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“I should’ve stopped him once it started.”
Tommy’s head was laying in George’s lap, eyes staring up into the sky as he spoke to the brunet. A small drop of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth, staining the oak wood below them. Somewhere in the distance, another wither spawned.
The guilt on George’s shoulders was enough to drown him, screaming at him until he killed himself.
“In hindsight, I was scared. Scared of Dream, of what he’d do to me if I opposed him.”
Tommy listened in silence, watching the birds fly above them, counting the number of bombs bursting.
“I didn’t even want to be king, but I went along with it. Like I went along with everything. I should’ve made him tear down those walls the minute they were built.”
The boy in red muttered the word “pussy” under his breath, feeling a fleeting moment of joy as the former ruler chuckled.
George sighed, wiping the blood off the boy’s face. He hadn’t even lived to see his seventeenth birthday, already dying at the hands of grown men. When had he become so cruel? When had his morals slipped from his hands like a flailing fish?
“I didn’t care about L’Manburg, or the SMP, or anything, for that matter. I wanted a life of peace, without anything to keep me tied down. I wanted a life with Dream, my lover. I wanted to have dinner with my friends on days where the sun shined bright during the summer, when the stars came out on a clear night. Maybe I would’ve built a house bigger than that stupid mushroom hut.”
“What are you going to do once it’s over?”
A chorus of screams echoed from the distance, maniacal laughter singing the melody to the twisted anthem.
“What is there left to do? I’ll be forced to live like this, following around Dream like some trophy he collected on the way. Sapnap will reconcile, as he always does—” George looked at the sky, seeing the rainclouds starting to gather. “—It’s a game to them, Tommy. Switching sides once in a while like they’re playing with a ball. It’s fun for them to see people die like they are now.”
“Karl?”
George bit his lower lip, eyes watching for trespassers, “What does Karl know? As long as he’s winning he doesn’t care. That’s why the relationship works, my child. Sapnap wins wars, gains wealth, survives to see another day. Karl showers him with love and affection, pretends to sympathize with the losers, and then goes on with his day.” He sneered at the ground, “Match made as if the End herself crafted it.”
“Sounds like Techno,” Tommy’s words were slurred, sloppy syllables coming out of his mouth as his heart started to slow. “Wonder what he’s going do ‘fter this.”
Tears started to leak out of the younger’s eyes. Quiet, Earth-shattering sobs escaped his mouth, reminding the world of her horrors.
He placed a gentle finger on Tommy’s lips, shushing him like he would a baby, “Don’t worry about that right now. I promise you’ll be remembered. He still cares about you, as much as he tries to ignore it.”
“Tubbo?” His voice was high-pitched and shaky, throat clogged with tears.
“You’ll be with him, soon enough,” George bent down and pressed a soft kiss to the crying boy. “You’ll be reunited with everyone you’ve ever loved. Don’t worry.”
If someone told him a mere two weeks ago that he’d be dying in the arms of GeorgeNotFound he’d probably kill someone. But it was true, and Tommy couldn’t find the strength to fight it.
The former king filled Tommy with hope, soothing words lulling him to sleep as he was reminded of his triumphs.
“Don’t leave,” he closed his eyes, waiting for the sweet release of peace to wash over him. In his mind, a familiar tune played from the sky, Clara the spacewoman smiling down on him as he exited the world. Had someone started playing Chirp?
“I’ll be here till the very end.”