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Branzy yelped as thunder roared around him, almost slipping. For void’s sake he was a fucking idiot.
It had been raining the whole week, so the tent was damaged. There were multiple leaks and the supports were loose, Clown had asked if Branzy could repair it, and who was he to say no?
He was supposed to wait till the rain stopped or at least let up a bit but it had been hours and well…when Branzy gets fixated, he gets really fixated. So, he might’ve gotten just a teeny bit impatient, and Clown was out, so what was the worst that could happen?
Well apparently going out to the roof of the tent in the middle of a freezing, pouring, and windy storm had its ups and particularly low downs. He felt another shiver rack through his body as he grabbed his wrench.
Branzy could feel his eyes tearing up and his hands slipping as he struggled to hold on.
“Just a few more bolts left”, he muttered to himself, “Just a few more”. He was aiming for a reassuring tone, but his voice just came out shaky with a puff of cold air.
Branzy kept telling himself that he was doing this purely cause the repairs were nesscesary but he knew damn well he was just losing his mind at this point. Kids, this is what happens when you don’t take your ADHD meds!
As he finally got back into his work, Branzy felt himself losing track of his surroundings. He could finally concentrate on screwing the final bolts as the bone deep chill moved to the back of his mind.
He was forcibly tugged back to the present as he heard a voice behind him.
“Branzy Craft”
He froze in place as he heard that voice. It was a very pissed and serious Clown. Oh he was so cooked, undeniably deep fried.
He slowly turned around with a nervous smile on his face. “Heyyy Clown” he chuckled nervously, “fancy seeing you here…”
His arms were crossed, and even though his mask was obstructing his face, Branzy could feel his stare. A couple strands of his hair slipped out of his hood, already soaked, and framed the porcelain mask.
“Branzy”
Even though he was all the way down, the assassins voice seamlessly cut through the rain, getting his point across.
But what does Branzy do when he pisses off the wrong crowd? Of course, he digs a deeper hole!
“Clown, I-I’m almost do-done, come on just give me a minute”. Branzy’s voice was practically shaking as the shivering came back.
But before Clown could get Branzy down himself, the storm did the job for him.
A particularly loud lightning bolt struck nearby, scaring an already distracted Branzy Craft, leading him to let go.
He yelped as he let go and plummeted to the ground. Everything becoming a blur of grays and blues, with a blob of black and red.
He could see the ground getting closer and closer—another heart lost. But suddenly his fall was broken by gentle arms. Yet, the engineer still felt half of his health drain from the heavy fall.
“You’re actually an idiot” Clown deadpanned.
“You still caught me”, Branzy giggled as he nuzzled into Clowns arms. He was also soaked but he so much warmer than Branzy.
Branzy squeaked as the taller man immediately dropped him into the mud and walked back into the tent, leaving Branzy to scramble back and follow him inside.
“Hey!”, Branzy grumbled.
Ooh he was so getting Clown back. He immediately started thinking about some particularly colorful threats as they got inside. He could definitely rig his lights so they wouldn’t turn off or on. Or, he could make it so his—
Branzy was dumped back into the present as a full body shiver coursed through him. Now that he was inside the full consequences of his actions were dawning upon him. He hadn’t noticed how bad the cold had gotten to him, Branzy’s fingers were numb, his face was numb, and he couldn’t stop shivering. Did he get frostbite again?
The engineer felt a towel wrap around him as clown started drying him off. “For void’s sake Branzy why do you always pick the worst possible times to get projects done?”
“It wasn’t even that bad…”
Clown just sighed at that, clearly fed up with Branzy’s shenanigans. “What if I hadn’t been there to catch you?”
“What?”
“Branzy, you’re always pulling dangerous shit like this, what if I wasn’t there to catch you?”
“Then I would’ve just lost another heart. Clown if this is about the hearts-“
“It’s about you being careless, Branzy. You hate the whole regeneration process, it’s like you want it to hurt with how often you neglect your own needs.” Clown accused, taking a step back. “Why do I always look out more for you, than you?” He pleaded.
The silence that followed was filled with tension. Branzy didn’t even know what to say—what Clown wanted him to say. He had always been reckless, but all this time he thought Clown just needed his only redstoner alive and didn’t want to give up any hearts.
Branzy felt his face heat up with the thought of Clown caring so much. But, he quickly shot that way of thinking down, Clown couldn’t possibly feel that way, never for him.
At the lack of response, the assassin started walking away. Branzy panicked, and without thinking grabbed Clown’s arm. The assassin immediately froze, turning around to look at Branzy.
“I was just gonna get a change of clothes”
They both knew that wasn’t the full truth.
“Clown, look I-I just—“
“Branzy it’s fine—“
“No Clown, it’s not.” Branzy interrupted, pausing, waiting to see if the taller man would interject again. Once he remained silent, he continued, “I’m sorry-I really am, I’m just really impulsive and I tend to just jump into things like an idiot. I’m just not used to having someone there you know?” Branzy paused, looking up to Clown, he could feel his gaze, his body language all tense.
“But, you’re here, and I think you care, so I can also try to care, even if it’s really hard to.”
God, that sounded way too personal, Branzy just looked down not meeting Clowns gaze.
The jester pulled his arm from Branzy’s now limp hold and stepped closer into his space. The redstoner hadn’t noticed how cold he still was until he felt Clowns warmth. He couldn’t help but leaning into the taller man, and before he knew it he was wrapped around a warm embrace.
“I do care, Branzy”
The engineer was stunned for a second. The admission had been so…honest? It was unexpected, but Branzy couldn’t find it in him to object.
“I care about you too”
For once they both settled into a comfortable silence. Who would’ve thought Minecraft’s deadliest player could be emotionally vulnerable too? Certainly not Branzy. But the thought was comforting nonetheless.
But of course good things don’t last forever because soon Clown was pulling away. As much as Branzy wanted to tighten his hold and keep him close, he couldn’t force Clown into touch like that. Especially when he knew how particular the assassin could be when it came to it.
Clown giggled when he saw Branzy’s disappointed face. “You’ve gotta get dried up and changed Branzy, you’re soaked”
His tone was so unbelievably fond that Branzy couldn’t help the dopey smile that spread on his face.
As Clown helped him dry his hair off and got him some dry clothes Branzy couldn’t help but blush at how gentle the jester was. He was drying Branzy up so delicately, like he was precious. He couldn’t help but melt into the touch as his eyelids got heavy.
He really hadn’t noticed how tired he was until after his eyes fell shut and he startled back awake.
“Branzy just go to sleep, you’re fine”, Clown giggled.
And who was Branzy to say no?
He settled onto the bed snuggling under the warm covers, losing track of his surroundings as he settled.
What he didn’t expect was to feel the bed dip as another weight joined him. His eyes flew open in surprise as he saw Clown also settle under the covers next to him.
“You’re still shivering” Clown stated, as if it all made perfect sense.
Branzy felt himself fluster at their position, “U-uh ye-yeah!”
“But if you’re uncomfortab-“
“Nope! It’s fine, all fine!”
They both lay there at ease in the silence. Until once again Branzy’s eyelids began feeling heavy, his brain lagging behind. He didn’t even notice what he was doing until he was snug in Clown’s arms, leaning into the heat radiating off the Jester.
Almost immediately, the shivering stopped, and Branzy fully relaxed. Clown’s left hand snaked into the engineer’s hair, fingers gently massaging his scalp.
Branzy melted into the touch, leaning closer to Clown, nuzzling into the taller man’s chest.
The assassin really was cuddly, the thought brought a giggle to Branzy.
Clown paused, “What’s so funny Zy?”
“Nothin’ just didn’t think you’d be the cuddly type” Branzy replied, barely disguising his chuckles.
At that, Clown just nuzzled more into the white haired man, proving his point.
With all the warmth, and a deadly assassin cuddling against him, it didn’t take long for sleep to claim Branzy.
His last fleeting thoughts being about how he wished they could stay like this forever.
He really didn’t mind a caring ClownPierce…