And here's the second piece I wrote for the charity project. This time it's Witherblade hurt/comfort. I love this man with my entire heart!

"You're still alright with this?"

Phil's footsteps crossed in front of him as he talked, making Technoblade turn his head to follow the sound.

"Yes," he said. "It's fine, right? Or have they changed their minds?"

"Not at all." The answer came a bit too fast to be natural and Techno frowned beneath the blindfold. "I just thought you might have. It's a big change, it's okay if you're not ready."

A 'big change' was one way to describe him moving into a tight-knit community after more than a century spent in complete solitude. Techno had avoided other people for so long, even just letting Phil into his life had been an adjustment. With time and patience on both their ends, a strong connection had grown between them. But that didn't mean Techno felt comfortable letting in others.

He had to though, if he wanted things to ever change. Phil hoped he could. Techno didn't want to disappoint him either.

That's why he swallowed through the unease in his chest to answer. "Yeah, I'm ready."

Techno could tell the smile on Phil's face from the sound of his voice. "It's going to be great. It's such a nice place, I'm looking forward to showing you."

"Can't imagine anywhere looking better than this," Techno deadpanned.

It made Phil jab an elbow into his side playfully, Techno flinching away from the touch. "You know what I mean."

Phil probably thought Techno did that because he couldn't see it coming and it startled him. Maybe that was part of the reason too. Not the entire reason, but part of it. Where his vision failed him, his hearing gave him a good indication of what those around him were doing, how close they were to him.

Techno was just scared Phil would forget about the withering curse.

He crossed his arms so he could tuck his hands against his sides, hiding the blackened skin. "I do, you're just too easy to tease old man."

The elytrian let out a mock gasp, though it tapered off into more of a chuckle. "I think you might be older than me mate."

"It's a mystery we'll never solve."

Not for a lack of trying. Elytrians could easily become old enough to share a lifespan with mountains and deserts. They were an ancient race, one that some humans only spoke about in legend. But Techno hadn't aged since the day he died, whenever that was. So really, who was to say?

"Let's get going then?" Phil kind of hovered at his side, but Techno's earlier reaction meant he didn't reach out again.

Techno wasn't sure if he preferred it that way or hated it with the very core of his being.

He breathed in the dusty air of his cottage. As much as it was falling apart now, it had served him well. He would miss it. But it was time for a change.

"Let's get going," he agreed.

—

The first few days passed by rather uneventfully. Technoblade had to adjust to the noisiness, and the fact that people were actually interested in coming to see him. Phil must have warned them about Techno's long stretch of isolation though, because they were making a deliberate effort not to overwhelm him. People came by to welcome him and bring him gifts for his new house, or they greeted him as he walked around the commune. Short conversations wrought with polite smiles and horrible small talk. Mostly he was left to his own devices though.

Techno supposed he should thank Phil for that.

He was walking with the elytrian as the other man described certain buildings for him. Techno had been mentally mapping out the location of important places to make getting around easier, constructing a map in his mind. But it was nice to also be able to imagine what they looked like. Techno had forgotten a lot from before he lost his sight, the names of specific flowers or types of wood meant little to him. But he could remember colors and shapes well enough to form a picture.

And Phil had been right. The commune sounded beautiful.

"Over in these caves is where we-" Phil stopped and Techno automatically straightened his spine. "Oh, hey Ranboo."

Techno tilted his head. Strange, he hadn't heard anybody approach them. But there was a faint residue of static in the air. He would have recognised the beating of wings, so they weren't airborne. Teleportation?

"Hello." The stranger's accent was posh, as if they spent their entire childhood being forced to learn how to articulate properly. Techno couldn't relate, but the clearness of their voice did make it laughably easy for him to pinpoint their exact location. They had appeared no more than six feet in front of them.

"Do you… need anything?" Phil asked, chuckling.

"No, no, I'm just… just looking around. Enjoying the day, the sun, the breeze, those things." The static grew a little louder. Techno could hear their tail swishing nervously.

"You know, if you wanted to meet Techno you could have just said so," Phil said.

"What?!" they squeaked, surprised. "That's- Well, I mean, I was a little curious maybe but, but that'd be so forward of me. Very unbecoming, intruding upon another like that, I wouldn't-" They were very bad at hiding how caught out they felt by the accusation. Techno deduced they must be wearing a ridiculous amount of jewelry, with how the pieces of gold and gemstone clinked together with every move.

Phil must have rolled his eyes, because they stopped and huffed.

"Well, now that I'm here anyway I might as well introduce myself. It would be very rude of me not to, you know."

"Certainly," Phil agreed, halfway sarcastic.

Techno had been listening to this entire exchange with mild amusement, but pushed back his shoulders when he was finally addressed.

"So, uh, hi! Greetings. I'm Ranboo. I heard a lot about you."

"Technoblade," he said. "Can't really say the same." Truth be told, Phil hadn't told him much about anybody in the commune, always speaking of it in more general terms.

Silence was his answer. Techno tensed a little, thinking he must have done something wrong. Were they offended that Phil never mentioned them? Should Techno have lied? Or should he just not have responded to that part at all? It had been so long since he interacted with new people - even meeting Phil felt like eons ago. Maybe Techno had screwed up.

"He can't see you," Phil said and Techno released all at once that the silence was Ranboo waiting for something.

"Oh!" Louder static filled the air at their surprised reaction. Techno filed it away as a way to recognise Ranboo in the future. "Oh, no I'm terribly sorry, I thought that was-"

"A fashion statement?" Techno finished for him with a smirk pointing up at his blindfold. It was a little funny.

"Well, I don't know. I was trying to shake your hand."

That made the smile fall from Techno's face instantly. He curled his fingers, his raised fist coming down to press into his own chest. "That's fine, handshaking isn't really my thing."

Don't ask why, don't ask why, don't ask why-

"We need to get going, it's getting late and I promised Jack we'd drop by the Pube too," Phil cut in smoothly. So whether or not Ranboo was going to pry, Techno didn't know. He wasn't going to be upset he got out for the rest of that conversation though. "We'll see you around, Ranboo?"

"Oh, yeah! See you around. It was nice to meet you!"

Techno nodded at him, hoping it would convey a similar sentiment. But he didn't feel able to relax his hands again until Ranboo was long gone.

—

Of all the people who lived in the commune, Tommy was by far the loudest.

Both in a literal and figurative sense. Techno had heard of the saying that some people had a 'loud personality' before, but he didn't feel like he really knew what that meant until meeting Tommy. It was... Interesting? Yeah, that was probably the best way of putting it.

Techno was fine with it, really. Tommy's pushiness would have bothered him if the boy was malicious about it. Everything Tommy did came out of good intentions though, even Techno could tell as much.

"You know I can't exactly enjoy them, right?" he asked, standing amidst the sunflowers Tommy had planted outside his new cottage. When a breeze stirred them, some brushed against his arms and shoulders.

"There's other ways to enjoy flowers besides looking at them, you know," Tommy pointed out. Techno supposed that wasn't wrong.

He reached out and held some of the soft petals between his fingers, shrugging. "I guess."

"I planted them because you told us they are your favorite," Tommy said. "I wanted you to feel more at home."

Oh. Techno was caught off guard that Tommy would remember that. Sunflowers were one of those rare few things from before the withering that stuck to the back of Techno's mind like glue. The farm he used to adore, the plants he used to grow there before tending to them was made impossible by his curse. He had a whole field of sunflowers once. It felt so long ago that sometimes he wondered if he dreamt up the entire thing.

He'd told them of what little memories he had from before because apparently most hybrids were born as such. Techno being born human and turning into something different later on was a spectacle, so the questions they had came in abundance. He didn't mind answering them. He just hadn't expected anything to result from it.

It was unexpectedly thoughtful and he smiled. But it was the second part of Tommy's statement he responded to.

"I do feel at home."

"Hm? Do you though?" Tommy clicked his tongue, not unkindly but skeptical all the same. "Because you've been acting pretty distant dude."

The petal beneath Techno's fingers withered. He let go quickly, hoping Tommy was too preoccupied to notice. "What?"

"I don't know, you just don't seem to want to be… nevermind, it's no big deal. I just thought you'd like them."

Techno wasn't going to question what Tommy was avoiding there. It made something pinch in his chest, tight and uncomfortable. "I do, thank you."

"Great!" There was the flutter of wings, one of them almost hit Techno in the face. Then something brushed his shoulder again.

Except it was solid, more firm than a sunflower being moved lightly by the wind. Tommy's fingers pressed against his arm and Techno's entire frame went rigid.

Tommy was throwing his own arm over Techno's shoulder.

Tommy was touching him.

Techno ducked his head, flinching away. Tommy slid off him easily, not really holding on tight. Techno immediately stepped out of range again. "Maybe I'll plant potatoes too."

And he would have to be a fool to think Tommy didn't notice. His skin felt as if it was prickling with static and Tommy hadn't even touched it. He was wearing too many layers - he always did. Protection, to make sure nothing bad would happen. To make sure nobody would get hurt. Techno felt the hollow of his chest ache, thorns piercing into his flesh. His fear always made that feeling come back, fresh as if it never had left. Decay blossoming inside him.

But it was even worse that for a moment, Techno had almost wanted the touch to continue.

Tommy coughed. "Uh, yeah sure. I can help you with that."

Techno pretended not to hear the disappointment in that voice as he turned away, putting a safe distance between them again despite how it made his heart ache.

—

Phil had built his house up high. Even if Techno couldn't appreciate the view, he liked feeling the sun on his skin. There were no trees to cast shadows, the wind kept away by Phil's carefully built archways. As an added bonus, not a lot of the other commune residents came up there.

"So, how have you been liking it so far?"

Techno had been there for a little over a month by then, Phil's question did not come as a surprise to him. There was a bit of lingering anxiety there, Phil wanting to make sure that he wasn't being nice for the sake of being nice.

If he hated the commune, Phil would not fault him for it. He wanted an honest answer.

So an honest answer Techno would give. "I love it."

A little sigh escaped Phil. "Good," he said. "That's good. You're so fucking hard to read sometimes, you know."

Techo laughed. "I'm sorry?" He wasn't apologizing, not really.

"No, I'm serious. I'm glad you decided to move, it's saving me a lot of walking." A rustling of fabric signified Phil crossing his arms. "But I was a little worried."

Techno raised an eyebrow. "About what?"

"About how you'd fit in. No offense mate, but you basically became a hermit for a pretty significant amount of time. There was no telling how you'd handle being around people again."

There was no reason denying it. Phil was a lot of things - patient, kind, selfless. He was observant as well, too observant for Techno's tastes sometimes but he'd cope.

"I don't mind being around people," he said evasively. And predictably, Phil noticed.

"But?"

"But I'm just… scared."

That was the heart of the matter. No need for Techno to spell it out, not with Phil.

"I know why you're scared, Techno. I don't blame you."

A small smile tugged on his lips. "Why do I have a feeling this is building up towards another 'but'."

"But you'll be scared forever if you don't confront that fear eventually."

Techno scoffed. "That advice only works when messing up wouldn't lead me to accidentally kill somebody, Phil." It was definitely a bit of a hyperbole. To kill somebody, Techno would need to touch them for an extended period of time. The only merciful thing about withering is that it took forever to set in. But even just the thought of accidentally hurting one of them made his head swim.

"You know it doesn't work like that," Phil said.

"It's still too risky." He shook his head, even as he heard Phil move beside him and step closer.

"Just let me try, then. Once, and I'll never ask again."

"Phil-"

"Please, Techno."

Curse him for being so weak. His nails dug into his palms, pushing down the tight ball of longing that had curled up in his gut. Deep inside, Techno couldn't deny he wanted this. Deep inside he hadn't known what it was like to be held by another person in eons.

What if he didn't know how to let that happen anymore?

Phil didn't warn him. Almost like he was convinced Techno would try to escape. Humorously, it was almost laughable how careful Phil was when reaching out, handling him like a broken piece of glass. And maybe the comparison wasn't even too far off, because if this went badly Techno knew he would hurt Phil. Which was a thought by itself which made him sick to his stomach.

But then arms came around to hug him, hands pushing against his back to draw him closer. Phil was mindful of his neck, his arms. He knew not to touch naked skin to naked skin because that's where the danger lied.

Then some long-denied instinct kicked in for Techno's brain and he brought up his own arms to return to embrace, winding around Phil low enough to avoid his wings. Techno found himself pressing his cheek against Phil's chest, a shudder down his spine. He felt on fire, in the best way possible. Like everywhere their bodies touched was running through with electricity, unbearable yet something he craved like air. He wanted Phil to step away. He wanted Phil to never let go. He wanted to run from whatever this was that had sent his mind reeling. He wanted to hold on forever.

Phil laughed. It rumbled through his ribcage, Techno could hear it so clearly.

"See, I told you it wouldn't be that bad."

"Shut up," Techo told him half-heartedly. Phil only laughed harder, long claws brushing through his hair. It was wonderful.

And Techno was still so scared, scared that one wrong move could tear this apart. But Phil only held him tighter, even when he started to shake with something too close to a sob.

The sun warmed them both, Techno could feel it on his back. He could feel Phil pressed against him, the pulse underneath his skin a contrast to Techno lacking one of his own, the beat of it a comfort, as if it was its own melody. It fell in tune with the satisfied humming in Techno's mind. It told Techno not to be scared any longer.

And for once, he would listen.