Day: 13
Life Count: 140
Technoblade:
He felt safe.
He watched as Purpled neatly swung his sword, cutting off a straw dummy's head with excellent precision. The blond haired boy looked over at him, grinning and breathing heavily, dummy heads laying around him. Techno felt his own face twitch, a small smile growing on his face as he felt a rush of pride at how much the boy had learned.
"How was that?" Purpled bounded over to where the pink haired man sat under a shaded tree. "I kept my stance tighter this time, like you said, and it felt better overall."
"That was great kid." Techno handed the blond boy a glass of water and his purple hoodie, and he took them gratefully. "Your form looked good. Those dummies didn't stand a chance."
Purpled smiled, looking so happy in that one second that it made Techno's heart soar as he stood up. The blond boy slid the taller man's arm over his shoulder, supporting him as they limped slowly back to the cabin. The smell of warm bread and baked potatoes greeted them as Purpled pushed open the door and helped Techno inside.
"Was someone here?" Purpled asked as he pulled open an oven door and peaked inside to see the warm loaf of bread. "I don't think I was cooking anything, right?"
"Oh, that was me." Techno shrugged nonchalantly as he pulled out a perfectly brown potato and bit into it with a sigh of satisfaction. "I baked some things before you woke up this morning. I figured you'd be hungry."
"Thanks, Techno." Purpled didn't even try to slice a piece of bread, he just tore off a hunk and popped it into his mouth. "This is good. I didn't know you could cook."
"Well, with my family, I was kind of forced to do the cooking, or we would be eating burnt lumps of charcoal." Techno laughed a bit as he sat down on a wooden stood next to the fire, staring mesmerized by the flickering flames. "It was either me cook or eat Tommy's horrible burnt food. It was horrible."
Techno shivered at the memory and Purpled laughed as he sat down next to the pink haired man. The blond boy had a happy smile on his face as he munched on the bread, letting out little tired sigh as he leaned back.
"Techno?" The boy asked tentatively as the man turned towards Purpled, a soft smile on his face. "Can I braid your hair?"
"Yeah, sure kid." Techno felt a warmth spread through him as the boy lightly ran his fingers through his long pink hair, untangling it before starting to weave the braid.
The feel of someone's hands through his hair brought back memories of Tommy, just lightly talking to Techno as he braided his brother's hair. He would talk about his day, grumble about Dream, or laugh over something funny that Tubbo had done, with such a happy smile on his face. Phil would be in the living room, sitting across from him, working on some project, like those wings he was building. Wilbur would be curled up in a chair by the fireplace, his nose in a book, his glasses almost falling off his nose, peacefully reading.
That was when his family had been happy.
He missed the feeling of someone braiding his hair, of Tommy talking in his ear, making him laugh as he ranted about Dream. He missed how Wilbur would smile as Techno was found curled up with one of the brown haired man's books. Wilbur would always let him read his books though, but he'd always question why Techno had stayed up so late reading. He remembered how he'd spent days with Phil in his small workshop, watching as his father welded little bits of metal and shards of glass into a charm.
He still wore the charm.
He reached down to his neckline, relief rushing through him as he felt his fingers brush a leather cord. He pulled out the small black and white pendant that was hung around his neck, the imbedded glass sparkling as it caught the firelight. The two sides, the dark and the light hung suspended from the chain, a reminder of what Phil had told him many years ago.
'It's a yin-yang symbol. It means balance, the two sides of the dark and light always complimenting each other. In the dark, there is a speck of white, and same for the light side.' Phil had smiled at him as Techno took the charm wonderingly, threading it onto a chain around his neck. 'I made it for you to always to remember to keep both sides in your heart, to be the perfect balance of good and evil.'
He'd lost the charm many times before, but it had always managed to come back to him, settling right below his collarbone. No one else had ever seen it, the necklace was always tucked beneath layers of fabric, and he'd always hidden it from Wilbur. Techno didn't want to give his brother another reason to think that he was Phil's favorite.
"Done!" Purpled's happy voice echoed from behind him as he laid the long braid over Techno's shoulder, letting him see the boy's neat handywork. "I added a flower."
There was indeed a large lily at the base of the braid, it's pink blossom almost matching the color of Techno's hair. Purpled smiled as a grin broke out on the older man's face as he lifted the flower to his eyes, sniffing it slightly.
"Thanks, kid." Techno closed his eyes and breathed in the sweet scent of the flower. "Did you know I liked lilies?"
"No, I just thought it would match your hair." Purpled looked pleased as Techno gently placed the flower in a glass of water, watching as it's pink flowers perked up when the long haired man put the jar in a pool of sunlight. "I didn't know you liked flowers."
"I guess I never tell much about myself." Techno tucked a few strands of hair that had escaped his braid. "People just assume I'm some scary anarchist who likes death."
"You are a lot less scary than I thought." Purpled admitted, and the pink haired man smiled. "Though I'm going to be honest, you do still look pretty terrifying."
Techno just grinned ruefully as he curled up on the makeshift cot by the fire, letting the warmth seep into his bones. The good food in his stomach, and the absence of pain from his wounds made his eyes start to close and his body heavy and sleepy. Through half closed eyelids, he saw Purpled checking his bandages, a small smile on his face as the boy brushed the top of Techno's head lightly.
"G'night Techno."
Darkness overtook him.
~
Tubbo was worried.
Tommy was laying on the ground next to him, shivering in the slightly bitter breeze that had been growing since they arrived in the game. Every time Tubbo tried to wrap his arms around the freezing boy, Tommy had pushed him away, whimpering in pain. He still wore that stupid sweatshirt that he hadn't taken off since he 'talked' with Wilbur, and it had grown ripped and bloodstained by injures that Tommy hadn't talked about. Actually, Tommy hadn't talked for several days now, just staying quiet and not even uttering a sound.
It was alarming.
Tubbo sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation as Tommy shivered again. He reached up and pulled his own forest green hoodie off his head, draping it over his best friend. Tommy murmured something and curled into the warm sweatshirt, soaking in what was left of Tubbo's body heat. He gave a little whimper of pain as he pulled his knees to his chest and wrapped the hoodie tighter around him.
"Aww, man. You're so clingy." Tubbo whispered fondly as Tommy let out a little huff, allowing shorter boy to gently stroke his best friend's hair soothingly.
Someone pushed open the tent flap, and Tubbo instantly went for his sword, bringing up the blade to point it at the intruder's neck. He tucked Tommy closer to his body as he warningly touched the sharp sword to the person's throat, close enough to break skin.
"Hey, mate! Lower the sword!"
"Phil?"
Tubbo lowered his shimmering blade slowly from the blond man's neck, looking slightly ashamed of the thin red line on his throat. Phil ignored the wound and knelt beside the blond boy, brushing his hair out of his son's face. Tubbo smiled sadly at how close they were, but a bond like that in the middle of this horrible game was not good at all. It just added to the list of people you cared about, and all the people you could lose, all the people who could die.
"I know. I got unfortunate having all of my sons in this game." Phil brushed his thumb across Tommy's forehead, moving some stray blond hair from his closed eyes.
"Philza Minecraft please tell me you can't read minds." Tubbo laughed at Phil's confused expression. "You, just- you... never mind."
"Do you know when he's going to wake up?" Phil asked as he looked back at his son. "He's been sleeping for quite a bit, and I wanted to talk to him."
"I actually don't." Tubbo glanced down at his best friend's sleeping form curled around the dark green sweatshirt. "He just came here and passed out and hasn't woken up yet. I'm kind of getting worried about him."
"Me too." Phil ruffled his blond hair and wrapped his arms around himself. "Have you tried taking off his hoodie yet? He's been wearing that thing for days."
"Yeah, but every time, he looks like he's in so much pain. It's like it physically hurts him, and I don't want to do that to him." Tubbo looked at his best friend curled on the ground. "But I'm so worried for him. He hasn't spoken to me in days."
"I haven't heard him say a word since he got back from patrol with Wilbur after the battle." Phil rubbed warmth into his arms, the fabric of his long coat thin, not apt for the cold breeze. "He's not really one to stay silent so yes, it is slightly worrying."
Next to them, Tommy blearily blinked his eyes open, the blue dull and his gaze fractured as he met Tubbo's eyes. Phil's face broke into a grin as he looked down at his son as he ran his hands through his curly blond hair. Tommy looked up at his father, and he curled in on himself, fear growing in his lifeless eyes.
"T-Tommy?" Phil peered at the blond boy as he backed away slightly, giving a little hiss of pain as his back hit the stiff tent wall. "How... how are you feeling?"
Tommy didn't say anything, just looked around the tent, terrified eyes meeting Tubbo's as the blond boy's gaze met his best friend's.
"Tommy, are you all right?" Tubbo asked, his eyebrows furrowing in concern as his friend backed away from him. "Tommy? What's wrong?"
Tommy just shook his head, his broken eyes widening in terror as he kept shaking his head. Tubbo glanced over at Phil, confusion in his eyes at he met the blond man's gaze, his light eyes gaze worried. Tommy didn't say anything as he just stared at his father and best friend, his blue orbs wide, hands shaking as he pushed himself to his feet.
"Tommy?" Tubbo's voice shook as he tried to reach for his friend, but the blond boy slapped his hand away, looking terrified. "Tommy, please... talk to me!"
The blond boy pushed himself to his feet, giving a grunt of pain from behind sealed lips as he stood shaking like a leaf in the wind. Tubbo tried to grab Tommy's sweatshirt before he ran out, but he was too late as his best friend pushed the tent flap open, stumbling outside.
"Tommy!" Tubbo cried, running after the blond boy and tripping over his discarded sword, his knees hitting the dirt as he stared at Tommy's retreating figure. "Tommy, come back!"
Phil was beside him, offering him a hand back up to his feet, but Tubbo just wrapped his arms around himself. He stared at the blond head weaving through the trees, then disappearing into the dark forest. Something was wrong with Tommy, something that his best friend wasn't, or was just unable to tell him.
"I don't know what's wrong, but I hope we can sort him out eventually." Phil murmured from beside him, and Tubbo just stared after his friend. "This isn't the Tommy I know."
This wasn't the Tommy that came into this game as his usual happy, rambunctious, and overenthusiastic self. This was a Tommy that looked so scared as he'd gazed back at his best friend, that raw fear in his eyes making the brown haired man nervous. Tubbo let out a scream, angrily slamming his fists into the dirt beneath him, tears starting to pour down his face.
"TOMMY!"