"D-dad?"

The young blond didn't have time enough to get out anything else before he was being wrapped up in a second set of strong arms. The force of the embrace was enough to knock the wind out of him if the sharp gasp of breath was anything to go by.

Stepping back from his sons Philza couldn't help the instinctual concern at seeing his eldest keeping such a firm hold on the other. Techno wasn't one for physical contact so to have it over a prolonged period of time generally meant something wasn't right. Even the more wholesome interactions were timed when they'd been younger.

It didn't take much for Phil to get an idea of what was wrong though. Not accounting for the scare of his life that his middle child had given him just earlier. A rushed babble of kidnapping, choking and Tommy being unconscious. Though his youngest was awake he still looked like he'd been through hell and was still recovering from the whiplash from the journey.

Tommy was pale, more so than normal, and looked like he had most of his weight on Techno. His eldest son was currently hugging Tommy to his chest to keep him upright, though the younger didn't seem exactly happy about it. The red around the others eyes told Phil that tears had been recently shed and it only made his heart ache at the thought.

Tommy's legs were also shaking a fair deal even with limited weight on them. His hands trembled as he loosely held onto a cup, presumably water considering the signs of dehydration the youngest was already exhibiting.

The scattered feathers on the ground didn't go unnoticed either, but Tommy currently had his wings pulled in tightly on his back. Or, at least tightly enough that Philza was having a harder time glancing over them.

With a concerned parental chirp Philza stepped closer once more, placing a hand on Tommy's cheek as he tried to look into his youngest child's eyes.

"Are you alright? Are you hurt?" He asked for starters.

While he was sure he'd get a full run down from Techno shortly he still asked Tommy first. Even if he was sure he'd be given a non-committal answer or a played down one, he still wanted to hear it.

"Its-"

"He needs to sit down first." Techno cut Tommy off quickly as looked into his father's eyes.

The worry he openly showed was enough for Phil to nod along, ignoring the indignant huff and bitter words from Tommy about being interrupted.

"I'm right here you know. And I'm perfectly fine as I am." Tommy was trying to state even as Techno began moving him towards the tree trunk for further support.

"You're using me to stand up right now, Tommy." The other stated with a worried frown, though the younger just rolled his eyes.

"It wont do any harm to take an extra breather, Toms." Phil pipped in as he moved to Tommy's other side to further help.

It wasn't needed, but it at least seemed to take the edge off of Tommy. In fact, his son leaned into him a good deal at the contact. A silent ask for another hug most likely, which the man was quick to oblige. In the end he was the one helping Tommy mostly to actually sink beside the tree, Techno standing to the side and crossing his arms.

"Do you need more water?" Phil asked as he took note of the mostly empty cup.

Tommy looked at it as if debating it, but before he could find his own answer said item was being plucked from his hands by the elder sibling.

"I'll be right back." Techno stated, heading back to the house that, even from a distance Philza could see had been broken into.

A snap of heat rose his chest at the sight of it. The urge to burn it down swelling quickly before being forcefully doused.

Time and place.

The building might still have use for them in figuring out what this mess was all about after all. But, more importantly care for Tommy came first.

In the moments that Philza had his eyes off of Tommy the younger had leaned his head back against the tree, eyes closed as he took in an uneven breath. The sound was enough to make Philza's instinct sharpen, urging him to check the other over inch by inch for harm. To pull the other close and investigate his throat and neck specifically.

Tommy had grown up with issues breathing and the smallest sound of a wheeze was enough to cause Phil to slightly panic even at this age. Especially since Wilbur had stated-

Oh. Right. Wilbur.

Philza cleared his throat as he leaned forwards enough to brush the damp hair from Tommy's face.

"Hey, mate. I'm going to set something up real quick, okay?" He asked softly, pausing to make sure Tommy was listening as he seemed….kind of out of it, "I'll be in eyesight. I promise. Wont take more then a minute."

Even before he finished speaking Tommy had lifted a lazy hand up to wave him off.

" 's fine, dad. I'm not a child. I can- can make it on my own a minute."

While that stammer hadn't been missed Phil was at least assured his youngest was lucid enough to properly respond. He nodded in turn before realizing the other still had his eyes closed.

"Okay. Just, sit tight."

Tommy nodded and Phil paused for another moment or so before actually standing up. He'd be quick, as he'd promised. It was a simple enough task after all.

Digging into his inventory Phil pulled out a few 'emergency' building block he generally kept on hand. Honestly mostly for exactly what he was doing now. With a few simple clay blocks he made a shelter just big enough for one or two people to sit in. Placing down a bit of carpeting so sitting on it wouldn't be painful.

"Its all set Wil-" Phil had started to call out, knowing his third child would be nearby.

Before he finished speaking said son burst into visibility with a sharp panting as he leaned onto the wall and held his chest. Phil knew those signs and looked at his middle child with a stern frown.

"Wilbur, what have I told you about-"

"Well what took you so long to build it!" Wilbur wheezed out with frustration as he threw his father a strongly displeased look of his own.

"I was checking on Tommy first of course. After you gave me a heart attack." Phil replied as he crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes.

He wasn't mad at Wilbur for his reaction as he could understand it. But still, being worried was no reason to overextend using his abilities in broad daylight and risking his own health.

" Me? Give you a heart attack? You didn't even see what he looked like! I thought he had died!" Wilbur burst out, motioning a hand in Tommy's direction.

There was a slight sizzling noise as Wilbur let out a hiss of pain drawing his hand back in from the sunlight. His gesturing having his fingertips dip just past the safety of the shadows he currently was taking refuge in.

However, Philza's attention was snapped back to Tommy at Wilbur's words, eyes once more traveling over his youngest. Tommy had tensed up as well, a grimace on his face at his other brother's description. From the further paling, apparently it was still possible, of Tommy's face Phil dreaded considering that it was either very true or had felt close enough to it. Both options making his blood chill and his heart ache further.

Swiftly Phil moved to kneel beside Tommy, one hand going to once more cup his cheek while the other moved to take one of his hands. While he wanted to give assurance to his son that he was okay Phil also aimed to take his pulse as subtly as possible. The hand on Tommy's face was light as Phil gently wiped at the still visible tear tracks with his thumb.

"Can you tell me what happened, mate?" Phil asked in a softer voice than before, watching his sons expression for any sign that he was being overwhelmed or, more likely, was going to pass out.

Tommy shifted awkwardly, trying to push himself further upright while avoiding eye contact with his father. It didn't exactly make Phil feel at ease with what he was about to hear.

"Please, Toms. I'm not going to be mad at you. I just, I need to know." Phil tried to encourage, which at least seemed to cause some of the tension on Tommy's face to lessen.

"Why are there so many feathers here? Did you lose more feathers?!" Wilbur broke in as he seemed to now realize what lay their feet as he attempted to sit down in his shaded box.

"What do you mean 'lose more feathers'?" Phil asked quickly, his head snapping to his older child, to the ground and then back to Tommy, "What is he talking about, Tommy?"

His youngest child's wings flinched before being drawn in tighter to himself. He opened his mouth briefly to speak before closing it sharply again as he swallowed some kind of noise in his throat.

"Tommy-"

"When I got there there was a bunch of them all over the floor. I could see where they were pulled from-" Wilbur was quick to inform as his brother lagged in doing so.

"Shut up, Wilbur." Tommy finally snapped, though his voice was coated more in anxiety than anger, "Its fine. Its not that bad."

" 'Not that bad'? Tommy, its practically a bald spot-" Wilbur shouted back, once more gesturing wildly in his direction enough to get a second burn from the sun.

"Show me. Now." Phil demanded, cutting Wilbur off as he pinned Tommy with a stern look.

"But, dad-"

"Not a request." Phil pressed as he already placing his hands on Tommy's shoulders to turn him around himself.

"Dad-" Tommy tried to protest again, struggling in his father's grip a bit.

"Just let him see, Toms. He needs to." Wilbur added in from the side.

"I'm serious, Tommy. This isn't a joke."

"I know but-"

"I'm not asking. Show me where-"

"Can we not do this out here?!" Tommy shouted, his voice cracking with a distressed chirp at the end even as he tried to bury down.

It was enough to give Phil pause, hand on one of Tommy's wings and just moments from pulling it open to inspect it. He could feel the shuddering of his son under his hand and it wasn't from the heat or from pain.

He looked to Wilbur, who matched his concerned look but gave no indication of knowing what was going on. Eyes going back to his youngest Phil ran as soothing of a hand as he could over Tommy's wing, letting him know he wasn't going to pull it open as initially planned.

"Okay. Okay, Toms. We won't do this here. We'll take you home. Okay?" Phil assured in a far softer tone than the one he'd just been using.

Tommy didn't reply, but nodded his head as he continued to shake. His arms were pulled up to his chest defensively as he hugged himself and worked to refocus his breathing.

Drawing closer Phil pulled Tommy into a light hug, wrapping his own wings around the other. Tommy shuddered a moment before shifting enough to lean into the embrace, his breath hitching as he buried his face into his father's shoulder.

"is he okay?"

Phil turned his head to see his eldest son had returned. He was standing beside Wilbur's shadow haven, speaking in low tones while watching Tommy and Phil with worry on his face. The refilled water cup was in his hands, but he seemed hesitant to approach.

While the question had been directed at Wilbur it was Phil who answered it with a soft sigh and a small nod of his head. He didn't know the extent of the damage done to his child, and the boy was clearly upset, but Phil didn't think he was in an exactly dangerous place. If the injuries were serious Techno would already know, Phil being aware of how thorough the Piglin hybrid could be when it came to his siblings being hurt. As for the upset...they would figure that out.

"We should get him home." Phil stated with a soft tone as he ran a hand through Tommy's hair, "Sooner we get there the sooner we can get this all taken care of."

Xx-xx-xx

Tommy had insisted on walking, of course. Wilbur wasn't surprised. Even on days where Tommy was in a good mood or mental state the boy was stubbornly independent. Affectionate as he could be he still would fight tooth and nail to maintain his 'strong man' persona, even if few people believed it.

Their father, of course, had put a fight against it seeing as Tommy was literally still shaking as he stood up. Techno likewise put in more then a few words on the danger of walking in his condition, but Tommy didn't seem to care. Had the sunlight not been so damn bright and strong Wilbur would have risked a burn or two to lift the other up and just carry him home himself. But no. Instead, after being forced to drink a whole cup of water, Phil relented and allowed the other to walk beside him.

At least this way Phil could use his wings to shield Tommy from the sun and catch him if, or when, he fell.

Which was exactly what happened.

Wilbur had been following along beside them, invisible of course, but watching. He'd looked away for all of a moment as Techno mentioned going back to the house to grab his things, having apparently forgotten them until that moment.

A shout from their father had caused both siblings to look at the man, and subsequently at their now mostly unconscious brother. The young blond had dropped against the older man and was blearily looking around in a daze even as their father tried to bring him back around with a careful slap to his cheek.

"I told him walking was a bad idea. He's probably got heatstroke or something." Techno sighed as he knelt beside his father and younger brother.

Techno's brow was knitted to the point of almost fusing together. His worry was clear and obviously growing as a concerned chuff huffed out of him. Tommy had always been sensitive to the heat even when in good health and not stressed. No doubt the eldest Craft sibling was already recalling the various times their brother had fallen ill from overly warm summers and not enough water.

"I thought he might at least reach the house." Their father muttered with some guilt before a few choice curse words slipped out.

"We're almost there. I'll carry him the rest of the way." Techno stated instead of offered.

He was moving to pick Tommy up before their father could even get another word in.

"There are ice packs in the freezer. The usual spot." Wilbur informed his brother, almost startling the man who had clearly no idea that Wil had been standing that close as he was still invisible.

"You guys got that ice house built?" Techno asked as he carefully situated Tommy in his arms, keeping the position of the others wings in mind.

"No. We never got around to it." Their father replied, once more with a disappointed edge to his voice, "Winter lasted longer then normal so we put it off."

"He can stay in my room. Its colder this time of year so it should help." Wilbur offered quickly, "The door should be unlocked, but if it isn't then there's a spare key behind the name plate on the wall."

Techno nodded as he started off towards the Craft house once more, a bit faster then they were moving the first time.

"I'll go get your stuff, Tech." Wilbur offered, hoping to put some ease into his brother.

He knew Techno and Phil would have Tommy well looked after. As much as he wanted to be there as well, he knew how important those items were and how dangerous they could be in the wrong hands. Besides…he was sure his brother had left at least one person in that house alive.

Surely he should…check on them.