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Ranboo wasn’t a problematic kid, on the contrary, he was pretty much an introverted child with far too many fears of social interactions to actually be relevant of some kind. He did everything right, he listened to every teacher and did every homework. Ranboo had an excellent grade and was a great student in general. He never had many friends, but he didn’t give any trouble so it was fine.
The maximum amount of attention Ranboo got in school till now was the fact that he officially entered the volleyball team. Other than that he was just another student with a bright future ahead of him. And this wasn’t something to be worried about, really, Ranboo wanted it like that. He had great grades because he studied for it and he wasn’t relevant because too much attention made him sick. He did what he could to be a normal kid, to his family to be proud of him.
Now, if you ask him why the hell was he doing in the principal's office with a bloody hand and a guy from his class screaming that he broke his nose, Ranboo wasn’t so sure on how to respond to that question. Actually, everything was blurry to him, it felt like a dream, even though somewhere in his mind he knew it was pretty much real. Reality didn’t fall into his head till he heard the principal saying something that alarmed all his senses.
“I’m going to call your parents.”
This phrase alone made Ranboo shiver, he felt his bones shaken and his heart failed one beat. He punched someone, he broke someone’s nose. It wasn’t a light situation, an ‘ops, I forgot my homework’ situation, no! It was bad, it was terrible. His dad was not going to like it at all and with a good reason to do so.
But this thought scared the kid more than the fact that he might be in trouble at school. Having a fight in his perfect school records didn’t seem as bad as to disappoint his father, to see the angry face he would make at him. This would hurt, god, it would be awful. His dad never got angry at him, much less disappointed, he always was patient and made sure that Ranboo knew of how proud he was. But Ranboo never hurted anyone before.
This was new, this was scary. He wasn’t thinking when he did that, he still felt like he wasn’t thinking, hands trembling and voice refusing to come out. He should say something, say sorry, try to stop them from calling his dad, but he couldn’t. His body was paralisaded, the blood on his hands seemed brighter than before and his head was spinning. He hated it, hated everything.
The adults kept talking, discussing something, he doesn’t know what. Mind not bothering to process anything more than vague sounds and movements. The other guy was still crying, he heard the word ambulance and decided to shut down his mind. He focused on other things: his favorite game, the last show he saw, a spider in the principal's wall. He was sure that for outsiders he was just a living statue, breathing but not moving. Head long gone to his safe space.
He knew too well that even if he tried to do something that moment, his body wouldn’t help and the panic would only grow wider, so distracting himself naming the spider at the wall was the best he could do.
Time passed far too quickly, but Ranboo only came back from his safe space when two hands reached for his face. A light pink hair made in a rushed bun and a pair of green eyes occupied his vision. His dad's face only seemed worried, a hard frown in them and an urgent look in those eyes.
“Are you hurt?”
He didn’t expect that it was going to be the first thing his father said to him after receiving a call saying that Ranboo got in a fight, but it did make him feel calmer, the feeling that his dad was more worried about him than the damages he had made.
He managed to shake his head very slightly, voice still stuck somewhere in his lungs. His dad sighed, apparently relieved. He didn’t get it, didn’t understand it, but didn’t complain anyway.
“Sir Watson, Ranboo is here because he hurted another kid.” It was the principal’s voice, he seemed annoyed, angry. “Ranboo broke his nose, with one punch.”
His father broke eye contact with him to look at the principal, disbelief all over his face. “My son wouldn’t do that.”
And this made Ranboo want to run away and hide forever. His father said with such conviction, like he truly believed Ranboo didn’t do it and he wanted it to be true, want to say that it was a misunderstanding and it was another person that did it. But that wasn’t the truth, the truth is: the perfect student and son had entered in a fight and hurted someone.
“But he did, we got it on camera, too.” There was something odd about the tone the man was using, but Ranboo couldn’t catch what was weird for him. Instead he focused on his dad and silently prayed that he wouldn’t be hated forever.
But his father stayed quiet, serious, thinking. Then he looked at Ranboo’s eyes again and the child felt like crying, he wanted to cry, wanted to scream, but the older holded his cheeks. There were no signs of anger in his eyes, confusion and concern, yes, but no anger.
“Can I talk with him for a second?” The principal said something, probably agreed, Ranboo didn’t hear. His dad stood in front of him and gave his hand to hold, said a quiet “Come on” and Ranboo let him guide out of the room, to somewhere more private.
He was put to sit in another chair, his dad kneeled in front of him again and Ranboo did his best to avoid his eyes. Embarrassment and shame were the feelings of the moment. His dad was probably busy at work and had to run just to deal with a problem kid like him, he was the worst. Ranboo really wouldn’t blame his dad if he hated him.
“Hey, kiddo.” He brushed the hair in front of Ranboo’s eyes, movement very slow and soft, to calm Ranboo down. It worked a tiny bit. “What happened?”
And that was the question, wasn’t it? Why did he do that? He had a reason, but the reason probably didn’t justify it. He knew it wouldn’t, nothing could possible lead for one to do something so stupid like that. But his dad was insistent.
“I don’t know what happened, but I know you, Boo.” His voice was low, calm. He was careful in his speech, he always did that when they needed to talk. “You wouldn’t do something like that without a reason, something happened.”
“It doesn’t make a difference.” Ranboo said more sharp than he wanted it to sound, but his dad didn’t recoil, still brushing his hair softly. He didn’t deserve it. “I was stupid.”
“Boo, look at me.” He stopped brushing Ranboo’s hair to catch the kid’s hands on his own, trying to grab the little one’s attention. It did work, even if reluctantly, Ranboo raised his eyes to stare at his father. “You are not stupid. You are kind, lovely, intelligent and, most importantly, a child. You are supposed to make mistakes, and that’s why I am not mad at you. But I also know you, I know you wouldn’t do that just because. I need to know what happened so I can help, you get it?”
And, then, suddenly it was too much. Everything was too much and Ranboo started sobbing. He didn’t understand what triggered it, but his heart was aching. His dad was not mad at him, he wasn’t hated, he wasn’t the worst. But at the same time he was sure that he was. It was confusing and tiring, he just wanted to go home and pretend this didn’t happen. But his dad held him, pulled him close in a hug and it was so warm and comfortable. It made him just cry harder, tears dropping like a river and he gasped desperate for air.
He was scared, overwhelmed and tired. He didn’t want anything bad to happen but everything was his fault so there was nothing to be done. Ranboo should face his consequences.
“Boo, I need you to breathe. Remember? Like I told you.” Yeah, he needed that his mind was getting foggy. “Do you want me to get you some water?”
“N-no! No, no… p-please, don’t go.”
There was a pause and then he felt something lifting him and placing him down from the chair. His dad held him closer now, both of them sitting on the ground, but it didn’t bother Ranboo, happy to just cover his face on his father’s shoulder. And his dad kept trying to calm him down, running one hand on his back and the other playing with his hair again. After some minutes he started breathing and counting at the same time, waiting for Ranboo to follow him.
It took another few minutes but the kid followed him, still crying and having hiccups, but doing his best. When everything got calmer, Ranboo’s mind cleared completely, even if he was still so tired.
“I-I didn’t want to hit him, I never did. Charlie always m-made jokes and, and stuff like that. I never got angry at him! Never!” He started very slowly, still hugging his dad and hiding his face. It was better this way. “But today he just… He didn’t stop, and that’s- that’s fine. I don’t really mind, but… He was being mean to my friend. He said some really, really bad stuff.”
Ranboo stopped a little bit, seeing if his dad was going to say something, finally bringing the anger he was expecting. But there was nothing. He kept feeling his hair being messed with and another hand on his back, holding him. So he took another deep breath to continue, assuming it was safe to do so.
“I told him to s-stop, but he didn’t. He said worse things and I… You, you said that if someone was being really mean to me or to someone else I should defend myself and- It was dumb, I know, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, dad.” He sniffed, feeling the tears ready to fall again. However there were no screams, there were no rude words or disappointed looks.
Instead, his dad asked. “What did he say? What was the bad stuff, Boo?”
“I… I don’t want to repeat it, but- But you only say that stuff when you want to hurt someone. I know it doesn’t explain, I know. I’m sorry, I didn’t want to do that.” He held him harder, little fingers grabbing the older’s shirt desperately. “Please, don’t be mad at me.”
“I’m not mad at you, I promise.” He kissed the kids head, but did not break the hug. Waiting for Ranboo to calm down better. “I will need to talk with your principal and see what we can do about the situation, but I am not mad. He was saying rude things to you and your friend and neither should have gone through this, Boo. If anything, I am sorry that this happened.”
That was… That was good. His father did not hate him! He did not understand how, but he would not complain. He did, however, get sad when they had to separe. His dad said that he should wait outside, that he would have to solve some things first before they head home. Ranboo knew he was being clingy but he didn’t really want to be away from him, even for a few minutes. But his dad left no room to argue and Ranboo didn’t want to push his luck, waiting outside the school right beside his father’s motorcycle.
The day was sunny, he was supposed to still be in class. His hands still had blood on them and he couldn’t stop thinking about going back home.
_________
Technoblade was pissed. Angry wasn’t enough for him, he was furious. Not at Ranboo, never at his baby. But sure as hell at that damn school and that ugly as principal who called him saying that Ranboo messed up. He knew what the school thought of them, knew they were waiting for his kid to stumble and do something minimal to make them say “I knew it”.
Techno’s family already got a reputation around the city, but when he got older and became the town’s only tattoo shop owner the spotlight fell into his head instantly. They said the most atrocious and ridiculous things possible, made up stories about his own tattoos and evicted him like he carried the plague. It never bothered him, he was taught to ignore them. But Ranboo was different, he didn’t deserve any of it.
He raised his boy to be better than him, to be kind, to be merciful. And he was, god, Ranboo was so much better than him, better than any of them. He grew up to be the most lovable child he ever met and Techno wouldn’t have changed anything, he would do it all again if given the chance. But his love for his child wasn’t enough to protect him from whatever the people viewed them to be.
Hearing his cry was painful, the way he couldn’t say a phrase without stuttering almost made the pink haired get up and take them both home. He knew exactly what happened, the “jokes” were probably going on for a while and no one made anything to stop them. He also knew that they wouldn’t, because Ranboo is his kid and they wanted to see him fall. Unfortunately, for them, Techno didn’t raise a bitch.
“Sir Watson, where is-”
“He was being bullied.” Technoblade interrupted the principal rudely, holding his anger back to not blow that up. He wanted justice, not a scene. “But you knew that already, you knew that because you saw the cameras, you know what that boy did.”
“That doesn’t justify what he did.”
“But it explains why he did it.” He held his hands into a fist, anger taking the best of him. “My son isn’t a monster, he isn’t like me or like you. He wouldn’t do that for fun, he did it for defense. Because neither you nor any other adult here tried to help him.”
“You are saying it’s my fault he broke that poor boy’s nose? Maybe your son isn’t the saint you thought he were-”
“I want the camera's film tape.” His voice was firm, cold. Techno didn’t know exactly what he was saying, but he would protect his boy till the end. “And I want you to call the parents of that boy, say that I will pay for whatever treatment he needs and give them my phone number if they want.”
“Why do you need the camera’s tape? Sir Watson, this is-”
“Two kids were being bullied in the middle of a class and the teacher didn’t do anything. I bet that some lawyer can do something with this.” For the record, he didn’t know what he was saying. He didn’t even know a layer or if it would actually work. But he would do it, for Ranboo he would do anything. “My son was raised to know how to defend himself, this is a school, he shouldn’t be defending himself in a place that should look out for him.”
“Is this a threat, sir Watson?”
“No, I wouldn’t waste my time like this. I want you to know, to understand, that I care about my kid, and trust him more than anything. He will be facing the consequences that the school gives him, what he has done wasn’t right and I’m already going to work this with him, but I will not teach Ranboo to stay quiet in situations like this.” Techno spoke very slowly, making sure to finish every sentence without hurry. He wanted the principal to listen to him. In fact, maybe he should teach Ranboo to hit harder and not hurt his hand next time, but obviously this wasn’t the right thing to say. “You take care of your school and I will take care of my son.”
He left and didn’t wait for an answer. If worse came, he would have to look for another school. But he didn’t want to think about that, not now. Ranboo was waiting for him and that was the most important thing at that moment.
And there he was, his little angel, right beside his motorcycle watching ants walking on the grass. It broke his heart to see the swollen little face, still a bit red. He was so small, Techno wanted to hide him from the world, but he couldn’t. Instead he would do something better.
“Hey, kid. What do you think about Mcdonalds for now?” The smile on his son's face was priceless.
People would always assume the worst with him. They would always scream about how he was a bad father, how he would create a monster and that his son was going to be the saddest kid in the town. And every dad he woke up and made sure that they were wrong. He was proud of his son, proud of him for raising a kid alone despite the world trying to collapse on them. But seeing his baby so happy talking about what they learned at school and eating industrialized hamburgers made everything worth it.
He was worth it.
When they finished, after Ranboo explained the entire solar system 5 times, he decided to go back to the tattoo shop. He should make sure that everyone there could handle the rest of the day without him, but the kid seemed excited just to go there. Techno knew that Ranboo liked the place, he said once that it was ‘comfy’ and Techno was quite proud of that, but seeing the kid’s eyes shining just to mention the name was cute.
The Syndicate wasn’t anything close as it was now. In the beginning it wasn’t even a place, he would go to the most secret spots in town to tattoo on people that were interested. With the help of his family he finally was able to afford a little place at first, he made it entirely his. Bought a bunch of things to decor it in his way and from then things only got better, people liked his work, trusted him, business got bigger. Now he was a crew and a lovely place to do his work.
His team loved his son and the sentiment was mutual, the kid didn’t even wait to remove the helmet before running to the front door of the shop, shouting very loudly for Niki and Sneeg.
“Little guy! You are early, did something happen?” Sneeg asked, hugging the kid tight. He heard Niki’s voice somewhere inside the shop, probably working.
“He got into a fight and won.” That wasn’t the correct way to put it, but he didn’t really care. His son beated the shit out of a mean kid that deserved it. He would be damned if he ever let Ranboo think he wasn’t in the right to defend himself.
“Really? Ranboo? Are you sure about that one?” Sneeg tried to look at the kid’s face but the boy only hid it, probably still ashamed. “That is… unexpected. But nice, I guess.”
Sneeg's confused eyes tried to make a silent question to Techno, to understand what happened, but Techno made a sign that he would tell it later. Right now he wanted to take care of Ranboo.
“Just passed by to see if you guys were going to be good if I take Ranboo home and spend the day with him, baby is tired.”
“I’m not- I’m not a baby.” Ranboo mumbled getting out of his hug with Sneeg, he had a cute pout and really tried to make an angry face but Techno could see it was all an act.
“You are my baby, you will always be.” And that was very much true.
Techno and Sneeg combined some things before he could go home without worrying too much, for his luck it was an empty day without many clients. He said that Sneeg could decline every client that insisted on doing a tattoo with him that day, he would compensate another time.
They didn’t stay much in The Syndicate, after solving the plan for the day, Techno and Ranboo finally headed home and decided to watch something together. It was between episode 5 and 6 of an old tv show that Techno decided it was a good time to have a talk, a more proper one.
Ranboo was laid down on the couch with his head on Techno’s lap, feets happily bouncing outside the soft space. He was still very awake, Techno could feel him laughing sometimes, but more importantly, he seemed more calm.
“Hey, Boo. You know you can say anything to me, right? That I will hear you.” He started carefully, hands immediately going to the dark boy’s hair to braid it. Something his father used to do when they needed to talk and a habit he could not break when Ranboo entered his life.
“Yeah?”
“You could have told me that that guy was bothering you.” It wasn’t a scolding, he wasn’t angry. He was making sure that his son trusted him, that Ranboo knew if something bad happened he should tell him. He should because he was a kid and it was Techno’s job to protect him, but how was he going to do it if he didn’t know what was happening?
“I… I know, but- it was just jokes. I thought it wasn’t that serious.”
“But they hurted you.”
“I was- I am dramatic, it wasn’t a big deal.”
“Hey, no, kid, look at me.” Techno pushed Ranboo’s shoulder very lightly just enough for the boy to see his eyes. “You are not dramatic, if something is bothering you there must be a reason for it. You can’t brush your feelings like that, Boo. They are valid.”
Kids didn’t know what they were doing, they were emotional and the concept of abstract things did not make sense to them. Feelings didn’t make sense to them. It was always the parents job to make them understand what they were feeling and what to do with it. Now Ranboo was a very good kid, but he pushed himself down a lot. Always said that what he was feeling didn’t matter or compare himself to other kids.
Ranboo had this urge to be perfect all the time and didn’t realize he was already perfect, and this can cause a problem. Like someone being punched in the nose.
“But everyone laughs at them.” His voice sounded small, insecure. It hurts to hear.
“If everyone is laughing at a joke about you, then they aren’t laughing at the joke. They are laughing at you.” He needed to take a deep breath before continuing, letting his anger of literal children die because in the end it was what it was: mean children. “I’m sorry that it happened to you, Boo. I wish I knew about it sooner. I want to help you, I’m here to help you, alright?”
The boy nodded quietly, his eyes were full with tears again and, even if it panicked Techno a little bit, he knew deep inside that the kid was just emotional about the talk. It wasn’t easy to understand that something bad happened to you, but Technou would be there to help him get up every time.
“Is there anything that I can do to make you trust me more? I don’t want you thinking that everything is fine and not telling me if something bad happens again, you heard things you aren’t supposed to and I don’t want that, Boo. You deserve the best only.”
“‘m sorry.” He said weakly, tears already running down his big eyes and Techno hurried to push him into another hug, braid half finished. “‘m sorry, dad.”
“Hey, hey, you don’t need to apologize. I’m not mad, baby, I’m just worried. That 's all.”
“I wanted to be stronger, l-like you are.”
God, if moments like this killed, Techno would be in danger. Logically, Ranboo didn’t know the weight of what he was saying. Something like this seemed silly but it went straight to Techno’s heart, memories coming to his mind like a river. There was such a giant gap between what they viewed each other as. He wished that Ranboo could see what he sees, sometimes.
“You already are. You are so much stronger than me, too.” He held the kid’s shoulder and looked right into his eyes, he needed Ranboo to understand it. “You just don’t know it yet, but it’s the truth.”
“‘m not, you never cry.”
He laughed a little, trying to clean his son's wet cheeks. “That’s a lie, I cry a lot.”
“When?”
“Hmm, I cried a lot when I was a kid. Broke too many bones to not cry.” He said smiling at the memories of Wilbur screaming for their father after a particularly bad accident and Tommy sounding desperate by his side. He cried a lot that time. “I cried when I first saw you, so small and little. I thought I would break you, I was terrified. I cried when you had your first day at school and when you won that contest last month.”
“You cried a lot because of me.” The kid pointed, face very confused.
“Yes, because I’m proud of you. Because I love you and I care for you. So when something happens to you I get very emotional, and that’s ok.”
"That 's ok.” he copied his last words, trying to process it. And Techno let him, because being hated wasn’t easy, but being loved was harder. It’s hard to understand that someone will love you no matter what happens, Techno knew that one.
“I need you to know that if you need help, you have to call for help. That won’t make you weak, Boo, you are stronger when you have others on your side.”
Ranboo stayed quiet for a while, humming nervously. But before Techno could say something again the kid interrupted.
“Can you finish braiding my hair?”
Techno didn’t even think twice before smiling and going back to work. Ranboo’s hair wasn’t as long as his, but the kid let it grow very decently. He always made different types of braids to impress the child, but he decided to go with Ranboo’s favorite that time.
“I will tell you next time, I promise.” The little one said after some minutes in the silence. He sounded calm and sure of himself. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s ok, Boo, thank you for trusting me. Are you ok?”
“Yeah, just tired.”
“Alright, then we will sleep after this episode.”
“Dad?”
“Hm?”
“I love you.”
Technoblade had a bad reputation. His tattoos were a crazy taboo around the city, people said he was evil and could do no good. When he had his child they tried to make him feel bad, tried to frame him as this insane father that would turn his kid into a monster. Techno would have to disagree with them, there is no way that he could be this evil they so proclaimed when he raised the most pure soul he ever met. There is no way that Ranboo was his monstrous creation when the kid only showed love.
So he smiled, knowing that everyone was wrong about them and that he couldn’t be more happy with his family.
“I love you, too.” And then a pause. “Next time you should hit harder.” And Ranboo giggled.