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Flying is one of Techno's favourite things to do, and it's not just because it saves him the time of having to walk to the places that he'd like to go. It makes him feel free, it makes him feel like he's not just some sort of weapon that everyone else wants to try and use. It makes Techno feel something sort of like happiness, and it's been an unbelievably long time since he's actually felt happy. He soars throughout the sky, his wings flapping as they carry him to his destination, wind blowing through his feathers, ruffling his hair and making his clothes move in the breeze. It's nice up here, it's nice to not have to be able to be chained down to the ground by people who only want to use him for his strength. Techno smiles a little, closing his eyes as he flies, his wings beating as he goes, the wind cool against his face, his feathers rippling with every push of the wind. He opens his eyes a second later, glancing down at the ground below him, smiling a little at the flower field that he sees. Techno dives down, hovering above the meadow for a few seconds before he lands, his feet touching the ground. Techno breathes out, feeling his heart slowly start to still, feeling that buzz of excitement that's all throughout his body start to disappear. Being on land isn't the worst, it's not that bad. Being on the ground isn't great, but he can deal with it, because he's used to it. But being up in the sky, Techno thinks, is where he's happiest.
Techno moves forwards, walking across the meadow, careful to not step on any flowers that he sees, knowing that the God who lives here would probably kill him if he did. Of course, the God here has long since laid dormant, their eyes forever shut until the Prophet wakes them up. It's a stupid, old tale that Techno doesn't really believe, but he'd prefer to not accidentally piss a God off, flower God or not. Techno keeps moving, his hands resting in his pockets as he goes, feeling the wind continue to ruffle his hair, breezing past his feathers. He shifts a little, smiling as he folds his wings in on themselves, figuring that he doesn't need to walk around with his wings spread out. He prefers to keep them hidden, just in case anyone who happens to strongly dislike him possibly sees him. Techno looks over his shoulder, nodding to himself when he doesn't see anyone following him, nor does he hear anyone. Techno can't help but smile as he looks up ahead of him, standing still for a few moments as he watches the boy on the hill.
That boy is Tommy, and although they've had their differences, both of them are far too tired to fight anymore. Both of them are just exhausted, barely managing to survive through the night. They're both dead on their feet, they're barely even alive, and Techno sort of wishes that they weren't like that. He wishes that they had energy again, but he also knows that if they were to meet while they were at their best, they'd fight. That's always what happens, they always clash. They're like fire and water, life and death, two constant forces that simply cannot be without the other, but yet they still hate each other. It's sort of funny in the most bitter, twisted way possible. Techno thinks that it would make a good punchline, but he still can't really figure out the joke yet. Tommy still has his wings, too. Techno didn't think that he'd manage to keep them, what, with how often he caused trouble, directing threats and insults at powerful people who would kill to watch him fall from grace. And yet still, yet still he has his wings - bright and gold and red and white, beautiful as they almost glint in the sunlight. Techno remembers being jealous of Tommy's bright wings, the way that they practically shined all the time, but he thinks that he's not nearly as jealous as he had been back when they used to be children.
"Tommy," Techno calls out, keeping his voice as soft as he can, leveling his tone out to make it even. Tommy turns around, barely even flinching this time around. Techno leans back on his heels, crossing his arms against his chest as he smiles at the boy, the one whose wings are spread out, nearly spanning the entire sky. "Figured that I'd find you out here," Techno starts to move forwards, pausing for a moment to see Tommy's reaction. Tommy simply nods his head, just ever so slightly, and Techno knows that that's confirmation that he's allowed to come forwards. "How are your wings doin'? Have you been keepin' them preened?" He asks, moving up the hill, feeling the wind blow down on him even stronger than before, sighing when he has to push through it to reach the top of the hill. Tommy offers him a hand, and though Techno rolls his eyes, he still takes the boy's hand. He takes the final step up to the top of the hill, staring down below them, watching the grass and the flowers blow back and forth in the breeze. "You didn't answer the question."
"Was there ever really an answer?" Tommy asks, his snark and wit continuing to make Techno wonder how he still has his tongue intact. Techno can list off tens of people who would kill to see Tommy's voice be stripped from him, tens of people who would cut out his vocal chords in an instant. Tens of people who would want to silence him, all because he's the only one unafraid to speak up about the bad and the evil and the horrific in the world. "I've been keeping them preened, yeah," Tommy murmurs a few seconds later, his eyes exhausted. Techno isn't all that surprised when he sees the bags under Tommy's eyes, dark and purple. "Why are you really here, Technoblade?" Tommy asks him, tilting his head to the side, raising his eyebrows up to his forehead. He crosses his arms, his wings beating a few times by his side before they settle, folding back to rest behind him. "You're not just here to talk to me. What really do you want from me?"
Techno smiles at him, looking up towards the sky, watching as the clouds slowly start to pass them by. "Am I not allowed to come and talk to my l-" Techno pauses, biting down on his lip so fast that he hopes Tommy doesn't notice. "My friend," Techno corrects himself, a quiet sigh escaping his lips when he sees the look on Tommy's face, figuring that he wasn't fast enough in silencing himself. Tommy has long since been his little brother. Techno thinks that Tommy would punch him in the throat if he heard Techno actually say the words. He breathes out, closing his eyes as he tilts his head down to the ground. "I don't know," he admits, giving the boy a half shrug. "I really don't know. I thought it would be nice to see someone else again. I'm sure you can sort of understand where I'm comin' from." Tommy looks at him, his eyes narrowed sharply. It's very apparent that Tommy doesn't believe him in the slightest, and Techno isn't entirely surprised. He doesn't think that Tommy has surprised him that often, if ever. He's not unpredictable, he's just..he's simply Tommy, and that's it.
"No," Tommy answers, "I don't understand where you're coming from. We're not friends, Technoblade," Tommy tells him, harshly. "We were never friends, and we never will be," Techno watches as the boy sits down, folding his wings around himself. "We're not friends," Tommy murmurs, looking up at the sky with sad eyes and a tired face, his lips pulled down into a frown, though he looks too exhausted to maintain that expression for much longer. Techno sits down beside him, picking at a flower by his side, smiling a little when it raises it up into the sky. He reaches over, setting it gently on top of Tommy's head, watching as the boy's eyes widen. "What the fuck are you doing?"
"I figured that'd shut you the fuck up for a couple of seconds," Techno responds, a grin tugging at his lips. "Did it work?" Tommy tries his best to keep his frown, Techno can see that, he can see the other struggling to maintain his angry demeanour, but he falls a second later, grinning back at him. Techno reaches out for another flower, recognising it as a forget-me-not, breathing out sharply through his nose when he remembers that those were Wilbur's favourite flowers, back when he wasn't dead. Back when he was still alive and happy, back when they'd run through the fields together and spar and laugh and fly in the skies, teasing one another and racing each other back home. Back when Wilbur was still a good man. Back when Wilbur wasn't fucking dead. "You know, I think that it's got to be lonely out here," Techno murmurs, setting the flower behind Tommy's ear. He pauses for a second, wondering if Tommy is going to snap at him, but Tommy just continues to stare ahead with his tired eyes, his legs pulled up to his chest, his head resting on his knees, his arms wrapped around his legs. "I don't think I'd do well on my own. Not for the rest of my life, at least."
Tommy doesn't look at him, even when Techno keeps adding more and more flowers to his hair. "I guess," Tommy shrugs, reaching up to pull off a bit of a rose from behind his ear. He smiles a little, turning his head slightly to look over at Techno. "You're really just having a fucking field day with this, aren't you?" Tommy snorts, reaching up to run his hand through his hair, but he hesitates, letting his hand fall back down to his side. "Being alone kind of sucks," he agrees, closing his eyes. "Being alone when everyone else around you hates you sucks even more," Techno hums his agreement, plucking a tulip from the ground, breaking the stem in half to set the rest of the flower in Tommy's hair. "Being alive kind of fucking sucks, doesn't it? I mean," Tommy sighs. "Not in the way that I'd like to die. Not like that. Just in the way that it'd be nice to not have to be alive for a while, you know?"
"I do," Techno confirms, because he does. He knows exactly what Tommy means, he understands it entirely. There are days where he barely can get out of bed because he's realised that once he does, he actually has to live. He'd like to fall asleep for a couple of months and not wake up until his life is worth living again. But Techno supposes that he wouldn't know when life would be worth living, so he'd have to figure it out along the way. "It's not that you want to die," Techno reaches back for the ground, running his fingers over a few blades of grass, closing his eyes for a couple of seconds. "It's just that you don't want to be awake. It'd be easier to sleep all the time. Sleepin' is far easier than bein' alive." Tommy hums his agreement, setting his head back down on his knees.
"Yeah," he agrees. Techno plucks another flower, a piece of lavender, he thinks, and sets it behind Tommy's ear. "You're gonna give me, like, fucking ants or something," Tommy grins up at him, his eyes still exhausted. But if Techno looks just a little closer, he can tell that there's the slightest spark in Tommy's eyes, one that makes him look like he's actually alive again. "Bees, maybe. Why're you still going?" Tommy asks, though he doesn't make any attempt to get rid of the flowers in his head, even taking time to adjust them so the wind doesn't blow them out of his hair.
"Helps me think," Techno admits. "Sort of helps me calm down, helps me not be so.." he shrugs, twirling the grass around his finger. "I don't know. It distracts me from a lot of things. It's easier to do somethin' mundane and useless than to actually do somethin' important, 'cause there's the chance that I'll fuck it up. I don't like messin' up, believe it or not," Techno smiles, staring up at the sky. "I can stop. It's not that big of a deal to me. I don't really care," Tommy snorts, ducking his head for a couple of seconds. The flowers don't fall, at least most of them don't. "What?" Techno can't help but smile, raising his eyebrow over at the other. "What's so funny, Tommy?"
And as expected, Tommy answers, "Your face. Your face is fucking funny, that's what, bitch." Techno sighs, but he still can't wipe his smile off of his face.
"We should talk more," he says, wondering if it's a good idea. "I think it would be nice. Plus, I can properly preen your wings. You're really shit at it."
Tommy grins, leaning back, turning his head to stare at him. "Yeah?" He asks, something sort of like hope shining in his eyes. Techno wonders how Tommy of all people can still have hope after all the terrible, horrible things that have happened to him, but he thinks that it's a goddamn miracle. It's brilliant how Tommy can still survive and be happy, how he can still live. It's wonderful and amazing and it's so, so inspiring. Techno would never admit it, not even to Phil, but he thinks he looks up to Tommy in a way. To be better, to be hopeful.
To live, rather than to survive.
"Yeah," Techno confirms. He stands up, offering Tommy a hand, which the other takes. "I should get back home, Phil's probably waitin' for me. I'll see you around, flower boy." Tommy grins at him, crossing his arms against his chest, the colours in his hair so apparently obvious.
"See you around, Techno."
And Techno takes off to the skies once more, watching as Tommy's wings unfold from his back, watching as his sort of little brother does the same. They hover in the air, just looking at each other for a couple of seconds, just sort of smiling. Techno raises his hand, putting two fingers to his head and mock saluting. Tommy does the same, and that seems to break the spell between them. Techno turns away and starts to fly, listening to Tommy's wings flap from behind him.
Flying, Techno thinks, is one of his favourite things in the entire world.
But he thinks that flying pales in comparison to Tommy.
He thinks that most things do.