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Wallowing has become Tommy's new favorite hobby. Sitting pathetically in his new hide-y hole in Techno’s house. Shame was the only thing he felt. A feeling he’d never thought he would feel. It was like a sickness, eating him alive until he succumbed to his ailment.
Techno has been begrudgingly letting him stay. Granted, he more invited himself in. It’s okay, though. He stays out of their way, and he’s rarely even seen. It’s for the better. Techno’s good with hospitality. Though it only took a couple of hours of yelling and convincing, he let him stay.
A lurch in Tommy’s stomach snaps him out of his thoughts. He was hungry. Normally he’d go hunting for something, mutton, chicken, even the raw flesh of zombies if he had to. Fortunately, Techno had good food. Normally, he’d run out and grab as much as he can and keep it hidden. He often has just a pile of carrots in his little house, but today his stash was gone.
He lets out a low groan, pushing open the trapdoor above him, hunger paining him with every movement. Tommy peaks his head out, seeing the warm fireplace comforts him. Even though he rarely saw Techno’s cabin it was always nice, with dark wood and stone accents, he always felt kind of warm when he stepped out of his cave. Though his uneasiness never left him, petrified if he ran into Techno or Phil.
Tommy flops over to a large chest, opening it, he finds no carrots, or any food for that matter. He opens another. Sorting through chest after chest. Checking and rummaging through each one, growing more and more frustrated.
“Tommy,” a husky voice remarked. Tommy jumps back with a yelp, whipping himself around to see who saw him. “You’re messing up my chest,” Techno deadpanned, not necessarily angry, maybe confused. “Uh—“ Tommy stops himself, his voice is hoarse, like sandpaper was dragged across his throat. He stares at the piglin. With large tusks and broad shoulders, he’s sure he could be crushed by.
Their silence is broken but the rumble of Tommy's stomach. Techno sighs, that's when Tommy discovers that he’s shaking. Maybe due to the cold tundra, or maybe his hunger, perhaps even fear. It couldn’t be that. Tommy isn’t ever scared. Especially scared of the piglin he marveled at in Pogtopia. The brother he admired most.
Techno tosses an apple his way. There’s another pause before Tommy scarves it down. The piglin begrudgingly huffs, “C’mon.”
He tilts his head for a moment, confused. What could Techno want? He staggers forward, pushing himself upright. The blond climbs up the ladder, following his brother, acutely aware of the distance between them. Tommy finds Techno already hunched over a brewing station. He watches his brother meticulously crafting a potion.
Dread hits Tommy’s stomach— it could be a potion of weakness, or harming. Something to punish him for messing up his chests. Though Techno didn’t seem very upset? Dream is very good at hiding emotions, though. He hates being unable to read Dream's tone or body language.
He draws a sharp breath, bracing himself for the worst. Tommy waits for the hard hit of a glass bottle, or maybe Techno will force him to drink it, —like Dream did sometimes— but there is nothing.
He looks up, just a Techno hands him a bright pink potion. Regeneration. Tommy takes the bottle, downing the disgusting taste of chemicals and magic.
He feels an instant boost, like he could run a mile, even in the cold tundra.
“How did you do that?” Tommy asks, his voice much clearer.
Techno has tried teaching him potions before. Though, Tommy couldn’t sit still for more than 5 minutes— it was pointless trying to teach Tommy anything back then.
“Just a ghast tear,” he says, like it’s common knowledge.
“Well, I don’t know potions !” Tommy retorts quickly.
“Maybe if you listened —“ Techno starts but stops himself. “Would you like to learn?” he begins again, still irritated, just a little more patience.
Tommy pauses before nodding his head slightly.
“Well come ‘ere,” Techno huffs.
The two crowd around the brewing station. Techno dips the glass bottle in a cauldron filled with water. “Go make yourself useful and grab a nether wart,” he states flatly.
“I don't know where they are.”
“Go find them.”
Tommy groans. He stomps off, wandering down to the lower floor.
Climbing down, he notices the mess he made. Random items of gold and silver scattered around the floor. Whatever organized system Techno had has been ruined. Guilt pinches at him. Why wasn’t Techno upset? He should be fuming. Normally, Tommy would rush to take whatever he could find, but why would he steal? He’s been enough of a burden. Techno is even nice enough to include him in his potion brewing.
Tommy then remembers his task and starts searching through the mess. Fortunately, it wasn’t hard to find. It stood out with its small red glow. He clutched the wart in his hand, it’s soft— gross.
“Got some!” he says, peeking his head through the trapdoor, and climbing up the ladder.
“Took you long enough.”
“It’s gross,” Tommy says, ignoring Techno’s insult.
“Put the nether wart into the top vial,” Techno tells him. He does. The nether wart makes its way into the bottle of water, but nothing changes.
“It didn’t work!”
“Yes, it did. It’s an awkward potion.”
“Oh.”
“The blaze powder infuses itself with the nether wart, causing it to heat up and start a reaction,” Techno explains, “here, touch the bottle,” he continues.
Curiously, Tommy lightly taps the bottle.
“Hey! Ow!” He yelps, and quickly retracts his burnt fingers.
Techno chuckles a bit, “what kind of potion do you want?”
“Slow-falling!”
“I’m not using my phantom membranes on you,” The piglin deadpanned, only half-joking.
Tommy can’t help but be hurt, “invisibility then.”
Techno seems to notice his lack of enthusiasm, but he doesn’t say anything.
“Well, for that we need a night vision potion…” he trails off, distracted as he sorts through his inventory.
He hands Tommy a golden carrot, who immediately breaks it in half. After shuffling through a drawer or two, Techno hands him something.
“A cheese grater?”
“Grate the carrot.”
Tommy hums in acknowledgment, grating the carrot. “The vitamin A in the carrot and the gold will heat up, melt, and enhance the vitamin A and convert…”
Tommy was really only half listening, but it was nice to fill the silent void. He realized how much he missed Techno’s rants. Even if they made no sense. They were much better to listen to than Wilburs morbid monologues back in Pogtopia.
“I think that’s enough,” Techno says, placing a hand on Tommys shoulder. He jumps back with a yelp, whipping his head around to face him.
“Uh—“ Techno starts, quickly taking his hand off him.
“Sorry…” The blond murmurs, panic subsiding, his face flushed with a mix of embarrassment and anxiety.
“Let’s make the rest of the potion,” Techno said quickly, for the first time ever— Tommy hears a bit of nervousness in his voice.
“You add a fermented spider eye next, right?” Tommy stammered.
Techno seems to light up a bit, drastically different from his previous mood, but he only hums a yes.
The spider eye changes the potions from green to a light pink.
“Well runt, you just made your first potion,” Techno smiles.
Tommy nods, grabbing for the invisibility potion. He expects something warm to the touch, but oddly enough, it’s cool.
“Now go prank Phil,” Techno tells him.
Tommy laughs at that, for the first time in years, Techno made Tommy laugh.
“Yeah— thanks for the food too,” Tommy says.
Once he hears the shuffling of Phil’s footsteps, he scurries off into his hide-y hole again.
But when Tommy peeks his head out from the trapdoor, he sees a deep gray bottle sitting by him. A slow-falling potion.