Things That Need To Pass (passerine!Technoblade x OC) {COMPLETED}

Brink Of War (maybe not)

(Tommy POV)

"It's me."

Wilbur. I relaxed. And then, jolting back, Wil?!

I opened my door slowly, unsure of who was waiting on the other side: the king or the brother?

But standing at the threshold, his shoulders slumped and his smile tired, was just Wilbur.

"Hello," Wilbur said. "Can I come in?"

I rolled my eyes. "Techno told you to come, didn't he?"

The smile slipped from Wilbur's face. "Does it matter?" he asked exhaustedly.

"'Suppose not." I stood back to let Wilbur inside.

Wilbur crept in like a tourist, looking at every inch of my room like every little thing was a priceless artifact. When had I last allowed my older brother into my bedroom? Most likely around the same time Wilbur moved his things into the king's quarters.

"I like this," Wilbur said idly, pointing at an ancient morning star hanging next to the door. "Really ties the room together, I think."

"Cut the crap, Wilbur," I snapped, the morning's vehemence returning like bitter waves to the shore. "Just tell me why you're here."

Wilbur sighed as he threw himself down on one of the spare settees. "We need to talk, Tommy."

"Alright." I leaned against the wall and crossed my arms, watching Wilbur suspiciously. "Talk, then."

Wilbur crossed his legs and returned my scrutiny tenfold; his dark eyes seemed to be made for the very purpose of staring people down. "First of all, I would like to apologize for what I said earlier. You are never an annoyance to me, Tommy. But you are a child."

"Wilbur—"

Wilbur held a hand up to silence him. "Let me finish," he said, wielding not the authority of a liege, but of a firstborn sibling. "You are a child. That isn't a bad thing—you're allowed to be what you are, and you're young. 

But that's also the reason why I thought it was best to keep things from you. In my efforts to protect you, I drove you away, and that's the last thing I want. And you're right, speaking with Techno did help me come to that conclusion, but we all need Techno's help now and again, don't we?"

I scoffed, but knew I couldn't disagree. Wilbur knew it, too.

"I don't need to be protected, Wilbur," I said weakly.

"Then why do you always look so sad?"

My eyes locked on Wilbur's. "What?"

There was a world's worth of pain in Wilbur's expression. "Whenever you think no one's watching, you look so sad, Tommy. But I see you. You joke and laugh and shout all day, but the moment you're alone, you—you get this look on your face. 

Like you're carrying some heavy weight and you're trying to find somewhere to set it down, but there's nowhere. I've seen that look before, Tommy, and that's why I'm scared for you. Because Father—"

"Don't," I croaked. "Don't compare me to him, Wilbur. I am nothing like him."

"Prove it, then." Wilbur suddenly stood, making me jerk back against the wall. "Do what he never had the guts to do, and tell me. Tell me what's wrong, Tommy. Tell me what you're carrying, and I'll help you."

My chest felt tight with the pressure of the decade-old secret. My eyes instinctively scanned the room for an exit, some way out, some way to never speak of this again. I wanted nothing more than to melt into the wallpaper behind me and never see the light of day again.