Work Text:
Phil watched his three boys sleep soundly. His two oldest huddled close, while his new youngest lays opposite side of the nest. He puzzled at this development. Tommy seemed really keen to play with them at first, he thought his sons were getting along. He supposes he should’ve known merging his new and old family wouldn’t be that easy. To Wilbur and Techno, Tommy is not even an outsider, but a strange, similarly winged creature.
And that’s another thing that’s been on Phil’s mind. The possibility to regenerate their wings. Their wounds have dried up now, but it still hurt to know his own people did this to them. There’s no going back home, this is their life now. He was never going to leave them again, no matter what.
…
Wilbur wakes to the foreign smells of potions bubbling and brewing through the corridors. Techno was absent from the nest while that little child, Tommy, was huddled close to him. He squirmed out of the nest and stumbled groggily down the stairs, following a sweet scent to find his family.
The sound of his footsteps bounced off the deep slate walls, along with a quieter pitter-patter of a certain someone following him. He glanced back, glaring when he sees a golden wing slightly peeking out the side of a pillar. He let out a sigh and elected to ignore it and kept walking. Instead listening to the soft chimes of amethyst chandeliers above him. Out of everything there is to see in his father’s new fortress, these chandeliers were his favourite thing to admire. His father did mention he built this all himself, which is incredible at first glance, but then Wilbur remembered he was the one who also built their kingdom from the ground up, literally. Aside from his people lending a hand here and there. Wilbur wondered what their people are doing now, with the royal family now banished, there’s no one left to rule.
“Doesn’t matter anymore” he mumbled to himself.
“What does?”
Wilbur jumped at the unexpected response. The child was now walking beside him, when did he get so close to him?
“Nothing. Doesn’t involve you” he snapped. And began walking faster.
…
Standing close to his father, Techno eyed the boiling pink liquid in a cauldron.
“You’re sure it will work?”
“Yes? Maybe? I’m hoping it does”.
The door creaks open and Wilbur enters the room along with the little child.
“Morning Wil, Tommy” his father greets.
“Mor—”
“Morning Dad!” Tommy interrupts, running into his father’s open arms.
Techno caught a glimpse of jealousy in his brother’s eyes. He has every right to be, he thought. This thing has no right getting their way with a King. Techno doesn’t understand why he keeps them around, the King has his sons, his heirs.
“Sleep well you two?” his father asked.
Tommy nodded.
“I didn’t expect an oversized birds’ nest would be so comfortable,” Wilbur said.
“I know, it surprised me at first too. But it’s the only way I could get a good night’s sleeps with these” he gestured to his wings.
All that aside, his father has been acting less stern than he did back home. He calls him ‘Tech’ sometimes, or Wilbur he’ll instead say ‘Wil’, has his time away from civilization poorly impacted his speech, was he getting lazy? Techno didn’t want to believe his father was turning into a lowly commoner.
“Father, may I have a word with you?” Wilbur asked.
Phil nodded and they exited the room together. “I’ll be right back Techno”.
Then there were two. Tommy rushed to push a stool over towards the cauldron and stepped on to watch the liquid bubble and brew. “What’s this?” he asked, reaching to touch the pink the pink liquid.
Techno flicked the boy’s hand away, “Don’t touch it!” he snapped.
Tommy flinched and kept his hands close to his chest.
“It’s a regen potion, a stronger version that is, for Wilbur and me”.
“Is it for the stubs on your back?” Tommy then gasped with realisation, “Will you get to fly again?”
“We never flew to begin with”.
“How could you not fly, it’s so much fun”.
The memory of him and Wilbur suddenly sprouting wings in front of their people flashed in his mind. “They were taken from us as fast as they grew”.
“What do you mean?”
Techno paused, “It doesn’t concern you”.
“Wil said something similar, you two are like twins—”
“His name is Wilbur. Prince Wilbur”
“Oh, I- I just thought that was his name. It’s what Dad always calls him” Tommy stuttered.
“He’s not your dad”.
Tommy fell silent. Techno didn’t care if he came off as too threatening. Even if they have no kingdom to rule, they’re still royalty. And this child is only a stowaway, it falls beneath them. To address Phil, the King, so casually.
Phil and Wilbur re-entered the room, and Tommy beamed in Phil’s direction, pretending as if Techno didn’t just speak down to him in a cold manner.
Phil clapped his hands together, “Right, the potion should be just about ready. Who’s going first?”
Techno and Wilbur locked eyes, neither wanting to take the role of ‘taste tester’. “Someone’s gotta test it you two. It won’t kill you”.
Techno huffed, “I’ll drink it if you do at the same time”.
Wilbur questioned if regaining his wings was really worth it.
“Ok, fine”.
Phil poured the potion into two bowls and handed one to both. Muttering pleads under his breath, praying that it works. Sharing one final glance, Wilbur and Techno down the potion in big gulps, the tangy taste lingering on their tongues. When they finish everyone remains silent, waiting to see if anything happens.
A minute passes. Then two.
“I don’t think it worked” Wilbur confirmed, breaking the silence.
“Yep, I feel nothing” Techno added.
“Maybe it just needs some time?” Phil suggested.
Techno shakes his head, “It didn’t work, but it’s fine. I wouldn’t want to drink that stuff again, leaves such a weird taste in your mouth”.
Wilbur hummed in agreement.
“Let’s just wait and see what happens tomorrow”.
“Fine, but don’t get your hopes up”.
…
After an uneventful day, everyone goes back to the nest. Tommy barely saying a word as they get comfortable, instead, he grabs his favourite blanket and moves to the opposite side from the others. Phil lights the pile of logs in the fireplace with the tip of his wing and gestures for Tommy to move closer. “Are you alright, Toms?”
Tommy nods, “I feel like I might be catching a cold, I don’t want to get you sick”.
Phil looks at him, concerned, “Are you sure?”
Tommy nods once more. He looks at Techno and Wilbur and finds that they have already fallen asleep, so he and Phil follow suit.
…
The fireplace is still lit when Tommy gets woken up by something kicking his legs. He sits up, and in the dim lighting of the amethyst lanterns he can see Wilbur shaking in the nest, his legs occasionally kicking sporadically in Tommy’s direction. Next to him, Techno is curled up, clawing at his back. Small whimpers escape the two, it sounds as if they’re holding back the urge to cry.
Tommy doesn’t waste another second and hurriedly crawls over to Phil, shaking him frantically until his eyes burst open in shock. “Tommy? What’s wrong—” The whimpers of familiar voices catch his attention in an instant. He flicks his gaze to the two boys now hunched over in pain.
“Oh gods, Wil!? Tech!?” He places a hand on each of their backs rubbing circles with his thumb, their skin beginning to burn up. Phil bites back the pain, not wanting to let them go. This must be a sign of the potion working, he thinks, so he stays there by their side, as there’s not much else he can do other than provide comfort as the potion takes effect.
Tommy, unsure of what exactly to do in these situations, rushes and glides down the stairs of the tower, flying through the deep slate corridors and into the food storage room. He scans the labeled barrels for the one thing he knows, from experience, can help with the pain. He eye’s the lone barrel in the corner with gleaming, golden apples and grabs as many as he can carry, and without skipping another beat, Tommy doubles back, dropping an apple or three along the way. He flies up into the tower, accidentally knocking an amethyst lantern being suspended from the ceiling. As soon as he lands in the nest, he realises Wilbur and Techno no longer seem to be in pain. They both look at him, confused.
“Tommy, that’s where you went?” Phil asks, noticing the armful of apples. “It’s alright now, it was just the potion taking effect”.
“Oh.. That’s good. We can all fly together soon”. Tommy notices Techno leering at him. “I’ll go put these back”.
“Tommy wait, let me help” Phil gets up and follows him down the stairs. On the way back to the storage room Phil lends Tommy a hand by picking up the few golden apples he had dropped earlier. “Is everything ok Tommy? You’ve been pretty quiet since this morning”. Tommy doesn’t look in his direction.
“It’s fine” he lies.
“Are the boys being rude to you?”
“No”.
“Are you sure? I can talk to them—”.
“You don’t need to do that. They’ve been fine”.
“Tommy…” Phil places a hand on Tommy’s shoulder and nudges him to turn around. “Toms, you know I love you as much as I love Techno and Wilbur, right? You are a part of this family; you can tell me if something's wrong”. Tommy averts his gaze. Phil’s words begin to make him teary-eyed. And Phil’s brows furrow with concern seeing his son on the verge of tears.
When Phil moved his hand to ruffle the boy’s blonde curls gently, Tommy found himself unable to hold back a tear escaping the corner of his eye. He wants to wipe it away, he doesn’t want Phil to notice, but he’s still carrying an armful of apples. He shuts his eyes tight, stifling his sobs as he tried to speak “How?... How am I a part of this family *hic* I’m not royalty. I’m different to everyone.”
“Is that what they told you?” Phil sighs. “Tom… We may have been royalty once, but that doesn’t matter. When I took you under my wing, I didn’t care for who I used to be. That kingdom isn’t my home, this palace is. Techno is my son, and so is Wilbur, but they are no longer princes. And Tommy, you are my son. I wouldn’t have it any other way”. Tommy looks at him as he cups his cheek and wipes away the tears, and leans into the touch. After a moment, Tommy drops all the apples and hugs Phil tight. And Phil lets go of his apples and wraps his arms and wings around his son.
…
The next morning Phil makes sure to discuss with Techno and Wilbur their old status, and that they are to see Tommy as one of them, to which they begrudgingly agreed but continued to keep their distance when Phil wasn’t around, only they now wouldn’t snap and spout cold words towards the young boy.
…
Over the next couple of months, Phil’s two wingless sons would drink the regen potion every day. Only the first few weeks they experienced painful, sleepless nights, but with each night it was clear the potions were working, and the stubs on their backs continue to grow bigger and bigger. Over time the pain would subside bit by bit until it was finally bearable, and everyone was able to sleep peacefully.
Eventually, their stubs were becoming longer, and their feathers began to grow. As black as their father’s, they wondered if they too had the power of a phoenix and could set the ablaze. Only time will tell.
…
Finally, their wings look identical to Phil’s but smaller. They try to do wing exercises and even attempt to glide, but it still felt unnatural. Wilbur struggles to keep them balanced, but he’s starting to get the hang of it. While Techno is more focused on getting them to set alight as he can already glide decently well. Tommy attempts to coach them but he still gets ignored from time to time.
One morning, Phil is preparing to make more of the regen potion but finds that they’ve run out of the special ingredient that makes it stronger than any other regen potion. A dandelion’s pollen mixed with glow stone. Phil searches for his satchel but is interrupted when all three of his sons enter the room to help with making today's potion.
“We’ve run out of pollen, unfortunately. You’ll need to wait until I come back with more” Phil tells them.
“I think it’ll be fine” Wilbur chirps.
Phil looks at him confused.
“I don’t think we need to take the potion anymore. Our wings have developed enough, we just need to build muscle”. Techno nods in agreement.
“I suppose you’re right”.
“Aren’t I always?” Wilbur boasts.
“Sure Wil. But I still think it’s good to get more anyway, a potion that strong can be really useful. Best to be safe than sorry”.
Tommy jumps when an opportunity for an adventure arises. “Can I go get it?”
“It’s not safe, mate. They grow in the plains, close to the people”.
“I’ll be quick, they won’t see me” Tommy urges.
“We’re not taking risks. I can fend for myself easily”.
“Fine” Tommy drawls.
Phil finally finds his satchel on top of a cabinet. “Maybe next time we can all go on an adventure together, what’d you say?”
Tommy nods enthusiastically.
“I want you all to behave while I’m gone, no one is to leave the palace, ok?”
The three boys nod in unison.
“I’ll be back soon”. Leaving from the nest tower balcony, Phil takes to the sky.
…
Wilbur stays in the tower reading a book, meanwhile, Techno continues to practice flying in the corridors with Tommy watching and giving tips.
“You need to flap harder” he points out.
Techno simply grunts in response.
The sun is setting when Techno eventually decides to stop for the day, he wasn’t able to make much progress. Tommy has drifted off to sleep, leaning against a pillar. He looks at ease despite being around someone who still loathes him.
It's annoying how persistent the kid is, Techno thinks, but strangely he’s beginning to enjoy his company. Back when he was a prince, only Wilbur would be at his side, as their father would be busy running the kingdom, keeping the peace.
Now, his father is always here, greeting him in the morning, to saying goodnight each night. He doesn’t feel like a prince with duties anymore, instead, they are a family. A cursed family.
“Maybe it’s not so bad to have another brother” Techno mumbled to himself.
Suddenly, a loud thud came from the balcony. Tommy woke from the sound and instantly kicks off the ground and flies into the tower, Techno following close behind taking the stairs. On the tower balcony, Phil kneels slumped over and dripping blood. An arrow stuck in his wing, and another struck his chest, dangerously close to his heart. Wilbur chucks his book to the side and dashes towards him, Techno doing the same, while Tommy stands paralysed, he’s never seen Phil like this. Wilbur realises him standing there, “Go grab those apples, now!”
Tommy nods and forces himself over to the stairs and glides down, just catching himself before he hits the ground he soars through the corridors to the storage room, grabbing as many apples as he can carry, he quickly turns back. When returns to the tower, Wilbur and Techno have pulled Phil into the nest, both arrows yet to be removed. He quickly hands Phil an apple, but he doesn’t reach for it, he doesn’t move. Tommy’s heart sinks, the Wilbur holds his father’s hand, and Techno kneels at his side, trying to hold back his tears.
“No…no no no! We can still help him. The potion—”
“He didn’t bring back the pollen” Techno interjects. “It’s too late”.
Tommy looks over to the forgotten satchel that laid empty. He wasn’t ready to give up. “It’s not too late. I’m getting that pollen”.
“TOMMY WAIT—” Wilbur called out to him, but Tommy grabs hold of the satchel and jumps off the balcony and flew off.
“Crap he’s going to get himself killed” Techno stands and spreads his wings.
“Can you even fly yet?”
“We’re gonna find out” Techno leaps off the balcony, spreading his wings he begins to glide. This is the first time he’s glided higher than a couple of meters. He straightens up and flaps his wings as hard as he can. It takes a bit to get a feel for flying with the wind, but he manages to gain height. He spots Tommy in the distance, the boy’s wing set ablaze in the brisk evening, the sky becoming much darker. Techno becomes numb in the freezing air, he has almost no feeling in his wings. But he can’t stop, he won’t stop, he needs to reach Tommy before they’re spotted. “TOM!” He tries to call out, but it doesn't seem like the boy can hear him. The rushing of the wind is too loud. I need to reach him! His heart is beating in his ears, and his instincts to protect his family, in the adrenaline rush, Techno doesn’t realise the fire now lit in his heart. He calls for the boy once more, “TOMMY!...” His voice louder them the previous, the boy looks behind and stops mid-air, flabbergasted. He finally catches up to him.
“Techno? You’re flying!” Tommy shouts.
“Not sure how, but we have to turn back”.
“No! I’m not letting Dad die!”
Techno thinks for a moment. “You really think the potion will help?”
Tommy stares him in the eyes, determined.
“…Ok. Let’s go”. Tommy beams and leads the way. Techno is amazed at how much faster Tommy is compared to him. But he manages to keep up.
The border of the snowy plains comes into view. The two quickly glide closer to the ground where a lake sits half-frozen. A patch of red flowers blooming around it in the grassy plains. Further away they spot the patch of yellow flowers.
“There’s the dandelions” Tommy points out as they land. He starts to walk over to them, but Techno holds out his arm out in front of him.
“Wait” he scans the surroundings, but there’s no one in sight.
“I don’t hear anything” Tommy confirms.
“Alright but keep your guard up. We only need one for now, so grab it and just fly, I’ll follow”.
Tommy nods. He speedwalks towards the dandelions, keeping an eye out for any movement. He reaches the flowers and goes to pick one, but he catches the sound of a bow being drawn and looks in the direction it came from, hesitating to move. He locks eyes with the archer dressed in green now sat up kneeling, they were blending in with the grass a moment ago.
In a split second, the archer is being drop-kicked to the ground by Techno. “GET GOING!” Techno cries out. And it’s enough for Tommy to come back to his senses. He picks the flower, shoves it into the satchel, and takes off. Techno watches for a moment before noticing the archer reaching for their bow. Techno grabs the bow before they get to stand and follows Tommy in the air.
Tommy waits for him to catch up, but Techno gestures for him to keep going, gods know how much time they have left.
…
Tommy is the first to arrive back. Wilbur is still at their father’s side, but he has a bowl in hand with a familiar-coloured mixture in it.
“Where’s Techno? Did you get it?” He asked frantically.
Tommy nods and hurriedly hands over the flower. He looks down at Phil, the arrows have been removed and replaced with bandaging that’s soaked with blood.
Techno lands on the balcony, almost losing his footing. He’s out of breath, but he quickly moves to join them in the nest, dropping his newly acquired bow.
Wilbur dabs the topside of the flower upside-down into his palm, collecting as much pollen as possible. Then reaching for the pouch of glowstone dust next to him, scoops up a good amount and stirs both powders together in his palm. He then pours it into the bowl. Giving it a second for it to dissolve in the liquid.
“Hurry and give it to him” Techno urges.
Wilbur does so, holding up Phil’s head and bringing the bowl to his lips. Slowly the potion pours into his mouth. When he’s poured enough, he sets the bowl on the ground, still holding him up. The three boys wait in silence.
…
The full moon shines brightly over the balcony. The blood of a cursed king dries in the night on a deepslate floor. The dim light of amethyst lanterns reflecting in the tears of three brothers, now asleep in still arms.
Tommy wakes in the middle of the night. Rubbing his tired eyes, he looks out to the balcony. It’s a clear sky. He looks back to Phil, he looks almost pale in the moonlight. Tommy takes his father’s hand, it’s warm? He wasn’t expecting it to be warm. The fireplace isn’t lit, it’s freezing in the tower, but he doesn’t feel cold. Then, Tommy feels his hand being squeezed gently. His heart skips a beat, Phil just moved. He’s alive.
“Dad?...” he whispers.
Phil groans softly in response, “Hey mate. What are you still doing up?”
“Dad!” Tommy throws himself onto Phil knocking the wind out of him, hugging him tightly. Tears of joy and relief stream down his cheeks.
“Ow! That hurt mate” Phil exclaims, jolting Techno and Wilbur awake at his side. They see Tommy and Phil between them. “Father!” they both cry, “You’re alive”.
Phil wraps his wings around them and bites back the pain to hold his family close, tears welling in his eyes, “Thanks to you three. I’m sorry you had to see me like that”. A forgotten bow left on the balcony catches his attention, “Where did that come from?”
Tommy and Techno flinch. “We may have run into some trouble…” Techno admitted.
“We?” Phil raised a brow “You took Tommy to—”.
“Actually, Techno followed after him” Wilbur corrected.
Phil sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose, “No one got hurt right?”
Tommy puffs up his chest proudly, his fists balled in excitement, “Nope! Techy stopped the guy with the bow just in time for me to escape”.
“Techy” Wilbur echoed, grinning to the man in question, “That’s new”.
But Techno just smiles and ruffles the boy’s blonde curls playfully, “Well, I like it”.
Tommy looks at Wilbur, smiling, “Wilby is good at making potions”. Techno fails to stifle a snort but quickly covers his mouth to hide his smile. Wilbur punches him in the arm jokingly.
Phil laughs, watching his sons finally get along, but the wound in his chest doesn’t give him the luxury of the moment for long as he falls into a coughing fit. His sons all look at him concerned. “I’ll be fine, just need to rest for a while”. They all sigh with relief.
…
Two months later, Phil is back to full health. During his recovery, Tommy would urge Wilbur to practice flying more, and today he is going to put all that practice to work. On the edge of the nest tower balcony, Wilbur stands tall, albeit he’s trembling to the bone from the sheer height he will be falling from.
“You got this Wil!” Techno encourages, hovering in the air with Tommy a few meters away.
“Promise you will catch me?”
“You got to catch yourself first”.
He looks to his side where his father stands watching. Phil simply gives him a thumbs up. He looks to the ground below and takes a deep breath. He counts down for himself. 1… 2… 3! And he leaps off the balcony, free-falling for a couple of seconds before he remembers to spread his wings, catching himself mid-air.
“You need to flap Wilby!”
“I’m trying!” It doesn’t take long for Wilbur to feel the wind. He starts nosediving straight down, gaining speed. And in one graceful motion, he shoots for the sky, racing past his brothers who are now cheering for him.
The three brothers soar together, under the watchful protection of their father. A cursed king and his sons live out their days full of adventure.