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When Technoblade gets angry, it’s usually a silent sort of thing.
Dragons are known for being flashy, with ear-shattering roars and bursts of fire from their throat. They’re known for being loud, for calling out across the mountains and being heard by all the towns nearby, their scream of fury echoing out into the sky. They tend to take up space and attention.
Techno’s never really been like that, though. He supposes he’s a little out of place in that regard.
He likes his silence. He likes his sleep, likes to be left alone. His anger is slow and quiet when it does come, but it never lasts long enough for it to be anything more than just annoyance. He’s never had much of a reason to be angry, really. Humans come to slay him every other month, but that’s not something to be mad about. That’s just to be expected.
Technoblade’s always expected the attempts on his life. He’s always seen them coming, always heard their fearful little heartbeats as they approach his den.
But what he didn’t expect was Tommy. A baby on his doorstep. A terrified fledgling convinced it needed to fight, needed to win.
So young. So scared. So terribly desperate.
(And yet, underneath it all, endearingly brave. He knew Techno could’ve killed him, he’s not naive enough to be unaware of that fact. And yet even with that knowledge, he still yelled at a dragon like he had a chance. Swung his sword like it meant something. Talked back with a voice that held fire.
It was admirable. Interesting.
It’s been too long since Techno’s had something truly interesting.)
Technoblade is not one to be angry. He doesn’t burn cities to the town for fun, he doesn’t seek out humans to eat as a snack. That’s too much effort. Not to mention unnecessary.
But this-
This is a different matter, though.
He doesn’t know what the village was thinking. He doesn’t know human traditions anymore, and he hasn’t got a clue on how they raise their young. Maybe Tommy was of age, in their eyes. Maybe that’s just when children become warriors. He wants to say no, though. It doesn’t seem quite right. His way of life may be different, but there must be things that still ring true, even across species.
If all else, there’s one thing Techno does at least know for sure.
They sent Tommy up to the mountain to die.
They sent him on a mission that could’ve never been completed. They gave false hope to a child who was so brave and so earnest to do what was asked of him, and for that, he’s angry.
For that, he’s pissed.
So a town burns that day.
The people watch in horror as the dragon of the mountain climbs out for the first time in centuries, flying through the air with a snarl rumbling in their ears.
Fire eats up the buildings and leaves their homes to ash. People scream and run and duck for cover, and Techno lands amidst all the chaos, burnt bodies at his feet. He burns their paths, burns their churches, burns their crops.
It’s a hopeless fight with no way out. Weapons are raised and arrows are shot, but they might as well be as effective as pebbles thrown upon his scales.
It’s a strange sort of irony, really. They try so hard to kill him, but it’s useless. Just as useless as that sword they gave Tommy. It’s a fight that won’t be won, no matter how much effort they give.
Then again, there’s not much effort to be seen. As soon as Techno picks off the first few, they’re all sent running. They yell and retreat and hide into the forest trees, thinking that the dragon will leave them alone for what they’ve done. Thinking that losing their home is a decent enough punishment.
It’s not.
Techno follows, and he burns them all.
Every last one.
---
Tommy slowly drifts into awareness, like he’s being pulled from a body of water.
He feels the remnants of a strange dream leaving his mind. Flashes of something like a dragon looming over him, a heavy sword in his hand. Kinda like one of those storybooks he once skimmed over at the library. Stories of a warrior slaying a ferocious beast, saving the townspeople, becoming a legend.
He once dreamed of being a legend like that. It was a fool’s dream, never meant to be lived out, but it was his dream either way. It was something to keep, amongst all the exhaustion that came with putting up with the people around him.
The world begins to flow back into his head. Piece by piece, things come back. He can feel the bed underneath him, a creaky mattress at the inn, no doubt. He can feel the warmth of a summer morning, an almost suffocating heat sinking into his room, covering him entirely. He can feel-
A weird rumbling.
He makes a confused noise in the back of his throat, wondering if he’s in a dream. He wiggles his fingers and feels the vivid warmth still on his skin, so it can’t be that. Everything, while a bit fuzzy, is far too real to be a dream. His bed must be shaking, then. Or maybe the building is shaking? Is it an earthquake?
Shit, should he get up?
It doesn’t feel too bad, though. He’s not really being shaken, it’s just rumbling. Maybe it’s not a big earthquake.
He doesn’t need to get up for a tiny earthquake, does he?
He doesn’t want to. The sun is so warm from outside, and he’s comfortable on this bed. If the earthquake was really all that bad, then surely the other people in the inn would be yelling and panicking by now. He’s fine.
Tommy sighs, adjusting his head a bit to lay more comfortably onto his pillow. Something tightens over the back of his shoulders, and for a split second, he’s so sure it’s just his blanket.
But a blanket doesn’t hold that tightly, doesn’t move. A blanket isn’t that warm.
A prickle of suspicion and panic grows at the back of his head, but then there’s a hand brushing through his hair for a moment, gently pulling out any tangles in his curls, and he forgets it. He falls away into his head and convinces himself that he is dreaming.
Because it’s nice. It’s gentle and kind and good, and he’s never really had that before. No one’s ever brushed his hair, no one’s taken the time to give that sort of moment to him.
A palm runs over his scalp, and Tommy, wanting to take it all while he still has it, lifts his head into it. He hears and feels a quiet chuckle from underneath him.
He ignores it, or at least tries to. There’s someone brushing his hair, and he wants to keep that.
But the thing is-
This isn’t a dream.
He tells himself it must be, with how nice it is, but the warmth is too real. The weight on his back is too vivid. The rumbling, it echoes in his ears and vibrates against his skin, and it’s a clear tell that it isn't a dream.
This is not in his head. This is not a made-up thought inside his mind, a daydream of someone coming to his rescue to save him from-
From the dragon.
He snaps his eyes open, the realization sinking in like a bucket of cold water.
There are arms held around him, and he is not on a bed. He’s on a person, but they are not human, Tommy knows it.
He’s on top of the fucking dragon.
Lifting his head up, Tommy carefully goes to look in front of him, hoping to whatever gods there are that the dragon is not awake, so that there can at least be one chance of escape in sight.
His luck doesn’t seem to carry. Technoblade is perfectly wide awake and aware, and he is staring at Tommy.
Staring, with bright red eyes that could never be human in any way. They glow too brightly and look too wrong, and Tommy stares back, feeling a hand brush through his curls once more. He realizes then that the dragon had been doing that the whole time. Had been holding him while he slept.
“Hello.” Techno greets, and Tommy opens his mouth-
And then screams at the top of his lungs.
“And we’re off to a great start.” Technoblade says, above Tommy’s shrieking.
Tommy begins kicking, punching, trying to roll around and off the dragon, but he’s still waking up, and the dragon has got an advantage. The arms around him don’t let up, and so Tommy kicks even more furiously, and screams even louder until his own ears are ringing with it.
Maybe if he pisses off the dragon enough it’ll let go to try and kill him, and then Tommy can go running. Maybe if he just keeps a good volume, someone nearby will hear, and come save him. Maybe, maybe…
(Maybe he’s already lost his chances. But he’s always been too stubborn.)
Tommy loses his breath, and gasps in to start again. His voice echoes off the walls of the cave and bounces all around him, but that’s all it does. It flows back into his ears and makes his throat burn, and the dragon just waits. It just listens. Maybe it’s going to wait for Tommy to be quiet before it goes- eating him, or something.
Well, Tommy’s got a good set of lungs. He’ll keep going for as long as he must.
He keeps yelling. He stops, and takes a breath, and screams again, and the arms around him just squeeze a little tighter. The hand in his hair stops, and then rests there, and over Tommy’s shouts he thinks he can hear the dragon trying to talk.
He screams louder to drown it out. He doesn’t want to hear what he has to say. He wants out. He wants to go back to the village, even if they won't accept him back. He wants to accept defeat and take the failure with open arms.
He wants to live.
Tommy loses his air again, his yelling dying out as he gives a cough. He gasps in and means to start all over, but the dragon is beating him to the punch.
“You’re going to give me a headache.” Techno mutters, Tommy blinking in surprise at how tame the tone is. He doesn’t sound angry or on the edge of danger, he just sounds- inconvenienced, at most, really. It would be funny if Tommy wasn’t so sure he’s about to be burnt to death.
“Good!” Tommy pants, kicking his feet uselessly against Techno’s legs. “I’m gonna- fucking, burst your eardrums!”
“They would just heal after if you did.” Techno hums. “And you’d only be left with a sore throat.”
Tommy responds to that with more screaming. It’s something like a song, now, a constant noise from Tommy’s lips. Techno sighs and hums with it, and waits. A few seconds pass, and Tommy is left breathless, his cheek pressed up against Techno’s chest. His throat hurts.
“Fuck you.” He chokes out, his voice sounding strained.
“See?” Techno says, and Tommy looks up with a burning glare. “Sore throat.”
“I’m going to tear out your throat.”
“With what?” Techno finally lets go, but before Tommy can take the chance to run, he’s grabbing at his hands and pulling them up by the wrists. “These things? Where even are your claws?” He taps a thumb at one of Tommy’s fingers, as if genuinely waiting for something sharp to appear any second now. “Stars, you’re defenseless.”
Oh, Tommy will show him defenseless. He jerks his hands forward and tries to jab out Techno’s eyes, but Techno just tilts his head back and dodges out of the way. All Tommy does is viciously scratch against the dragon’s cheek, his nails dragging against the skin. It doesn’t leave a mark.
“Ow.” Techno says, even though Tommy didn’t even do anything. He takes Tommy by the wrists again, and Tommy yanks at his hands to try and get them back. Techno’s not giving him slack this time, though, and he just yanks in retaliation, letting Tommy faceplant right into his shirt.
Tommy screams into his chest. It’s a little muffled, but this is more of a stress reliever than an actual defense tactic at this point.
“Stop yelling.” Techno huffs, and his arms close around Tommy again, a spike of fear rising in the teen’s heart. He lifts his head and looks at Techno with terror, but nothing happens other than him getting a bit squished. “Really. You can scream all you want later, but right now I’m tired.”
It has been a long while since Techno’s ever gone out to set fire to a town. The effects are apparent, and while taking a nap with his fledgling was a nice thought, it doesn't quite hold up in reality.
“Then be tired.” Tommy hisses, trying to reach his hands up to attack Techno’s face. He pauses with a new thought, and lets his palms just fall over Techno’s eyes. “Or, or, you could let me go?” Tommy really doubts he can bargain with a dragon here, but he is covering all his bases and he will live, goddammit. “Then you can rest all you want. Perfect silence.”
Techno scoffs, trying to move his face away from Tommy’s hands. “But then I won’t have you.” He says, like that means something. “And what good would that be?”
“...what?” Tommy hesitantly moves his hands away, but Techno’s closed his eyes by now, and he stays lying still. “What- What does that mean?”
“What good is silence if it’s boring?” Techno answers, and that answers literally nothing. “I guess I do have to get used to your voice, considering-”
“What?” Tommy sputters, pushing against Techno to move away. “What are- get your arms off.”
“I’m tired.” Techno groans, like Tommy is being evil and ruining his whole morning by waking him up from blissful sleep.
Well, that’s not the situation at all. The dragon is the evil one here.
“Then let me go, and then you can sleep.” Tommy insists, and he slaps at the dragon’s face, then freezes, feeling like that’s a bit too far. But the dragon doesn’t even crack open an eye. He just frowns, making an upset noise. “Wake up. Hey! Let go!”
“I can’t let you go.” Techno says, like Tommy is saying something strange. “That’s not how it works.”
“Then how does it work?” Tommy kicks his legs, and shrieks as the dragon turns them both over, laying sideways on their bed of-
Coins. Coins?
Shit, they are right on top of the hoard.
Fear slams into Tommy too quickly at the reminder of where he is, and what exactly a dragon would do here. This is a dragon’s spot. Their home, their bed, the place where no human ever lives to see. Does a dragon eat its food on top of its hoard? Maybe it does. Maybe it was just waiting for the right moment to tear Tommy apart like a snack.
Fuck, he’s wasting time.
“How does it work!?” Tommy begins asking, frantically trying to catch his chance at convincing the dragon to let him go. Maybe it's like a battle of wits, something. Or maybe a trade. “Do- do you need something?!”
“Something.” Techno repeats, like he needs to think about it. Tommy nods.
“Do you need an apology? For- For me coming here?” On a normal day, Tommy would never apologize to any asshole ever, but this is kinda a life or death situation, so he’s willing to swallow his pride, just this once. Just so he won’t get burnt into tiny little pieces of ash. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry for the- the trespassing, it’s not going to happen again, really-”
Techno grins with a light laugh, and Tommy’s words die in his throat.
“What would I even do with an apology?” Techno asks, and Tommy’s hope dies, just a little. He pushes on.
“Is-is it a deal, then? Do you want something?” Tommy’s got nothing to give, but he will lie his ass off if it gets the dragon to let him live.
Techno opens his eyes, and they are bright as they look down at Tommy. They almost burn like fire. “Oh, I want something, alright.” Technoblade agrees, and Tommy latches onto that.
“What, then? I don’t-” Shit, shit, what do dragons like? “I have gold! Back at the village! Or jewels! I-I’ve got-”
“I’ve got enough gold to last me centuries.” Techno pulls Tommy a little closer. “Jewels, too.”
“Then books!”
Techno pauses at that. “Books?” He repeats, almost curious.
“Yeah! Books! Stories, and legends, and- magic!”
“I’ve already got magic. And any books you had before aren’t much good now.”
Tommy doesn’t take the hint in the words. Okay, so the dragon doesn’t want books. What else? What else does a dragon like having? Food? Tommy is food, he can’t offer that.
“Then-” Tommy sucks in a breath, feeling a little hopeless. There are coins digging into his shoulder and warm arms around his torso. He needs to get back, he needs to run, he needs to get somewhere safe. This was all a mistake. “Then what do you want?!”
Technoblade rests his chin onto Tommy’s head, and envelopes him entirely in his arms. There is the rumbling again, the tiny earthquake Tommy had thought was happening earlier, but it’s not an earthquake at all. It’s the dragon. The dragon is rumbling.
“I want you.” Techno says, and Tommy freezes still. “I want to keep you.”
His tone has shifted into something sharp. It’s no longer nonchalant and a little sleepy, it’s dangerous now. It holds weight, holds a threat, even, and Tommy considers screaming all over again.
“No.” He says, a knee-jerk reaction. He doesn’t mean to say it, but once it’s out, he is rolling with it, and he is going to be defiant. “No, you can’t fucking keep me, like- like-” Like a peice of gold. Some sort of trinket. “I’m going back.”
“They gave you to me.” Techno reasons. “Put a sword in your hand, and armor on your body, and they sent you right up to my mountain.”
“I came here on my own!” Tommy yells, his chest squeezing with pain, betrayal. He knows they did send them here, but it’s so much easier to believe he was doing it on his own. He was doing it because he wanted to. “It was my choice!”
“Then you gave yourself right up to me.” Walking in with that terrified, quick heartbeat, a shaky breath in the dark. “The moment you stepped into my den-”
“That wasn’t-” Tommy shakes his head, punching his hands forward into the dragon’s chest and being squeezed tighter for it. “I came here to kill you!”
“Everyone comes here to kill me.” Techno says, like he’s annoyed by it.
“And I did the same! I’m not here to stay- or, or to be kept-!” He kicks at Techno’s legs, feeling the urge to start screaming until the dragon’s ears pop. “I was here to kill you!”
“You were just looking for a home.” Techno whispers, and Tommy-
( “If I bring its heart, then can I come back?” He’s yelling, the sword feeling too cold in his palms. “Can I come back, then?!” )
“Weren’t you, now?”
Tommy falters. His eyes burn, and he blinks. He blinks, and blinks, and the weight on his chest feels so heavy. It’s like an overwhelming guilt, crushing him whole. It’s shame and despair, and he hates to admit it but-
He never was here for glory. For the death of a dragon and a victory at his sword.
He wants to go home. To a home that will welcome him back and love him, like how he’s dreamed of. But that place doesn’t exist. It was never meant to be.
Tommy squeezes his eyes shut and screams again, out of spite, out of pain. His voice cracks with the attempt, and Techno curls around him, the rumbling growing even stronger until it’s filling Tommy’s ears with his voice.
“Shh.” Techno brushes a hand over his hair, and Tommy cries, trying to yell again. It comes out broken. “Shh, I know. You’re home. We’re home.”
This is not home. But the town isn’t home either.
“You’re alright. You’re alright, baby.” Technoblade reassures, carrying Tommy up and laying him on top of his chest once more. It’s much more comfortable than all the coins, Tommy will admit. He tucks his face into the dragon’s shirt and tries to hide away from the shame burning him up from the inside.
He’s not a warrior. He’s not a fighter, he’s not even good with a sword. He came up here thinking what? He’d win? He’d miraculously kill the dragon that’s killed so many others, and be able to go back with everyone praising him, adoring him?
He’s an idiot.
“We’re going to be just fine.” Techno hums. “I’ll keep you safe, and I’ll keep you warm. I’ll burn anyone who tries to hurt you, and I’ll raise you better than they could have ever done. I swear it to the stars.”
Tommy laughs, something a little hysterical and frantic. It falls apart into a whine, and he’s held close as Techno sits up from the hoard.
“I’ll give you anything you want. Anything within reason.”
“Within reason.” Tommy repeats, his throat hoarse. He knows what that means.
“I’ll give as much gold as you want. I’ll give you a feast, or a view up in the clouds.”
“But you won’t-” Tommy blinks his eyes open, feeling tears stream down his face. “But you won’t let me go.”
The arms around him feel too warm.
“Never.”
The arms around him feel safe. The tears on his face are something of relief, a terrible, shameful relief. What would the town think of him agreeing to stay underneath the watch of a dragon? What would they think, for him accepting to be within a beast’s hoard?
“Never.” Tommy repeats, barely a whisper. He feels a rush of emotion overtake him, and he wraps his arms around the dragon’s neck, holding on tightly. “Never.” He promises, filled with such a want, such a need to just keep.
He’s not much better than the dragon, is he?
Part of him already feels as if he’d fight tooth and nail to just- keep this. Have this, because it is better than anything he has ever got.
“Breathe, baby.” Techno tells him, and Tommy struggles to listen. He digs his nails into Techno’s neck, and while it doesn’t make a mark, he feels bad for doing it either way. It would hurt a human. “Breathe.”
“Tommy.” Tommy chokes out, yanking back his urge to sob so that he can be somewhat put together. “My name is Tommy.”
“My name is Technoblade.” Techno responds. “But you are a baby.”
“I’m fifteen.” Tommy mutters, narrowing his eyes. Techno only gives a breathless chuckle.
“You haven’t got an idea how little time that is.” And Tommy wonders how much time he’ll live on now, with a dragon keeping him fed, keeping him warm, keeping him safe.
Before, Tommy wasn’t sure what the future would be like.
Techno reaches back behind him to look through the pile of gold they’re resting on. Tommy lifts his head with a sniff, a twinge of curiosity running through him. He kinda wants to look through all the treasure around him, but he’s held back by the threat of the very dragon holding him. He assumes Techno won’t be mad for touching his stuff, but he can’t be sure, even with that promise-
But then Techno’s lifting up a necklace from the hoard, and pulling it right over Tommy’s head, and there goes all his worries.
The metal sits warm around his neck, and Techno stares at it for a second, before looking again for something more. He puts another necklace onto Tommy, then fits a crown on his head. It doesn’t really fit properly, but it stays on, and Techno seems satisfied at that.
He searches through the coins again. He pulls out bracelets and picks out rings, and takes Tommy’s hands in his and puts them on for him. Tommy stares at it with wide eyes, seeing it all glimmer in the light. He’s seen gold before, and he’s had his fair share of coin, but this-
This is worth hundreds. It’s not just simple gold jewelry, there’s diamonds and rubies embedded into it, this is valuable. And Tommy’s wearing it. He’s just wearing it.
Techno seems content with the sight. He pulls Tommy close again and purrs with satisfaction, running his fingers through Tommy’s hair as he lays back down. He curls up around Tommy on their hoard, sighing happily.
“Now, can we sleep? No more screaming?” Techno asks, a hint of teasing in there.
Tommy huffs, having a slight urge to start yelling just for the hell of it, but he holds back. He nods into Techno’s collarbone.
“Sleep.” Techno says, and Tommy closes his eyes, huddling close.
He sleeps.