They Rely On Hope. What Do I Rely On? - Tommyinnit Adoption AU

Chapter 99

Wilbur POV:

"Wil, get Techno, catch him up, I'm calling Eret," Phil instructed, dialing a new number in as he spoke.

Wilbur rushed upstairs, panic and confusion filling him. What the hell was going on? Had Tommy been kidnapped? Puffy had said they were all in danger... holy shit... if one of the others got hurt, Wilbur wouldn't know what to do with himself.

"Tech? Tech! Tommy didn't want to leave, he wanted to stay, Puffy wasn't involved, fuck, I don't know what's going on Tech," Wilbur rambled, tripping over his words as he rushed inside Techno's room, only to stop in his tracks when his eyes met with Techno's.

"Tech?" Wilbur asked softly, worry gripping him. A few moments ago Techno had been ok. He'd heard Phil, so Wilbur had promised to find out who Phil was talking to and bring news back, but now Techno seemed... not here. His eyes had met Wilbur's, but they had been unseeing, almost as though Techno was looking straight through him.

"Why are you here?" Techno asked softly, tapping his ear rhythmically, seeming stressed and confused and... scared?

"I came back to tell you what Phil was talking about..." Wilbur replied, unsure what else to say.

"You're never alone, where are the rest of them?" Techno murmured, the words only barely reaching Wilbur, as though they weren't intended for him to hear.

"Tech?" Wil asked softly, confusion growing quickly.

"It's so quiet..."

"Techno, can you hear me?"

"What did you want, why didn't you bring the other Masks?" Techno asked, his voice quiet, simply curious and confused.

"Techno? Fuck! Techno!? Techno, I'm right here! Look at me, they're not real!"

"I'm not going back, there's no point trying XD. You lost. You lost and I'm out. My friends won't let you take me back."

"XD?" Wilbur asked, once more stopping in his tracks. He was half way across the room, moving to comfort his brother, but the name meant far more then he had expected. It proved that Puffy was right. It proved that XD was involved. Worse of all, it proved that Tommy was where Techno had been. Now, Techno was lost inside his mind, and Tommy was trapped somewhere the police never found.

"XD isn't here, Techno, I promise. You're safe. I'm here, I'm your brother and I will never hurt you," Wilbur crooned as he inched closer to his brother, slowly reaching his hand out to nudge Techno's.

Techno flinched hard, his gaze training on Wilbur, although seemingly without seeing anything.

"I'm not going to hurt you Techno, I'm just going to take your hand, ok? I'm Wilbur, I'm here and I'm real and I won't let anything hurt you. Whatever, whoever you're hearing other then me isn't real and cannot hurt you. They cannot touch you. I can, and I simply want to hold your hand, will you let me do that?" Wilbur asked, walking a numb, unseeing Techno through easy steps that, for him, would feel like walking across a tightrope in the sky.

Slowly, Techno nodded. The movement was jolty and nervous, but it showed that he heard and trusted Wilbur. That was enough for Wilbur to know he could slip his hand into Techno's.

"You're ok Techno, I'm here. No one will hurt you. No one will take you back. You are here and you are safe."

"He left..." Techno said quietly, and when Wilbur met his brother's eyes, he found they had returned to normal, seeing Wilbur.

"You're safe."

"I'm safe..." Techno agreed numbly.

"Are the voices back?" Wilbur asked. It was too soon. Usually it was a few weeks between attacks, sometimes only a few days, but a few hours? Wilbur had never heard of it before.

"Only one. XD. He was... He and Dream brought me in. The two of them trained me. It was... a lot... having two Blood Masks train me, it hurt like hell, more then the other kids, and I know how much they hurt... I hear him the most, the loudest, but just then... it was only him. It's never only him. Even if his words are the only decipherable ones, it still is always like he is yelling over the screams of a mob. And then... then I saw him Wil. I saw him. I never see them. I hear them, but I never see them... but then you were him and I was terrified Wilbur. Please- Please make it stop. I don't want to be like this. I want to know who you are. I don't want to be crazy, please Wil, please," Techno sobbed, panic overflowing, desperate for comfort. Desperate to be normal. Desperate to feel safe.

"You're not crazy, Tech. And you are getting better. It's ok. You're ok. We'll talk to HBomb about this, yeah? I'll come with you if you want? He'll help. He'll give you more meds. It'll get better, I swear Techno. I swear on my life, it will get better."

"What if it's too late? What if I hurt you?"

"It won't be. You won't hurt me. We'll both be ok. I promise."

"Please don't leave me alone with anyone Wil. I don't want to hurt them."

"You don't need me, but I will always be by your side if you want me to be," Wilbur agreed, agony filling his heart for his brother.

"I'm scared Wil, is that ok?" Techno asked, sounding almost like a child as he whispered the words.

"It is ok. Fear is normal. Fear is natural. We'll work through it and we won't let it control you, but it is ok to show it. It is always ok," Wilbur promised, remembering how when they were younger, Techno had thought fear was something he had to hide. Wilbur needed to make sure Techno didn't fall back into the same trap.

"Thanks Wil," Techno sighed, leaning on his brother, and for all the urgency of the situation, Wilbur didn't tell Techno about Tommy. Not yet.

Words: 1000

A/N: Now I'm rlly curious about ur theories... I mean I always am, but especially now... XDD I know what's gonna happen, the real question is... do you?