Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Phil's mind raced. Time stopped. All he could think about was his friend hurtling through the sky. Phil wouldn't be able to get there in time, nor would he be able to get something underneath him. Phil knew what they packed for this war- There was a single water bucket, and Techno had already used that.

Phil wouldn't be able to swoop in and save the day, he wouldn't be able to teleport, Techno would be a splattered mess on the ground and Phil couldn't let that happen-

Nevertheless, Phil sees Techno pull through his inventory. There was no way he'd be able to save himself, and Phil can see Techno grimace. Time starts again, speeding up, and the soldiers around Phil close in on him once again.

Techno, Techno, Techno.

Phil ducks and weaves and stabs and lops the ends off of spears as easily as he'd cut potatoes with Technoblade just a few hours previous.

Phil keeps his eyes trained on his friend, hurtling through the sky, pushing through the enemies, fighting quicker and faster but he knew he wouldn't get there in time, he knew that Techno would die and-

"Techno!"

Technoblade's hair whips in the breeze, as he looks down at the ground, looks at the person who pushed him off, and then over at Phil.

Their eyes lock, and a shock of energy runs through Phil.

Techno, Techno, Techno.

What happens next is too fast to process.

Techno turns back, and moments before he hits the ground, points his finger at it. Even from far away, Phil can see exactly what he's doing, but he's shocked when a black skull shoots from his finger into the ground, creating a rumbling explosion.

Wither skulls. Great, large wither skulls, creating the dusty and ashy explosions that Phil knew all too well, and holy hell what was happening to his friend-

Technoblade's back in the middle of the air, due to the explosion, and he points at the people who pushed him- someone in a lime-green hoodie- and as he's falling, Techno undoes his cape, red fabric fluttering to the ground- and large wings sprout from his back.

These wings weren't feathery- In fact, they were dark and decrepit, torn yet not. Black bones were their structure, the tips of the wingbones sharp. Black particles rained from them, and Techno flaps them once experimentally, before flexing them, slowing his descent.

Phil shouts.

So many emotions were running through his veins, anger, deception, nervousness sadness worried and-

Techno, Techno, Techno.

Techno looks back. Their eyes lock again. Black-void with white pupils and green-blue. And then Techno squeezes his eyes shut, and Phil can feel the guilt and internal conflict from where he was, before Techno executes a perfect very difficult manoeuvre that Phil would probably gawk at if he wasn't so goddamn preoccupied-

Technoblade's wings flap, and he's gaining height. Phil ignores the gasps around him, he ignores all of the shock, and Phil looks around, before flapping his own wings and raising, darting across the shields and people's heads with no regard to their health, only Techno, Techno, Techno-

The red cape flutters, and Phil grabs it out of someone's hand, pushing off from gods know where but the thought of his friend a constant beat in his head, Techno, Techno, Techno.

Phil hurtles through the sky after the pinkette, he tries every manoeuvre he can think of to gain speed, but Techno's too far ahead. Phil calls out across the wind, hoping his voice can carry, but Technoblade doesn't look back. "Techno!"

Techno's wings flap once, twice, gaining altitude.

Techno, Techno, Techno.

"Techno, I'm not mad, just-"

Techno's shoulders tense, and his fists clench as he swoops down, before rearing back up to gain more momentum. He says something, but it's quiet and broken and the wind tears at his voice, tearing at the words that he'd say- "Phil- Sorry- I- Sorry-"

Phil had fireworks somewhere in his inventory, he'd be able to use those to catch up, but that'd be getting his inventory open and that would take time, and Phil shouts reassurances to Techno over the wind as his wings strain, ignoring the pain in them.

Techno, Techno, Techno.

Techno looks back, and Phil almost cringes at the look of pain and heartbreak and impulse in his eyes, his heart aches and Techno flips on his back for a second, before looking away and gesturing towards Phil.

A black wither skull shoots at him. At first Phil is shocked, then angry, then a sort of understanding comes over him as he immediately dodges it due to reflexes-

But Techno knew where he was aiming. Trees fall, dust rises and the only thing Phil can get out is a broken "Mate-" as Techno turns around, shoulders shaking, and dives off once again.

By the time the dust had settled, Phil couldn't follow, his path too convoluted by trees and debris, and once he recovers, it's too late.

Techno had gone.

His only friend had gone.

Phil screams.

Coward.

Techno's thoughts were self-destructive, yet he couldn't moderate them, wingbeats in his ears sounding so much like the man he'd left behind, heartbeat sounding like the hammering of soldier's boots on a metal floor, soldiers he'd left in the middle of a war-

Coward.

His hair was whipping into his face, but all Techno could think was get away from Phil, which was a thought he'd never even fathom, because Phil was safe Phil was home Phil was going to be so incredibly disappointed in him, Phil was going to demand answers and he'd leave him-

Coward.

The rational part of his brain knew that no, that was not true, Phil wouldn't leave him, he'd sit through this but Technoblade couldn't face that. He'd face armies and gods singlehandedly yet he couldn't face a conversation with the man who'd been by his side for centuries. Pathetic.

But no matter what the rational part of his brain said- The emotions were driving, and Techno couldn't even begin to sort them out, because his wings were heavy from disuse and his vision was blurring from tears-

But what Technoblade knew was this- He knew that Phil would stop at nothing to find him.

(but Techno didn't know if he wanted to be found.)

Coward.

He didn't know whether he wanted to be found, he didn't know what he'd say, there were so, so many unknowns that he just didn't know. And he didn't want to know them. He didn't want to go back-

Coward.

And he wasn't about to go back and face them, either. He knew that Phil would be angry at him for hiding them, be sad about it, be accepting yet that kindness was something that made Techno's lungs feel too big for his body, it was something that made his chest hurt, he didn't deserve kindness, he didn't deserve Phil, he left him behind-

Coward.

Phil's suffocating kindness that he never deserved, that he'd been given ever since he met the man, he couldn't face that- He couldn't face his only friend. The emerald earring bumps against his head as if in reminder.

You did this. You did this. Coward.

And yes, he knew he was a coward, he knew that he should go back and face people, he shouldn't leave Phil to fight a war that they'd win anyway, but it was just so hard and it was on impulse, because what if Phil didn't like him anymore, what if-

An echo in his ears, a phantom noise of Phil's laugh, a lighthearted 'mate' flashes through his mind, and Technoblade falters, memories and thoughts running at a pace he couldn't even begin to fathom, simply trying to grab at the frazzled thoughts as they whirled around-

Coward.

But what was so wrong with being a coward? That's how people win things, yet Techno knows that he's already lost that battle between himself, he'd already lost the battle with himself because he was too much of a goddamn coward to face Phil.

He'd already lost Phil. And probably himself, as well. If Philza wasn't by his side, Technoblade would spiral. It had happened so many times before, that Phil had come back to a glazed-eyed Techno or him breathing too quickly, and Phil had helped him, Phil would help him, if only he could go back.

Coward.

He was a coward, among many things, yes. He was a war criminal, he was a protector, a liar, thief, he was a child and he was a person, but he was a coward. A goddamn coward. What would everyone else think, as well?

What would the commanders of the war think, that their weapon had gone?

And oh yes, Technoblade knew he was being used as a weapon, he knew that the offers of fame and glory were simply lies, and Techno would've declined if not of the nature of the war.

Coward.

His wings were getting tired, Techno's emotions a frazzled mess, and his eyes were struggling to be kept open, tears burning and chest heaving, nausea in his stomach and tiredness lining every part of his body-

Technoblade didn't even know where he was going, he didn't know how much time had passed, he didn't even care. But as his body shut down and his wings stopped working, and as Techno fell, he knew one thing.

That he wanted Phil back.

Ranboo did not expect someone to fall from the sky today.

Sure, flying cows he got all the time, but pink haired winged elves falling from the sky? No.

Ranboo had been inside reading when he saw it. A blob, in the sky, slowly becoming larger and larger as it fell. Ranboo had squinted at it. At first he thought it was a bird that got shot, but then he realised that that was way too large for a bird.

And it was hurtling down. Ranboo squints against the harsh sun, before noticing pink and red and white on the creature as it fell lower and lower. He opened the door to his backyard- Which was probably where this creature was falling- and yeah, that was not a bird.

The thing landed in his yard with barely a sound, and Ranboo's hand strayed to the sword buckled to his belt as he approached it with caution. The first thing he noticed was the long pink hair- and yeah, humanoid, but with- oh god those were wings.

Those were wings.

All thoughts rushed out of Ranboo's mind. As if on autopilot, he scooped the person up and brought them in to his house, laying them on the table, where he surveyed him more thoroughly.

Wounds scattered the surface of their skin, wings askew (don't ask him why he knew so much about wings) and tattered, a long gash down their side, and many other little signs that yeah this person was not okay. Also, he fell from the sky.

Ranboo's ear twitched, staring at the person's- he'll just call them Pinkette for now- wings. He didn't know what was running through Pinkette's mind- This town hated hybrids, and he should know, he was one.

And it hadn't been fun.

And it was for that reason that Ranboo wouldn't bring Pinkette to a hospital. Wither hybrids were especially rare, and Ranboo was pretty sure that this one had some sort of fame judging from the bloodstained sword that had hung by their side.

All these things and more ran through his head as he grabbed the bandages and the antiseptic, the needles and all the other various medications that he had lying around his house- for reasons that he was not inclined to share.

The stranger's wings were in disarray, broken and seeming like they hadn't been cared for in ages, but Ranboo knew nothing about Wither wings, so he got to work on the injuries. Stitching up the massive one, Ranboo couldn't help but notice the many scars this particular individual had.

Also present was the emerald earring hanging from his ear, glinting and glowing and sending specks of green light across the room. Ranboo had seen enough enchanted objects, but that one had no runes on it.

So all this made a pretty convincing picture- This person, whoever they were, was dangerous. And so Ranboo would take care of them.

Ranboo finished up, and sat back on his couch, opening his book again. The gentle page turning and the crackling of the fireplace made for a relaxing atmosphere.. If not for the man on his table.

A few more chapters later, and the implications of what he just did sank in. Ranboo's eyes unfocused, as he retreated further into his head.

Oh god he had just helped someone he had no clue who he was and he was dangerous and what if he was an axe murderer- actually no, sword murderer-

What had he done he'd not be sure when he woke up if he was going to attack what was going to happen-

A thud as the book falls out of Ranboo's hand and lands on the floor. He should probably pick that up. But his mind was going three thousand chunks per second and he couldn't care less about that, ah his breathing was too quick, way too quick, but-

The stranger groans, and Ranboo's head snaps up to them as they wake up. Ranboo's eyes narrowed and he had no control of them, his body was controlling everything and not his mind and was that why he couldn't breathe-

Ranboo stares into the distance. Vaguely he's aware of Pinkette getting up with a grunt and striding towards him, and when had he gotten the sword back? He needed to get his breathing under control, he couldn't do anything if he didn't-

Pinkette's eyebrows furrowed, and he crouched down in front of him, vaguely a blurry shape. "Hello?"

Technoblade hadn't expected to wake up. And honestly, he was fine with that. He didn't want to face the world.

Coward.

And he was fine with that. He was fine with not having to face anyone or anything. He didn't want to wake up. He didn't want to be here. He didn't want to be in complete disarray. Usually Phil would tell him what to do, Phil would be his structure, Phil would be his motivation to keep going, but Phil wasn't there.

Because he'd run away.

Technoblade had run away. Technoblade had run away. From his one and only person willing to support him. He'd run away from Phil, and for what- a conversation? Wings? Awe? Nothing. But he still had run away, and that was a problem.

Therefore, he did not want to face the world. Thank you for coming to his TED Talk.

But when he had woken up, it was not a pleasant surprise. The first thing he was aware of was the hard wood on his back, and the lack of the familiar weight of his sword by his side. He had slowly sat up, folding his wings back, and wincing at every movement.

As soon as he was up, he looked around, eyes immediately locking onto a tall, gangly teen, who was staring right at him. Techno's sword materialised in his hands as he slipped off of the table, striding up to the youth to demand to know things.

Why was he here, who was he, where was he and how had he gotten here and why he didn't just let Techno go-

And then boom. Clear mind. Emotions gray. It was like a switch had flipped in his brain. So many questions and so many emotions yet Techno couldn't bring himself to care. It was like his emotions had just been switched off.

Which they probably had been. Technoblade's body does this thing where it shuts down emotions and thoughts when they get too much, but when the body deemed it to be 'safe' they'd come back, usually at the most inconvenient times. He knew that that meant they'd come back at full force later.

Technoblade hated life currently. Usually his brain was going a million miles per hour, but it was almost like he'd had coffee- his brain was slowing down, head empty and that wasn't normal for him, that was so weird and it was so quiet and strange and-

That emotion was also shut down. Technoblade blinks, body relaxing as the tension drained out of it for now. He'd deal with that later. He'd also deal with the other emotion later, how he'd get out of here, where was here and-

Techno freezes, hand going limp around his sword. Where was Phil? Usually Phil would be here, laughing and noting down everything and-

Oh. Phil.

Oh gods, what had he done?

He's too dependant, he'd depended for far too long on Phil yet it was a need to have someone there to care and since Phil was gone, no, you were gone from Phil, who would help him and who would he help, who was going to laugh with him and fight and-

Phil, Phil, what had he done to him, what was he thinking and the guilt crashed down on him in waves, nearly suffocating him with it's weight and shaking him, what did Phil think of him and why had he run away, he was leaving him to fight a war, what if he died and Techno wasn't there-

Shit, why was he even here? Would Phil still accept him after he showed that- It shouldn't be such a big deal, so why was he feeling so stressed, oh god Phil where was he now would he still be alive- Why were you such a coward-

You need to stop thinking, Techno's body commands. Techno's emotion shut off once more, continuing to walk forward. He'd deal with that later.

But for now? Interrogation time.

Before he got far, though, he noticed that the kid's eyes were completely zoned out, and his chest was heaving quickly, breathing too fast. Techno's eyebrows furrowed as he noticed the dropped book and the way the kid was too still yet his hands were clenching and unclenching.

Techno kneels down, waving his hand in front of his face. "Hello?"

Chapter Text

"Hello."

And that was a deep voice that cut through the fog of his brain, and Pinkette hums, leaning back. "Hi, hello. You with me?"

Ranboo's hands curl, flexing his fingers and blinking several times, before looking around, eyes refocusing. "Ah!" Ranboo jumps back, blinking. "Who- What-"

The stranger frowns. "Hey there, uh.. Hi, uh.. You back? Did you zone out?"

Ranboo looks around his surroundings again. "Uh.. Yeah." He looks back up at the pinkette, who's wings had been folded back. "H-hello."

The stranger offers a hand hesitantly, and Ranboo shakes his head, getting up on his own. The two stand there in silence for a few seconds, awkwardly staring at the other, before-

"So why am I here?"

"Who are you and why did you fall from the sky?"

They both blurt the words out at the exact same time, and then they stare at each other, gesturing for the other to go first.

Ranboo hesitantly smiles. "Uh.. you fell out of the sky, you had wings," Pinkette immediately tensed up, hand gripping their sword tighter. "And this town does not exactly like hybrids, I know because I am one, and uh- I brought you in, because uh.. you were injured?" Ranboo squeaks out.

Pinkette frowns. "Is that all of the reasons?" He muttered under his breath.

Ranboo nods. "S-so, who are you?"

"You can call me Technoblade," Technoblade murmurs testily, sword in his hand cleaned. "You?"

"Ranboo, sir." Technoblade blinks at that. "S-sorry, nervous habit."

"That's a strange habit, not goin' to lie." Technoblade comments, tilting his head. "Can you tell me where I am?"

"You're in Nemaria, s- Technoblade." Ranboo blinks at him. "Can I ask why-"

"No." Technoblade cuts him off with a growl, already looking around for an exit. "I'm goin' to be goin' now, alright?"

Ranboo frowns, looking over Technoblade once more. He was petrified by the man, yet.. He was definitely not healed. "Uh, I- You uh-"

Technoblade stopped, turned to him with pursed lips. "I might want to what?"

"You're.. not.. healed yet." Ranboo bites his lip, avoiding eye contact. What was he doing? Why was he doing this?

That seemed to throw Technoblade off, and he raised an eyebrow. "Why should that matter?"

"B-Because you're not healed and I have no idea where you came from?" Ranboo offered. "And- It seems like you do fighting, s-so, you should probably... be.. healed.." He trails off, shrinking back.

Technoblade stares at him for a moment more, gaze cold and steely, before pressing his lips together. "Okay."

"Okay?" Ranboo blinks. He had not expected him to agree.

"Okay." Technoblade parrots back at him. "That's fair. What do you want me to pay you back?"

Ranboo tilts his head. "Nothing? I.. Why would you need to pay me anything?"

"Gotta admit, that's kinda weird." Technoblade scoffs. "But sure."

Ranboo smiles softly, not knowing what to do. "Uh.. So.."

"But as soon as I can, I'll leave." Technoblade cuts in.

Ranboo nods. "Sure, you're welcome to stay however long though."

Technoblade nods in return, looking around the house. "You uh.. You like cats?"

Ranboo raises his eyebrows. "There are two ways I could respond to this. One, perk up and continue to talk about cats for ages, or two, make a socially unacceptable dry remark about how I thought I was bad at social interaction."

That startles a laugh out of the pinkette, a surprisingly melodic sound. "Well, at least you're blunt about it."

Ranboo grins with a little chuckle. "Of course, how else would I get through society and long conversations?"

"True, true." Technoblade grins back. "So.."

"So I'll show you where the guest room is.." Ranboo starts, turning around.

Techno's grin drops. He wouldn't trust the child, but he'd bear with him for now. Techno starts to follow Ranboo.

Phil would stop at nothing to get his friend back. This he knew. He knew. So Philza Minecraft looks around his surroundings, wipes his eyes and gets to work.

He would have to find Techno, and he knew vaguely what direction he went, so Philza Minecraft got up, dusted himself off, and kept going.

Technoblade woke up to a quiet screaming. He wasn't sleeping, per se, not as much as he would in a stranger's house, but he was resting. His eyes fly open, and his hand goes to his sword, gripping it tightly. Goddamnit, this is why he never trusted anyone-

And then his senses attuned. That wasn’t some random screaming, that was Ranboo. And it wasn’t screaming so much as sobbing. And it was coming from his room.

Now the internal debate- to help or not to help? On one hand, it was none of his business and he shouldn’t care. Ranboo could be screaming and sobbing and it’s not his fault. He shouldn’t have to deal with it.

On the other hand, Ranboo had given him a place to stay while he recuperated, and also-

Mate, be kind.

And Techno jumps, whipping around with a yelp. Was that Phil? Startled, he gazes into the room.

No Phil. Must’ve been his imagination, simply missing Phil like the needy little crap he was-

Back to the subject at hand. It wasn’t his problem, so-

It’s okay to show people kindness, Phantom Phil whispers.

You know what? Techno might just help the kid. Not because he was worried or anything, but because he couldn’t sleep with the noise.

So Technoblade grabs his sword, creeps out the door and down the hallway, senses sharp and wincing at each squeak from the floor. As he gets closer to the door, his anticipation grows, as does his anxiety.

The sobbing was quiet, but he could still hear it. Techno knocks on the door, and waits. No response. So Techno opens the door, holding his sword ready. If he needed to fight, he would. But he’d prefer it didn’t come to that.

The door opens to Ranboo curled up on top of his bed- not under the sheets, literally on top of his bed- back against the wall, tail wrapped tightly around his legs, eyes wide and unseeing, small sobs slipping out of his mouth. Tears were running down his cheeks, burning the skin as they raced past.

Techno almost just walks out and closes the door, turns away and basically ignores the screaming child, but…

Something about Ranboo reminded Techno of Phil. Maybe it was their kindness, maybe it was their laugh, maybe it was the way that they worried and fussed over him- but Ranboo reminded him of Phil.

(He missed Phil.)

So Technoblade takes a deep breath, squares his shoulders, and walks further into the room.

He can head panicked mutterings from Ranboo, small, fragmented bursts of dialogue, in between the sobs.

“…don’t want to go back-“ Ranboo mutters, rocking back and forth. “Dream will take me away again. I don’t want to go back.”

Technoblade sighs, approaches the child. The child looked like him when he was younger. “Hey, Ranboo?”

Ranboo slowly raises his head, tilting it. “…don’t hurt me.” His green and red eyes were distant.

Technoblade holds back a groan. He should just leave and let Phil deal with it-

Oh.

“What do ya mean, don’t hurt me? I’m not going to hurt you unless you like, really piss me off.” Techno frowns.

Another sob. “He- I- don’t want to…” Oh god, he wasn’t helping. Ranboo’s breathing slowly becomes more erratic, quicker and more panicked.

“Hey, hey, kid calm down..” Techno tries. What did Phil do with him, what did he do when he was having a- panic attack?

Ranboo tries to breathe, but his breath gets caught in his throat, long claws digging into his skin as he clenches both of his arms, eyes darting around. “I- no- It-“

A shuddering breath. “No, n-no, you’re okay, I-“

Techno clears his throat, climbing on the bed. “Kid? Can you hear me?”

Ranboo bites his lip, shaking his head rapidly. “I- I- No, I- please-“

Technoblade narrows his eyes, before grabbing Ranboo’s hand in his own, ignoring the flinch. “Okay, you’re alright. Just follow my breathin’.”

Techno places Ranboo’s hand on his chest, mostly following instincts. “Hey, it’s okay..” Techno lowers his voice to a quieter tone, and Ranboo noticeably relaxes. “In for three… hold for two.. out for three.” These were actually his own breathing exercises that he used to do to calm himself down.

Ranboo shudders, a slow breath being forced through his lungs as he gulps for air.

“Okay, that’s good.” Technoblade encourages. “That’s good, try again.”

Ranboo tries again, a more natural breath flowing in and out as he calms down slightly. His sobs slow down, eventually stopping.

“Are you okay?” Technoblade asks, looking Ranboo in the eyes. Ranboo flinches. “Are you alright now?”

Ranboo blinks back at him, focusing. “I.. Sir- Technoblade?”

Techno wrinkles his nose. “Just call me Techno. Yeah?”

“Why.. what happened?” Ranboo tilts his head.

Technoblade sighs, avoiding eye contact once more. “You had a panic attack.”

“A what?”

Technoblade blinks, frustrated and slightly miffed. “You don’t know what a panic attack is?” How had this kid gotten this far?

“N-no?” Ranboo furrows his eyebrows.

Techno chuckles. “It’s fine. So it’s basically a state where you’re panicked, breathing harshly, so overwhelmed that you can’t function.”

“Oh.” Ranboo squints. “There’s a name for that?”

Technoblade nods, letting go of Ranboo’s hand and looking to the side. Now that he’d finished with that, he should probably like.. “Does this happen often?”

God damnit, brain.

He was not going to turn into Phil.

“Uh-“ Ranboo frowns. “I- why do you care?”

There was obvious distrust in his voice, and Techno could obviously understand that, but what he couldn’t understand was why he cared. “I’m gonna be honest here kid, I don’t really.” Some part of Techno recoiled as Ranboo wilted, so he tried to backtrack. “But- like- If I’m going to be here, then.. I kind of want sleep, so-“

Ranboo blinks owlishly. “Oh. I’m sorry, I can- I can try to like- Be quieter? Sorry I’m bothering you.”

Techno sighs, frustrated. “Kid- no, you’re not bothering me, I just- how often does this happen?”

“Couple of times each day.” Ranboo states, leaning back.

Technoblade takes a deep breath, and lets it out, steepling his fingers. “What.”

“I- it’s like- that one was like, relatively weak, it’s fine!” Ranboo protests. “It’s okay, I-“

“Bruuuuh.” Techno mutters. “That’s not good.”

Ranboo shrugs. “Eh.” Then he looks out the window. “It’s almost sunrise anyway, I should get up.”

“You- you’re a morning person?” Techno asks, surprised.

Ranboo chuckles weakly. “Oh, absolutely not. That’s just an excuse so I can get away from this conversation.”

Technoblade chuckles, reaching out a hand to ruffle Ranboo’s hair. “Relatable.”

Ranboo leans into the hand, smiling. “Alright then, I guess I should get up and make breakfast!”

“I’m going back to sleep.” Techno responds shortly. Ranboo nods, jumping up from his bed. “See you later.”

“Mhm, bye!” Ranboo waves from the door, a mood switch to energetic.

As soon as he leaves, reality sinks in for Technoblade. What had he just done? He’d- what had he done? He’d just, what, comforted someone who he barely knew? He’d initiated human contact, he’d ruffled someone’s hair, he’d basically-

Technoblade groans, dragging a hand down his face. “Oh god. I pulled a Phil.”

A pang of hurt rushes through Techno, before he sighs. Why had he comforted Ranboo? Was it because of how similar Ranboo was to him? Because of how curious he was for his backstory? What sort of hybrid was Ranboo anyway?

But maybe Technoblade was missing Phil so much that he imitated him. Yeah, it was probably that.

He supposed the kid was endearing enough. Dorky and awkward, yes, but humorous.

“Gods, what am I doing…?” He whispered.

It was time to get up, Techno supposed. It wasn’t like he’d get back to sleep.

A couple of days later, Techno was almost ready to leave. He’d been helping out Ranboo with various chores around the house, book binding (which was his job), and Ranboo was actually... pretty endearing. Techno hated to admit it, but the longer he stayed with the kid, the more he liked the guy.

Maybe it was just his companion-starved complex hitting him. Yeah, probably that. But he couldn't help but feel a sort of kindred spirit for the boy. The longer he stayed, the more he saw how messed up Ranboo's way of living was. He really didn't take care of himself.

On the final day of Techno's stay, the door rung. Ranboo spares a quick glance to Techno, before hissing to him to hide- Hybrids weren't exactly welcomed in this town. Techno does so, ducking behind a counter, still able to see the door. He raises an eyebrow and keeps a hand on his sword.

"Hello, Ranboo!" Someone chirps, a sinister undertone to their voice. "How you doing?"

Ranboo sighs, fingering the dagger strapped to his side, just underneath his shirt. It had surprised Techno the first time he'd seen the outline of the weapon against the fabric, and had definitely off-put him slightly. "Hello Quackity." Technoblade was surprised at how cold his tone was. The time that he'd been with Ranboo, Ranboo had always had an amiable touch to his voice. "What do you need?"

"Oh, we just wanted to give you an invite to something!" Quackity grins, leaning in the doorway. You'd have to be an idiot to not see how Ranboo stiffens up, every muscle in his body screaming 'get away from me'. "Be nice, my friend, invite a pal in." He purrs.

Ranboo takes a deep breath in, holds it, and lets it out, fists clenching behind his back. "Why would I do that?" His tone was now a clipped, polite words, dripping with honeyed poison. "Last time I did that, you almost killed me."

Techno double-takes at that, and it seems Quackity hesitates for a bit, before pushing his way in. Ranboo sends a quick glance over to Techno, and Techno pauses at the rage in his eyes. "Well, I'm coming in anyway."

Technoblade bites his lip. How exactly would he do this?

Ranboo follows Quackity in. "Quackity, get out of my house."

Quackity drops any pretence of kindness. "No. Twoblood." He sneers.

Technoblade tenses.

Ranboo looks away, breathes in, breathes out, then steps forward, towering over Quackity. "What did you want?" His voice was a low whisper, gravelly yet sharp.

Quackity seems unfazed, simply bringing out a water bottle. "Don't threaten me, twoblood."

Ranboo steps back, wincing as Quackity swings the water bottle out in an arc, splashing some water onto his body. Biting his lip, he stares at the now-wet carpet. Damn, he was going to have to clean that later.

"What did you want, Quackity?" Sighs Ranboo, shoulders slumping, hand still behind his back, playing with the dagger he had there. In just a few days, he'd already gotten attached to Technoblade, considering him a friend. He didn't want Technoblade to come to harm. "What did you want to invite me to?"

"The Wither Festival." Quackity replies simply, and Ranboo draws up to his full height. "Remember? It's the annual event."

Ranboo shuts his eyes, and Technoblade can see his knuckles growing white as he grips the dagger. If it were Techno, he'd already have killed him by now. "I actually had forgot. Yes. Okay. Whatever. Why is this year any different?"

"Well, my friend," Quackity hits Ranboo a little too hard and he stumbles. "This year we're going to be killing them! And as a hybrid, I assumed you wanted to know."

Ranboo's eyes fly open, and he whips out the dagger, pointing it at Quackity's throat. "Out. Now."

Quackity hesitates, but there's a fear in his eyes. "Rabid twoblood." He spits, backing up. "Using brute force."

Technoblade silently cheers Ranboo on from the sidelines, a side to the boy he'd never seen before. "Out."

The knife follows him until he closes the door, Ranboo standing tall and glaring. As soon as the door shuts, Ranboo slumps backwards, catching himself on a wall. Techno walks into view, sighing as the kid hyperventilates.

"Jesus, kid." Technoblade murmurs. "I didn't know you could-"

Ranboo gives him a sheepish grin. "Sorry about that."

"He's not very nice, is he?" Techno comments.

Ranboo shakes his head, rubbing his burn. "Nope. He- Uh- Really hates me."

"Any reason why?"

"Absolutely none."

Catching his breath, Ranboo sighs, pushing himself off of the wall. "I'll have to go to the festival in about two weeks. I'm one of the only hybrids here and they say it's a festival for us, and if we don't go they make us go."

"Quackity said somethin' bout killing off Withers." Technoblade observes.

"Yeah," Ranboo winces, rubbing his head. "That part's new. They usually don't."

"What, do they have any reason for killin' them?"

"Sport?" Ranboo shrugs. "I don't know, but uh- They keep them in cages, until like- They kill them."

Technoblade had killed his fair share of withers in his lifetime, but only because they were focused on killing them, which was fair because that's all they were taught to do. But to keep them hostage until a festival- Withers weren't meant to be kept inside. They'd go mad.

"That's.." Technoblade murmurs.

"Barbaric?" Ranboo finishes, nodding. "Yep. But I can't really- I'd get subdued like- Really easily."

"What if I helped you?" And goddamnit brain, why the hell did he say that? Technoblade, what the hell? Why would you even try to attempt that, other than the fact it's incredibly stupid to keep withers in a cell and it's literal cruelty-

"Well.."

Wait no Technoblade back out now back out before he says yes-

"I don't think it's a good idea." Ranboo mutters, tucking a lock of hair behind his ear. "There's someone who's... Pretty powerful there."

Oh. Techno blinks. "Who?"

"His name is Dream, recently came back from something pretty disgruntled." Ranboo starts, and Technoblade groans, because of course he'd be caught up in all of that. "He doesn't like me either."

Techno tilts his head, interest piqued. "Why?"

Ranboo shrugs. "I'm different." He tried to make it look like it didn't bother him, but Techno knew differently.

"And I stand up to him." Ranboo adds, scratching his neck. "So that might add to it."

Technoblade sighs. If Dream was involved then he had no choice but to also be involved. The pinkette leans back, crossing his arms. "Look kid, if Dream is there then I should probably go also."

Ranboo purses his lips, something in his eyes flashing. "Is there a reason?"

Techno hesitates. "We have... Unfinished business."

Ranboo raises his eyebrows, and says nothing.

"Soo... When's the festival?" Techno starts awkwardly. "I can both free the withers and destroy Dream."

Ranboo nods, relaxing. "It's in a week or so, Maxville Parade. About 10am." Then he pauses. "Does that mean that you're staying for a bit longer?" Ranboo hates the flash of happiness he knows is in his eyes, and winces as Technoblade looks straight into them. "Uh- Just because it'd be dangerous for you to like- go out-"

"Kid, we both know I'll be fine," Techno replies dryly. "And that you want the company."

Ranboo winces. "Damn, why you gotta call me out like that?" The two grin at each other, the tense atmosphere dissolving.

Maybe that was what they both wanted- That companionship of someone like you yet completely different in almost every way. Maybe that was the thing they both yearned for, why they enjoyed each other's company, because they'd been so starved for ages.