Okay!! This is another collab with CloudWriterGrey ! Woo!!

So, if you happened to mosey over to their profile first, then this oneshot is nothing new, as we wrote one big tangdaph thing and then just posted it on both our accounts. two updates with half the content! /j

No warnings, I think!

WC: ~2,800

Enjoy!

"So, what kind of murderification devices are you storing here?" Tango's sparkling voice startled Zedaph out of his sorting.

The Netherborn had come up behind him while he was sorting his "Hall of All". The room held chest after chest, along with a handful of barrels, each slot in every storage box reserved for a certain item. Zed turned around to face him, a bright smile on his face.

"No murderification in this one, Tango!" came the cheerful response. "I'm collecting every item and block this server has to offer!"

"What, like an old man's stamp collection?" Tango snickered, drawing a laugh from Zed.

"Pretty much, yeah," he joked. Tango joined him on the stone floor, sitting just close enough for Zedaph to notice.

"Can I see?" he asked, tipping his head at the chest. His blonde hair shifted with the movement, and Zedaph had to tear his gaze away from the curls to meet Tango's warm red gaze.

"Be my guest, my friend!" he hummed. Tango grinned and spent a good amount of time there with Zedaph, filling the small room with light conversation and laughter. It was a little too corny to admit, but it was things like these that made Tango's company that much more enjoyable.

And it wasn't that Zedaph found him attractive or handsome or cute, not at all. It was just that he was trying to pay attention to the things Tango was saying.

And it was, in fact, because they were such good friends, that Zedaph felt a little pang of sadness when Tango told him he had to go work on his own base.

And yes, his heart had maybe been thudding in his chest a little as he stared at the Nether portal for an extra second, but that probably had some sort of other, perfectly logical explanation behind it.

That was all.

Zedaph groaned and buried his face in his hands.

Maybe if I get myself a Disney soundtrack, he thought dryly. Things will start falling into place.

Unsurprisingly, no convenient birds chose to start singing.

Elsewhere in the Hermitcraft server, Tango had almost walked straight into lava.

Distracted by his wandering mind as he made his way back to his own base, it had certainly been a wakeup call.

There was a part of him he almost didn't want to acknowledge, that urged him to turn right around and head back to Zedaph's place. He knew it was unrealistic, he had things to do and wouldn't let some silly crush distract him.

Even if that silly crush had already been distracting him for the past several months.

Tango was just about to walk himself straight into lava a second time, when he stopped himself in his tracks.

Yeah, he thought, I need to do something about this.

Veering off his previous path, Tango instead headed for the portal to Impulse's base. Though he needed to do something, there wasn't much he could do. Though talking to someone about it could be a good place to start.

Besides, maybe Impulse could help him. It wasn't like Tango had done anything about his feelings so far, but maybe Impulse could help him work through them.

Better yet, Tango thought, get over them! Yeah, he figured. It wasn't as if Zedaph would reciprocate those feelings anyway. In the best interest of their friendship, he'd be right to move on.

Decisively, Tango headed through Impulse's portal.

Impulse was at his raid farm when he heard the sound of someone else stepping through the Nether Portal.

"Impulse!" Tango called out. "Hey!"

Impulse smiled and turned to face his friend, waving.

"Hey man!" he greeted his friend. "What's up?"

"Nothing much," Tango replied with a shrug. "Can we talk?"

"Of course!" Impulse responded, keeping the cheerful tone through his mild concern. "What's going on?"

"So uh, hypothetically," Tango started. "If I had this itty-bitty maybe sorta crush on someone, and that someone happened to be a very close friend of mine, what should I do? Keep in mind that this hypothetical person definitely does not return the feeling."

He's joking, Impulse's brain said. This is some elaborate joke, right?

"It's Zedaph, isn't it?" Impulse sighed.

"Maybe it is!" Tango cried, though he was now smiling. "Or not! This is hypothetical!"

"I think," Impulse said. "That you should consider making some romantic advances on him."

Because you're horribly oblivious, his thoughts continued. Not that Impulse was a telepath or anything, but he was pretty sure most everyone else on the server was able to pick up on whatever Tango and Zed had going on.

"Do you really think so?" Tango asked. "I mean, what if this like- scuffs up our friendship?"

"I don't think it will," Impulse hummed. "You and Zed are really close, I think you'll be able to get around some crush, if things go wrong."

"Maaaaaybe," Tango mumbled, dragging out the vowel. "But what if-"

"Tango," Impulse interrupted him. "You've got this, okay? Just do your thing!" Something shifted in Tango's expression and he grinned, red eyes darting away as some kind of thought formulated in his head.

"Maybe you're right," he agreed. "Thanks so much, Impy. You're the best!!"

"It's what I'm here for," Impulse's tone was affectionately exasperated.

"Oh, and it's hypothetical, remember?" Tango called out right as he exited through the portal.

"Of course it is," Impulse snorted before continuing the build.

Once back in the nether, Tango mulled it over. Romantic advances, he thought to himself. So what, flirt with him? Though still a little unsure, Impulse had assured him it wouldn't mess anything up. Yeah, he could trust Impulse's advice.

Before he could really stop himself, he was heading straight back for Zedaph's base and warping through the portal.

Only once there, face to face with his surprised and mildly confused friend, did he realize he hadn't thought up an excuse.

"You're back? You're back!" Zed smiled, then tipped his head to study him. "You're already back."

"Er- yeah, I-" thinking fast, Tango checked his inventory. "-I noticed you didn't have one of these in your collection!" Choosing an item at random, he put down a chest.

Zedaph looked back at him. "Well, you've got the right idea! I do have a chest though." With a good natured laugh, he handed the item back to Tango.

"Oh."

That laugh. That sweet, stupid, cute laugh.

"Is that what you came back for?" Zedaph asked.

No, Tango thought. "Yep!"

"Hm. Well if you did want to stay, you could," Zedaph offered. "If it was the Hall you wanted to help me with, there's plenty you could do. I know you're a busy guy though!"

I'd love that. "That sounds great. I've got to go back eventually though."

"Ah, no, I get it." Tango almost thought he was imagining the disappointment in Zedaph's voice. He'd have loved to stay too.

Now or never, he thought.

"But, I'm free later. Tonight maybe? We could, ah- go out and do something? Together?"

Zed's eyes lit up. "Go out and do something? Together?" He repeated back with a grin. "Like what?"

Stupidly, Tango had no plan once again.

"Uhhh," he said. "Maybe like uh- a... walk?"

"A walk?" Zed echoed.

"Yeah!" Tango said. "Just a walk. 'Cause uh... walks are fun. Walking. Yes." he cleared his throat. Zedaph giggled, doing some magic hocus pocus crap to Tango's brain.

"I think that sounds fun!" Zedaph agreed to Tango's relief. "I'll see you tonight!"

"Yeah," Tango said with a smile. "See you!"

And then he was gone, through the Nether portal.

"IMPULSE!!" Zedaph shouted as he entered iTrade. Impulse jumped from checking his orders on the lectern.

"Uh, hey?" Impulse said with a nervous laugh. "Can I, uh, help you?"

"Yes," Zed said, beginning to pace. "Tango offered to take me for a walk, whatever the heck that's supposed to mean, and I agreed, of course, but it's not like, a date, is it? Not that I don't like him because I do like him but I don't think he likes me and I don't want to do something I'll regret and-"

"Oh my gosh," Impulse breathed out. "Take it down like ten notches. What's going on?" Zedaph took a deep breath.

"Tango offered to take me for a walk," he repeated. "And I don't want to misinterpret his intentions."

"Okay," Impulse said slowly, choosing his words carefully. "Do you think it's supposed to be romantic?"

"No!" Zedaph cried. "But I want it to be!! But it's not!! Unless it is!!"

"Go on the walk with Tango," Impulse advised him. "And see how he's setting the mood. How's that?"

"Good," Zedaph mumbled. "Can I ask you another question?"

"Go for it,"

"Do you think that he maybe like- likes me?"

Impulse opened his mouth, then closed it again, then bit his lip, clearly considering what to say to that.

"You don't have to say anything," Zed assured him. "I get it. I'll see you later, Impulse!!"

And then he left.

"Gosh darn- Zed!!" Impulse hissed under his breath. He sighed, running a hand down his face.

Hopefully Tango's little 'walk' would help sort things out between the two.

It was later that night when the two of them met up again, just as planned. Tango had dropped back by Zedaph's base, this time using the proper entrance to pick him up. Wearing no armor and looking tidier than usual, he waited for Zedaph to join him, feeling completely ridiculous with the little bouquet he'd brought.

Even if this doesn't go well, I won't mess anything up. We're friends, Tango reminded himself.

Soon enough, there he was.

"You're here! Hello!" Zedaph greeted him brightly. He too wore no armor, looking a little cleaner himself. He smiled widely.

Forcing his nerves back, Tango smiled back and held the flowers out to him. Poppies and daisies. "These are for you!"

"For me? Tango, you shouldn't have!" Zedaph laughed, that same sweet sound, as he took the flowers from him. "Are you going to offer me an arm like a gentleman too for our evening stroll?"

"I mean if you want me to," Tango replied with a little laugh in turn. His heart beat so loud he would have sworn Zedaph could hear it as he offered his friend his arm.

Zedaph wasn't much better himself. His face burned, and his cheeks already hurt from smiling. He hoped that Tango wouldn't see the change in his demeanor, because at the end of the day, it wasn't a date. There was no way this was a date, it was just Tango being Tango, right?

With his free hand, Zedaph carried the flowers. Of course they weren't meant romantically, though the red did remind him of Tango's eyes.

He shut that train of thought down before he could drive himself completely mad. "So where are we headed?"

Tango glanced over at him and half shrugged. "Wherever we want to go, Zed." Zedaph paused to think, before his face brightened.

"There's this really cool place," he offered. "It's not far from here, and you can really see the sunset from there. Wanna see it?"

"Yeah!" Tango replied with a grin. Zedaph shifted to hold Tango's hand and dragged him along, laughing. He didn't let go of the flowers, just clutched them tight. Tango's enchanting laughter met his own as they continued on their journey.

Minutes later they arrived, Zedaph gesturing for Tango to sit in the soft grass with him. The scene was aglow with the warm lights of the sunset, but the most warm thing there was the feeling Zedaph got when Tango draped an arm around Zedaph's shoulders.

"You were right, buttercup," he hummed. "This is nice. Really nice."

"Y-yeah," Zedaph stammered out, his mind- and heart- racing.

Buttercup? Zedaph's brain cried. Buttercup??? Is that supposed to mean something, or is it just Tango??

Zedaph stole a glance at his friend, immediately looking away after catching a glimpse of the serene expression that he wore. The arm around Zedaph's shoulders didn't move, not that he wanted it to. Frankly, Zed could've stayed there, under the fading sunlight, with Tango, forever.

The temperature was dropping, however, and he knew forever was unrealistic. So instead, he took a chance, leaning into Tango's hold on him.

"This was different," Zedaph admitted, "and I really liked it."

Different, Tango thought. He ran his hand over Zedaph's arm. It was different, and he knew he wanted it to be. But what kind of 'different' is Zed thinking of?

"We should do this again," Zedaph added.

"Yeah, we should" Tango finally managed. "I had a lot of fun. I like... being around you."

"I like being around you"? Tango panicked.

He "likes being around me"? Zedaph thought.

Zed smiled. "I like being around you too."

And right then both of them had the same thought: I need to talk to Impulse.

' The night was over shortly after that, Tango walking Zedaph back to his base, the two hand in hand and relatively quiet. Not an awkward quiet, but a comfortable one. They stopped where Tango had picked him up, though neither made a move to leave.

"So we're on for this again sometime?" Tango asked.

"Of course we are," Zedaph replied.

There was a moment of hesitation where the two just stood there hand in hand before Zedaph finally, reluctantly, broke contact, offering Tango a little wave before heading back into his base and seeing him off for the night.

And once again, a similar thought ran through the minds of both of them: What had just happened?

"Impulse, you will not believe what happened last night," Tango said as he walked into iTrade. "Oh my god."

"Let me guess," Impulse snorted. "You and Zedaph went out together and had lots of romantic fun?"

"Yes but actually no!" Tango replied. "We didn't actually, y'know, and I don't know what to do."

"Talk to me about it," Impulse offered.

"You already know I- y'know- like like him," Tango sighed. "But I really don't think he feels the same."

Through his distress, Tango didn't notice Impulse's eyes go wide and his face pale.

"I told him I'd bring him for another walk or whatever," Tango muttered. "But it's not a, like, date. Unless I made it one. That'd be nice."

"I'm gonna," Impulse chuckled. "I'm gonna leave." Tango blinked, surprised.

"Wait, why?" he asked, only then thinking to look behind him.

Standing in the doorway, his eyes wide with shock and his face red, was Zedaph.

"No- Impulse don't leave- y-" Tripping over his words, Tango tried to get his friend to stay. He couldn't stop Impulse from sliding out, dipping his head in the direction of Tango and Zed.

"You two sort it out," was the last thing he said.

Slowly, dreading the inevitable, Tango turned fully to face Zedaph. He couldn't quite meet his gaze.

"Go on," Tango said, "You say something, I don't know where to start."

"You... kind of already did." Zedaph half smiled. "So last night... you did mean that as a date?"

"I mean- kind of?" Tango scratched the back of his neck. "Look, Zed, you don't have to... I don't know... I-I'm not trying to mess anything up."

"'Mess anything up'?" With a little laugh of disbelief, Zedaph shook his head. "Tango, I just didn't know you felt the same way I did."

Tango's gaze snapped to his. "Wait, were you thinking that you wanted it to be a date too?"

"Yeah! I was! But I thought there was no way that's what it was meant to be."

A smile began to grow on Tango's face. "Oh, what, the flowers didn't give it away," he joked.

"My choice of location didn't give it away?" Zedaph countered lightly. More sure of himself now, he took a step towards Tango, and in turn Tango too moved closer.

"No, clearly it didn't."

Close enough now to touch, Zedaph reached for Tango's hand, and this time with something more clear behind it, Tango took it.

"So now what? What next?" Zedaph asked softly.

"I have a couple of ideas," Tango offered with a small smile. He pulled Zedaph a little closer, gently placing a hand on Zedaph's cheek. Zed placed a hand over Tango's, leaning into his touch.

"Hate to ruin the moment," Impulse broke in, and Tango stepped back in a startled rush. "But frankly, in a very nice way, take your disastrous romantic lives back to one of your bases."

Zedaph blushed and Tango barked out an embarrassed laugh before he took Zedaph's hand and led them both out the shop.

"Come on," he murmured. "Let's head over to my place?"

"Yeah," Zedaph managed, his voice coming out a lot more breathless than he intended.

Impulse smiled as the pair left.

"Oh, and for the record," Tango added as they walked together. "The next walk we go on is definitely a date."

"Just a walk?" Zedaph laughed with mock disappointment.

"Maybe I'll think up something special," Tango teased. "We'll see!"

Zedaph grinned.

Maybe Tango's little walk had sparked up something even better.

may the tangdaph fuel your soul.

-Storm