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“How did he ever expect to fit in?”
“With the name of a piglin no less”
Techno could hear the mocking laughter of the Enderman hybrids above him, one having a boot pressing hard on his back.
The other one grabbed his hair and pulled, making him squeeze his eyes shut to avoid eye contact.
They huffed. “Might as well go live with the pigs. Look at his hair! I wonder how ruined it must be from the dye.”
They kneeled down to Techno’s level, keeping their grip on his hair.
“You thought you could waltz up to the forest and expect us to take pity on you? This is the nether. You are not one of us.”
They removed their grip on his hair, letting his head fall back to the ground. The one above him took their boot off of his back, leaving him shaking.
“Get lost, find some other strays to cry to.”
–
The rain beat down on the roof of the cabin, filling the air with humidity and making Techno’s nose burn. He felt like he needed to sneeze, but he scrunched up his face to avoid such an embarrassment. He set down his carving tools, letting the wood on his workbench rest for a while. He tried to focus on other things besides the torturous humidity, like how he definitely needed to fill up Steve’s water bowl. Gods and Deities, why did everything revolve around water? Why couldn’t the world’s creatures rely on less dangerous liquids like the superior species Techno was.
Techno churred, deep within his chest, and huffed. Then, he stood up. He might as well get it out of the way while thinking about it.
His mind wanders as he completes his task, glancing away every few seconds to add another objective to his mental checklist. He needs to dust the bookshelf, check for rust on his old blades, iron out his cape-
Techno sighed. He turned off the faucet once the water bowl was filled, carefully balancing it to not accidentally splash himself.
Before he could turn around to bring the water to its spot by Steve’s food bowl, the unmistakable sound of crunching snow could be heard from just outside his cabin door. He paused, not daring to call out or make a noise.
A pause before the door slammed open. Despite himself, Techno jumped, losing his grip on the water bowl and causing it to fall into the sink. The water splashed over the side of the sink, landing on Techno’s arms and neck, with the rest of his body thankfully covered by a waterproof material.
Techno cursed loudly, picking up a dish side towel to quickly wash off the liquid. Unfortunately, the burns had already set in. He cursed again. Then, he turned around to face his supposed intruder.
“Phil!” Techno huffed, his arms shaking from the pain. He laughs through it, though.
Immediately, Phil is by his side. “Gods and Deities, Tech, I’m so sorry! Let me patch you up mate–go sit by the fireplace.”
Unsurprisingly, that was not the first time Phil had patched Techno up after a water burn. Most of the time, it was something small–brushing his hand against snow, a small spill while cooking–something that Techno could put a bandage on and call it a day. However, with his larger burns, Phil was always there to wrap them up. Techno was grateful for it.
Out of familiarity, Techno and Phil began their song and dance. He sat on his chair by the fireplace. Phil was worried, as he always was when Techno had even the smallest of injuries. His expression was pinched. A sign that he felt guilty.
“Not the worst injury you’ve ever caused me,” Techno joked.
Back when they barely knew each other, mostly from tales and legends of the other, Techno and Phil crossed paths. Phil had called it a fateful meeting, over twenty years later. Their blades had clashed, as they had been on the opposite sides of a war, sent to fight the other to rid the armies of their strongest weapon. The battle lasted nearly a year, with only small breaks in between for the both of them to catch their breath before one of them lunged for the kill.
At the end of their battle, Phil had come out victorious. But by then, he couldn’t remember exactly why he was fighting Techno. Because that’s who he was–Technoblade, war General and the world's strongest Enderman hybrid–not a chess piece that Monarchs could use to take out the enemy. Not an attack dog, or a creature, but a sentient, ancient being.
Phil had wounded Techno severely, an arrow pierced through his shoulder and a knife buried in his side. He had carried an unconscious Technoblade across miles of land. On his journey, he spoke to a traveler who informed him of the ending of their war.
“I thought we agreed not to talk about that,” Phil sighed. He made his way to Techno and kneeled, setting his med kit to the side and opening it.
“If it’ll make you feel less guilty then I’d break that agreement.”
Phil pursed his lips and hummed, but didn’t continue talking. Instead, he got to work on Techno’s wounds. Thankfully, they weren’t deep. The most he had to do was lather on burn cream and wrap them up to avoid any infection or irritation.
“Do you mind filling Steve’s water bowl for me? It’s in the sink.”
Phil does it, no questions asked. That’s something Techno always liked about him. It led to times when Techno had to demand he “Stop, take a break,” but Phil was always work-oriented, much like Techno himself. So maybe Techno was hypocritical sometimes–so what? He had to look over his friend, even if he didn’t look over himself as much.
“There,” Phil sighs, stopping by Techno’s chair to place a hand on his head, using talons to pet through Techno’s hair. “Steve’s water is filled. It’s almost the middle of the night, you ought to rest.”
“I can stay up a bit longer if you want to stay.”
Phil smiled. He knew Techno should have slept, and rest his wounds to not irritate them further. But he knew Techno wouldn’t take no for an answer. So instead, he let himself be selfish.
“I would love to.”
Maybe they were both self-destructive. But, if anything, they had each other.
–
Not unusually, Techno felt lonely. Normally, when he was lonely, he would teleport into Phil’s cabin and demand a hug, stuck in his instincts until he could find a member of his pack. This time, however, Phil is on a mining trip. Which meant he wouldn’t have the privilege of being tucked under massive wings away from the world for hours at a time.
So Techno found the next closest thing he could for comfort–the other Enderman next door. Without so much as a warning, he teleported into Ranboo’s living room and enveloped him in a bone-crushing hug.
Ranboo yelped and laughed, staying secure in Techno’s arms. He could have easily teleported out of the grip if he wanted to. Instead, he settled into the embrace, wrapping long arms around Techno’s torso to hug him back.
“Bad day?” Ranboo asked. Techno only purred and squeezed him tighter.
Techno hated admitting he was clingy. It was seen almost as a weakness to his mind, something that could be used against him. How? He wasn’t quite sure. But now, with arms wrapped around one of his best friends, he was ready to admit how clingy he could be when his instincts demanded it.
“Hope I didn’t interrupt anythin’” Techno joked.
“Nah, nothing that can’t wait.”
They stood in each other’s embrace for another few minutes before Techno separated. Ranboo smiled and grabbed his hand.
“But now that you’re here, I’ve got something to show you!”
Techno let Ranboo lead him up the stairs, stilling as his hand was let go. Ranboo began digging through a collection of chests, shuffling through items before switching to the next chest.
“You really need to work on your organization.”
“See, that’s what all the particles say, too! But I told them I’d only do it for money.”
“You’ve got your priorities straight.”
Ranboo dug around a few more chests, mumbling under his breath as if having a short conversation with himself. He perked up after the sixth chest, reaching deep into it and pulling out his found item.
It was… a purple apple? It looked more like a weird animal organ than a fruit.
“You’re a nether-born Enderman, right?” Ranboo asked, closing the chest and moving to stand in front of Techno. He held out the fruit. “This is a chorus fruit. It only grows in the End.”
Techno hesitantly grabbed the fruit from Ranboo’s hold, tilting his head at it. “Aren’t End items banned?” Techno questioned.
“Technically, we’re just not allowed to go through the portal. I don’t have memories of the End, but I had this on me when I wandered on over here.”
Techno hummed, rotating the chorus fruit in his hand. He wasn’t fond of the strange scent coming off of it. “You want me to try this?”
Ranboo nodded, looking a bit sheepish. “I’m curious about how different Enderman hybrid types would react to the taste and you’re the only Nether hybrid I know.”
Techno thought that was fair enough. He grew up on Nether foods–mushrooms, vines, hoglin meat–anything they could forage and cook that had the nutrients to survive. He didn’t have the luxury of trying many different foods before venturing to the Overworld and he was sure End hybrids were similar in that regard, having adapted their taste for what was available in the End. It was natural for Ranboo to be curious about Techno’s opinion as a separate hybrid.
“I’ll eat this if you try something from the Nether,” Techno compromised.
“Sounds fun, it’s a deal.”
Techno shrugged and bit into the fruit. He shivered. He was thankful he was able to hold back a gag.
“Ranboo. This is disgusting.”
Ranboo laughed.
–
Techno broke through another few blocks of stone, savoring the way his pickaxe sliced through them with ease before moving on to the next. It had taken him a couple of months to fully enchant all of his items.
“This would go a lot faster if we set down a beacon,” Niki commented from a few feet away. She swung her pick, breezing through most of the mining.
“What’s a bit more time spent between pals?” Techno chuckled.
Niki laughed and kept mining, coming back to the center chests to store away valuables when her pouches became too full. They mined together for a while, using communicators to call one another once they got too far away into their separate mines.
Techno could hear Niki groan just as Techno placed a torch on his mine wall.
“What up?” He questioned, pausing his mining to bring his communicator up to his ear.
“I didn’t bring enough torches. Do you have any extra?”
Techno checked his inventory. “I’ve got 10 left. We can mine together for this last bit.”
With that, Techno made his way to Niki’s mine, catching up with her in just a few minutes. He handed her his torches and they mined together for the next few dozen blocks.
When they ran out of torches once more, Techno stopped her from leaving to retrieve more.
“Don’t bother, watch this.”
Techno laced his fingers together and pushed. A dozen tiny cracking sounds echoed through the mine, making Niki cringe at the sound. A few moments later, a bright pink glow emanated from Techno’s hands.
Niki stared, partially amazed and partially mortified.
“What the fuck?!” She exclaimed, gaping at the new light source. “How long have you been able to do that?”
“I figured it out like 30 years ago. Wish I’d found out sooner, it’s very useful.”
Techno thought back to his time in the nether, before he discovered his built-in flashlight. It was so much stronger than his natural glow, which barely illuminated his own body, let alone his surroundings.
Niki stood in shock for another minute or two and sighed. “I don’t even know why I’m surprised, honestly.”
With a laugh, they both kept mining.
–
Tommy was always a bit strange about Techno’s hybrid nature. Despite being an avian himself, he never truly understood hybrid behavior or customs. He was freaked out when Techno purred, or when he got lost in his instincts. Techno concluded that Tommy never got to learn about different hybrids and sought to fix that.
“Have you ever preened your wings?” Techno asked, flipping through a page in his book. In reality, he had stopped paying attention to the words minutes before.
“If you’re about to offer, don’t bother. I don’t use ‘em anyway.”
Now that… stung.
Tommy had been living with him for a few weeks now, coming to Techno for protection against an escaped Dream. Techno considered Tommy a member of his pack, alongside Phil, Ranboo, Wilbur, and Niki. He knew from experiences with Phil that having an avian reject your offer of preening was a rejection of your pack. But he also knew that Tommy didn’t know that.
“That’s beside the point,” Techno continued cautiously. “You’ll need to learn sometime soon. If it starts to bother you, preening incorrectly can damage them more than help them.”
Tommy huffed, curling into his blanket on the couch. He’d been hoarding blankets the last few weeks, assembling them into a very amateur nest in Techno’s living room. Techno didn’t mind all that much. He stocked blankets every winter for hibernation, he had plenty to spare.
Techno dropped the subject, going back to his book. But he couldn’t get the topic off of his mind throughout the day.
When he was alone in his room, Techno stayed up late. It might have been foolish, but he missed the nights months ago when Tommy would come in and request to sleep in his bed, so he wouldn’t be plagued by nightmares of exile. He would always comment that his pink glow at night made it easier for Tommy to sleep. Techno always let him, making room for him to snuggle up in until he woke the next morning.
He missed those times when he got to act like Tommy’s brother. Maybe selfishly, he wanted that back.
Techno watched as his clock slipped past midnight. He churred lightly and shuffled to turn off his lamp. Before he could pull blankets and fur over his shoulders, he registered the light tapping of Tommy skittering around. He came to a stop at Techno’s door.
Techno waited.
He could hear Tommy’s conflicted mumbles from behind the door. Eventually, Tommy sighed and knocked lightly at Techno’s door. It made Techno’s heart hurt that he even bothered to knock. The Tommy he knew would open his door with no hesitation and curl up beside him.
“Come in,” Techno called out softly.
Tommy’s breath hitched like he didn’t expect Techno to answer his knock. Slowly, he opened the door and stepped in. After seeing Techno’s patient expression, he came closer, climbing onto the bed and sitting with his legs crossed on top of the blankets.
“Did you want to sleep in here?” Techno asked.
Tommy shook his head. Techno waited, patient. He would wait a year if it meant Tommy would finally speak his mind around him.
“I uhm… you know earlier when you mentioned the uh…”
Techno knew what this was about.
“You know what? Nevermind, I’ll just go back to my room-”
Techno grabbed his wrist gently, preventing him from sliding off the bed. “You want me to preen your wings?”
Tommy stared at Techno’s hand on his wrist, taking in the sight of lightly glowing skin. Once more, Techno waited. He let go of Tommy’s wrist, letting him make his own decision.
Slowly, Tommy nodded. Techno gestured for Tommy to sit in front of him, which he complied with. Tommy was tense as if he expected Techno to hurt him. Techno chirred at the thought, making Tommy tense more.
“It’s alright, Theseus. If I hurt you in any way, you have my permission to hit me as hard as you can. No repercussions.”
He could tell Tommy didn’t believe him but felt him relax just the slightest.
“I’m going to need you to remove your shirt so I can get to your wings.”
Slowly, Tommy obeyed. Tommy shut his eyes tight, preparing for the worst. Instead, he felt soft fingers brush along his feathers. Against his will, he let out a strangled chirp at the feeling, shivering. Techno grinned, starting a soft purr.
Slowly, Tommy began to relax into Techno’s touch. His hands ventured along Tommy’s feathers, taking his time lifting dirt and mud from each one and aligning them to the natural flow of Tommy’s wings.
Eventually, more chirps and twitters fell out of Tommy’s mouth, making Techno smile even more. He let himself purr louder, making Tommy melt even further. Before long, Tommy was pressing into every touch, like he wanted to absorb it.
They continued like that for the next hour or two. Techno didn’t bother to pay attention to the time. He was focused on Tommy’s wings, making sure every feather gleamed when he was done with it. His instincts preened as he gazed over golden wings, illuminated by his pink glow.
It was only when Tommy dipped forward like he was about to fall asleep that Techno paused. He had been technically complete with the preenings for a quarter-hour, spending that time perfecting his work and brushing through golden feathers. Reluctantly, he let his hands drop from the feathers, earring a sad warble from Tommy’s throat.
“I know, I’m sorry. I’m all done.”
Techno lifted himself from his bed, taking Tommy’s shirt to his laundry basket to be washed later. He roamed to his closet, picking out a green nightshirt that Phil had left over who knows how long ago. Techno was positive Phil wouldn’t mind sharing his clothing for the night. Tommy needed something with holes in the back to prevent his wings from getting ruffled once more.
Techno handed the shirt to Tommy, who blinked a few times before taking the shirt from Techno’s hands.
“I can help you put it on if you need it. The back might be hard to reach.”
Tommy chirped lightly and raised the fabric high enough to slip his arms into. He then reached to his back, buttoning up the fabric below and above the start of his wings. Techno smiled, proud of him.
“That should be good for the night, then.”
Luckily for Techno, Tommy didn’t protest when he laid a hand on Tommy’s shoulder, slowly bringing him into Techno’s hold. Techno raised the blankets to their shoulders, taking extra caution not to jostle Tommy’s wings as he did.
“Goodnigh’ Techno,” Tommy whispered, cooing softly as Techno brushed his fingers through golden hair.
“Goodnight, Theseus.”