” Techno was going on, motioning to the barely just planted seeds.

“That sounds like a wonderful idea, Techno.” Kristin nodded with a proud smile to match that of the boy before her.

“Hey.”

At the sound of her husbands voice Kristin turned towards the sliding door leading into the house. Techno turning back to garden bed and patting down a bit more dirt.

“Lunch is just about ready. Want me to grab Techno so you can finish up?” He asked with a nod to their dirt cover child…to one of their dirt covered children.

“No, me and Techno will be done in just a minute. We just need to water and cover them.”

“Okay. Well, if you change your mind just send him in to me. Pretty sure I’ll be scrubbing down Wil and Tommy until the timer goes off.” Phil stated with a chuckle.

“How dirty could they be? They were playing with the hula hoop?” Kristin asked with genuine confusion.

The last she had looked up at the other two they hadn’t been that off dirt wise.

“Oh, it wasn’t from playing. It was from ‘helping’ in the kitchen. Little shits. By the way, limited sauce for this one.”

Kristin didn’t hesitate to laugh, Phil chuckling along as well despite the mildly annoyed look on his face.

“Thanks for the warning. I promise we’ll be in in less than five minutes.” She nodded.

Phil returned the gesture and turned to re-enter the house. Kristin and Techno worked on finishing up with the plants, though they didn’t get far before they both paused at the sound of shouting in the house. The familiar call of the eldest child’s name by a exasperated father.

“If Wilbur gets grounded, can I have his dessert?” Techno asked, only causing Kristin’s mouth to curl into an even more amused smile.

“We can split it.” She offered before leaning in to ‘whisper’ to him, “Its going to be ice cream and banana slices tonight.”

Techno smiled wide with an excited wiggle.

“I hope he keeps hiding.”

Chapter Text

The air was warm with the sky just full enough of clouds to keep the sun from being overbearing. The breeze was nice and carried the smells of nearby flowers and some kind of hot food from the food trucks that lined the street a few blocks down. It was the final week of June and Philza had decided to take the boys on park outing.

Truthfully it was mostly for Techno though. Due to what had been called a ‘project crippling error’ he had been called in to work on the boys birthday, being threatened with a loss of job when he tried to refuse. It was a long standing rule Phil had made when he was hired that his family time was nonnegotiable. However, the new owners of the company seemed to really be testing that. Unfortunately for the time being Phil could do nothing more than grit his teeth and try his best to keep balance himself.

He’d only missed a few hours of the small family gathering before he managed to rush back home, but he still felt bad. Especially when he heard he missed the video calls from both Kristin and his parents to the boys. Techno hadn’t seemed upset, but that didn’t mean Phil wasn’t.

Kristin was the one to suggest taking the boys to the park for a day out, giving Techno a chance to try out one of the toys her parents had sent him. It had been some time since they’d been to the park and the weather had been due to be nice.

Phil was glad she’d thought of it…if only she could be here for it.

With a mild sigh Phil leaned down over Tommy’s stroller, checking on him as he hadn’t made a sound since getting out of the car earlier.

Ah.

In his hands was his red topped sippy cup, though Phil didn’t recall handing it to him. Shifting his eyes to his other boys he could see clearly Techno hugging the gifted motored car to his chest, eager to find a place to start playing with it. Meanwhile, his eldest son was walking a bit ahead of them with the small packed snack bag slung on one arm while-

“Wil, those are for later. You just had a sandwich less then an hour ago.” Phil stated with a soft warning in his voice.

Wil barely slowed his walking, his hand slipping back out of the bag before he turned to look at his father. His face was a bit red at being caught.

“I was just, grabbing something for Tommy.” Wil tried as he was now zipping the bag slowly.

“Well, Tommy’s fine. He’s got his drink, which I appreciate you giving him, but he also just ate recently. Don’t want to risk not having something for later.” Phil countered with, not at all believing his son but not seeing a reason to call him out on it.

With a disappointed sigh Wilbur nodded his head and closed the bag the rest of the way. He slowed down enough to hand it off to his father, who then tucked it under Tommy's seat where it was supposed to be.

“Come on, Wil! We need to find the best spot for my car!” Techno called out with excitement.

Phil couldn’t help the grin that came over his face as Wil ran back towards his brother. Recently Techno had become comfortable enough to talk more in public, even in school. It was a great improvement and Phil had no doubt that a lot of it was due to Wilbur. For all the chaos he seemed to have contained in him he also seemed to have it balanced with the love and care he had for his brothers. Both of them.

“Once we reach the gates you boys can run off to play. Just keep inside the park area. Don’t leave it under any circumstance unless I’m with you, got it?”

“Yes, dad!” Both boys answered readily.

The two older boys barely waited until Phil reached the gate himself before taking off, leaving Tommy to squirm in his seat and reach after them with a whine.

“Its okay, Tommy. We’re going to have a bit of fun ourselves for a bit, let the boys have theirs.” Phil chuckled as he pushed the stroller to the area built for smaller children.

Tommy didn’t seem to really like the idea as he had thrown his sippy cup to the ground moments later.

“Aaand, here we go.” Phil breathed with a mutter to himself as Tommy already was shouting for his brothers to return.

Phil waved them off when Wilbur had paused and turned to look back at them, assuring his son that he’d handle Tommy. Moving to pick up the cup Phil made sure he was crouched entirely in Tommy’s line of sight.

“Hey, bud. Bit early for crying and causing a scene.” He chuckled as he attempted to hand the cup back.

“Wanna play with Wilby and Techy!” Tommy shouted, not caring how close his father was to him, “Let me out!”

Tommy tugged at the straps keeping him in place with one hand while he smacked at the offered cup. Phil let out a short breath as he reached out to take Tommy’s hand ins his free one.

“Toms, look at me a second, mate.”

Tommy refused for a moment as he tugged back at his hand, looking up with a huffy pout when he failed to get free.

“Hey, I know you want to play with them, but lets give them a bit to themselves. Me and you can go play on the jungle gym without them-”

“I don’t wanna play without them!” Tommy insisted as he writhed in his seat.

“Not even if it gave you the chance to find the best hiding spots?” Phil questioned with an animatedly raised brow, “Would make hide-and-seek better for you.”

Tommy paused but still clearly doubted his fathers words.

“If you conquer the jungle gym first they would have to ask you to play on it.” Phil added, eyeing the sizable structure that currently only had a few kids on it despite the fine weather.

“Mine.” Tommy stated with a brightened smile as he kicked his feet happily.

“Yours.” Phil nodded as he now managed to get his youngest to accept the sippy cup once more as well, “For now.”

X-x

It hadn’t taken long for his sons, all three of them, to come up with a game based on the motor car and the structure Tommy had claimed as his own. Phil barely had had twenty minutes of play time with Tommy before it had started.

Techno had steered his motor car around under the jungle gym and dodged it around the few kids there. Wilbur himself chasing after it and inciting the other smaller kids to do so. Tommy, however, had taken his castle and refused to leave it. Instead, he had collected a small fist full or pebbles from the ground and was rushing around the upper walkway, tossing them down at the car whenever it came close.

And then it was on.

Techno drove the car about, getting it stuck a few times where Wilbur had to rescue it before the trampling hoard got to it from ground level. Above, Tommy rained down an assault of small stones that either he or Wilbur would have to replenish to keep the game going.

Phil watched from the sidelines, laughing as Wilbur played both attacker and support in turn. It was always a good day when his boys worked or played well together. This time Philza even had a small handheld camera to film them with.

Techno was maneuvering his car through the underside of the jungle gym with the rope netting ladder when the car hit one of the previously thrown stones. It jumped the tires up so that the car was wedged between said net and the wooden frame, trapping it. Wilbur, as usual, dove for the car ahead of the swarm of kids he had somehow gathered to his side for the chase.

It was as Wilbur was rushing to the cars rescue that Tommy called out from above that he was out of stones. He called out a second time when Wil failed to rush his way, not liking the fact that he was now waiting on ammo. However, Tommy was not one to be so easily defeated by lack of resource. Rushing down the wooden plank bridge he leaned out and grabbed onto the metal fireman’s pole.

Before Phil could call out a warning Tommy had given a little jump forwards…and entirely dead weight dropped to the ground onto his stomach.

“ oh shit- Tommy!” Phil scrambled out of his seat, almost dropping the camera, and rushed forwards towards his downed child.

His fatherly instincts were tossing up the red flags a bit late and all he could do was hope that Tommy wasn’t hurt. It wasn’t the highest drop, but Tommy had proven to be a bit more fragile than either of his brothers a few times.

This wasn’t such a time.

Phil hadn’t even entirely reached Tommy before he heard an almost startled laugh from the blond. Seconds later he was pushing himself up off the ground without even a hint of injury. It surprised Phil just enough that he stopped in his tracks to look at his youngest with confusion.

Before he could react again Wilbur was rushing past him, apparently having heard the shout, and dropped to Tommy’s side. Tommy though was all beaming smiles, laughing when Wil tried asking if he was okay.

“Did you see that Wilby? Did you see? I was up an’then-whooshed, all th’ way to th’ground. I was faster th’n a fireman! Did you see? I was-” Tommy started to ramble, looking between both Wilbur and Phil both with excitement.

“Are you hurt though? Does anywhere hurt?” Wilbur kept trying to ask until Phil placed a hand on his shoulder.

“He’s fine, Wil. Look at him.” Phil stated with a short laugh, his own worries melting away now as Tommy seemed perfectly well, “We saw you, Tommy. Scared the daylights out of us too.”

Tommy only smiled wider with a louder laugh than before.

“Really?” He asked, tugging on Wil’s arm for secondary confirmation.

Wilbur nodded, his face still showing his concern.
“A lot, yea.”

Seeing the lingering look on his brother’s face Tommy’s own smile paused.

“How about we play on something else for a while Tommy? Give the jungle gym a break for a bit.” Phil suggested.

Tommy looked back at him with a pout and looking every bit like he was about to protest. However, Wilbur spoke up before he could start.

“The swings are free.” Wilbur suggested.

Tommy’s head snapped over to the mentioned area and saw they were, in fact, free.

“We can teach you how to use the big kid swing instead of the baby one.” Wilbur offered.

“I can do that, Wilbur. You don’t need to stop your playing with Techno.” Phil tried to assure, but his eldest seemed firm in the idea.

“I want to do it. Besides, I’m tired of running.” Wilbur informed him without missing a beat.

Looking up Phil could see Techno still leading a pack of kids around the playground with his little car. He was keeping it away from the jungle gym now though and on the open play foam grounds. He seemed well aware that if the car turned over now Wilbur wouldn’t be there to save it.

“I wanna swing.” Tommy said with a determined smile at his brother.

x-x

It was hardly any time at all before the dynamics of the playground changed once Wilbur started to focus his attention to Tommy and Techno was left to his own devices with the motor car. Honestly, Phil found it fascinating, like a wildlife documentary.

Even with careful driving Techno soon found his car was cornered by the hoard of kids that had taken to hunting it. Even Phil himself was anxious seeing them circle around it, fearing one of them might take things too far in the heat of the moment.

And then Techno revved the engine.

The tiny feet all jumped back and the group had tensed. Phil can only assume Techno sensed the fear in the air. Within a snap second the car was charging the nearest set of feet and just like that a new chase was on. The small gathering of bodies scattered and it was every kid for themselves. The car whizzed about and Techno cackled as he became the roving terror.

Meanwhile, much calmer off to the side Wilbur worked to show Tommy how to get into and balance in the big kids swing and the importance of holding on the rubber covered parts of the chains that held it up. Tommy still mainly relied on Wilbur to hold him in place, even while ‘swinging’, though it was more just swaying as Wil, as mentioned, was his back support.

Phil was surprised at Wilbur’s patience but kept back and mostly filming the kids at play. Kristin would love seeing all of this later. It wasn’t long before Tommy was insisting he could swing by himself…and then instantly demanding to be pushed once his legs failed to give him proper momentum.

Wilbur happily obliged, though not without a bit of teasing. Phil was chuckling along at them before he heard the ever dreaded sound of distress and the crunch of plastic.

Turning rapidly Phil’s eyes zeroed in quickly on the problem. One of the kids Techno had been chasing with his car had fallen mid step, landing on the car in the process. Techno was already rushing to the scene as the kid who fell was trying to hastily get back to his feet.

“I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to! I-it was an accident!” The kid was panicking while Techno scooped up his car to inspect it.

Even as Phil closed in he could see the body of it had a nasty jagged crack along the side. He only hoped it was a cosmetic damage. He had no idea how much the toy cost in the first place, but he doubted it was cheap.

“Y-you broke it!” Techno huffed out as he stared at dismay at the crack, eyes already watering.

“I’m sorry. I-”

“Hold on now, Techno. We don’t know if its really broken.” Phil tried to sooth before things escalated further.

Techno looked up at him with both dismay and hope, hands shaking as he hugged his toy. Phil crouched and held out his own hands to take the item, waiting patently for it to be handed over. The other boy just watched, looking nervously between Techno and Phil.

“It’ll be okay. It was an accident after all.” Phil assured the boy to ease his fidgeting.

The boy looked to be about Techno’s age, perhaps slightly younger. His dark hair tussled but mainly held down by a white tied bandanna with some kind of hero insignia on it Phil only slightly recognized from one of Techno’s favorite cartoons.

“W-what if- if it is broken? Techno asked, still keeping it close to his chest.

Phil offered the best smile he could for the boys, trying to assure them both with his next words.

“Well, if it’s broken, then we take it somewhere to get fixed. With just a small fall I doubt its un-fixable. Just means you play something else for the day.” Phil stated as he once more held out a hand to Techno, “It’ll be fine, Tech. One way or another.”

It was another few seconds before Techno relented and handed over the toy for proper inspection. Now, Phil had no idea what he was looking into really, so he did what seemed logical. He flipped it over a few times, ran his fingers over the crack and wiggled the wheels a few times.

“Is it okay?” A woman’s voice asked from nearby and almost startling him.

Looking up Phil saw a dark haired woman watching him from nearby the other boy and looking fairly concerned. Phil stood, wincing at the creaking in his knees as he gave her a friendly smile.

“Its looks fine from what I can see, but, I’m not sure.” He admitted and before he could say another word the woman extended a hand.

“May I? I work with electronics.”

She seemed genuinely concerned and interested and so, with a glance to his own son, Phil handed over the toy. Techno and the boy were both fidgeting anxiously as they watched on, especially when the woman furrowed her brow at the underside. Phil can’t say his own breath wasn’t at least slightly held as well.

The look over only took about minute before the woman looked up and smiled, handing the toy back to Phil.

“Its just the casing. It looks like the inner foam padding did its job in protecting the rest.” She informed before extending her hand to Phil, “My name is Barbrah. I'm Sapnap’s mother. Nice to meet you.”

“Philza, but just Phil is fine.” Phil shared as well as he took both her hand and the toy, “Thanks for looking it over.”

“Oh, of course. I know how it can-”

She didn’t get further than that before a new shout gained Phil’s attention. Looking back towards Wilbur and Tommy at the swings Phil could see quickly once more what the problem was. Or at least the result.

Wilbur had rushed around to the front of the swings to where Tommy lay face first on the ground. Phil could easily figure what happened, but he was still quick in making his way over. Tommy wasn’t crying yet, but that didn’t mean a meltdown wasn’t imminent.

“What happened here?” Phil asked once he was close enough to kneel, helping to brush Tommy off as Wilbur helped him up.

“I-I was just pushing him like he asked and-and he slide off the seat-” Wilbur stammered out but was cut off before he could get any further worked up.

“I didn’t f-fall.” Tommy stated as he wiped at his own face, fighting tears, “I was-was jumpin’. Like the b-big kids do.”

“Jumping? Off the swing?” Phil questioned with a fair bit of confusion.

Tommy nodded and Phil could only continued to frown.

“You shouldn’t do that, mate. It’s very dangerous. Where did you get that idea from?”

“F-from ‘Casey’s Cases’.” Tommy answered quietly.

“Your cartoons?” Phil's brow wrinkled as he looked to Wilbur for some kind of clarification.

Wilbur, however, was looking at Tommy with a frown as the smaller blond nodded in confirmation.

“From the episode yesterday? Tommy, that was what the bad kids were doing. Remember? They ended up pushing Holly over and breaking the swing.” Wilbur pointed out which had Tommy looking at his feet, “Why would you want to be like the ‘bad kids’? I thought you wanted to be like Casey?”

“I do want to be like Casey!” Tommy protested, lip still quivering as he looked up at his brother, “B-but, I want to be cool too. I can be both and it wont be bad cus I wont push anyone or break anything! So then I can be a cooler 'Casey Cases' and do better things and not be a bad kid! I’m not-”

“Mate, breath. No one is calling you a ‘bad kid’. But, Tommy, jumping off of swings is a bad idea.” Phil stated trying to calm Tommy down, “You almost got hurt already.”

Tommy was huffing and puffing from both being riled up and still startled from the fall. Thankfully though he still didn’t seem harmed. Dirtier than before, but perfectly fine otherwise.

“How about we take a snack break for a while? Catch our breaths?” Phil offered, looking between his sons.

Tommy’s expression perked up a bit at the sound of the word ‘snack’, as did Wilbur’s. This only further solidifying that his youngest really was fine. He leaned closer in order to pick Tommy up, settling him on his hip before looking to Wilbur.

“Go get, Techno. Tell him its snack time. I’ll start pulling things out.”

“Can I have the gold fish?” Wilbur asked before either even took a step.

“We can divide them all up when we pull them out, Wil. Go on.” Phil chuckled as he waved his eldest off to fetch the missing sibling.

Phil didn’t doubt that Wil would have convinced Techno to let him have the gold fish to himself by the time the two reached him.

x-x

Given the tension from before Phil was surprised when Techno arrived leading the dark haired boy, Sapnap, over with him. The boys mother was not far behind of course. Apparently after Phil had rushed to Tommy and Wilbur earlier Techno and Sapnap had chatted a bit. Techno extending an invite to snack time when Wil had come for him.

According to Barbrah once Techno had recognized the logo on Sapnap’s bandanna the two had quickly fallen into conversation about the show, all but forgetting about the incident with the car. Phil, of course, was quick believe this as he saw it himself as the two exchanged and shared snacks while talking about which hero in the show should be the captain of something or other. Even Wilbur pipped in with his own opinion at one point.

Well, if ‘giving his opinion’ one meant purposefully upsetting the new boy until a chase broke out. Wilbur was on the run as Sapnap followed close behind, throwing small stones and yelling out attacks names as they went. Techno was content to watch and finish his snacks in the meantime while Tommy cheered Wilbur on from beside him.

By the time Techno had finished eating the game between Wilbur and Sapnap had evolved to include monkey bars and the climbing net. Two things Techno wasn’t particularly fond of. As such he had decided to stick beside Tommy and Phil for now. Which was helpful as Phil was trying to get Tommy acquainted with the teeter-totter.

The smaller kids had mostly all left the park by now and Phil himself was obviously too big to partner on it. Thankfully, the teeter-totter was something Techno enjoyed and seemed genuinely happy to be able to play with Tommy. What’s more, Techno was considerably more careful than normal while playing with Tommy here. Which put Phil at ease enough to turn his attention to cleaning up the snack mess while still half watching the two, technically four kids at play.

“Your sons are very well behaved.” Barbrah commented as she helped Phil with clean-up.

“I’m shocked personally.” Phil replied and getting them both a fair laugh.

“Are they usually worse?” She asked in jest, but Phil ran with it since his next statement wasn’t exactly wrong.

“Oh, absolutely. They are usually little shits for me. They save the ‘good behavior’ for their mother.”

This had Barbrah laughing once more before she was nodding towards Wilbur and her son. Currently Wilbur had plucked the boy off the monkey bars and was now running with him awkwardly under arm shouting about ‘to victory’ or something.

“He’s good with younger kids.”

“Wilbur troubleshoots with his siblings at home.” Phil teased at first before a soft smile settled on his face, “He’s always been good with smaller kids though, ever since Techno came along. Gets it from his mother I think. Being caring.”

Before they could say anything further Wilbur, with Sapnap still under arm, had rushed over to the totter Tommy and Techno were using. With a haphazard looking jump he climbed onto the thing and proceeded to balance in the middle of it. This had both Tommy and Techno laughing at the sight while Wilbur ‘surfed’ between them. Even Sapnap was laughing as he wiggled about for freedom.

“And the chaos. Totally got that from her too.” Phil chuckled as he had Barbrah watched on.

“If that’s so then what did he get from you?” She asked with a snicker.

Phil looked back at her with a cheeky grin.

“His good looks of course. Between us our kids didn’t have a choice but to be smart and beautiful.”

Once more the conversation was cut short, as if the universe didn’t want Phil to develop any sort of social life. Flinching at the sound of a cry Phil and Barbrah both turned back to the kids. Techno glued to his seat while Wilbur was trying to rapidly climb off the totter without dropping Sapnap. Of course, on the ground, was Tommy.

By the look of it Tommy had flipped up over the handles of the totter and had dropped straight to the ground after. Wilbur was calling out apologies but Tommy wasn’t hearing them. He was laying on his stomach with his head lifted up and bawling his little eyes out already.

Third time was the charm as ever, only this time in a bad way. Apparently luck only cared to be tested so much before deciding that Tommy well deserved a proper bump to the noggin. It wasn’t bad enough to force the family to leave the park, but it had taken a few plasters to cover the scrapes to Tommy’s hands and face. If it weren’t for Tommy himself refusing to leave the park early Phil probably would have actually called the day over.

Regardless, this had sealed Tommy’s fate as far as Phil was concerned.

It was sandbox time.

This time all four of them were joined together in the box. Techno and Sapnap were busy trying to build some kind of pyramid together while Wilbur focused his own attention on Tommy. He’d barely left his baby brother’s side since being patched up from his latest fall. Apparently, in his own words, Wil had tilted the totter with his feet and had sent Tommy head over hands.

Tommy didn’t seem to care now that he’d been done up in plasters and given his refilled sippy cup. That didn’t stop Wilbur from trying to build a castle around him, moat included. Phil was filming the kids again, glad he’d missed the last two tumbles at least. One fall was bad enough, he didn’t need to give his wife more ammo about the kids truly putting their safety in the hands of god when Phil was left in charge.

It was bad enough his wife had taught Wilbur the phrase ‘yolo’, their eldest taking to it like it was a religion some days.

It was going to give Phil gray hairs sooner rather than later he was sure.

X-X

Much to Phil’s full and absolute relief, the rest of the park visit had gone smoothly. Techno seemed to come out of his shell, making potentially his second friend for the year. Wilbur, with luck, had burned out a fair bit of energy with all his running about. Tommy, despite the tumbles, seemed to enjoy his time at the park and meeting new kids.

All in all, a good visit and one he couldn’t wait to rewatch with his wife later.

For now, though, he needed to get the kids washed and changed out of their outside clothing. Dinner was a precooked meal from Kristin that Phil only needed to start reheating so at least that would be easy.

“Okay, time to get cleaned up now.” Phil started to corral before Wilbur cut him off and picked Tommy up.

“I got it, dad.” His son assured as he simultaneously nudged Techno forwards.

Phil paused with confusion.

“You sure? I can take care of your brother’s, Wil.” Phil stated as he moved to retake Tommy, only for Wil to step a bit faster ahead.

“No, I’ve got him. You just go cook dinner.” Wilbur insisted.

It almost warmed Phil’s heart at the gesture…if it weren’t for that tone in Wil’s voice that showed off his unease. The tone that indicated trickery was afoot.

“...Wilbur, give me your brother.” Phil directed as he held his hands out expectantly.

Wil hesitated, fidgeting in place. Techno was glancing back at Wil and looked…oddly guilty.

“Wilbur” Phil repeated his sons name with a bit more sternness than before.

With a sigh Wilbur turned slowly and handed Tommy over to him. Phil settled the younger on his hip before looking him over briefly. He….he looked fine. So…what was Wilbur playing at?

He almost considered he was being too paranoid until Tommy gave it away. Phil had only barely started patting the kid down when Tommy dipped his hand into the large front pocket of his overalls and pulled out a fistful of gritty and spilling sand. Which he then released and dropped all over Phil’s chest with a laugh.

“...Wilbur-”

“-I can explain.”

Chapter Text

“Wilby! Come play with me!” Tommy insisted as he tugged on Wilbur’s shirt.

“Not now, Tommy. I’m busy.” Wil replied with a slightly annoyed huff as he shifted further up onto the couch so that his brother would lose grip on him.

Tommy pouted up at him as he crossed his arms as best he could around his new cow plush. It had been a gift sent to him by their grandparents and Tommy had yet to put it down. Wil had found it cute at first, until the demands for playtime started to settle in.

For the past few days Tommy had insisted his brothers both play with him using their own plushies since now they ‘all matched’, despite it being a whale, a pig and a cow…Okay so the pig and cow kind of matched, but that was beside the point. As much as Wilbur loved Jubilee, he didn’t want to play with her all the time.

“But, you’re just making noises on it. You’re not even playing anything.” Tommy protested as he frowned at the instrument in Wil’s hands.

“It’s called ‘practicing’, Tommy. Its how you get better at things.” Wilbur replied as he rolled his eyes, “Go bother dad or something.”

Tommy let out a frustrated grunt before stomping his foot and glaring up at Wilbur. He kept still and waited for his brother to look up and make eye contact.

He didn’t.

“I’m not going to play with you, Toms. Either go to dad or play by yourself.”

With another disapproving noise Tommy turned and stomped as loud as he could away from the couch. Tommy was just about to the hallway when Wil called out to him.

“And leave Techno alone. He’s not feeling good.”

In response Tommy only turned and stuck his tongue out at Wilbur before heading down the hall. Wil rolled his eyes and returned to his practicing.

x-x

Tommy didn’t need Wilbur to tell him what to do. He could do what he wanted and talk to who he wanted. He could certainly play with who he wanted to too.

Pushing the door to Wil and Techno’s room open slowly Tommy peeked inside. There was the usual mild mess of toys and books on the floor, but Techno wasn’t among them. Instead Techno was tucked into his bed nice and cozy as he sniffled quietly. Tucked in his arms was a familiar pink piggy plush.

Not to be deterred Tommy inched his way into the room and slowly approached his other brother. Techno didn’t notice him at all, what with his eyes being closed and such. Tommy waited until he was at Techno’s bedside to speak.

“Techy.” Tommy ‘whispered’, causing the other to jump slightly.

Hugging the pig tighter Techno turned over enough to look towards Tommy. He was a bit paler than normal and his eyes were a bit…reddish, but other then that Tommy thought he looked just fine. Perfectly enough to play.

“Tommy?” Techno asked, voice surprisingly raspy, “What’r you doin’ in ‘ere?”

“I-I wanted-” Tommy stammered before seeming to find his words once more, “Wilby wouldn’t play with me, so I was going to ask you.”

“I can’t, Toms. I’m sick.” Techno replied with a wheezy sort of breath, “You shouldn’ be in ‘ere.”

“But, Henry is bored.” Tommy started to whine, holding up his plush as if that would help his case.

“Tommy!”

Wilbur’s shout from the door behind him had him jumping almost out of his skin.

“I told you to leave Techno alone! You could make him worse keeping him awake!” Wil scolded as he stomped into the room and took Tommy by the arm.

Techno let out a whine himself as he covered his ears and rolled so he was once more facing away from the door. Wilbur glanced over at the noise and instantly his anger softened, at least out loud. He was still holding onto Tommy tight enough that he couldn’t wiggle free.

“Sorry, Tech.” Wil apologized quietly as he pulled Tommy further towards the door, “I’ll make sure he doesn’t come in again.”

Techno only nodded before disappearing under his blanket.

Wilbur tugged Tommy all the way out of the room and closed the door softly behind them. As soon as it was done Wil turned on Tommy with an angry frown, hand still firmly on his brother’s arm.

“I told you not to go in there.” He started with despite Tommy’s struggles against his grip.

“I don’t have to listen to you! You aren’t the boss of me!” Tommy yelled, only to be instantly shushed by Wil.

“Stop yelling. What part of ‘Techno isn’t feeling good’ don’t you understand, you brat?” Wil snapped giving Tommy’s arm a pointed tug.

“You’re hurting me! I’m going to tell dad!” Tommy continued to shout, thrashing about and debating dropping to the floor.

“I’m not hurting you, you’re just being a pest!” Wilbur scolded further, voice rising, “Go and tell dad then! I’ll just tell him you were bothering Techno!”

“I wasn’t bothering him! I was just asking-”

“You were bothering him! And you were bothering me too. Just, go play somewhere else, Tommy! No one wants to play with your stupid cow right now but you!”

Tommy hugged Henry close to his chest, further words not coming to mind nor falling from his mouth. His arm hurt, his chest hurt and he could feel his eyes watering. All he could do was stare at his elder brother with wide eyes.

He didn’t want to look at him anymore.

With a sharp tug of his arm Tommy pushed passed Wilbur and darted for his own room. He heard Wilbur call his name but he was already slamming the door shut to his own room, sitting against it so it couldn’t be opened. He dropped his head onto his cow’s and tried his best not to cry.

…
He hoped Henry didn’t mind his head getting wet.

There were knocks at his door along with Wil’s muffled voice, but Tommy wasn’t paying attention. A second voice interrupted another knock and before long there were footsteps leading away down the hall.

x-

Tommy lay on his stomach on the floor with his head rested on his hands. He was facing Henry and had just had a ‘very long’ talk with him about how Wilbur was being a meany butthead. Henry, of course, fully agreed with him. How could he not when Wilbur had insulted him?

However, now that both he and Henry had finished venting to each other they just sat and stared into each others faces. There was a reason Tommy hadn’t wanted to go and play alone in his room earlier. There was nothing to do in there, not with Henry. At least, not that Tommy cared to do today.

It was at this point that Tommy both heard and felt the rumbling in his stomach.

His father had yet to call him to lunch… but he knew there was pudding in the fridge.

Pushing himself up on his hands Tommy picked up Henry and proceeded to make his way out of his room and towards the kitchen. He hummed to himself as he petted Henry’s head as they traveled. Henry liked being pet, especially on top of his head.

Tommy smiled to himself as he turned into the kitchen, barely noting that his father was standing at the counter. His dad didn’t seem to take note of Tommy’s entrance either until the fridge was opened, or attempted to opened. It was still a bit hard for Tommy to do on his own.

“Hey, mate. What you looking for?” His dad asked as he stepped closer, helping his son and peering inside it himself.

“I’m hungry.” Tommy stated plainly, eyes already landing on the pudding resting on the snack shelf.

“Well, have a juice for now. I’m making lunch as we speak.” The man said as he reached for a half filled sippy from earlier in the day.

“But, I’m hungry now.” Tommy whined with a pout.

“I know, but it’ll be done in a few minutes. Even if it wasn’t, you aren’t having pudding for lunch.” His dad stated firmly as he now shooed Tommy away from the fridge and closed the door, “Puddings are snack only. Go play for a bit longer, okay? I promise food will be ready soon.”

Tommy held onto the cup he’d been given as he stared up at his dad, lower lip quivering. However, he could tell his father wasn’t going to break so easily. Not on this at least. Not this time. Even mid pout Tommy slowly lifted the sippy to his mouth. Just because he was angry didn’t mean he wasn’t also thirsty.

Oh, this was the berry juice. Berry juice was sweeter than apple. Tommy hummed his approval and turned for the door and headed into the living room.

Wilbur was still on the couch and strumming at his instrument. It wasn’t a song or anything so Tommy didn’t bother to linger and listen. Instead, he noted that the back door was open to let in the fresh warm summer air.

Without hesitating Tommy walked to the door and stepped outside. He didn’t notice the pause in the music behind him as he moved to sit in the grass. It had grown pretty tall lately and it tickled at his legs making him giggle a little.

Plopping down on his butt Tommy sipped at his drink as he placed Henry ahead of him once more. As he stared at his plushy Tommy couldn’t help but think…Henry also looked really hungry. Lucky for him cows ate grass, and there was a lot of it.

With a smile Tommy placed a hand on Henry’s back and started to help him eat, nudging his face into the green stalks. Because he was so nice he was going to let Henry eat as much as he wanted and not tell him ‘no’ just because other food was going to be ready soon. Henry wanted the grass and Tommy didn’t see any reason he couldn’t have it. In fact, Henry was going to eat all the grass and when his parents came out looking they would-

“What are you doing?” A voice asked from nearby making Tommy’s head snap up.

He didn’t know the voice and it sounded really close. Looking around Tommy’s face scrunched in confusion at seeing another boy on the other side of the fence. Tommy could only see his face, but he had a yellow smiley face sticker on his cheek.

“I’m feeding Henry.” Tommy answered as he placed his sippy cup on the ground.

“Feeding him?” The boy echoed with a laugh.

Tommy nodded, petting Henry with his other hand before going back to ‘feeding’ him.

“He was hungry so I’m feeding him. He’ll probably need a walk after cus of all the grass-”

“You don’t take cows for walks.” The boy cut him off and making Tommy frown.

“Yes you do. Cus they get full.”

“No. When a cow gets full they just get turned into burgers.” The boy explained, a wide grin spreading over his ace as he laughed again.

Tommy’s eyes widened at that as he quickly pulled Henry to his chest in a tight hug. The boy only laughed louder for a moment before being cut off, his eyes snapping to the house door.

“Hey! Screw off before I turn you into a burger!” Wilbur shouted, already a step out of the door and glaring at the other boy.

The kid took off down the alley, his laughter echoing off the walls for a second before it went silent again. At least, from the outside of the house. From inside Tommy could hear his dad shouting something to Wilbur about his mouth, but his brother didn’t seem to care. Instead Wil kept his gaze down the alley with a frown on his face.

Chapter Text

“Techy”

…

“Techyyyy”

…

“Techyyyyyyy-”

“Tommy, if I’m not responding then I’m clearly busy. I’m doing my homework.” Techno finally answers and Tommy’s whine cuts off.

“But that’s boring. Come play with me now.” Tommy says as he tugs on his brother’s sleeve.

“No, Tommy. I told you, I’ve got homework and I need to finish it.” Techno huffed as he tried pulling his arm free.

“But whyyyyy” Tommy breathes out with a pout.

“Because, if I don’t then I’ll get a bad grade.”

“Why?”

“Because it was given to us and we need to do it.”

“Why?”

“Because teachers use it to see how smart we’re getting.”

“Why?”

“...” Techno pauses and looks down at Tommy with a frown.

Tommy is standing beside him and looking up, eyes wide and curious. His baby brother shifts on his feet, swaying slightly as he waits for whatever answer Techno gave. But, Techno had work to do and Tommy was being a distraction.

“Tommy, where are our parents right now?” Techno asks without looking away from the younger.

Tommy pauses and thinks, brow furrowing as he crosses, or tries to cross, his arms. He looks around the room before his pout grows. Without another word to Techno Tommy goes off to find his answer. Techno lets out a breath as he rolls his eyes and goes back to his work.

Tommy doesn’t get far, just to the doorway to the kitchen, before stopping. Wilbur had been on his way in and the two had walked into each other, Tommy almost falling onto his butt before Wil had grabbed him by the shoulder.

“Wilby!” Tommy cheered happily at the other.

“I’m not playing with you right now, Tommy.” Wilbur stated plainly as he started to walk around his baby brother.

“But-”

“Not now.”

Tommy let out a pouty noise as he watched Wil walk away from him. Tommy moved to follow close at his heel after only a few seconds. Wilbur could hear him no doubt, but was ignoring him as he walked to the fridge.

Tommy stopped just beside Wilbur as he opened said fridge and started to rummage through it. He was taking longer than usual but Tommy, for once, seemed content to stand and wait. Wilbur let out a sigh before finally closing the door with naught but a juice box in hand.

“What, Toms?” He asked flatly.

“Can I have that?” Tommy counter asked as he stared at the box of fruit juice.

“No?” Wilbur answered as he raised a brow at his brother.

“Why not?”

“Because I grabbed it for me.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m thirsty?”

“Why?”

“...Stop being a pest, Tommy.” Wilbur stated instead of answering further.

“Not a pest!” Tommy huffed as he crossed his arms at Wilbur with a frown.

“Yes you are. A pesty pest. Go be a brat somewhere else.” Wilbur started to walk towards the table but was stopped when Tommy reached out to grab his shirt.

“Where’s mom and dad?”

“I don’t know.”

“Why not?”

“Tommy” Wilbur said in a warning tone as he gave the younger a glare, “If you want to find them then go look. Stop bothering me.”

Wilbur pulled Tommy’s hands off his shirt and nudged him towards the doorway. Tommy let out a whine and stomped his foot a few times at the treatment. However, when Wilbur didn’t pay him any further mind Tommy turned from the room and started to scamper down the hall, his footsteps echoing a bit as he ran.

“what a pain-” Wilbur started to complain as he slide a chair over to sit beside Techno while he worked.

X--X

Time passed and soon enough Techno and Wilbur found themselves sitting in front of the tv while it played some sort of cartoonish show. Techno wasn’t paying it much mind as he colored away in his new coloring book. It was with characters from his favorite show and he was determined to get within the lines on them.

Wilbur was absorbed in the show though, laughing loudly every so often at something or other from it. He would kick Techno in the arm from his seat up on the couch so that he’d look up and pay attention, but generally Techno just wasn’t interested.

As for Tommy, Techno wasn’t sure where he was now. He’d been passed off between both of their parents a few times since Techno and Wilbur gotten home from school. Seeing as their father was currently working on the computer in the corner of the room Techno could only guess Tommy was with their mother. He didn’t exactly care though. He needed to get the Fire Hero just right.

“Noooooooooo-” Tommy’s familiar yell filled the air as he ran from the kitchen, feet thudding against the ground.

“Tommy! Shut up! I can’t hear the show!” Wilbur called out with clear annoyance in his voice.

“Wil, don’t tell your brother to shut up.” Phil was quick to reprimand as he turned around to see where his youngest was going, “Tommy, stop shouting. That is not an indoor voice.”

“I don’t wanna!” Tommy shouted again, this time running towards his father.

“What ‘don’t you wanna’, Toms? And indoor voice, please.” The man tried again as he leaned down to pluck Tommy off the floor and onto his lap.

Tommy was happy enough to be picked up but he wad still very much frowning and upset.

“I don’t wanna eat it!” Tommy replied, voice still raised but not as much as before.

“Shh, sh, okay. What don’t you wanna eat?” At this point their father was looking at into the kitchen where their mother was still stationed.

She was laughing at this point and everyone could hear her.

“Lagznagnagna!” Tommy protested loudly which only made their mother laugh harder.

Their father let out a burst of a laugh as well which Tommy seemed to have taken offense to as he stared up at the man with a furrowed brow and mouth agape in insult. He even leaned closer so he could hit their father on the chest with a disgruntled whine. When their father continued to laugh Tommy let out a short screech of anger before trying to place his hands over the mans mouth.

“T-Tommy-” Their dad started before needing to pause a moment so he wouldn’t have another fit, “Tommy, why don’t you want any lasagna?”

“Its gross!” Tommy squealed out with frustration.

“You’ve never even had it before, what do you mean ‘its gross’?” Their father questioned as he ruffled Tommy’s hair.

“It’s gross cus the things in it that make it gross.” Tommy explained as if it made everything so perfectly clear.

“Its noodles, cheese and sauce baked together. You like all those things, Tommy. There’s nothing 'gross' in it.”

“Its GrOOoooooooss!” Tommy whined louder, his pitch rising in his frustration.

“What if you don’t have it for dinner then?” Their mother asked, a laugh still in her voice as came to stand in the doorway.

“Kristin-” Their father started, but she just shook her head at him and looked at Tommy specifically.

Tommy was looking back at her and looking like he might burst into tears.

“You don’t need to have it for dinner, but you need to try it. So, instead I’ll just make yours into a big snack instead. Deal?” She asked with a knowing smile on her face.

Tommy seemed to think it over for a moment before nodding his head. Taking a breath and wiping away not yet fully formed nor fallen tears he offered a satisfied smile.

“Okay. I like snacks.” Tommy replied as he slipped himself off of his father’s lap.

The man let out a laugh but didn’t comment, giving their mother a highly amused smile of his own. She grinned back before offering her hand out to Tommy, who ran up to grab it.

“Do you want to help me put it together?”

“Yes!”

X--xXx--X

Dinner that night was less than enjoyable as Tommy seemed to feel the relentless urge to question everything still. From why he had a high seat when his brothers didn’t to why his had to use a fork to eat with.

“Tommy, please focus on eating. Its going to get cold.” Their father directed as he nodded to his sons food.

“I am eating it!” Tommy protested as he stabbed into it with his fork.

“No shouting, Toms.” The man warned as he bit into his own dinner.

Tommy huffed and wiggled in his seat, stirring the saucy, noodley food until it was less square shaped and more like a sloppish mound in his bowl.

“And no playing with your food.”

“Why?”

“Tommy-” Their mother’s voice started before being abruptly cut off.

“Shut up Tommy. You can’t just ask ‘why’ to everything!” Wilbur snapped as he slammed his fork down on his own plate.

“Wilbur-”

“Why?” Tommy asked, eyes on Wilbur instead of their father who had his scolding tone rising between them.

“Because it’s annoying!” Wilbur replied with a huff.

“Why?”

“Because no one wants to listen to that! Stop being a pest!”

“Enough, the both of you!” Their father finally managed to break in between them with a bit of a snap in his voice, “Wilbur, no yelling and Tommy, no yelling. Tommy focus on your dinner.”

Techno sat and looked between his siblings and his parents as he slowly chewed. It wasn’t the first time his siblings had gotten into trouble at the table for fighting or something. Honestly, since Tommy learned to talk its been fairly common. It was, however, one of the few times their father actually raised his voice to reel them back in.

Tommy had his head down with a pout as he poked at his food again while Wilbur was scowling at his own plate. The family mostly went back to eating for a few minutes before Tommy started up again with his questions. Wilbur is huffing in his seat but trying not to say anything.

“-and if you don’t finish your food then no desert later.” Their father was finishing his answer to the small blond.

Tommy hadn’t eaten much yet and the man was really trying his best to change that.

“But, why?” Tommy pouted.

“Cus you need to eat real food before deserts. That’s how meals work.” Their father answered, sounding just as tired of the questions as Wilbur was despite entertaining them still.

“You’re father is right, Tommy. Eat your food please.” Their mother chimed in, somehow sounding unbothered by it all.

Tommy’s eyes were on her and Techno could see Wilbur sharpening his glare already.

“Why?”

“why? why? why?” Wilbur mocked in a high pitched voice as he pulled a face.

“Wilbur, don’t tease your brother.” Their mother scolded lightly, though with a smile on her face as opposed to the frown on their father’s, “He’s just curious. This is how he learns.”

“But, its so annoying.” Wilbur complained as he sunk into his seat.

“I know, but its how learning works. I promise it wont last.” She assured before looking back to Tommy who had been staring at Wilbur with an angry frown.

“Tommy, eat your food please.”

Tommy’s gaze landed on her once more.

“Why?” He asked louder than before, as if specifically to bother Wilbur this time.

“Because I asked you to.” Their mother answered simply.

“Why?”

“Because its what I want you to do.”

Tommy opened his mouth only to promptly close it again. His brow furrowed for a moment before he looked down at his food and started to actually eat.

Wilbur’s mouth fell open at that with an indignant gasp. Their father seemed just as surprised and Techno bit his lip to keep from laughing aloud since there was still food in his mouth.

“how long did you know that would work?” Their father asked with a hushed voice as if Tommy wouldn’t be able to hear him that way.

Their mother shrugged but looked ever so proud of herself.

“It usually does the trick after a few questions.”

“why didn’t you do it sooner?” Their father asked sounding almost betrayed.

“But you two were having such a nice conversation~” Their mother offered chipperly causing their father to let out a defeated groan as he leaned forwards on the table.

“i am going to lose my actual mind” Their father muttered to himself.

Wilbur had his face in his hands at this point and looked just about as distressed as their father was. Techno looked over to their mother and they both shared an amused smile before going back to their food. Tommy was humming to himself as he ate.

Chapter Text

It was another hot day in July and the Watson boys were outside enjoying the nice weather. The week before it had rained and only now was the yard deemed dry enough to run around in. Which was ironic as due to the heat their father had set up the small inflatable pool to play in. No matter how the day shook out they were going to be wet and muddy when returning inside.

Which is how the boys ended up being outside alone for a while as their father, seeing the mess potential building, went to prepare the living room for their eventual migration indoors. The sliding door to the house was open though so he could still hear the three at play so long as he was in the main rooms.

As for the boys themselves, none of them seemed to even notice their father was gone. They had set up a game of sorts with the pool, a broken kite and several other flat-ish items ranging from a deflated soccer-ball to old outdoor flats no one wore anymore.

Currently Wilbur was balancing on one of said flats as he tried to see how to jump to the next object. The pointing being, of course, that none of them could touch the ground and had to travel the random laid trail to the pool. Techno was currently standing with Tommy on the broken kite which was a few spaces ‘behind’ Wilbur on the path he was making up for them. The first to reach the pool was the winner and became ‘King of the Pool’.

Tommy was eager, but had fallen several times making him restart. Techno had taken pity on him and was now holding his hand and progressing together with him. Wilbur, of course, was trying his best to actually win and making the route as hard as possible for his brothers. Unfortunately, it was also making it hard for himself as well.

In his master plan Wilbur had placed the flats a fair distance from each other knowing that Tommy would never make it past them on his own and that Techno wouldn’t be able to get Tommy across with him. However, he wasn’t exactly of the greatest balance either and he wasn’t sure he’d be able to make the jump…within the rules.

He just needed to get an extra inch further on his next step to be on the next flat. There wasn’t any way for Techno to be able to tell with where he was standing-

“What are you doing?” A voice called into the yard and almost causing Wilbur to stumble.

Looking to the right Wilbur let out an annoyed breath as he caught sight of the person speaking. It was the weird kid that had been popping up around the house for ages now. His was wearing an oversized white shirt with a green leafy looking character on it that was hard to see through the fence. As usual, on his face was a yellow smiley sticker, however, there was also a red frowny one on his other cheek this time.

The kid annoyed Wilbur for two reasons. One, he was just, annoying. But also because his parents didn’t believe the kid was real. Assuming Wil was making the boy up for when he shouted at his siblings or something. Even Techno agreeing the kid was real didn’t seem to help. Wilbur was not in the mood to get in trouble today for some stupid strange kids amusement.

“Go away. We’re playing.” Wil replied bluntly as he looked back down to his feet.

“Ok, but what are you playing? It looks dumb.”

“Its not ‘dumb’, you just don’t understand it.”

“I might understand it if you told me about it.” The kid insisted, leaning on the fence and clearly looking like he was sticking around.

Techno was glancing between the kid and Wilbur, seemingly like he had something to say but wasn’t sure if he should. Tommy wasn’t interested in the kid at all as he tried to hop from the kite to the next place in the path.

“Or, you can just go find someone else to bother. We’re busy.” Wilbur insisted as he crouched down and prepared to jump.

“You wont make that. Its too far.” The boy commented and Wilbur only huffed in response.

“He can jump really far.” Techno stated finally, his voice quieter than when it was just him and his brothers.

“He wont make that one though. I’ve been watching. His not that good at jumping. He’s already touched the ground like, three times.”

Wilbur snapped his eyes back at the kid with a heated look as Techno let out a gasp and looked at him in turn.

“Wilbur! You’re cheating again?!” Techno shouted, not caring for his volume now.

“I’m not cheating! He’s lying!” Wilbur defended.

“I am not. You’ve missed your landing on basically every jump after the soccer ball.” The kid pointed out, actually pointing at the spots for good measure.

“Shut up! Its none of your business! I am not cheating!” Wilbur shouted back with a glare, “Just go away and stop being a shit!”

“Wilbur!”

All four boys jumped at the shout and turned towards the house. Standing in the doorway with three beach towels in hand was Philza Watson himself. At first he was giving a stern look at Wilbur for his cussing, but it quickly shifted over to the boy over the fence. He seemed equal parts confused and concerned as he looked the other over. The boy in turn stared back, shifting on his feet awkwardly.

“Hey, mate.” Phil greeted as he slowly made his way out of the house and glanced down either side of the alley where the boy was stood.

The backyard fence was 'accessible' only by the alley and it was no place for a child to be. Especially a child without an adult of some sort.

“...hi.” The boy greeted back in a far quieter voice than before.

He didn’t run from the fence as Phil approached, but Phil still made sure to walk slow so as not to spook him.

“My boys talk about you a lot, but I have to admit I thought they were making you up.” Phil chuckled, hoping to put the kid at ease.

The kid smirked at that but didn’t actually say anything as he nodded and leaned back on the fence.

“My name is Philza, but just ‘Phil’ is fine.” Phil turned to look at his sons now, who were all watching the interaction, “That’s Wilbur, Techno and Tommy.”

The boy nodded as a grin took over his face.

“Wilbur cheats.”

“I Don’t Cheat!” Wilbur shouted as he stomped his foot.

“He does.” Phil nodded with another laugh, especially when Wil let out a furious half scream of frustration, “What’s your name, mate?”

“Dream.” The boy replied with a wider grin than before as he laughed at Wil’s anger.

“Dream? Essempi native then?” Phil asked with further amusement.

The boy nodded but seemed confused about the question. He looked just about Techno’s age in Phil’s opinion so he guessed the boys’ parents, whoever they were, had been a part of the ‘abstract naming movement’ or whatever the papers had called it at the time. He and Kristin admittedly had soft balled it with Techo’s name, but they had friends that had pushed their limits with it. It was…an odd time.

Shaking his head with another light chuckled Phil looked the boy, Dream, over once more. Sandy blonde hair, a smiley sticker on his left cheek and a frowny one on his right. His clothing was a bit big, but not in an ‘unfitting’ way. He wasn’t dirty nor did he look under cared for in any sense Phil could note.

“What are you doing around here, mate?” He asked with a tilt of his head.

“Just, watching them play.” Dream replied casually as if that were just, entirely normal.

“I didn’t think there were other kids around this part of the city. You live nearby then?”

“No. My mom doesn’t like the city much.” Dream replied with a shrug, “ ‘Too many people’ she says.”

“Oh? So then where are you from if not L’manberg?” Phil tried again, hoping for at least a bit more information to work with if he had to report a missing child.

“...I’m not supposed to say.” Dream answered in a quieter voice than before.

“Its okay. You don’t need to tell me where exactly. Its just, for someone who doesn’t live in the city, you’re pretty far into this one.” Phil reasoned.

Dream nodded at him and seemed to relax again.

“My mom is doing a walk through for a house near here. Or, an apartment, cus its stuck to another house.” Dream considered before looking down the alley, presumably the way he came from, “There were a lot of people for it and I didn’t want to get in the way. So, I came over here.”

“You visit my boys pretty often I hear. Does she work in the area a lot then?”

Dream nodded again, this time with a smile.

“Yea, she’s really good at her job. I get to help her sometimes. When its for a family because I can run around and show its good for kids.” He explained, “Even though she doesn’t like the city she really makes it sound fun.”

“Does she know you’re out here right now?” Phil asked, glancing at his own sons.

Wilbur and Techno were now standing off to his side and watching, clearly interested, though Tommy was still more invested in the kite on the ground instead.

Dream didn’t respond right away to this one and instead was looking down at his feet. Slowly he shook his head and bit as his lip.

“She was busy.” He finally said in a smaller voice than before, like he knew well enough he shouldn’t be where he was.

“You shouldn’t wander off like this. The city isn’t exactly the safest place to be. Especially at your age.” Phil stated gently, to which Dream nodded.

“Should we keep him here until his mom comes for him?” Techno asked which got a scoff from Wilbur.

“If she doesn’t know he’s out here she wont know to come get him.” Wilbur ‘whispered’ to his brother with a shove to his arm.

“Wilbur, Techno, don’t start.” Phil warned with a sigh, “But Wil is right. She won’t to come get him and I don’t like the idea of just sending you off alone.”

His last words were said to Dream directly before he wiped a hand down his face.

“How about this. I will walk you back to your mother, to make sure its safe. I’ll talk to her to try to keep you out of too much trouble too. Deal?” Phil asked as he held a hand out to the kid.

The boy stared at the offered hand and seemed to be thinking on it. He looked down the alleyway once more as he fidgeted in place. Letting out a sigh he turned back and took Phil’s hand in a firm shake for one his age.

“Deal.” Dream said with a defeated tone, “But, if I get in trouble then you get the frowny face.”

“Deal.” Phil nodded with a chuckle before getting to his feet and turning to his own kids, “Okay. Your mother is napping in our room, but if you need anything just go let her know. I’ll go tell her now what’s going on so she wont be surprised by it.”

The two older boys nodded and Phil looked at them as he considered something.

“No fighting. If I come back and hear from either of you, Tommy or your mother that you so much as shouted at each other….I’ll think of something and you wont like it.”

Techno and Wilbur looked at each other with a measure of unease at the openness of that statement as Phil turned into the house once more. Both boys looked to Dream and the three seemed to silently agree to put off any further bickering for the day.

Xx--XxX--xX

It was well over an hour, almost two, before Philza returned. He looked a good deal less stressed than when he left.

The boys were still playing in the yard, but by now all of them had retreated into the pool itself. Wilbur and Techno were sitting with their backs to the wall of the pool while Tommy stood between them, jumping and splashing in the water with a bubbly fit of giggles.

Kristin was awake now and had been sitting in a chair pilfered from the kitchen just beside the sliding door. There was an empty one beside her with a towel draped over the back. She still looked a bit tired but had a coffee in her hand. As Phil approached back down the alley Dream had lead him through, much to his unease, Kristin stood up to meet him at the fence.

There was no door in the fence since they had no interested in having someone, either them or a stranger, being able to come and go depending on the strength of a single lock. Not that it mattered as the fence wasn’t all that tall. Even now Phil was setting up to hop over it in the one place where a shrub had failed to grow properly. She hoped none of the boys would notice and try doing so themselves one day.

“So, how did it go?” Kristin asked once Phil was safely within the yard.

“Safely delivered, though the distance he walked was a bit concerning. Bit more than three blocks from here.” Phil replied as he did a brief look over of their own kids, “His mother was proper worried by the time we got there. If it were one of ours I’d probably ground them for a month easily.”

“And?” Kristin nudged a bit more, a smile already on her face.

Phil stared at her a moment before a grin broke out on his own. Without missing a beat he raised left hand up and showed off not one, not two, but three frowny face stickers. Kristin’s brows both raised as she let out a whistle.

“Three? Oh, she maaad.” She said with a laugh at the end which Phil joined her for.

“I managed to work out a deal with her though.” Phil was saying as he moved to take a seat on the extra chair beside his wife’s.

“What kind of deal?”

“So, she’s going come over to meet us all in the next few days to start. But after that, if she has work in the area and we’re available she’s going to drop Dream off with us.” Phil explained easily, “That way he isn’t likely to wander off and she can know where he is.”

“Are you sure you can handle a fourth one?” Kristin asked with a grin as she likewise returned to her seat and sipped on her coffee.

“How hard can it be?” Phil asked with a tone that said he wasn’t at all sure but he was doing it anyway, “Besides, it would be a good chance for the boys to make proper friends with him instead of just shouting over the fence at each other.”

“We don’t need to make friends with him.” Wilbur’s voice cut in, the eldest Watson child having wandered over without notice.

Phil looked at him with a mild confusion while Wilbur just continued to frown at him.

“What’s wrong with him? He seems nice and you talk about him often enough.”

“He’s a brat! Why can’t he just, stay with his mother?” Wil huffed as he crossed his arms, his wet hair slowly falling over his face once more.

“Wil, honey, it’s a good thing to make new friends. Even if you don’t like him now, you might once you actually talk with him more.” Kristin tried to explain as she gently tucked his hair back out of his face and behind his ear.

It was almost time to get another cut.

“I don’t want to get to know him. He’s annoying.” Wilbur insisted.

“Wilbur, mate, at least give him a chance. Okay? Just because you don’t like him doesn’t mean your brother’s wont.” Phil added in, reaching for one of Wil’s hands and giving it a gentle squeeze, “This would be a good chance for Techno to make a friend his own age.”

Wilbur frowned deeper at that but didn’t say anything else.

“You just don’t like him because he caught you cheating.” Techno stated from behind Wilbur, Tommy held awkwardly in his arms.

Wilbur whirled around with a fresh anger on his face.

“I Didn’t Cheat!” Wilbur shouted.

Kristin and Phil both couldn’t help but laugh, a reaction that had Wilbur glaring back at them before he let out a frustrated shout, stomped his feet and stormed into the house ignoring the fact he was still soaking wet.

Chapter Text

It was a comfortable day in August and the two elder Watson boys were spending it out in the back yard. It was the first time in a while where it was just the two of them together. Their father had taken Tommy out to the doctor due to cough he’d had for the last few days leaving them in the care of their mother. Their mother, who was taking time doing ‘mom stuff’ while they ‘played nicely’ with each other.

Technically they’d already gotten in trouble for fighting, but that was well over an hour ago and they’d promised to be good if she didn’t tell their father when he got home. And so here the boys were, in the back yard and tossing a few toys around the ground. They’d already had a small argument on what to play with neither agreeing on what the other wanted. Instead they concluded that they just needed to make something new up instead.

Techno was kneeling down and looking between what was left of their foam Frisbee that Tommy had basically chewed to pieces when no one was looking, and a rubber football dart looking thing that had a missing fin on one side. Though the broken dart was Wilbur’s doing, having used to it smack Techno during a fight. Neither knew when the fin itself went missing during the assault, but it was certainly gone after.

Wilbur looked down at what was in his own hands. Nothing special really, but it was one of the toys they had yet to break at least. A jump rope that had been tied to the last standing hula hoop some time ago. He could come up with a few games with that but…He wanted something new.

Something new that he could win.

Techno was winning a lot of their games lately and honestly, Wilbur needed that to stop. He was the bigger brother and therefore he should be winning at things. What was next? Tommy starting to win too?

Wilbur wasn’t going to have that.

Glancing over to Techno again Wil tilted his head in thought. He needed something fun, something he could win and something that neither of his brothers would ever beat him at.

Something…

Wilbur looked to his hands.

Something…

Wilbur looked to his feet where the deflated soccer ball lay, still not thrown out.

Something…

Wilbur looked at the fence.

Wilbur grinned.

“Hey Techno, what about the ‘brave test’?” Wil asks as he looked to his younger brother, smile still in place.

Techno was staring up at him with a furrowed brow and a small frown.

“The ‘brave test’?” Techno asked, though he knew what Wil was referring to.

“Yea, like we used to play, only now we’re doing it outside.” Wilbur nodded, “And instead of sneaking into the kitchen we….find places out here that we’d normally never go to.”

There were two places in the yard that the boys avoided, small as it was.

The left corner of the yard that was just about below their bedroom window and then the spot just behind their mother’s garden. The spot under their window was where they had seen spiders crawling and so that just was a nope. Behind their mother’s garden was a small little nest their mother had mentioned a ‘garden snake’ living. They generally left it alone because she told them to, but also because snakes were cool until they could slither up your leg.

Techno looked over at both of those places and visibly shivered. He looked back at Wilbur and Wil could see the unease and slight fear in his eyes.

“I dunno.”

“Come on, it’ll be fun!” Wilbur encouraged, “Besides, we only have to go closer until the other gives up.”

Techno swallowed hard, brow knit tighter as he fidgeted in place.

“Winner gets the others desert for a week.”

That perked Techno up a bit, but he was still nervous. Regardless though, he nodded his head.

“Okay. But no pushing and if I want to stop then we stop.” Techno said as he held out his hand to shake, much like their father did.

“Okay.” Wilbur nodded and shook his brother’s hand.

Once the deal was made Wilbur pulled on Techno’s hand to pull him fully to his feet. Within the same motion he started to lead Techno over to the side of the house, closer to the spider spot. Both Wilbur and Techno hated this spot, but Wil knew that Techno was far more scared of spiders than he was. Not that he himself wasn’t scared, but Techno would for sure give up first.

An easy win.

Wilbur stopped a fair distance from the dreaded corner and made sure Techno and himself were just about shoulder to shoulder. Neither one moved until Wil looked over at the other.

“You first since you’re younger.”

“Shouldn’t you go first cus you’re older?” Techno asked back with a frown.

“Not this time.” Wil shook his head with a smile as he nudged Techno’s shoulder, “Take a step or admit defeat now.”

Techno frowned at him before biting his lip and looking forwards. The first step was to be on him and he did not look any sort of eager. Wilbur waited though, watching at his side with an almost smug looking grin. Part of him considered that his brother would give in on this one before making a move at all and that honestly suited him fine.

Taking a deep breath Techno clenched his fists and took a single small step forwards. He looked back at Wilbur with a dreaded sort of expectancy. Wil offered him nothing more than the same smug look on his face as he, in turn, took a step forwards. He was barely an inch closer than Techno was.

Techno was looking at Wil’s feet, judging the distance he’d have to go to be closer to the feared corner. As before he had to take a deep steadying breath before moving, his hands raising up to hold onto the front of his shirt.

Wilbur stepped just ever so much further. In truth they weren’t even really near where the spiders were last seen, nor where the web was spread out in the nook between the wall and fence. It didn’t matter though because Techno was already shaking. They’d played at this distance from the webs before, but the difference was in knowing they were going to get closer.

Techno managed another step and honestly Wilbur was impressed he was holding in there. Normally his brother would give like a wet napkin when he was this afraid. However, impressed or not Wilbur was in this for the win. For the victory.

Wilbur took a large step forwards that was almost easily over half the distance of Techno’s total steps combined. When he looked back he could see the look of horror on Techno’s face, his mouth slightly open. It made Wil laugh and Techno could only continue to look at him with a sense of betrayal.

“Wil! That’s not fair! That’s too big a step!” Techno complained as he pointed to where Wil was currently standing.

“That’s perfectly fair, Techno. That’s the point of the ‘brave test’. I got closer than you, just by a lot this time. Now, you need to out do that or admit defeat.” Wil stated proudly.

Techno continued to gape at him.

Wil was certain he had this in the bag now. No sweat. He didn’t need to get any closer than this because there was no way Techno was going to get within an actual arms reach of the corner. He just needed to have Techno give in quickly so they could move away before any of the creepy crawlies came out to nip at their toes or something.

Wilbur shivered but tried to ignore it. He just, wouldn’t think about it. He wouldn’t. Not the spindly legs or the tiny sets of a dozen eyes or the-

Techno took a small step forwards and Wil could feel his heart beat faster.

There was no way.

Techno took another small step forwards and Wil’s mouth went a bit dry.

Another step and they were almost shoulder to shoulder. Techno was shaking visibly and his hands were held so tight in his shirt it looked like they might rip it. Wilbur maybe was regretting this game a little…that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to try to win anyway.

“do you think these are the jumping ones?” Wilbur asked in a hushed tone.

He could see Techno’s eyes widen at the thought and his face pale. With a distressed whine Wilbur knew well Techno turned and gave the other a shove before turning and bolting back towards the main of the yard.

“You’re a butt, Wilbur! A cheating, stinky butt!” Techno yelled as spun back to glare at his older brother.

Wilbur, who had almost lost balance at being pushed, was back to smiling at his brother. He knew the other would crack, even if he needed a small nudge to do so.

“What are you talking about? I just asked a question, Tech.” He replied with false innocence.

“It was a mean question and you know it!” Techno shouted back and stomped his foot for good measure.

“I didn’t mean for it to be mean, I just, thought of it randomly.” Wilbur stated, like a liar, “Come on. Lets do behind the garden next!”

Wil was already leading the way, chipper as ever over taking the first win. At this rate he would win the game in the next few minutes and gain himself a week of extra deserts. Not to mention the right to pick their next game too.

Techno pouted after Wilbur, not following behind him just yet. Even when he did start walking he was dragging his feet. He wanted to quit, Wilbur was sure. However, he knew Techno would try hard not to. His brother hated quitting more than losing, true, but Techno hated being afraid even more.

“No mean questions.” Techno stated firmly as he scowled up at Wilbur.

Wil snickered but nodded his head anyway.

“No ‘mean’ questions.” Wil echoed for good measure.

This seemed to make Techno feel a bit better as his expression relaxed. The arms he had crossed slowly dropped down to once more grip at his shirt. Though this time the hold was softer.

“I’ll go first this time.” Wilbur volunteered, his smile growing just a bit more.

Techno looked at him and Wil could see the distrust. Still, his younger brother nodded in agreement and Wilbur already started planning his victory dance.

This was going to be too easy…and he loved it.

Without even needing to prepare himself Wilbur took a large step forwards, careful not to step on any of their mother’s plants. A few had sprouted long arms that draped out of the raised boxes they were rooted in. If one wasn’t careful they could easily trip a person.

Techno huffed behind him and Wil didn’t need to turn around to know he was being glared at.

“Okay, your-” Wilbur cut off with a startled gasp as Techno stormed past him.

The smaller boy took an entire extra step further than Wilbur and was now turned and facing him. There was an annoyed frown still resting on Techno’s face, though it didn’t entirely remove the unease that rested in his eyes.

“ Your turn.” Techno stated bluntly as he crossed his arms for good measure.

Wilbur looked to the grounds behind his brother. They…they weren’t that close yet. He could…probably do another big step…before making them smaller. Assuming Techno didn’t cave first again after this.

This time Wilbur did need to take in a breath, though he did so as quietly as he could. He didn’t want Techno to know he was getting scared. No, Wilbur was going to win, as usual, and continue being the ‘brave test’ master.

Swallowing down his anxiety Wilbur took a big step, bigger than he was intending, in fact. He was closer than he planned, but now that meant Techno would have to best him even more.

Wilbur looked back at his brother and tried to flash a confident smile, though it didn’t seem to rest right on his face. He hoped it would still be effective.

“If you crush one of moms flowers I’m going to tell her.” Techno commented with a frown.

Techno was fidgeting in place with his eyes darting from Wilbur, to the plants and then over to where the ‘snake home’ was.

“Stop stalling. Its your turn.” Wilbur stated with an eye roll as he motioned ahead of him.

Techno returned the eye roll for a second before he turned his attention ahead of himself. His fear was starting to ebb back into him a bit more and it showed in his next step. It took three smaller ones to reach just ahead of Wilbur. Though Techno was also being more considerate of where he was putting his feet in regards to the plants as well.

Wil didn’t even need a full step to get ahead of Techno and he used that to his advantage. The flat look his brother gave him was honestly funny considering his cheeks were puffed with his lingering annoyance and thus made him look like a chipmunk.

Wilbur couldn’t help but laugh, Techno scowling deeper at him for it.

“What are you laughing at?” Techno demanded to know.

“Y-y-your face-” Wilbur gasped out, a pitched wheeze leaving him as he held his stomach.

“Stop laughing at me!” Techno commanded as he stomped his foot.

“Y-your like a-a ch-chipmunk. A-angry little chipmunk-” Wil went on, his legs actually growing a touch wobbly as his head grew lighter.

Techno stepped closer to Wilbur and gave him a shove. It was only by chance that Wilbur managed to catch himself once more instead of falling over. Techno crossed his arms firmly and stomped his foot again when Wil failed to contain or suppress his fit in the slightest. A second later an ever so familiar whine rose into the air. Us usual it lilted in that way that reminded Wilbur of a whales’ song and once more he was laughing fully.

Techno knew why.

Wilbur could see it in the glare he was being given. He knew what he needed to do.

Wilbur grinned.

Techno scowled.

“Whale song.” Wilbur stated and Techno’s expression turned into a snarling one.

He rushed Wilbur and started to punch anywhere his hands could reach. Wilbur stumbled but didn’t fall over, nor did he cry out at the attack. How could he over his continued hysterics?

It took a few minutes, but finally Wilbur calmed down. Techno had given up his assault when he realized Wilbur was just…taking the hits. Apparently Wil not making any noise regarding the ‘pummeling’ made it less appealing.

Noted.

At this point, as Wil was catching the rest of his breath, Techno looked between his older brother and the small path ahead of them. Wil could see him swallow hard and assumed it was either his anger or his returning fear. Not a second later Techno’s brow set into something firm and…and determined.

That was…something new.

Wilbur’s own brow knit in a questioning look before Techno breathed out a very big breath. With one final pointed stare at his older brother Techno started to walk forwards. Not just ‘walk’ forwards, but stomping his feet ever so much that it looked like some kind of soldiers march.

He reached the last place he’d been standing, and then he reached where Wilbur had been standing, and then he reached even further.

“Tech-” Wilbur started, but his brother didn’t look back.

Fists tight at his sides Techno continued on, feet slapping the ground and eyes forwards.Wilbur watched with a growing dread and shock as each step was taken. It was only when Techno reached the end of the planter box that he stopped. His toes were just barely past where the box itself ended, the rest of his form was rigid and tense but he didn’t flee. Instead Techno turned and looked at Wilbur with a heated frown.

“Your turn.” Techno stated flatly, once more crossing his arms with a huff.

Though it honestly looked more like a self hug than anything else.

Wilbur swallowed hard as he looked from his brother’s face, to the ground he’d covered and then back up to where the snake nest was supposed to be. A little curl of grass that rested over a small hole as far as he’d been able to see before. Almost unnoticeable if their mother hadn’t pointed it out all that time ago.

“Any day now.” Techno huffed at him as he fidgeted in place.

He was clearly uncomfortable, but he was still further ahead than Wilbur. By a lot. Wil just…needed to be ahead of him…by a little. It only had to be by some kind of amount. While Wil hadn’t thought his brother would get this close that didn’t change the plan. Get just a bit closer and then spook him out of his next step.

He’d promised no ‘mean questions’, but he never said anything about scary comments. Techno would yell at him after the game, but that wouldn’t change the winner. It never did. In the ‘brave test’ once you ran you lost no matter what and Wilbur was good at making sure Techno ran first.

Taking a breath and steeling his own determination Wilbur started to walk forwards.

He tried not to count his steps in his head.

He tried not to note the small crack beside the planter box where a snake could easily fit and jump out at them.

He tried not to think about how fast a snake could slither in the grass they were currently standing in.

He certainly tried not to think of how easy it would be for one of them slip up the end of his pant leg if he wasn’t paying attention-

Wilbur paused as he reached where Techno was standing. They were about shoulder to shoulder now though Techno looked unimpressed. Wilbur could feel himself shivering but couldn’t do anything to stop it. This was the closest he had gotten to the snake nest since learning about it.

He really didn’t want to get any closer.

“You can always turn back.” Techno stated with a smug tone.

When Wilbur looked over at his brother he saw a matching grin on his face. Techno could obviously see Wil’s shaking and hesitation and was enjoying it. Wil tried to put a scowl on his face, but it was shaky. He just hoped it looked real enough.

Judging by how Techno only smiled wider, he doubted it.

“I’m not backing down.” Wilbur declared in a heated breath and looking ahead of him again.

He hesitated still as he stared at the barely notable swirl of grass that denoted the nest. He muttered the words again as he took in a deep breath, letting it out in a rushed huff. He lifted his foot...and placed it down.

“You have to move closer, Wil. You can’t just, stay here.” Techno commented dryly before he started to smirk again, “Unless you’re quitting.”

“I’m not quitting, and I did move closer.” Wil replied with confidence.

“No you didn’t. You’re still right here.” Techno frowned as he pointed to Wil’s feet.

“I’m still close to you, but I did move forward. See? I’m a whole toe closer than you.” Wil offered smugly as he wiggled his toes for good measure.

Techno’s frown pulled into a thin line as he knelt down to actually inspect their feet placement. Wilbur held still aside from the continued wiggling of his little piggies. After a moment Techno let out a noise of frustration as he stood back up. This time Wil was looking absolutely proud of himself.

“That’s not fair.”

“Its within the rules.”

“But its not fair.”

“Its fair, you just don’t like it.” Wilbur stated before he crossed his own arms to mimic how Techno was standing, “And its your turn again.”

Techno stomped his foot once more and looked like he was planning to attack again. Only, instead he turned sharply and marched two steps forwards.

Wilbur’s mouth dropped open.

Techno was practically right over the nest now and looked far more angry than he did afraid. Wilbur, on the other hand, was still shivering in place. If…if a snake came out of the hole right now it would very easily be able to nip at his brother’s toes in seconds.

Trying to suppress a shiver Wilbur swallowed hard and inched one of his feet forwards. Techno watched on and Wil was only slightly aware of the grin starting to spread over the others’ face. He inched a little closer.

“Hisssss-”

Wilbur was moving before he was thinking. His feet stumbled back over the growing vines of his mother’s garden, which sent him to the ground with a yelp. He was scrambling up and away and it took until he was at the other end of the plant box before he realized he could hear Techno laughing. Not screaming in alarm after him, but laughing.

Panting heavily Wilbur looked back and saw Techno still standing in his place beside the snakes nest. He was doubled over much like Wil had been just recently, and was gasping out his own hysterical laughter. Wil could feel his face heating up in embarrassment which he tried to cover up with a glare at his brother.

“You yell at me for cheating and then do that?” Wil asked with an almost firm scowl on his face.

“I-its not ch-cheating.” Techno stammered out as he wiped at one of his eyes, “I only made a-a small n-noise.”

Wilbur’s frown grew but he didn’t know what to say to that. Techno technically wasn’t wrong.

“Y-you jumped so high-” Techno wheezed before bursting out laughing again.

While he didn’t like being laughed at Wilbur had to admit…it was pretty funny. Now that he was away from the nest and feeling far less anxious it was…it was actually really funny. Funny enough that, try as he might, Wil couldn’t keep himself from starting to laugh along with Techno.

X-xXx-X

It had taken the two a fair bit of time to calm back down. Techno had wandered back over towards Wilbur at some point and the two were laying on the grass almost beside one other. Wilbur was aimed one way and Techno the other, but their heads were even with each other as they faced the sky.

It was a bright day, but the clouds overhead kept them from being pelted with too much sunlight. It was overall a really nice time to be out and on the grass.

Their breathing was just about returning to normal when Techno turned to face Wilbur.

“So, we each won a round. How do we know the winner?” He asked curiously.

Normally when they played inside it was easy to tell. Pretty much whoever got closest to the kitchen without getting caught. It was harder when there was multiple rounds.

Wilbur hummed thoughtfully beside him, a smile creeping onto his face. Techno frowned at the sight. It was one of those looks that he got when he was about to get them in trouble.

“I know how we can tell.” He stated as he slowly sat up.

“Okay….so how?” Techno asked, also sitting up and turning so he was fully facing the other.

“Like this.”

As soon as Wilbur finished speaking he was up and on his feet. Techno moved to follow him at first before stopping dead. Wilbur had made a small running start before placing his hands on the fence leading to the alley and then hoisting himself over it.

They had seen their father do it a few times, though they had been told in no uncertain terms to never do it themselves.

“Wil!” Techno called out, darting the few steps he needed to reach the fence and lean against it.

Wilbur was cackling on the other side, wide and wild grin on his face as he hopped from foot to foot giddily. His bare feet were slapping against the broken cement or pavement or whatever it was on the other side. It was old and deteriorated and absolutely filthy. There was also trash littering the ground all over, but Wilbur didn’t seem to care.

It was kind of gross.

“You Can’t Be Over There!” Techno called after him and Wilbur cackled back at him.

“Maybe you can’t be, but I’m not afraid.” Wilbur announced as he puffed out his chest a bit, “You can’t beat me now. I know you wont come over.”

“Mom and Dad said-”

“Mom and Dad aren’t watching right now.” Wilbur stated, his smile inching ever wider as he took a step backwards without looking.

“Wil! Stop!” Techno tried again as he reached a hand out towards his brother.

Looking back at the house Techno debated going to get their mother before anything bad happened that they’d been warned about. However, before he could Wilbur was talking to him again and he couldn’t think to do more than listen. Techno was afraid for his brother, but he had no idea what to do.

“Its fine! Look! Nothing bad is happening to me and I’m so going to win because you’re too afraid to come out!” Wilbur cheered to himself.

He was still walking backwards, though he stumbled over a few items that had made him wince. It wasn’t enough to stop him though.

“You can win, Wilbur! You win! Just come back!” Techno called out as he tried his best to stand on the wooden support of the fence to get a bit higher.

Wilbur just looked so thrilled with himself, letting out an excited squeal as he gave a small jump backwards. As if there was nothing at all around him that he needed to be wary of. As if they hadn’t been told a dozen times about the dangers of the city and the alley itself.

Techno opened his mouth again, preparing to shout even louder, half to convince Wilbur to return and half to make sure their mother heard him. One way or another he just wanted his brother back in the safety of the yard.

He didn’t get the chance to though.

Before words even came to mind to shout Techno paused as he noticed the smile drop from his brothers face. The wild laughter died and all movement halted sharply. Techno wasn’t sure what happened but he could see the sudden fear on his brother’s face.

And then he heard it.

A low guttural growl.

Wilbur turned sharply to look behind him and Techno froze as his gaze followed his brother’s line of sight as best he could. It wasn’t the best view, but he could make out four paws, ratty looking fur and roughly a body that was crouching or something towards the ground on the other side of Wilbur.

Wil and the alley monster seemed to be staring each other down and even Techno didn’t dare move. He couldn’t see the things face, but with the growling he could only imagine large red intimidating eyes and a mouth of sharp fangs that dripped hungrily.

“w-wilb-” Techno started to ‘whisper-shout’ but he wasn’t able to get further than that.

The thing made an angry noise and lunged forwards, Wilbur let out a scream as he jolted backwards and started to sprint back to the fence. The monster was faster though and in seconds Wilbur was on the ground and shrieking louder than before.

“WILBUR!” Techno screeched, his own voice shrill as he saw his brother hit the ground.

He tried to reach his hands through the bars to grab at Wil’s hands, but the beast was dragging him further away. It had caught hold of Wil’s pant leg and was thrashing its head from side to side and tugging back hard. Wil could do little more than scream and flail his legs hoping to free himself.

Techno looked around himself for something, anything, he could use to help. He wasn’t big enough to reach his brother nor hop the fence. He didn’t want to risk leaving to get their mother and all he had around him were, were-

Techno grabbed the largest stone at his feet and stood up. Drawing his arm back like his father had taught him he threw the stone with all his might.

He didn’t see where the stone hit, but he heard a sudden yelping and the monster was no longer trying to chew on his brother’s leg.

Wilbur, making use of his freedom quickly, threw himself back over the fence with no grace in the slightest. He hit the ground hard and haphazardly flailed himself away from it. Techno was rushing to his side before a snarling sound made both boys jump and scream in unison.

The monster was scratching at the fence savagely, its jaws snapping between the planks at them. Techno felt himself being pulled back harshly as Wilbur tugged them both towards the house while screaming for their mother.

Wil hadn’t even gotten the full call out when out of the house their mother flew. There was a broom in her hand that she had raised, as she shouted at Wilbur to get inside. Wil did just that, lifting Techno up off his feet and hurtling them both into the safety of their home.

Wil collapsed at the side of the couch and both of them remained in a shaking heap on the floor. Wilbur was holding tightly onto him and Techno could vaguely hear his mother’s shouts from outside. It was all a blur to him though as he shuddered and sobbed into Wilbur’s shirt. He was sure Wilbur was crying too, but he didn’t have the focus to make sure. All he could think to do was to hold onto his big brother tightly and never let him go.

X-X

Techno wasn’t sure how long the soothing hands had been weaving into his hair, but when he looked up to investigate he found his mother there. He and Wilbur were seated on the couch now, both of them in her lap, even if it was a bit awkward.

Wilbur was still shaking, as was he, but his brother was managing to talk at least. Techno didn’t think he remembered what words were at the moment. He wasn’t really following what Wil was saying, but whenever his brother looked his way he nodded lightly.

Something about playing near the fence, and a dog and then trying to run away. Techno shivered and pressed his face into his mothers chest. She gave him a comforting squeeze of a hug and placed a kiss to his forehead.

Techno closed his eyes and tried not to think about the thing outside.

x-x

Wilbur sat on the couch, Techno hugged to his side, as the tv ahead of them ran some kind of cartoon. He wasn’t paying attention to it, his eyes glancing back to the yard. Their mother had chased the dog off, but had decided that there had been enough outdoors time for the day.

Honestly Wilbur agreed.

Once she had checked them over for injuries she had left them on the couch to recover while she ‘made a phone call’. Wil assumed it was to their father.

In the meantime he kept Techno close to him, the smaller boy still shuddering every so often and pressing into him more. He hadn’t spoken a word since it happened and Wilbur felt terrible. Techno had cried so hard earlier that Wilbur thought he was choking a few times.

He’d never seen or heard his brother so upset and afraid before.

He hated it.

So here he sat, not watching cartoons and running his hand through his brother’s hair like their mother did whenever they were upset.

He didn’t understand. That kid, Dream, he walked up through their alley all the time. He should have been fine. Why was it that the one time he tried it-

“wil?”

The voice was soft, barely at a whisper, but Wilbur heard him all the same. When he looked down Techno was still looking ahead of them. Also not watching the tv, but staring at it as if he was.

“yea, tech?” Wil asked, matching his volume as best he could.

“are you okay?”

Techno’s voice sounded so small and fragile that it made Wilbur hug him tighter to his side.

“yea. yea, i’m fine. i didn’t get hurt.” Wil nodded despite not being looked at, “what about you?”

Techno remained still as if he were thinking about it before slowly nodding.

“you-" Techno faltered before turning to look up at Wil.

His eyes were still red and puffy and even now Wil could see the shimmer of tears that threatened to build and fall once more.

“don’t go over the fence again. okay?”

“Of course not. I wont. Never again.” Wilbur assured, his voice louder as he made his promise.

Techno’s question had been asked with such a shake that Wilbur wouldn’t have had the heart to answer any other way. Not that he would have. The alley had lost its appeal with his almost becoming dog food.

Techno nodded his head and let out a sigh of relief.

The silence between them resettled as both returned to staring with disinterest at the television. It was almost a casual sort of quiet between them if it weren’t for the lingering memory of their recent terror.

“you know-” Techno spoke again, his voice stronger than before but still mostly in a whisper, “i totally saved your life.”

Wilbur snorted at that, the suddenness of it as well as the factual way it was said. He looked down at Techno and raised a brow at him.

“You did.” He admitted before tilted his head, “Do you want a gold star?”

Techno looked up at him and allowed a small smile to pull onto his face.

“I want your deserts for a week.” Techno stated plainly.

It got another laugh out of Wil as he hugged his brother tighter than needed, getting a squeaked giggle out of him for the effort.

“Okay.”

Chapter Text

It was barely passing into the third week of September and Techno had already really started to hate Tuesdays. The school year was hardly started and he was dreading the rest of it in regards to this day in particular.

Tuesdays were guitar lesson days.

Now, not to be taken wrong, Techno loved that his older brother was learning the guitar. Wilbur had been looking forward to it for ages after all. The instrument had been a gift for Wil’s tenth birthday and their father had even set up lessons for Wil after school. Official lessons and not just videos online like he used to learn the Ukulele.

However…that meant Techno had to take the bus home alone on those days.

Techno hated taking the bus home alone.

He’d begged and pleaded with his dad to let him stay after with Wilbur. He’d just, sit in the room and listen and be quiet. He promised he wouldn’t cause any trouble or distract Wilbur in the slightest. He just… wanted to sit there.

Sadly his father could only promise to ask if the instructor would mind that arrangement. Until then Techno just had to bare the solitary ride back home, all while trying not to fall off his seat.

Even at the age of eight Techno was smaller than his peers. Granted, it wasn’t by as much as it used to be, but it was still enough to be inconvenient. His legs were now at least long enough to be able to brace against the seat ahead of him on the bigger bumps.

It didn’t feel as secure if Wilbur wasn’t sitting beside him doing the same.

Techno hugged his bag to his chest and rested his face into it. His stop was coming up but it still felt so far away. He’d only have Tommy to play with at home for a while until Wilbur’s lesson was done, and Tommy was usually having his nap about now.

Techno hated Tuesdays.

X-x

When Techno was picked up at the bus stop by his father he barely offered the man a greeting with the halfhearted hug he gave. His father sighed and ruffled a hand in his hair and tried to tell him it was okay. Techno nodded but he didn’t believe it.

Today was terrible, horrible, and it was lasting far too long for his liking.

It felt wrong getting off the bus without Wilbur and it felt wrong to be walking back to the house with just him and his father. His brother wasn’t at his side and it was a bad, bad day. A ‘dragging your feet’ kind of day.

“You know, Tech, if you keep frowning like that your face is going to stick.” His father teased but Techno only scowled deeper.

His father gave a short laugh as he squeezed Techno’s hand, which was securely being held as they walked.

“He’ll be home soon, Tech.” The man assured, before his smile grew with his next words, “There is a surprise at the house today that might just cheer you up.”

Techno finally looked up at his father, his sour mood giving way to his curiosity. The man was looking down at him with an almost giddy expression. Whatever was at home he was excited for Techno to see it.

“What is it?” Techno asked, his feet no longer dragging the ground as much.

“I can’t tell you. It wouldn’t be a surprise if I did.” His father replied, the grin on his face showing a lighter sort of mischief than the one Wilbur usually made.

Techno stopped his walking as he stared up at his father, thinking hard. His father stopped as well and allowed him his time, the smile never faltering as the two just…looked at one other. After a moment or so Techno lifted up his arms towards his father expectantly.

“Up.” Techno demanded, not unlike how Tommy did when he wanted off the floor.

“Up?” His father questioned slightly bewildered.

“Up.” Techno echoed, moving so that he could climb up his father as his demand wasn’t being followed fast enough, “We’re going to run home.”

“Are we?” His father laughed as he leaned over to lift his son into his arms before he became a jungle-gym.

“Well, you are because you’re allowed to run and I’m not.” Techno explained matter-of-factly.

“Ah. So, in that case ‘up’ then?” His father nodded, smiling wider than before even.

Techno nodded at him as honestly it made perfect sense. If he couldn’t run but his father could then he’d just have to run for the both of them.

“And I’m to run all the way home with you?” The man asked, walking once more as he settled Techno securely on his hip.

Techno nodded as he kicked his feet eagerly.

“I want to see the surprise.”

“You can see the surprise just as well if you walked.”

“I want to see it sooner” Techno whined, kicking his feet once more as he tugged on his father’s shirt.

“Well, that’s just mighty impatient of you.” The man chuckled, “You’re starting to sound like Wilbur.”

Techno let out whine and wiggled in his father’s arms, staring up at him with his best attempt at ‘puppy eyes’. He hadn’t needed to use that look in a while so he wasn’t sure it was as good anymore.

He didn’t get a chance to really use it though as his eyes widened with a surprised yelp. His father had quickly shifted him so he was being hugged to his chest and was now racing forwards. He could hear his father laughing as they went, letting out a few short alarmed sounds himself every so often when he tripped over something or other.

The bus stop wasn’t particularly far from the house, just a few blocks, but his father was panting all the same by the time they stopped just before the walkway. At this point Techno was laughing too, letting out a particularly thrilled giggle when he was placed on the ground and his father had to lean against the shoddy front fence to catch his breath.

“Do you have bricks in your bag or something, Tech?” His father panted out, the smile on his face was tired but still very much amused.

Techno shrugged at the question which earned a raised eyebrow from his father.

“Just one.” Techno answered aloud.

“Wait, what?” The man looked properly confused as he tilted his head, “Why would you have a brick in your bag? Where did you get a brick?”

Techno stared as his father as he debated his answer. It didn’t look like the other was going to leave it be so, might as well?

“Wilbur knocked it off of a wall as school and wanted to keep it. But, his bag was full, so I’m bringing it home for him.”

The answer didn’t seem to give his father closure as instead a more worried look came over his face.

“How did he knock a brick off the school?” He asked with a measure of dread in his tone.

Techno just stared at him again, this time shrugging instead of speaking anything more. He honestly didn’t know. He hadn’t asked.

His father let out a deep breath and held out a hand.

“Give me the brick, Techno.”

“It’s Wilbur’s.”

“It’s the schools. We can’t just-” His father cut himself off with a sigh, brow furrowing as if considering something, “You know what? Fine. But I don’t want to see it. We don’t talk about it.”

“Not even to mom?”

“...You can to your mum. She’d probably find it funny.”

“.…Do you think its funny?”

His father paused and thought a moment, a small smirk pulling at his lips.

“Its sort of funny. But we don’t want to make a habit of stealing bits of the school to bring home, okay?”

Techno paused here as his eye went wide.

“Stealing?” He asked, his voice smaller than before, “But, he said it fell off the building!”

“Just because it isn’t attached anymore doesn’t mean it isn’t stealing, Tech. It isn’t ours to take. I don’t know how he managed to get one loose, but just because it came off doesn’t just…make it free.” His father explained as he let out a deeper breath than before and wiped a hand down his face, “I’m going to have to have a talk with your brother when he gets home.”

Techno chewed on the inside of his lower lip nervously, but his father just shook his head and put on a fresh smile.

“I’ll worry about that later. You wanted to see the surprise, yea?”

And like that Techno was looking between the house door and his father, eagerness rising once more in his chest. A surprise. One that he would get to see first before Wilbur.

He didn’t wait for his father to nudge him and instead darted up the walkway towards the door. His father laughed after him but didn’t call out to ‘wait’ or ‘slow down’ or anything like that. He just watched as Techno fumbled with the door handle, shoving the door wide open and practically tripping into the house.

Nothing seemed to stand out immediately once he was inside. There wasn’t a smell of anything being cooked so it wasn’t a food treat. That was something they could always tell at the door.

“Shoes , Tech.” His father reminded with a slight chuckle in his voice.

Dropping his bag on the floor, with a heavier ‘thump’ than usual, Techno moved to the small bench near where the shoes were kept and quickly began trying to slide the things off. He struggled for a moment or so as his rushing had him shoving them off with less care than usual, his father needing to kneel down to help remove the things. Usually Wilbur would do it if they got stuck, but Techno wasn’t thinking of that at the moment.

Once the shoes were removed he was back on his feet and abandoning the footwear to be put away by his father. The man was laughing a bit behind him but he didn’t try to call Techno back or anything. Rushing around the corner of the entrance and forwards a few steps Techno peered into the kitchen first. His mother wasn’t in the room and, as first guessed at the door, there was no visible treat waiting for him there.

“Hi.”

Techno whirled around as a voice spoke from behind him. A familiar voice that left him more confused than anything when he laid eyes on its owner.

In the living room and staring at him from over the back of the couch was a boy roughly his age with sandy blond hair and the ever present smiley face sticker on one cheek. He was offering a slightly awkward smile of his own as he waved at Techno. It was out of instinct that Techno waved back slowly, his mouth shut and his voice locked away.

“Dream’s mother had something come up so he’s going to be staying with us today until dinner.” His father informed as he came into the room, “Should give you boys plenty of time to play and get to know each other.”

Techno just stared at Dream like a deer in headlights and Dream, for his part, just awkwardly stared back. Usually Wilbur handled talking and stuff with other kids, Techno had no idea what to do without him here. The few times he himself talked to Dream it was over the fence and usually in response to something teasing the other had said about Wilbur.

Having the kid in his house, without his brother and…and all the way until dinner? Techno had entirely no idea what he was supposed to do.

“I’ll go start getting your snacks ready. Don’t worry about homework today, we’ll handle it after dinner this time. Just focus on having some fun.”

“Thank you, Mr. Watson.” Dream called after the man as he turned towards the kitchen.

“Just call me ‘Phil’.” The blond stated as he turned briefly back at them with a smile.

Techno wanted to let out a whine as his father left him standing alone, but he couldn’t even get that sound out. He wasn’t panicking but…he wasn’t comfortable at all.

The two of them remained in place like that for almost a minute, each fidgeting and awkwardly looking at one other. It was Dream who finally broke the silence.

“So….what do you like to do?” Dream asked, his voice lilting in a way to say he was just as unsure as Techno was.

Techno remained quiet as he shrugged in response instead. He liked to do a lot of things but…for some reason he couldn’t think of a single thing. Though, even if he could he doubted he’d be able to say them aloud. He could feel the tightness in his throat that usually meant he wouldn’t be able to talk for a while.

He wished Wilbur was here. Wilbur always seemed to know what to say and he never had any trouble talking to people.

Dream shifted on the couch a moment before dipping out of view. There was a padding sound of feet hitting the floor and then the other was rounding the couch, enough so that they were fully visible.

“Do you…want to play something outside? You guys always seem to have something to play out there.” Dream commented, but Techno shook his head.

Wilbur made up most of the games. Even if Techno knew most of them by heart he didn’t want to have to try to explain any rules.

“...Then, do you have anything in here you want to play?” Dream asked again.

He was shifting more on his feet and Techno could tell he was getting uncomfortable. Techno didn’t want to make Dream feel that way but…he just…didn’t know what to do. He tried to open his mouth, but no sounds came out. Nothing more than a short and mildly frustrated huff.

If there was something they could play where he didn’t have to speak…

“Do you want to just…watch something?” Dream tried again, this time far more anxious sounding than before.

Techno was biting his lip before shaking his head this time. Instead of just standing and fidgeting though Techno motioned for Dream to follow him. Turning to walk down the hall leading to his and Wilbur’s room Techno paused only long enough to make sure the other was actually behind him. Though looking unsure, Dream was, in fact, trailing after him.

Pushing the door open to the room Techno swiftly made his way to the shelving unit that held the books and such for the two boys. The bottom shelf specifically holding a few board games, a box of old cards, some flashcards and a few hand toys. Things that, mostly, didn’t need talking in order to play.

Dream was soon right beside him and looking over the options that Techno glanced over. The next few minutes consisted of Techno pulling something partly out and looking at Dream. Dream would either shake his head or shrug at it. Any item shrugged at was put into a pile that the two, without speaking, understood to be the actual ‘choice pile’.

It was as Techno was sorting through those selected items for them both to choose from that Dream spoke up once more.

“You have a lot of books in here. Do you guys read that much?” Dream asked as he ran a over the spine of one of Techno’s favorite myth books.

He turned his head to look at Techno for a response, curious but not demanding. Techno shook his head before placing a hand on his chest and patting himself once.

“You? Are, are all of theses yours then?” Dream questioned with a touch of surprise to his tone.

Techno nodded before he stood up and walked from the pile. He stopped at the shelve and looked it over, tapping a few books and then pointing over to Wilbur’s bed. After that he allowed himself a smile before touching the shelf and then patting his chest again.

“So, then do you know all the stories in them?” Dream asked further as he picked up one book in particular.

Not the myth book he’d been touching before, but one of the more recently purchased books his mother had given him. It was a gardening book for beginners that he had only started to read. It had a lot of words in it that he didn’t know and therefore had only been reading it when his mother could read it with him.

Techno shook his head with a small frown as he reached out and took the book from Dream’s hands. Dream, unlike Wilbur, didn’t complain at the action, but watched as Techno put it back and pulled out another…or three.

One of them was, of course, his myth book, the second was a well loved copy of ‘The Wild Things’, and the last was a book about various animals. He knelt down on the floor, Dream copying him, and placed the books out between them.

Without thinking Techno, while looking at the books with a small smile on his face, patted his chest once and then tapped his middle finger to his chin before miming the opening of a book with both hands. He was reaching down towards the three when Dream spoke up again.

“You know sign language?” Dream asked with the same sort of genuine surprise as he had when asking about the books in general.

Techno paused, his face flushing a bit red as he nodded slowly.

“That’s really cool. My mom’s been wanting to teach me since she says it’s a good thing to learn.” Dream stated with a smile that had Techno feel less embarrassed than a second ago, “Is it hard to learn? Does your whole family know it?”

Techno’s face scrunched up at the questions. One, because there was more than one to answer, and two, because hew wasn’t fluent and didn’t know how to answer those ones. He didn’t want to not answer though and decided other hand gestures would be good enough. Like when he talked with Wilbur.

Making a slight grimaced face Techno wavered his hand in the ‘50/50’ manner in response to the first question, making sure to hold up a single finger to note that. Then, after hold up two fingers Techno shook his head while spelling out the word ‘no’. He paused here before patting his chest and then pinching his fingers together, a way of saying he only knew a little.

“That’s still cool. Maybe you could teach me what you know sometime. We could learn it together that way.” Dream offered, a more excited look on his face.

Techno hesitated but couldn’t help the smile that grew on his face as he nodded in turn.

x-x

By the time his father called the boys out for snack Techno and Dream were talking deeply about the old style myths compared to what Techno called the ‘baby milk version’ that they were read in school. With his words having returned to him some time ago Techno was making use of them all as he explained to Dream why it would be better if they learned the real ones from the start. Aside from the stories just ‘being better’ that is. Like how the lessons of them got all messed up when watered down and the heroes weren’t even heroes anymore.

Dream didn’t seem to see the problem, but he did agree that the older tales were, in fact, better than the school versions. The two talked through their entire snacking about it, ending with Techno dragging Dream back to the room to point out why he was wrong about something using his books. Despite the apparent long going argument both boys seemed to be having a good time.

It was in this state that Wilbur walked into his room not long after, guitar case and backpack slung on his back.

He stared at Dream with confusion as Techno glanced up at the opening of the door. Techno had been pointing at something in his book when Wil came in and now all three boys were staring at one other in silence.

“...What are you doing in our room?” Wil asked, clearly not having been warned by their parents about the visit.

“Being wrong about mythology.” Techno answered before Dream had a chance to reply himself.

Dream let out a small snort before laughing, giving Techno a light shove on the arm. Wilbur laughed too as he dropped his things on the floor by his bed and moved to sit down beside the pair on Techno’s side.

“Wrong about what part?” He asked, wide grin, “Is it a Hercules thing?”

Techno let out an audible groan as he frowned at Wilbur.

“Its Heracles, not Hercules.” Techno corrected in a tone that sounded entirely ‘done’ with his brother.

“I don’t think so. I’m pretty sure its Hercules. There’s a song and everything.” Wilbur insisted, his amused grin only growing.

“A bad song from a bad movie. You’re just wrong Wilbur and you have wrong taste.” Techno stated bluntly.

“I thought the movie was okay.” Dream stated with a shrug.

“Then you’re both wrong.” Techno replied as he sat up more and crossed his arms.

Wilbur and Dream looked at each other before Wilbur reached out a fist towards him.

“Wrong Boys.” Wil announce with a wider and more cheeky grin than before.

Dream matched the look before completing the fist bump.

Chapter Text

“But Dad-”

“No ,Wil. I’m sorry, but ten is just too young to be babysitting. Especially an eight and a three year old.” Phil explained as he looked over the short list he’d written out just earlier for the actual babysitter.

“Your father is right, Wilbur. Maybe in a few more years when you ,and your brothers are a bit older.” Kristin added as she worked on tying up her hair.

It had been ages and the two were finally planning to have a date night out of the house. They’d managed to find a reliable babysitter through a friend and they were taking the chance running. They loved their kids, for sure. However, that didn’t mean they weren’t going to take the opportunity to go on a solo adult night with both hands like they were robbing a bank.

“It’ll be fine. She sounds like a fun person.” Phil was going on as he now turned to face Wilbur.

His son was standing with a large pout on his face looking a few shades of betrayed. If it weren’t for the way it didn’t quite reach his eyes or the way the corners of his mouth twitched Phil might have actually believed it. The tells were clear enough to him though so he didn’t feel at all bad about reaching out and booping the boy on the nose, earning a scoffed huff in return.

“She’ll know about homework time and what snacks to give out and when so no trying anything.” Phil warned as he added a hair ruffling to Wil’s head until the boy moved out of range, “And if you lot are good she’s be allowed to order pizza for dinner.”

“What do we get if we don’t get pizza?” Wilbur asked with a lingering annoyance as he ‘unruffled’ his hair.

“You better be aiming for pizza.” Phil stated bluntly before dropping into a chuckle, “Though, if it comes down to it, your mother made a meat pie earlier. Its cooked already so it would just need to be reheated.”

Wilbur made a face as he let out a whine.

“Meat pies are gross when they’re reheated!” He complained loudly.

“Should make you even more eager for pizza then.” Kristin chuckled as she leaned over to place a kiss on Wilbur’s forehead.

“Muuum.” Wil whined again as he rubbed at the lightly pressed lipstick mark, smearing it in his effort.

“Come here, I’ll clear it off.” Phil chuckled as he reached for a napkin.

In the doorway Techno was watching the three. In his hands was Technopig, hugged tight as he watched his parents getting ready to leave. Phil could tell he was nervous and could understand why. This was, after all, the first time he and Kristin were both leaving the boys at the same time after nightfall. Up until now the pair had only had short daytime outings or daytime dates when the boys were at school.

Not only were he and Kristin far overdue for a date, but the boys themselves were more than ready to experience their first long term babysitting. In truth it was only for a few hours really, but the three would be in bed long before he and Kristin came home. Which, in truth was a test to them as well as the kids. He could already feel mixed emotions knowing they were going to miss their bedtime and tucking them in with kisses to their foreheads-

“What if the babysitter is actually really mean and you don’t know it? What if-if she orders the pizza and doesn’t let us have any? Or, or what if she puts us to bed early without snacks or something?” Wilbur complained, bringing Phil out of his head.

“Why do you think she’d do something like that?” Phil asked as he dried Wil’s forehead before releasing him, “Sounds like a monstrous thing to do.”

“Who knows what she’ll do. She’s a stranger and you’re letting her into the house to- to- be all in control of us!” Wilbur argued as he spun to be able to watch both his parents as they walked through the room.

“She won’t be a monster, Wilbur. If she had even a single word against her I wouldn’t have picked her.” Kristin assured as she took her turn looking over the list and directions.

A parental compulsion Phil understood as he’d looked it over three times already himself.

“But, you don’t know-”

“We know she comes recommended from a trusted source, Wil.” Phil cut him off as he picked up Techno from the doorway and carried him into the living room, motioning for Wilbur to follow, “She’s going to be here in a few minutes. You boys know what you need to do, just like any other day. Homework first and then you can play and watch cartoons and all that.”

Phil placed Techno down on the couch beside Tommy, who had only recently woken up from his nap and was still clearly in a daze from it. Phil motioned for Wilbur to sit down as well, taking the spot on Techno’s other side. Crouching down to be at eye level with them Phil tried to put on his very best ‘I Am Dad’ face.

“Now, I’m expecting you boys to be on your best behavior. Alright?” He started of with, looking between the three in turn, “That means, no fighting, no biting, no yelling at her or each other. You know how to play nice. While she’s here she is in charge and you are to respect that. If she asks you to do something, like helping with dishes or cleaning up for bed, I expect to hear from her that you did just that.”

Techno was nodding his head slowly to the directives but Wilbur was just pouting with crossed arms. Tommy sat mostly still, slightly confused but he was copying Techno with a bob of his own head.

“Now, snacks are all ready to go and she is going to know when to hand them out. So no trying to weasel them early. You can swap them with each other if you want, but only after she’s given them out. She’s going to look over your homework just like me and your mother do, so no trying to to get out of it. She also knows not to just give you the answers, so don’t think about it.”

That one in particular was meant for Wilbur and by the look on his sons face, he knew it. That smug ‘pleased with himself’ look as if having a solo rule made just for him was a point of pride. Which, with it being Wilbur, it probably was.

“If something happens she has both mine and your mother’s numbers as well as the place we’re going to. Its written down by the phone so if you boys need to use it, and I mean for emergency reasons, you know where to find it.” Phil paused here as he pointed a finger at Wilbur and then at Techno, “No. Prank. Calls.”

The two looked at each other, Techno with confusion and Wilbur with disappointment. Phil hadn’t been sure who it was between them last time they got a complaint, but now he did. He honestly wasn’t surprised.

Phil continued to look at his sons an extra moment or two, with them staring back at him in wait for whatever else he head to say. Only…he couldn’t think of what else he should mention.

“Does that about cover it?” Phil asked as he looked up to his wife who was standing just behind the couch now.

“I think so. We’re only going to be gone a few hours, not a few days.” Kristin laughed, her lips pulling into an amused smirk, “Go finish getting ready. We should be leaving soon.”

“What, is this not good enough?” Phil asked as he stood and held out his arms to show off his partial state of dress.

It being their first night out in a while the two had opted for a more fancy place than normal. One with a dress code in fact. He didn’t regret it, especially seeing how gorgeous Kristin looked in her dress and with her hair all dolled up and-

Phil sigh as stared at her, watching as she crossed her arms at him with a shake of her head and a mock huff of disappointment. He looked down at himself briefly and raised a brow at her.

“No good?” He asked with a cheeky grin.

“You wont get through the doors like that. But, If I have to eat alone, I will.” She replied as she turned around back into the kitchen.

“You’d leave me at the door?” Phil asked as he moved to follow her a step or two, forgetting about the boys for the moment.

“I’d have all the wine to my self~” She replied in a more chipper tone before looking back at him, “But don’t worry. I’m sure there will still be left over pot pie for you when we get home.”

Without waiting for another word Phil quickly shuffled just shy of a jog down the hall to their room. Behind him he could hear both Techno and Wilbur laughing at him.

X-X

As soon as their dad vanished into his room Wilbur motioned for Techno and Tommy to follow him, scooting off the couch and heading for their own room. Their mother didn’t stop them and so the trio soon found themselves alone and with Wilbur pacing in front of them like a war general.

“It isn’t fair. I should be the babysitter. I’m the oldest and I’m perfectly capable of taking care of us. You guys listen to me just fine.” Wilbur complained with a heavy frown on his face.

“You’re not tall enough to put Tommy in his crib though.” Techno pointed out as he himself was holding onto their little brother.

Tommy was awake enough now, but he appeared more than content to be held like a doll than to stand on his own.

“So? He can just, sleep in one of our beds. Besides, if we get a chair he can climb in on his own.” Wilbur replied with a wave of his hand, “See? Problem solved and it didn’t even take me a minute.”

Techno looked down at Tommy, who was nodding along to Wilbur’s every word.

“We don’t need some, some stranger coming in to tell us what to do. You would have listened to me just fine, right?” Wilbur asked as he turned to stare at Techno.

“If you were babysitting, then yea. I guess.” Techno replied with a slight fidget.

He didn’t want to have some strange person in his home either. If all he had to do was listen to Wilbur while the parents were out to avoid that, then he would do it.

“So…what are we going to do then?” Techno asked, adjusting Tommy in his arms so that the toddler was at least on his feet and holding his own weight some.

Wilbur paused at Techno’s inquiry, brow furrowing as he brought a hand up to his mouth and tapped on his lips in thought. He started to pace again before stopping in his tracks. When he turned to Techno he wore that crooked grin that warned of trouble, only right now it was more screaming of danger.

“We’re going to make sure she never comes back.”

X-X

“Okay, be good now boys. Don’t cause Alyssa any fuss, okay?” Their mother warned once more as she leaned down to plant a kiss on Wilbur’s head.

“We know, we know.” Wil sighed, not bothering to wipe it away this time.

“Don’t forget, emergency-” Their father started to say before Techno cut him off.

“Number is beside the phone. We got it.” Techno nodded, Technopig hugged to his side.

“We be good.” Tommy offered as well, though he was mostly staring at the new person who was standing in the living room beside them.

She wasn’t old enough to be an adult, Wil figured, but she wasn’t as young as any of them either. Not that it mattered what her age was. She wasn’t going to be coming back after tonight if he could help it.

He was going to absolutely ‘help it’.

“Pizza money is in the envelope clipped on the fridge door. Only if they are well behaved. You have that power-” Their father was saying to the babysitter, leaning closer just a bit for his last words which he spoke with a pointed emphasis, “ use it well.”

Both of their parents plus the babysitter laughed at that while Wilbur looked on with a frown.

They were going to have pizza no matter what.

If he had to order it himself, he would.

“I’m sure it wont come to that, they seem like good kids already. I’m sure even if they get fussy it’ll be fine.” Alyssa was assuring the two elder Watson’s.

‘Fussy’ was a Tommy level of trouble at best.

Tommy was going to be the least of her troubles by far.

X--x--X

The word ‘subtle’ was certainly not one that could be used to describe Wilbur. Neither could the words ‘patient’ or ‘prudent’. The instant the front door had closed and the elder Watson’s were gone he was pulling his brothers off with him.

The babysitter had gone to see the adults off at the door which gave the kids time and space enough to vanish by the time she came back around the corner.

In that time Wilbur and Techno had snatched the homework from their bags and had now hidden it under their beds. It wasn’t the best place, but it was what they could manage in a pinch. By the time the babysitter had come across the three of them in the bedroom the boys were ‘playing’ with a few scattered toys.

“There you are. Didn’t you hear me calling for you?” The girl asked with a slight laugh.

Wilbur and Techno both shook their heads ‘no’ while Tommy nodded ‘yes’. She didn’t comment on this and instead just gave another soft laugh as she stared down at the three.

“Its time for homework. Your parents were pretty adamant about it.” She stated and Wilbur tried not to smile.

“we don’t have any.” Techno answered from where he sat.

It was soft spoken and Techno was mostly facing the floor while saying it, but the babysitter still heard him all the same.

“Really? Your parents seemed pretty certain that you did.” She stated in that tone that told Wilbur she didn’t believe them.

Techno nodded, this time his words not forming. Wilbur didn’t have any trouble speaking up though, doing so with a wide smile.

“We just checked our bags and we didn’t have any. Our teachers probably decided not to give us any, since we’re only just getting back into school and all.”

Wilbur stared at the babysitter straight on, smile in place and waiting to be doubted. Waiting to put on the next show of utter innocence.

“Let me see. Maybe its just, tucked out of sight, hm?” She asked with a warm smile as she motioned for the boys to come with her.

“What about Tommy?” Wilbur asked, his voice exaggerating with a false concern, “He wont know why we suddenly stopped playing with him. He might cry.”

Behind him Techno was giving Tommy a small nudge, but the small blond was far more interested in the toys in his hands. They were the ‘big kid toys’ that normally he wasn’t allowed to touch. So long as he had those in hand he didn’t exactly care what was going on around him right now.

“I’m sure he’ll be fine until you both are finished with your work.” The babysitter assured with a kind, if not slightly amused, look as she continued to usher the boys out.

Wilbur started to stand in compliance and Techno panicked as Tommy still wasn’t paying attention. Before Wilbur was fully on his feet Techno yoinked the toy out of Tommy’s hand. This, of course, caused a loud whine of displeasure to burst out of the blond as he reached towards Techno with his grabby hands going.

“See? He’s going to be upset now.” Wilbur stated, a small smile on his face as he motioned to his brother behind him.

“I think he’ll be fine if Techno gives him the toy back.” The girl replied easily, looking more amused than upset or worried.

“b-but-” Techno started to stammer, face red and hands shaking as he wasn’t sure what to do.

“He can’t play with these toys without us because they are for big kids. Tommy’s too small for them alone.” Wilbur reasoned as he turned to lift Tommy up.

Tommy was still reaching for the toy, but didn’t fuss out of being carried. Using one hand to pull himself closer to Wilbur he pointed with his other at Techno with a frown on his face.

“He took it!” Tommy complained with a lingering whine, “Its mine and he took it!”

“Its not yours, Tommy. That’s Techno’s dinosaur. You can’t have it alone.” Wilbur stated, making sure to point at it.

Tommy whined and wiggled, reaching for the toy and almost dropping himself out of Wil’s arms. Techno remained still a few moments, looking between Tommy, Wilbur and the babysitter.

“If he just needs to be watched while playing with it then I can do they while you two are busy.” The girl stated as she stepped into the room now, eyes going to Techno, “Would you mind that?”

Techno looked to Wilbur like a deer in headlights. Wilbur tried to think of how to shake his head without being obvious but before he could figure it out Techno was already nodding in agreement. Bowing his head Techno lifted up the toy to hand over.

Wilbur frowned at his brother caving in so quickly, but, he couldn’t entirely fault him. He hadn’t expected the girl to put them on the spot like that. He was so sure she would have crumbled the second Tommy had started whining.

Instead she’d managed to get the object of his desire and was now lifting him out Wilbur’s own arms with a coo as he beamed at her. The enemy.

Operation: Tommy Tantrum had been thwarted far too easily.

There was still time though.

X-x-X

Wilbur couldn’t keep the smile off his face when the babysitter admitted to not being able to find any sign of homework. She had actually pulled out all the folders in both boys bags and came up with, of course, nothing.

Wil could see she had doubts still, but what was she going to do? Make up homework for them to do? Call them liars with no proof?

Just like that the boys were free to play as they wished. She didn’t seem to know what to do with herself though without the ‘homework time’ the two were due and was keeping Tommy, in Wilbur’s opinion, as a hostage. But, for now that would work. It gave him and Techno time to plan.

It had taken a bit more convincing and assuring, but now Wilbur had Techno entirely ready to either cause trouble, or back him up on what he was doing. Their parents had been gone almost an hour now and as far as Wilbur was concerned it was more peace than this stranger in their house deserved.

Wilbur peeked out of his bedroom door, peering down the hall and then over to the bathroom. He’d been waiting for Techno’s head to pop out of it for the last…some odd minutes and he was starting to get antsy. The longer Techno took the more chance there was that the babysitter would catch them or stop them.

A moment later and Techno came into view from within the bathroom, looking at Wilbur nervously for a second before a small smirk started to grow in his face. He gave a thumbs up to which Wilbur nodded to with a wide smile. It was all he needed to do before his brother was out of sight again and the sound of flushing could be heard.

There was a pause, and then the sound of a sink running. Wilbur wasn’t sure what Techno was doing with that. He needed to get out of there quickly. Was he trying to flood the room faster or something?

Before Wilbur could question it further the sink shut of and Techno’s hurried footsteps were shuffling out of the bathroom. He chanced to look behind him for all of a second before sprinting towards Wilbur and the door he was holding open.

Once Techno was safely in the room, panting lightly from either the sprint or his anxiousness, he looked to Wilbur with a look he didn’t recognize. Still, Techno gave a confirming nod and spoke before Wil could get a word out.

“Its leaking out. Should we say something before it gets in the hallway?”

“Nah. Lets give it a few minutes and then walk out. If she doesn’t notice it by then, then we say something.” Wilbur replied with a small grin.

“Is it…is it going to make the house smell like pee?” Techno asked with a returning note of doubt.

“Only if you peed in it beforehand. Should just smell like water. Toilet water, but not exactly pee.” Wilbur reasoned before his frowned at his brother, “You didn’t pee in it first right?”

Techno was quick to shake his head, rapidly at that.

“Of course not. I didn’t want it to get on my feet.”

“What was with the sink then if not to wash your hands?” Wil questioned, now low key doubting his brother’s words and he crossed his arms.

“Because I flushed the toilet.” Techno explained, “If I didn’t use the sink then she might guess it was a fake flush and not a real one. Or she’d think I was dirty and not a hand washer. That’s just gross.”

Wilbur stared at his brother a moment as he took in the words and considered them.

“That’s smart. I didn’t think of that.” Wil muttered as his brow furrowed.

Would she have called them out about it if Techno hadn’t pretended to wash his hands?

Techno was looking at him with a small smile now, a shy sort of pride on his face. It lingered right up until Tommy’s voice lilted into the air from the hallway. He was letting out a delighted coo with a giggle right before there was a splash. All at once the smile was gone and replaced with a more wide eyed look of shock.

Wilbur only stared at Techno for a second before pushing him aside to dart out their door. He stopped short as his mouth dropped open, his stomach sinking as his eyes landed on their baby brother.

Tommy was in the hallway and beaming a happy smile as he jumped into the puddle that was forming out of the bathroom door. He looked up just as Wilbur came into view and let out a happy laugh as he reached out.

“Wilby! Look it! Puddles inside!” He called out with another laugh and giving another short jump.

Wilbur could think of nothing to do but stare in shock. He…he hadn’t considered this when he and Techno made the plan. The babysitter had had Tommy the last they checked. Though, in hindsight he should have still thought of this, what with Tommy’s streak of escaping. Along with the fact that Tommy tried, at every opening, to leap into any body of water he could see.

Aside from the bathtub.

“Tommy! Don’t play in that!” Techno called out, now being the one to push past Wilbur.

Techno was running towards their brother, arms out and reaching while Tommy just continued to splash to his hearts content. Wilbur didn’t even register the heavier set of footsteps until the baby sitter was almost on top of his two siblings.

Techno, with his arms around a wiggling and wet Tommy was lifted into the air while the girl was making alarmed noises.

Operation: Toilet Attack was…technically a success?

Wilbur still winced as he looked at his two little brothers, both being told they were going to need a bath.

X--x

Honestly Wilbur didn’t have to do anything at all for the next half hour in order to stress the babysitter out. His younger brothers had that covered as they struggled to get out of bath-time. All the more so when they were forced into the tub regardless of protests. The water from the overflowed toilet had been quickly replaced by the water thrashed out of the tub by both Techno and Tommy.

Wilbur…didn’t have to do anything.

He didn’t have to.

He did, however, take pleasure in it.

While the babysitter was busy Wilbur wandered through the house setting up little bits of trouble where he could. He hid Tommy’s favorite DVDs, took the batteries out of every remote and unplugged the back of the VCR and cable-box.

He took out the pot pie from their mother and hid it under the sink. He was going to throw it out at first, but decided against it only because he didn’t want there to be evidence of it. He also took the time to get an armful of snacks and hide them in his and Techno’s room for later.

That done, and with time to spare, Wilbur decided to…get creative.

The babysitter had left her drink on the coffee table in the living room earlier. A bit of salt in her coffee was an easy thing to do…but what about flour?

Wilbur grinned to himself as he stirred in the white powder, seeing it slowly turn the drink into a thick sludgy consistency. He hadn’t put in much, but it didn’t matter. It was decidedly ruined now.

Wilbur even went above and beyond when he returned the flour to the kitchen. With an ever present smile now Wilbur mixed salt into the sugar dish so that, should the girl decide to make herself a fresh cup of coffee it would be just as ruined as the last one.

He was about to return to his room after that, to wait for Techno and to make their next plan, when something caught his eye.

There, on the fridge.

The envelope.

Pizza money.

She couldn’t refuse to buy them pizza if Wilbur ordered it himself. If she refused to let them have it when it arrived then Wilbur could just tell their parents they were denied dinner. This baby sitter wouldn’t be able to find the pot pie to make them so her choices would be to let them have the pizza or let them starve.

Wilbur was quick in pushing a chair towards the fridge in order to try to reach the money. He was thankfully fairly tall for his age, or so he’d been told. All he knew for certain was that it wasn’t at all hard to reach the white folded paper, dark inked letters reading ‘For Pizza’ on the front.

He had hardly yanked it off the fridge when his name was called behind him, from the babysitter.

“Wilbur, can you grab some clothes for Tommy to-”

Wilbur still stood on the chair, stark white envelope in hand and staring at the doorway where the girl stood. She was holding Tommy in her arms, bundled in a towel she had been drying him off in. She was staring back at Wilbur as if momentarily stunned or confused by what she was seeing.

“Wilb-”

Before his name even fully left her lips Wilbur was leaping from the chair, money in hand and bolting to the left.

“Wilbur!” The girl called, unable to reach for Wil with Tommy in her arms.

There was some level of panic in her voice as Wilbur charged down the hallway. He made it to his bedroom and quickly slammed into the door, bursting it open and making Techno scream from fright. He was in naught but a towel and standing before his dresser when Wil had barged in. Shoving the door closed Wilbur rushed towards Techno.

“Take- take it! Take it!” Wilbur demanded as quietly and urgently as he could.

Without question Techno took it, tucking it out of sight in his towel as Wilbur darted off to his side of the room. Wil was only able to partly leap onto his bed before the door swung open once more, this time with the babysitter in it. Tommy wasn’t in her arms now.

“Wilbur, hand that back.” She demanded as she entered the room, hand out towards Wil as he scrambled to get away.

As he allowed himself to be penned in Wil saw Techno darting out of the room behind her, all but ignored.

“That isn’t something to play with. You need to hand it over.” The girl insisted, her tone clipped into a forced calm.

“...I don’t have it.” Wilbur stated evenly as he stared her down, thought still panting from his run.

“I saw you take it. You need to hand it back. This isn’t funny.” She insisted.

“Okay… but I don’t have it.”

“I’m not looking to have to call your parents over this. Give it back.” At this the girl was taking Wilbur by the arm to pull him closer to her at the side of the bed.

“I don’t have it! I told you! Let me go!” Wilbur shouted as he thrashed about now, earning Techno whatever time he could.

The babysitter didn’t believe him nor listened to him as she tugged him right up to her and lifted him up so she could carry him at her hip like a potato sack. Wilbur thrashed about and kicked and complained but she didn’t so much as flinch.

“You’re going to give that money back or I swear-” She was in the middle of saying when the familiar gleeful squeal from Tommy was heard.

Seconds later a very naked Tommy was darting by the door towards his room.

“Wait, Tommy, stop!” The girl called out as she moved faster to try to catch up with the toddler.

Doing so made Wilbur in her other arm sway just enough that his head bumped the door frame as they went through it. She let out a hiss at just about the same time as Wilbur did coming to a full stop as she swung him around enough to be back on his feet. She was crouching down to look where he’d been bumped.

“Shit- I mean, shoot. Are you okay?” She asked even as Wilbur tried to push her hands away.

“You could have crushed my head!” Wilbur shouted at her as he tried to keep her hands away from where it still hurt.

“I didn’t mean to-” She started before her eyes landed on something over Wilbur’s head.

Wilbur snapped around to look and he tensed. Techno had stopped his former escape, in the middle of the hall, to slip on his boxers. In doing so he had dropped his towel and the envelope with the money. He was currently picking them back up when he’d been spotted.

“Techno-”

“Techno run!” Wilbur shouted before the babysitter could get anything else out.

Techno had jumped, looked up at them, and then darted into the living room. The girl called after him as she rushed passed Wilbur. He let her, giving her a second head start before following.

Within just a few moments Techno was screaming as the girl caught up to him, almost cornering him as he dipped between the couch and the arm chair. He was trying to rush back towards the hallway but she was too close to him.

Unfortunately for her, Wil and Techno knew this game well.

Running at his brother Wilbur swiped the folded slip from his hands and dipped into the kitchen. The babysitter called out, noting the hand off, and was now following Wilbur once more. He ran along the counters a moment before sliding under the table and scrambling between the chairs. He could hear them being pulled out but she couldn’t reach him before he was up again and out of the room.

He heard his name shouted but he didn’t stop. Techno was waiting in the hallway and Wilbur was quick to latch onto him. He pressed the paper into Techno’s hand before pushing him away. The two split up into separate rooms, Techno going into Tommy’s and Wil going into their parents.

The girl ended up following Wilbur as he rushed behind the bed and tried to vault over it. She caught him by the leg and tried to pull him to her, but a shout by the door got her to look up. Techno was there, paper in hand, before vanishing down the hall.

She left Wilbur where he was and took off after Techno instead. Wilbur panted a moment before pushing himself back towards the door.

He lurched down the hall on unsteady feet, trying to reach the end of it before his brother was caught. When he reached the end of said hall he saw he was too late. Techno was being held up on her hip just like Wil had been earlier. He was panting as he thrashed while the babysitter tried to pull the envelope from his hands.

Wilbur ran up and tried to pull it free as well, earning a fresh bout of shouts from her. A second later there was a ripping noise and each of the three were holding a piece of torn white.

…

“...Where is the money?!” The babysitter asked with a rather frazzled crack to her voice.

Wilbur just stared at the paper in his hand in confusion.

There was another thrilled giggle from Tommy and the scampering of feet which gained the girls attention. With a huff she placed Techno down on the couch and looked at both the boys with a pointed finger.

“We aren’t done. Sit and wait for me.” She ordered, pointing to the couch.

Her face was red and hair disheveled and Wilbur was maybe just a bit afraid of her now. He nodded dumbly, automatically moving to sit. She stalked down the hall to locate their baby brother and Wilbur could only think to look over at Techno.

Techno, who was sitting on the couch and watching her go with some level of apprehension as well. Though…it didn’t seem to be for the same reason. When he looked at Wilbur it was with an urgent sort of determination.

“We need her out of Tommy’s room.”

Wilbur didn’t question it, but nodded.

Without waiting for any form of plan of attack Wilbur opened his mouth and started screaming.

X-x

It felt like ages since Wilbur was put in ‘time out’ on the couch for his screaming earlier. Techno was beside him, now clothed and fidgeting with his hands to a point where Wilbur had to hold one of them to keep it from being obvious.

Tommy was at their feet, a toy in hand, while the babysitter was off looking for the missing money. She was doing laps though, coming back into the room to make sure the three of them were still there. She looked proper flustered, like their mother did when she was late for work and she couldn’t her phone or purse.

Wilbur wanted to make another plan, but he had been told pretty clearly that if he spoke at all before she returned to them that he was going to be in big trouble. Now, Wilbur wasn’t a stranger to being in ‘big trouble’. Anyone in his family could attest to that, aside from Tommy who was still only learning how to talk properly.

So no, it wasn’t the being in trouble part that rooted him in place and had his mouth glued shut. It had been the action of her picking up the number beside the phone that their parents had left behind. As if she was actually going to use it.

Wilbur almost jumped when he felt a hand on his arm. He turned to look at Techno just as his brother pulled his other hand free again.

He started to sign.

Or rather, he started to gesture.

It wasn’t the signs they had learned so far, but Techno was good at coming up with things they could both understand. Wilbur smiled as he followed along.

It started with pointing down the hall and then to him holding up the white slip he still had of the envelope, pointing to Tommy and then back down the hall with the actual sign for the word ‘leave’.

Roughly Wilbur got the point enough to know they really didn’t want this girl to start snooping in Tommy’s room.

Wilbur furrowed his brow and did his best to recall a few signs himself. Bringing a hand up he pointed at his left hand before bringing it down and off his palm. He paused here, brow furrowed before trying to sign the letter ‘D’ and ‘O’ and then motioning to the two of them. Finally he signed ‘Do’ again and waited for Techno to translate what’d he attempted. His best at a 'what do we do' that he could manage.

His brother was fast though, his brow furrowing as he looked down the hall, bringing his hands up to answer. However, before he could the two of them jumped as Tommy started to suddenly sob at their feet.

They froze and stared, unsure of what happened since he’d been happy enough literally seconds ago. There was a running of feet down the hall and soon enough the babysitter was back. She was scooping Tommy into her arms and looking at the boys with fairly annoyed look on her face.

“What did you do to your brother?” She asked with a bit of a snap as she tried to comfort the small blond.

“What?! We didn’t do anything!” Wilbur protested, returning her snap with a bit of his own.

“Well, clearly something happened or he wouldn’t be crying.” She replied as she wiped a few tears off Tommy’s cheeks.

“We were just sitting here and he just, started crying. We didn’t do anything!” Wilbur insisted with a scowl.

“we weren’t even talking.” Techno added quietly but with the same level of frown that Wilbur wore, “we wouldn’t hurt him. he’s our baby brother.”

At this point she wasn’t paying attention to Wilbur or Techno though. Instead she was walking a bit away while rocking Tommy on her hip and shushing his cries as best she was able. It took a moment or two for her to actually say words to him.

“Heeey, little man. Shhh, sh, sh, you’re okay.” She comforted first, “What’s going on with you? Did your brothers take your toy again?”

Wilbur scowled deeper and he could hear Techno huff from behind him.

Tommy let out some sort of noise in response, though it took an extra minute or so for him to breath in enough to use words. The hiccupped word of ‘bumped’ or ‘boo boo’ came out, but it was too garbled to be understood.

With a bit more rocking the babysitter asked if having a snack would make him feel better. Eyes still leaking tears Tommy nodded his head.

“Okay. It’s a bit past snack time, but that’s okay, right?” She asked Tommy, who nodded again before she looked towards the other two, “To the table, and no funny business.”

The boys didn’t hesitate to slip off the couch, but they did drag their feet a bit as they obeyed the directive. They took their seats, having had to retrieve them from their hastily dragged positions from earlier, and waited.

Tommy was served first, his cries tapering off as he dug into his pudding and fruit. As for Wilbur and Techno, their snacks were placed on the table directly in front of the babysitter, who sat down between them.

“Ok, so, we need to talk. Taking that money wasn’t a funny thing to do. Its even less so now.” She was saying, glancing between the two boys, “I need you to really think about how long you want me to keep looking for it. How long you want to be stuck on that couch until I find it. Because if I have to find it myself and you don’t help me then your parents are going to get one very bad phone call.”

Wilbur swallowed thickly and Techno was glancing rapidly between her and Wil both. Neither of them spoke though and so the girl sighed heavily.

“I’m going to give you time to think about it now. But after snack you better have made your decision.”

With that the two boys had their own snacks placed before them.

They didn’t particularly feel like eating though.

The tension was cut as Tommy let out another whine, his leg wiggling rapidly a moment before stopping as he took another bite of his banana.

“You okay, Tommy?” The girl asked, her annoyance melting into concern once more.

Tommy nodded, paused, shook his head and then nodded again.

“I got a boo boo yesterday.” Tommy supplied before biting into a grape next.

“Does it still hurt?” She asked, getting up to take a look.

Tommy shook his head calmly, focused more on his food than on the conversation.

“Its okay. I just forgot to cry about it yesterday.”

The babysitter stopped moving, tilting her head at Tommy. Even Wilbur was looking at Tommy with a scrunched face. Without even noting the looks he was getting Tommy glanced up from his food to look at the babysitter with a perfectly straight face.

“I’m going to keep crying about it after I eat.” He informed her before looking back down and dipping his next bite of banana into the pudding.

Wilbur looked to Techno, their confusion mirrored on each others faces. Techno shrugged first though before he slowly started to poke at his own food.

X--x--X

Snack time didn’t last nearly as long as Wilbur had hoped it would, despite both he and Techno eating slower to stretch it out. Tommy had finished eating before the both of them and, to his word, had started crying again once he was done.

It wasn’t the same sobbing as when he started earlier thankfully. The babysitter still picked him up and carried him around for the duration of it though. Tommy seemed more than please with the attention, allowing himself to be placed placidly into his crib once he deemed himself ‘finished’.

Once Tommy was in the pen the babysitter tried to put on a show to placate the toddler for a time. However, no matter what button was pushed or what plugged in and out of the wall, she couldn’t seem to get anything on the TV aside from static. The humming noise of it quickly became upsetting to Tommy who started to fuss and scream about it.

Wilbur just watched on, only once motioning for Techno to not help either.

It took a bit more attempts and cursing under her breath before the girl stood up, a tight smile on her face as she looked back at Tommy.

“How about I set up my phone on the desk and put something on there for now?” She asked, her voice strained as she already was reaching for said object.

Tommy wasn’t fully pleased by the small screen kept out of his reach, but at least the cartoon he demanded was playing.

As soon as he was settled in with that she motioned for Techno and Wilbur to follow her. The boys were walked into the hallway just short of the bedroom doors. They were side by side as she leaned down to be more at eye level, but still clearly taller than them.

“I’m going to ask you one more time to hand over that money. Last chance. Once I start looking this time, that’s it. No more nice and no more chances to sweep this under the carpet.” She warned looking slowly between the two, “Its almost dinner time and at this rate you’ll be getting pot pie. I can’t order anything without that money.”

Wilbur could see Techno tense in out of the corner of his eye. A twitch of his hand and the rising of his shoulders. Biting his lip Techno looked to Wilbur quickly, but Wil only gave a firm shake of his head back. He slipped a hand into Techno’s and looked ahead once more at the babysitter. A-something or other.

“We aren’t telling you anything.” Wil declared, jutting his chin out with added determination.

He refused to be defeated by her.

The girl sighed heavily before standing back up. She was muttering something about ‘little monsters’ but it was spoken too fast for him to really know for sure.

“Okay. Well, since there won’t be pizza at this point anyway I guess I should get the pie in the oven.” She stated, giving a pause as if it might be the magic words for the boys to crack.

When it failed she just let out another heavy breath before walking past them and towards the kitchen. The boys weren’t told to follow and so they didn’t.

Standing in the hall Wilbur shared a look with Techno. He made a hand gesture that wasn’t sign, but they knew well between the two of them. Wilbur was telling Techno to brace himself and to breath. Techno seemed confused at first but nodded, making sure to take in an extra large breath right then and there.

There was the sound of the fridge door opening and Wilbur held his breath and waited.

…

…

“Where the hell is the pot pie?!”

X-0-X

Techno stood beside Tommy’s playpen, looking between the half distracted toddler and towards the currently panicking babysitter. Wilbur was watching Alyssa as she darted from the fridge, to the cabinets and then back to the fridge again.

She was shouting at Wilbur now, but it wasn’t exactly…angry. She was repeatedly asking about where the pot pie would have been, if he’d seen it and things like if this was some kind of game to him. Wilbur was replying back rather rudely in his opinion, even if she was kind of mean.

Its not like Techno hated her. He just, didn’t want her in his home. Especially not now after she’d forced him to share a bath with Tommy. Tommy, who had drooled into the water and even had tried to drink it at one point. He also didn’t like that she’d had to help rinse him off.

Tommy needed help bathing, but he didn’t.

Which is why he didn’t have any problem tucking the money into Tommy’s crib earlier when they had been being chased. He trusted Wilbur had a plan.

Or…he had…at first.

The longer Alyssa seemed to be latched onto finding the money the more he felt this was a lost battle for them. He also didn’t want her to call their parents, which she repeatedly mentioned doing.

“You. Here. Now.” Alyssa ordered as she pointed at both Wilbur and himself.

He couldn’t help the slight shiver that went down his spine as he began to approach.

“I need the money now. Either that or there wont be anything for dinner. Do you want to go to bed hungry? Because this is how you end up going to bed hungry.” She was asking, her voice rushed and tense as she looked between them.

Techno was starting to feel very uneasy now, but Wilbur just held his gaze, firm and unshaken.

“We will say nothing to you for we know our rights, villian.” Wilbur was saying, which was a line from Techno’s favorite hero show.

One that he had known Wilbur watched and wasn’t just ‘in the room’ during.

Alyssa just let out an even more tense breath. She waved both boys off and motioned to the couch.

“Plant it. Don’t even think about moving.” She commanded as she moved towards the boys room.

Wilbur didn’t fight her on this and so Techno followed him in turn. The second she was out of sight and they were both seated Wilbur looked to Techno with an almost proud smirk on his face.

“We could call the pizza place while she’s looking. The number is saved in the phone.” Wilbur stated with a voice that matched his face.

“I’d need to get passed her to get the money though. We also need to count it. I didn’t have time.” Techno was saying, brow furrowed with a slight frown.

“It has to be enough for at least a large. We could get anything we want on it and she would just have to deal with it.”

“She’s going to call out parents.” Techno warned with a bit more obvious worry.

At this Wilbur seemed to get even more smug, lifting his chin up as he crossed his arms.

“No she wont. She would have called them already if she was going to. I don’t think she would.” Wilbur stated with an assurance Techno didn’t understand.

“She took the number though.”

“But she hasn’t called them. She hadn’t even taken out her phone before Tommy needed 'tv time' and she hasn't come back to use the house phone.” Wilbur pointed out, “I think she’s just trying to scare us.”

“...well its working.” Techno muttered as he sunk into the couch and crossed his arms with a frown.

“...hey.” Wilbur started, matching his tone and leaning over to him, “we don’t have anything to be scared of. i wont let anything bad happen. even if she gets mad, i’ll take care of it.”

Wilbur was holding one of his hands now and Techno did end up feeling a better for it. They stayed liked that for a bit before Wilbur looked back down the hall at the sound of Alyssa making some kind of noise. Techno wasn’t sure what it was, but the sound of her storming feet coming back at them made him tense.

Bracing himself Techno half held his breath as he watched Alyssa stalk towards them from down the hall. He could see some sort of partly crumpled papers in her hand.

He recognized those papers.

“Want to explain this?” Alyssa asked with a snap as she tossed them down on the coffee table before them.

Techno stared at the recovered homework, his stomach tying into a knot.

“Looks like maths.” Wilbur commented from his seat and Techno swears he almost saw steam starting to come out of the babysitters ears.

“Looks like homework to me.” She replied in a tone that had Techno flinching.

She paused and closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath as she flexed her hands at her sides. Techno could almost see her counting to ten, similar to how their father did at times.

“...You know your parents are expecting to see this done.” She stated, both boys remaining still and silent, “You need this for school tomorrow so they are going to check that its done even if I, for some reason, didn’t check it tonight.”

Techno fidgeted in his seat. He wanted to glance at Wilbur, but he was too scared to look away from her while she was speaking with her current tense tone.

“So, I’m going to give you a second chance to do this now. I’ll keep looking for the money and when I get back I’ll be checking over this. If its not done then I’m going to write a note explaining what happened for both your parents and your teachers to read.”

“You can’t do that, you’re not our parents.” Wilbur shot back with a scoff.

“I’m a part of the collage volunteer program at your school. It’s a reason your parents agreed to have me babysit. I can, absolutely, tell your teachers.” Alyssa confirmed.

Techno wasn’t entirely sure about half of what she said, but the thought of his teachers getting a bad note about him…it didn’t sit well in his stomach. He worked hard and enjoyed school. He didn’t want his teachers to start hating him.

Wilbur seemed to get some sort of feeling from him because the hand in his own squeezed before his brother spoke up again.

“I still don’t think you can.” He stated challengingly.

“Well, you can choose to refuse to do your homework and find out. Or, you can finish it up and never have to think about it.” Alyssa stated bluntly.

“we just have to finish it?” Techno asked, his voice smaller than he wanted it to be.

Alyssa looked at him a moment, her eyes seeming to soften at least a bit.

“Its a promise. If you finish it I’ll look it over and that’s that. The homework is its own issue.” She nodded at him.

At least a bit of the knot in his stomach loosened and he looked over at Wilbur. Wil was frowning at him and Techno only returned the look with a firm frown. They held their stares a for a few seconds before Wilbur let out a tensed breath.

“fine” Wil huffed out, looking down at his and Techno’s hands instead of the babysitter.

Techno nodded before returning his gaze to her. She looked at least a little less agitated at least. That wasn’t saying a whole lot, but at least she wasn’t angry at him specifically.

“I’ll be back to check on you and your work.” She stated as she moved to head back down the hall.

She didn’t get far though before Tommy was whining for her attention. He was stood at the side of his pen with his arms up at her.

“Out.” He demanded, no longer seeming to be interested in the tiny screen offered to him.

There was a whine in his voice that Techno scrunched his face at. Tommy was tired and was going to start being very fussy very quickly.

“Not right now, Tommy. Keep playing with your toys and watching your show, okay? I’ll come get you once-” Alyssa started to say before Tommy stomped his foot with a louder whine than before.

Techno opened his mouth to give her a warning, but he felt a nudge on his arm. Looking towards Wilbur Techno was met with a smug sort of grin as he watched Tommy.

“I want out. Techy and Wilby are out! I want out!” Tommy demanded as he start to rattle the side of his pen.

“They have homework to do, little guy.” Alyssa was trying to placate.

“No! Its after ‘homework time’. No homework! Its ‘Toon Time’!” Tommy protested loudly, his face already starting to go red.

Alyssa seemed to know well enough what a tantrum looked like though because she was crossing the room and reaching to pick Tommy up. Tommy, with complaints still on his tongue, allowed himself to be lifted into the air and place on her hip.

“Well, ‘Toon Time’ has to wait a bit, but, how about you help me in the meantime? Okay? You can help me find what your brother’s took and then we can have dinner and play and-” She was rambling on now nodding her heard as if coaxing Tommy to agree by doing so.

It partly worked as Tommy was nodding along with her, but his pout was still in place and he was kicking his feet with annoyance. Still, he didn’t try to wiggling out of her arms and she seemed to be taking that as a win.

She gave a last look at Techno and Wilbur, pointing to her eyes and then to their homework before she carried Tommy out of the room with her. They weren’t even at the boys bedroom yet before Tommy’s complaining voice could be heard.

Techno looked down at his worksheet before glancing around for a pencil. Wilbur nudged his arm and lifted up his own paper.

“If you do my maths I’ll do your spelling.” He offered, wiggling his paper for good measure.

Techno stared at him a moment before answering.

“No thank you. I want it correct, not just finished.”

Wilbur let out an insulted breath at that but Techno was too busy now to care.

X--xx--X

Wilbur isn’t sure how much time passed as he struggled to complete his formerly hidden work. Techno was mostly done with his, but he was distracted. They both were.

Even from where they sat in the living room they could easily hear Tommy’s voice as he kept making demands or complaining to the babysitter. At first it had been funny, but now Wilbur was starting to get a headache from it. Not only that, but at the volume Tommy was yelling at Wil was predicting a very sore throat for tomorrow.

There was the sound of something crashing over and both boys looked up and towards the hall. It was loud and the babysitter had screamed from it as well. A moment later and she was speed walking down the hall, a very red faced Tommy on her hip. She beelined it to the kitchen and to the fridge.

“W-what about apple sauce? That’ll be good for a bit right?” She was asking, but at this point Tommy’s fussing had upgraded to a screaming tantrum and he only sobbed back at her.

Both Wilbur and Techno were covering their ears at the noise, though they looked at each other with a growing concern. Especially when they saw the girl hand Tommy something only for him to instantly toss it to the ground.

“I know your hungry. I know. I’m trying-” She was saying, her voice wavering.

She shifted Tommy on her hip and lifted the phone she had tucked between them back up to her ear. For a moment Wilbur feared she was calling their parents, making good on her threat from before. Thinking that perhaps Tommy had been her last straw.

However, that didn’t seem to be the case as instead after a moment she started to ask something about time and kitchens or something. She was talking fast and so Wilbur couldn’t catch much, but he saw the way her face crumbled before she thanked the other person and hung up.

“O-ok, ok.” She breathed out, reaching into the fridge one more time.

She had one hand on Tommy’s head to keep him steady as she searched. A second later, even though she didn’t hand him anything, Tommy managed to get his hands on something regardless, tossing it to the floor where it shattered.

The babysitter jumped and cussed, closing the fridge door quickly as she looked over the mess. Wilbur looked at Techno at this point, his other brother looking about as alarmed as he himself felt. When he looked back up the girl was doing a sort of hop out of the kitchen and made to swiftly place Tommy into the playpen. Tommy shrieked at this of course but she just rushed away and back towards the kitchen.

She was out of sight quickly, having ducked down to clean up the mess by the sounds of it. At first at least.

After a moment or so there was a thump on the floor paired with a slight rattle of cabinet doors. After that there was a gasping noise that seemed to melt into a sob of its own. Climbing up onto the couch Wilbur peered over it and into the kitchen. He couldn’t see too much with the table in the way, but he could make out the form or the babysitter on the floor and slumped against the cupboard just before the sink.

The knot that had been growing in his stomach as the night wore on tightened greatly now. He looked to Techno who could only stare back, having likewise climbed the couch beside him to investigate. His brother wore a look of guilt far stronger than he’d ever seen before, which for some reason only made Wilbur feel worse.

The two were quiet as they slipped off the couch and shuffled towards the kitchen, for the time being leaving Tommy to jostle the side of his pen in displeasure. From the door they could see the glass that had ‘fallen’. A jam jar.

Right beside the mess and with a towel abandoned beside her leg, was the babysitter. Her face was pressed into her hands as if she was trying to be as quiet as possible. This was the closest Wilbur had ever been to a crying adult before and it felt….really really bad.

She was muttering something under her breath as she gasped it out between her own cries. Wilbur was just a few steps away from her when he picked out the apologies in it. A string of them, warbled out and pleading as she seemed to curl in on herself on the floor.

“a-are you okay?” Wilbur asked weakly.

This drew out another sob from from the girl and she threw her head back hard enough to bump against the cabinet with a fairly firm ‘thump’. Wilbur winced but she didn’t seem to care about it. Her hands were still firmly over her eyes.

“N-no. No I’m not and its only going to get worse and-” She gasped, a sharp hiccup cutting off her next word as she let out a distressed sounding whine, “I j-just needed a few more credits, f-for my class. B-babysitting was the o-only thing left- but now I’m going to get a bad review and my grade wont rise enough to pass for the term and I’ll get kicked out of the course and-”

She gasped heavily as her words failed her here. Wilbur didn’t know if he should try to pat her head or her shoulder like their parents would do with them. He also didn’t know what, if anything, he could say. He didn’t understand what she was talking about, but apparently it was enough to cry over.

When she spoke up next her words were thick as if getting them out was a effort. Given how scrunched and twisted her face was right now that probably was the case. She removed her hands from her face though, but Wilbur really wished she didn’t.

Her eyes were rimmed in red and still filled with hot running tears. She looked, honestly, similar to Tommy about now, only less angry and more grief stricken.

It made his stomach and chest twist and tighten sharply, enough so that he almost wanted to throw up.

“I-I don’t know what do to. I-I can’t feed you, there’s-there’s mess everywhere and your homework isn’t even done yet-” She broke off again, hands coming to scrub at her face, “fuck, i’m going to have to put kids to bed hungry- a baby to bed hungry-”

A thicker sob tore out of her as she shuddered, burying her head in her now drawn up knees.

Wilbur looked back at Techno, who by now was wiping at his own eyes and looking miserable. Wilbur understood entirely. He had wanted her to go, of course, but…he hadn’t meant to make her cry. Without a word Techno turned and ran from the room, hands over his ears as he went. Wilbur bit his lower lip as he turned back to the girl.

Without speaking he moved closer and slowly lowered himself so that he was sitting beside her. It was awkward, but he tried to put a hand on her shoulder, leaning in as well to place his head against said shoulder.

“i’m sorry” He whispered to her.

At first it was soft but it steadily grew until it was about the same volume as her own pleas.

Wilbur didn’t even realize Techno had come back until his brother’s feet were right in his line of sight on the floor. Looking up at the sound of a sniffle Wilbur saw that Techno had returned with a crumpled set of bills in his hand.

The missing money.

Techno was handing it out to the babysitter, who was now staring at it like it was the saddest prize in the world. Techno’s mouth opened a time or two before he instead brought a tiny fist up to his chest and moved it in a circle. He kept doing it, stopping only when he needed to wipe his face. The sign for 'sorry'.

The babysitter carefully took Techno by the arm and pulled him close to her and into a hug. She moved one arm to be around Wilbur as well as she cried into the both of them.

X-X

The girl is quick to try and pull herself back together, ushering the boys out of the kitchen so she could clean up the glass.

While she focused on that Wilbur turned his attention onto Tommy. He was still screaming, but it was more broken up now as he needed to take in more air. Wilbur stood at the side of the playpen and ran his hand through Tommy’s hair as he hummed out songs for him.

It wasn’t going to stop the tantrum, but it would calm Tommy enough that something else might. It was steadily getting him to lessen his cries so that was good. Techno was nearby and trying to help Wilbur, but so far had only really delivered a few of Tommy’s favorite toys from both his and their rooms.

By the time the babysitter was done cleaning the glass and residual jam mess Tommy was reduced to teary hiccups and a few whines. In the end it hadn’t been the singing that helped, but Techno reading some of Tommy’s baby books at him.

The babysitter, Alyssa Techno had said her name was, had tried making a few more calls before coming over to them. The look on her face was sad and still a bit distressed. She knelt down to be more on their level.

“So…there aren’t any food places that are taking more delivery orders right now. The only pizza place around says anything they make is going to be at least two hours at best.” She explained.

“we can have mom’s pot pie though.” Techno stated softly as he bit at his lip.

Alyssa give him, if possible, a sadder look.

“I don’t know where it is. Its not in the fridge-”

Wilbur stood up as she was speaking and headed for the kitchen. She didn’t say anything, but he could feel eyes on him. It only made him feel more sheepish as he moved to the sink and opened the cabinet doors.

There it sat.

Porcelain dish with the tin cover sat between the extra stacked cleaning supplies and the weird wiggly pipe leading to the sink proper.

Carefully Wilbur took it out and placed it gently on the counter. When he turned around Alyssa was behind him. He didn’t look at her face, staring instead at the floor as he anxiously chewed his lip and picked at his sleeve.

She waked over to him and offered a gentle pat on the shoulder before sending him back into the living room.

He was honestly expecting something like a scolding, but he wasn’t going to argue over not getting one.

x-x

The night was a strange sort of blur for Wilbur after that. He and Techno took turns entertaining Tommy until they ate. Tommy was quick to fall asleep after that, needing only a bit of rocking and humming from Alyssa. Wilbur and Techno shared the clean up after dinner while their brother was being put down, taking extra care to do it right and not drop anything.

Wilbur walked around and reconnected the electronics in the house, returned the batteries and even sat down and allowed Alyssa to help correct his homework. He even listened when she asked he take a bath before bed, no fuss, fighting or even a sour face at the request.

Both boys were in their pjs and Alyssa was just about to send them off to bed when the door to the house opened.

“Heeeeey.” Kristin greeted as she walked around the corner of the hallway, shoes only barely slipped off.

Her smile was bright and only grew as Techno and Wilbur ran up to her for a hug.

“You’re home early. I hope everything went okay?” Alyssa questioned as she looked between both parents.

“Its was fine. Great in fact.” Phil answered as he slid off his coat, “Just, bit of parental anxiety kicked in. We figured it wouldn’t hurt to end it a bit early, just in case.”

“Especially with how hard Tommy can be to put down sometimes. We didn’t want to stress you out too much on your first watch.” Kristin added.

It was said with a joking laugh, but the look on both parents faces as they looked over their kids was enough to show it was serious too.

“She got Tommy to go to bed really easy. He barely cried at all.” Wilbur blurted out, Techno nodding rapidly beside him, “She even got Tommy to take a bath and everything without screaming. And she fixed when the toilet overflowed, and then when Tommy broke the jam out of the fridge-”

“Whoooa, whoa, whoa. That’s…a lot.” Kristin looked up at Alyssa who looked just as stunned as she was, “It sounds like tonight was…eventful?”

It took a second for Alyssa to nod her head, a smile growing as she did so.

“A bit. Just a few things really.” She replied simply.

“Well, I hope you all behaved yourselves then at least.” Kristin said as she glanced over the boys again.

Techno looked at Wilbur and Wilbur tried not to look guilty.

“Nothing seems to have been on fire at least. Its already better than I was fearing.” Phil smiled as he looked to the boys, “So, what was for dinner then?”

It was said teasingly once more, but both boys looked a bit shamed for it.

“pot pie.” Wilbur answered lowly before he started to ramble, “But, that’s because the pizza place was busy. She tried to call all over but it wasn’t working so we had the pie cus Tommy was hungry and I maybe hid my homework for a while, but-”

“A mild timing issue with ordering. But, the pot pie was delicious so no losses here.” Alyssa assured, her smile brighter than before, “The boys even helped clean up after. It was nice.”

“Really?” Kristin asked as she sent her two sons a teasing look, “I’ll have to have them help clean up after dinner more often then. If it works so well.”

“And the homework?” Phil asked, eyeing Wilbur with a ‘are we going to have to talk about this’ sort of look.

“All finished and checked over.” Alyssa nodded, “Just the usual ‘can’t do what can’t be found’ sort of hide-and-seek is all. Most kids try to get away with that with babysitters.”

Phil nodded with a hum and Wilbur fidgeted in place.

“So, I know you’re in collage, but if you find the time would you be interested in watching the boys again then? It sounds like you all got along.” Kristin asked with a bit of hope in her voice.

Wilbur, Techno and Alyssa all looked at each other, the boys fidgeting for good measure. It seemed to last forever before a smile returned to Alyssa’s face.

“I think I could do that.” She nodded and extended a hand towards the older Watsons.

Wilbur wasn’t even faking the smile that found itself on his face as they all shook on it.

Chapter Text

Techno never liked going home alone on the bus. However, today he realized he hated it far more when he wasn’t alone but was being essentially ignored.

Currently Techno was sat by himself on a seat just opposite his brother, who was in their usual spot. However, the person in Techno’s usual spot, was a stranger. Or, at least to Techno he was a stranger. Wilbur had talked about the kid before, but he was only just the ‘classmate of Wilbur’s’.

Today he was upgrade to ‘spot thief’.

Wilbur didn’t seem to see a problem here, but that was probably because he hadn’t stopped rambling since the two of them had sat down. The pair had not only exiled him to another seat but then had all but forgotten about him. He couldn’t even try to join in because…well…they were talking really, really fast. Or, at least faster than Techno could keep up with.

Not that he wanted to talked to this other kid anyway.

But he did want to talk to his brother. Especially since they were missing the bus jumps. He was big enough by now to play it by himself if he wanted to but…It was always more fun with Wilbur. What was the point without him?

Techno let out a huff as he looked over at the two once more. They were laughing and Techno wasn’t currently sure who it was that had set them off. Not that it mattered. Knowing who made who laugh wouldn’t make Techno any more included.

Techno wanted to be happy that Wilbur finally made a friend since it seemed like a big deal to his parents, but…they didn’t feel right.

In fact, when Techno had been introduced to him just before getting on the bus he couldn’t help but feel like the kid was…not a good kid. He didn’t know how to say it or, explained it but…Techno didn’t like this ‘Schlatt’ kid, and he had a feeling the kid didn’t like him either.

Wilbur was all too happy with him though. He was bubbling over with energy to where his hands and feet were constantly in motion as he talked, like he wasn’t sure what to do with them. The other kid wasn’t nearly as energetic, but he was smiling wide at Wilbur as they talked at least.

As far as Techno could tell.

From across the bus aisle.

Letting out a deep sigh Techno turned to look out his window, leaning his head on the glass a bit. It wasn’t a good idea though as not but a minute or so later the bus shook and his forehead banged audibly against it. He pulled away with a small whine as he rubbed where he’d been struck. He could hear laughter behind him but he chose not to look up.

It was one of those laughs that made him feel sick inside.

X-x-X

The bus ride had been horrible, as was the walk from the bus stop to the house. Wilbur had barely spoken to him since school ended and now he’d started to ramble to their father and his friend both. So now Techno was stuck just, walking alongside their father, holding his hand even, and not being able to talk to him either.

If this was how Wilbur was going to be when he made new friends then…then Techno didn’t want him to make any! It wasn’t fair! Techno and Wilbur were brothers! That means he should be able to talk to Wilbur first, and this ‘friend’ of his had to wait his turn!

“Hey, mate. Something wrong?”

Techno looked up at their father’s concerned voice and was met with a furrowed brow of confusion with his worried gaze. He gave Techno’s hand a squeeze and Techno realized he’d been holding on kind of hard. He tried to relax his hand, but…he didn’t to.

Squeezing back just as hard Techno bit his lip but shook his head. Wilbur and his friend had run on ahead to the door, but…Techno didn’t want to say anything about it. He…he knew he was being selfish with his thoughts he just…he didn’t like this new kid. He didn’t like Wilbur ignoring him.

“You sure? You look upset, Tech.”

Techno shook his head again as he looked to the ground and kept walking. He didn’t want to admit to what he’d been thinking. He didn’t want his father to know he was thinking mean thoughts about Wilbur’s new friend.

There was quiet between them a moment before their father squeezed his hand again.

“Ok, you don’t have to say anything. But just know that if you need you, you can talk to me or your mum about anything. Its okay to need to if you’re having a hard time.”

Techno nodded his head but kept his words to himself. Even if he wanted to he didn’t think he could pull a word out of himself right now.

By the time they made it into the house proper Wilbur and his friend were already out of sight. Techno could hear them and could rightfully assume they had taken over their shared bedroom. The same as he and Dream did when he came over.

With a sigh Techno moved to set up at his usual spot at the kitchen table for homework. He wasn’t in a rush to be near the two again after all. Especially when they were being so loud. Much more so than when they were on the bus.

Techno hoped it wouldn’t be enough to wake Tommy from his nap.

X-X

The homework had been easy and before Techno knew it he had finished it all, even the extra worksheet. He was looking down into his pudding cup with a sigh, pushing around the chunks of banana inside it. Normally he loved this snack, but…he didn’t feel particularly hungry right now. All he could think about was how loud Wilbur and his friend were playing while he sat at the table alone.

Their father had given the two a few warnings, but they never lasted long. In fact, the longest silence there had been was when Wilbur had come out to fetch snacks for the two of them. He’d barely given Techno a word or two in passing before grabbing a handful of snacks and rushing back into the room.

Not only was it against the rules to have snacks in the room, but they weren’t allowed that many either. Techno was sure Wil had grabbed a few of his ‘for school snack’ gummies as well! He’d have called him out on it but…

Techno sighed as he kicked his feet in frustration.

He had gotten better as speaking with Dream but, this wasn’t Dream. This was a stranger in his home and he couldn’t get his voice to work how he wanted it to. The few words he’d managed to get out were soft and to their father only. He just…couldn’t get anything else out.

Taking another deep breath Techno decided to check on Tommy.

Putting his remaining snack back into the fridge for later Techno shuffled over to the playpen where Tommy took his midday naps. The small blond was still out cold and snoring lightly as he drooled on his fist that was partly in his mouth.

Techno grinned at the sight. Tommy was messy even in his sleep, but he was adorable too. Though…with him still being asleep that meant Techno was still on his own. He didn’t want to wake Tommy up after all. Babies needed their sleep in order to grow.

Turning to the TV with a sigh Techno dragged his feet to the coffee table to grab the remote. He knew there wouldn’t be anything good on for a while. But…it was all he had right now. He could go just, grab a book or something, but…then he’d have to go into the room where Wil and his friend was.

…

He was fine just watching something random until Tommy woke up. It shouldn’t be to long. Tommy usually woke up only a bit after he and Wil got home after all. Usually at least.

Techno looked to the crib as a cartoon far to young for him popped on the TV screen. Tommy looked firmly in slumber despite the sounds from the toon playing. One that Techno knew Tommy enjoyed even. With a deepening frown and a breath of acceptance Techno moved to situate himself on the couch.

He tried to ignore the shouts from his and Wil’s bedroom, only glancing at Tommy to be sure he wasn’t woken by them.

X-X

Techno doesn’t know how long it was that he sat before the TV, but it must have been long enough because he’d started to nod off to it. The only reason he woke up was because he heard the approach of two sets of feet. They weren’t heavy enough to be their father’s but they were loud all the same.

It made him tense and he instinctively sat up a bit straighter, shaking the lingering sleep off him.

“What the hell is this?” Wilbur’s friend asked, Schlatt once more cussing as if it were perfectly normal to do.

Techno swallowed hard as he tried to set a frown on his face. It was supposed to be disapproving, but the moment he landed his eyes on the other boy he shrank back. Schlatt had his nose wrinkled up as the dancing cartoon animals continued singing on about colors or something. They were blissfully unaware of the judgement being thrown their way and Techno envied them that.

His own chest stuttered a moment as he tried to find a reply. To say it was just until Tommy woke up.

“Dude, who learns colors this way? I can feel myself getting dumber. This is actively destroying the colors I know. “ Schlatt continued to tease.

Techno couldn’t even open his mouth, especially as Wilbur started to laugh along with him. Normally Wilbur’s laugh made him laugh at how cackle-y it got. But…right now it just made his insides squirm.

“Bet you know all the characters don’t you?” Schlatt asked as he shifted his grinning , judge-y eyes over to Techno.

“Its Tommy’s favorite show, of course we know them. We can barely get him to let us watch something else.” Wilbur laughed as he pointed over to where Tommy was still sleeping.

“He seems pretty out of it right now.” Schlatt stated as he flicked his gaze between Wilbur and Techno both, “Looks like there are two ‘Zoo Kazoo Scouts’ in here. Where’s your badge at? Or do you keep that with the whole ‘Zebra Uniform’ or whatever?”

Techno felt his chest tighten as his hands shook. The more the other spoke the more sour he seemed. Wilbur just continued to laugh though and…and not help him. Wilbur didn’t say anything to the other even as Techno continued to struggle to get any sort of reply out.

All the noise was cut into by a sudden upset whine from the playpen.

Wilbur turned to look at it while Schlatt only moved closer to Techno, reaching for the remote beside him. Techno didn’t try to fight for it, but slid off the couch quickly. He went around the back of it and headed for the hallway as quick as he could without running.

“Hey, Tech, let dad know Tommy is awake. He’s going to cry.” Wilbur called after him.

Techno didn’t look back as he darted down the hallway.

X-x-X

Wilbur bounced on his heels as he waved Schlatt off, not stopping until his mother had driven out of sight. He was still thrilled that the other had agreed to come to his house today even though the visit was over now. He’d been asking for a while and finally Schlatt had said yes.

Schlatt was one of the cooler kids in the school, funny and bold and willing to talk to Wilbur even when most of his class didn’t. Wilbur didn’t even mind that he wasn’t allowed to use Schlatt’s first name yet. He was told once they were ‘better friends’ then it would be fine.

‘When’, not ‘if’.

Wilbur couldn’t keep the smile off his face.

It felt ages since he had a friend that understood him and his humor. Schlatt not only ‘got’ his humor, but made it better. He even told Wilbur he’d teach him how to be cool! The two of them would be unstoppable one day.

Though, before that he had other things to worry about. Like getting his homework done before dinner. He and Schlatt were supposed to have done it earlier but, well, why was he going to waste time in their first ever hang out by doing stupid school work? He just, needed to rush it now to get it out of the way.

He’d worry about it being correct tomorrow or something.

X-X

Homework took forever it felt like, but he’d managed to get it done. He was pretty sure it was at least half right too. Which would be great because he had just randomly circled a lot of it. That would be something he’d figure out tomorrow though. Shoving it back into his school bag he tossed it towards the corner he usually put it in for the next day.

Now that that was out of the way he and Techno could play something while their father got dinner ready. He could see the timer on the oven still read an hour so he knew they had time. Plenty, in fact. He just…needed to find out where Techno had gone off to.

He wasn’t playing with Tommy in the living room where Wil thought he’d be. The small blond was currently awake and well occupied with his sippy cup and an old coloring book he was scribbling away in. Honestly Wil was surprised Tommy wasn’t fussing at any of them, but he wasn’t going to offer the temptation.

Turning away from the room Wil started down the hall. If Techno wasn’t playing with Tommy then he was probably reading or something. He had been pretty quiet today after school so he most likely was enjoying the alone time.

Wil hoped he’d had enough of that though. He wanted to play a board game with the rules Schlatt had made up earlier. Techno hadn’t come in to join them after he’d done his own homework earlier so Wil would have to teach him what to do.

Pushing the door open Wil’s brow furrowed at the sight of the empty ‘reading corner’. Or rather, the cushion and blanket their mother had set up for Techno on his side of the room so he could read somewhere more comfortable. It was better than just reading on the bare floor.

Stepping further into the room Wil was met with even more confusion as he saw Techno was bundled up on his bed. By the sound of it he was sleeping but…it was far too early for that.

Without wasting a second Wilbur crossed over the room and pulled himself up onto Techno’s bed. He wore a grin as he got ready to shake the mattress near his brother’s head to spook him, but stopped short.

Wilbur’s grin quickly left him as he noted the puffiness of Techno’s eyes and the red splotchy marks down his cheeks.

Had Techno been crying?

Why?

He’d been fine earlier and he hadn’t heard anything to say he got hurt or, something like that.

Placing a hand on Techno’s shoulder Wilbur gave him a careful shake. It took a try or two before Techno squinted open his eyes with a grumble.

“hey, tech. are you feeling okay?” Wilbur asked as he backed up to give Techno room to sit properly.

Techno didn’t reply as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. And then continued not to reply even when he was done. Techno was pushing his comforter off himself but wasn’t looking at Wilbur in the slightest.

“Techno?” Wilbur asked a bit louder but to no avail.

Techno just, crawled around him and scooted off the side of the bed. He was a bit sluggish having only just woke up but he still had enough focus to make sure not to look up at Wilbur at all. Wil frowned as he watched his brother move towards the door.

“Techno!” He called out once more, this time with a bit of annoyance.

Techno didn’t even flinch as he walked through their door.

What was Techno mad at him for now? He didn’t even do anything!

With a huff Wilbur scowled and made to follow after Techno further. He made it to the door, watching as the bathroom one closed not seconds after with a bit of a snap.

“Tech-” Wil started to call out again, but was cut off by their father.

“Wilbur, there you are. I need you to watch Tommy for a bit. He’s starting to fuss but I can’t leave the stove right now.” Phil called from the kitchen doorway, his head just barely peeking out of it as he glanced back to said appliance most likely.

“But-”

“Please, Wil? Just, sit with him until dinner is ready.” Phil cut him off again, this time vanishing out of sight and ending the conversation just like that.

With a more frustrated sigh Wilbur stared at the bathroom door as he passed it heading towards the living room. The second he came in sight of Tommy the toddler was pushing himself onto his feet, a wrinkled and torn paper in his hand.

“Wilby! Come fix it!” Tommy demanded with upset in his voice as his lower lip quivered.

X-X

Dinner had been awkward as Techno had chosen to remain silent through out it. He offered signed responses to their parents but he ignored anything Wilbur said. He had hoped their parents would say something to Techno for it, but they totally just ignored it! It wasn’t fair. If he had been the one to ignore Techno Wil would have gotten in in trouble.

He still didn’t even know what he to get Techno mad at him!

After dinner Techno occupied himself with Tommy mostly which left Wilbur no one to play but with himself. He tried to join in at one point, but it had gotten frustrating fast with Techno just, not responding. Wil spent his forced alone time with his ukulele, but with how distracted he was he barely got his normal chords out correctly.

It really was a crappy way to end the day after it had gone so well earlier.

When it was time for bed Wilbur waited in his own, tucked in and everything, for Techno to be brought in by one of their parents. He didn’t say anything as his brother was settled in for sleep and gave the usual ‘good night’ call as their bedroom door was mostly closed.

Wilbur waited until the footsteps retreated from the door before he sat up and stared towards Techno’s bed.

“hey, techno.” He called out softly into the mostly dimmed room.

The nightlight was giving off its usual pale glow from the table between their beds. It was just bright enough for Wilbur to make out Techno in his bed, his back facing Wil. Techno only faced the wall when he was upset.

“...goodnight then, i guess.” Wil trailed off but not moving as he waited for a reply.

Even when mad they at least said ‘good night’ to each other.

When he was met with silence Wilbur’s brow furrowed, a pit forming in his stomach.

“Goodnight, Techno.” He said a bit louder, in case he just hadn’t been heard.

When he once more was left to sit in the silence of the room he let out a annoyed huff. Dipping back down into his covers he hugged Jubilee to his chest and tried to keep his lip from trembling. He didn’t know if he was mad or sad or something else, but he didn’t feel good at all. It was like his heart itself had been pinched.

Whatever had happened, Wil hoped that Techno would be feeling better tomorrow about it.

X-x-x-X

In the following days Wilbur tried everything he could think of to get Techno to talk to him. Aside from a few mandatory responses, generally prompted by their parents, Techno held his silence. It was the longest Techno had ever been mad at him before and it was starting to both scare Wil as well as make him angry himself.

It didn’t help that when he tried to pester the information out of his brother his parents insisted Wilbur ‘give him space’. It had been days, how much ‘space’ did Techno need?

What did he even do to deserve this?

How was he supposed to make it better if Techno didn’t talk to him or tell him what was wrong?

It wasn’t fair!

It also wasn’t fair that Techno kept taking Tommy to play with, or read to, and leaving Wil all by himself! Which is what he was dealing with right now. Sitting alone in the living room as he glared at the off TV screen.

He’d lost TV privileges recently, but that was another story.

“Hey, Wil. What’s up mate?” Their father asked as Wilbur let out a frustrated huff on the couch.

Their father was working at the computer right now so he had essentially front row seats to Wilbur’s current displeasure. Wil had debated interrupting him for help with Techno, but now it didn’t look like he had to.

“Techno isn’t talking to me.” He stated bluntly as he sunk deeper into the couch cushion as if he were trying to be swallowed by it.

“Yea, me and your mother noticed that.” The man replied as he turned to fully face his eldest son.

“And you didn’t say anything?!” Wilbur huffed out with exasperation as he tossed his hands in the air lazily for good measure.

“We were waiting to see if you two would resolve it, or come to one of us about it.” Their father replied with a small shrug, “We were going to give it another day at most.”

Wilbur whined out another breath as he kicked his feet against the couch.

“You could have helped me.”

“You could have asked.” The man countered before Wil could get another complaint out, “When you need help with something you need to let us know. We wont always be able to notice and when that happens you need to be able to understand when to come to us.”

Wilbur chewed on the inside of his lower lip as he forced himself to nod. Though, not without adding an eye roll to it. His father didn’t scold him exactly, but he was given a look and Wil sat up a bit straighter.

“So, you want to start with what happened?”

Wil’s scowl returned and he kicked his legs again, fighting the urge to flop back against the couch.

“i don’t know.” Wil answered in a mutter under his breath.

“I’m sorry?” Their father asked, tilting his head as he leaned in closer.

“I said ‘I don’t know’.” Wilbur huffed out once more, arms flopping against the couch as he slouched down yet again.

“Don’t give me attitude, Wil. I’m trying to help.” The man warned lightly, “Something clearly happened though. For him to hold onto it for so long.”

“I don’t know what though! He wont talk to me so I can’t even ask him. And I’ve tried asking him. He just-” Wilbur cut off a moment as he raised a hand in the air only to let it dead drop back to his side, “-just looks right passed me, or, or he looks at something else.”

“Well…that would certainly make it harder.” Their father nodded taking in a deeper breath as he thought it over, “And you have no idea yourself?”

Wilbur shook his head adamantly with a deeper frown.

“If I did I would have apologized by now.” Wilbur muttered as he crossed his arms, kicking his legs once more for good measure.

Their father nodded once more, giving a low hum as he thought it over. Wil couldn’t tell if his father believed him or not, but he didn’t know what else to say to convince him if he didn’t.

“Tell you what, I’ll talk to Techno about it myself. You keep an eye on Tommy and an ear out for your mother.” The man said as he stood from his chair, “She forgot her key so you need to let her in when she gets to the door. Okay?”

Wilbur nodded but kept the practical grimace on his face. Not that he didn’t want to spend time with Tommy, but he didn’t feel up to entertaining the toddler right now. However, if that was the price to pay for getting Techno and himself back on good terms then he would do it.

Maybe playing with Tommy would make him feel better in the meantime.

X-X

Phil placed a reassuring hand on Wilbur’s shoulder as they walked down the hall towards Tommy’s room. Techno had been spending most of his time in there the last couple days in order to avoid Wilbur and Phil didn’t think today had been any different so far.

He had been hoping Kristin would be home for this particular part as she was actually skilled in the whole ‘child mediation’ thing. She certainly had the more delicate hand for it at the very least. Now, it wasn’t like Phil didn’t know how to handle the kids fighting and all, he’d stepped in and handled it many times before. This time, however, it seemed like a big one and he didn’t want to risk doing it wrong and having it go on even longer.

But, he was not only a grown man, but their father as well. He would handle this and help them to work through it. As soon as he figured out what ‘this’ was.

At first he and his wife had assumed it was just a spat between siblings. Something usual and just a part of growing up. After the second day of Techno’s silence, however, they began to think otherwise. They couldn’t just ‘helicopter in’ to fix it, apparently, even if they were worried. According to his wife this in itself would be a lesson for the boys to learn when to come to them with a problem.

While Phil logically understood the idea of it, he had honestly been worrying over their choice. It was hard to watch the two at odds like this. He also didn’t like the idea of just, waiting around without giving any sort of…direction. He wanted his kids to know they could, and should, come to them for anything.

Just sitting around until they made that choice had been hard. He didn’t think he’d gotten much work done in the last few days as he’d been waiting on one of them to come up to him.

If his wife asked then that is what happened too. He didn’t need to admit to nudging a little at the end at the sound of Wilbur’s frustrated huffing. That would just be his little secret.

“Okay, wait here Wil. I’ll bring Techno out to talk to while you watch over Tommy.” Phil directed as they stood outside Tommy’s bedroom door.

It was closed and inside he could just make out Techno’s voice. He was probably reading to Tommy, one of his new favorite pass times now that Tommy had more of an attention span. For a three year old.

Wilbur nodded his head, his face still set in an anxious frown.

“It’ll be fine, Wil. We’ll get this sorted out. I promise.” Phil tried to assure with another pat to his son’s shoulder.

He just hoped he could make good on that promise.

Taking a silent breath Phil gave a short knock on the door before pushing it open. Techno was looking up at him expectantly from his place on the floor while Tommy sat before his brother and was pulling at the book he held.

“Hey, Tech. Sorry to interrupt, but I need to talk with you.” Phil said with a soft tone so he wouldn’t accidentally put Techno on edge.

The look on Techno’s face fell regardless as he furrowed his brow.

“What about Tommy?” He asked as he easily moved his baby brother’s hands off his book without even looking.

“I’m going to have Wil sit with him. Wont be for long, I promise.” Phil assured with a smile.

Techno frowned further at that, accidentally mirroring the one Wilbur had been wearing just earlier. If it weren’t for the three year gap the two could practically be twins.

Techno didn’t even look towards Wilbur, even as Phil stepped aside so he could enter the room. Instead Techno just looked down at his book as he closed it with a snap, ruffled Tommy’s hair with one hand and promised to be back soon to finish the story. When he stood up and headed towards the door he kept his eyes dead ahead of him and rendering Wilbur invisible to him.

For an eight year old with attention difficulties it was both impressive and concerning.

It most certainly hurt Wilbur.

Phil tossed Wil what he hoped was a comforting look before closing the after he and Techno. He didn’t even have to motion in a direction before Techno was pushing the door to their shared bedroom open and heading to his own bed. Phil, of course, followed behind. The only time he and his wife dictated ‘talking’ locations was when the boys were in trouble. Every other time they allowed the boys to choose if they wanted to. If this was where Techno wanted to be than he would happily comply.

Situating himself on his bed Techno traded out his book for TechnoPig swiftly before getting fully comfortable, pig in lap.

Techno already looked like he was in for a talking to which had Phil briefly wondering what his son thought this was about. He didn’t have time to indulge the thought though as he place himself beside the boy.

“Do you want me to ask you what is going on with you and your brother, or do you want to tell me?” Phil started with, hoping the choice would coax his son into volunteering the info instead of him having to pry for it.

Something he hoped to not have to really do until at least their teenage years.

Techno’s lower lip dipped deeper into his frown and his brow furrowed with some measure of anger as he seemed to think it over. With a huff Techno opened his mouth to speak but only a stammer set of syllables came out. This didn’t deter him though and Techno took in another breath to try again, the effort filling Phil with pride in his son.

“I don’ like ‘im.” Techno managed to get out, only a few letters failing to form fully.

“Don’t like who? Wilbur?” Phil asked with a confused tilt of his head.

Techno chewed on his lip a moment as he shook his head, though it was a stuttered move, as if he had to consider the truth of his reply.

“I don’t like Wil’s friend.” Techno specified, his pout overtaking the angry look he’d been wearing, “I don’t like when he comes over. It wasn’t fun at all.”

Phil nodded his head at Techno's answer. He couldn’t say he was particularly fond of this new friend of Wil’s either. The kid didn’t seem bad exactly, but Phil had had a time trying to keep the two of them quiet while Tommy had been napping. He also couldn’t help but notice the kid had a particularly ‘grown up’ vocabulary. He knew Wilbur knew better than to speak that way himself, but he couldn’t help but worry about the influence it might have.

Still, Wilbur had made a friend. Something that had been hard on him since his former best friend Maxi had moved away less than a year ago now. Phil didn’t have to like Wilbur’s friends, he just had to make sure they were safe for him.

Now, he just needed to explain that to Techno in a way he might understand it.

“I know Wil’s friend was a bit…loud, but-”

“He wasn’t just loud. He was mean.” Techno complained as his lower lip trembled a moment, “He was mean and I don’t like him. I don’t want to see him again.”

Well, that wasn’t the greatest thing to hear. He hadn’t seen proof of it himself, but he knew Techno disliked lying. When not prompted to by his brother anyway.

Wilbur himself had been ecstatic the entire time that Schlatt kid had been over. In fact, Phil hadn’t seen Wil so thrilled in a while. Knowing how protective Wilbur was of his siblings Phil doubted he would allow this other kid to be mean to them. Perhaps it was a misunderstanding or something?

Nodding his head lightly Phil let out a deep breath as he tried to pull the rights words together. Or the right idea for that matter. Wilbur making his own friends was a great thing and an important step in learning who he should and shouldn’t hang out with on his own. However, Techno’s accusation wasn’t exactly something he could ignore. If the kid Wil chose wasn’t friendly with all of his kids while visiting then…well then Phil would have to talk to Wilbur about the company he chose to keep. To explain the importance of healthy friend circles in regards to himself and his family.

Phil really wished his wife was here for this. He felt just a bit outside of his depth, just enough to make him worry about his next words.

“I understand not wanting to see someone who was mean to you again. Its totally valid to feel that way. But, you can’t punish Wilbur for something his friend did.” Phil tried to start with.

Techno frowned deeper as he stared as his swinging feet against the bedside.

“But-”

“What if Wil demanded that we don’t let Dream over again? Wouldn’t that make you sad?”

Techno’s face scrunched up a moment before he looked up to Phil with a confused sort of frustration.

“But, Dream doesn’t do anything wrong!” He tried to reason.

“But you remember how much Wil didn’t want him to come over before? Called him ‘mean’ and a ‘liar’? What if we had listened to him because they hadn’t gotten along at first?” Phil tried his best to explain, “If we had kept Dream away like Wilbur wanted then you two wouldn’t have become friends.”

Techno’s gaze fell once more to his feet as he kicked them harder against the bed.

“I know you don’t care for-” Phil drew a blank as he tried to recall the kids first name, “Schlatt right now. But, over time maybe you might? It could just be that you don’t know each other well enough yet.”

Techno didn’t seem to like nor agree with that answer.

“Or, maybe you just, wont get along. You don’t need to like everyone Wil chooses to be friends with. Some people just, don’t get on well together. But, forcing Wilbur to end his friendship with him just because you don’t like him isn’t fair.” Phil said as he reached out to brush some hair from his sons face, “If the kid turns out to be bad news though, then me and your mother will handle it. That’s the rule.”

Techno refused to look up as he gave TechnoPig a tighter hug.

“If Schlatt really isn’t a nice person, or safe, then we wont allow him here anymore. But Wil deserves the same chance to make friends that you have.” Phil stated softer than before as he tried to coax Techno to look at him again, “Isn’t that only fair?”

Techno didn’t look happy, but he nodded his head in agreement.

“Now, don’t you think you’ve punished your brother enough?” Phil asked as well, this time getting a huffier breath from the small boy.

“i guess” Techno admitted in a small voice.

Phil chuckled as he gave Techno’s hair a slight a ruffle.

“If in the future something happens, instead taking it out on Wilbur you should try to talk to him about it. Or me and your mother. Otherwise we wont be able to solve anything, will we?” Phil asked as he leaned closer to Techno to pull him into a side hug.

“okay” Techno agreed, though just as before he didn’t seem happy about it.

“Okay. I’m counting on you.” Phil stated with another squeezed side hug before he let the other go, “Now, lets go see what your brothers are up to.”

Techno nodded as he shuffled forward enough to slip off the bed and onto his feet. He kept TechnoPig in his arms but he was at least willing to follow along.

Phil lead them back into Tommy’s room, opening the door to the sight of Tommy in what looked like a nest of blankets and stuffed animals while Wilbur was wrapped around his back like a koala bear. Tommy was happily chewing on Wilbur’s fingers while Wil himself was reading one of the many nursery books in the room.

Tommy had technically stopped teething roughly a month ago, but for some reason he still insisted on chewing on Wilbur’s hands when they were together. For now Phil and Kristin were letting it go as simple ’brotherly bonding’, and also just not telling Wilbur about it. If it kept on after another few months then they might put an end to it, but for now it was harmless.

Also, Wilbur seemed to be less bothered by the spittle now. Though that might be because Tommy wasn’t drooling as much.

“Hey Wil.” Phil greeted, gaining his oldest sons attention.

Tommy smiled up at his entrance but didn’t spit out his brothers fingers. Instead he just mumbled a muffled greeting around them.

“Hello to you too, Tommy.” Phil laughed.

“Are you two done?” Wilbur asked, worry in his voice that he tried not to show.

“For the most part.” Phil nodded before looking down to Techno and motioning him forwards.

Techno was looking mostly at the ground before he started to walk forwards. He didn’t say anything as he moved to his brothers’ sides and sat before the pile of blankets.

“you have to do the voices for the piggies. tommy likes the voices.” Techno stated as he poked at TechnoPigs nose.

“...what kind of voices?” Wilbur asked as he flipped the book around for Techno to read the page.

Techno pointed to the pictures and started to explain the different pitches each Pig should have and Wilbur nodded his head along. There was a tentative smile on his face but he seemed relieved enough with the soft chattering. Phil let out a quiet breath as he watched on a minute or two longer. It wasn’t perfect, but they were talking again. Hopefully it wouldn’t take much for them to be back the way they were.

He trusted they would bounce back of course. The boys were too close to let something like this between them for long. But goodness, Phil hoped that this would be enough to teach them to seek out help sooner next time.

X-x-X-x-X

It was barely a week later and Techno was mad. Big mad. Probably the biggest mad he’d ever been. He was scribbling hard at his worksheet as sounds of obnoxiously loud laughter came from his and Wil’s room.

Schlatt.

He was back in his house and in his room and with his brother.

Wilbur had insisted that Schlatt needed to come over for something with school, but like last time the two had instantly gone into the bedroom instead. Techno only didn’t mind this because it meant he could do his own work without the two of them distracting him.

Or that had been the thought.

He couldn’t focus though. Not with them being so loud. And not with thinking about how rude the other had been on the bus earlier. Techno had been able to get to his own spot first and was all set to refuse to budge but then- then Wilbur had just moved seats.

Wilbur had chosen to sit with Schlatt two seats down from him!

Techno couldn’t even see his brother from that far away!

He could hear them though. Loud and clear, just like now. Laughing at jokes Techno didn’t understand and ignoring the fact that he was even there to begin with. Wilbur had barely waited for Techno to get off the bus earlier before starting to walk towards the house with the other!

A tearing sound startled Techno out of his head and he looked at his paper. The tip of his pencil had gone right through the page. It was a small tear so…some tape should fix it but-

Looking up from the table Techno tried to see where their mother had gone off to. Off taking care of Tommy but Techno couldn’t hear anything over the rowdy cackles and shouts that came down the hallway.

Their dad wasn’t home at the moment and Techno hadn’t heard his mother speak to the two yet. At least, not since she’d had to shout after them about running down the hallway.

Techno could try to tape it himself but, he couldn’t get the tape off the thing right. Usually ending up tangling it in some way. He would just…have to finish the worksheet and worry about that one later. His answer was…technically written in anyway.

Techno kicked his feet angrily as he moved on. He was almost done and he wanted to finish so he could go looking for his mother and Tommy.

So focused on that thought was he that Techno didn’t hear the footfalls down the hall until someone appeared in the kitchen doorway causing him to look up instinctively. Instead of being Wilbur, like the last time, it was Schlatt himself. Techno frowned and returned to his paper.

Schlatt didn’t even bother greeting Techno as he moved into the room. Techno furrowed a brow when Wilbur failed to appear behind him. More so when he heard the fridge door open and turned to see Schlatt digging into it without even asking.

“On the middle shelf. And then there’s juice boxes on the door.” Wilbur directed as he finally popped into the room sounding a bit winded.

Schlatt barely acknowledged the directions before pulling three tubed yogurts out as well as a juice box. He turned and stepped to the side allowing Wilbur to poke in after him.

Techno frowned at seeing how much this stranger was taking without any form of permission, however he cast his eyes back to his paper quickly. Schlatt was moving towards the table and Techno wanted nothing to do with him if he could help it. He just, wanted to finish his work and leave.

Though if he were honest he just wanted Schlatt to leave above all else.

“What’s this?” Schlatt asked as he drew up almost to Techno’s side.

His tone was one Techno didn’t like in the slightest. It made his stomach pull in knots and his throat tight.

Still, he tried to think of what his father had said, even if he didn’t like it.

“homework.” Techno answered as he practically etched in another answer.

“Homework? Why are you doing homework already? Its like, still daylight out.” Schlatt snickered as he tore open one of the pilfered snacks, “You some kind of nerd?”

Wilbur laughed from behind Techno and it only made the knot in his stomach grow tighter.

“We always do our homework this early. So we don’t forget.” Wilbur answered at least.

At hearing his brother speak up Techno hoped he would also tell Schlatt that he wasn’t a ‘nerd’ either. He was just following the rules.

“Lame Homework shouldn’t be done when there still time to play around. Its stupid anyway.” Schlatt scoffed and Wil laughed along with him.

More then that, he agreed with him.

Techno held his pencil tight and tried not to press it into the paper as the two older boys walked away. He didn’t want to risk tearing his work up even more.

x-x

Tommy grabbed at Techno’s hand with a giggle as Techno proceeded to ‘run him over’ with the plastic school bus. Techno was feeling better than he had been an hour ago and it was honestly thanks to Tommy. Once they started playing together and being as loud as they wanted it was like Techno could just about forget about Wil and his friend locked away in their room.

Tommy hadn’t been in the mood for stories, but he was more than eager to play with the various cars and dinosaur toys he’d recently been sent by their grandparents.

“Beep beeeeep! The bus is coming back around Tommy! I think it might be going for your head this time!” Techno ‘warned’ as he turned the bus back around over his brothers’ tummy.

Tommy had flopped backwards when he was first ‘run over’ which only made it easier for Techno to drive the vehicle up and over him until it was cruising over Tommy’s forehead. Tommy himself was grinning madly and squealing at the feeling as his hands continued to try to grab onto the toy and claim it. Techno would let him eventually, but for now he was having fun enough turning the tiny tot into a racing track.

“Are you playing with a baby?” A voice asked and instantly Techno’s smile fell and he snapped his mouth shut.

Looking up towards the hallway Techno was met with Schlatt’s disgustingly amused gaze. Wilbur was beside him this time but didn’t look like he was going to say anything.

“Dude, how bored were you?” Schlatt continued to laugh as he walked further into the room, though he seemed to be headed to the tv like last time.

“Its not always about being bored. Tommy is fun to play with.” Wilbur finally started speaking as he followed after Schlatt, “When he’s not being a brat at least.”

At this Tommy let out a huff as he had now pushed himself back up into a sitting position.

“Not a ’bwat’ ,Wilby.” Tommy pouted with a angry brow furrow.

“Kinda sounds like a ‘brat’ thing to say.” Schlatt snickered as he glanced up from looking for the remote.

Wilbur started to laugh which only made Tommy let out frustrated whine.

“Not a bwat!” Tommy started to argue.

However, before he could go on Techno was wrapping his arms around Tommy’s torso and trying to awkwardly lift him to his feet. Managing to get Tommy very precariously lifted onto his hip like his mother had taught him, Techno started to walk the two out of the room and towards the hallway.

X-x

Wilbur watched as Techno and Tommy headed away down the hall. Techno hadn’t looked very…happy. He didn’t understand. They loved to tease Tommy all the time about being a brat. He had thought it would be enough to make Techno laugh.

“So, what do you want to watch? Do you have channel 105? Usually has something good on. Like this robot death battle-” Schlatt started to chatter as he flicked through the channels.

At this point Wilbur could only partially pay attention. It wasn’t that he wasn’t interested. Battling robots sounded super cool, but…

He couldn’t shake Techno’s look off his mind.

…

Wilbur lasted about fifteen or so minutes before he couldn’t help himself. He needed to go check on his brothers. On Techno specifically. He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off with him again.

He found them both in Tommy’s room, which he had basically expected. Techno had been avoiding their own room all day it felt like. Also, there were more things for Tommy to play with in his own room.

Pushing the door open enough to step into Wilbur watched the two. Techno was rolling Tommy back and forth in a blanket cocoon like how their parents did on laundry day. Tommy didn’t seem to notice him yet, but he knew Techno had seen him come in.

There was no pause in the game.

“Tech. Are you okay?” Wilbur asked awkwardly as he shifted feet in place.

Techno didn’t respond, but Tommy tried to turn his head to look at the doorway.

“Wilby-” He started to call out before spitting out a cackled laugh instead as Techno once more rolled him across the floor.

Techno didn’t even glance up at him, but kept a smiling face down their baby brother.

“Techno?” Wil tried again, met with the same lack of acknowledgment as before.

He hated it.

“What did I do now?” He huffed out, not sure if tone would even matter right now as Techno was treating him as if he weren’t there.

“What do you want to play next, Tommy?” Techno asked their brother, who was entirely out of breath and unable to speak over the residual giggles

“Techno, can you please talk to me?” Wilbur pleaded as he took another step into the room.

Techno still didn’t reply, but Tommy seemed to be getting the feeling something was wrong between them. He wasn’t laughing as much and instead was looking between Techno and Wil with a small hint of a frown.

It made Wilbur feel bad to see, but he didn’t know what to do about it.

“Did you seriously just ditch me to come play in the toddlers room?” A voice laughed out behind him.

Turning around Wilbur saw Schlatt had followed from the living room. He’d assumed the other would be occupied looking for something for them to watch.

“I was just checking on them.” Wilbur explained as he started to walk back to the door.

He liked Schlatt and all, but he didn’t like the idea of him being his his baby brother’s room. Tommy wasn’t old enough to give permission.

“Checking on them? Why? What exactly can the ‘Tiny Tots’ get up to in here? Aside from licking the walls or something.” Schlatt continued to joke.

Wilbur let out a short laugh back as he raised a hand to usher the other back.

“Just, regular checking.” Wilbur supplied as best he could.

He didn’t know how to bring up that it was because Techno seemed ‘off’. People who didn’t know Techno probably wouldn’t understand what that meant.

“Did you see if they needed diaper changes too?” Schlatt snickered, “Smells like they might-”

Before Schlatt could finish speaking Wilbur was startled by a sudden angry grunt behind him. One that sounded like Techno, but without the ‘whale song’ whine to it that he knew.

He turned his head just in time to see something colorful go whizzing past his line of sight. There was a solid ‘thonk’ noise before Schlatt was letting out a pained yelp. Snapping his gaze back to his friend he saw Schlatt had his hands up and covering his face from his new position on the floor.

“Schlatt!” Wil called out as he quickly moved to check on him.

Behind him he heard the door to the room slam shut, but he was too focused right now to care. Already he could see red seeping from between a few of Schlatt's fingers over his nose. He was cussing a lot and Wil could easily guess why. Considering he’d given himself a nose bleed before with running into a wall.

Now wasn’t the time to think about that though. Schlatt needed a towel. Some ice. Something-

“Wilbur? What happened?”

Wilbur looked up as his mother poked her head out of the basement doorway. She seemed to quickly assess the situation as she swiftly placed the laundry basket she had been carrying down beside said door. She turned and dug through it but a second before pulling out a pale colored dishrag.

“I’m going to wet this and be right back. Get him sitting up and leaned forward. Don’t worry about the mess, we can deal with that later. Okay?” She was swift in her directions and heading off to do as she’d said.

Wilbur hadn’t even had time to nod in agreement before she was gone into the bathroom. He worked on his task of getting Schlatt to sit up, but mostly it was just him doing it himself. Anytime Wilbur tried to help his hands were just shaken off.

“Are you okay? I’m so sorry. He’s not normally like that.” Wilbur quickly apologized with a racing mind about what had even just happened.

“Y’r broth’rs a fuck’n jerk. Th’ ‘ell is ‘is probl’m?” Schlatt garbled out over the crimson streaming down the front of his face.

He remembered his father had told him that time that bloody noses weren’t as bad as they tended to look but…it looked bad. It honestly made Wilbur feel sick just to see it dribbling the way it was. It certainly didn’t help that Schlatt was licking it off his lips just to spit it back out.

“H-hes not-” Wilbur tried to defend, but…what was he defending?

Techno had just attacked Schlatt. So, was Schlatt wrong for thinking Techno was a jerk? Even if it wasn’t like his brother, it was still the case.

“He fuckin’ hit me!” Schlatt snapped as he glared up at Wil.

Wilbur didn’t know what to say to that. Which didn’t seem to matter because Schlatt certainly seemed to have more on his mind.

x-x

Techno could hear the muffled shouts outside the door as he leaned fully against it. His hands were shaking and his heart felt like it was thundering in his chest.

He…he hadn’t meant to do that. He hadn’t intended to throw anything at Schlatt, let alone to actually hit him…He didn’t regret it.

He was scared, but he didn’t regret it.

Schlatt was a jerk and…and he deserved it…

He deserved it…right?

Techno was snapped out of his thoughts by a new crying sound, this one coming from inside the room with him.

Tommy.

Tommy was sitting where he had been when Wilbur had first come in, but now his face was scrunched up as a short sob fell from his mouth. He wasn’t hurt or anything, but...he looked scared.

Techno didn’t even take a moment to think before he was moving over to his baby brother and pulling him into a hug. He tried to comfort Tommy, but found that a trembling whine pealed from his own lips.

Techno found that not only was he crying too, but he was shaking as well. His comforting hug for Tommy was more of a panicked clinging and he couldn’t seem to calm himself down to fix it. It didn’t help that the voices outside the door had raised up into what sounded like fighting. His mother’s voice was mixed in but he couldn’t tell what was being said.

The voices rose higher before moving away. Not long after there was the slamming of the front door and then the world outside Tommy’s room seemed silent.

Whether it actually was or wasn’t Techno wasn’t sure. He couldn’t really focus on anything outside of himself and Tommy now. He gently shushed Tommy as he rocked the both of them from side to side and it seemed to be working. At the very least it helped Techno regain himself enough to wipe his tears and offer a small trying smile at his baby brother.

Tommy was reduced to upset hiccups and some thick sniffling which was always an improvement to his crying. Techno felt bad feeling that way considering he was sure he had been the one to frighten Tommy in the first place. It was the truth though. The toddlers cries still hurt his ears far too much. He didn’t know how their parents handled it.

“Techno, honey? Are you two okay in here?”

Techno looked up to see his mother carefully opening the door and stepping inside. She looked worried as she glanced at both him and Tommy up and down quickly as she approached.

Techno nodded his head slowly, unsure of his answer as the twisty feeling in his gut remained. He was sure he would get in trouble for what he did, even if the other had earned it. However, their mother only knelt down enough to pick Tommy up, offering him more solid comfort than Techno was able to.

It was a relief, but it was short lived as he remembered it was his fault Tommy was upset in the first place. Well, technically it was Schlatt’s fault-

“Do you think you can tell me what happened here, Techno?” Their mother asked softly, cutting off his thoughts.

She was still kneeling on the floor, Tommy in her arms, and keeping her gaze even with Techno. It made his stomach wiggly with discomfort, but nothing like what Schlatt caused.

Softer feeling or not it still made Techno squirm in place as he bit down on the inside of his cheek and locked his eyes with the floor.

“I’m not going to be mad, sweetie. I just want to understand what happened. Okay?”

Her voice was gentle and coaxing, like it usually was when she had to talk to them about something serious.

“i-i-” Techno stammered as he tried to force his words into working.

He wasn’t even really sure what he could explain. The kid had been mean to him since getting home with Wilbur, stole their snacks and made fun of him and Tommy even when they had come into Tommy’s room to get away from them. He just…he had gotten mad.

Really mad.

Techno didn’t even remember picking up the block.

He just recalled seeing it launch through the air and beaming Schlatt right in his stupid nose.

“I know talking isn’t easy right now. Do you want to try writing it out instead?” Their mother asked, extending an arm towards Techno.

The offer was just enough to have Techno breathing out in relief. Writing it out would be easier. He could try to get the right words that way. Make sure they were the ones he wanted.

“What the heck is wrong with you? Why did you hit him!?” Wilbur’s voice suddenly cut through the air.

Techno’s eyes flickered off their mother and onto Wil instead, who had come charging around her from the door. He looked furious as he glared at Techno, one fist clenched at his side while he pointed accusingly with the other.

“Wilbur, not now-”

“You don’t see me going around and attacking your friends! He didn’t even do anything to you!” Wilbur continued to shout as he stomped a foot closer.

Normally Techno hated shouting.

Normally Techno would wince or shy back when Wilbur started to tantrum and stomp about. Kicking things or throwing things around.

This wasn’t normally.

Techno was just as mad this time.

“He was a jerk, Wilbur! Your friend was nothing but a- a mean jerk! He’s been mean all day!” Techno shouted back, his own raised voice seeming to startle Wilbur for a moment.

Just a moment though, before he let out a scoff and started shouting once more. He made sure he was louder than Techno and ignored their mother’s warning at his side. She had one hand reaching for Wil’s shoulder but he shook it off roughly.

“He hasn’t been ‘mean’, you’re just being a- a baby!”

“If I’m a baby then- you’re a bully!” Techno shouted back, squeezing his eyes closed as he tried to get his voice to be louder than Wilbur, “You’re a bully just like he is!”

“He’s not a bully!”

“Yes he is! And if you want to be friends with someone like that then- then you can find a new brother! One that wants hang out with you and your jerk friends!” Techno huffed out, his breath heavy and panting from the effort of shouting so much.

“Boys, that’s enough” Their mother’s voice broke in with a sharper note in it that Techno hadn’t heard before.

Wilbur didn’t say anything and when Techno opened his eyes enough to peek at him he found his brother looking at him with a stunned expression. Wil’s eyes were wide and his mouth was partly open in what might have been a gasp.

“Shouting at each other like this isn’t going to solve anything. I think it would be best if we all took a few deep breathes and-” Their mother started to try to calmly direct before being cut off.

“Y-you’re just jealous that he’s so cool and you’re not!” Wilbur accused suddenly, pointing once more at Techno with a violently shaking hand, “Because I like talking with him more than you!”

“Wilbur!” Their mother scolded, this time grabbing his shoulder and trying to pull him back a step.

“You’re mad that he’s right and you’re just a-a bratty boring nerd with no social skills!”

“Wilbur! That’s Enough!”

Their mother, with a crying again Tommy on her hip, was trying to pull Wilbur out of the room as he seemed keen on continuing the fight. His mouth was open again and Techno knew that something must be coming out of it, but he didn’t hear a thing.

Instead a sob ripped from Techno’s own throat as he rushed past his brother, shoving Wil away as he fled the room. He barely had focus enough to get to his and Wil’s bedroom and slamming the door shut as hard as he could behind him.

He didn’t have time to rush to his bed to grab TechnoPig before his legs gave out, dropping him barely a step from the door.

Everything felt wrong.

His eyes stung with the tears that fell freely down his cheeks leaving angry red tracks in their wake. His sobs grew as he opened his mouth and fully wailed, filling the room with the echoing hurt that tore through his chest.

…

Wilbur never came in to apologize.

X-X--X--X-X

Phil felt truly bad for his wife as he sat and watched her stewing over her drink across the table. Her brow was furrowed deep, etched with worry and frustration in equal measure. She had told him about what had happened with the boys the moment he had gotten home.

Wilbur had been in time out in the living room when Phil had arrived. He was sat at the computer desk with a paper and pencil where he had been supposed to be writing an apology letter to Techno. In place of the letter there was a large angry scrawl of “I’M NOT SORRY” that had been scribbled over many times but was still very visible.

Techno had apparently cried himself to exhaustion earlier and even when he woke up he refused to speak or come out of the room. Techno hadn’t even offered Phil a greeting when he had tried to speak with him. Techno had just hugged onto TechnoPig and stared at the floor.

Kristin had been at a loss as she tried to think of any sort of solution while also taking care of Tommy. Poor kid had been fussy and upset since it had happened. She had only just barely gotten him down for an impromptu nap when Phil had come home.

Her skills in childcare were usually what they relied on when things like this came up with the boys. There was generally a trick or some kind of approach they could make use of. Even with Phil to bounce ideas off of she seemed to be coming up blank and he could tell it was getting at her.

She was the one who always had said that her skills were not meant to be ‘fix its’ for the growing pains of childhood. That they were often situational or required a certain amount of cooperation on the kids end, which wasn’t always given.

So, to see her struggling now with that fact fully at her feet when it came to their own kids…he couldn’t even imagine what that felt like. Even while knowing, knowing and still hoping, only to find nothing to help mend the situation at hand.

“Kristin.” Phil said softly, coaxing his wife from her head before she gave herself a migraine.

It took a second but she looked up at him, her gaze filled with the storm in her head as she squeezed her cup a bit tighter.

“Maybe take a break for a bit? Give the gears a rest?” Phil suggested as he reached a hand out for her to take.

Kristin let out a heavy sigh as she practically flopped her own hand into his, a smile barely tugging onto her face briefly when he gave it a comforting squeeze. He watched as she tried to force the tension from her shoulders, taking in a deep long breath as practically sagging when she blew it out slowly.

“I’ve never seen them fight like that.” She said after a moment, her voice soft and almost in a whisper honestly.

She’d repeated those words throughout their conversation and Phil didn’t know what to say in response. From what he’d heard, he’d not seen the boys like that either. Considering they were far more prone to fighting with him around it was…well it was concerning.

This put the both of them at a loss for how to handle it.

Currently they were just, letting the boys sit in their respective solitary stations. Wilbur at the computer desk and Techno in their room. In theory it was in the hopes that the time to cool off would help them to mend things on their own, like kids do.

In truth they just didn’t see any other options.

“Why don’t you go take a hot shower to unwind and I’ll make dinner.” Phil offered with a small smile.

“You sure? You’ve been stuck at your office all day today.”

“I have. And you had to deal with the boys going to war with each other.” Phil reasoned as he stood up, “I can handle cooking up some fish and chips.”

Seeing another small layer of tension leaving his wife made Phil twice as happy that he made the offer. The smile she gave back to him was just a cherry on top.

“I’ll check on the boys first-”

“No. You, worry about your shower. I’ll check on the boys. Shoo.” Phil stated firmly with a chuckle and a hand motion towards the door.

Kristin gave a small laugh in kind as she rolled her eyes dramatically at him.

“Okay, okay. I’m going. The shower calls me.”

Phil followed her to the doorway, giving her a quick kiss to her temple before she was out of reach. He watched her until she was just about at the bathroom door before his gaze flickered to Wil and Techno’s bedroom door.

Techno had been silent this entire time and it really worried him. The same went for Wilbur too. Phil’s attention drew over to the corner of the room where his eldest sat. He was still facing the desk, not moving or making a noise. In all of Wilbur’s life he had never been this quiet nor still, and certainly not for this long.

Taking in a deep breath Phil prepared himself for potentially a very hard and tooth pulling conversation. Kristin had mentioned how stubborn Wilbur had been on the subject and Phil didn’t expect much better for his own attempt at talking it over. It needed to be done though.

Bringing a chair from the table Phil set it down beside Wilbur, sliding into it with a purposefully audible breath this time. A way of announcing himself and still giving Wilbur a chance to engage first if he wanted to.

He didn’t seem to want to.

“Hey, Wil.” Phil opened with as he watched Wil’s eyes remain locked on the paper before him.

The angry words still there and just as both visible and scribbled over as ever.

“Feeling better than earlier?”

The silence dragged on a moment before Wilbur shook his head, a solemn expression resting far too heavy on his face.

“You want to tell me what happened exactly? In your words?” Phil asked knowing full well there was a sixty percent chance Wil had overhead his and Kristin’s conversation from there.

Even with careful voices, their place wasn’t exactly the largest and sound carried surprisingly well.

“ -wasn’t my fault.” Wilbur mumble out just barely within Phil’s range of hearing.

“What wasn’t your fault, Wil?” Phil asked with as neutral a tone as he could manage.

Which was harder than it sounded when he was confused and concerned.

“I-I didn’t mean to- it-it wasn’t my fault.” Wilbur repeated, only this time slightly louder as he stuttered in places as he seemed to choke up.

When Wilbur turned to looked at him finally it was with wet eyes and a fresh wave of tears beginning to fall.

“I-I didn’t mean it-”

The moment the words were out of his mouth Wilbur was full on crying, launching himself into Phil’s arms and against his chest. Phil could do nothing more but hug Wilbur close with a calming ‘sh’ every so often. He ran his fingers through Wil’s hair for good measure as a painful sounding hiccup shook through him.

There were a few babbled words but they were too marred and slurred for Phil to catch. He could only assume it was some sort of apology.

“Shh, Wil. Its okay. You’re okay. I’ve got you mate.”

“I-I d-didn’t m-mean-” Wil tried again, the words no more clear than they were a moment go.

“Deeeeep breaths, Wil.” Phil tried to direct, taking in a breath of his own to guide his son.

“H-he wont t-t-talk t-to me-” Wil let out mournfully as his sobbing picked up again.

Phil squeezed his son tight as he rocked the two of them back and forth.

It wasn’t pulling teeth, but that wasn’t making the matter any easier. It was tearing up his heart and he was all the more happy he’d sent his wife off to shower instead.

x-x

It had taken some time, but when Wilbur calmed down once more he managed to get out his tale of what had happened.

Wil and Schlatt hanging out in their room, Techno ignoring them. Wil and Schlatt coming out to watch to tv, Techno ignoring Schlatt’s attempt at conversation and ‘doing his quiet thing’. Wil going to check on him and Tommy and then Techno hurling one of Tommy’s toys at Schlatt and giving him a bloody nose.

Wil had stopped right before talking about his and Techno’s following fight, but he was staring at the scrawled on paper again so Phil knew he was thinking about it.

“You sure you aren’t forgetting anything?” Phil asked as he tilted his head, a comforting hand still holding onto one of Wilbur’s, “Techno isn’t one to just…attack someone.”

The thought of Techno going after any person at all was…until this point unheard of. Regardless Wilbur shook his head. Either Wilbur had suddenly become very good at lying, or there was nothing from his perspective that was off.

“i…i didn’t mean what i said…about- a-about-” Wilbur stammered out, lower lip starting to tremble again.

“I know, Wil. This is why we try to tell you two to calm down and walk away instead of shouting at each other.” Phil tried to explain, “When your emotions are running high you can end up saying or doing something you regret.”

Wil looked at him and the sorrow on his face pulled at Phil’s heartstrings.

“H-he, wont- I can’t a-apologize-” Wil struggled to get out, the pained look on his face only growing.

Phil pulled him into another hug with a fresh gentle ‘shushing’ as he began to rock them once more.

“He just needs some time, Wil. Sometimes, when something especially painful happens, you need to let some time pass to help it heal over. When Techno is ready for it you two can talk it out. You can tell him how sorry you are then.”

“B-but-” Wil started, pushing away from Phil’s hug so they could look at one other, “I’m- I’m still, s-so mad.”

“Being mad doesn’t mean you aren’t just as sorry. Both feelings are valid, even if they are confusing.” Phil nodded as he brought Wil’s head down to plant a kiss on his forehead, “Feeling mad isn’t a bad thing. Using ‘feeling mad’ as an excuse to hurt someone, anyone, is when it becomes a problem.”

“I-”

“Shhh, its okay, Wil. It was a mistake. Both of you made mistakes. That’s normal. Making up for them after, once things have settled a bit, that’s what’s important now.” Phil assured him, placing a second kiss to his head for good measure, “We’ll talk it out after dinner, okay?”

Wilbur hesitated before nodding.

Phil really hoped a conversation after dinner would help.

X--X--X

The conversation never came.

Techno had refused to come out of the room and absolutely refused to let Wilbur inside. In the end Phil, Wilbur and Tommy ate at the table while Kristin and Techno ate in the bedroom. Wilbur…hadn’t taken it well.

He barely ate a thing off his plate as he kept looking at the doorway leading to the hall. He clearly wanted to go to his brother, but feared what reaction it would get him. Every attempt Wil made to talk through the door had been met with either a chilling silence or something being thrown at said door.

Each failed attempt had seen Wilbur bearing a fresh look of growing defeat.

After dinner had been…far harder.

Phil had never seen Wilbur wear such a look of devastation than he did when entering their room for bedtime. What minor hope had been in Wil at the chance to see Techno was crushed the moment he set foot in the door.

Techno’s bed was empty. Not just of Techno, but of his stuffed animals, his blankets and his pillows. Kristin had had to explain that…Techno insisted on moving into Tommy's room. ‘For a little while’ she had said, but it might as well have been forever from the look on Wil’s face.

Tucking Wilbur into his bed that night had been hard. Trying to fall asleep with the sounds of stifled crying was even harder.

Phil, with everything in him hoped that this, whatever ‘this’ was, passed quickly.

Chapter Text

It was a fairly chilly day outside as Dream and Techno stood in the backyard of the house. It was a guitar day for Wilbur and so the two had it all to themselves and the small motorized car Techno had gotten for his last birthday. It sported a few cracks now as well as a few plasters in places, but it still looked pretty cool in Techno’s opinion.

It ‘had character’ his mother said.

Dream seemed to agree and so Techno knew it was right.

“Do you think we could make ramps for it to jump off of?” Dream asked as Techno managed to get it to pop a wheelie before speeding forwards again, front of the car in the air still.

“I dunno. We had to throw out a lot of our old toys so I don’t know if we have stuff for it.” Techno replied, focusing more on driving around as much as possible before it fell forwards again.

“I should bring something next time then. See how far it can jump.” Dream grinned wide and causing Techno to smile in turn.

“We could try to get it to jump over Tommy if he sat still long enough.” Techno joked as he handed off the controller to Dream for his turn, “He likes to be run over though so he might get upset if it ‘misses’ him.”

Dream let out a snort of a laugh at that as he accepted said controller. The boys continued to play like that for a while, enjoying their private time while they had it. Honestly it felt really good to Techno. It had been over a week since Schlatt had come over and Wilbur had…said those things. Being home without Wilbur around felt…good for a change.

Techno had managed to keep himself in Tommy's room for the first week, but his parents had insisted he go back to his proper bed after that. Tensions remained high with Wilbur, but the two exchanged a few minimal words now. Usually school related, but that worked for Techno. He wasn’t ready to talk to Wilbur. Not until he apologized for what he said.

“Techno?” Dream asked snapping Techno back to attention.

He was holding out Techno’s controller to him, brow now furrowed with worry. Techno didn’t want to cause his friend to feel that way so he tied to put a smile on and forget about Wilbur and his dumb ‘friend’.

“Are you okay?” Dream asked and Techno pushed a laugh from his mouth.

“Y-yea. I’m okay.” Techno lied, and apparently badly from the look Dream took on.

“You don’t seem ‘okay’.”

Techno shook his head and tried again.

“Just distracted, but I’m fine. We can keep playing.” Techno insisted as he stated to take his turn with the motor car.

Dream didn’t look any more convinced, but he dropped it there. Techno was grateful for that. He wondered if there was a way to show that without ruining the whole ‘letting it go’ thing.

“Can I ask you something?” Dream questioned a moment later and Techno was thankful for the potential new topic.

“Go ahead. I’m listenin’.” Techno assured his friend as he peeled the car around one of the garden boxes.

“Why is Wilbur hanging out with Schlatt so much? I thought they didn’t get along.” Dream asked and Techno almost rammed the car into the fence.

He had to jerk the controls to get it to turn in time, but he managed it. It hadn’t been a topic he expected. Especially since Techno had shot down every topic including his brother for the last few days.

“I’m only asking because one of my other friends was asking about it. You don’t need to answer if you don’t want to.” Dream assured, though awkwardly.

Techno took a moment to think about it before he shook his head with a grimace.

“ ‘Cus he’s apparently just another bully, just like him.” Techno answered with a strong disapproval.

Dream raised his brows at this, clearly actually surprised by the answer. With another huffed breath Techno lowered his car controller and focused on his friend instead. For the next long while the boys, mainly Techno, talked about Schlatt. Techno explaining about his ‘visits’ to the house and how Wilbur had been each time.

Dream didn’t look at all happy to hear about it all. In fact, he seemed pretty mad about it. Especially at Wilbur which Techno appreciated.

“Even if he is a cheat, I still thought Wilbur was like, maybe kind of cool. Sometimes.” Dream stated as he shook his head with disappointment.

“Turns out cheating was just bully practice.” Techno supplied as he kicked at the dirt at his feet.

“Probably. Though, I have to say I’m not surprised to hear about what Schlatt did. He’s always been kind of a jerk. Even if he doesn’t mean it.” Dream went on to say as he too started to kick at dirt clumps.

Techno frowned at this but didn’t say anything. He didn’t want to hear how Schlatt ‘didn’t mean it’. It wasn’t hard to not be mean to someone. You just…don’t do the mean thing.

Still, he nods all the same, hoping to at least keep the conversation moving until it was over. Or at least until the ‘Schlatt’ part was over.

“My mom says that some people are just, built ‘like a bad smell’.” Dream stated and Techno started to laugh at the idea of it.

Dream was grinning back obviously just as amused by it.

“I bet he actually smells funny too.” Dream added and that had Techno letting out a giggle as he nodded his head.

He hadn’t wanted to be mean about it at the time but…Schlatt did tend to have a ‘funk’, as his own father put it. Though when his father had said it he was talking about his own personal dirty laundry. It was the same smell though. It wasn’t overbearing, but it was notable enough to Techno.

“My friend used to say how bad it was during gym and stuff.” Dream explained making an exaggerated hand motion in front of his nose, “Schlatt was apparently really mean to people in class and even had to sit out for being ‘too competitive’ and stuff.”

“Was he mean to your friend too?” Techno asked with a genuine curiosity.

Dream talked about his other friends a fair bit and they seemed to be really cool people. Enough so that Techno was maybe considering agreeing to meet them himself.

If Schlatt made fun of them too then…well, it would be a bad thing for one. But, at the same time it would mean it…it wasn’t just Techno. There wasn’t something wrong with Techno himself and even cool people like Dream’s friends could be bullied.

He felt bad for thinking it, but it made him feel…a little better.

“Yea. He used to say mean things too him a lot. I couldn’t even help him since they’re both two grades up from me.” Dream sighed out heavily.

Techno paused here and tilted his head.

“Two grades? I thought you and Wilbur where in the same grade?”

“Not the same grade. I just get moved into some of the older classes sometimes.” Dream answered with a shrug, “It’s a ‘special placement’ thing the school does. You have to take this long test and then they decide if you need better classes or something like that.”

Techno furrowed his brow as he took that in. Dream was a third grader like him but…was taking fifth grade classes only sometimes. That was…skipping an entire grade still.

“Do you want to get back at him? At Schlatt?” Dream asked suddenly, regaining Techno’s attention once more.

The question had surprised him and he needed to take a minute to think. Did he want to get back at Schlatt for being mean? Well, yea. Of course. But, wouldn’t that make him a bully too? Or would it not because Schlatt started it?

“How?” Techno asked tentatively.

Dream offered a cheeky grin in response before he answered.

“By giving him back what he gives himself.”

Now that…was an idea Techno could get behind.

X-x-X-x-X

The following week or so was a mix of emotions for Techno. Tensions between himself and Wilbur were still there, but they were talking almost like normal. Their parents seemed relieved by it, which is why Techno’s plan probably worked. He had gone to his mother with the idea since he knew he could reason with her better.

Since Wilbur wanted to hang out with Schlatt still and Techno wanted to hang out with Dream, then surely it only made sense that both of the other boys come over at the same time. That way Techno and Wilbur both had someone someone to hang out with.

She hadn’t been for the idea at first, but after talking it over with their father the two seemed willing to try it out.

Which is how three days from Halloween both Dream and Schlatt found themselves invited to the Watson household under the guise of ‘making their costumes together’.

For his part Techno really intended to follow through with the costume. It just so happened that he and Dream had already come up with something that was easy to put together. They had planned it in their shared classes days prior and had been working on it bit by bit over the last few nights.

Which meant Techno and Dream had nothing but a fun evening planned tinged with bouts of vengeance in between. Technically they had even already started.

Techno had been sure to get to their bus first, snagging ‘his’ seat for himself and Dream to share. Wilbur and Schlatt had taken ages to get to the bus and so had ended up in the itchy torn seats near the back. That didn’t deter Dream from his plan though as he made sure to laugh as loud as possible at anything they were doing. It didn’t matter if it was actually all that funny, so long as they could be heard clearly.

Honestly, hearing Dream try to shout out a laugh was funny enough to Techno to get him going as well. Hearing the wheezy choked noise Dream made when he was surprised by a pothole bump had Techno genuinely belting them out beside his friend.

Techno didn’t even notice the majority of the ride, genuinely enjoying the spectacle Dream was willing to make of it.

When it came time to get off the bus Dream had practically been shoved back into his seat by Schlatt as the other heaved himself down the isle. Wilbur had at least stopped to ask if he was okay, but he still wasn’t far behind his ‘friend’ in exiting the vehicle.

The two older boys had walked a fair distance ahead of Techno and Dream, who were happily chatting up their father about their day. Techno personally was ecstatic that one his teachers was considering getting a class pet.

It was predictable that when Techno, Dream and their father reached the house that the older boys would have already vanished into the shared room. This time, however, Techno was more than pleased with that. He and Dream both took places at the table and started to do what little homework had been assigned, all the while their father informed them of the fresh snacks their mother had made that day for them before work.

As they worked away Dream made jokes and teases that had Techno laughing and enjoying himself more than he had before during homework time. Even more fun than when he and Wilbur were getting along. Any lingering anxiousness he had been feeling with Schlatt back in the house was gone at this point and all he could think about was being as loud as he could be with Dream.

Provided Tommy was done with his nap by then.

x-x

Homework took no time at all and Techno took great pride in pulling open the fridge first for after school snack. Wilbur and Schlatt were still loudly goofing off in the bedroom meaning Techno and Dream had a comfortable amount of time to eat and enjoy themselves before they became an issue.

Techno looked over the try that held the little ‘mudpie’ pudding cups with the stacks of graham crackers beside them. There was one pudding cup per each of them with said cracker stacked in the middle for them to take from.

Techno happily handed over to Dream one cup and over half the cracker stack to split between them. That only left a few for Wil and his friend, but that was hardly Techno’s problem.

The two boys stared at each other a moment with matching grins before heading into the living room to eat. They made sure to eat the crackers first, but took their time with their puddings. When the door to the bedroom opened they shared a look and tried to keep from laughing and giving themselves away.

Wilbur was the one leading the pair into the kitchen, but Techno could see Schlatt pulling ahead to reach the fridge. It was out of his line of sight, but he could hear the door whip open easily. Looking at Dream Techno could see the grin his friend was trying to hide by taking a large bit of his remaining pudding. Techno did the same as he heard a very annoyed ‘what the hell Wilbur’ from the kitchen.

It wasn’t a moment later that the two boys were standing in the doorway of the kitchen, their own cups in hand with the few left over cracker being carried by Schlatt.

“Did you guys take all the crackers?” Wilbur asked, attempting not to sound as annoyed as he looked.

“We took some of them. Were there not any left?” Dream asked innocently and Techno had to hold his breath to keep from letting out a smile.

It didn’t seem to work too well though because Schlatt sent him a glare.

“There’s hardly any left. How many did you take?” Wilbur asked again, this time not hiding his feelings nearly as much.

“We weren’t really paying attention. We were talking about our costumes for Halloween. Sorry if we took too much. We’ll be more careful next time.” Dream ‘assured’ them easily with a smile as he went back to eating.

Wilbur stared at Dream a moment before letting out a huff and turning to go.

“Really, Wilbur? You’re just going to take that?” Schlatt asked in hardly a ‘whispered’ tone.

“What do you want me to do? Make them cough it back up?” Wil returned in kind as he glanced back at them.

Techno kept his face as still as possible as his brother held his gaze for a second or so. Wil let out another heavy breath and made to head back into the kitchen.

“Lets just, grab something else to go with it.”

“so long as its not baby food” Schlatt muttered as he followed behind Wil.

While the two older boys went back into the fridge Dream looked to Techno with smug grin on his face that filled Techno with a sort of…giddiness.

They had done it.

They had paid Schlatt back with some of his own medicine and he hadn’t had a choice but…but to accept it.

It felt good.

“hurry up and eat and we can get into the bedroom before they’re done.” Dream whispered as he leaned close.

And just like that the good feeling went away, replaced with uncertainty.

“i don’t know, dream. why don’t we just stay out here? we could watch tv and play with tommy when he wakes up.” Techno reasoned as he squirmed in his seat.

“you said they take over your room every time. i think it's our turn. besides, we can have tommy come play with us in your room too. they wont be able to kick all three of us out, we’ll out number them.” Dream insisted as he already started to scarf down the last of his snack

Not seeing any real reason to argue further Techno followed suit in inhaling his snack and slipping off the couch. The two were swift in making their way into the bedroom, Dream making sure to close the door quietly for some reason. Techno wasn’t going to ask and instead busied himself with gathering the pillows and blankets from his bed to widen the pre-made ‘reading nook’ his mother had set up for him.

It wasn’t long before he and Dream were in a discussion about if Athena was a ‘good’ goddess or a ‘bad’ one. According to Dream Athena’s punishments were ‘too big’ a retaliation to what the people generally did, though Techno only half agreed. Athena helped people more often than not really. It was just that, when it came to punishing mortals as a goddess, well, the scale for that was on the level of a goddess. Of course it was going to be over the top sometimes. That didn’t make her a ‘bad’ goddess.

He was so engulfed in the conversation that Techno jumped when the door to the bedroom swung open. It wasn’t particularly fast, but he hadn’t been expecting it. Facing him and Dream first was Schlatt, who was staring at the two with a firm frown, with Wilbur just behind him.

Wilbur didn’t look as annoyed as before, but he also didn’t seem to like the idea of Techno and Dream being in the room right now. A thought that Schlatt readily made known from himself with a pointedly loud groan.

“Seriously? Is there no where else for you two to be right now? We’re usin’ this room.”

“You can still use it. We’re just in this one corner after all.” Dream replied with such ease that Techno wondered at how he could manage it.

Personally his own stomach was starting to tie with a knot. He was regretting eating his pudding so fast now.

“We were using it first.” Schlatt insisted as he took a stomped step into the room.

He didn’t get further than that before Wil had a hand reached out and grabbing at Schlatt’s shoulder.

“Come on. We can just go watch tv now or something.” Wil suggested with a motion to head back out of the room.

“I’m not in the mood to watch anything right now. The small fry can just get out and give us the space like usual.” Schlatt ‘suggested’ in turn, though it…felt like more then that to Techno.

“That might be what you want, Schlatt, but this isn’t your room. Its Techno’s and he has more say about it than you do.” Dream said as he crossed his arms for good measure.

“Its not ‘just’ Techno’s room, its Wilbur’s too, and he’s older. Since it’s been Wil’s room longer then he has more say about how its used.” Schlatt countered roughly as his eyes narrowed.

Techno squirmed where he sat, the pit of his stomach twisting and making him feel even more sick than a moment ago. A nervous glance to his brother showed that Wil was feeling just as uneasy about the stand off happening before them. Their eyes met briefly and Techno could see the worry that rested in them.

“Come on, Schlatt. Really. Lets go watch tv. It always takes you a while to flip through the channels anyway.” Wilbur tried to insist with another pull to his friends arm.

Schlatt, however, pulled out of the hold and turned to send his glare at Wilbur now.

“I told you, I don’t feel like it. We were here first so we’re staying.” He stated before turning on his heel and storming over to Wil’s bed, hopping up onto it.

Schlatt made sure that when he settled he was able to cast glaring looks at Techno and Dream easily whenever he wanted. Dream wasn’t facing him anymore and was instead using the fact that Schlatt was at his back to try to give Techno assuring looks. Techno just swallowed hard and tried to refocus on the book he had in hand.

It wasn’t one they were talking about for Athena and now Techno wasn’t even sure why he had it out to begin with. Seeing the struggle on his face or perhaps just trying to fill the recently silent air, Dream started to speak, but doing so louder than normal.

“I still think Athena went out of her way on some of those punishments. So still vote on her being a ‘badie’.” Dream stated as if their conversation before hadn’t been interrupted.

Techno hesitated to reply despite the encouraging nod from Dream, but thankfully his friend had his back regardless. Without missing much of a beat Dream continued and once more Techno wondered how he could just, do that.

“You said it was like, because she was a goddess and all, but she was the goddess of wisdom. So, logically, shouldn’t she have known better? Specifically about how to punish mortals?”

“t-technically-” Techno started, determined not to have Dream struggle through all the talking, “she was a goddess of more than just wisdom.”

Dream gave a smile to Techno as he nodded his head, his next words said with a bit more energy.

“Okay, but like, she was still a goddess of wisdom so it still counts as she should have known better. Unless she did but didn’t care.”

“i…think it was more that she just, thought they earned it.” Techno reasoned as he ran a hand over the book in front of him.

It might not be relevant to the conversation, but it made him feel a bit more at ease. Almost enough to ignore that Wilbur had crossed the room and was now sitting and trying to talk to Schlatt about something on their side of the room.

“So, then that means she didn’t care about them being mortal or not. She did it on purpose, being that cruel about it. So then Athena was a bad Goddess, just with good skills.” Dream reasoned with proud sort of smile.

This made Techno frown at him with a huff.

“She wasn’t ‘bad’. Not compared to like, the others around her. She was a good-”

“Is this really what you nerds talk about? Old, fucking, stories and shit? For old people?” Schlatt asked, pointedly ignoring Wil’ warning about watching his language.

“Its not ‘old people’ stuff. Its ‘smart people’ stuff.” Dream retorted earning another heated scoff.

“If you were smart you’d be into something cool. Not some dusty old religious stuff so bad they became stupid kids stories.”

“Schlatt. Come on. Lets just, go do something else. We can play a video game instead of tv.” Wilbur tried to insist once more.

“Shut up, Wil. You really just going to roll over rights to your room because they want to talk about lame shit?”

“Its not ‘lame’.” Techno defended suddenly, the words bursting out of him as he mustered a glare at the older boy.

He’d given Schlatt a bloody nose before so- so he could do this. He could stand up to him.

“Are you kidding me? I’ve seen drying paint that was more interesting.”

“Then go stare at it some more-” Dream started to say, but Techno started to speak over him.

“They aren’t ‘stupid’ or ‘lame’ at all. They’re more older than you and- and a lot more interesting than anything you probably read.” Techno stated as his breathing picked up with his rising anger, “Y-you’re just jealous that you- you probably can’t read anything so awesome!”

“Oh please. Only losers like that old people stuff. Old people and babies.” Schlatt stated as he rolled his eyes extra big.

“Schlatt, knock it off.” Wilbur tried to cut in again, this time sounding more angry than his previous attempts, “Its actually kind of coo-”

“You’re such a jerk!” Techno snapped as he slammed his book to the floor, “Why are you like that?!”

“Well why is your voice like that?!” Schlatt snapped back with as he pushed himself up off of Wilbur’s bed.

Techno’s mouth dropped opened as a spike of shock seemed to bolt through his brain, stunning him in place. The knot in his stomach seemed to triple and drop all at once as any thought of words fled his entire being.

He couldn’t tell if he wasn’t hearing anything or if it was just that quiet, but no one seemed to be moving. No one aside from Schlatt as he raised his hands up in a sharp questioning motion. When the other opened his mouth to speak all Techno could hear was a ringing noise before the room itself seemed to burst around him.

x-x

Wilbur stood in shock as he stared at Schlatt, his harsh words ringing in his ears. Harsh words that he knew would hurt his brother, that were meant to hurt his brother. Schlatt had promised, promised Wilbur that he wouldn’t bring up anything to do with Techno’s voice ever. It was something he made sure of the first time he’d heard the other making a joke about it in school.

He…he thought Schlatt had understood. He thought he’d made sure it was off the table of joking since it wasn’t something Techno was comfortable with himself.

He knew.

Schlatt knew and he did it anyway.

The worry that had been filling Wilbur’s chest, the concern he had about trying to keep the peace- it was snuffed out in that instant. In its place was a heat he had never felt before.

He was furious.

It only grew hotter when Schlatt had raised his arms up aggressively at his little brother. A sharp and demanding ‘Well?’ breaking the silence of the room.

Wilbur didn’t even have a chance to react as Dream somehow shot forwards from his spot on the floor. He was up and jumping onto Schlatt bringing them both to the floor as he started to throw punches.

“Ouch! You stupi-”

“TAKE IT BACK! TAKE IT BACK RIGHT NOW!” Dream was shouting into Schlatt’s face as he continued to hit him wherever his fist could find.

“Get Off Me You Little Psycho!”

“APOLOGIZE TO HIM RIGHT NOW!” Dream yelled louder over him.

Wilbur watched with an open mouth unsure if he wanted to stop Dream or check on his brother instead. Looking over to Techno he could see his brother covering his mouth with his hands as his eyes welled up with tears.

The sight sent an ache through his chest and his mind was instantly made up. He started to turn to towards his brother when suddenly the door to the room burst open. It startled him back a step as their father stood there his expression one of alarm that Wilbur couldn’t place.

The man took all of a second to take in the room before he was already reaching out mid stride and plucking the still thrashing Dream off of Schlatt. The two boys where still shouting at each other even as their father tried to speak over them, ordering them to calm down and breath. Similar, if not a bit more angry than when he had to break Wil and Techno out of a fight.

Wilbur was faintly aware of Tommy crying from his own room but it wasn’t registering more than ‘we woke him up’ in the back of his head. Instead all Wil could focus on was Dream growling out more apology demands at Schlatt, Schlatt cussing as he held tightly at his eye, his father trying to quiet them all and…and Techno. Techno still frozen in place with a hand over his mouth and trying not to cry.

Unwilling to move his hands from his mouth Techno only squeezed his eyes closed as the first few began to fall.

Wilbur quickly moved to his side, reaching up to wipe the tears away himself. Techno flinched at his touch at first before pressing himself firming into his arms. Wilbur wrapped his little brother in a hug as he glanced back in time to see his father carrying both Dream and Schlatt from the room.

X-x-X

“-and after he said that? Of course I hit him.” Dream finished recounting from his spot at the kitchen table.

Phil currently was icing down Schlatt’s rapidly blackening eye as he listened. He was certainly mad to hear about the argument, specifically at the treatment of Techno, by this particular child once more. Especially at hearing that Wilbur hadn’t stepped in sooner to stop it.

He knew it wasn’t Wilbur’s fault of course. He’d never hold someone else's actions on his son’s head. But the only reason Schlatt had even been allowed back into their home after the last time was because Wilbur had promised they would be nice. Or at least nicer. ‘Nicer’ sounded like the word Wil used specifically.

So much for that.

On the other side of that matter, as much as Phil didn’t want to…promote child violence…he had to admit Dream apparently had a mean left hook. As an adult he knew he shouldn’t but, admittedly he was happy Dream had stepped in.

Hell, he was proud.

Dream was proving more and more to be a good friend for Techno. Loyal and protective to say the very least.

“Dream-” Phil started, hating that he had to give in to the adult part of his brain for this, “While I appreciate you protecting Techno, violence wasn’t the best answer.”

“But-”

“no ‘but’s about it, mate. You can’t just attack someone, no matter how mean they are being.” Phil stated, making sure to point his last few words at the little brat he was currently still caring for.

Schlatt just rolled his good eye with a scoff.

Phil, in that moment, had never wanted to smack a kid with ice so much in his life.

…

Maybe he should have been slower in getting to the room.

“You don’t solve things by hitting each other. If it can’t be talked out then you should’ve come to me.” Phil tried to explain as he looked over the boys.

Dream was frowning at the table with a pout but nodding along anyway. Schlatt didn’t seem to be listening at all and oh, if that didn’t just burn at Phil’s nerves.

Changing his attention towards the living room Phil could see Wilbur’s head over the back of the couch, tilted just enough to show he was listening.

He had come out of the bedroom some time ago and had been on the couch since. Techno wasn’t with him and Phil honestly wasn’t surprised. Though he was surprised Wil wasn’t staying by his side right now. A concern to think about later, unfortunately.

“I think the best course of action is for you boys to apologize to one other. Then perhaps we can-”

“I’m not apologizing to him! Not after what he said to Techno!” Dream said as he flopped against the back of his chair and glared at Schlatt.

“Wasn’t plannin’ on apologizin’ either.” Schlatt huffed out as pull away from Phil’s hands.

“Boys-”

“I wont! He’s always being mean and- and doing things to Techno and my friends! He deserved it and I wont say ‘sorry’!” Dream was shouting a bit at this point and Phil had to raise a hand up to motion ‘calm’ at the boy.

“I am not. You’re just a liar. A bad one.” Schlatt stated with a bored sort of confidence.

“He told me all about it! You always call him a ‘baby’ and laugh at him and-” Dream started to rattle off various offenses that Techno had apparently confided.

Things that Techno hadn’t told Phil himself any of the times they had talked about Schlatt’s last visit or potential future ones. For all the accusations being sent his way Schlatt didn’t seem at all bothered and Phil wasn’t sure if the kid really didn’t care or…something else.

“Okay, Okay. Dream, calm down, mate. Take a breath.” Phil stepped into the growing argument before it became a full screaming match or more.

“Don’t hold your breath for an apology, cus I ain’t givin’ any. You can eat my ass.” Schlatt stated boldly as he flipped Dream off.

Phil couldn’t help the surprise that drew up on his face for a moment. He’d heard Schlatt cuss plenty of times but this caught him off guard. Where on earth does a ten year old learn this kind of behavior?

“Oookay, enough from the both of you.” Phil corralled once more, this time with a bit of heat in his voice as he pointedly looked to Schlatt, “And certainly enough of that language from you, mr, while in this house.”

Schlatt just rolled his good eye and held the ice pack more solidly over his injured one.

“You know what? I think its time I called your parents.” Phil stated with a mix of defeat and relief at the idea, “I think visiting for the next while is going to be off the table until this can be figured out peacefully.”

Dream glanced up at Phil with an indignant frown on his face and a disgruntled huff. It reminded Phil of Wilbur honestly, only instead of an annoyed glare Dream was giving him a more sad and regretful look.

Schlatt only seemed to be further annoyed as he kicked his feet harder in the chair.

He was liking this kid less and less every time he met him and today was particularly strong with the ‘what does my son see in this kid’ vibes.

“Dream, go sit at the computer desk, Schlatt, you stay here. No fighting while I make the calls, Understood?” Phil asked as he finally took a step back from Schlatt.

The kid didn’t have any other injuries aside from the blackening eye and a mild bruise that was forming on his cheek just below it. If Dream ever wanted to become a boxer Phil would be more than happy to vouch for him.

For now, though, he was instead going to have to call Ms. Trapper and explain that Dream had attacked another child and that there was potentially another call in her future by an angry mother or father. He would, of course, offer to middle man since it happened on his watch (and in his opinion for a good reason). Though, from what he’d gathered so far on the woman she…wasn’t probably going to need his help.

Dream might though.

x-x

Wilbur sat still as ever on the couch as he listened to his father on the phone from down the hallway. He couldn’t make out words, but he didn’t need to. He wasn’t concerned about the calls being made in the slightest.

The only thing he could focus on was his little brother, who was sitting alone in their room, curled into the reading nook under whatever blanket had been available around him at the time.

“pst”

Wilbur didn’t look up at first as he picked at some invisible itch on his hand.

“pst, hey”

This time Wilbur looked up, meeting Dream’s worried gaze.

“where’s Techno?” He asked in a whisper, clearly trying to not get Phil’s attention even if he was out of hearing range.

Wilbur hesitated as he looked back to his feet.

“in our room.” He answered in a soft voice as well.

Not because he thought he should match Dream’s tones, but because he really didn’t think he could speak louder right now anyway.

“is he okay?”

Wilbur shrugged here with little energy.

“well, why don’t you asked him?” Dream asked with a bit more snap to his words.

Wilbur let out a deeper sigh as he sunk into the cushion.

“he wont talk to me right now.” Wil admitted, feeling the pit of his stomach drop more as he said it aloud.

“Pft, what a loser.” Schlatt scoffed from the kitchen and instantly getting a glare from Dream.

“Shut up, Schlatt.”
“shut up , schlatt.” Wilbur huffed out himself at the same time with a scowl, refusing to look at his friend.

He didn’t even want to think about Schlatt right now.

He knew Schlatt could be hard to get along with at times, but he…he thought it was going to be different with him. Wil thought that making Schlatt promise, on their friendship, to be nicer to Techno that…that maybe Techno could see when he was funny too. Would see that Schlatt was someone cool they could laugh with.

But…

But that hadn’t happened. Schlatt had broken every promise made and had just made things so much worse. His father was probably never going to allow Schlatt to come over again.

Honestly…Wilbur didn’t even want him to.

He’d heard all the things Dream had said about Schlatt. About what he’d done and said that bothered Techno in the past. Things that…Wilbur didn’t know had bothered him. It had, just been jokes. Teases and names Wilbur himself had used before too.

It reminded him of something their mother taught them. Something about how words might seem like nothing at the time, but that it can change depending on who says them. Sometimes they can hurt a lot more than you realize.

Wilbur suddenly felt terrible about laughing along with Schlatt those times. He could have been hurting his brother the whole time and not even know it. But, Techno hadn’t- He hadn’t said anything so…

With a mental wince Wilbur grimaced to himself.

Techno had…maybe tried talking to him. Once. Right after Schlatt’s first visit. Wilbur remembers they had been talking about something said but…but Wilbur had just called him a ‘baby’ and told him it was fine. That…that it was just Schlatt being ‘funny’.

Techno hadn’t talked to him again after that.

Wilbur, maybe, kind of wanted to throw up a little.

X-x-X--X-x-X

Days passed and despite best efforts made Techno refused to talk to anyone in his family. Not Wilbur, his father or his mother. He didn’t even make baby noises back at Tommy.

Techno refused to go to school as well, remaining locked in Tommy’s room, where he had chosen to reside once more after the fight had happened. Nothing Wil did or said could get Techno to respond to him other than turning in another direction and staring at some object or other.

It even got to the point where the Watson family had opted to skip Halloween for the year. Which didn’t exactly bother Wilbur as he didn’t feel particularly festive anymore. Even Tommy, without understanding why, didn’t seem to mind staying indoors with his little costume on. Answering the door with either parent seemed to satisfy him enough.

It was was two days after the holiday that Phil and Kristin sat Techno down once more, this time in their own bedroom, to try to mend the situation. It was delicate waters and both of them were picking their words carefully, trying to explain that what happened never should have. That what Wil’s friend said was wrong and rude and Techno shouldn’t take something like that to heart.

Just when it was looking like Techno wasn’t going to respond to this talk either he opened his mouth. His voice was small, but in the silent room they could hear him enough.

“why…why is my voice like this?” He asked, eyes cast down at the bed between himself and his parents, “is..is it broken or-”

“Oh, baby. No, of course not.” Kristin was quick to sooth, her arms reaching out to wrap around her son, “Nothing about you is broken. Your voice is perfect just the way it is.”

“You’re exactly as you should be Techno. There’s nothing ‘wrong’ about it.” Phil added as he mirrored his wife’s hold on Techno’s other side, a hand going up to run through the back of Techno’s hair as well.

“Everyone is made different. Unique. You’re voice is just as special even of some people don’t understand that.” Kristin continue to assure her middle child, “Something perfectly unique for my perfectly special boy.”

Looking down into his face she could see he didn’t really believe her, yet he was nodding slowly anyway.

She didn’t believe that a few words between herself and her husband would solve their sons feelings of course, complex things that they were. However, she still hoped that they would be the seeds to later bloom into the self confidence he deserved to have.

She would make sure of it.

x-x-x

It was almost the end of the second week of Techno staying in Tommy’s room and Wilbur watched with an aching pain in his chest as Techno finished changing into his pajamas. He still needed to get dressed in their room and so Wilbur had had to suffer watching it every night before being left in the darkness of their…of ‘his’ room.

He hated it.

He hated it so much that ‘hate’ didn’t even seem like a big enough word to contain what he felt. It was horrible and achy and it made it his insides feel like they were crushing together until it his whole body hurt.

He had hoped giving Techno space would work like it did last time. But…it was longer than last time and Techno still hadn’t uttered a word to him. He wasn’t sure what hurt more. The silence of the room alone at night, or the silence of it while Techno was still with him.

He…he had to end this.

He had to try.

Slipping off his bed Wilbur managed to step up to Techno, just off to his side closest to the door. Techno probably knew he was there, but he was intently doing up the buttons on his shirt and ignoring him entirely.

“t-techno?” Wilbur started off, his voice quieter than normal as if breaking the silence too much would ruin…something.

Techno didn’t stop what he was doing, struggling with a button that Wilbur knew he couldn’t help with right now.

“i-i just-” Wilbur stammered as he swallowed hard and looked towards his feet.

Techno didn’t made a sound or a move and so Wilbur forced himself to produce the words he wanted.

“i-i wanted to- to apologize...again.” Wil managed, taking a breath to speak more evenly, “I didn’t- I shouldn’t have- I didn’t mean for that to happen. I-I didn’t mean for you to get hurt. You’re my little brother and…I didn’t mean for you to be hurt.”

Wilbur’s mouth felt dry as he swallowed again, looking up as he chewed on the inside of his lower lip once more. Techno was looking at him! He was…he was looking at him…right?

Techno’s gaze was in his direction but…it..was like it wasn’t focused.

When Techno moved to walk around him something inside of Wilbur seemed to finally break. A sob he hadn’t even realized was building up burst through his lips as he spun enough to fling his arms around Techno. He hugged his brother tighter than he ever thought he could and buried his face into his shoulder.

“I-I’m sorry! I’m s-sorry- I’m so sorry! Techno, please! I’m so sorry! It hurts so bad and I’m sorry and I don’t know what to do!” Wilbur bawled out, his voice broken in between his words, ”I-I d-didn’t- didn’t know he-he-was- was like that! I never would have- I’m so sorry! Please- please don’t hate me anymore, I can’t- it-it hurts so bad! Please!

Wilbur wasn’t sure how long he went on like that for, but he eventually became aware of his brother’s arms wrapped around him. One of his hands was patting at Wil’s back and they both seemed to have found themselves on the floor now.

He could almost hear the faint ‘shushing’ sound his brother was making, forcing his hysterics down to hear it better. Techno had been so quiet lately that he ached for any noise his brother would make. Anything at all.

“i…don’t hate you.” Techno said in a whispered voice once Wil was quiet enough.

Wilbur could feel the ache in his chest ripple at the words, soft as they were.

“i’m just…really mad at you right now.”

Wilbur hugged Techno tighter as he shuddered from another sob, though he choked a bit to stifle it.

“Y-you c-can be as-as mad as y-you want. I-I don’t mind. J-just- just please- please talk to me.” Wilbur pleaded as he tried to once more bury his face into his brother, “Y-you can yell at me- all-all you like. Just- just please- Don’t- don’t leave me alone anymore!”

Wilbur shook hard once more as he tried so hard to somehow pull Techno closer, as if the slightest give in his hold would have the other slipping out of his grasp forever.

“I don’t want to lose my brother” Wilbur whispered, his voice cracking a final time before another sob took over him.

The two continued to sit on their bedroom floor, tangled in each others arms as the words lingered desperately in the air.

x-x

Neither of the boys noticed when the door to the room had slowly opened, allowing for their father to peek through. He closed it carefully as he leaned against the door frame with a hand over his chest and wrapped up tightly in the fabric there.

These were not exactly the emotional hurdles the parenting books prepared them for.

Every ounce of his being wanted to rush in and comfort his sons. Distressed and clinging to each other like the end of the world. He almost had, a few times even. But Techno had started to respond to Wil. Techno had comforted him and even found his words enough to answer.

Phil felt like a shit parent for just, coasting on that but…he didn’t know what else to do. They’d tried to help the boys before but, this was the first time Techno actually acknowledged Wilbur being there. If he’d stepped in…what if he ruined that?

He didn’t know what the right answer was. He really didn’t. All he could hope for was that this would help to end the fight. Give them the stepping stones to do so.

He hoped and wished and he’d even go so far as to pray if he needed to.

Because if it didn’t help then he’d have just left his kids to go through that for no reason.

Gathering his strength and wiping his eyes as dry as he could get them Phil turned back towards the door. It was about time he actually stepped in now. His boys needed comforting and it was long overdue.

x-x-x

Right or wrong it was hard to say, but at the very least there did seem to be progress made. After some much needed soothing from their father Wilbur and Techno were calmed enough, and exhausted enough, to sleep.

This time, instead of going into Tommy’s room as he had been, Techno picked up TechnoPig and crawled into Wilbur’s bed. The two curled together under the thick blue duvet and for the first time in over two weeks a soft shared ‘goodnight’ could be heard in the room.

Chapter Text

It was just peeking into the beginning of November and both the older Watson boys found themselves seated in the living room, one parent each at their back. Wilbur was situated sourly on a kitchen chair with a towel wrapped around his shoulders and facing the tv while Techno was more happily tucked on the couch with a light blanket over his lap.

Hair cut day.

For Wilbur at least.

Techno, however, was contentedly pleased that he only had needed a slight trim for the ‘split ends’ or whatever. It had been fast and the scissors never got anywhere near his ears so he supposed he didn’t mind it. His hair was just shy of brushing over his shoulders now and his formerly fluffy curls were weighed down into smooth waves when brushed correctly.

A task his mother was more than happy to take on.

Speaking of, his mother currently had a brush in hand and was removing any hidden snags that might have escaped her during the initial comb through. It was actually kind of calming and had Techno more than once closing his eyes to enjoy the feeling.

Wilbur didn’t seem to be having as nice a time though as their father was once more giving him a warning to remain still. Techno tried not to smile as Wil gave a dramatic sigh in response, his legs audibly hitting those of the chair. When Techno peeked over in his direction he was treated to the sight of their father pulling Wilbur up out of a slump and back into a straight upward position.

“Wil, you’re only making this harder. Please, just keep sitting up for three more minutes. Literally, three.” Their father huffed out with exasperation.

“But-”

“Your legs, feet and toes are all fine and can handle three more minutes of stillness. After that you can burst into your true form as chaos incarnate and race through the house at whatever speed you want. I don’t care. Just. Sit. Still.” Their father cut in sounding just a bit desperate.

Wilbur, in response, lulled his head back with an even bigger dramatic sigh.

Even with biting his lip Techno couldn’t keep his laugh to himself, covering his mouth with his hands in added effort.

“Don’t encourage him, Techno.” His father sighed out heavily as he corrected Wil’s head position once more.

Wilbur was grinning now though, already sufficiently encouraged apparently.

“He never gives me that much trouble.” Their mother chuckled from behind Techno, her fingers running through his hair to a small knot she’d found.

“Yea, I know. Because your the favorite.” Their father responded, his tired breath sounding just slightly more amused now, “And yet you still had me do it.”

“Not my fault you’re bad at ‘rock paper scissors’.” Their mother practically sang out.

“I’m not bad at it. Not that bad at least. I’m pretty sure you cheated.” Their father accused as he looked at her with a slightly exaggerated look of suspicion.

“How could I have cheated?”

“I don’t know, but I know you wanted to be the one to bush through Techno’s hair!” Their father once more accused as he pointed the pair of scissor between her and Techno.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about~” Their mother replied in that amused voice that hinted otherwise.

“And you wonder where Wilbur gets it from.” Their father said with a mock huff as he rolled his eyes.

“I don’t cheat.” Wilbur defended with a frown has he leaned back in order to look up at his father.

Once more Wilbur was having his head position readjusted leading him to roll his eyes as well.

Before the conversation could go any further there was a babbling from Tommy, who was seated on the same couch as Techno. He had been placed down with a few toys and a snack to entertain himself while his family was busy. However, with the snack now clearly gone it seemed Tommy really wasn’t going to do that regardless of toys near him or the cartoon that was playing on screen.

Currently he was staring at Techno and their mother and making his ever familiar ‘grabby hands’ at them. Along with that he was babbling something with his ‘I want that’ whine for good measure.

“Use your words, Tommy.” Their mother encouraged as she leaned over enough to ruffle his curls a bit.

Despite Tommy talking more and more now he’d gotten in the habit of reverting to his ‘baby talk’ when he wanted attention.

Or something; it wasn’t always clear.

Regardless, the phrase ‘use your words, Tommy’ was quickly outpacing the former, ‘Tommy, where are your clothes’. A deceptive change as Tommy was no less prone to shedding them at a moments notice, or lack there of.

Tommy, or course, pouted at the words like usual and let out a huff tailed by a whine.

“Don’t whine at me mr.” Their mother chuckled as she started to go back to ensure the snarl she’d found was fully gone, “You worked hard to learn your words. Be a shame not to use them.”

“Words help us to understand too.” Their father piped up as well.

“My words want you to know that I hate hair cuts.” Wilbur stated flatly as he continued his own pouting.

“It’s either this or long hair and you already said you don’t want that.” Phil was swift in replying as he snipped another bit off.

Wilbur grumbled but kept still this time. Meanwhile, Tommy had moved a bit closer on the couch and was now just about reaching Techno’s side, a hand once more reaching up.

“Wanna brush it.” Tommy insisted as he stared up at their mother.

“I don’t know, Tommy. I’m almost done and we don’t want it to tangle again.” Their mother started to deny with a small apologetic look on her face.

Techno took the moment to look up at her from where he was. It hadn’t taken her long to fix the back where he couldn’t reach just right, and Tommy was so small. He couldn’t possibly mess it up that badly. Besides, if it did get messed up then his mother would just fix it again.

It felt nice when she brushed it for him.

“Its okay, mom. As long he doesn’t pull it, I don’t mind.” He informed her with a shrug.

“You sure, Tech? Tommy might be too small for that.” She asked him with a hint of concern.

“I’m sure.” Techno nodded as he looked over to Tommy to offer him a smile, “Just be careful, okay?”

Tommy was beaming already and nodded his head vigorously.

Techno turned in his spot so that his back was to Tommy and then for the next few minutes their mother took her time in showing Tommy what to do. How to hold the brush and how hard to press and all that. Tommy was eager and Techno could feel the couch cushions sink and rise with each bounce.

An eager Tommy generally warned for caution and Techno only could hope that his mother’s lesson would be enough to curb any…less than pleasant actions.

He maybe was regretting agreeing to this, just a bit.

Finally, after far to short a time in Techno’s increasingly worried mind, their mother handed over the brush fully to Tommy. Techno couldn’t help the wince when Tommy gave it his first go and practically shoved the bristles into Techno’s head. He couldn’t, however, keep in his yelp of pain as Tommy tried to pulled down far too hard.

“Tommy, stop.” Their mother quickly stepped in with a hand on the now offending brush, “Remember, gentle hands. Slow and easy, don’t pull.”

Techno let out a shivered breath as the brush was pulled from his hair. He tensed though, when it returned to his head not a moment later. It still came down harder than his mother did it, but it wasn’t through to his skull this time.

“Okay, now, carefully-”

Techno yelp again as the brush was yanked down, this time being pulled back with it until he found himself crashing into Tommy.

Maybe his mother was right and Tommy was still too small for this. He wasn’t exactly keen on giving his brother a third attempt.

“Oookay, Tommy. I think that’s enough.” Their mother informed before Techno even had to say anything.

“But-”

“No ‘but’s about it. You can give it a try when you’re older maybe.” Their mother said as she helped Techno to sit back up.

Or tried to.

As he was half way up he felt a tiny hand dig into his hair and then latch on with a tug.

“No! I wanna do it! He said I can!”

“Tommy! Don’t pull my hair!” Techno shouted back over Tommy as he himself reached to where his brother’s fist was.

It didn’t help and Techno became uncomfortably aware of two hands pulling in different places.

“Tommy that hurts!” He tried again, but Tommy was still complaining about wanting to brush it.

“You can’t hold someone's hair like that, Tommy.” Their mother was scolding as she tried to free Techno of the second little fist.

“I Wanna Brush It! You Said I Could!” Tommy continued to shout ignoring both of them with a shake of said fists.

“I Say You Can’t Now! Stop Yanking It!” Techno whined as he felt his head jerk painfully on top of the already aching stings from his scalp from said tugs.

“Tommy. Let go. Gentle hands, remember?” Their mother continued to try to reason as she managed to untangle at least one of Tommy’s hands.

“Tommy, here. If you let go of Techno’s hair you can play with mine.” Wilbur’s voice came from beside Techno now.

Peeking an eye open Techno saw that Wilbur had abandoned his seat and was leaning over both him and Tommy. He was running his fingers through his freshly cut hair as if to show it off and entice. Tommy wasn’t shouting now and Techno could only assume Wil had gotten his attention.

He just had to hope that it was enough to free him from their baby brother’s hold.

“Promise?” Tommy asked, his pouty voice in full swing.

“I promise, Toms. But, you have to let go of Techno. You’re hurting him.” Wilbur answered with a nod.

Not a moment later both of Tommy’s hands where out of his hair and Techno was able to breath easy once more. His mother helped him to sit back and up as he turned to look at his brothers Techno saw Wil place himself on the floor with his back to the couch.

Techno worried for his elder brother’s confidence here, but he wasn’t going to say anything. He didn’t want to risk Tommy coming back for him.

Tommy, who was scooting closer to Wil now with a beaming smile back on his face.

“ ‘Gentle Hands’ Tommy. Remember that.” Their mother warned once more.

Not three minutes later Wilbur was crying out in pain as Tommy’s fingers were locked in his front curls. Once more the small blonde proved that ‘shorter hair’ didn’t mean ‘safe’.

In the end their father had to step in to rescue Wilbur and Tommy got another conversation about careful handling.

Xx--xx

It was just past lunchtime now and the Watson boys were all outside in the yard enjoying the slightly nippy and yet refreshing fall air. They were trying to enjoy the outdoors while they could before any snow came for the year and they’d be stuck snowsuits instead of just winter jackets.

Currently Techno and Wilbur were building up a fort of sorts around Tommy, who was happily setting up a row of toys to be his little army inside. It was simple, but it made Tommy happy and so the two were content enough to stick with it for now.

Normally at least one of their parents was outside with them while they played, especially since the dog incident. However nature called and their father had dipped inside for ‘just a minute’. Not that the boys minded. They were well away from the fence and didn’t give a second thought to it.

That was, until a rather loud and almost gravely ‘meow’ broke into the air not too far from them. Wilbur and Techno both stopped what they were doing and looked towards the noise, Tommy still blissfully unaware and talking to his ‘army’.

Not more than two arm lengths away was a some what scraggly looking cat with dingy gray fur and a white chest crest. One of its ears was slightly nipped at but other then that it looked in fair enough health. It was, however, slowly approaching them with its tail up and eyes locked onto them.

Techno didn’t break his eyes away from the cat as he ‘whispered’ to Wilbur.

“you think we can pet it?”

Wilbur briefly glanced towards Techno before looking back to the cat, an adoring smile already drawing up on his face.

“I’ll check.” He offered easily, inching towards the cat instead of the house.

He reached out a hand without fear and let the cat draw up enough to sniff his fingers. In a moment the cat let out a fresh meow and rubbed encouragingly against Wil’s hand. Wilbur, of course, readily began petting it, his smile just about overtaking his face.

“I want to pet it too!” Techno said loudly as he quickly moved to sit beside Wilbur.

The cat skittered away slightly, but still looked interested in staying around.

“Careful. You don’t want to scare it.” Wilbur warned as he took hold of Techno’s hand and slowly reached it out, “Let it sniff you first. Then it’ll let you pet it if your nice about it.”

Techno nodded and waited, eyes firmly on the cat and almost pleading with it to come closer again. It didn’t take long. The cat seemed brave enough and swiftly was at Techno’s fingers, sniffing them before giving a small lick and then rubbing against his hand as well.

Techno beamed as the cat pressed its head into his hand and he looked to Wilbur with excitement. Wilbur shared the look as he returned his own hand to petting the cat.

“Now you just have to pet softly.” He stated as he slipped his hand down the cats back.

The two boys, entirely caught up in the new arrival, had seemed to forget about Tommy. The smaller blonde, despite his prior distraction, certainly took note of this. He let out a disapproving whine at first, but when that went unanswered he stood up from inside the partially built fort. When his eyes landed on the cat they grew wide and his mouth broke into an excited grin.

“I wanna pet it!” Tommy called out, moving around the ‘wall’ of the fort to join his older siblings.

His voice seemed to startled the cat, but not enough to make it flee like Techno had. Probably because of the distance Tommy was still at. Wilbur, however, seemed to instantly grow concerned as he held out a hand at Tommy.

“Slow down, Tommy. You’ll scare them.” He warned first as he turned to face his youngest sibling, “Also, I think you might be to small-”

“I wanna pet it!” Tommy insisted over his brother, voice louder and causing the cat to pause and stare.

“Tommy-”

“I wanna pet it!” Tommy insisted once more with a stomp of his foot and a pout at his brother, “You ‘n Techy get to pet it!”

Wilbur hesitated here as he glanced behind him at said cat and Techno. Techno was trying to sooth the feline while it continued to stare at Tommy warily. When he looked back at Tommy Wilbur felt his will falter some as Tommy had his lower lip pushed out and his eyes wide and pleading.

“...If your careful…then fine.” Wil gave in rather quickly, “But, you have to be nice to it.”

“I will!” Tommy replied with a beaming smile.

“Don’t shout so much. It doesn’t like it.” Wilbur started with as he brought Tommy closer.

Tommy nodded and plopped down onto his knees to be closer to the animal. The cat spooked back a few steps and when Tommy went to follow it Wilbur had to place a hand on his shoulder.

“No, don’t chase it. You have to let it come to you.” He said as he crouched down beside Tommy, “Wait for it to come close and then let it sniff your fingers.”

Tommy pouted as he wiggled impatiently.

“But, I wanna pet it now.” He whined.

“Well, you can’t. You have to wait for it to let you. If you don’t it might leave or get mad.” Wilbur tried to explain.

The cat was slowly making its way back to Techno, but was still avoiding Tommy, much to the toddlers dislike. He huffed again, but Wilbur kept him from inching closer.

After what seemed like ages to Tommy the cat seemed to grow brave enough once more to approach. It was slow and Wilbur had to hold out Tommy’s hand to keep him from eagerly reaching forwards. When the cat nuzzled at their hands Tommy’s impatient pout turned into a fresh bursting smile as he giggled in delight.

“Wilby! I’m pettin’ it!” Tommy gleed and Wilbur had to try to calm his yelling while also grinning.

“Soft voices, Tommy. Just like indoors. And remember your ‘gentle hands', like mom says.” He added as he let go in order to pet the cat himself.

The cat seemed to love all the attention and was eagerly dipping in between all three boys, nuzzling all around them as it purred in its own delight. It was during one of the cats loops around them that Tommy seemed to catch full interest in the long tail that was waving around almost like a flag. With a happy giggle he reached out for it-

“Ah, ah, ah, Tommy. No tail.” Wilbur warned, having only just caught Tommy’s hand in time before he could reach said appendage, “Cat’s don’t like it when you touch their tails.”

Tommy pouted with a whine but Wilbur held firm this time.

“We need to be nice to it, remember? Soft pets and no tail touching.” Wilbur reminded as he slowly let go of his brother’s hands once more, “It’s either that or you can’t pet it at all.”

Tommy huffed and kept his pout in place, though it was short lived as the cat came over and nuzzled against his side. Tommy loved it and let his hand run along its side as it passed him. Though his eyes landed on the tail as it moved away.

In an attempt to slow the cat down from leaving him Tommy pet the cat hard enough that it had to strain its back to keep on its feet.

“Soft pets, Tommy.” Techno warned this time as he nudged Tommy’s hands off the feline, “Softly. Or the cat might get mad at you.”

Tommy, of course, didn’t like being told that and frowned at his brother. Though Techno was already focused back on the animal that was meowing at his feet and bumping its head affectionately against his knee.

For the next few minutes the boys continue to contently pet the cat as it weaved between them. It favored Techno the most but it still traveled to the other two for even more love, its purr seeming to almost rattle its ribcage.

As it passed Tommy once more its tail swished enough to boop him on the nose causing him to giggle with joy. It moved on towards Wilbur once more, set to make another loop of them all when Tommy reached out yet again. Before Wil could even register Tommy having latched onto the swaying gray tail the blonde held it tight and tugged. He was hoping to bring the cat back to him to boop him again. Instead what he got was a growled hiss as the cat wheeled around swiftly.

In the blink of an eye the cat was on him and Tommy cried out at the sudden stinging on his face and hands.

“Tommy!” Wilbur and Techno were shouting instantly, Techno being the one to chase the cat away the second it leapt from Tommy’s body.

Wilbur was pulling a now sobbing Tommy close just as fast, holding him in a comforting hug as he watched Techno scare the animal off. When he leaned back to see Tommy’s face Wil frowned as he saw the various little red marks on his cheeks and nose.

“Shhh, shh, it’s okay. You’re fine.” Wilbur tried to sooth as he started to pick them both up, “Just, going to get you cleaned up, okay?”

He was barely on his feet when the door to the house slid open, their father standing in it looking alarmed. As he spotted Tommy he was quick in exiting the house and crouching down to pluck him up. It didn't take long at all for him to note the scratches on his son as he let out a confused little gasp.

“Where on earth did those come from, mate?” He asked softly as Tommy continued to cry.

“W-we were petting this cat and-” Wilbur started before faltering anxiously.

“Tommy grabbed its tail.” Techno finished for him as he returned from the fence.

“A cat? Where on earth did a cat come from?” Their father asked as he motioned for them both to head for the door, a thumb wiping gingerly at Tommy's cheek.

“We don’t know. It just, came into the yard and wanted pets.” Techno answered as he peeked at Tommy, “It was nice at first.”

“You boys shouldn’t be petting strange animals, regardless of if they come into the yard.” Their father sighed as he rocked Tommy more, giving him a soft shoosh as the lot of them re-entered the house, “Its okay, baby. You’re going to be fine. We’re just going to wash you up and get you all taken are of.”

X-x

The care for Tommy was simple and soon enough the toddler was contently noming on some freshly cut grapes.

However, the snack was paired with a fresh talk and addendum to his usual warning.

Gentle hands or none at all.

Chapter Text

“Hey Tommy, you almost ready, mate?” Philza asked his youngest son when he heard an annoyed huff from the coat area.

Tommy let out a frustrated whine as he turned to his father, pulling the only partially worn coat from his shoulder.

“Its broken.” Tommy informed him with a pout.

“Ah, I see.” Phil nodded with a chuckle as he approached, “Let me try to fix it then.”

Phil crouched down and reached out for his toddlers offered coat, trying to keep his smile mild least Tommy shift his annoyance onto Phil himself.

Tommy had been getting better at dressing himself lately with basic clothing, however his larger winter jacket was still a challenge. He could only ever get one arm in before he ended up spinning in a circle like a dog after its tail. Because of this he often deemed the coat ‘broken’ until one of his family members ‘fixed’ it for him.

It funny.

It was precious.

It was absolutely on video.

“Ok, bud, all set.” Phil grinned as he zipped up the coat to Tommy’s chin.

“Too much!” Tommy whined, hands grabbing for the zipper and tugging it back down.

It didn’t move too much from the way he’d fully grabbed it, but he seemed to get it where it was okay at least before he lifted his arms up to be carried.

“All ready to go now then?” Phil asked, not giving in to the silent demand as he stood up himself.

Instead of being mad about the denial Tommy beamed up at him as his excitement renewed. He bounced in place a moment with a giggle as he nodded his head.

“Techie and Wilby!” Tommy cheered as he turned and started to run for the door now.

“One second Tommy, wait for me.” Phil laughed once more to himself as patted himself down for a third time to make sure he had his keys on him.

It wouldn’t be the first time he’d locked himself out before and he didn’t want to risk it once all his kids were with him. Kristin wouldn’t be home for hours yet and waiting for a locksmith promised nothing for saved time.

“Hurry dad! Gunna be late!” Tommy called from the door, still too young to work the handle thankfully.

“I’m coming Toms, I’m coming.” Phil assured, admittedly debating walking slower to agitate his son just a bit more.

Tommy was speaking a lot more now and often mimicked his brothers, especially so when he got frustrated. Often mirroring Wilbur like a small golden clone.

Phil just couldn’t help himself sometimes.

However, they did have a deadline to meet and a bus to catch currently so Phil allowed that thought to drop away for now.

Quickly grabbing his own coat from the wall and scooting towards the door Phil ushered them out into the crisp November air. It was still early in the month, but the chill was well settled in at this point. Enough so that there was even risk of early snow according to the weather alerts.

All the more reason to get his sons all home and inside out of the chill. Last thing they needed was for any of them to get sick.

Tommy babbled excitedly about getting to see his brothers at school as they walked. Phil was only managing to nod along with it all as he also needing to keep a firm hold on his son’s hand just to keep him from trying to rush ahead. It didn’t matter that Tommy didn’t know where to go, he was determined to get there first.

By the time they reached the city bus stop Philza had to finally give in and carry Tommy just to keep the kid from tugging out of his grip. Which is exactly what happened the moment they reached the front the boys school. Phil had thought Tommy might be more caught up in the novelty of riding the city bus for the first time, but he’d apparently underestimated his sons pure excitement over seeing said school.

Now, Tommy had seen the school a few times, having come with either him or Kristin in picking the boys up on occasion. However, he’d never seen the inside. Today he was going to and the thought had him rushing the door as if all the joy in the world were contained within.

He only had a few years to think that before reality caught up to him.

“Tommy, don’t bang on the doors. That’s rude.” Philza warned, trying to keep a smile from his face.

Especially when Tommy turned to him with an impatient pout and whine to match.

“Hurry up!” Tommy demanded with a stomp of his foot for good measure.

“Manners, Toms. Being excited is no excuse for bad behavior.” Phil warned once more as he reached the door, his hand lingering over the handle, “What do you say?”

Tommy pouted harder up at him, popping out his lower lip with a slight tremble to it. Phil only stared back and waited, knowing full well it wouldn’t take long for Tommy to break right now.

“ ‘m sorry.” Tommy muttered as he lowered his gaze though his expression never changed.

“And?”

“...open the door, please?” Tommy asked, this time lifting his head with his puppy dog eyes on for good measure.

Phil gave a snort as he used his other hand to ruffle Tommy’s curls.

“Much better, mate.” He nodded, shuffling Tommy back a step as he pulled the door open for them, “Now, lets go find your brothers.”

x-x

The mission of ‘find your brothers’ was remembered only in bursts as the pair of them wandered through the halls. Tommy rushed from door to door, pushing on them mostly in vain as he called out for the two. When not doing that he was peering in through any window or display they passed.

Phil honestly couldn’t help but laugh as Tommy pointed out the trophies or artworks being shown off. He seemed so convinced they were from his brothers and made sure to tell his father about needing to take them home with them. Because obviously they were being forgotten by his brothers in the first place.

Phil just, didn’t have the heart to correct him.

Not yet anyway.

As the two of them made their way closer to the arts hallway itself Tommy stopped. Phil stopped with him and waited, tilting his head as he waited for whatever new story or interest seemed to catch his youngest’s attention.

Instead of tossing out words of any kind Tommy let out a squeal of delight before he took off running. He didn’t slow in the slightest as Phil called out to him and so he left with nothing to do but to follow the toddler.

He didn’t have to question for long what had caught the smaller blonds attention. The sound of guitar chords echoed in the hall ahead of them, growing louder with each step he took.

Tommy ran full pell-mell, giggles falling from his mouth, until he zeroed in on the correct door. Phil winced slightly as his son all but body slammed into the long window beside the door, fists already up and banging on it before Phil could even utter a warning not to.

Even at a distance Phil could see the figures inside said room jolt at the sudden noises. The startled faces within quickly turning into grins.

“Wilby! Techie!” Tommy called out as he continued to hit the window, bouncing in place for good measure, “Let me in! Let me in!”

The demand wasn’t exactly needed as barely a moment later the door opened by a chuckling man with a tie. Tommy was dashing into the room to his brothers by the time Phil reached the door proper, following after with a smile on his own face.

“Sorry ‘bout that. He got away from me there.” Phil apologized to the music teacher with a laugh.

“No worries. We were just about finished here.” The man stated as he held out a hand.

Before either adult could get another word in Tommy’s voice was echoing out into the room, gushing about the ‘pretty pictures’ and such he’d seen on the way. Wilbur was already laughing a bit, a beaming smile on his face as he moved to put his guitar in its case. Techno was mid eye roll with an amused snort as he moved to pull Tommy off of Wil’s leg, where he was tugging while telling his tale.

“An-and then, there was, it was- it had a big eye and like- a bow, a BIG one-” Tommy described with animated gestures now that Techno had detached him from Wil.

“ Breathe Tommy.” Wilbur chuckled as he turned to face them once more, “Use all your words.”

Tommy puffed a breath at Wilbur but the smile never left his face. Instead he just brought his hands up to speak with even more animated motions.

“It was a big monster.” Tommy stated as he stretched his hands up as far as he could reach.

“The cyclopes painting? Is that what you’re talking about?” Techno asked and causing Tommy to spin and face him wildly with a nod.

“Like in the story! But it was bigger!” Tommy tried to explain, once more throwing his arms out to emphasize.

Phil chuckled as his boys continued to talk, Tommy leading them on from things he’d seen to what new things there were around him. Techno and Wilbur seemed content, if not enthused, to carry on with him.

“Well, they’re certainly brothers.” The music teacher teased, a smile crinkling at his eyes, “And I had thought Wilbur could talk fast.”

“I’m pretty sure Wil is his inspiration.” Phil laughed back in turn.

“Then I fear the day I teach all three of them.” The teacher replied, his laugh startled out of him as suddenly the chime of a triangle rang out.

Tommy had found the percussion instruments.

Techno was covering his ears and leaning away while Wilbur just laughed and tried to ring his own triangle louder than Tommy. Tommy, of course, was thrilled by this and was spurred on all the more.

“Boys, Please” Phil started, a half amused huff leaving him while he covered his own ears, “We’re trying to have a discussion.”

“Look, Daddy!” Tommy called out without care for his father’s words, choosing instead to hold up the metal shape as he rang it.

“I see it Tommy, and I hear it. But I think its time for something else, okay?” Phil tried to persuade in a calm voice as he winced slightly at the sharp notes.

Tommy gave a short little jump of excitement even as Techno was removing the instrument from his hands. He apparently wasn’t going to wait for Tommy to be finished and Phil couldn’t have been more relieved.

With the resumed ‘quiet’ Phil turned back to the teacher. He could hear his boys talking animatedly behind him as the other man and himself discussed Wilbur’s progress thus far. The man had just barely gone over Wil’s recent practices when the two adults were once more startled.

This time it was the shrill scream of a recorder.

“Absolutely not! Put that down!” Phil was quick reprimand this time.

Tommy was once more laughing as both Techno and Wilbur had yanked the thing from his hand at once. Apparently the stark reactions being amusing enough that he didn’t mind the hasty take away. Nor did he seem to mind at all as Wilbur took his hand and lead him away from that particular wall of instruments.

Phil sighed with relief at that while the teacher took the moment to let out another chuckle.

“You should hear it when there are about ten of them going at once.” The man teased.

“No. Just, absolutely no. There is a reason we stopped at three.” Phil replied with a wheeze of a laugh.

The two shared a small back and for the jokes before getting back to their talk of Wilbur. Phil keeping half an eye on his sons now, if for no other reason than to brace himself.

Once more the two were barely over the topic of future lessons when Tommy’s voice rose up suddenly in great awe.

On the other side of the room Wilbur had shown Tommy the large bass drum, which was bigger than the toddler by far. This alone seemed to put him in a state of awe. However, the second Techno had gone up beside him and hit the drum, its thick whamp of a noise bringing in a new shine to Tommy’s gaze.

For the remaining ten minutes of their attempted meeting the two adults struggled to be heard over the sound of thundering drums. Interspersed between the beats were peals of delighted laughter from Tommy and his brothers.

Phil didn’t mind not hearing the end of the meeting. He could just as easily message the teacher later about it. The two of them were content enough to let the trio mess around with the instruments. In turn the kids seemed just as content to lose themselves in the noise that they made.

Chapter Text

“I can do it!” Tommy whined with a pout up at his father as he tugged his clothing from the mans hand.

Philza had merely been trying to get his toddler properly clothed in a timely fashion, but for the way Tommy looked at him the man might as well have insulted his honor. The smaller boy tugged once more, the jean fabric let loose into his own arms.

“Okay, okay, Toms. I hear you. Just keep in mind we have to be going soon.” Phil relented as he crossed his arms with a bit of extra flare for effect, “I’m going to go help your mother since you clearly don’t need me.”

“Good! I can do it all, by, my, self!!” Tommy Insisted, not at all alarmed at his father’s statement on leaving.

Phil waited an extra moment before shrugging and turning for the door.

Part of his chest ached at the thought of his baby boy already dressing all on his own. However, the other part was relieved at not having to battle with the small blond over pairs of shorts or pajama bottoms. No more would he sigh deeply in frustration as Tommy hugged his arms close to refuse a specific shirt. No longer would he faced with a tantrum because the character on Tommy’s underoos wasn’t the one he wanted.

…

All at once the urge to scoop Tommy up in his arms and coddle him a bit more bloomed like a creeping ivy. However, before it could root in to the point of distraction Phil took his leave.

They had places to be after all.

“Okay boys, we’re leaving in ten minutes. Make sure you’re ready.” Phil called out to his other sons before dipping into his own room.

Both Wilbur and Techno called out a shared ‘okay’ from two separate locations. Wilbur from their bedroom and Techno from down near the kitchen. The two older boys working swiftly to get ready in the same manner they did for school. This time, though, with a bit more excitement than usual.

They were going to a ‘friends house’ their parents had told them. It was a surprise but they had been told they were going to meet someone both familiar and new which had both boys buzzing with anticipation among other things.

Wilbur kept changing his shirt as he wanted to ‘look his best’ but also ‘cool’ for this new potential friend. First impressions and all that.

Techno, on the other hand, was more focused on what things to bring to play with together. Preferably something that didn’t require talking, just in case.

Kristin, for her part, was excitedly tucking her hair up and checking her fit in the closet mirror leaving Phil nothing to do but to watch with a smile. This visit had been the center point of conversation between them for a few weeks now and he was glad to see her bubbling with joy at it finally being the day.

It had been years since Kristin and her friend Puffy had seen each other. Not since Wilbur had been born at least. They had been close friends during their child care studies and had more than once been each other’s emotional support since. Even when their paths diverged the two had made sure to keep in contact. The woman had even been Kristin’s Maid of Honor at their wedding, the two practically sisters.

Honestly Phil was sure the woman would have been like a second mother to their kids had she not had to travel for her work. While Kristin had remained in child care Puffy had branched out into another field of psychology which had opened up a rare job opportunity for her. An opportunity that came with near constant travel and large spans of time spent out at sea.

Phil had joked once that with all the time sailing Puffy should have gone into marine biology. Puffy had all too readily stated it was easier to branch into her dream of piracy with a doctorate.

But now Puffy had returned, moving into a house little over an hour and a half away in the small town of Snowchester. Not only that but she had returned with a son.

Phil and Kristin had only seen pictures of the kid, just a year younger than Wilbur was. After so many years they were finally going to meet.

“You look more giddy than the kids” Phil teased as Kristin fussed with the hem of her blouse.

With a short laugh she turned to face him, lips curled in a bemused smirk.

“I just want to make a good impression on the little guy.” She replied before leaning out to swat at his arm, “You could stand to put in a bit more effort. “

Phil shied away from the hit but failed to get out of range as he let out a little squawked noise in place of a yelp. The two continued to tease as Phil did get back to his own getting ready.

Meanwhile, across the hall little three year old Tommy was still struggling with the pant leg of his overalls. He had gotten one leg inside of them, but every time he tried to get the other he would wobble dangerously as the jean fabric rose higher than his leg could get.

He was so sure he was doing this the way his father did. Holding the top of the pants part to his hip to keep it from falling to the floor he tried to use his other hand to hold onto the wall for balance. Once more his leg rose up, but so did the jean, and once more it went too high to slip his leg into.

Red in the face and pout heavy on his lips Tommy let out a frustrated whine. Giving a sharp huff of a breath Tommy glared at the overalls before trying it yet again. At yet another failure the whine from earlier developed into a shrill screech as he dropped the item to the floor and began to stomp on it in his anger.

At the sound of a Tommy Tantrum the door to the toddlers room opened, Wilbur peeking inside to see what was wrong this time. Tommy didn’t even look up as he continued to punish the offending article of clothing.

“Tommy?” He questioned as he tried to keep the amused smile from his face.

When Tommy raised his head his face was even redder than before as he puffed up breaths from his exertion.

“Do you want some help?” Wilbur offered as causally as he could.

If he laughed now then Tommy’s fit would only get louder and last longer.

Even with that considerate effort put in Tommy shook his head in refusal. His angry scowl touched with a still lingering determination.

“I can do it all by my self.” Tommy echoed his words from earlier, though this time sounded far less confident.

Wilbur watched as Tommy squatted down to pick the overalls back off the floor. One leg inside while the other was left starkly bare. Without a word he continued to observe as Tommy braced on the wall and then once more attempted to lift his other leg up and into the remaining pantleg. He saw the fabric pull up with Tommy’s hand that held it, thwarting himself from the very start without him realizing.

Tommy let out a freshly heated huff and tried once more to lift his foot into the waiting, shifting, jean opening. At his failure this time Tommy let out a mixed shouted whine as he grabbed onto the offending material with both fists. He gave a mighty tug of displeasure that most likely was supposed to send the article to the ground, ready to be trampled once more. However, with his left leg still inside what happened next was far more comical.

Tommy didn’t even have time to yelp or cry out as his leg was yoinked forwards sending him tumbling backwards and onto his butt and rolling onto his back. He had just enough sense to flail to keep from hitting his head outright, but that seemed to be where it ended. His anger itself seemed startled away from him as he stared wide eyed ahead, his mind not yet caught up with him.

Wilbur no longer had a say in his self control as he bust out laughing, his shrill cackle filling the room and hall. So hardy was it that he was left wheezing before long, an arm on the door frame as he at least fought not to sink entirely down onto his knees.

“S’not funny!” Tommy shouted at him, kicking for good measure and grunting when his stuck leg remained trapped.

“Six minutes!” Their father called from within his own room, humor in his own voice despite not having come to see what was going on.

Wilbur sucked in a deep breath to regain himself, though he still needed to wipe at his eyes a bit as he pulled himself back into a stand. Tommy remained on the floor though, pout weighing heavily on his face as his own eyes pricked with early tears.

“Do- do you want some, help Tommy?” Wilbur asked, trying his best to keep his voice even.

Tommy raised his gazed to Wil at the words, his face a fluster of red and clearly on the verge of crying instead of just tantruming. It took a moment but Tommy slowly nodded his head as he raised his arms up to his brother, a short pleading whine leaving his mouth.

.-.

It was barely a few minutes before Wilbur had Tommy all set and dressed. Despite the former protests Tommy had been more than willing to comply with all of Wil’s instructions making it a speedy task. Soon enough the toddler was running down the hall towards the front of the house while Wil went back to getting himself sorted out.

He still wasn’t sure about his shirt choice.

As Tommy darted for the door itself he was met by Techno who was already putting on his own coat. Tommy barely had his off the hook before Techno took it from him, holding it open for his brother to slip into. Without a word the toddler did just that, quickly reaching for the zipper after it was in place while Techno dealt with the two buttons on top.

Phil and Kristin watched from the kitchen with a shared grin between them before they finished off their respective ‘pre-take off checklists’.

In bare minutes the family was herded out of the house and into the car. Tommy sat between his brothers, as per usual, and was already babbling away about the adventure they were sure to be going on.

-.-.-

An hour and a half in a car with an excited chatty toddler was a long time indeed. And that was not accounting for the encouraging factor of his elder brothers taking turns riling him up or just bickering with each other.

Needless to say when they pulled into the driveway to Puffy’s house Phil was ready to jump out and kiss the earth, or hug a tree, or both. Kristin could read it on his face apparently, judging from her smirk. Though she seemed to take just enough pity on him not to call him out.

“Alright, time to get out you little monsters.” Phil practically grunted out as he opened his door first.

The second Wilbur popped his own open though Phil was speaking again, his voice in that directive ‘dad’ tone that held warning and worry all at once.

“Don’t go running anywhere, we’re going to walk up together. I want you on your best behavior for this.” He started as Kristin worked to get both Techno and Tommy out of the car, “This is an important family friend so we want to make good first impressions.”

“Don’t make it sound so dramatic, Phil. Its Puffy. She’s going to spoil them no matter what.” Kristin teased as she held Tommy on her hip.

“I know. But it wouldn’t hurt to have them not act like little goblins for five minutes.” Phil replied, his demeanor softening a bit as he took the moment to ruffle a hand through Wilbur’s hair.

“Dad! Mom had it all brushed for me!” Wil complain quickly as he tried to grab onto the mans wrist to stop him.

“I could hardly notice.” Phil teased earning him a scowl from Wil in turn.

The family was barely getting it together enough to head for the front door of the house, a cozy looking place that was easily larger then theirs but still quaint, when it opened before them. Standing in the frame with a wide smile and wild, almost looming, hair surrounding her was Puffy.

“I was getting worried you might have gotten lost on the way here.” She greeted warmly with a motion for them to come closer.

“Puffyyyy!” Kristin shouted out with glee before Phil could even try to get a quip in.

She was darting forwards, Tommy in her arms, and pulled her friend into the tightest hug she could manage single handedly. Puffy, not weighed down by a child, had the advantage and soon was squeezing the life out of both Kristin and Tommy. She only really let go when Tommy’s initial giggling started to turn into a whine.

“I thought we were going to ‘walk up together’?” Wilbur commented with a smirk as he, Techno and their father remained standing back at the car.

“Shut.” Phil sighed with light chuckle and grin on his face as he nodded for both boys to walk with him now.

-.-

It took the family a bit of time to actually enter the house as Puffy and Kristin had gotten lost in a storm of introductions and excited chattering. It had taken Techno asking awkwardly to use the bathroom for either woman to realize they were still all, in fact, on the porch.

Puffy had been quick to invite them in after that, calling out a name into the house as they were all ushered inside. There was a pattered thumping of feet from down the hall before a boy appeared, smile drawing up on his face once he saw the Watson family.

The kid, despite being younger then Wilbur, was already over Wilbur’s height by almost a full inch. He was currently dressed in various SharkMan merch from head to toe and looked entirely proud of it. His pants, shirt and hooded cape were all spotted with either the logo or image of the cartoon hero. As he rushed the last few steps towards the family Puffy sputtered out a noise of confusion towards him.

“What happened to the outfit we picked out?” She asked with a laugh as she plucked at his hood.

“You said I should dress in what I like and these are my favorite things.” The boy replied before looking towards the gathered Watsons and extending his hand readily, “My name’s Foolish. Its nice to meet you.”

The boy was fearless in his introduction and was holding his hand out as if he had been doing so for years. Given Puffy’s career and strong personality that was probably the case. She had always been a force of confidence so it stood to reason her son would be bursting with it as well.

“Its very nice to meet you Foolish.” Kristin greeted as she reached for the offered hand, “Your mother has told us a lot about you.”

Foolish beamed at her words and rocked excitedly on his heels as he looked back at his mother and then to Kristin once more. The pride on his face was a mirror of the look on Puffy’s, though his smile showed off far more teeth.

“Its nice to finally meet you.” Phil added as he took his turn shaking the kids hand.

“Foolish, would you mind showing Techno and Wilbur where the bathroom is for me?” Puffy asked as she ruffled her sons hood, “We can take them all on a house tour after.”

Foolish nodded quickly, his smile somehow growing more excited as he looked to the two boys before him. Wilbur had his own hand partially outstretched for an awkward looking handshake while Techno was mostly hidden behind him.

Despite that Foolish was quick to reach out and take Wil by the wrist, tugging him forwards as he turned for the hall he’d first come from. Techno was holding onto Wilbur’s other hand thus they quickly created a sort of chain effect out of the three of them.

“Its just this way. Not too far so there’s no getting lost.” He informed them chipperly as they moved.

As the adults watched them go there was a chuckle between them.

“And I thought our kids were energetic.” Phil teased.

“You have no idea.” Puffy replied, once more pride coloring her voice.

-.-

“-and if you push this here it makes the other drawbridge go down for quick escapes!” Foolish was happily explaining as he demonstrated said function on his Cube-O block castle.

The moment Techno had finished his business earlier Foolish had all but kidnapped the brothers into his bedroom where he proceeded to show off a great variety of toys and trinkets. Each one had story of one kind or another and he bounced between them rapidly, often times not giving the pair a chance to really take it in.

Despite the formal greetings their parents got Foolish had only taken the time to be told whose name was whose and then he was off. Wilbur hadn’t really…minded, but he wasn’t sure what to really do with himself now aside from follow along and nod like Techno was doing. Techno, who was watching from behind Wilbur’s back still, their hands once more firmly together.

Though, he seemed to be keeping track better than Wilbur was because he would nudge Wil along if he was lingering past the end of any particular story. Honestly, Wilbur sort of wished the kid would spend more time on the beach or ocean things he had set up. It was, in Wil’s opinion, far more interesting than what weird block thing made a door or whatever open for imaginary royalty.

Its not that he disliked hearing about it, and Foolish seemed thrilled to share but….Wilbur just couldn’t keep up.

For the first time ever he was half hoping his parents would come in and interrupt. At least long enough for a breather.

“So, do you do any building? I’ve got a lot of bricks left so we can try to make something while you’re here. Maybe add to the castle or something. I’m trying to see if I can make it big enough to cover my whole dresser.

The question was enough to bring Wil back into the moment, eyes glancing back from the bedroom door. He opened his mouth to answer, but before he could Foolish was talking once more.

“Or, if you don’t want to do a castle maybe a space ship or something. Mom got me a space station set too but I haven’t really built with it yet. I just use stuff to make the castle cooler.”

Wilbur sighed, lamenting the lost opportunity that seemed to vanish like a snowflake over a fire.

The little huff of breath though seemed to catch Foolish’s attention as he paused. Truly paused, and looked back at them.

Wilbur stiffened slightly and he could feel Techno squeeze his hand a bit more as well.

“Are you okay?” Foolish asked with genuine curiosity as he continued to stare.

The most stationary he’d been since they’d left the kitchen earlier.

“Uh, y-yea. I’m fine. We’re fine. Sorry.” Wilbur apologized automatically as he wasn’t sure what else he should say.

“...Was I going too fast? I was probably going to fast. Sorry about that. I just- I got so excited you know? I haven’t had friends over before and I just- just wanted to show everything before I forgot something or- I don’t know. But, it was probably fast.”

Foolish rattled off with a slight stammer, his confidant smile shifting into a more bashful one as he shifted on his feet. It almost reminded Wil of Techno which made him squeeze his brother’s hand on instinct.

“Its okay. We can get like that too sometimes.” Wilbur tried to assure, though there was still an awkward unease in his voice.

He could comfort his brothers just fine, but he wasn’t very good with strangers.

“Mom told me to just pick one or two things but- I couldn’t decide, you know?” Foolish asked once more, his smile now growing more amused at the edges.

“Well, do you have a particular favorite thing?” Wilbur asked, hoping if he could corral the other onto one specific topic or two that he might actually be able to follow along.

Before Foolish could answer Wilbur heard Techno huff from behind him, giving him a shove on the arm for good measure. Turning to look his younger brother he found a flat and distinctly unimpressed expression on his face. Without waiting to be asked Techno raised his free hand and pointed directly at Foolish, the other boy staring on with curiosity himself.

“You’re not supposed to point at people, Tech.” Wilbur reminded as he tried to follow the motion to his brother’s thought process.

Out of the corner of his eye he could see Foolish raising a hand up to almost trace the line from where Techno’s finger was aiming as he refused to drop it. Techno only let out another pointed huff at Wil as he wiggled his finger to try to emphasize what he was saying.

“SharkMan?” Foolish was mid questioning before his eyes went wide with excitement, “Oh Yea! SharkMan! I love SharkMan! He’s the best hero ever!

Techno was nodding at first to Foolish’s words until the last few, where he started to shake his head quickly. Foolish had already started his next tangent on said hero and how he was the best when Techno tugged his hand from Wilbur’s and instantly started to sign with a determined frown.

This gave Foolish pause once more as he watched Techno’s hands and fingers move about. Wilbur himself was about to start translating when Foolish brought up his own hands.

“Those guys are okay. But until they can talk to sharks and dolphins I still think I’m right.” Foolish said at a slower pace as he signed along.

Techno’s eyes widened in surprise just as Wil’s had while Foolish simply started to plow on.

“Wait, wait, wait. You know sign too?” Wilbur asked with a fair bit of surprise.

He’d rarely met anyone that knew sign and those that did certainly weren’t as good as Foolish seemed to be. If he were honest he almost looked better at it then Techno was himself.

“Yea? A couple of the sailors my mom worked with didn’t speak and one couldn’t hear either so we learned it.” Foolish replied, once more with accompanying sign aimed at Techno specifically, “You should have said something earlier so I could have been using it.”

“I mean, he can hear just fine. He just gets too nervous to speak sometimes so, its okay.” Wilbur tried to explain.

“You sure?” Foolish asked Techno with an uncertain frown and tilt of his head.

Techno nodded in turn and pointed to Wilbur before then signing out his own confirmation, his head lowered with embarrassment.

“Oh, well, if you’re sure. But, I don’t mind doing it so I’ll keep it up from now on.” Foolish nodded, flashing a bright smile at the boys.

Wilbur was relieved to hear this for two reasons. One, it seemed to make Techno relax a bit more and two, using sign language at the same time really did seem to slow Foolish’s talking down.

-.-

Eventually the boys were, in fact, found by the adults and given a small tour of the house itself before being given a round of snacks and drinks in the kitchen. While they ate Puffy seemed keen on talking to Wilbur and Techno with Tommy in her lap while their own parents chattered with Foolish.

Part of Wilbur couldn’t help but question the oddness of it, as if the adults were about to trade them over or something.

The questions Puffy asked were almost like the ones their grandparents did during phone calls on the holidays. About school and hobbies and things they liked. They were simple enough to answer and even Techno could manage it with his sign easily without getting stuck. Puffy, like Foolish, had been quick to add signing to her speaking at the sight and once more Techno seemed to relax at its inclusion.

The second the snacks were finished Foolish was the one to insist it was time to play again. Though he kept polite while excusing himself from Phil and Kristin he was no less a force of eager energy that refused to be denied. Not that anyone was of mind too stop them. In fact, the adults seemed more than happy to allow the kids off to their games. All four of them.

The grown ups, apparently, were wanting to ‘adult talk’ had thus ‘allowed’ Tommy to follow after them. Which was just a fancy way to say the boys had been told to watch him as Tommy himself demanded to play with them. The small blond had been with the grown ups for the whole of the visit so far so Wilbur didn’t doubt he was probably board.

Tommy wasn’t a ‘sit still’ sort of baby.

The toddler was, in fact, overly eager to be at their heels, babbling his excitement in a mix of words and gibbering both. Foolish played along with gibberish of his own at first, before stopping as his signs were no match for the false words the small child cooked up. Even Techno, with his added personal experience, was no match for Tommy’s chattering.

“Weywey aaah burghaba abush.” Tommy gibbered as he rolled one of Foolish’s toy trains over a stuffed Sharkman plush, another train in his other hand being used as a plane.

“Tommy, you have to use your words so we can play with you.” Wilbur reminded as he pat his brother on the head.

Wil knew well enough that Tommy was playing up his baby talk for attention since these were new people. While it was true the blond would slip into it when he got excited, he was also prone to doing so whenever meeting any of their parent’s friends. Wil normally wouldn’t care, but with it just the four of them he saw no reason to let Tommy keep it up. Especially when he was insisting they all play together.

“He can speak baby-talk if he wants. Its kinda cute.” Foolish chuckled as he handed Tommy another stuffed toy to run over.

Tommy took it with a smile before swiftly turning it too into wheel fodder.

“He’s supposed to use his words now though. Mom says so all the time.”

“But, its playtime now. Making up words and sounds is fun.” Foolish replied easily as he reached to pat Tommy on the head, bouncing his curls a bit more than needed.

Tommy’s smile widen but he didn’t look up from what his hands were doing. He did, however, let out an extra giggle when Foolish’s hand ruffled the top of his head.

“He’s so cute. Makes me wish I had a baby brother. Or sister. Either would be cool I think.” Foolish stated as he leaned in more to poke at one of Tommy’s cheeks.

At this Tommy lifted a hand to push the other away, but he didn’t seem bothered so much as distracted. Which only made Foolish try once more to poke at him.

“He can be cute, but he’s also a major butt sometimes.” Wilbur informed as he sat back and watched the two.

“I am not a butt!” Tommy instantly defended with a huff, gibberish forgotten as he looked angrily at Wil.

“more of a brat.” Techno ‘ corrected’, his voice on the softer side but still audible from where he sat on Foolish’s other side.

Tommy was fast to whip his head around to aim an equally riled look at him in turn.

“Not a brat!” He puffed out, slamming his fist down onto the former stuffed animal ‘road’, the train in his hand seeming forgotten at the moment.

“Definitely a brat.” Wilbur confirmed, a smirk growing on his face, “A brat and a whiner.”

Tommy’s face reddened as a starkly displeased whine left him. His grip on the train grew into a furious squeeze as he kicked his legs in further protest.

Before he could really kick into a full fit though Wilbur let out a sigh and rolled his eyes.

“Tommy Tantrum.” He announced dully, turning away from group.

“Is, that a bad thing?” Foolish asked as he glanced between the two older siblings and the upset toddler with apprehension.

“He’ll get over it.” Wilbur replied with annoyance.

“It can last a while though.” Techno added as he moved towards Tommy.

“Just leave him Tech. He’ll tire himself out faster this way.” Wilbur said as he used a nearby cupboard to push himself to his feet, “We can play something else until he decides to not be a pain.”

“Aw, don’t say that. We can find something for-”

“What’s that?” Wil interrupted Foolish as he tilted his head to the side.

It was something they hadn’t been shown earlier and until now Wil hadn’t taken much note of it either due to the blanket tossed over its top. Now that he was leaning over it more though he could see into the slightly ajar door.

“Oh, that’s just my game station. It was a gift from the crew when Mom and I left. I don’t play it much but its pretty fun.” Foolish replied as he started to move towards said shelve to remove the covering from it and opening the doors.

The top shelve held a tv of moderate size that, while it didn’t look new it was at least well maintained. The second shelf held a rectangular system with some controllers and a four game cases beside it. One case looked sport-ish while the second case was bright green with large blocked letters. The their game bore a brighter, more colorful case and looked to be some version of Tetris. The last case was blue with what looked like a hand made paper cover. The word ‘Ecco’ was all he could read in the messy handwriting.

As Wilbur crouched back down to take a look at the games Tommy’s whining increased in volume. Despite Techno’s efforts to calm him Tommy seemed determined to stay riled up. Which wasn’t an unusual outcome unfortunately. Even with that just being part of their brother’s bratty behavior Wilbur doubted their parents would appreciate having to come get the toddler.

“Hey, Tommy, if you don’t cry then you can play this with us.” Wilbur stated as he pointed to the games.

Tommy, despite not knowing what Wil was talking about, closed his mouth with a angry hiccup. He was staring at the setup and then to Wil, his eyes still watering like he was proper debating his next move.

“Y-you mean it?” Tommy’s shaky voice asked as he used his arm to wipe at his slightly runny nose.

“If Foolish is okay with it.” Wilbur stated with a look to the other boy, “We’d have to play them a bit to know what to do. But, then you can play with us.”

Foolish seemed lost on what Wil was aiming to say, but he put on a smile anyway and nodded to Tommy.

“I don’t mind sharing. Games are more fun when you share them after all.” He replied full heartedly.

It took Tommy another moment before he rubbed at his eyes with determination.

“O-okay.” He nodded, his voice still wet with unshed tears.

Wilbur smiled at him and then between Techno and Foolish both. He would have to remember this for later. A quick way to end a Tommy Tantrum.

“Okay, so, what do we play first?” Wil asked as he reached for the four cases.

x---xxx---x

Bored

This was boring.

Wilbur, Techno and the other kid, Foolish, had played two of the games already and Tommy hadn’t even gotten one turn yet. It was fun to watch, at first. But then it kept going and going and then Wil had decided to change it. Before Tommy even got to try!

The second game was stupid. It was just like his blocks at home, but smaller. The music had been nice at first but, now it was just grating. He didn’t understand why his brothers or Foolish seemed to like it. It was just building a tower, but then it would break and it was boring.

Tommy thought being out with their parents before had been bad, but at least out there he got snacks. And the other woman out there had been fussing over him a lot which had been nice.

Tommy looked at the three older boys crowding the colored screen and then towards the door to the room. He didn’t even want to play the stupid tower game. Besides, if he went to that lady and used his giber-words then she would probably give him a snack for being cute.

With a final look to the three Tommy made up his mind and started to scoot towards the door. He wobbled to his feet for a moment, just long enough to slip the door open and toe his way out of it.

Glancing up and down the hall it took him a moment to try to think which way to go. It wasn’t like at their house and hall went the wrong way. However, he could hear voices that weren’t his brother’s and that was good enough directions for him.

Taking his faster approach Tommy dropped to his knees and proceeded to crawl across the foreign floors. They were mostly carpeted, unlike at home, which made the process easier. Not that it would have deterred him from the attention he sought.

It didn’t take him long to rediscover the kitchen where the adults were still sat. They were seated in their same places but unlike earlier they were talking in lower voices than before. It was in those tones that Tommy heard them use when having the ‘big talks’ with his brothers so he knew enough that it was probably an important thing.

Tommy wasn’t supposed to interrupt if it was an important thing.

However, he also didn’t want to return to the room with the others. They weren’t playing with him and he didn’t like the noises from their game. The solution was simple really.

Tommy would just do when he did when waiting for his brothers to finish their homework.

Without hesitating Tommy pulled himself forward and, without so much as a sound, tucked himself under the table to wait. He had been warned about hiding under the table before, but this table was much bigger and no one here was wiggling their feet like Techno did.

Above him the adults voices hummed as he traced out the unfamiliar pattern on the floor.

“-just don’t know what I’m gunna do. They aren’t given me much choice.” The sound their father’s heavy voice came from above.

He sounded tired, even to Tommy’s ears. Tired and stressed like he did on nights where Tommy refused to sleep.

“Have you brought up the terms of your original contract?” The new woman asked, her own voice sounding firmer than it had by far when she’d been cooing at Tommy earlier.

“I have, but they just said it didn’t count since it was made with management that no longer existed.” Their father replied, an edge now to his voice Tommy didn’t understand.

“Have you considered taking it up with some kind of union?”

“I had, but the union I was apart of was voted out by the new management just this year. No other one has been able to come in yet.”

“There have been a lot of layoffs since then too. Which is why we’re trying to keep him in good graces a bit longer, until we can find something more stable.” Their mother’s voice came next, just as unhappy as the other two.

“Sounds like it was planned.”

“It wouldn’t surprise me if it was. They practically are going department to department. They already got ride of half the hiring staff including the onboarders that have been there longer than me. The guy who trained me reached out to warn me that looked like it was just a start. Told me and a few others to start putting portfolios together if we can.”

Tommy was getting bored of all the words and he didn’t particularly like the upset noises his father was making as he spoke.

“Well, if that’s his sense of it I’d believe him. I don’t know much about your company or work, but I can tell you this. When the older staff leave with a warning they generally mean it.” The other woman stated as her leg from under the table shifted.

It wafted just past Tommy’s butt and he moved instinctively out of the way as he usually did with Techno.

“We were hoping he would be able to stick it out for another year, at least until I heard about about getting that new position. But, with the stress it’s already causing we don’t want to-” Their mother started but was swiftly cut off.

“Before you go further I’d agree that sticking it out is a bad idea. What you told me over the phone was bad enough, but if they are going to be pushing you like this then you can bet they will make it far worse as times goes on.” The woman’s voices was harder now, but, it wasn’t exactly anger, “You’re losing sleep, you’re losing time with your kids and you even said today you’ve been struggling to keep your cool with them lately too. That isn’t healthy.”

“I know. I know it isn’t, but I can’t just bail out either. We need the money-” Their father started but was cut off just as their mother had been.

“I can help you get on assisted living. And before you say anything, I know that’s not your ideal. But, it can help in the short term while you look for work. You both make under their considered mark for pay and with three kids all under the age of eleven you qualify. Going down to one employed adult certainly puts you in the fast track for coverage.”

“Puffy-”

“Kristin, I will put in my personal name on this if need be. You two work too hard to allow yourselves to be taken advantage of by some greedy company because they know they can. At least- at least consider it?”

There was silence from above and Tommy could only assume that meant the conversation was over. Which was good because he was not only bored, but hungry again too. For snacks at least.

Reaching forward for the nearest leg Tommy giggled as said leg jolted suddenly with a startled yelp from above. Seconds later the table cloth was pulled up and the familiar face of their father came into view. He looked certainly surprised to see Tommy there though he was reaching down quickly all the same.

“Tommy, kiddo, what in the world-” He started to ask.

“Uh oh, if it isn’t a little eavesdropper in the making.” The woman chuckled from across the table.

Tommy only beamed at them, happy for the attention once more.

“Cookie!” He demanded, making the three adults laugh in response.

X-x-x-x-X

“Come on, Wil! It’s mine turn now!” Techno protested as he tried to grab the controller from his brother’s hands.

“In a minute, Tech. I just want to get past this part.” Wilbur insisted as he teetered his hands out of his brother’s reach.

“You said that ages ago.” Techno replied with a huff.

“I said it could be your turn after I get past the shark.” Wilbur reminded him paying his annoyance no mind.

“And you’ve been failing at it for ever”

“To be fair, it took me a while to beat it. Its hard to swim around those things.” Foolish tried to mediate but not really know how.

“I’ve almost got it. I swear.” Wilbur insisted, once more not looking up.

At least, not until there was a familiar throat clearing in the room.

The game was quickly paused and all three boys turned to face the door. Standing in it was their mother and….Tommy in her arms.

“Forget about someone?” She asked in that tone that already said no replies were necessary.

Wilbur bit his lip while Techno was quick to send an annoyed glare at his brother.

“It cus he didn’t want to share the game. Tommy probably got bored waiting forever.” Techno blamed readily.

Wilbur let out an insulted scoff but it didn’t get further than that.

“Now, now. You both were to look after him, not just Wilbur.”

“We’re sorry Mrs. Watson.” Foolish offered, though their mother was quick to chuckle and shake her head at him.

“You can just call me Kristin, Foolish. And its not your fault. These two should know to keep a better eye on their brother.” She remarked as a teasing smile slipped onto her face, “Instead of hogging someone elses video game time.”

Again Wilbur let out an indignant huff as Techno stuck his tongue out at him in turn.

“Watch your brother properly and share, or we go home sooner and without treats.” She warned as she plopped Tommy on the ground in the center of the room.

“Treats?” Wilbur asked as he perked up a bit out of his pout, “What treats?”

Their mother gave a shrug with a smirk as she turned to leave the room.

“That entirely depends on you boys. Have fun~”

Wilbur watched her go before looking at the controller in his hand, to Tommy and then to Techno. Techno himself seemed to be making the same sort of circuit but with the addition of Foolish in his.

Without another word Wilbur shoved the controller in Techno’s direction.

“Trick it into the holes in the stone.” Wil directed as he moved to pick Tommy up where their mother had deposited him.

“I know what to do. I’ve been watching you suck for a while at it.” Techno replied as he moved to get more comfortable before pressing play.

“I wanna play too!” Tommy shouted at the screen even from his new place in Wilbur’s lap.

“Hush Tommy, watch the game.” Wilbur tried as he got them settled.

“No! I wanna play now too! Mom said!” Tommy insisted as he got louder.

“Here Tommy, try with this one.” Foolish offered with ease one of the discarded contollers from ealier.

It was unplugged from the stated but the cord itself was still laid out long leading up to it. Tommy didn’t seem to notice as he readily took the thing and started to wiggle the nobs and press buttons randomly. When Wilbur looked up at Foolish the boy just grinned wide with a thumbs up.

Chapter Text

Wilbur fussed with the collar of his shirt yet again, tugging at it with irritation. There was chuckled from beside him before his mother’s hands came down to fix what he’d pulled loose.

“Wilbur, its only going to be for an hour.” She reminded him for what felt like the hundreth time, “After that you can undo it, I promise. But, until then lets keep this tidy.”

“But, mom-”

“Wil, don’t fuss.” His father was quick to cut him off, thought he was partly distracted by Tommy on his hip, “We want to get some good photos before you go wild again.”

“Its not everyday you graduate fifth grade.” His mother added as she patted at his hair.

Inwardly Wilbur huffed to himself as he squirmed in place. He was already anxious as it was to be graduating. The uncomfortable clothes didn’t help him feel any better. If he weren’t also excited he would probably have refused to even consider joining his classmates at the other end of the auditorium.

As it were, he was giddy about the ceremony itself. It was his first official graduation after all. Fifth grade was officially over and next year he would be going into the big kids school.

He would be a middle schooler, even if it was technically in the same building.

“You aren’t nervous are you?” His mother asked as she continued to primp at his hair, turning a few curls this way or that.

“I- I don’t think so.” Wilbur stammered, his fingers absently tugging at the end of his tie.

The tie had been a gift from his father. He’d insisted the thing, uncomfortable and practically suffocating, made Wil look ‘like a gentlemen’. While Wil thought the little whale at the bottom was cute he could honestly say he hated the thing.

Not that he could say that out loud.

“you look nervous.” Techno informed him bluntly from their mother’s side.

“I’m not” Wilbur tried to insist despite the rise in his pitch, “I-its just, this t-uh, outfit, is uncomfortable. Y-yeah. I’m just uncomfortable.”

Their mother laughed his words as she titled her head at him. With a small smile she gave his hair a small tousle before she stood up.

“It wont be for long. I promise.” His mother repeated as she stood back up, “I’ll be filming the whole thing. I’m not going to miss a second of it.”

As she spoke she pulled out a blocky hand held recorder and started to press buttons on the side of it.

“Did you remember to put fresh batteries in?” His father asked peeking over at the thing.

“Of course I did. I’m not incapable of using this thing. Just because its as old as you-”

“Oi!” His father exclaimed with a false gasp and a chuckle, “Well for that now you can take Tommy.”

“Wh-” His mother started to question though was quickly cut off as Tommy was, quite literally, tossed into her arms.

Her instinct must have kicked in because she was wrapping him up in her arms in the same motion that their father was taking the recorder from her hand. Tommy giggling his delight at the trade off.

“Ooooh, you played dirty.” She stated with a smirk as she gave Tommy a little spin, “Isn’t that right, Toms? Daddy plays diiiirty.”

Their father laughed with a snort as he gave a short wince.

“Kristiiin, don’t teach him that. He already repeats everything.” He complained, eyes no longer on the device in hand.

Wilbur looked from their parents down to Techno, now at his side as opposed to their mothers. Techno was looking back at him, same smile on his face that Wilbur wore. Without needing to communicate more both of them looked at their father, Wilbur pointing for good measure, and spoke in almost perfect unison.

“Daddy plays diiiirty”

x-x

“You think he’ll keep the tie on?” Phil asked Kristin with a chuckle.

The last they saw of their elder child he was being herded towards the little group of fifth graders that made up his class. There were only three groups and Wilbur’s had been the smallest of them. Despite that, that the distance they were at it was hard to see his mop among the others.

Phil would not be surprised if he walked out entirely disheveled across the short stage.

“Oh, it hardly matters. It’ll still be Wil in the end and that’s what counts.” Kristin replied as she handed Tommy his sippy cup.

“It would be nice though. Get a video of him dressed up for a change.” Phil stated, though he agreed with his wife’s sentiment.

Wilbur was Wilbur and no matter what version of him crossed that stage it would remain true. Would it be nice to see him crisp and clean for the occasion? Yes. Would it be more accurate if he crossed it looked like he just fought a tornado? Also yes.

There were no wrong answers here, but the suspense was making him antsy despite himself.

“If not this year then maybe next.“ Kristin shrugged easily as if she wasn’t also waiting to see the result they’d memorialize on film.

She was busying herself instead with getting Tommy settled in. This was his first outing where he would be expected to sit proper still for the duration.

“why does he have to dress up if he doesn’t want to?” Techno asked as he watched from his own seat.

“Sometimes it nice to dress up for important things. He doesn’t like it now, but that’s also because he’s never really had to do it before.” Kristin explained as she took her spot and got comfortable, “Who knows. Perhaps in the future he’ll find a fancy style he likes and be more willing. Or, maybe he’d decide that fancy is just, not for him and work with nice sweaters or vests instead.”

“Or jackets.” Phil added as he pointed to his own outfit.

It wasn’t ‘date night fancy’ but instead a tasteful coat covering a basic ‘nice’ white collared t-shirt. Simple, but effective.

“Exactly. Graduations are celebrations that its nice to put in the extra effort for. Its, like showing respect for the hard work that got you there. Or to the people that helped you there too.” Kristin went on, reaching out to pat down a stray curl from Techno’s own head.

“so, will I have to dress up to?” Techno asked pointedly, his voice already betraying dread for it.

Kristin paused and looked to Phil at that, a silent talk taking place for a moment.

“We can talk about it when its closer to that time. We can go shopping a bit earlier for it too so you have time to choose what you’d prefer.” Kristin offered lightly.

Most likely it would become a hand-me-down situation, but for now it wouldn’t hurt to hope that wasn’t the case. With any luck things would different for them by then.

X-x

Techno, despite his best efforts to be patient, let out a frustrated huff as he squirmed in his seat. It felt like he’d been stuck there for ages already and he hadn’t seen his brother since the ceremony started. Name after name was called as kids walked one by one across the low auditorium stage and Techno barely recognized any of them.

None of them were his brother so he didn’t really care.

Beside him Tommy let out an agitated whine of his own as their mother bounced him on her knee. He had been fussing for a while at this point no matter what she tried. Sippy cup, snacks, handing him his stuffy, none of it was enough to curb his current mood.

Techno could understand him on this. Sitting still for so long having to be quiet was no fun at all. Even Techno, who could find being quiet enjoyable given the right setting, could feel the urge to kick his feet and wiggle about in his chair. He didn’t, but he wanted to. He had promised to be on his best behavior though.

Tommy didn’t seem to either recall or care that he too had promised to behave. A fact made most clear as he let out a louder whine that threatened tears very soon.

“Here, let me take him.” Their father offered from their mother’s other side.

“You have to keep filming.” Their mother protested verbally, though she still allowed Tommy to be taken from her arms.

“You can do it. Just don’t hit any buttons and it should remain all set.” He insisted with a bit of a laugh at the end.

“Oh ‘ha’. I know how to use the recorder, thank you. I meant-”

“I know. But trust me, okay? You have a better angle and we don’t want Tommy screaming over the names.”

As he spoke their father not only tucked Tommy on his hip mid stand, but grabbed up the baby bag in one go. Apparently he was trying to beat the incoming tears.

“What if you miss him walking across? Its almost his turn.”

“I’ll be watching from the back long as I can. Worse case we can watch it together later at home. Just wave extra, he wont even notice.”

Their father was speaking quicker now as Tommy’s whine lifted into the air again. Techno missed whatever was said next as he looked at the stage area. Even squinting he wasn’t able to see where Wilbur was. Only a few faces peeking up from the short stair area at the end waiting impatiently for their turn.

He hoped Wilbur would be out soon. He didn’t want to keep sitting this hard chair for much longer. He considered crying himself if it would get him out of it too.

X-x-x-x

Wilbur absently tugged at the front of his shirt as the line ahead of him got shorter and shorter. What had, at first, felt like it was taking ages now all the sudden felt like it was going way too fast. The first class was already finished with their walk and his was now over half way through. He was still torn on if he was excited or nervous about walking up those steps himself.

On one hand he didn’t want to step up in front of all those strangers. He could well see the bright flashes from so many cameras he didn’t know. His own mother would be filming too. He couldn’t help but picture himself stumbling across the long stage where the principal and his teachers waited as if for his final judgment.

There would be so much proof if he messed up.

On the other hand he still wanted to cross the stage like the rest of his class. He wanted to get his certificate and officially leave the fifth grade forever. He wanted to peer out into the crowed and wave back at his parents and brothers and show off his becoming a big kid officially. He wanted to flash his biggest smile and be seen in his new whale tie, even if it was uncomfortable.

He...he wanted this.

He wanted his turn.

...He might even be ready for it.

Taking a deep breath Wilbur placed both his feet on the first step to the stage. There was one person ahead of him and then it would be his turn.

He patted down his shirt where he’d been pulling at it, flattening out any wrinkles he might have caused. Re-tucking it as best he could he was at least relieved he hadn’t tugged the tie again since his mother fixed it.

Preparing his best smile Wilbur squinted out into the crowd. He wanted to find his family quickly so he would know where to wave to in a moment. His father had roughly told him where they planned to be so it was just a matter of actually spotting them.

When he did finally get eyes on them Wilbur was confused. His father was on his feet. His mother and Techno remained in their seats but….their father, with Tommy technically, wasn’t even glancing at the stage as he moved off.

Wil tried to peek higher to see if he could figure out where he was going, but it wasn’t much use. There were too many other adults in the room and soon the man was gone from his sight entirely.

The kid ahead of him was called and Wil had to force his feet to walk up to the next step.

He couldn’t help but look at the last place he saw his father, shifting anxiously from foot to foot. When his own name was called it took a minute for Wilbur to register it. It had to be said a second time and his classmate behind him gave his back a push.

With a burst of embarrassment Wilbur took his first two steps onto the stage, eyes awkwardly on his feet. However, when he heard his mother’s voice give a cheer he couldn’t help but look up again. His eyes found her in an instant, helped by the fact that she had stood up for good measure.

He could see the recorder in her hand, shaking as she tried to clap while aiming it at him. Techno was standing beside her, on his chair in order to be visible, and was waving wildly at him.

Wilbur could feel his smile break over his face as he lifted his once heavy hand and waved back.

X-x-x

Kristin’s chest filled with fresh pride as she watched once more as her son crossed the stage. He had looked frozen at first and she had worried he wasn’t going to finish his walk. However, not a second later after he had looked over at them did his whole mood seem to change.

Out came the smiles, the waving and he strolled over to the principle as if he owned the school himself.

“Kristin, don’t wear it out before I get to see it once.” Phil complained as he navigated them out of the slowly emptying parking lot.

“It’s your own fault. I warned you it was almost his turn~” Kristin teased, though at least turned the recorder off as well.

“I know, and I feel horrible for it. But, Tommy was starting to scream and you know it.” Phil defended, though he sounded defeated all the same.

“Well, since it was unavoidable I guess we can let it go. What do you say Wil?” Kristin asked as she looked into the backseat at her eldest.

Wilbur sat with his certificate in his lap as both he and Techno traced over the decorative edges and words. He looked up at her and seemed like he was debating his answer when he gave one of his usual grins.

“Maybe...if we can go to L’manburger.”

Chapter Text

It was a nice warm day in June and the Watson boys were enjoying a play date with Dream. It had been Techno’s one request for his birthday since the day itself had been missed due to ‘last second events’.

At least that was what their mother had called it during the usual call to their grandparents. Both sets of grandparents were generally really good about never missing the birthday calls for him or his brothers and this had been no different.

Though, it had shifted quickly from the usual ‘congratulations’ and life update chatter into the also usual ‘adult only’ conversation. It was expected and also generally how the calls tended to go after the grandparents had exhausted their questions. Techno had been sent out of the room to play with his brother’s and guest while their mother stayed behind to talk.

But, that was fine by Techno. He didn’t like it when the calls went on too long and he was eager to play with Dream again. It had been some time since school went out for the summer. Dream had also apparently gone off with his mother somewhere for a while too. This was really the best excuse to get to meet up again.

As of now the boys were all outside in the backyard just enjoying the weather. Wilbur had his ukulele out and was strumming it absently now and again as they talked. Techno was showing Dream the progress of the potatoes he and their mother had planted together. They already had flowers blooming on them.

As for Tommy, he was sitting rather peacefully on his little blanket with his toys and snacks around like in a personal picnic. He would look up at Wilbur from time to time but hadn’t made any real noises or demands. At least, not ones there weren’t directed at his toys.

Until now that is.

“Wilby.” Tommy began, a pouty whine already in his voice.

Wilbur rolled his eyes as he glanced down at his baby brother.

“What do you want Tommy?” He asked fully aware it was going to be a ‘request’.

“I’m thirsty.” Tommy stated, lifting his sippy cup to show it was empty.

“Ok?”

“It’s empty.” Tommy explained further as he now shook the cup for good measure.

“Ok?”

“It needs more.” Tommy whined louder now as Wil failed to make a move to help him.

“Wilbur, stop being a butt.” Techno complained from where he stood at the garden bed still.

He was watching the exchange with annoyance and gave his older brother a flat look to express it. Wilbur, however, didn’t seem at all bothered and just gave a shrug with one of his usual jerky smirks.

“I’m not being a butt. I’m just waiting for Tommy to use his right words.” He replied smuggly.

“I need more!” Tommy demanded louder as his frustration grew.

“and?” Wilbur questioned again, this time even laughing when Tommy flailed his cup in growing anger.

“Is he trying to make Tommy cry?” Dream asked in a false whisper as he leaned towards Techno.

“No, but its what’s going to happen.” Techno answered with a huff.

Wilbur really wasn’t going to do anything until he got what he wanted. Which in this case was for Tommy to ‘use his proper words’ for what he was asking for. But, he wasn’t going to tell Tommy that because then his little game would be over. Tommy was good about using his words when reminded but Wilbur had gotten into the habit of riling him up about it instead.

Which left Techno having to manage between the two more often than not. At least, if he didn’t feel like hearing Tommy’s cries while Wil got in trouble.

“Its okay, Tommy. I’ll refill it for you.” Techno offered as he approached the small blond, “I think mom made lemonade today for us. Do you want that or more apple juice?”

“Apple! Apple!” Tommy cheered without hesitation.

In the split second that Techno had offered Tommy’s sour mood quickly left him and he returned to be all smiles, cup held in air expectantly.

“Okay, but are you sure?” Techno asked even though he knew Tommy wouldn’t change his mind.

Tommy never really cared much for lemonade, even when it was the super good stuff their mother would prepare. He seemed quite content to stick to his usual choices for now.

At being re-questioned though Tommy gave a pause. He really did seem to be reconsidering it before he looked at Techno directly.

“Can I have orange juice?”

It was a simple enough question but Techno obviously knew better. Tommy was usually only given orange juice in the morning at breakfast and then apple or grape juice during the rest of the day. Their mother would have told him ‘no’, but...Techno didn’t see why not. Tommy was being really good right now. He even used all his words.

“Okay.”

The smile that broke out on Tommy’s face was worth the bending of the routine.

“Can you get me some lemonade while in there?” Wil asked as he leaned back in his seat.

Techno made a face at his older brother who seemed far too comfortable in his opinion. He was going to take a page out of Wil’s own book here and not give him what he wanted.

“No.”

“Why not? You’re going in anyway.”

“I’m going in for Tommy.”

“Yea, and you have two hands. Just bring me a cup.” Wil snapped with a frown.

“I’m getting some for me and Dream too. I won’t have hands for it.” Techno argued back simply.

Wilbur opened his mouth to keep going but Dream spoke up ahead of him.

“That’s okay. I’ll come in too. I’ll bring you a cup Wil.” Dream offered with a smile.

Techno wanted to tell Dream not to bother, especially since Wilbur was now giving another smug look in response.

“Thank you, Dream. That wasn’t so hard was it?” Wilbur added for good measure.

Techno was honestly surprised Dream wasn’t saying anything to the clear sarcastic tone being used. However, Tommy was demanding his juice again as he was thirsty and Techno wasn’t going to waste the time when things already seemed to be settled.

Techno waited until they were in the house before he turned to Dream about it.

“You didn’t have to agree to that. You’re a guest and he’s being a jerk again.” He stated bluntly.

“I know.” Dream replied with a nod before giving Techno a wider smile, “But two can play at that game.”

Techno furrowed his brow at that but Dream didn’t elaborate. Trusting his friend though Techno let it drop for now.

X-x

It didn’t take long for the boys to return to the yard. Techno carried Tommy’s refilled sippy cup in one hand and his own drink in his other. Behind him Dream likewise sported two cups in hand wearing the same large grin as before.

Tommy, being eager for his juice, was quick to look up at their reemergence from the house and stopped his play instantly. He began to energetically give grabby hands towards his sippy cup with an added verbal demand of ‘gimme’. Techno didn’t bother to correct the behavior and instead just handed it over before patting his brother on the head.

Tommy was a brat, but he was still his baby brother.

“About time. What took yo-” Wilbur started before cutting himself off and glancing into the cup Dream had handed over.

When he looked up it was with a rather flat irritated expression as Dream smiled back innocently.

“You think your funny don’t you?” Wil asked as he shook the empty cup.

“I don’t know what you mean. You asked for a cup.” Dream replied brightly without hesitation.

Wilbur looked to Techno but was met with a shrug and a smile of his own.

“You didn’t ask for it filled.” Techno stated in similar tone as Dream.

Both Techno and Dream continued to stare at Wilbur a moment longer before bursting into laughter. Wil, in response, stuck his tongue out and made a mocking noise at them before pushing himself out of his seat.

“You both are so annoying.” He muttered as he headed into the house himself now.

“You got your cup didn’t you?” Dream asked around his giggling.

Techno could tell his brother was rolling his eyes by the tilting of his head and smiled wider. Dream had been right. Paying it back had felt rather good.

While Wilbur was off fetching his own drink Techno and Dream had decided to join Tommy down on his little picnic blanket. They weren’t joining in his play but Tommy was happy enough to stop and tell them all about it anyway. Tommy was mid ramble when a loud grumble noise startled the lot of them. It took Techno a moment to figure it came from Tommy, who now had a hand over his tummy.

“Are you hungry, Tommy?” Techno asked with a frown.

Usually Tommy demanded food at the slightest suggestion of being hungry. Hearing his stomach make a noise was...weird. There was also the fact that there were still snacks on the blanket with him that he wasn’t touching at all.

The look on Tommy’s face was confused as he pouted down at the food on his blanket. He didn’t answer Techno for a moment prompting him to ask again. The second time had Tommy shaking his head slowly as if he still wasn’t sure.

“Maybe, its an upset tummy noise?” Dream suggested as he readjusted himself on the blanket.

As Techno opened his mouth to say more another noise came from the small blond. It seemed to startle Tommy just as much the second time before it started to giggle at it. He patted his stomach twice and waited happily.

“He doesn’t seem to mind it.” Techno commented with confusion.

“Should we tell your mom just in case?” Dream asked with a tilt of his head as if debating something.

“Well, if he isn’t crying he should be fine?” Techno reasoned, though he didn’t sound entirely sure.

“...what if its poop?” Dream asked quieter.

At this Techno gave a longer pause. It...wasn’t off the table. He’d seen a few incidents of Tommy going from full scale play into either throwing up bombing a room with poop smell without so much as a change of expression.

He glanced to the house then, Wilbur still not having come out and so not available to inform their mother. Not that Techno thought he might.

“Can you watch him a minute?” He asked Dream nervously.

Dream nodded a bit awkwardly as he was mid sip of his lemonade. He also gave a confirming hum that Techno decided was good enough.

Getting to his feet once more Techno hurried towards the house.

X-x

Dream waited until Techno was out of sight before he looked to Tommy. The kid was still happily waiting for his tummy to make another noise, hand raised as if planning to slap it when it happened.

“Hey, Tommy. Want to try this?” Dream asked as he held up the little lemon slice that had been floating in his drink.

Tommy looked up curiously and Dream put on his very best convincing smile.

X-x

“Where’s Tommy?”

Techno paused at the question just as he was passing the kitchen door. Wilbur had just been about to head back outside when Techno came in, alone. It was their parents rule that at least one of them had to be with Tommy if they were playing outside after all. It wasn’t like Techno to break said rule, even if Dream was potentially there with him instead.

“His tummy is making funny noises. I have to tell mom.” Techno answered with a small worried frown, “Dream said he’d watch him til I got back.”

“ ‘Funny noise’ how?” Wil asked ignoring the second part.

Before a second answer was given both boys paused at the sound of a baby’s whine. It quickly grew into a wailing and both boys bolted towards the backdoor.

Outside Dream sat across from Tommy with a large smile on his face as he seemed to be trying not to laugh. Tommy on the other hand had his face pinched up with tears already starting to fall. His mouth was open and curled weirdly as drool dribbled freely out with his crying.

“What Happened?!” Techno asked with his own distress as he popped down beside the toddler.

Dream, instead of answering, let out his held in hysterics which were hard enough to cause him to need to hug his middle. In turn Techno let out his ever familiar whale song whine as he struggled to comfort Tommy.

Wilbur didn’t know what to do and just watched. He was torn between laughing and also checking on his brother.

On the one hand the faces Tommy was making were pretty funny. But, on the other he didn’t know what was wrong with Tommy to make him make those faces. He’d feel bad if it were for a bad reason.

When Tommy looked at him with one eye squinted and the other half open, mouth still oddly twisted Wilbur couldn’t help it.

He laughed.

He laughed hard, hands moving to hug his own stomach just like Dream.

This only seemed to make Tommy more upset though because his cries got that much louder. The tears were more rapid and, Wilbur noted with a bit of sobering worry, his face was blooming an angry shade of red. The wails of distress turned into bawling sobs that shook Tommy’s little body where he sat.

At this point Wilbur was no longer laughing but moved to help Techno in calming his baby brother. Though now being so worked up the efforts didn’t seem to be doing much.

At least Dream seemed to also realize at this point that the game, whatever it was, was over. He was quick to jump to his feet and ran into the house. Wilbur didn’t know what he was up to, but he hoped it was useful.

When moments later their mother came rushing through the door Wilbur let out a sigh of relief.

X-x

In the end it was nothing serious.

Dream admitted to giving Tommy a bit of lemon to see his faces. It just so happened that Tommy had never been given a lemon before and had been startled by it. According to their mother it wasn’t uncommon for babies to react that way, which is why they had been planning to wait for Tommy to be a bit older for it.

Feeling bad about it Dream apologized to Tommy as well as the boys many times. Tommy himself didn’t seem to care now that the lemon taste was out of his mouth. Techno, however, hesitated until Tommy really seemed fine. Wilbur didn’t really care himself since Tommy wasn’t hurt. Though, he was confused.

When asked why Dream wanted to do that to Tommy at all the answer surprised him. Apparently his sister made ‘the cutest faces’ and he wanted to see if Tommy’s were the same.

For the next hour Dream talked about his own baby sister. Techno seemed eager to one day meet her.

Chapter Text

Kristin sighed softly to herself as she bounced Tommy on her hip. The poor boy was exhausted but refused to sleep. None of the usual tricks were working and she’d already checked if it was him not feeling well. Unfortunately it was just one of those days where he decided sleep was his enemy.

It had started last night when Dream’s visit with Techno had turned into an impromptu sleep over. Tommy had wanted to stay with the older boys all night and had thrown a fit at bedtime. Even with her and Phil taking turns to show him the others boys were asleep Tommy refused to settle.

Thankfully it hadn’t disturbed the boys too much, but she could tell they were more tired than usual. Despite that they had welcomed Tommy back into their games up until he became increasingly irritated.

At this point Tommy didn’t have the patience to play with the older boys without making a fuss. Juice and snacks did little to calm him and even now he was growing tired of being held as well. Kristin knew he would eventually end up knocking himself out, but she still wished it would be sooner rather than later.

“Just for a little while, Tommy. It’ll make you feel much better.” Kristin tried once more to convince him.

“No!” Tommy shouted with an agitated whine, “No sleep! Don’ wanna go sleep!”

The more adamant Tommy was against sleep the more it was obvious he needed it. Kristin sighed again as she ran a hand through Tommy’s well tousled hair.

“Are you sure, Tommy? Not even a little sleepy?” She asked gently.

“No Sleepy!” Tommy insisted all the harder.

“What about a ‘nap’ then. Naps are different then sleeping. We can try that instead.” She offered hoping it would be more enticing an idea.

Tommy opened his mouth wide and Kristin prepared for yet another ‘no’. However, instead Tommy huffed, closed his mouth and appeared to be thinking it over. Either that or he was fighting off another yawn.

“Naps are much nicer than sleep.” Wilbur suddenly advocated from the other side of the living room.

Kristin hadn’t noticed him enter the room and honestly had no idea how long he had been there. However, she was grateful for his help in the matter. Tommy tended to be easily convinced by his siblings after all. Especially Wilbur.

Tommy, of course, was looking at his big brother with a tired but curious gaze. Wilbur seemed to take that and run with it because he was nodding quickly as he walked up.

“Naps are super comfy. Much better than sleep. That’s why I take them all the time.”

At this Tommy’s eyes widened slighly.

“Nap time?” He asked, not bothering to add more words than he needed.

Wilbur nodded in response, crouching down so he was almost face to face with Tommy now.

“Yea. I get all snuggled in with Jubilee and hide in my own little blanket pile. No one bothers me and its super nice. I can show you if you want.” Wilbur offered happily with a bit extra enthusiasm.

Once more Tommy seemed to be considering it before he turned from Kristin and was giving grabby hands at Wilbur with a whine.

“Show! Show!” He demanded bluntly.

Kristin didn’t dare to deny this chance at peace and helped to get Tommy safely into Wilbur’s arms.

“Well, we have to use your room because Techno is using ours. But, that’s okay. We can just use your blankets and Henry instead.” Wilbur explained as the three of them turned to walk down the hall.

“Henry cuddles!” Tommy cheered, though there was still a small angry whine in his voice at the end.

“Yep. Henry cuddles. Maybe you can even share a dream with him if you hug him hard enough.” Wilbur continued to chatter, not giving Tommy real time to respond.

When they reached Tommy’s room Kristin started to help set up the blanket pile until Tommy very hotly scolded her. She had to keep the smile from her face as Wilbur, by Tommy’s own demand, showed him how the pile was supposed to be set up.

It didn’t take long for Wilbur to have Tommy tucked into said pile with Henry in his arms looking all the world ready for a nap. However, the tiny tot was still fighting it, demanding Wilbur had to stay with him.

Wilbur, for his part, was all too willing to crawl into the pile with his baby brother and wrap his arms around him. He insisted Tommy was going to be his Jubilee for this nap time which made Tommy as pleased as ever.

Kristin, not wanting to spoil Wilbur’s hard work, stepped out of the room to prove the ‘no one bothers you’ part of the deal.

x-x

It wasn’t long before the door to the room could be heard creaking open. Wilbur tiptoed out and gently re-closed it without issue before turning to find his mother.

“He’s snoring, and also drooling. But he’s not awake now at least.” He reported as he gave her a thumbs up.

“I certainly owe you one. I really didn’t think he was going to go down.” Kristin admitted with a chuckle.

“...Does that mean I can have extra ice cream later?” Wilbur asked with a hopeful lilt to his voice.

Kristin made a show of tilting her head and humming in thought.

“How about, instead of extra ice cream you can pick the flavor we buy next time?”

Wilbur thought about this a moment before nodding his approval.

Chapter Text

It was a perfect night in July and the Watson family was gearing up for an outing.

What made it the perfect night? Well, it certainly wasn’t the weather, which had been overly humid all day and had only recently broke. It wasn’t from an abundance of play time for the boys either. Instead their parents had set them all up with chores to do before they could even think to get outside. It also wasn’t from being on their best behavior.

Good gracious was it not for good behavior.

However, it was perfect because for the first time in years Lower L’manberg was going to have a public fireworks display. For the first time the Watson family were going to watch them live instead of on tv in their living room.

Kristin had worked hard to make up and pack a nice picnic for them around all the days cleaning. She was particularly proud of the chocolate chip cookies she made from her mother’s recipe.

Phil himself had been in charge of keeping track of the boy’s work as well as locating the large picnic blanket. Thankfully it was still in good condition and easy enough to pack into the car. The kids on the other hand...not so much.

Wilbur spent ages fighting with Phil over what ‘dressing for the weather’ meant. Techno managed to get a brush stuck in his hair by trying to brush it too quickly. Tommy had managed to get into something sticky and fought both entering the bath and then leaving it. Truly it seemed with each fire they managed to put out another was breathed to life just beside it.

Eventually, though, the Watson family managed to get cleaned, dressed and generally sorted out and into the car while there was still daylight left. Phil wasn’t sure how they managed it considering the hurtles, but he genuinely was just glad and opted not to ask questions least the universe take it back somehow.

He especially didn’t ask how they managed to arrive at the very full and lively viewing grounds and manage to find a prime location without a fight.

As one would expect the return of the fireworks display had brought out many families from the area. There were kids of all ages running and playing in just about any direction Phil or Kristin looked in. There were a fair few food vendors set up at the street side as well as an abundance of trinket stalls lined around the parking lot. Glow sticks, flashing toys, noisemakers and sparklers were well mingled into the crowds and added to the hype.

If there was one thing L’manbergians were good at it was creating hype.

“Dad! Dad! Can we get some of those?!” Wilbur shouted as he tugged on Phil’s arm hard enough to cause him to stagger.

“Wil, careful. I can hear you without the tugging.” Phil laughed as he tried to follow where Wil was still actively pointing.

Wil paid the warning no mind of course as he only tugged harder, bouncing on his heels in his eagerness.

“Please, please, please? I need one! We both need one!” Wil begged, voice as loud as ever.

“Volume, Wilbur.” Kristin likewise tried to warn, and likewise was ignored.

“Everyone else already has some! We need them too!” Wil continued.

Though it was hard to really tell through the crowd Phil could only guess that Wil was talking about either the sparklers or the glow stick toys.

“I dunno, Wil.” Phil drew out the words with an exaggerated doubtful tone.

Wil turned to look up at him with pleading eyes and a frown. Phil put on his best ‘thinking about it’ face as he looked at the picnic blanket Kristin was still working to lay out.

“If we leave without setting our spot up we might lose it. We need it done right too, so we wont be uncomfortable once its too dark to fix.” Phil explained as if it were the most important thing ever.

“Techno can help mom do it. If we don’t go now there might not be any left of us!” Wil insisted.

“Techno is already helping by looking after Tommy.” Phil stated with a nod to said sibling.

Techno was, in fact, keeping a hold of Tommy as they both sat beside the picnic basket. Tommy was eagerly looking around at all the people, laughing as a teen ran nearby with a small dog at their heels. Between them Tommy looked to be enjoying the place far more than Techno at the moment.

“But- We could still-”

“I’m going to help your mother with the blanket, Wil. You’ll just have to wait.”

“But!” Wilbur sputtered with a whine as Phil took his arm back.

Wil fidgeted impatiently as he watched his father take one of the corners of the large blanket. Their mother kept hold on her end and ever so slowly backed up until one side was pulled almost taut. Glancing back towards the vendor stalls Wil watched as a new flock of people arrived to swarm it, blocking his view.

Letting out an irritated huff and stomped his foot Wil returned to watching his parents. They were currently fussing with getting the one side of the blanket straight and didn’t seem at all rushed for it.

That simply wouldn’t do.

Taking it upon himself to try to free them up Wilbur quickly rushed forwards, took a corner of the blanket and near sprinted the few steps it took to reach its limit. He repeated this with the last corner as well, dropping it down before turning to face their mother this time.

“Its done, see? Can we go now? Can we? It’ll be all sold out if we don’t!” Wilbur once more began to beg.

“I don’t know, Wilbur. We need to make sure its straightened out. And the basket-” She began in the same mocked worried voice Phil had used.

“Techno has the basket. He- he can watch it until we get back! I’ll pick something for him and everything!” Wil pressed with little deterrence.

“That’s not very fair, Wil.” Phil stated, this time the warning in his voice held some weight, “Once we’re done here we can all go look things over. But for moment we want to get settled in.”

“But! If they run out of-”

“If they run out then we get something else.”

“But-”

“Either that or we get nothing. Your choice Wilbur.” Phil gave a stern look that said it was end of discussion.

The grimace on Wil’s face was loud but he kept his mouth closed this time. He had hoped begging to his mother would have lead to her joining his side, but she only gave him a similar warning look to drop it. So instead he was left to his disappointment on the sidelines while they continued to ‘settle in’.

The picnic basket and his bothers were moved to the center of the blanket and the ‘everything else’ bag was placed beside it. Techno, unlike Wilbur, didn’t seem all that eager to leave their little spot. He was just fine holding onto Tommy or handing their parents things from the bag. Toys for Tommy, sun block and other small things.

The whole process took little more than twenty minutes, if that. A fair bit of that time included the application of sun block even. However, to Wilbur it felt like literal hours and he huffed and puffed for all of it. By the time his parents agreed they could go look over the stalls Wil was very close to getting in trouble for his sour attitude once more.

**-_-**

Despite the momentary upset the overall good mood was quick to return as the Watsons made their way towards the vendors. It was a bit hard to walk through, what with the area only growing more well trafficked the later it got.

The return of the fireworks truly did seem to bring out the entire population of Lower L’manberg.

Worried about the ever growing crowd both parents agreed on only doing a single trip down the row of booths before returning to the blanket.

“That’s fine! I know exactly what we should get. We can skip right to it!” Wilbur insisted, tugging once more on their father’s arm.

“Wil, if we go skipping booths then that counts as us passing them. We wont be going back.” Phil warned with a raised brow, “Are you sure you want to risk missing something you want more? You only get one pick.”

“I’m sure I’m sure!” Wil again insisted, this time moving to point at the same stall as he had earlier, “Its right there, we don’t even need to go far!”

“That would have us skipping half of the booths. Are you really sure about that?” Kristin added with a similar concerned tone as Phil.

“I know, but I know they have the thing that I want! I can see it on the table!”

“Wil-” Phil began with an amused snicker, “You can’t see the table from here. I can’t see whats on it from here.”

“But! Everyone leaving it has one in their hand!” Wil continued to insist, his voice getting desperate.

“You can’t even tell us what it is.” Phil chuckled again as he pulled his arm free from Wil’s grasp.

“I-its the, the light up thing! The spinning one! That one!” Wilbur quickly stammered out pointing to a glowing, noise making spinner on a stick.

To Wil’s credit even on seeing it Phil wasn’t sure what he’d call it either. A space ship on a stick? Looking towards the booth his eldest son kept insisting on he had to admit it was visible on the banner they had up.

It would certainly cut down on their ‘stuck in the crowd’ time.

“And you’re sure you’re okay with not seeing the other tables first? Just in case?” Phil asked his son one final time.

Even before he was done asking Wilbur was nodding his head rapidly.

“Yes, I’m sure. Very sure.” Wil replied confidently.

Phil held his gaze a moment before looking to his wife.

“I’m not entirely opposed to skipping a few. We can still hit up the fried food at the end.” He stated with a partial shrug.

“Oooh, you think they have kettle corn?” Kristin asked with a burst of fresh eagerness.

Phil couldn’t help but laugh in response. He didn’t really have a chance for more then that as his wife sniffed the air excitedly.

“I think they dooo~ I can smell it.” She stated with an exaggerated glee.

“Oookay, so that sounds like we’re skipping booths then.” Phil confirmed aloud.

This was met with short victory ‘woo’s from both his wife and his eldest son. As for the two youngest Watson’s, neither seemed interested or concerned with the topic at hand. Both, in fact, appeared far more distracted by the next blanket over which had a small dog present.

A small dog that was performing tricks for treats.

Techno was fascinated.

**-_-**

Needless to say it took a bit of convincing for the smaller boys to agree to leave their spot. Wilbur even resorting to dragging Techno by the arm to force him along. It wasn’t until their mother brought up going quickly to return sooner that Techno eventually gave in.

It was a choice Techno seemed to regret mere moments after making it. The family was having to dip and weave near constantly to get around the other placed blankets and people in attendance. It was properly crowded and Techno found himself latched onto his father’s side just to get through it. It was times like this that he envied Tommy being carried everywhere by their mother.

Wilbur, on the other hand, was near painfully in the opposite boat. He wanted nothing more than to rush to the table he knew to be selling the light spinner he so desired. He’d tried to do so at first, but quickly had been scolded into stopping to wait. In the end he was stuck holding onto their father’s free hand. Techno was slowing them down and no matter how hard he tried to rile his brother into going faster it wasn’t working.

At this rate they would never reach the booth.

*-*

Wilbur kicked at a clod of grass near the blanket as he pouted heavily.

By the time they had reached the booth with the light toys they had sold out of the spinners. Or, at least the spinner he wanted. The only ones left they had didn’t light up at all and instead just...rolled around on a metal hoop. The only light up things the booth had left were glow sticks and some sort of fairy wand looking thing.

It wasn’t fair!

Wilbur had tried to get them to go buy one earlier, but their father had kept putting it off. He wouldn’t even try to go to another table to check for one. He’d just insisted Wil had made his choice and moved them along. None of the other booths left had one either and were even lamer than the glow sticks. The only other thing he would have wanted was a sparkler but their mother had shot that one down. He didn’t remember her reasoning as he had...maybe, sort of thrown a fit.

Now they were back at the blanket with a few glow sticks for Tommy and Techno and snacks for his parents. Wilbur, technically, also been bought popcorn with the rest of them...and that stupid hoop spinner thing. But he wasn’t happy about it.

He was sulking extra heavily so that they all knew it.

“Keep frowning like that and your face will get stuck that way.” Their mother teased lightly.

In response Wil only frowned harder, tightening his crossed arms for good measure.

Both parents shared a look, their father having a more exasperated expression. With a sigh the man looked at Wilbur with both annoyance and a bit of guilt.

“I know you’re disappointed you didn’t get what you wanted, Wil. But that’s no reason to let it ruin the whole outing. If they have fireworks next year we can make sure to get it then.” He tried to placate.

Wil wanted to complain about waiting a whole year for it, but also didn’t want to talk to their father just yet. He’d been doing his best to give both his parents the silent treatment, but that only worked if he didn’t break it to complain at them.

“Or maybe I can find it before then. I doubts its hard to find.” The man went on with a bit more hope.

Again Wil refused to answer, this time having to bite his lip to keep from spilling words at the man.

There was a break in the awkward tension as Tommy giggled excitedly at the ‘glow stick sword fight’ he and Techno were having. Techno, of course letting Tommy have the upper hand. Their father gave a soft amused smile towards the two for a moment before turning back to Wilbur. As the smile reverted back to the guilty frown Wil felt some part of his own stomach drop.

“I’m sorry, Wil. I really am. But there isn’t anything I can do right now to fix it. Lets just try to enjoy the rest of the evening and I’ll make it up to you.”

“We can give you a ‘toy iou’.” Their mother added as she tried to hand over a juice box.

Wilbur stared at it flatly for a moment before swiping it from her hand.

“‘Toy iou’ for any toy I want.” Wilbur tried to confirm boldly.

“Within reason. Twenty dollar limit. I checked the prices list at the booth. Sound fair?” Their father specified before holding out a hand towards Wil.

Thinking it over for a minute Wilbur considered the offer and how to best exploit it in the future. He could easily work within the twenty dollar limit he was sure.

Not wanting the offer to be taken back or limited further Wil shook his father’s hand firmly.

“‘Toy iou’.“ He nodded curtly.

*-*

It had taken a bit, but in the end Wilbur’s mood had recovered. When he joined in the fake glow sword fight with his brothers Phil and Kristin had sighed internally with relief. At first Phil hadn’t thought it would be a big deal to miss out on that single toy when they saw there weren’t any left. He had assumed that between the noise makers and other glowing options that Wil would find something just as interesting to him.

He had been wrong, apparently, and instead watched as Wilbur had almost desperately combed over the other tables. He knew he was at fault for taking so much time before convincing himself to even approach those booths. However, lingering on it wasn’t going to make things right. He also didn’t want the whole evening spoiled for Wil over it.

He would simply have to make sure that next year they hit up those booths as early as possible. Provided the fireworks display was returning properly and wasn’t just a one off for the year. Phil could really only hope at this point.

As for the rest of the family, so far they seemed to be handling the festivities well. Techno was sticking to the blanket for now, but he was showing interest at the people going by. Mostly when there were dogs present, which was entirely understandable. Biggest of all, though, he hadn’t once asked about going home early or to the car. This was arguably the largest event they’d ever gone to and Techno was seeming to handle it without issue.

The same could said for Tommy as well. Their youngest seemed fascinated with the ever moving crowd and wild noises. Both Phil and Kristin had been worried all the extra sensory input would overwhelm him. They had made a few backup plans for the night if Tommy had decided the crowds were too much, but that didn’t seem to be necessary.

The only one actually seeming to have trouble was Wilbur. He couldn’t seem to get enough from the area around them. He kept trying to go further away then either parent was comfortable. With the shear number of strangers around they didn’t dare let him out of sight. Which seemed to be exactly where he wanted to be. Just another point of tension that served to threaten Wil mood for the trip.

While they could understand Wil’s frustration over a few things so far, his attitude for the day overall was less than stellar. Phil was doing his own best to keep patient with him but it was being chipped away at steadily. Kristin, for her part, was doing her best to keep the mood light. If they could make it through the evening then tomorrow they could have a sit down with Wil to see what was wrong. Tonight was supposed to be a fun outing and she didn’t want any of her sons to miss it.

She could see Wil was likewise trying his best, even if he stumbled a time or two. He still was trying to put on a smile for his brothers between his outbursts. With a few well placed distractions she was sure the family would end the night on a high note.

*-*

By the time the sky darkened properly Wilbur and Techno had developed a glow in the dark tic-tac-toe using the glow sticks and some grapes and mini pretzels. So far Techno was winning more often than not with Wilbur trying his best to figure out how to cheat. Though he thoroughly denied that’s what he was doing.

Tommy had watched them at first before growing frustrated at not being allowed to eat the pieces. Which had him now fighting with their father’s hands as both parents worked to put away the leftover picnic food and redistribute other smaller snacks instead.

Tommy seemed convinced that anything his father touched needed to remain on the blanket.

“I promise you wont like what in this container, mate. You’ve already spat it out twice.” Phil chuckled as he pulled the repackaged food free from his childs’ hands.

“Mine!” Tommy insisted as he tried to latch onto it again, “I want that!”

“It’s the ‘icky green stuff’, Tommy.” Phil tried to explain.

“Don’t call it that. He’ll never try it again.” Kristin scolded lightly, more like a tease.

“He won’t eat it anyway. None of the boys eat it willingly.” Phil stated before maneuvering Tommy to be looking into his eyes and putting on a voice, “And its super duper icky whether I say it or not.”

At this Kristin gave a swat to Phil’s arm making them both laugh.

“You can’t let them know that we know that.” Kristin mock whispered back.

“Its Icky! Icky Green Stuff!” Tommy shouted at the basket before slamming the flap closed, “Time Out!”

Both parents laughed at the antic which had Tommy following suit with a wide proud smile that took up his whole face.

That look of pure joy was short lived as sudden loud cracks and snaps filled the air. Some distance away in the sky there were flares of yellow and orange lights bursting to life in a simple palm pattern. It was only a few in a row, more as a sign for all the watchers to ready for the full display.

Tommy was not readying for anything.

Without so much as looking to the sky Tommy’s face had scrunched up as he burst into tears. Loud, sobbing tears that had his whole body shaking from them. He clung fiercely onto Phil as both his parents tried to sooth him.

“Hey, its okay, mate. Its just the fireworks. Bit loud but they’re harmless. See?” Phil tried to explain as he gently tried to turn Tommy in the direction of said fireworks.

He hoped the lights would somehow work magic enough to distract from the noises they made. The next short line of palms went up, this time ending with a star fall pattern. Flashy but still loud as well. Tommy’s little legs flailed as he pressed his face into Phil’s chest, a terrified howl leaving him.

“Phil-” Kristin began but Phil was quick to turn to her as he hiked Tommy up higher on his chest.

“Don’t worry. This is why we made plans.” Phil tried to quickly assure her, “I’ll bring him to the car. See if he won’t calm down if its a bit quieter.”

“Are you sure?” Kristin asked, concerned with how hard Tommy was already crying.

Phil struggled to his feet even with Kristin’s help. Trying to stand up with a distressed child clung to your chest wasn’t exactly easy.

“Of course I’m sure. Besides, I doubt you’d be able to peel him off me.” Phil tried to joke.

Kristin was about to say more when both parents were distracted by Techno pressing himself between them. He let out a small whine of his own as he tried to press his ears into his parents legs. He looked up at them and opened his mouth to speak, but nothing audible came out. He hadn’t said much since they had arrived and judging by the new distressed look on his own face verbal words now would be unlikely.

Kristin quickly dropped to his level and pulled him against her in a hug.

“It’s okay, Techno. We’re not going anywhere. You’re dad is just going to bring Tommy to the car for a bit.” Kristin explained.

Techno tried to sign to her with one hand but flinched as a particularly loud firework went off. Phil, now with Tommy freshly panicked, quickly left the blanket and began weaving as politely as he could around the other families present. At the sight and sound of a crying child no one seemed particularly bothered about it and a few people even made extra room to let him pass.

Kristin, in the meantime, was trying her best to soothe Techno too. Watching fireworks on tv was very different than really being there. She and Phil had been so centered on Tommy being able to handle it that they hadn’t considered Techno’s own sensitivity to sound. He’d always loved to watch them on the tv after all.

Sending him to the car with a crying Tommy wouldn’t do him any better than staying put. She would need a solution here if they were to come through it on both feet.

“It’s okay. We got this.” She muttered to herself as she shuffled into a cross-legged position, tucking Techno in her lap.

Thinking quickly Kristin adjusted Techno’s head against her chest so he was facing the display but had his right ear covered. She then rolled up the now abandoned lap blanket and folded it and held it against his other ear. She hoped it would be enough to muffle the worst of it.

The next string of fireworks lit up the sky and Techno flinched in response. At least at first. By the time it reached its next pause he wasn’t reacting so violently. He was still breathing a bit heavy but didn’t seem to be getting worse.

It was too soon for her call it a win, but she a least mentally sighed in relief that it wasn’t outright a failure.

As the next bout went off Kristin felt a hand press near her own in the rolled blanket. Looking over she saw Wilbur had moved over to them and was helping to cover Techno’s ear so he could watch. These were still only the starters and she wasn’t sure if Wil knew the ones to come would only be louder. Regardless she was happy to see her eldest son trying to help.

Wilbur wasn’t looking at either her or his brother, but was instead using his free hand to point eagerly at the glittery display. Every time a new one lit the sky his own smile brightened with excitement.

For the next minute or two the three of them sat and watched the sky light up with various colors and patterns. Techno still flinched from time to time but he seemed to be pushing through it. Though, when a screamer went off he had almost jerked right out of her arms. Even Wilbur had jumped.

The guilty question of how Tommy handled it was quickly answered as her phone began to buzz in her pocket. With her free hand she pulled it out, already guessing what was about to be said.

_-

Hubby: Plans a, b and c failed

Hubby: Currently failing plan d

Hubby: Tommy is just not having any of this. that last one especially

Wifey: Techno’s having some trouble too. We sort of worked a solution though.

Wifey: Do you want to switch places? I could give it a go.

Hubby: Not sure it matters who at this point

Hubby: I hate to say it but it might be better to just go

Hubby: I can bring him home now while you guys finish watching the show

Wifey: That bad?

Hubby: If he cries any harder I swear I’ll cry with him

Hubby: Its pretty bad

Hubby: Bus ride might cheer him up or calm him

Wifey: I don’t like the idea of you two taking the bus so late.

Hubby: I’m not leaving you and the boys here without the car.

_-

Kristin paused in her texts unsure what to do. For all their planning splitting up the family was not any part of them. If plans ‘a’ thought ‘d’ failed then the rest probably weren’t going to fair better considering how late it was. As she looked down at her other sons she hated to think it, but it was probably best to call it here.

They gave it their best try, but there was just too much going wrong to justify stretching it out further.

_-

Wifey: I agree it might be best to call it.

Wifey: I don’t think splitting up is a good idea.

Hubby: You think the boys wont mind?

Wifey: Wilbur might, but he’s not exactly been enjoying the night either.

Wifey: At this point it might just be better to beat the outward traffic.

Hubby: Do you want help packing it in?

Wifey: I have the boys for that. Just try to keep Tommy distracted until we get there.

Hubby: Doing my best.

_-

Tucking her phone back into her pocket Kristin looked down at her boys with a small frown. Wilbur was still pointing out at the star bursts and brilliant colored patterns in the sky with glee. Techno was starting to smile a bit as he began pointing as well between his flinches.

With a heavy sigh she gave her sons a nudge for their attention, signing as she talked.

“We have to pack up now. We have to leave early.”

*-_-*

As one would expect Wilbur had been disappointed and had put up a fight to stay. He argued that they had only just started watching and that the whole point had been to see the fireworks. He wasn’t shy about bringing up how the whole day had been terrible and that this was finally supposed to go right because they were there for the light show.

Kristin had tried to explain while packing that they had to think of how Tommy and Techno were doing too. Even if Techno was finding a way to enjoy them Tommy wasn’t. He was too young and it wasn’t fair to him to suffer through it.

Wilbur hadn’t liked that at all and had tried to continue his arguing rather heatedly. Until Techno signed he agreed with their mother. It was only a few words since he was now having to use his own hands to cover his ears, but it was clear his choice was made.

Sputtering and grumbling in anger Wil eventually had to accept defeat. By the time he got to actually helping his mother with their stuff he only had to grab the large picnic blanket while she carried everything else herself.

They could hear Tommy’s crying far before they reached the car. Phil was pacing and rocking him as best he could but it made no difference in the intensity of those spooked sobs. As the rest of the family drew near Phil frowned as he gave his wife a questioning look. Kristin merely shook her head and began to quickly load their stuff back into the car, Techno at her side to help as best he could.

The drive home was hardly quiet. Tommy cried for a good portion of it for starters. But along with that from the moment they left the parking lot Wilbur had complained about the whole affair and had yet to stop.

“You promised we’d get to see the fireworks if we did all our chores today! We even did more than normal!” Wilbur had stated bitterly.

“Mate, you only did ‘more than normal’ because you made more messes that needed cleaning. Or were you hoping we would forget that part?” Phil asked bluntly with a minor glance at his son in the rear-view mirror, “Just let it go, Wil. It just wasn’t working out this time.”

“We didn’t mess up Tommy’s room but we cleaned that.” Wilbur pressed, ignoring the rest of his fathers words.

“Wil, please. That was a favor to me while I got Tommy sorted out.” Kristin tried to mediate while still trying to settle the fussing toddler.

“Me and Techno got ourselves all ready. We brushed our teeth and our hair and, and we even put on our best clothes!” Wil rattled off heatedly.

“Well, Tommy’s just a baby. He needs the help. You two are older and have each other to fall back on.” Kristin again tried to reason.

“I recall having to come help the both of you a few times myself.” Phil added in.

“Only a little. We basically got ourselves ready though.” Wil insisted.

“And I’m very proud of you boys getting yourselves ready like that. With or without your father’s help. But that doesn’t change what happened back there.” Kristin stated, trying to remain the voice of reason.

“You say that, but then that means we did all that for nothing. It barely even got started!” Wil carried on, his voice rising with his temper.

“Wilbur, lower your voice.” Phil warned, his own voice stiff as he worked to follow his own instruction, “I get your angry and disappointed. But things don’t always work out they way you want. Making a fuss and fighting about it isn’t going to make it suddenly change to what you want.”

Wilbur scowled as his father talked, kicking his feet as he fought to keep his mouth shut.

“It’s not like we were dying to leave either. But Tommy and Techno were both having a hard time. Do you understand that? Do you think it would have been fair to them to make them wait it out just because you wanted to stay?”

At this point Techno was sinking down into his own seat, guilty to have been part of the reason they needed to leave. Wilbur really hadn’t wanted to and now the whole family was fighting over it. He didn’t dare to peek over at Wilbur even a little at the moment. He didn’t want to know if he was being glared at or not.

“Phil, focus on the road. We can talk more about it once we’re home.” Kristin directed, again hoping to keep the situation under some sort of control.

Sucking in a breath to calm himself back down Phil nodded in response. His nerves had been picked down at and he didn’t want to risk saying something he didn’t mean.

The rest of the drive was uncomfortably long and tense for the lot of them. Only once had Wil tried to break that silence, earning a snapped reply that had him clenching his jaw tight since.

*-_-*

Once they arrived home Kristin was quick to ask Phil to look after Tommy and Techno while she talked to Wilbur herself. Knowing he was already well agitated with Wilbur Phil readily agreed. Taking his two youngest inside he set about readying them for bed with a practiced calm.

The first few minutes of their conversation was just them sitting in silence together in the now empty car. Wilbur didn’t try to get out of his seat and aside from having moved into Techno’s spot in the back Kristin didn’t either. He remained stubbornly quiet as he kicked the back of the passengers seat with a firm scowl on his face.

Kristin merely watched and waited until a fair chunk of time passed them by. Hopefully enough for the initial heat of anger to have faded.

“Do you want to talk about today?” Kristin asked softly.

In response Wilbur kicked the seat harder but said nothing.

“Its certainly been a long one. A lot going wrong along the way.”

Wilbur’s scowl grew as he added in an eye roll.

“You seemed to go out of your way to push your father’s buttons too.”

“I didn’t do anything. He was mad already.” Wilbur defended with another hearty kick to the seat, “I’m just easier to yell at.”

Kristin frowned at his words, wanting to deny or correct them. Doing so wouldn’t be helpful though and she didn’t want it to feel like she was invalidating his feelings at all. He did also had a point.

“You’re partly right about your father. He has been a bit...stressed lately.” She admitted with a small nod, “He’s been trying his best to handle it, but I think today it might have gotten away from him.”

“You think?” Wilbur muttered as he crossed his arms.

“But, I think its gotten away from you too.” Kristin added pointedly, “Don’t think I haven’t noticed your extra attitude today.”

“So its still my fault?” Wil asked as he finally looked over at her, glare at the ready.

“I didn’t say that now did I?” Kristin returned, crossing her arms to match her son, “I’m just pointing out that there’s no reason to play the blame game between either of you. Both of you were a bit prickly today and it ended up getting out of hand-”

Wilbur didn’t wait to hear anything more as he let out a shout of anger.

“This Is So Stupid. If Its Not My Fault Then Its No ones fault? Dad Was The One Acting Like A Jerk!” Wilbur spat out with a fresh heat in his chest, “I Barely Had To Do Anything To Get In Trouble! I Got Scolded For Practically Breathing Wrong.”

“I Couldn’t Wear What I Wanted, I Had To Change Twice. I Wasn’t Even Allowed To Help Techno And He Got the Brush Stuck In His Hair Himself. I Didn’t Have Anything To Do With It! I Didn’t Spill The Juice On The Counter And I Still Had To Clean It Up!”

“I Got Blamed For Everything! And Then When Dad Literally Made Us Too Late To Get The One Thing I Ask For Once We Got Here I’m Not Even Allowed To Be Mad About It? I’m Not Allowed To Be Mad That We Had To Leave After We Were Promised We Could Watch Them? Its- Its- How Is That Fair?!”

By the time Wilbur had finished his rant he was panting, yet still managed to find the energy to kick at the seat again. This time with a torrent of furious strikes. Were it not such a sturdy old car Kristin would have worried for it.

Truth be told Kristin hadn’t been aware of half of what Wil had brought up. Sure some of it could have been biased, but she had honestly been too distracted to really take note. She wanted to say Phil wouldn’t have been like that, but...he had been struggling lately.

It was no excuse if he had really been lashing out like that, but at least knowing the source would make it manageable. For the sake of their kids.

Kristin waited until Wil had run his energy down before speaking again. Keeping her tone gentle but not condescending.

“We didn’t mean you couldn’t be angry about it, Wilbur. You have the right to feel how you do. We just-” She paused, thinking carefully for her next words, “We just didn’t want that to be all that you let yourself feel.”

“But, everything went wrong today and-”

“And it sucked. I know.” Kristin nodded, reaching out to take one of Wil’s hands, “And there are going to be a lot of times where that’s going to be the case. Some times it might even be over something that will hurt for a while to have missed or lost out on.”

She gave his hand a squeeze and tried to get him to look her in the eye.

“But, if we let ourselves focus too hard on being mad about it, then we’ll lose out on a lot more.”

Wilbur didn’t look like he believed her so she kept going.

“Remember the family on the blanket beside us? With the dog? They let you, Techno and Tommy all pet him once you had calmed down about the toy. You and Techno found a way to play with the glow sticks we ended up getting too.”

“We still had to leave early.” Wil huffed out.

“This year we did, yea. But there’s always next year. We can be better prepared now that we know what to expect.”

Wilbur was still frowning, but he didn’t seem as angry as before. Though he could just have been to tired to show it.

“Tell you what, why don’t you go in and sleep on it. I’ll talk to your father and the three of us can have a sit down tomorrow. I think he owes you a fair apology.” Kristin reasoned with a small assuring smile, “We can try to work something out so this doesn’t happen again. Sound good?”

Wilbur tilted his head in thought for a fair moment, mulling it over like he might say ‘no’. After a fair stretch of silence Wil finally turned to her and nodded his head.

“Ice cream for breakfast and you have a deal.”

Kristin couldn’t help the snorted laugh that came out of her at the request. Wil was trying not to smirk in response but it was a hard battle for him.

“Pancakes or waffles. Take it or leave it.” Kristin countered with a raised expectant brow.

“...Pancakes.” Wil confirmed, taking his hand back from his mother only to offer it for a shake.

Kristin was quick to do so.

“Deal. Pancakes for breakfast.”

Wil turned to finally leave the car, Kristin mirroring it on her own side. With that done she now had to prepare herself to talk to her husband. So help her she wasn’t going to let him ruin his relationship with the boys over one bad day.

He really did owe Wil a proper apology.

Chapter Text

It was an early day in August and the elder Watson boys were in their room discussing the coming start of school. It wasn’t their usual chatter about it though. Instead of talking about what teachers they would have or what classes they dreaded going back to they were instead complaining about the changes Middle school already seemed to be bringing to Wilbur’s life.

Wilbur, though excited to be going into the sixth grade, was nervous and a bit annoyed. The Middle school was still near the Elementary one so he would still be taking the same bus with Techno thankfully. However, for some reason neither boy could figure out, Wilbur’s school year started earlier.

Almost by two weeks!

They had tried to ask their father about it but the man had only say ‘some schools are like that’ and sent them off. They couldn’t ask their mother yet as she wasn’t home but Wilbur didn’t think they’d get any better an answer.

“Maybe there’s just more to learn, so you have to start early.” Techno reasoned as he toyed a bit with his hair.

It had reached just past his shoulder blades at this point and often times founds itself being fussed with by tiny fingers. Even when it was put up in a ponytail Techno found a way to have just enough to fidget with.

Wilbur didn’t want to say he was jealous exactly, but he certainly felt something. Especially when, due to the approaching school year, he had to get his cut earlier than normal. Techno hadn’t even needed to sit there for the whole thing and as soon as their parents inspection of Techno’s upkeep on it was done he’d been free to go.

But, that wasn’t the issue at hand.

“That would be stupid. I shouldn’t have to miss out on the last weeks of vacation just for that!” Wilbur complained loudly as he flopped hard onto his stomach on his bed.

“Do you think maybe they don’t kn-”

“ -Cha! Hcha!”

Both boys paused for a moment as Tommy’s voice rose up from his own room. He had been entertaining himself for the last hour or so without more than a few sounds of toys banging around. It was one of those rare times where he had actually turned down Techno and Wil’s presence for playtime.

Their brother’s voice lowered again in the next moment leaving the two with no hint as to Tommy’s current game. Other then the sound of one of his electric trains honking.

For a moment it looked like Techno was going to question it, but Wilbur just shrugged it off.

Until Tommy came to them to play they didn’t need to think about it.

“Do you think the teachers will be nicer? Because you’re missing vacation?” Techno asked, abandoning his prior half finished question.

“I doubt it. I heard the teachers only get meaner as you-”

“- Look Out! Itsa Really Big Bowl!”

Again Tommy’s voice rose up enough be heard through their shared wall. He was speaking with an animated panic which was quickly followed by fake ‘yells’ from...whoever it was he was warning.

Again the boys looked at one other, Techno looked more confused than before by far. Wilbur couldn’t help his small prickle of curiosity, though it wasn’t big enough for him to want to act on.

“Did he say its a ‘big ball’?” Techno asked quietly, as if their brother would hear them.

“I think he said...’boo’? Like a ghost?” Wil offered with a slight frown.

It was a bit hard to translate Tommy’s words through the wall, yelled or not.

“ -Its Coming Back! Jump Away!” Again Tommy’s words were shouted in mocked panic and followed by shouts of fear from his imagined playmates.

Wilbur sat up on his bed at this point. He was tempted to get closer to the wall to hear more, not that it was entirely necessary at the moment. Tommy hadn’t dropped his voice lower again just yet.

“Jump! Jump! Like a frog. A bigger frog!” Tommy shouted again before giving a more worried yelp, “Oh no! Its got you! Wiggle! BIG Wiggle!”

At this Wilbur let out a laugh. Whatever game Tommy was playing at seemed properly weird. Techno was laughing too, but was covering his mouth. It wasn’t like they had to worry about their brother hearing them. The unseen blond seemed to be entirely enthralled in his playtime scenario.

“Its Going To Get Burned! Don’t Be Like The Potato!” Tommy’s little voice peaked with his imagined distress.

Wilbur and Techno were both snort laughing at this point. With or without context the phrase ‘don’t be like the potato’ was more then they could handle. Techno was laughing so hard he was starting to wheeze snort too, which didn’t help Wilbur in pulling himself together.

Being mid fit it was no wonder they didn’t hear the sudden silence from their baby brother’ room. Nor did they hear the scuffling sounds of movement or even the opening of doors. That is, until their own was opened with a loud squeal of hinges and a bang against the wall.

Both older boys jumped, choking on whatever laugh had been partly on its way out of their mouths. However, instead of seeing their father in the doorway they saw...Tommy.

Tiny Tommy, who wasn’t even looking in their direction, was simply trudging with determination towards their toy box. He had an odd look on his face, one of utter concentration that neither older boy had seen on him before.

Without a word Tommy approached their toy box, opened the lid and then pulled at the side as if to tip it over. When that failed at first Tommy busied himself with taking the toys on top out and tossing them over into Techno’s reading area.

“Hey!” Techno protested, only to be ignored, “Tommy, don’t make a mess in-”

Before he could finish Tommy had emptied out the box enough to pull it over as he originally intended. Toys spilled out and even ended up knocking himself down.

“What Are You Doing?!” Wilbur shouted next, pushing himself up to jump off his bed.

With no more attention than before Tommy began rummaging through the now spilled toys a moment before seeming to find what he wanted. Picking up three or four figures the small blond stood back up and scurried back out of the door.

The indignant shouts of Techno and Wil after him didn’t phase him one bit as Tommy was quick to close his own door after him.

Not sure what to make of it the boys looked at one other as if unsure if that had really happened. Were it not for the mess clearly left in their little brother’s wake they would have doubted it. At least a bit.

Within moments they could hear their brother back at his playing, voice once more in that faked panic.

“Everyone hafta get in now. We gunna pee the potato out of here!”

Whatever upset or annoyance the older boys had felt just moments ago it was gone again. Fresh laughter burst out of them bringing them back to the snorted riots they had been in before Tommy had ransacked them.

It took a fair minute for them to pull themselves back together. A bit longer then that for Wil to pick up on certain...sloshing sounds underneath Tommy’s continued babbling.

At this point it was too much for him not to go see what their brother was up to.

Techno wasn’t far behind him even if he was still more giggly. Wil doubted it would give them away considering Tommy’s earlier focus on the toys alone.

Peeking in from the doorway the boys had an easy view of their baby brother in the middle of his room. It was more messy than normal that was for sure. Blankets and pillows had been pulled out of the crib somehow and were tossed about the floor. Some of them had abandoned trains and cars on them along with more than a few of Wil’s little solider men.

Something Tommy wasn’t allowed to play with so of course he somehow had them. Them and a few of Techno’s tiny fantasy figures of course. Not only was Tommy not allowed to have those, but he also at some point had raided the fridge because there were at least four juice boxes strewn about the mess.

As for Tommy himself, he sat dead center to it all. He was currently fist deep into one of their mother’s clear mixing bowls which he’d placed on the floor before him. It sat like a cauldron which was presently filled with an actual potato, various toys and figures and a pool of...liquid.

A yellow-ish liquid.

For a moment Wilbur’s heart stuttered as he recalled the order to ‘pee out’ the potato. Tommy, who hadn’t noticed his older brothers just yet, was using his hand to stir around the bowls contents, praising the little men in the bowl for doing a ‘good job’.

“Just a little more and then no more potato!” Tommy encouraged the little men.

“Daaaaad!” Techno was shouting before Tommy could say more, turning from Wil’s side and racing down the hallway.

Only now did Tommy seem to snap from his focus and look up.

*_-_*

Valuable lessons had been learned after Phil had come rushing through on damage control.

One, Phil learned it best to not assume the child locks in the kitchen, or in general, were all properly locked. Double checking them was faster then doing cleanup.

Two, the boys learned to keep their smaller toys on high shelves instead of in their toy box. Tommy clearly knew how to get to them.

And three, Tommy had learned how to ‘open’ juice boxes on his own and he was more then happy to do that then to ask for a refill of his cuppy.

Technically fourth being that any failed attempts at juice opening quickly became playtime ‘enhancements’ such as ‘apple juice pee’ and ‘grape juice potions’.

While Phil would love say there was a fifth lesson about ‘asking before taking’ he wasn’t going to hold his breath. Tommy was only four with two older gremlin brothers to learn from. He doubted that one would stick for a while.