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Dream winced slightly as shards of rock hit his face, accompanied by the loud bang of tnt going off and the unforgiving blare of alarms. He was prepared for it, so it didn’t faze him nearly as much as it would have if he’d been taken by surprise, but his ears were still ringing when Techno pulled him out of his cell, and he stumbled a little on weak legs, all of his muscle tone lost. The debris had left small cuts on his face, bleeding in thin trickles. His heart was racing, so he took a deep breath. The alarms grated on him. It was usually so quiet in his cell.
Armor felt foreign on him now, strange and cold and heavy compared to the familiar heat of the prison. He didn’t take much else from the enderchest Techno had placed, though he was tempted. His instincts told him to grab as much protection as he could, but he was all too aware that he’d just tire himself out trying to carry it. He’d be reliant on Techno for the fight ahead of them.
One fire res later and he was out, but Sam was there, calling him. “Dream!!” Sam was saying, “go back!! Go back to your cell!!” A shiver ran down Dream’s spine at Sam’s tone of voice, but he determinedly ignored him. He wasn’t going back. He couldn’t.
“Go back,” Sam pulled out his axe and advanced forward, and Dream ducked behind Techno on instinct before catching himself. He snarled a little and shook his head, trying to ignore the voice in the back of his mind that screamed obey obey obey—. He couldn’t be so out of it. He needed to be able to fight.
“There’s nowhere to go!!” Sam cried, “There’s nowhere to go!!”
Dream pressed on.
Apparently they were rescuing Ranboo as well. Dream… didn’t really like Ranboo, but Techno did, so he went along with it despite his distaste. They were probably treating Ranboo much better than him, he thought bitterly.
(Ranboo used to visit him in the early days, before Quackity. He stopped. He never came back.)
But he loved owed Techno, so despite his exhaustion and despite how much he wanted to curl up in his corner next to his chest of books, he pressed on. Not for Ranboo. For Techno.
The other guards were there as well. Bad and Ant. They were calling out to him, like Sam had. They wanted him to go back. Unlike Sam, their voices were gentle… warm. For some reason, his eyes stung. He blinked away tears, but exhaustion was hitting him all at once and the armor was too cold, to enveloping. Their voices were warm. He missed the heat of his cell.
Dream pressed his hands to his temples, rubbing them briefly, as Techno led him to freedom. His head felt a little funny.
Connor was here too, apparently. They were rescuing him as well now. Dream absently wondered if Sam had locked everyone away in the prison besides himself and the guards— if maybe the whole world was here in this prison, and Dream had hallucinated an outside. A time before this. Techno’s presence here disproved it, but the idea felt strangely comforting. Maybe he wasn’t alone in his cell after all.
They found Ranboo, finally. Apparently his annoyance with the kid was mutual. Maybe that was why Ranboo had stopped visiting him. Whatever. Techno told them both to shut up. Dream found himself wishing Bad or Ant were with them, trying to escape. On their side, not Sam’s. Their tones were so much softer than Ranboo’s… than Techno’s even. They addressed him like he was a scared creature, one that needed to be calmed down and brought back to safety. Like something loved.
He was so exhausted from running. His heart was pounding in his chest, and he was terrified— he felt like a scared creature. He had to keep going, or it would all be for nothing. He couldn’t stop now— not when freedom was so close, not when Techno put in so much effort to help him. But once he was free… what would he do?? He’d had plans when he had arrived here, he knew that. He’d wanted to meet up with Punz. But it had been so long. He’d be hunted. He wouldn’t get to rest, not for a long while.
But gods, he wanted to.
He wanted to lie down and sleep right here, against the familiar roughness of the obsidian, the dry warmth of nearby lava, and the heavy magic of the guardians, like a weighted blanket. His eyelids felt heavier than his armor. His limbs were sore from exertion, and his thoughts were fuzzy. It would be so easy.
He pushed on.
They made their way back to the main cell entrance, and Dream had to catch himself before he went the wrong way. He followed Techno and the others down to the tunnel Techno had made, the one point of weakness Dream intentionally left in the prison plans.
The water in the tunnel was freezing, and it was a shock to Dream’s system, as used to Pandora’s warmth as he was. He saw Ranboo shy away from the puddle in the corner of his eye, and remembered that it must be far worse for the ender hybrid.
Then Sam was there, a wild look in his eyes, voice intense. Shouting. “I figured you went under the prison!! I knew it!!” He screamed. Dream shivered again, goosebumps rising along his arms. He rubbed them, eyes wide. His face felt warm. He didn’t… he didn’t understand what he was feeling. Was he afraid???? Angry??? …Flattered????
“Get back here!!!”
Almost mindlessly, he took a step towards Sam, then stopped, swaying in place. (What was he doing?) Sam turned to face him, large and imposing, and his common sense finally caught up with him. He turned and ran.
Sam didn’t want anyone else— he didn’t care if anyone else escaped, he said. He only wanted Dream. He wanted Dream to come back, to return to the prison. Return to him. Why did hearing that make Dream feel warm?
Bad and Ant were there, and they had weapons. Ant swung at him with a netherite axe, and he was reminded of Quackity. Dream didn’t think he could survive another session with Quackity, but Quackity hadn’t been around in a long time. Sam has never told Quackity where he was.
He felt torn. His thoughts were all over the place. He had freedom now, or a taste of it—he was so close. The sun was in the sky, providing a much lighter warmth. There was a gentle breeze blowing through his hair. He felt like he could breathe—he didn’t feel smothered. He wasn’t… sure he liked it. The grass felt strange and itchy beneath his still bare feet. Armor felt heavy, weapons were hard to hold. There were so many people, all staring. All yelling. Hostile. He couldn’t really make out what any of them were saying. He could barely even understand what Techno was saying. But he could hear Sam, and he could hear the guards. Their voices pierced through the fog in his head, clear as a bell. (Bad gave him sandwiches, Ant brushed his hair, Sam kept him safe.)
Sam had Ranboo. He had a weapon to his throat, and he was threatening to kill him. Techno looked upset, yelling at Sam to stop, barely hidden concern underneath his forced monotone facade. Dream didn’t care about Ranboo. He could give less than zero shits about Ranboo, but in that split second he made his decision.
He took the out.
“Okay.” He said, his own voice alien in his ears—too gentle, too submissive. Not him. “Let go of Ranboo, and I’ll come back to the prison with you.” Techno and Ranboo both stared at him in shock. “What??” Ranboo asked, clearly confused, as Techno started to say, “Dream wait, don’t be an idiot—“
Dream dropped his weapons, stepping forward, and then shed his armor with a quiet sigh of something close to relief. He trembled as he walked towards Sam, heart pounding in his chest, but whatever he was feeling wasn't fear. Sam pushed Ranboo away carelessly, and the ender teen stumbled into Techno, who caught him with a grunt. Sam held out his hands as if to cuff Dream, but Dream was too tired for that. Instead of barring his wrists, he let himself fall into Sam, feeling the other wrap his arms around him in a confused sort of embrace. Then Sam got his bearings and the arms tightened, trapping Dream. A weighted blanket. A cage.
He could hear people talking, murmuring under their breaths as Sam and the other guards crowded around him, keeping him restrained and maneuvering his limp limbs so that they could more easily cuff him.
(Punz is waiting for you, a voice in the back of his mind screamed desperately, what are you doing??)
He felt Sam pat his head.
“Good boy,” he said, “let’s get you back to your cell where you belong.”
And through the heavy fog slowly filling his brain, Dream smiled, shoulders relaxing.
He felt wanted.