Chapter Text
The world crashed around Ranboo. The façade of familiarity, routine, safety shattered into pieces as he took in the sight in front of him. His heart sank, he wasn’t even sure if he was breathing. His hands were shaking, tears of fear welled in his eyes.
“Ranboo, stay calm, I’m coming.” Phil’s voice rang out in his comm.
“No,” Tommy said with more finality than Ranboo had ever heard. “You’re going back to base and getting Tubbo.”
“I’m not going to leave him here.”
“Please,” Tommy said. “Get Tubbo.”
“You heard that, Tubbo?” Phil asked.
“Yep,” Tubbo said in confirmation. “Already gathering my stuff.”
“You okay with this, mate?”
“I’d rather you picked me up than not.”
He heard Phil shout Tommy’s name and a door shutting, he couldn’t wonder if those two pieces of information were related, he was too scared.
“So,” Dream drawled. “You know Tubbo Underscore?”
“Who?” Ranboo said, putting on an accent. “Is that one of those hip-hop youngsters the kids are talking about these days?”
“What?” Sapnap sputtered. “No, he’s your associate!”
“I know no Tubbo Underscore,” Ranboo shook his head. “I’m just here for my fix. My fix of drugs.”
“What?” Dream asked. “What’s your name?”
“They called me RanBob back in the day!”
“Grandpa!” Tommy shouted from behind him. Tommy was behind him, he wasn’t in the van. He didn’t know why he wasn’t in the van, wasn’t safe. “What are you doing here?”
“Grandpa?” Ranboo asked
“Did you forget to take your meds again, Grandpa?” Tommy wagged a finger in his general direction.
“I am 47! I can do what I want!”
“Grandpa, you’re not 47,” Tommy explained gently. “You’re 82.”
“What?” Ranboo whispered, looking down at his hands.
“Sorry about him, he has an undiagnosed memory condition and Sanus Puer which means he ages really slowly compared to the rest of society,” Tommy lied, shaking his head solemnly. “Well, we’ll be out of your way here. Sorry about this.”
“You’re not going anywhere,” Sapnap said, raising his crossbow.
“But the old folks’ home has a strict curfew.” Tommy looked down at his imaginary watch, “and we’re already pushing it, so we should really be going.”
Tommy turned them around, towards the exit. His heart was in his throat due to his anxiety. This was the first time he’d seen Dream since it happened. He thought he was ready, he thought he was over it, he wasn’t. His breaths were heavy in his lungs, like they were trapped, like he was suffocating behind an invisible barrier.
It was terrifying. His ribs had phantom pains he hadn’t even thought about in months. He was scared, more scared than he was when it happened. Time seemed to move in slow motion. He couldn’t move fast enough, he couldn’t Ranboo out of there fast enough. He didn’t care about himself, whatever the result of the false deal, Ranboo had to be okay.
Ranboo deserved that much. He deserved to live, to survive, to not be hurt by Dream any more than he already had been. Tommy had to get him out, get him to safety, back to Phil and Tubbo. Ranboo needed to be okay, Tommy needed Ranboo to be okay.
Tommy’s thoughts were moving faster than he could process, he made peace with his death in the same second he recognized it could occur. He hoped Phil and Wilbur and Techno wouldn’t be mad at him for it. Perhaps it would be easier if they were; if they were angry with him. Perhaps it would only hurt more.
He faintly heard a trigger being pulled when they were mere decimeters away from the exit. He heard an arrow whizzing through the air. He heard Ranboo’s screams of anguish. He heard it before he felt the air brush against his head, his hand caught it like it was easy practice. Any feeling of fear or anxiety was replaced with sheer unadulterated rage, and he was very willing to act on it.
He turned to Ranboo, “Get out. I’ll cover for you.”
“What about you?” Ranboo asked, blood from his shoulder leaking past his hand onto the floor.
“I’ll be fine, go. Now.”
Tommy turned towards the two men, he heard Ranboo briefly collapse against the outside wall, before picking himself back up and leaving. He was safe, Tommy let out a sigh of relief. His eyes focused on the menacing smiley face masked man. He broke the arrow in half and threw it at his feet.
“Tommy,” Dream smirked, nobody could see it, but they could hear it, and it made Tommy’s skin crawl. “Glad to see you, how are those bruises healing up?”
“Dream,” Tommy greeted curtly. “How’s the guilty conscience?”
“Feeling mighty innocent,” Dream shrugged. “Ready to go another round. You up for it?”
“Don’t think I have much of a choice in the matter.” Tommy put his arms up in a defensive position, blocking his face.
“You don’t,” Dream confirmed, first to move. He surged forward, towards Tommy. He narrowly missed Tommy’s jaw. Tommy dropped low, getting a hit to Dream’s abdomen. “You’ve improved.”
“Or maybe you’ve just fallen off,” Tommy taunted. “Old man bones starting to creak on you, yet?”
“You wish,” most of the playful taunting had left Dream’s voice. He had no kind façade for him to hide behind, his true intentions showing to the world. He wanted to hurt Tommy and he wanted that hurt to last.
“What?” Tommy laughed, dodging another hit. “Too focused for pleasantries?”
“Do you know how annoying you are?” Dream sneered.
“I think it adds to my charm,” Tommy smirked. “What do you think, Sapnap?”
“I think a two against one fight would be fun right about now,” Sapnap used his foot to kick himself off the wall giving him a boost. “You like crossbows, Tommy? Because you’re about to get a whole lot more familiar with them.”
“Oh no, I’m sweating,” Tommy deadpanned. “Like I didn’t just catch one in mid-air.”
“You think you’re just so smart, huh?” Dream scoffed, “I overestimated how mature you’d be.”
“I overestimated how good at fighting you were,” Tommy retorted. “Two can play at that one, Dreamie.”
“Shut up,” Dream yelled.
“Can dish it out, but can’t take it?” Tommy said. “Oh, you poor thing. It must be so hard for you.” Dream dodged the punch Tommy sent his way. “It must be hard preying on innocent people. It must be hard stealing their money, their lives.”
“Quite easy, actually,” Dream kicked Tommy in the knee, forcing him down to a lower level. He pushed the hood off his head and grabbed a fist full of his hair, pulling him up to eye level. “Not as easy as it’ll be to kill you, though.”
“Too bad you’ll never get the chance.” Tommy launched up, breaking Dream’s grip on his hair. He backflipped away from Dream, he stumbled back during the landing. He stumbled back right into Sapnap.
“Tommy?” Sapnap asked. “Was it?”
“Nope; never heard that name in my life,” Tommy denied the claim.
“Really?” Sapnap squinted his eyes. “It’s a pretty common name.”
“Not to me,” Tommy dropped down, swiping Sapnap’s legs out from under him. He turned back to Dream. He held Sapnap’s crossbow up towards Tommy, he stepped forward so it was against Tommy’s chest.
“Dream: two, Tommy: zero?” Dream said condescendingly. Tommy looked down, the head of the arrow was pressed into the fabric of his hoodie. He looked back up to the unmoving mask.
“Do it then,” Tommy told him, glaring at the pathetic excuse of a person that was trying to shoot him. “Kill me, take my life. Add me to the list, use my blood to paint a fresh coat of red on your conscience. Do it.”
“Oh, but it wouldn’t be fun to kill you now,” Dream pushed Tommy back further with the crossbow. “You’re alone. I’d much rather your family be there, having to watch. It would send a message.”
“What? That you’re deranged? Insane? Sadistic? I think they already know.” Tommy snarled.
“The message that you and your friends and your family,” Dream took the crossbow off Tommy’s chest. It was a mistake on Dream’s part. He started circling around Tommy. “Shouldn’t mess with me. I thought they’d understand after the last time, but I guess the consequences weren’t severe enough.”
Tommy rolled his eyes and backed into Dream, putting his hands around the crossbow and dropped down, pulling it with him. “And maybe my brother should’ve been harsher during your little chat.”
“Brother?” Dream asked.
“Pink hair, large, if he got hit by a semi, we’d worry about the semi?” Tommy shook his head in confusion. “Ringing any bells?”
“Oh, Piggie!” Dream laughed. “He’s your brother?”
“No. What gave you that idea?” Tommy asked.
“You just said he was your brother,” Sapnap said.
“It’s called a lie,” Tommy rolled his eyes. “Ever heard of that?”
Dream looked like he was gonna launch towards Tommy, so he raised the crossbow. He shot blindly in Sapnap direction before moving right and faking left to get out of Dream’s reach. Sapnap reacted quickly, twisting Tommy’s arm which forced him to drop the crossbow.
Dream recovered from his missed hit on Tommy then took the wrist that was in Sapnap’s hand and pushed it against Tommy’s back. Dream jerked Tommy forward, Tommy resisted, forcing himself upward. His arm ached for release, to give in, he couldn’t. He couldn’t let Dream win. He wouldn’t.
He stomped on Dream’s foot hard enough to make him let up, Tommy pulled his arm back and backed away so that Sapnap and Dream were both in front of him.
“It’s two against one and I’m still winning,” Tommy commented. “You lot have really fallen off.”
“One more word out of your mouth and I’m putting you six feet under,” Sapnap glared at him, his hair was mussed, his bandana had fallen off during the fight. “Family here or not.”
“You can sure try,” Tommy said. “Come on, you got this! I believe in you, king!”
“Are you always this annoying?”
“Only for you,” Tommy put on an over-exaggerated fake smile. Sapnap rolled his eyes. He looked at Dream, who looked back despite the mask. They seemed as though they were communicating, conversing, whatever it was, Tommy didn’t appreciate it.
It was a synchronized attack, seemingly premeditated, perhaps that was the look. It was a plan.
Dream forced his way towards Tommy first, Sapnap circling to surround, enclosing him into a messily made cage. Tommy had never liked closed spaces, they made his breath heavy, his mind clouded, they made his hands shake. This was no different.
They circled him like predator and prey. Tommy was powerless, scared, it made him remember, finally realize, he was a kid. He was a kid, not even graduated, being stalked by murderers, ready to lead the little lamb to his slaughter.
He was painfully aware of everything on his skin, but numb to words and sounds happening around him. He faintly heard the crackle of his comm, it was Tubbo. He didn’t understand what he was saying, the words mixing into the cluttered static of his head. Tommy made the mistake of closing his eyes just for a second, Sapnap and Dream choosing to strike when he was most vulnerable.
Hands grabbed him, wrapping around him from all angles, trapping him. The world came rushing back to him when his face slammed down into the cement floor. It would leave a bruise, Tommy didn’t have time to think about it. He kicked up frantically, his ankle hooked on something. He pulled it down and he heard a shout of confusion from Sapnap who fell into Dream.
It gave him a second of relief, it gave him a second long timeframe of opportunity. He used it, he rolled over so that he was face to face with Dream. He pulled his arm back until it wouldn’t go any further, until his upper arm was flush with the ground. He put all of his effort and energy into the punch. It shattered the porcelain mask into pieces, it fell around Tommy.
Dream eased up in pain, Tommy pulled his knee up and pushed Dream off of him. Dream recovered quickly, they were standing face to face once again, but this time Tommy could see the jagged scar that ran from the left side of his jaw to his right eyebrow. It looked painful; if Tommy had an ounce more sympathy for Dream, he might’ve even winced.
“That looks like it hurt,” Tommy smiled. He distantly remembered Techno coming home smelling faintly of blood, the ends of his white button-up stained burgundy. He remembered Techno sitting beside his bed, telling him he wouldn’t have to worry anymore. He took care of it and he’d always take care of Tommy. The edges of the memory were faded from the painkillers, but he still remembered how Techno’s hand, which always ran hot, felt wrapped around his own, which seemed to run cold.
He remembered Wilbur’s soft guitar strums and late-night lullabies that Tommy was pretty sure Wilbur needed more than he did. He remembered the way Phil always brought a piece of candy with his meals, just to see his eyes light up. It was the only thing that got him through, his family.
In contrast to the comforting memories, the glare Dream sent him was seething. His anger fueled him, Tommy noted, as he was tackled to the ground a second time. Dream grabbed both of his wrists and pinned them to his back. He clenched Tommy’s shoulder bringing him up and forcing him to walk out of the room. Neither Dream nor Sapnap said anything as they handcuffed Tommy around a support beam.
The only sound was the pounding headache echoing through Tommy’s skull and the shuffling of movement. He didn’t know if he liked it better than the noise, at least if it was loud he could tune out his own thoughts, he could focus on something other than the underlying fear that thrummed through his veins.
Ranboo decided that he didn’t want to know how fast Phil was driving to get the van back to where it was before he had left to get Tubbo by the time it came back into Ranboo’s line of sight as he stumbled toward safety.
The arrow went all the way through his left shoulder. His hand was covered in a mix of fresh and dried blood as he tried to slow the bleeding. Tubbo and Phil ushered him into the van. Phil immediately brought out the emergency first-aid kit.
“Oh my god!” Tubbo squeaked when he saw the wound.
Ranboo laughed nervously, not knowing what else to do. “Yeah, think I might need a new suit.”
“Why are you worrying about your suit right now?” Phil asked, pulling out the bandages.
“Because if I don’t, I’ll be worrying about the arrow in my arm!” Ranboo said pointedly.
“It’s your shoulder,” Tubbo corrected quickly, he had his eyes scrunched tight. His nose was upturned at the metallic smell of blood.
“Thanks,” Ranboo deadpanned. “I didn’t notice.”
Phil handed him a stick. “Bite down, this is going to hurt.”
Ranboo took it from his outstretched hand. He put it in his mouth, not wanting to know how many had done it before him. He bit down hard . It didn’t stop him from letting out an agonized scream as the arrow was pulled through. He nearly passed out from the pain, Phil had to get Tubbo to keep him upright. He shed the suit jacket and pulled his arm out of the sleeve of his dress shirt.
He couldn’t bear to look at his shoulder, he focused on taking deep breaths and a spot on the wall. His jaw involuntarily tensed as Phil applied the antiseptic. It stung and he was sure he was crushing Tubbo’s hand in his, but his mind couldn’t find it in itself to move past the fogginess of pain that clouded his thoughts.
He gritted his teeth as he felt the stitches pull his wound closed. Phil’s face was set in determination, furrowed eyebrows and an intense glare. Tubbo’s hand hurt, but he had to be there for Ranboo, it was all he could do to not fall apart completely.
He notified Wilbur and Techno about the situation, they’d probably had enough time to have packed their bags and be on the road. He let his mind wander, he hoped the traffic wasn’t bad. He hoped Tommy was okay, tears pricked his eyes as he realized that one of his best friends had gotten shot and was getting stitched up in the back of a van and the other’s sacrifice was the only reason he was getting help.
He couldn’t cry, they needed him to be strong. He needed to be strong, for himself. He needed to have a clear head in case something went wrong. In case it all went wrong. He didn’t know what he would do if it did. He didn’t know what he’d do if he lost one of them, he was dangerously close to collapsing at the mere idea.
The wound was clean, the stitches were placed. Phil put a soothing cream and bandages on the place of injury and put his arm in a sling. Few words were exchanged, few words needed to be exchanged. It took too much mental energy to form sentences longer than a couple of words.
The atmosphere was tense, heavy and thick; with pain, sorrow and anxiety. There was no relief, there wouldn’t be until Tommy was safe. Ranboo and Tubbo knew that. They shared a look, one of those looks that act as enough communication.
Ranboo put back on his suit jacket, careful to not hurt his shoulder further. Tubbo grabbed a few pieces of tech.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Phil demanded.
“Need some fresh air?” Ranboo tried. Phil raised an eyebrow and Ranboo cracked under the pressure. “Look, Tommy’s in there!”
“And you’re injured!” Phil argued, gesturing to Ranboo’s shoulder.
“I’m not!” Tubbo interjected.
“You’re seventeen!” Phil pointed out.
“Well, I’m not going to just leave him there!” Tubbo yelled.
“You’re not going in,” Phil said. “I will.”
“What if we need to drive away fast?” Ranboo asked.
“None of us can drive!” Tubbo shrugged. “If we needed a getaway, you’d be our only hope!”
“I can’t let you, I’m sorry.” Phil sighed. He pinched the bridge of his nose. He wanted so badly to barge in there and show everybody why he’d earned the title of Death’s Angel, but he couldn’t because he needed to be the level-headed one.
“You let Tommy go in,” Ranboo looked to where the building would’ve been if they were outside.
“I did not let him,” Phil corrected.
“You didn’t stop him,” Tubbo argued.
“I tried to,” there was something in his voice that only a father concerned for the wellbeing of his child could achieve.
“Phil, Tommy just saved my life,” Ranboo started, a little more choked up than he wanted to be. “He went in there with the sole intention to save me. I’m not going to just sit here while he’s in danger. I can’t.”
“He’s our best friend,” Tubbo said, tears threatening to spill over. “We have to help him. Please, let us help him.”
“You’re sure about this?” Phil asked gently.
“I have never been more sure about anything in my life.” Ranboo nodded once, a strong confident nod.
“Then just,” Phil looked like he was struggling to get the words out. “Please, be careful.”
“We will,” Tubbo opened the door, he and Ranboo hopped out. Tubbo gave him a two-finger salute as they left.
“Careful!” George reprimanded. “This is Armani!”
“ t’s Armani!” Sapnap mocked. “You’re literally so dumb.”
“I’m literally a CEO,” George retorted.
“Yeah, that went bankrupt because you bet Quackity you could beat him in a race,” Sapnap rolled his eyes.
“He cheated!” George yelled.
“It’s not his fault you put up 100 billion dollars!” Sapnap yelled back.
Dream didn’t say anything, he just glared at Tommy. His face only moved to blink. He didn’t need the mask to be unmoving, he didn’t need the mask to be intimidating. He used the mask to cover up the fact he, even for the briefest moment, was vulnerable.
It was unnerving, the way his eyes bored into Tommy. As if he were a scientist and Tommy his subject. It made the hairs on his arms stand straight.
Tommy decided to press his luck and open his mouth, which they had so mercifully left untapped. “So, how’d you know?”
“How’d we know what?” George asked, adjusting his suit collar.
“To do all of this,” Tommy clarified.
“Well,” George started. Dream still hadn’t moved. “Once we found the bugs, it was easy. We said what you wanted to hear, and wrote what needed to be said. That Tubbo Underscore, though.” Tommy chilled at the mention of his best friend's name. “He was smart, those bugs were high quality. His work was extraordinary, too bad that it’s being used for crime, hey? Although, based on your record, I wouldn’t assume you’re a stickler for the rules.”
“If you’re aware of my record, you must know I’m not much of a stickler for you lot either,” Tommy rolled his eyes.
“I wouldn’t run my mouth if I were you,” Dream said. It was the first time he had spoken since Tommy made the comment about his scar.
“Oh, he speaks!” Tommy ran his mouth. “I was starting to think I damaged your vocal cords during our little fight, you’ve just been so quiet ever since.”
“You’re in no position to talk right now,” Dream responded curtly.
“What are you going to do?” Tommy asked. “Kill me? Threaten to kill me? You’ve already tried that, and failed if I remember correctly.”
Dream glared, he stood up and walked to the far side of the room. He picked up an axe, his hands tightened around the handles. He ran his finger along the blade, careful not to break skin. He smiled as he turned back Tommy, like he had been waiting for the moment where he could take an axe to Tommy’s throat. The moment where he could hold Tommy’s life in his hands, where he had all the control he could ever want, where he had more than that.
The axe was polished so well Tommy could see his reflection, he wondered if that was on purpose, so he, himself, could watch as the life drained from his eyes. He wondered if it would hurt, if it would be quick. He wondered if Ranboo was safe, he hoped so.
Tears welled up in his eyes, he was glad the last tears he would shed would not be for himself. He braced for the impact of an axe, he closed his eyes. He accepted his fate, dying to Dream.
He wished Technoblade was there, with him, holding his hand in his own, in his last moments. He wished Wilbur was there, with him, singing one of those cheesy lullabies he seemed to love so much, in his last moments. He wished Phil was there, with him, brushing a hand through his hair and telling him everything was going to be okay, in his last moments. He wished Tubbo was there, with him, talking about something he was passionate about, in his last moments. He wished Ranboo was there, with him, scoffing at his bad jokes and adding onto them to make them worse, in his last moments. In his last moments, he wanted his family, he wanted the comfort that came with it, the love that came with it. He didn’t want them to have to witness it though, he didn’t want to have to see the blood or the bruises or the hurt. They didn’t deserve it.
The axe never struck. It never moved, never swung down in an attempt at power. It was interrupted.
It was interrupted by a loud noise paired with a flash of light which could only be the work of one Tubbo Underscore’s flash bomb. He turned away from the light, a smile crept onto his face.
“What was that ?” Sapnap asked as two teens emerged from the blinding light.
“Ay caramba dónde está la bibliotheca!” Ranboo shouted when he was in view. Tommy had to bite back a laugh. His arm was in a sling, his shoulder was clean and stitched, Tommy noted.
“What the [honk]?” Dream jumped back. “What’s going on?”
Tommy could see the brief look of panic on Ranboo’s face before he smoothed it over with practiced confidence. “I’ve been trying to reach you about your car’s extended warranty.”
Dream sneered, his scar shifted with the movement. The scar sent chills down his spine, it only served to make him more intimidating, something Ranboo did not appreciate. “Give me three good reasons I shouldn’t kill you right now, where you stand.”
“Well, that’s actually murder and is frowned upon, just a bit. It wouldn’t be kinda weird if I’m being totally honest with you, and nobody here has seen my amazing throwing knife skills,” Ranboo listed off.
It seemed that Dream wanted to humour him, he let out an annoyed huff. “Alright, go on then. Show us.”
Ranboo pulled the knife out from his suit jacket. It was the prototype for the throwing switchblade Tubbo had made for Tommy. It closed on impact, but Dream didn’t need to know that. He took a breath in and aimed, he closed his eyes. He took the shot.
It missed, so drastically. So drastically that Dream started genuinely laughing at him. “Those are your amazing skills?”
“Okay, maybe that wasn’t great, but you still haven’t seen my secret weapon,” Ranboo smirked, faintly hearing the sound of a lock being picked.
“Which is?” Sapnap asked, an eyebrow quirked up.
“My friend who just escaped their handcuffs,” he pointed over his shoulder to Tommy. Tommy, who was standing with his arms free, holding a throwing knife aimed at George and taking the shot without hesitation.
It didn’t hit George directly, but it pinned his suit to the wall behind him. “My suit!” George screeched.
Sapnap charged, but Tommy was ready for it. He kicked Sapnap in the jaw knocking him down, the crossbow fell out of his grip, right next to Ranboo. He tried to get up, Ranboo put a foot on his chest and pointed the crossbow at the man. “I wouldn’t try that if I were you.”
George got the knife out of the wall, unpinning himself. The satisfaction didn’t last long for Tubbo ran headfirst into him, pushing him down onto the floor. He made the motion to get up when Tubbo started kicking him in the abdomen.
“I was going to go easy on you,” Dream scoffed. “But you [honk]ed up when you hurt my friends.”
Tommy was surprised by the audacity Dream had, it had caught him off-guard for a moment. “You [honk]ed up when you preyed on the lower and working classes for your own personal prosperity.”
Dream ran towards Tommy but he moved to the side, grabbing a second knife out of his pant pocket and slashing Dream’s arm. Dream swung with his good arm but Tommy ducked under and swept Dream's legs out. He was quick to recover, quicker than Tommy wanted him to.
He backflipped back up into a standing position and punched Tommy in the face. While he was disorientated he spun Tommy around, putting him into a chokehold. Tommy stomped down on Dream’s foot but he didn’t relent, his grip tightened in retaliation.
“Oh, if Piggie could see you now,” Dream taunted. “You two are close, right?”
“[honk] off.” It was a strangled reply, for obvious reasons. He knew Dream was only trying to rile him up but it was working. Tommy didn’t like that it was working.
“Oh, is that a sore spot? Didn’t mean to offend,” Dream put on a sickly sweet voice. “Is the brunet also your brother?” Tommy clenched his jaw at the mention of Wilbur. Dream could feel it, he knew he struck a nerve. “What about the old blond one, any relation? You two do look kind of similar.”
Dream succeeded in riling him up, but Tommy wasn’t careless when he was angry. He was precise, calculated, deliberate. No action was without planning, no action was unneeded. Fear turned into something palpable, something he could use to his advantage. Tommy closed his eyes and gathered as much energy as he could. He brought his arm forward, his elbows tight to his sides. He brought them back with as much force as he could muster, it gave just enough leeway to shift Dreams arm up.
While Dream was still winded, Tommy bit down on his arm. His teeth sank into the flesh, he could taste the blood in his mouth, he felt it fill up his mouth. Dream backed himself up, Tommy spat the blood at his feet as if it were venomous. To Tommy, it was. Anything to do with Dream was inherently corrupt.
George had been knocked unconscious, Sapnap was struggling underneath Ranboo’s steady foot on his chest. Dream was backed into a wall, both of his arms were bleeding, he was winded. Tommy spared a glance to the axe that was dropped onto the floor during the distraction. The word ‘peace’ was engraved into the handle, Tommy scoffed at the irony. He looked back to Dream, he seemed small, pathetic, lowly. Tommy knew he wasn’t, knew he was dangerous beyond measure. He had the scars to prove it.
Dream stood up, on surprisingly steady legs. “Guess it was a sore spot.”
“Stop talking,” Tommy said, it didn’t sound angry, per se. It was curt, it was steady, it was an instruction, meant to be followed. It reminded Tubbo and Ranboo that Tommy had experience in crime, in being around criminals. It reminded them that he could be scary, terrifying, sometimes. Unfalteringly so.
“Oh,” Dream laughed. “You want to act all high and mighty?” Dream asked. “You know, we’re not so different, you and I.”
“Maybe,” Tommy nodded. “But there is one stark difference between the two of us.”
“And what’s that?”
“You’re not going to win this fight,” Tommy smirked. Dream exhaled sharply, before he could far Tommy kicked him in the chest, throwing back against the wall. Dream’s legs fell to the ground underneath him. Tommy put a knee on his chest to keep him in place. He threw a punch to his jaw, Dream grimaced in pain. He threw another, he heard a cracking sound, he threw another, Dream passed out from the pain.
Sapnap started to struggle more, seeing his friends unconscious. “I’m going to kill all three of you, with my bare hands!”
Tommy walked over to him and kicked the side of his head, Sapnap’s eyes rolled into the back of his head before his body went limp. Tommy looked up and closed his eyes, he sighed heavily. The adrenaline was starting to settle, his bones were starting to ache.
“So what do we do now?” Ranboo asked. “I honestly think we’d get this far so I’m vastly underprepared.”
“Go see if there are any extra pairs of handcuffs, and if not a rope,” Tommy instructed, he turned to Tubbo. “Do you have any proof we can leave for the authorities?”
“Yes! Made sure to grab it before I left the base,” Tubbo pulled a USB from his pocket.
Ranboo came back with one pair of handcuffs and rope. Tommy took it out of his hands and wrapped it around his torso. He dragged George, Sapnap and Dream to the support beam in the center of the room. The support beam he became far too familiar with, in the hour he was there.
He tied their hands around the beam, just as they had done to him. He left the USB on the floor next to the axe. He used a private line to call the FBI, he left an anonymous tip.
“Is it time to go?” Phil asked.
“You can,” Tommy answered. “I’m going to stay until the authorities arrive.”
“We’re staying too,” Tubbo told him. Tommy heard the sigh from Phil that meant he would want to argue, he started before that could happen.
“Go meet with Wil and Tech at the base, we’ll be okay.”
“Okay,” Phil said. “Don’t stay out too late, stay out of view.”
“We will,” Tommy said. “Don’t worry.”
They climbed up the fire escape of a building, a safe distance away. They sat on the ledge of the roof, legs hanging off, swinging in the air. The street lights lit up the asphalt roads and cement sidewalks, the clouds looked like they brought rain. The skyscrapers stood tall amongst the short buildings and apartment complexes.
The sky was darkly lit, the new moon didn’t provide much illumination. The light pollution blocked many constellations from sight. Tommy switched off his comm, something Ranboo and Tubbo had never seen him do.
“Did you just turn off your comm?” Ranboo asked, Tommy nodded. “Why?”
Tommy shrugged, “if anyone needs me they know my number.”
“Are you okay?” Tubbo wondered. Tommy looked up at the shadowed constellations, he shrugged. Tubbo immediately switched off his comm. Ranboo followed suit.
“Will you be okay?” Ranboo rephrased the question, just a little bit.
“Yeah,” Tommy nodded. A soft smile, genuine and sad, graced his features. “I think I will.”
“Do you want to talk about it?” Tubbo turned so that he was facing Tommy and Ranboo. Only one of his legs swung over the ledge.
“Yeah, I think so,” Tommy said. “I think I’m ready.”
“That’s a big step,” Ranboo said. “I’m proud of you. We’re ready whenever you want to start.”
“Thanks, Big Man, appreciate it.” Tommy took a breath preparing himself. “I guess I should start at the beginning. A year ago, we ran into a case with Dream, he had been selling laced methamphetamines that were highly addictive. We wanted to stop it. Dream found out, and on my very first actual field case, he essentially took me hostage.”
Tubbo gasped, there were tears streaming down his face, Ranboo wasn’t fairing much better. Tommy continued, his voice was shaky at best and sobbing at worst but he continued.
“He shattered four of my ribs, broke three of my fingers, and a lot of other things that I really don’t want to recount. Techno and Phil showed up four hours later, Phil took me home. We had just made the med-bay wing because I twisted my ankle on a case. I was the first one to seriously use it.” Tommy laughed sadly, recounting the memory. Tubbo and Ranboo had leaned closer, Tommy was thankful for the support. “Remember that time I said I was out of school with mono? It wasn’t mono.”
“You were out for a week because of Dream?”
Tommy couldn’t hold back the tears that came with the memory. “Yeah, and that was just because I couldn’t walk. As soon as I was on my feet, I went back to school. After that, I started having nightmares about it. I would close my eyes and I would see his. I would feel his foot slamming into my ribcage over and over and over until I woke up. I would hear his voice taunting me, threatening me, watching me suffer.”
“Oh my god,” Ranboo breathed.
“But the worst part was that I could never get his laugh out of my head.” Tommy was sobbing. “So after a particularly bad night, Wil and Tech found my puking into the toilet.”
“Tommy,” Tubbo breathed. Tommy only cried harder. Instinctively, Ranboo reached out to hold him, careful to lean him on his right shoulder away from the arrow wound. He was welcomed with open arms, hot tears and shaky breaths. Tubbo carded a hand through his hair.
He thought he was over the hurt, the pain, the grief. He wanted, so badly, to say he was completely fine. He couldn’t because he wasn’t. It had been a year and he still cried himself to sleep some nights. It had been a year and he still had to deal with phantom pains. It had been a year and he still woke up with tears streaming down his cheeks. It had been a year and he was so tired of it all.
“I just want to be okay,” Tommy cried. “I just want to feel safe.”
Tubbo took Tommy’s hand in his own, “I know it’s not really the same, but I’ll always be here for you. No matter what.”
“Me too,” Ranboo said. “Even if I’m halfway across the world, I will manifest teleportation powers just to be there.”
“Thank you,” Tommy said, he lifted his head off of Ranboo’s chest and leaned it against Tubbo’s head. The hair made for quite a soft pillow. “Really, it means so much to me that you’re there for me.”
“Of course,” Tubbo said. “Is there anything else you want to talk about, or do you just want to sit and chat about the weather?”
“You’re not getting sick of me talking about my problems?” Tommy laughed.
“I’m actually quite glad you’re talking about them,” Ranboo said. “It lets me know you trust me.”
“You didn’t know before?” Tommy put a hand on his chest in offence. His eyes were red, he had tear streaks on his face, but he had a smile on his face.
“It reinforces the fact that,” Ranboo corrected with a fond roll of his eyes.
Tommy smiled before looking down at the city streets, “being up here really makes you realize how small we are. Tiny specs of dust on the face of a planet.”
“I think it makes our impacts on the world seem a lot more impressive,” Tubbo noted. “Specs of dust to earth, but to the city, to each other, we mean so much.”
“That’s so profound,” Ranboo teased. “I like to think it makes everything less important, the world moves on without us, the earth grows and grows, the planets still spin on their axes. It puts things into perspective.”
“People are small, impacts are impressive and things are unimportant,” Tommy said. “Did we just answer the secrets of the universe?”
“I think we might’ve,” Tubbo laughed, he looked to Ranboo. Specifically, he looked to Ranboo’s shoulder. “How is it?”
“Hurts,” Ranboo confessed, “but I’ll get through. I’m honestly just glad I got out of there alive.”
“You were always going to,” Tommy told him. “No matter what happened, I was going to make sure you got out alive.”
“You’re so incredibly self-sacrificing!” Ranboo said. “Please, just think about yourself for once.”
“But when you first joined, you said you didn’t want to get hurt. I made the promise that I wouldn’t let you,” Tommy said, his voice was small. “I keep my promises.”
“Man, I just stopped crying,” Ranboo laughed. Tubbo and Tommy joined in.
“For reference, I am also very glad that both of you are alive,” Tubbo said. “I don’t know what I would’ve done if you weren’t.”
“Oh,” Tommy cooed. “Are you lost without us?”
“Shut up!”
“He doesn’t know what he’d do,” Ranboo smiled.
“In all seriousness, though, I wouldn’t,” Tubbo shrugged.
“Neither would I,” Ranboo agreed.
“I’m a Big Man and I would totally be able to function,” Tommy said with a false air of confidence. “Don’t die though, that wouldn’t be very nice, to me specifically.”
“Okay, I won’t die.” Tubbo laughed. “Just for you.”
“Thank you,” Tommy said. They sat there, in silence, for a few minutes. “That was a tiring fight, my bones are aching.”
“Yeah,” Ranboo said. “I guess you did fight them twice, huh?”
“Yeah, it sucked,” Tommy sighed. “Before you guys came in, I kind of just accepted my death.”
“What?” Tubbo demanded.
“Well, Dream had an axe to my throat, and my hands were literally tied.” Tommy shrugged. He tried to be nonchalant, but he was picking at his fingernails. He was anxious. “And, sure, maybe I almost cried and desperately wished to not be alone in my final moments, but I’m sure that’s everyone.” Tommy rushed the words out like they were forming in his brain faster than his mouth could handle. “And perhaps I was the tiniest bit claustrophobic, but I don’t think it’s anything to dwell on.”
“Do you want a hug?” Tubbo asked. Tommy nodded. He broke down into tears again
“God, I feel so pathetic.” Tommy rubbed at his eyes. “This is the second time I’ve cried tonight.”
“You aren’t pathetic for crying,” Ranboo said. “It’s a natural expression of intense and extreme emotions.”
“You’ve gone through traumatic events Tommy,” Tubbo consoled. “It’s okay to cry.”
Tommy’s breath came out in sobs. “It was so scary, Tubbo. I was so scared.”
“Oh, Tommy,” Ranboo sniffled. “You’re going to be okay, we’re here. We’re not going to let anyone hurt you.”
“I thought I would be ready to face him,” Tommy sobbed. He took short breaths, never getting enough air. “I thought I would be okay.”
“I wish I could make it all okay, Tommy.” Tubbo cried quietly. “I just want you to be okay.”
“I will, I promise,” Tommy said, after a while. After his voice steadied, after his vision cleared. “I have you guys.”
“That was so unbelievably sappy,” Ranboo laughed, tears still spilling out. They distantly heard sirens, saw the flashing lights casting shadows on buildings and trees and landmarks. “I can’t believe it’s over.”
“I can,” Tommy’s voice was stuffy from crying. “Good riddance.”
“I can’t imagine having to go through a year of knowing Dream is out there.”
“Well, in my defence, I thought he was laying low.”
“Not selling nanodrugnology?” Tubbo continued for him.
“Nanodrugnology?” Ranboo asked.
“It’s a work in progress,” Tubbo waved him off with a hand.
The sirens got louder, got closer. Tommy wondered if Dream had regained consciousness. He didn’t know if it was better. Dream would fight the handcuffs, the arrest. The agents might not know his fighting style, they might be at a disadvantage. Him being awake, though, would force him to watch as everything fell apart around him. He could watch as the world he knew was ripped away, he could watch as everything he worked for crashed and burned.
He hoped, for the agents’ sakes, that Dream was still unconscious. He hoped it happened seamlessly, easily. He hoped that everything would be fine, he hoped he wasn’t being naïve.
The sirens stopped when they arrived, the lights kept flashing. They were red, bright, unwavering. Agents piled out, they came out twenty three minutes later. Three people in handcuffs, a murder, an arsonist and a bankrupt CEO.
Tommy finally felt like he could breathe as Dream was pushed into the back of a vehicle. He could feel the cold air rushing his cheeks. He could hear the bustling city underneath. He could see the clouds and faint stars in the sky above him. He could smell the scent of the world just before a rainstorm.
The rainstorm seemed symbolic to Tommy, the city was washing itself of Dream’s intentions, corruption. It was symbolic, Tommy always loved the rain.
“I guess we should go back to base,” Tubbo said. Nobody had any intentions of moving.
“Yep,” Ranboo agreed. No one got up.
“Do you think Techno and Wilbur are back yet?” Tommy asked.
“A hundred percent, they were probably going double the speed limit,” Tubbo laughed.
“Nah,” Ranboo said. “Triple.”
“Maybe we should then,” Tommy said. “Kind of want to see them.”
Still, nobody moved. The atmosphere of the roof was serene, comfortable, safe. It was somewhere they could be vulnerable, cry, talk, without judgement, without fear. It was warm, sheltered from society. They were surrounded by busy city streets, but they were protected by a bubble of their own creation.
They were okay, they were free, they were unsupervised chaos calming down for a moment, in each other’s company. It was selfish, but they never wanted to leave. They wanted to stay, observing the world, understanding each other. It was selfish, but they wanted to stay, to talk, to learn, to help, to know each other on a level no one else did.
Tubbo was the first to move. “It’s getting late.”
“It’s always getting, Big Man,” Tommy argued, trying to pull him back down.
Ranboo got up too, “Wilbur and Technoblade are probably worried, and they definitely miss you.”
“Using my brothers to get me to go home?” Tommy scoffed, it was teasing, happy, content. “That’s low.”
“Come on, Boss Man,” Tubbo said, excitement in his tone. “Let’s get going.”
“Toms!” Wilbur yelled as soon as Tommy walked down the stairs. Wilbur jumped off of the couch and ran over to his little brother. “Are you okay? Do you need to go to med-bay?” He was enveloped in a hug. Wilbur rested his chin on Tommy’s head. “You don’t know how worried I was.”
“I probably should, but could we just stay like this a moment longer?” Tommy whispered into Wilbur’s chest. His ribs ached with soreness, but his heart ached for the comfort more.
“Of course,” Wilbur smiled into the blond curls, “I’m not hurting you, am I?”
“Yes, but it’s fine,” Tommy said. Wilbur’s grip loosened, Tommy’s tightened. He could hear Techno’s footsteps get closer. Tommy looked up at the pink head of hair. “Hey, Techno.” His voice was soft, sluggish.
“Hey, Theseus,” Techno said quietly, only for Tommy and Wilbur to hear. He rested a hand on Tommy’s head, ruffling the hair. “You did well, I’m proud of you.”
“Really?” Tommy asked.
“Absolutely.”
“Come on,” Phil called out. “Let’s get you two to med-bay.”
“One more minute,” Tommy said, it was muffled. Phil rolled his eyes fondly.
“Yeah,” Techno agreed. “Give us a while, Tommy almost died.”
“Which is why ,” Phil said. “He should be in med-bay.”
Phil let them stay for a second later, they separated when Phil started pushing them towards the hallway. “How was your first big case?”
“First?” Tubbo asked.
“I think you meant only, actually, please,” Ranboo said.
“Oh, this is absolutely not your only big case,” Techno told them. Tommy, Tubbo and Ranboo took a collective sigh. They sat Tommy and Ranboo on two of the beds, Phil took their blood pressure, checked their injuries, doted them a little more than they probably wanted, but they didn’t tell him to stop so he continued.
“At least we’ll have each other on the next big case,” Tommy said, still thinking about it. He looked to his best friends. “We will have each other, right?”
“I don’t see why not,” Tubbo said.
“Good, good.” Tommy smiled. Phil handed him ice for his eye.
“I hope the next big case isn’t for a while though,” Ranboo yawned.
“I hope our next normal case isn’t for a while,” Tommy sighed. Wilbur was sitting on his bed, Techno sat on the chair beside it. Tommy noted it was a familiar position for the three of them. The only thing that was missing was Wilbur’s guitar. “Wilbur?”
“Yeah?”
“Can you get your guitar?”
Wilbur nodded warmly, “I’ll be right back.” He patted the bed beside Tommy’s feet and stood up, he was back in within the minute. “What song do you want me to play?”
“Any,” Tommy told him. “I’m not picky.”
Wilbur started strumming the strings, playing chords to familiar songs. Tommy started to hum the melody of the song it belonged to. His head hurt from the dehydration of crying, and probably a concussion, but Tommy couldn’t find himself to care all that much with his friends and family next to him.
“What do you think our next case is going to be like?” Tubbo asked, quietly as to not interrupt the ambience of the room.
“Easier, please,” Ranboo said.
Tommy laughed. “Let’s hope so.”