Prompt 14: Chronic Illness

Dynamic: Syndicate

Other tags: Dsmp setting, post Techno's first prison visit, chronic illness, immune system disorder

Technoblade knew the prison had changed him.

Physically, yes. But what was one more scar among many? A lot of them, Techno couldn't even put a memory to anymore. He wouldn't be able to tell people when or where he got them if they asked. The prison had also left him thinner than before and with a lot of his muscles deteriorated to an embarrassing extent - or as Techno would say it, he looked 'pretty cringe' once he got out. His hair was a short, uneven mess after Quackity took the razor to it. He hadn't properly groomed himself in three months.

A few hearty meals and a long bath could fix most of that. Techno didn't look too much different than he did before he walked into that proverbial (and sometimes literal) hell.

But there were other marks that were left much deeper.

"Crap…" He wasn't one to swear needlessly, but this was just annoying. With a sigh, Techno balled up the piece of paper so he could start over.

"What's up?" Phil asked casually from over on the couch.

"Nothin'," Techno grumbled. Phil didn't push. Techno was grateful. But by the time he was crumpling up his fourth attempt at drawing the map, he was done. He threw the quill down.

"I can't draw a straight line to save my life, Phil," he said mournfully. "My career is ruined."

Phil barked a surprised laugh that Techno decided not to take personally. He knew his friend didn't mean anything by it. Getting up, Phil walked over, silently assessing his work. Techno crossed his arms, shoving his hands under his armpits as if both of them didn't already know the problem.

Since the prison, Techno had developed a noticeable tremor. It came and went in severity, getting a lot worse when he was cold too - which was all the time now since the imprisonment had also ruined his body's ability to regulate temperature. His hands wouldn't stop shaking today.

"Yeah, I think I got something for that."

Phil disappeared out the door, the cold gust of wind that came in when he went out making Techno shiver. It only took a minute before he came back.

"Here you go, mate." Phil threw whatever he had brought onto the desk in front of him. It seemed to be nothing more than a flat, long piece of wood.

Techno felt really, really stupid. "Is that a ruler?"

"It'll work, won't it?"

The way Phil said it didn't make him feel stupid. It just made him feel loved.

"Yeah," he said, using one hand to keep it down on his paper so he could draw a single, straight line. "Yeah, it's perfect."

—

"Wrap this around." Niki didn't wait for him to actually move, pushing up on her tiptoes to wind the shawl around his shoulders herself. Techno bent forward a bit, because he was well aware she would climb him like a koala if need be. She'd been very firm about this ever since he came back.

"Does this meet your expectations?" Techno asked sarcastically, trying to spread his arms but finding himself unable to. Not all the way, at least.

"Not yet." Niki reached into her bag, pulling out a pair of fuzzy pink earmuffs. Techno suspected she had handmade them just for him, but he didn't want to mention it. No need to embarrass both of them like that. She put them on his head. "There! Now it's meeting all my expectations."

"I'm glad."

His tone must have bordered a little too closely on the exasperated because she rolled her eyes at him.

"No, because you needing to spend a week in bed because of a minor cold again is what we all want."

And ouch. She was right, but having Niki say it so candidly still stung a bit. The first time Techno had fallen ill since coming home had been solid proof that he couldn't take even something as innocuous as the flu for being harmless anymore. His immune system was as ruined as it could possibly be. What had seemed like a tingle in his throat and a slight headache had turned into him lying in bed for three days in pure misery.

His fever had skyrocketed and for one short, patchy moment, they'd been worried the consequences would have been even more dire.

Speaking of headaches, Techno did have those a lot more often as well.

Perhaps gouging his expression for what it was, Niki's eyes softened. "Seriously, don't make us worry like that."

And Techno had to respect that she knew just what to say to get to his weak spots. The sly smile she showed when he nodded told it all.

"You don't happen to have these in white, do you?" he asked, tapping the earmuffs with one finger. "I think those would match my fit better."

"I don't know what you're talking about, these look great on you." As if to prove her point, she indicated her own, matching pair. "They look great on everyone."

Techno decided that was going to be another fight he'd lose, so he'd better not even try. "You better make Phil and Ranboo wear these too next time we all go out together then."

Niki's smirk only grew. "I was planning on that either way."

—

Ranboo didn't offer help more often than he did before, he just became more sneaky about it.

All the chores around the cabins just seemed to get done a little faster, before Techno could get started on them really. Before he woke up. He slept in a lot more these days.

He was tired a lot more too. You'd think sitting still in a cell would be the ultimate form of rest, but it turned out long-term confinement was another way to tire you out. Techno couldn't be as physically active as he used to be, vertigo was his new tormentor. He ran out of breath quicker. Ranboo helped him feed the dogs, helped him chop wood, and helped him mine. He never took the work out of Techno's hands completely, he never would push Techno into handing over a task that Techno could do himself.

But Ranboo got very good about asking if Techno needed anything done for him before he'd hit his own limits, meaning Techno didn't have to be the one to take the first step to ask for assistance. This made it somewhat easier on his pride to bear when simple labor that he wouldn't think twice at pre-prison became too hard for him to undertake unless he could take an hour-long nap afterward.

"Do we need anything else?" Ranboo asked while rubbing clean the last jar of honey.

Techno knew what he was really asking.

"Nah, I think that's all. The turtles can wait till tomorrow, there's no rush."

"You could do it tomorrow." Ranboo nodded to himself, satisfied. He peeked at Techno not too covertly, checking his condition. "Or I could do it later today too, when I'm back from Snowchester."

Techno tried to shrug him off. "Like I said, no rush."

"But I could use a turtle egg or two," Ranboo said. He was smart, framing it as something that would benefit himself too and not only Techno. "If I'm in there anyway, might as well do all the nests you know."

"If you're in there anyway," Techno agreed.

"Is Phil cooking today?"

Ranboo was simultaneously very subtle and the most obvious person in existence. It was honestly kind of amusing.

"He's gone out, I think he won't be back for a while." Techno had the coordinates written down somewhere, a village not too far west from here but Phil wanted to travel even further still.

Ranboo picked up his bag, stuffed full of honey and other supplies. "We can still eat together, if you want?"

Techno hummed, neither a yes nor a no. He was about to fall asleep on his feet. Ranboo stepped closer, nudging into his side.

"I'll come over around dinner time, then?"

He supposed it was stupid to protest that. They often ate together before the prison too. It was a habit easily gotten into. He waved at Ranboo as he left for his own house again.

Techno did fall asleep on the couch almost immediately, using Niki's shawl as a blanket. When he woke up a few hours later it was to the smell of Ranboo cooking in his kitchen and his communicator had several missed messages from Phil asking how he was doing.