A Difference - An SBI Fanfiction

The Forest

He woke in his bedroom. If you could even call it that. A wrought iron bed with a lumpy mattress rested under him, and a small chest of drawers housed his few belongings. Humble beginnings, his parents would have called it. 

At 16, Tommy was the oldest kid in town. This could mean many things, both good and bad. He was given more freedom from the work, but more of it to do. So the former did not really happen as much. But oh how glorious it was when I was able to run through the deep forests and shallow ponds. Climb the tallest trees and look out over the factory village. The place he was left.

Tommy tried not to think too much about his family, but they always found a way to creep into his mind when hes in the woods. At least in the village he had distractions, but the woods are silence beyond reason. The child had often wondered about the ominous silence of daytime. For when the sun went down, low howls escaped through the trees. Rattling him to the bone.

His Aunt Alyssa said that all the other animals were driven away from the industrial advancements of the town, never wanting to look into it further. She was a formidable woman, but was often curt and strict. Waking the boy early every morning for school, and retrieving him right on time to work in the stables and pastures. She did not share many of his features, having ashy hair and eyes, and a short and stocky frame. 

Tommy himself took more after his father, golden blond hair, blue eyes and a tall frame. His entire family were fays. Human and ancient fairy crosses, with normal size bodies and large wings. His mothers shone like the golden sunset, bringing out the brightness in her warm eyes. While his fathers were deeper than the night sky. They were opposites, night and day, destined for each other, and Tommy could see that. He missed his parents greatly, specifically his mother. He loved her so much. He loved his father as well, but he was emotionally distant. To Tommy he looked haunted, but he pushed it back into the recces of his mind. Forever deeper. 

The rusted springs sagged and creaked under his weight as he stood to his feet. His own wings unfolded and sagged limply at his sides, unused for a decade. They were a perfect white, flaked with his mothers gold at the tips. He longed for the days when he could use them, running in the fields with his father. Soaring through the air. Feeling free, feeling right. 

That had been snatched from him at the young age of 6, when his parents left him here. The same as the many times before. Only they never came back. Left Tommy in the horrible town."See you in a few days" his mother had called to him the day they vanished. Days turned into weeks, weeks into months into years. Alyssa said that they died in the forest, he refused to believe it. Tommy would wake every day, with so much hope, and sleep with even more disappointment. 

His aunt had him hide his wings, didn't say why. Just assumed she was trying to hide him from the embarrassment of their uselessness. 

Tommy sank through the Saturday morning, quickly dressing and answering his aunts calls to breakfast. Trudging his way to the pastures. The stables were his favorite, being around such animals as horses gave him energy. He admired their ability to run and run and run. Something that Tommy had thought about for many days throughout his life. But today was not a stable day. 

His Aunt Alyssa had retired the winged lifestyle years before. For a few years that never stopped him from trying to learn. Running with the birds, he would watch as they flapped their wings perfectly in harmony. Perfectly in balance. He spent hours trying to replicate their exact movements, never leaving the ground. Tommy lost hope at age 9, his childhood innocence leaving far earlier than it should have. He knew they weren't coming back. He stopped chasing the birds, he stopped waking with hope, he stopped waiting. And started working.

The day dragged by, the hot sun scorched the boys skin. He cursed himself for not picking up any covering on the way here. The only good news the blazing star provided was the time, if he hurried he would be out of here by noon. Spending rest of the day in the soothing company of the shady trees. He continued his work, bailing up the animals drinking water. Carrying the heavy pot to and from the well, and inevitably spilling most of it when the younger kids would run laps around him, leaving their own pails and shovels behind. Still, he continued the tedious work, determined to complete it and get the hell out of there. He was so grateful when the supervisor signaled for him to exit.

The wood stood before him, the eerie silence only slightly driving him away. He cut through the deep trees, his feet following the same path they had many times before. The boy freed his golden wings, he always thought he was safe here. Stopping at a old oak tree, Tommy's favorite place. But something inside him urged him to keep walking, so he did. He could always come back later, he had time to kill. 

He walked for an hour, eyes darting around. Catching everything from a broken branch to a stray orange flower poking from behind a stump. Tommy, for once in a long time, felt content.

Snap 

The boy jumped, nearly tripping into the nearby stream he had been following.

What was that? He frantically wondered, he had seen no signs of life in the past hour. He quickly decided to head back, but not before investigating the noise. What did he have to lose? 

Tommy started toward the source of the sound.

"Hello!? Is anyone there?"

The blond asked into the trees, worry and regret starting to rise. He quickly pushed it back down, he had gotten good at that. 

Tommy continued to walk, searching for any signs.

His eyes stopped short at a pair of hooves.

Training his eyes up, he made eye contact with a small fawn. Dressed in a green button up, with goat legs and hooves. Small horns peeking through fluffy hair. The boy was brunette, holding some of the orange flowers that Tommy was admiring earlier. The look of confusion and curiosity on his face could only be rivaled by only Tommy himself. 

"Hello"

The fawn started

"My names Tubbo, who are you?"