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Home was a funny concept.
A place where you felt safe, people you were comfortable with, a space you could exist where you could just be you, completely free and unhindered.
Once, the entire world had been Dreams home. His place, carved out with hard work and so much effort, claimed for freedom and safety. It had been his to cherish and care for, his to look after and live in.
He had wanted to share it with others, give others a stable place to thrive in as well, so he did.
More people meant more responsibility, so building a new house together, another home, was a given. It was not only to be safe, protection against the inherent dangers of the whim of the world, the wind and the rain, but also a place to conglomerate, to gather.
A house on the lake took form, providing a roof over their heads and chests to freely take from.
More people came.
It was alright, some squabbles here and there, but at the end of the day they were all laughing, they were all friends. They were one unit that took care of each other when need be, they were a home.
But then suddenly, another conflict arose, bigger than all the others before.
This hadn’t been a mere squabble, soothed by some words and some decisive actions, no, this was a true war. Suddenly it wasn’t all their land anymore, but the land of only a select few. Suddenly it wasn’t shared among them all, to live and thrive on, but the caged attempt of only a few chunks to be something new.
Something that sparked that first light of change. Of change, to chaos and vengeful cycles, to battled lands and bloodied grass.
And it all started with that first war, where borders were drawn, lives lost and a duel held.
It ended in a fragile peace.
But the damage had been done, the idea had been planted. Suddenly this wasn’t a world to simply share anymore, but a world to claim, a world where, if you were smart enough or strong enough, you could take what you wanted only for yourself.
Could claim something under a banner, selfishly proclaiming “this is mine”, when it had always been theirs, always their all, when it once had been for them to live and thrive with.
Suddenly, the world wasn’t Dreams home anymore, but that was okay, he still had a lot of land that was supposedly still safe. Even if the need of armor almost constantly, not only against mobs but also the people he brought to this world, chafed at his body. He also still had his friends to laugh with and to joke with.
Then those friends left.
Taking chunks of Dreams heart with him, sucking the warmth out of it, until it only grew colder and colder. An icy lump as a core, singing a song of “no more, no more”. That would be the last he lost, that would be the last scar they got. Some land was still free and he would make certain it stayed that way. He would make certain that it was his and theirs, never just only his or hers.
This was what was left of home, and he would do anything to keep it together. Anything.
But as time went on and opinions turned, as past bonds, once filled with love and warmth were cut and soured into cold limp strings of hate and fear, even the land that was still left didn’t feel safe anymore. Wasn’t a home anymore.
Armor now a constant, weapons always ready.
Which only left one small building in the middle of a lake, older than any of the other builds that had been crafted in these lifetimes. Built on warm sunny days with brick and wood, filled with laughs and the occasional crafting table, once fished upon as a unit not yet broken, standing strong despite the countless cracks that were now dividing the once whole.
It was enough for Dream. It had to be. Where else was he supposed to go, what else was he supposed to do...
It sufficed.
Until even it had to be offered on the altar of other sacrifices, to make sure that everything would stay together. Until even it had to be taken and destroyed, for the future to be better. Until even the community house became a victim of all the strife that was now so deeply embedded in the land and its people, that it left scars on them all.
Left scars on even the most stoic of individuals. Made even a cold core ache in so much pain, that it had tears streaming down a freckled face, escaping blinking green eyes with a splotch of gold in the middle.
Dream sniffed once, in an attempt to counter the wave of grief and loss he felt, wiping tear tracks under his signature smiley mask as inconspicuous as possible. Thankful for the face covering to hide his features fully, to hide what was really going on inside his head and in his heart.
Even though he wasn’t near anyone who could use that show of emotion against him, as he watched upon the remains of what had once been a home from the lakeside it had been built upon. The sand shifted under his slightly moving feet.
Water continued to stream down from the aquariums they had put so much effort in, covering the scorched bricks and wood in a veil of sparkling clear fluid, as if attempting to hide what had been done. The smell of gunpowder and smoke still lingered in the air, mixing with the faint ringing of past explosions that was slowly fading from Dreams ears.
The blond took another deep breath, trying to tame his aching heart, trying to push away the feelings he felt at the destroyed sight before him. A few tears still managed to escape in the safety underneath Dreams mask, while he locked those emotions slowly away. His body grew still, the slight shaking from before held back.
He had other things he had to do, important things. Things where every slip of weakness could be his undoing.
This was just the first step. He would just take the grief and pain he felt, use it as a shield for all he was about to do, use it as tinder for the small flame of hate and rage he held since so long ago. Use it to harden the frozen core in his body even further, so that never ever anything could break its pit-like skin like it had cracked so often before.
Not long now… not long…
And everything should finally be whole again.
Even if he had to break all the pieces to fit them together, use force to make them comply. The picture the puzzle would form would be worth it. It had to be…
With a whooshing sigh-like noise of air being displaced a figure suddenly stood next to Dream, purple particles floating around for a second before slowly disappearing into nothing. A few flecks of the End even danced towards the green man himself, before fading back to where they came from.
The questioning vwoop of an enderman escaped the newly appeared bicoloured hybrid of black and white, heterochromatic eyes in green and red staring down at the blond with a slightly confused look, not understanding the sudden mood of the green man. Clutched in his gloved hands was a block of TNT, that disappeared immediately into an inventory only to be replaced with a glass block.
“I’m okay, don’t worry”, Dream spoke quietly in answer, looking back over the lake towards the ruins of his once home. He was still so weak that he hadn’t been able to cause its destruction himself, hadn’t managed to prevent its destruction in the first place. He was still so powerless…
He would change that now.
At least this was another attachment gone, another possible means to control him made unusable. It didn’t hurt any less than all his others, didn’t lessen the ache of all the past ones.
Dream feared the ones he still had to get rid of.
Which brought him to his tall friend next to him. Hopefully he would have some time until the hybrid left as well.
“Are you sure about this?”, the blond asked, turning his head so that he had his companion on the edge of his vision. In his mind he could see the book he held in his inventory, pages written and stained in ink by a desperate hand, one that feared the green warrior immensely. “If I expose him like this, you'll both be in danger…”
The half-enderman gave a grumble and a nod at that, shining heterochromatic eyes determined.
“I know you want him to learn the truth, but-”
A sudden hand on Dream's shoulder made him quiet. He couldn’t really feel the contact through the netherite armor he wore everywhere and always, but just the sight and the slight pressure of it were enough.
Dream let out a deep sigh at the speck of warmth that flickered weakly in his aching core.
“I will do it, but please- please be careful. The others… they’re a bit sensitive about anything they see as a possible betrayal.”
The gloved hand disappeared from the blond’s shoulder with a pleased sound that was akin to a cat’s purr. Dream turned his mask back towards the lake, vision unfocused on its shimmering blue and the splotches of light red and brown in its center.
“Better get going then, you- you don’t want to be late to the spectacle, do you?”, he stated slightly choked towards one of the only friends he had still left. Even if that friend wasn’t a true complete person.
The half of Ranboo that was awake gave a small confirming gurgle from his throat.
The tall teen looked down towards the gazing blond one last time, before giving an awkward wave with one hand, the other occupied by the grass block. Then he disappeared with a suctioning displacement of air and twirls of purple particles.
The departure created a small breeze that ruffled a green mantle, which itself was ripped from many battles won and scuffed by so much past chaos.
The green masked warrior stood alone once again. Now only the flow of water and the few whistles of birds were to be heard, the atmosphere seemingly peaceful, as if nothing had even happened in this new place of tragedy and loss.
Dream let out a deep sigh, lifting his mask one last time slightly, wiping under it to get rid of all the leftover signs of tears. He adjusted the cover he now never took off anymore immediately after, to make sure it hid all that he needed to hide.
There was no time to be open anymore.
He cleared his throat from the slight grief that still clogged it, whispering a quiet, “here we go then…”, into the sunshine filled air.
Dream threw one last focused glance at the once home of his, which made something sharp sting through his cold core. Then he turned around, heading towards the direction that housed the land that had started this all. Steps sure and strong, despite the still painful beat of his heart and the tingling of nervousness in his hands.
He had to do this, he had to play his role.
Just a bit longer and maybe a home could finally be built again.
That thought made Dreams' lips quirk slightly, if at the absurdity or the hope of it, even he didn’t know. What he did know however, was the feeling of obsidian blocks heavy in his hand as he summoned them out of his inventory, hard and cool like the core in his body.
Today would be a day where not only he lost something.
He would make sure of it.