Technoblade turned to Ghostbur, a determined look in his eyes. Ghostbur nodded, turning to call out to the sheep. Techno let all of the stuff run off of his hands, splattering noiselessly onto the planks of the porch, slowly disappearing.

"Okay. Come here, blue boy!" Ghostbur's voice echoed over the clearing, louder than his normal whisper-quiet way of speaking. He turned to Techno as if to say goodbye, his eyes brimming with joy and sadness at the same time. "Okay bye, Techno. Have- have fun preparing for the- for the event." The ghost then turned and headed off into the snow, towards the blue sheep.

Technoblade turned to Y/N, who had come out to stand on the porch with him. She looked up at him, her eyes wide and confident.

Technoblade was so glad that she was here, with him. It had seemed so long ago that he had found her, a stranger, out in the snow. He was glad he had saved her, and that she had decided to stay longer. He didn't know what was going to happen today, if he would survive or not. He didn't want to think about that.

He reached out and took her hand in his, and she looked up at him in surprise. He cared about her so much, more than he could have ever imagined. He wasn't worried about Quackity and his gang, as long as he had Y/N by his side. 

"Thank you." Technoblade looked deep into her eyes, finding himself unable to look away, utterly captivated. "For staying here. With me." He leaned closer, fighting the urge to wrap his arms around her and never let go.

"No problem, anytime." She smiled up at him, giving his hand a squeeze. He wanted to lean closer still, close the gap between them. He wanted to hold her face in his hands and press his lips against hers. 

He felt something flare up in his chest at that thought, an emotion he had gotten before, around Y/N. He had never had it around anyone else, not even Phil, who was his closest friend.

Technoblade couldn't understand what he was feeling, was it utter joy? Or maybe nervousness? Both of which he had felt before. Surprise at whatever the hell he had just thought? The voices were yelling things at him, but he was so focused on Y/N, he couldn't even hear them.

He looked into her eyes a moment longer, lost in thought.

He felt the need to protect her, keep her safe. He wanted to make her laugh, and see her smile. He wanted to watch her learn and grow, and see the way her face lit up whenever she discovered something new. He wanted to hold her in his arms, cherish her and hear her say his name with such joy. He loved teaching her how to fight, and reading books with her. He loved how she would laugh at his jokes and always have something witty to say. 

He loved everything about her, the way she talked, and the way she held herself. The way she would boast about things she was good at, or talk about things she was proud of. How she loved Steve as much as he did, and her love of Lily, her horse. He loved the smell of her, her smile, her laugh. The way she was trying her best to learn Piglin. 

He loved all of it.

He loved her.

(Y/N's POV)

*slight timeskip btw*

"Phil said they were nearby." Technoblade was looking out of the window, keeping watch. You were also at a window, peeking outside as well. It was hard for you to see though the darkness. The sun had gone down ages ago, but your very human eyes were not at all adjusted to the dark. Techno could see a lot better, with his half-piglin eyes.

"AAH-" Technoblade slapped a hand over his mouth, his eyes wide. He stared out of the window for a second, before turning to you. You rushed over to the window he had been looking out of, peering out. You couldn't see anything.

Techno made a few worried noises, muttering to himself. He paced back and forth, coming back to the window every few seconds to peer anxiously outside.

He coughed in disbelief, "That plan to have Ghostbur to hide over the hill did not work." His eyebrows were furrowed with worry, gazing nervously out into the darkness.

You peeked outside again, fear running through you as you registered what you saw. There were lights flickered from the trees, from somewhere in the forest. 

Quackity and his gang were on their way.

Suddenly, a familiar spirit's head appeared from over the hill Techno had been talking about. He turned to look down the other side of the hill, his mouth moving as if he were saying something. He was illuminated by the lights from the forest. He then turned and pointed to Technoblade's cabin.

"Did- Did he just turn and point at us???" Technoblade was also looking out the window, his face crumpled in confusion. "Did he just tell them where we are???"

Ghostbur had just in fact done just that.

"Okay, this is okay." Technoblade turned to Y/N. "You go hide in the stables with Carl and protect him. I have this strange feeling that something might happen to him. If they don't find you, they'll only take me and you'll be safe."

You looked at Technoblade, a hurt expression on your face, "You just want me to go hide?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I want you to do." The half-piglin then turned and ushered you towards the stable. You stubbornly fought against him, digging your heels into the wooden floorboards. He suddenly stopped pushing, and you turned to glare up at him. However your glare dissolved when you saw Techno's face.

His brows were furrowed slightly, in a sad way. 

"Please..." He whispered, looking at you longingly, "I just don't want you to get hurt." 

You would have argued that you could fight very well and were quite strong, however the look in his eyes stopped you. Defeated, you turned and walked dejectedly towards the stables.

You suddenly felt arms wrap around you waist, your armor clinking against Technoblade's.

"Thank you." He murmured, burying his face into your neck. Just as soon as he had latched onto you, he let go, his footsteps receding to the window.

You stood for a second, blushing like mad. Then you slowly forced yourself to take a step towards the stable, your face on fire. 

Soon you were in the stable, and you leaned up against one of the stall doors. Carl and Lily shared the largest stall in the stable. Splitting them up had made them sad, even though they were only separated by a short wall. Carl had somehow jumped the gate to get to Lily. It was actually kind of cute.

However you didn't pay attention to the horses, instead you stood with your back against the stall door, your face still flushed. You took a deep breath. You had a job to do. Technoblade had asked you to protect the horses and you would do so with your life. Not that it would ever come to that, you were sure. Even though you thought Techno's fears were irrational, you were determined to do your best.

Suddenly both of the horses ears perked up, angling towards the door leading outside. You slowly made your way to the door and cautiously looked out.

You saw Technoblade standing beside Wilbur, facing four other people. They were clad in full, gleaming netherite and bloodied aprons. All of them were carrying shiny diamond axes. 

You squinted into the darkness. It was easier to see the strange party because they were all holding flaming torches. You could pick out Tubbo and Fundy, as well as a man you recognized to be someone by the name 'Big Q'. Well maybe his name had been 'Quackity', you couldn't remember.

The last member was someone you were very surprised to see. Ranboo. It was hard to not recognize the extremely tall, half-enderman. You noticed he didn't have the trademark bloodied apron the rest of the group was wearing.

You could see they were talking, but you were too far away to hear. However if you strained your ears really hard, you could just make out a few words.

Something about war crimes, and a trial. Technoblade said something about the voices and being a pacifist. You heard Tubbo say the word 'withers'.

They came a little bit closer to the stables, and now you could hear them a little bit clearer.

"Technoblade you're going to come with us back to L'Manberg." The black-haired male said. It seemed as if he were the leader, despite Tubbo (as far as you could remember) being president. The group of four were seemingly trying to take Techno back to L'Manberg to be put on trial.

"You're going to come with us." 'Quackity' (you were pretty sure his name was Quackity) said, taking a threatening step forward.

"If there's no other way..." Technoblade stared malevolently at the Butcher Army. His sword was gripped in one hand, and you saw his other hand reach down for the potions on his belt.

"I CHOOSE BLOOD!!" The sound of glass smashing as the potions hit the gound and shattered, along with the sudden panic from the opposite part rang out. Soon the air was filled with the sound of fighting. You watched as Technoblade swung his sword valiantly at the Butcher Army members, his blade seeming to give off smoke.

You winced as Tubbo's axe collided with Techno's shoulder pad, leaving a sizable dent. Technoblade's retaliation sent Tubbo reeling back as the piglin hybrid continued his onslaught on the shorter male.

Beginning to panic, Tubbo stumbled back, "Big Q!" He cried, his call aimed towards Quackity, "BIG Q DO SOMETHING!!" Techno's sword slashed forward, causing Tubbo to fall backwards onto the ground. Technoblade then attacked again, but Tubbo brought the helve of his axe up to block.

Luckily for Tubbo, Ranboo had attacked Technoblade from behind, moving the pink-haired male's focus elsewhere.

As you watched the battle, you got a sudden awful feeling deep inside your gut, as though someone was watching you. You looked around worriedly, wondering where it was coming from. Suddenly you noticed a person that wasn't in the battle, and was facing towards the stables.

Quackity was staring directly at you.

You froze, cold fear washing over you. You quickly ducked inside the stable and pressed yourself against the wall, trying to be invisible. Lily sniffed your face, and you brought a shaky hand up to rub her nose.

Had Quackity seen you? Techno had told you to stay out of sight. You had wanted to fight, but now, seeing four fully-armored people wearing bloodied aprons, brandishing gleaming axes, you didn't really feel like it.

Plus, it looked like Technoblade was winning without your help anyway.

You suddenly heard the crunch of footsteps on snow, heading towards the stables. Panic shot through you as your hand flew to the sword at your hip, unsheathing it as quietly as you could muster. You opened the stall that Lily and Carl were in, and moved so that if anybody came inside, you would have partial cover.

A head appeared through the open part of the stable door. It was Quackity. 

You held your breath and didn't move, hoping he wouldn't notice you. He stepped inside and looked around, peering at Carl in particular.

"I thought he only had one horse..." Quackity mused, turning to look at Lily.

You slowly took a step to move farther behind Lily, using her as a barrier between you and the short, raven-haired individual. However in your attempts, your foot slid out from under you on the damp hay. You quickly regained your footing, head snapping up to meet dark brown eyes.

"Well well well, what do you we have here?" Quackity took a step towards you menacingly, brandishing his axe. "Are you Technoblade's girlfriend or something? I bet Techno cares more about you than this horse. Ghostbur did mention something about a... uh... Y/N, I think. Is that you?" You held up your sword, ready to protect yourself. 

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, whoever you are. Drop the weapon." He commanded, raising the axe.

"I'm not afraid of you." You snarled, knowing full well you could easily beat this man in a fight.

Quackity laughed. He then reached out and grabbed Carl's reins, pulling the horses head down so that Quackity's axe was hovering at Carl's neck. "I said. I wouldn't do that if I were you." He repeated, his eyes narrowing. 

Panic shot through you. He was going to kill Carl?? "Don't." You whispered, thinking fast. Carl was Technoblade's favourite horse, and Techno had expressed that he would be absolutely devastated if Carl died. You could sense Carl's nervousness, and it seemed Lily could as well, as she began to hop nervously from one hoof to the other.

"Then drop your weapon and take off your armor." Quackity commanded, "Or this horse dies." He threatened, pushing the blade of the axe closer to Carl.

You didn't know what else you could do. He would kill Carl. You had no choice but to give in.

You dropped Dream Catcher, and started to take off the armor Techno had given you.

"Mmm, good girl." Big Q praised, reaching forward to quickly take Dream Catcher. He then proceeded to take all your armor, as well as your healing potions.

Then, pulling out a pair of shackles, he fastened them tightly around your wrists, binding them behind your back. You struggled slightly, the cold metal painfully digging into your wrists. Quackity laughed.

He then noticed the now-visible bite mark on your neck, and cried out. "Ha! So you're Techno's little toy then, eh?" He laughed, looking at it closer. You turned your shoulder away from him.

"It was a wolf." You lied, your insides made of liquid fire. You could feel the heat rising to your cheeks, but you turned your face away so that Big Q wouldn't notice. Quackity just shook his head and snickered, grabbing you by the shoulder as he dragged you out of the stables. 

You saw Technoblade fighting Fundy, he was slashing at the orange-haired individual with his sword. Fundy was panicking, clearly not a good enough fighter to take Techno head-on. Ranboo was bending over Tubbo, who was injured, looking concerned. The half-enderman looked up and met your eyes for a second, before quickly looking away.

"Technoblade stop. Stop it right now." Quackity called across the clearing, pulling you into the same position Carl had been in, a gleaming diamond axe at your neck. You shivered.

Technoblade turned, his face a mask of rage. Suddenly the anger dissipated, seeing you held at axe-point. "Wait, what are you doing?" He was confused for a split second.

Then the anger returned. His eyes narrowed and he bared his teeth.

"You pull any shit and I'll kill her..." Quackity bared his teeth back.

"Step away from her, Quackity." Technoblade growled, pointing his blade threateningly at Big Q.

The raven-haired man didn't seem fazed by Techno's threat. "Drop your weapon, Technoblade... or I'll kill her right in front of you." He said coldly, pressing the axe closer against your neck, drawing a small amount of blood. You whimpered.

You could see concern flash across Technoblade's face. "She's innocent, leave her out of this." His eyes were wide with fear, but it didn't seem like Quackity was going to back down. 

Technoblade looked around desperately, trying to figure out something he could do to save you. He looked up at you, defeated. He then flourished his sword, and in one smooth motion he brought it down, impaling it through the cold, snow-covered earth. He then stepped back, admitting to surrender.

"No! Techno! Don't do it!" You called out, unable to accept the fact that he really was listening to these clowns. The axe pressed harder into your neck, causing you to wince.

Technoblade looked up at you helplessly, his eyes sad and desperate. 

"And your armor." Quackity commanded.

"No not my armor, c'mon. Don't take my armor..." Technoblade pleaded, but Quackity drew the axe across your neck slightly, lengthening the cut. You gasped, and tears formed in your eyes, and you tried to blink them away.

"Technoblade this girl is going to die if you don't take your god damn armor off. Take it off. Now." Quackity said harshly.

Technoblade began to take off his armor. Ranboo came forward to help the Piglin hybrid with his armor, carefully stowing it away. Technoblade glared at him, making mental note that the white-and-black male had his armor.

Soon, Techno was cuffed like you were. Quackity brought you over, keeping you a safe difference from Technoblade. Tubbo took the Orphan Obliterator. 

Big Q then pulled out another shackle-like piece of metal, although it was only one loop instead of two, and it had a long chain attached to it. He smirked and reached forward to fasten the collar around your neck. It was uncomfortable, the metal was cold and skin-tight, threatening to cut off your air. It was pressed against the wound from the axe, causing you quite a bit of pain and discomfort.

Quackity pulled on the chain, yanking you forward. You stumbled a bit, not used to not being able to use your arms for balance. The cut on your neck stung sharply, and you felt tears prick the edges of your eyes at the pain.

"Hey!" Technoblade yelled, lunging towards Quackity, even though his hands were bound. Tubbo and Fundy managed to hold him back. 

"What, Techno? You don't like her in a collar? I thought you and her were getting kinky~" Quackity smirked at him. Technoblade growled, baring his teeth.

"Not denying it, eh? Heh... guess I was right, huh?" Big Q smiled widely, showing off his own sharp teeth. Technoblade narrowed his eyes. Quackity laughed insanely, sounding as if he were mad.

"Anyway, here, Ranboo." Quackity chuckled and threw Ranboo your sword. Ranboo fumbled with it for a second, almost impaling himself, before getting a good hold on it.

You looked desperately at Ranboo, still hoping he would help you. He didn't meet your eyes.

Big Q then handed your armor to Tubbo, who stowed it away. 

"Okay," Quackity chuckled darkly, "Technoblade, this is what's going to happen next..." 

"What do you want?" Techno hissed, twisting his arms in an attempt to loosen the shackles around his wrists.

"We're going to take you back to L'Manberg, and you're going to face trial." Quackity ignored his angry prisoner. "Technoblade we're going to take you back to L'Manberg and you're going to go to trial, you understand?" He repeated.

"Yes." Techno muttered, in a defeated tone.

"Okay." Quackity brought his axe up near your chin, hovering it there threateningly. "If not, I'm going to kill her. Don't fucking try me." He lowered the axe, "Alright! Fellas... let's escort him to L'Manberg." Quackity forced you forward, and the group began to move back into the forest where the Butcher Army had appeared out of.

You looked over at Technoblade, hoping he would catch your eye and look back at you, and promise you that everything would be okay. However he didn't look at you. His head hung in shame and defeat, his tail dragging across the snowy ground.

Quackity had handed your chain to Ranboo, as Big Q had gone to 'control' Technoblade. Maybe he thought Techno would try and escape, however the Piglin hybrid didn't even talk as he was led forward.

You looked up at Ranboo. He glanced down at you for a second, but quickly looked away. 

"Why are you doing this?" You whispered to him, making sure none of the others could hear.

"I...I don't know..." Ranboo whispered back.

"It's obvious you don't want to..." You knew Ranboo could easily kill you right now, and you were afraid of pushing him too far, however he just nodded slightly and hung his head.

"I did this for Tubbo..." Ranboo glanced up at the small brown-haired male, a slight blush covering his cheeks. You followed his gaze over to Tubbo, then