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This was abnormal. Though being a paranoid person by nature, this experience didn't help it. He huffed as he jumped across buildings, even his brother thought this was weird. Siren never thought anything was weird.
“You’re gonna be closing in, Blade. Stay safe.”
He chuckled deeply. “When am I not?”
“Just be careful, mate. We don't know what's going on.”
“The Angel of Death? Worried for me? How did this happen…” The Blade’s sarcasm dripped through every word, lighting the tension in the comms.
A third voice cracked through, “Zephyrus has every right to be worried, Blade. We all are. A few days after a defeat with a villain and they are spotted on a playground around your identity's district? This can't be good.”
He was closing in now, he could see the clearing where the playground sat, he needed to make this quick. “I'll be careful, I always am. I promise to tell you all if anything goes awry. Signing out.”
The comms went silent as he landed just outside the park’s gate. Unlocking the three-foot fence, he casually strode in. As casual as a man in a pig mask could be walking on a playground at three in the morning. He could see him now, the villain was sitting on a swing set with his back towards him. He casually kicked his legs, which touched the dirt just barely, his black combat boots slowly started to get dirty from the dust he kicked up. The Blade walked up carefully, hand twitching to the enchanted weapons at his side.
Not careful enough, as his presence was detected. The villain turned around slowly, looking him up and down, and turned back to kicking the dirt below him. The Blade took notice of his enemy, the guy was not wearing his usual getup, goggles and partial gas mask adorned on his face as usual, but no green hoodie covered his curly blonde hair. Instead, he wore a baseball tee and cargo shorts.
Letting his guard down, he strode in front of his enemy and gestured to the swing next to him.
“This seat taken?”
“Free country.” Came the deep-voiced reply.
The Blade sat in the swing next to him, and the two looked out at the empty park, stars overhead glistening on a velvet sky.
The man next to him took a shaky breath, exhaling just as erratically.
“You know my identity.” Blade broke the silence.
There was a pause, then another shaky breath, “...Yeah.”
“Did you tell your team?”
“...no.”
They sat in silence again, crickets chirping from the pond a few yards to their right. It was a beautiful park, Techno had spent many nights walking through with his family in this area. Now, he wasn't sure he would feel the same, considering how the night might go.
“My identity isn't some simple thing, there’s a lot that your people could gain from that knowledge.” He ignored how the man scoffed at the words ‘your people’. He didn't care.
“I just-” the voice cracked, breaking slightly as Techno looked shocked at the villain, “I couldn't… Tell them, that is.”
“Why? You never had morals before, what's stopping you now?”
Another shaky breath, then a sudden movement next to him made The Blade reach for his swords quickly, only to stop and realize the villain wasn’t moving to attack. He was taking off his mask. He was taking off his mask. Was this some power-play? Some show of solidarity? Some way to make them even?
He realized it was neither, as the mask and goggles were thrown into the dirt in front of them. Shallow breathing followed as the two looked at the discarded items. Technoblade turned and looked down. He looked down into the face of a man, no, a boy. Techno was met with glistening blue eyes and hollow cheeks. Sat on the swing next to him was a crying boy. This kid couldn't be older than 15. His face was pale and his eyes bruised from lack of sleep. One eye was slightly darker, puffy around the nose and Techno shuddered to think it was from him.
Technoblade stopped himself, catching the small feeling of guilt. He couldn't feel sympathy for the man that killed civilians, that destroyed homes. Just because he was a kid. He still did everything that they watched him do. He still fought him and watched him help Dream take down buildings. He was just a kid.
A few gasps later, the kid choked out words, and without the voice modulator, Technoblade realized; Oh god he sounded so young-
“Sorry,” a half-hearted chuckle, “Can't fuckin’ breathe in that thing.”
“...it's alright.” He returned softly after a minute.
They remained in silence.
“Could you-” He stopped, continuing slowly with a still-young voice, “Could you tell me about them? Your family?”
“Why would I do that?”
“I'm not chipped. I swear! Besides, I could tell Dream who you are already and he would know everything I just- I want to know.”
“About what?”
“Family.”
The tension slipped from his shoulders, and his breaths evened traitorously. Even though his whole soul, every brain cell in his mind told him to never let his guard down- he remembered that this was a kid. He remembered himself, being a kid and thinking that families were just something made up- something in storybooks they told to make kids behave. He hated to let this kid betray him, but something deep in his chest just told him that the kid wouldn't.
“How old are you?”
“I… I don't know.” His breaths quickened slightly, “I don't have much to remember before Dream. I wasn't allowed to have a birthday. He let me know how long I've been with him, but I couldn't have been born there. I must remember something before the tests, and the training, and the rooms. I just…” He laughed, “I like to think, even if it was fake, that for even a fucking second… I was loved.”
Techno listened, pausing before asking the question that bothered him so much, “How long were you with Dream?”
“Ten years. I can't remember what my parents looked like, I remember a birthday cake. The only one I've ever gotten. It had a four on it. Then Dream got me. Dream told me- he told me no one wanted me. I didn't believe him, but then they had this- metal band I would wear in one of the rooms. It hurt when I tried to think about my family. So I stopped.”
“So... you never wanted to be a villain?”
He laughed, “God I sure hope not! Fucking sucks, right?”
“I wouldn't know.”
The kid looked up with a grin, Technoblade’s stomach dropped, not because it was a sinister and evil grin--because it wasn't-- but because it was the cheeky and teasing smile of a child, he spoke jokingly “Yeah it sucks man, I mean Dream’s got his nice place and tons of maids and shit, I'm sure other villains have it differently but it's a lot of stress. Dream doesn't give much room for mistakes…” His voice lowered again, “I got him mad a lot, I know I did. I’m an asshole and I'm stubborn, and I’m slow to learn my lessons. That's what Dream said.”
They were silent for a bit, then he spoke up again.
“It started out so bad, with Dream. I wasn't allowed to sleep, they didn't let me eat, they kept me in these rooms for days. If I acted out, Dream would send me to lessons.”
“-Lessons?”
“Like y'know… lessons. He’d chain me down so I couldn't run and they would-- they would--” He stopped to rub his temples with shaking hands, Technoblades hands were shaking, too. “I don't remember what happened in the Lesson Room. I remember being brought to the medical rooms after, though. That was always nice. He would leave me alone when I was in the med room.”
“They would- they would take me to these different sections and a different doctor would pay Dream to do their experiments on me. Then, they dug up my powers. I don't even know what they are, still. They never told me. They would say, ‘Zero! Lift this up without touching it!’ I did. They would be like ‘Connect with this rat, Zero.’ and I would.”
“They called you Zero?”
“That's my name, Innit?”
“I just… I figured you had a name other than the villain one.”
The kid turned to look at Techno, blue piercing eyes bearing into his mask. He smiled cheekily. Somehow, Techno knew it wasn't malicious.
“I gave myself a name, a boy name. The name of a kid. Dream told me I wasn’t allowed to have one, but I did. I’ve never told anyone, but I pretended I had this name and I pretended I was like one of the kids in the books Dream let me have.”
“What’s your name, then?”
“Tommy.”
Technoblade smiled gently, “It fits you.”
The kid beamed, and Techno melted.
Techno suddenly felt very constricted in his mask. So he took it off, unstrapping the leather buckles on the back to let the mask fall into his lap. Tommy gaped.
“You already know my identity. Why keep myself suffocated in this thing? Besides, no one else is out at this time.”
“I guess so.” Tommy sighed, and the two were silent again.
“So what are you gonna do now? You can't go back to Dream, you know that?”
He was met with silence.
Then, he watched from the corner of his eye as Tommy’s gloved hands reached up to his face, wiping away glistening tears. Oh.
“I'm not going back. I won't even-” He choked.
“What’s wrong, Tommy?”
The boy giggled at the sound of his name.
Techno knew he shouldn't, every instinct screamed at him to stop. But the back of his mind fed him memories of him crying on the couch, begging to stay. Phil’s hand reaching out to grasp his own. Comforting pats on the back. His own calloused hand rested on the back of Tommy’s.
He knew what was wrong.
The thing with his powers, the voices could tell. They could tell when it was time- when someone was going to...
“I couldn't do anything else.”
“What did you do, Tommy?”
“I don't-'' He choked out a sob, “I don't want to be a Villain anymore. I'm a terrible person and they were gonna do something so much worse. They were gonna make me do something… I- I couldn't.”
“So you…”
He spoke faster, “They were going to make me kill people, Techno. Thousands of people. I didn't want to, I've never wanted to. I took what I knew would work and I escaped. I can't stay hidden for long. They’ll find me. They always do.”
Techno looked down in horror as the boy brought out a small syringe, now empty, the purple liquid still sticking to the sides a bit. His left arm was resting in his lap, and a red dot was visible on his inner elbow.
“Tommy…” His voice was soft but reprimanding. Techno hated being soft. He hated showing vulnerability and feelings. But this was… This was all too much.
A choked gasp came from Tommy’s lips as he swayed slightly, almost falling into the dirt from the swing. Techno caught him, though, dashing out and holding the boy in his arms.
Tears were streaming from Tommy’s face now, his skin even paler than before, “Tell me-” a cough, “-Tell me about your family, Technoblade.”
Techno huffed, helping the boy up and walking towards the edge of the pond nearby. He sat gently in the grass amongst the wild lily flowers and cottontails. Comfortably resting the kid to lean heavily on his shoulder, Technoblade sat in the park surrounded by Cypress trees. The fresh smell of pine needles and oak bark filling his senses. It was almost enough to distract him from the boy beside him, his fluffy hair tickling under his chin. His calloused hand still wrapped around Tommy’s own chillingly cold hand.
“We used-” He ignored the way his voice cracked, “We used to come to this park. Dad and Wil and I.”
“Wil’s your younger brother?”
“We’re twins. Not really, but Phil adopted us at the same time and both our birth certificates were lost in the system. We joked about it so much that it just became common knowledge. Even the teachers at school thought it was real.”
“I didn't know you were a foster kid.”
“For a bit yeah, took a while until Phil found us. I was dead set on ageing out of the system though. I thought- no one could care about me- but Phil proved me wrong.” He laughed gently, “There were so many times where Phil could have sent me back. I tried so hard to get him to send me back. But he never gave up.”
“What did you do?”
“Caught the kitchen on fire, dyed his hair pink, threw a glass plate at Wilbur, shoplifted a few times, not proud of that one.”
Tommy chuckled, “Techno’s got an evil side.”
“He never gave up though. I was dead set on never being loved again, and I was fine with that. I hated the house at first, Phil was weird, Wilbur was always playing his music. It was too normal. Then, when I was in school, Wilbur got into a fight because some kids made fun of me. I watched it start out, and Wilbur was losing. The kids kept hitting him after he was down. Then I think that's when I realized I wouldn't mind having a brother. I beat the shit out of those kids, by the way.”
Tommy laughed again, “Good.”
“One night, Wilbur came into my room crying. I thought for sure Phil had hit him, had done something to him. I was so ready to kill someone, or grab Wilbur and book it. But that wasn't why Wil was crying. The dumbass was crying because he loved it there. He told me he loved Phil and he loved me and he didn't want to go. That's when I realized I didn't want to go either. We booked it, then. Neither of us really wanted to run away. We just were scared of getting attached and getting pulled away. So we climbed out my window and ran. Scared the shit out of Phil. He… He found us here, actually. By the pond. The man was so scared for us when he found us he was crying and shaking like a leaf. He pulled us into the biggest hug and told us to never scare him again. That's when I cried. That's when Will told him we wanted to stay.”
The kid next to him hummed.
“The next day Phil brought up adoption. I was scared but… I agreed as long as Wilbur did. That was my first Christmas with them, he brought out the final papers, and we cried. It was my first Christmas getting anything at all. It was… like a movie. One of those stories you read as a kid. I never thought that it could be real.”
There was silence for a few minutes, Techno could pretend they were just there. That the two of them, a hero with an assignment and a kid with no clue where to go, were just enjoying the night. But shallow breaths would betray them and the beeping of the communicator in his ear would tear that ideal away. Then Tommy took a breath, “D’ya think Phil would like me? Tommy, that is… not… not Zero.”
“Oh he would love you,” Techno moved to ruffle Tommy’s hair and felt the kid melt under his fingers, “Phil had a bleeding heart for kids. Especially tall and lanky babies with blonde hair.”
“I am not a baby!” He protested weakly, “I am the biggest man. I am just so tall and muscular.”
They sat there, watching under the moonlight as a duck swam across the top of the pond, lifting up her wings to reveal three ducklings, snuggled tightly up against her chest. One shivered slightly and she lowered her head to rub the little thing’s tummy, stopping the shivering. She lowered her wing again, turning to look the two boys down. She decided they were no threat to her and stayed drifting across the top.
“Phil would've given you a room, with your favourite colors. What’s your favourite animal, Tommy?”
“-cows.” He said softly.
“He would've gone to the store and gotten you a stuffed cow plushie. He would listen to what you liked, what you wanted to do, and he would get you these little things for your room that made it fit you. On your birthday, he would let you sleep in. He’d call you down softly and you'd come downstairs to a banner and-”
“And balloons?”
“Yeah, balloons.”
“What color are they?”
“Whatever color you like, Tommy.”
“Cyan. Cyan is a beautiful color.”
“Cyan balloons.” Technoblade continued, “He’d have whatever breakfast you wanted on your birthday, he made it himself. You come downstairs and Wil and I would be waiting with presents for you. You eat breakfast first, then open the first presents. Then we would do whatever you wanted for the day, no matter what. We’d come home after dinner and watch a movie. You would pick, of course, Wil would make popcorn, dad would make hot chocolate, I would bring down blankets and pillows. We would all fit on the couch, really tightly but we made it work. Will would fall asleep on you halfway through, but that's just how he is. Dad would fall asleep next, though he would deny it in the morning. We can tease him about it later.”
Tommy moved slightly, leaning more into Techno’s side. His arm lifted up, wrapping around the boy. He felt the shudders wrack his body.
There was a pause, shaking breaths growing shallower than before and somehow the smaller inhales were volumes louder than the breathing of a healthy boy, “Techno I don't-- I want to… It's not fair.” Tommy cried softly, and Techno could feel tears forming in his eyes, “I know this is for the better, I thought about this for a bit I just… I'm not ready. I don't want to die… I don't want to die. Not yet. I want to try your dad’s hot chocolate, I want to listen to Wilburs music, I want to watch movies, I-- I--” He let out a wracking cough, “Please I don't… I don't want to die Techno, not yet. I'm not ready.”
“I know, Toms.”
“It's for the better, I know. I just… I'm scared. I'm so scared, Techno. I thought I knew what I was doing… I'm-- I'm so tired Technoblade.”
“It's-” his voice cracked, “It's okay Tommy.”
A sob escaped the boy's lips, “I wanted a family, Techno.”
“You can be part of ours.”
“I can't-- I don't-- Please Techno you cant let Dream get me, he’ll use me to-- Please.”
“Shh shh Toms, It’ll be alright.”
“I just wanted a family.”
“It’ll be alright, Tommy. Dad’s gonna make you some hot chocolate when we get home.”
“With marshmallows on top?”
“With marshmallows on top.”
He felt the boy’s breathing slow, hyperventilation breaths turning calmer as the boy breathed atop his shoulder.
“Id--” he shuddered out a breath, “I'd like that.”
The hand he held was sweaty, but losing heat. Technoblade turned it and rubbed the back of the hand with his thumb, humming calming breaths through his chest, “It's gonna be alright Tommy, you can rest. I’ll be… I'll be here.”
“You better be,” he mumbled, “I hold a man to his promises, you know.”
“I know, Tommy.”
There was silence,
“I always wanted a cat.”
“What would you name it?”
A breath.
“Clementine.”
“That's a beautiful name, Tommy.”
Techno looked up at the stars, feeling the hot breath on his arm. A shooting star shot out behind some clouds, and he childishly wished for something, though he wasn't sure what. He did know it would have something to do with the boy in his arms. It would always have to be for the boy in his arms.
He didn't cry. Technoblade didn’t show weakness. The Blade never cried.
The boy next to him exhaled.
Techno could feel it vividly, the night went still. Crickets silenced their song, the water stopped rippling as the ducks lowered their heads, wind no longer gently moved their hair. For a split second, the world was silent.
He didn't take another breath.
Technoblade let tears fall into the still boy’s hair.
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