𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞 (Sleepy Bois Inc) /Discontinued/

-5-

Tommy
--

It had been a full two weeks since Phil had passed.

I handled it like a god.

Techno finally saw it fit that I should learn how to fight and defend myself- recent events influenced his thoughts on the matter, of course- so now I was equipped with a dagger and a package of bandages wherever I went. We had been training in Techno's 'secret' clearing for almost a week and a half, he wanted to get me started as soon as my arm was healed up.

Wilbur always complained about being left in the camp all alone like a housewife while we men went to play with swords in the forest all day. It was certainly hard with Phil missing from the big scheme of things nowadays, it was really taking a toll on Wilbur. As little as he said it out loud, it was clear that Phil's death didn't sit well with Will. The nights were the hardest, having one extra seat open around the fire every night, and one more empty tent sitting ominously, untouched.

I fixed the sword sheath on my hip as I stared deep into the eyes of Technoblade himself, who was situated a few yards away and glaring at me the same. I nodded, and he ran at me, striking with his sword in all of my most vulnerable, open, places. The clinging sound of metal against metal could be heard as I skillfully dodged each of his attacks and retorted with my own, eventually pushing the older man back a few feet. He grinned, wiping off a few loose sweat beads that started falling down his forehead. "Good work, Tommy," He said as I stood hunched over, panting. "You've certainly gotten better,"

The training was difficult, that was for sure, but Techno deemed it necessary. I wasn't about to complain about being forced to play with weapons, either. It was relaxing after a while, getting to escape the chaos of everyday life by throwing a bit of my own chaos into the mix.

The sky started to turn a mix of blue, orange, and dark reddish-purple, as the sun sank into the sky and the clouds swirled about. Wilbur would come looking for us if we weren't back soon- He is really like a housewife, I said to myself- as it took barely any sign of danger to make him anxious. When we didn't come back for a while, it was clear that Will got anxious and worried. Techno sheathed his sparkling sword, as did I, and we began our walk back to camp without another word.

The clearing wasn't very far from camp, so it barely took us five minutes to walk all the way back through the tall, winding trees. The smell of cooking meat filled my nose as I basically floated towards it. I peered over Wilbur's shoulder as I watched him cook the pork over the fire, spinning it every so often. "It smells delicious," I grinned, getting a look from Techno. He had brought back a boar a few days prior- But he also had a weird attachment to those pigs, just like Wilbur and his salmon. Something I'd never understand, they told me.

I walked over and set my weapons and gear in my respective tent and cleaned up a bit before returning to the center of camp, making sure to put on a heavy jacket to fight away the cold night air. I was met with a giggling Wilbur trying to force a piece of perfectly cooked pork into Techno's mouth, who was rolling around and swatting at Will's hand, anything to escape the food. I broke into a fit of laughter, striding over to the fire and sitting on my log. The sun had just disappeared behind the trees, and it would certainly just get colder after that. Techno was lucky, he wore this heavy red cape lined with pretty fur all of the time, that must be warm.

The fire crackled as Wilbur gently handed me a plate with meat and gross salad-looking vegetables on it. I grimaced, staring at the green demons. Wilbur rolled his eyes at me, a silent, 'Eat your food, or you'll just be more cold and fatigued tomorrow,' It was the sad truth, it was either eating what was put in front of us or having the possibility of not eating like that the next night. I glared back, slowly eating the vegetables as Techno laughed at me.

"What's so funny?" I play-snapped at him.

"You treat those veggies like they're gonna' kill you or somethin'," He chuckled, eating everything except for the meat.

"And you treat that pork like it's radioactive," I retorted, getting only a 'Touche' In response.

Things were certainly moving slower around camp, everything seemed like it held less purpose. Wilbur's mind was stuck on Phil, and Techno's mind was caught up on getting revenge. I pestered him repeatedly about who delivered that cut across Phil's stomach, or what exactly happened that night, but he shook his head every time I brought it up. I was left with the dissatisfaction of never getting a straightforward answer.

Wilbur wasn't any better at giving me answers to questions I asked. Every time I asked him how he was doing, he replied with a, "I'm living my life, so I guess I'm alright," Whatever that was supposed to mean.

I finished up my plate and thanked Wilbur graciously as I went to my tent for the 'rest of the night', like always. I had a smallish tent, but it had a netted roof, so it was perfect to lay down and see the stars at night. There were also lots of soft assorted blankets, so it was never too cold. I felt at peace and safe in my tent, especially since there were big knives with me at all times. I grinned as I heard Will and Techno settle in their tents for the night- My plan was falling into place.

I waited until I could hear Wilbur peaceful snoring a few tents over before silently grabbing my heaviest coat and unzipping the main flap. I had been in the warm tent for a while by then, so an unwanted blast of nasty cold air hit me straight in the face. Stupid cold, I thought, draping the coat over my shoulders as I inched my way out of the tent. Being extra careful not to make too much noise with the zipper, I pulled the metal piece very slowly back up to the top. To my dismay, it hit a snag. Taking a deep breath, I gripped the zipper and yanked it as hard as I could, snapping it out of the catch it was in. I sighed a breath of relief but jumped as I heard Techno's tent shift as if someone had been disturbed. 

Without a second thought, and not wanting to be around if Techno did get up and see me sneaking out, I snapped my head back and forth before darting into the dark woods.