Young at Heart (let me stay here forever)
I got inspired by a head cannon discussion in the MCYT Discord Server and really wanted to write it :D This one's for you guys <3
Also Henry is best boy, I don't make the rules
Word Count: 2,493
Warnings: None
This is a SFW tickle fic, if you don’t like that then don’t read :)
Tommy sighed to himself as he kicked the dirt out of his way, taking care not to scuff up the flowers with his boot in passing. He was frustrated, but he’d never hurt flowers, he wasn’t a monster.
He’d been arguing with Wilbur. He didn’t know what started the argument but it ended with Tommy snarling out a harsh insult and storming out of the house, leaving Wilbur alone to cool down. His feet were moving without his awareness, too caught up in his own head as he muttered angrily to himself, kicking any grass that annoyed him and glaring at the ground.
He almost walked into a fencepost with his eyes on the floor and head in the swirling hurricane that was his brain. Tommy’s eyes snapped up, his blue eyes dark with his bitter rage only to meet warm brown irises.
A yelp left Tommy’s lips as he stumbled backwards, falling to the grass he’d been vehemently kicking up in his path on his way. His fall was cushioned by the thick grass, leaving him staring up at the blue sky above. The blonde grumbled to himself as he hefted himself to sit up on his elbows, lifting his gaze back up to the fence again.
A brown cow watched him at the fence’s edge, its gentle gaze staring at Tommy in a way that made the boy soften despite his internal rage.
“Hey Henry” he sighed, pushing himself off of the ground to stand, nabbing the fence to help him rise. He leant heavily against the wooden railing, smiling when the cow moved to butt his head against Tommy’s chest. “Miss me?”
Henry mooed happily, nuzzling his head against Tommy gently with enthusiasm, ears flicking at the quiet huffs of laughter Tommy gave.
“I swear, you’re worse than Tubbo” the boy chuckled, rubbing behind the cow’s ear and laughing again when Henry leaned into it heavily with a pleased sound. “Clingy dork.”
Henry gave a grunt, giving Tommy a look that clearly said “bet” and knocked his nose into Tommy’s cheek, huffing happily at the soft laugh that left his boy from the action. He then took a step away and tossed his head to the side, pawing at the grass with a hoof and a hopeful look on his face. It was a simple message, one Tommy had been told many times by the intelligent animal, and who was he to ignore it?
Tommy vaulted the fence, landing on the opposite side and immediately being attacked by the fluffy monster. It got another laugh from Tommy, quickly wrapping his arms around the cow’s neck and burying his face into the soft coat of fur on Henry, breathing in the familiar scent of dew and flowers.
“Hey bud” he murmured, pressing his face further into the cow’s neck.
Henry mooed again, brushing against Tommy’s back in question.
“Wilbur and I… we had a fight.” Tommy spoke softly, guilt and regret starting to replace the rage that had pulsed throughout his body like a blazing inferno. “He...He was being unfair.”
Henry grunted.
“Okay maybe he wasn’t,” Tommy conceded with a sigh. “I don’t know why we started arguing but…” he swallowed back tears that threatened to rise. “B-But he said some mean things- I did too actually...I didn’t mean any of it I just-”
Tommy clung tighter to Henry who brushed his head against his back soothingly, soft rumbles leaving his chest that always managed to soothe the blonde. Tommy shifted to lean heavily into Henry’s side, knees starting to go weak.
“I get angry easily, you know that Hens, don’t you? Yeah...yeah smart boy…” the praise trailed off as Tommy dropped his cheek into Henry’s back, giving a shaky sigh. “...Wilbur probably hates me.”
Henry caught the quiet fear in Tommy’s voice and lifted his head to knock it against Tommy’s. He gave a low croon, brown eyes boring into the boy’s. A stuttered breath left Tommy as he leaned into the touch, biting his tongue to stop a whine from slipping past his lips at the gentle affection.
"I'm- I'm sorry bud-" Tommy mumbled, his eyes burning with the effort of holding back tears.
The cow's heart ached for his boy, seeing him on the verge of sobbing made him rumble sympathetically and worriedly. He gently took hold of Tommy’s sleeve with his teeth, tugging the boy to follow as he slowly walked towards one of the trees in his paddock. Once under the shade, Henry let go and nudged Tommy’s lower back with a soft chuff. The boy sat down onto the grass, the routine pretty familiar to the pair as Tommy often went to the cow whenever he was upset. Henry lay down by Tommy's side, leaving his back end for the boy to lean on while lowering his head to lie across his lap. Tommy went boneless, letting all his weight sink into Henry's side with a weak sigh. His need to cry had simmered down to soft sniffles, watching Henry's ears flick with glassy eyes.
Henry watched his boy with an empathetic gaze, worried about how regular this was getting. These fights with Wilbur had been more frequent as of late, the man snapping at Tommy for a reason unbeknownst to the pair of them. All Henry had to go on was what Tommy told him, and he was putting it down to Wilbur being stressed, or it was a certain time of month.
But considering Wilbur was a man, he doubted the latter.
Still, the arguments were upsetting Tommy and it wasn't okay. No matter how stressed Wilbur was, he had no right to yell at the kid. Henry decided, there and then, his goal was to make Tommy happy again. He didn't like seeing his favourite boy so sad.
He lifted his head from Tommy's lap and replaced it with a leg, a comfortable weight for the boy. He then pushed his nose into the gap between Tommy's jaw and shoulder, snuffling against his neck.
Tommy squealed, shoulders jumping up at the feeling of Henry’s muzzle against his sensitive skin. “AHahye! Woah Hehenry!” he laughed, attempting to lean away from the contact but with how he was positioned against the cow’s side, escape was futile.
Henry made a pleased noise, pushing his nose further into Tommy’s neck and nuzzling the softness of his nose against him. His ears flicked up happily when he heard the sudden peals of giggles from his boy, encouraging him to blow out a happy chuff. He didn’t expect Tommy to squeak and try to push his face away gently in a fit of high giggles.
“H-Hehehehenry! Thahat- thahahat tihihickles!” he whined, but Henry saw the way his eyes had lit back up already.
Good. He planned to keep it that way.
Henry mooed, an almost mischievous lilt to the sound as he pushed his head back underneath Tommy’s jaw, huffing and puffing gently as he brushed over Tommy’s neck. The boy squealed, hunching in on himself as he tried to duck his head away from the soft touch but simultaneously stay still to bask in it.
Henry seemed to catch on as he moved his leg to rest over Tommy’s waist, further trapping him in a warm hug. He then rubbed his nose over Tommy’s neck and ears gently, blowing soft breaths out to make the boy squeak.
Tommy’s laughter was bubbly and happy, the light tickling on his sensitive neck making him melt into a giggly puddle. While Henry didn’t know everything about humans, he knew laughter was a sound of happiness, and Tommy’s laugh was his favourite, hooves down. There really was no competition anyway.
Tommy squirmed under the sensations, gently holding onto Henry’s leg that was pinning him in a loving embrace, ultimately making him laugh more at the fluffy fur brushing against his hands. A deep rumble of fondness left Henry at the new bout of giggles spilling from his boy, his ears perking up in response.
“H-HeheheHEHENRY-!” Tommy gasped when the cow nuzzled behind his ear, a weak spot only known to a few.
Henry mooed back in response, brushing over the area gently and relaxing at Tommy's squeaky giggles that came from it. Tommy melted into the fluffy fur of the cow, inevitably only getting the back of his neck tickled by Henry’s fur in the process. He squirmed lightly, tossing his head back in his laughter and squealing when Henry took the opportunity to snuffle underneath his jaw as well.
“AHAHahaheyehehe! Y-YohoHOHou-! Nohohohoho!” Tommy cried out in his helpless giggles, shaking his head but unable to push away the persistent nose tickling him.
Henry huffed out a laugh, eyes sparkling when Tommy squeaked at the warm puff of air that brushed over the sensitive skin. He nuzzled the area for a moment longer then pulled back, Tommy immediately pressing his chin down to his chest to prevent the cow from attacking it again.
“Hehehehens- Hehehehenry” he pressed out between bouncy giggles, holding a hand up in a meager defense. “H-Hohohold ohohon buhuhud-”
Henry paused in his actions, brown eyes watching Tommy carefully for any signs of discomfort or if he’d overstepped. He wanted to make Tommy happy, not uncomfortable after all. To his delight however, he saw the sparkle in the blonde’s eye and the happy grin on his face, and those were the signs Henry needed.
He gave a rumbling sound, eyes narrowing mischievously before lunging his head forward to bury his nose into the side of Tommy’s neck. The boy’s shoulders leapt to his ears as he shrieked in laughter, half hearted protests spilling out as he cackled. The joyful sounds melted the cow’s heart and he hummed happily, puffing warm breaths out and grinning when it caused Tommy to hiccup in his stream of hysteric giggles.
Henry then decided to be especially mean and wormed his tail under Tommy's shirt to tickle his belly, simultaneously rubbing his fluffy nose against his neck. Tommy squealed loudly, curling into a ball and squirming against the soft sensations that were attacking him. His eyes were crescent moons with how big his smile was, his laughter growing louder when Henry's tail brushed over a sensitive spot.
"HehEHEhehenry!" He whined, holding onto Henry's leg firmer to bear the ticklish sparks tingling through his system.
Henry mooed gleefully, his tail wagging underneath the boy's shirt and causing Tommy to shriek and laugh hysterically as his belly button was now under assault by the cow's fluffy tail.
"Ohoho goHOHOhod ihit tihihickles sohoho muhuhuch! Hehehenry! YoHOHOhou prihihick!" Tommy scuffed his heels into the grass in his laughter, holding the cow’s leg in a tight hug as he shook his head frantically.
The tickling persisted for a moment more before Henry pulled his head and tail back to observe his handiwork. What met his eyes made his chest warm with fondness.
A pink blush dusted Tommy's cheeks and nose, his ears a faint rosy hue as well. His smile was so wide it showed his dimples, eyes alight again with their usual spark. He looked like himself again.
Henry hummed contently, knocking his forehead against Tommy's own and released a deep chuffing noise. Tommy nuzzled his head into the soft fur of his friend, releasing a happy sigh only slightly interrupted by lingering giggles.
"Thahanks bud," he murmured sincerely, "you're fuckin' amazing."
Henry gave a pleased moo and lifted his face from Tommy to press his nose into his gold hair, starting to fix the messy state it was in. Tommy giggled again, getting comfortable against Henry and leaning his weight fully against him.
This was the usual pattern, after lifting Tommy's spirits, Henry would go about tending to anything he could to help Tommy relax. And while Tommy usually hated anyone hovering around him, he felt at peace with the cow.
Tommy gently patted Henry's leg, getting a questioning grunt from the animal. "Tail, big man, please and thank you."
Henry gave a huff that sounded suspiciously like a laugh as he swept his tail around to lay in Tommy's lap. The boy immediately started to gently rake his fingers through the fluff at the end of it, taking care not to tug at any tangles. Henry softened impossibly more and nuzzled Tommy's hair before going back to grooming it.
Tommy, bless his heart, had started weaving flowers into the fluff of Henry's tail, taking advantage of the abundance of daisies dotting the paddock.
"You deserve to look pretty- or uh, handsome? Poggers, you deserve to look poggers is my point" Tommy spoke quietly, a smile in his voice and on his face. "And while you're already very poggers, the daisies will be a nice addition."
Henry wished he could speak english so he could shower Tommy in adoring words, he was too damn pure for this world. Instead, he dealt with the fullness of his heart differently. He flicked his tail up to brush against Tommy's neck and melted at the soft squeak and giggly whine that left his boy.
"Hehey! That's not fair! I'm trying to make you look poggers and you're trying to attack me again! Rude Henry, so very rude" Tommy tutted but Henry caught the look in his eye that told him Tommy really didn't mind.
The cow was known to be much more intelligent than suspected, as well as being much more mischievous than expected.
Henry gave a complacent moo, giving Tommy an innocent look the boy rolled his eyes at. He settled back into Henry's side, going back to carefully weaving daisies into the fluff of his tail. Henry waited patiently for Tommy to finish before lifting his tail again to brush over Tommy's neck and ears quickly, heart going to mush at the gasp and soft giggles that spilled from Tommy immediately.
"N-Nohoho! Hehenry yohou meheheanie! Dohohon't-!" The rest of Tommy's words were lost in the onslaught of his happy laughter.
Henry only kept up the slightly mean attack for another moment more before settling his tail back on the boy's lap. Tommy's flush was back and so was his sweet smile, his giggles trailing off as he calmed down. He lifted a finger to the cow's face, lightly booping his nose with a faux stern look.
"Thahat was uncalled fohor, why doho you keep trying to kill mehe with your softness?"
Henry only nudged Tommy's hand gently, his big brown eyes watching the blonde fondly. Was Tommy dramatic? Yes. But did he love Tommy? Yes, absolutely. The overdramatics were only more endearing honestly.
Tommy sighed at the gentle motion of Henry brushing against his hand, lifting it up to scratch behind Henry's ear much to the cow's joy. "You're too cute for your own good, you know that? Able to get away with anything."
You and me both, Henry thought in amusement as he leaned into the affection. It's what makes you so special.
