Chapter Text
He was running towards the large heavy door, finally passing by it.
The lights were blinding a few more seconds before it soothes, empowering him to uncover the room he was standing in.
Waltz music filled the air, figures dancing gracefully surrounded him. It was mesmerizing in a way he couldn’t describe, yet so familiar to him.
Remembering his duty, he started walking again. Traversing the grand ballroom, avoiding the dancing figures and sending glances to acquaintances he passed. Some stairs were separating him from his goal, sitting on a large golden throne, a matching golden crown resting on his head.
He bowed down, his right hand on his heart wanting to clench on the fabric of his white ruffled shirt. He felt a soft hand on his hair, ruffling them softly. He dared to look at the tall figure in front of him and noticed a big warm smile on the sharp face. He felt the weight on his shoulder lifting up and his soft clothes felt way lighter than before at this vision.
–”Son.”
–”Yes father?”
–”I told you already, no need to bow down to me mate.” The older one chuckled.
The younger one smiled and straightened. The hand in his hair disappeared, leaving the ghost of a presence on his scalp.
–”The guards said you wanted to show me something.”
–”I do”
–”What is it?” he exhaled, excited at what his father wanted to show him.
He was slightly bouncing on his feet as the older one was searching for something in his light blue tailcoat. He got a small roundish deep blue object, as big as an apple. Golden letters carved on the top of the item which could be held on the palm of a hand. It was an unexpectable object for anyone else but the youngest recognised it almost instantly.
–"Is this the music box you were talking about?" He exclaimed looking at his father with adoration.
–"It is!" The King said, meeting the blue iris of his son, smiling warmly at him. "Can you read what's written on it?"
He took the music box in his small hands and attempted to figure out the cursive writings on top of the item.
–"To-gether… in… L-L'manberg." He paused. "Together in L'manberg?!" He exclaimed, looking eagerly at his father, waiting for an answer.
–"That's for when I travel to L'manberg" he said ruffling the hair of his son. "You won't need me, nor your brothers to sing our lullaby to you."
Turning the golden key, opening the music box, the king started humming the soft melody escaping from the item, surrounding them as the figures down the couple of stairs danced along with the sonorous music submerging the ballroom.
–"On the wind..." the adult began "Cross the sea..." he sang with a deep voice, a soft warmth spreading towards the youngest chest. "Hear this song and remember..."
His kid joined in.
–"Soon you'll be..." both voices strangely matching with each other, rhythming the melody escaping through the blue music box. "Home with me..."
"Once upon a december."
A green flash of brightness shined within the room the ball was occuring, blinding everyone inside for a few seconds. Retrieving his eyesight, the child saw his father standing in front of him, as if he was protecting him from the undescriptible danger, now standing at the bottom of the wooden-ish stairway.
–"Dream.” his father said in a firm voice that would make him regret all his life choices if it was directed towards him.
–"Your highness" The intruder started, bowing down slightly. "It's nice meeting you again."
The youngest tried to look down the stairs, but the massive frame of his father obstructed his eyesight to the back of his light blue tail-coat. As he tried to proceed forward, allowing his vision to encounter the mysterious man, a strong grip on his arm retained him to do so.
At first startled by it, he turned around meeting the form of his two older brothers. Voices merging together in the background.
–"What is happening?" He heard himself ask, looking with confusion at his brothers, as the pink haired man who took his arm hostage let it free.
–"A revolution." The taller one said, forcing his glasses back on the top of his nose bridge, old enough to understand the conversation between the two adults in front of them. "It seems like father knows this person."
–"He doesn't seem relieved about the fact that he is here." The other one replied in a cold tone.
–”Do you know why I’m cursed? I’m cursed because of the ex-queen of this empire!” The intruder exhaled, looking angrier each time he looked at the royal family. “I call on my will, and the gifts the Gods gave me!” a greenish gleam emerging from his whole frame lightning the big hall. “I will not rest until the entire Minecraft family remains seven-feet underground!"
He saw the double heavy doors get pushed by people he never saw in his life. The crowd seemed aggressive and were holding torches, swords and spears. Their eyes were ready for battle and revolution, because of rumors and words of a cursed man who disappeared in a green lightning. They were ready to take down the throne. Ready for their death. As he was staring at the massive amount of people down the stairs, he felt himself getting pulled backwards. His father, anxious, was looking at his sons with love and sincerity despite the situation they were in.
–”Boys, I love you a lot, remember that.”
–”Father? We love you too but-” The prince with roundish glasses started.
–”No time, champion.” His father answered, cutting him in his sentence.
He gave a quick look to the people around them. A tall, bi-colored child was looking worriedly at the scene happening in the room, next to the five thrones. He made them a sign of the hand, to come closer. As the kid seemed to understand the motion and stepped closer to the royal family, the king started talking again, giving instructions.
–”Hey buddy, you’re a servant right?” he asked, looking at the newcomer. As the kid nodded, looking anywhere but in the king's eyes, the youngest believed he heard his father muttering something about the ‘audacity to hire kids to be servants’. “You know where the servants-doors are?” He nodded again. “Alright, can you get the princes through it for you to leave the castle and hide somewhere”.
–”What? Father, what about you? We’re not letting you in here with them!” the pinked hair prince answered this time, his usual monotonous voice replaced by fear, as the way his voice quivered slightly.
–”I’m not asking you to. I’m giving you an order. Get out.”
The taller of the three pushed his two brothers away from the scene, following the bi-coulored child. The youngest turned away quickly and tried to reach for his father before a strong grip clasped his arm once again, forcing him to go backwards. He felt tears watering his eyes as he saw his father receding from him.
–”Dad…” he muttered, a tear rolling down his face.
As they turned down the corner of the ballroom to a large corridor, he thought he heard his father muttering something and saw him clenching on his red heart-shaped jewel, laying on his chest. He heard something resembling the sound of wind in a hurricane, before he was shown away from the room the King was in.
The servant led them in one of the many kitchens there were in the castle. The lights were off. The only sign of what was happening inside were screams echoing trough corridors and the faint red lights penetrating through the windows. They heard footsteps dangerously approaching the kitchen door and the bi-colored kid quickly opened –with a shaking hand– what he could describe as a trapdoor settled in the wall in front of them.
–”You need to go through it. You just have to follow the path and it’ll take you to the back gardens.”
–”What about you?” the youngest whispered. The servant’s sight now on him, looking surprised he even bothered to ask the question.
–”They won’t suspect a mere servant. I’ll be fine.”
Screams were heard right in front of the door. A sign for the older brothers to shove him inside of the trapdoor.
Something fell on the floor.
Startled by the harsh movement and the force pulling him inside, the young prince let the round object he was holding all along fell from his grip. He screamed in vain. His brothers were much stronger than him and were focused on their safety, for the three of them to make it out alive. Despite his sobs, he managed to hear the trapdoor close. Meaning the servant must have locked it.
After their long crawl inside the small servant-door ; the three brothers were out of the castle. No one was in the back-gardens, a perfect opportunity for the princes to escape quietly, running along the hedges and through the gates without letting each other's hand go.
The crowds in front of the castle were huge. People everywhere and a lot of noises. Seemed like the riot and the voice of ‘Dream’ wasn’t only directed towards the royal family, as the rumors of a revolution was in everyone's mouth. Figures were running, panic echoing in their steps. No one paid attention to them. They seemed to be invisible to the rebels. Their father had made sure that they shouldn’t go in the town below yet, apprehensive that something would happen to them due to their rank and young age. He was right to do so.
People pushed them away, separating the younger prince from his family. He screamed for his brothers, no one answered. He was pressed against people he didn't know nor ever saw before. His body shivered. He was cold. Another person elbowed him, his feet slid on the snow. His head fell first on the cold stone.
Darkness swallowed him whole.
•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•
It was night and they had everything under control.
That is surely something Tommy would say if he and his best friend weren’t just running out of their orphanage.
Everything was planned beforehand. Bedsheets and blankets, wrapped into tight knots to protect them from falling over three floors. Which would lead to their death –not something they're particularly fond of–. Both of them had a bag full of food, bottles of water and change. Their poor economies were safely tied in the bottom of their backpack preventing them from being stolen by anyone they could encounter.
They were trying to be as quiet as possible. Running towards a path they knew too well from their time spend outside. Tommy turned around, facing his orphanage one last time before flipping it off, a sly grin on his face.
As he rushed back to Tubbo, he didn't notice the strange shadow watching them next to a long tree they would usually play by when they still were children.
By the time it started snowing, both of them were out of breath, trying to get as far as possible from the hell-hole they called 'home' all these years.
The trail was muddy. The snow made the dirt glue to their shoes, giving an uncomfortable sensation each step they took.
–"How about we stop near 'till tomorrow?" Tubbo asked, his dark blue eyes looking at Tommy.
–"I guess? We just need to find a shelter, because there's no way I'm sleeping on this muddy floor." The blonde stated, looking all around him for somewhere they could sleep.
–"I thought you loved mud" Tubbo started still walking on the dirty path with a grin showing on his face. "Remember the time where you ate-".
–"You promised you would never talk about it again!" He exclaimed annoyed before stopping in his tracks and pointing at something in the dark. "Do you see this?"
The smaller turned his head towards the direction Tommy was pointing in. Squinting his eyes a bit, trying to see better in the dark of the night and the white falling snow.
–"It looks like wood?"
–"Yeah, no shit, we're in the middle of a forest, Tubbo!" The blonde exclaimed. "It kinda looks like a hideaway. Maybe I'm wrong but-"
–"Let's see!"
They approached the similar-looking shelter, everything was silent around them making their steps louder. Tommy saw Tubbo shivering slightly.
–"You're alright there Tubs?"
–"Yeah, I'm just- I'm cold." his best friend answered, his voice quivering.
–"We could make a fire after we found somewhere to spend the night in." Tommy suggested still walking.
–"Yeah, I don't really want to freeze to death before we reach our goal."
As they were closer to their soon-to-be camp, they could distinguish the features of the shelter. Woods were piled vertically and were leaning against large tree's branches, making it about a foot tall and looking weirdly triangular. It seems like they weren't the first ones to come here, and Tommy vaguely thought about what happened to the prior person that rested here.
Tubbo was already piling little trees' branches he found on the floor, making sure they weren't too humid to be able to start the fire. He formed the center of the soon-to-rise fire, covered it with dry moss and opened his bag.
Tommy found a place to sit, next to the fire Tubbo just started as he threw the used matches in the forming flame that would keep them warm tonight. Not as warm as they thought they would be, but that was the consequence to pay for their escape.
They were walking on a much larger path than the night before. The snow that fell overnight made their step slower, and the ground was slidy in some places, where black ice formed because of the rain and cold weather. The sun was shining through the few clouds in the sky creating reflections on the snow, making it seem like it was piles of glitter scattered on the dirt and rocks.
Sooner in the morning, they passed a sign indicating one of the largest towns of the Antarctic Empire : Snowshester. According to the books they read at the orphanage, Snowshester was considered as a quiet commercial town, where the abandoned palace of the Royal family could be seen. Tommy nor Tubbo never heard about what happened for this place to be forsaken and each time they would ask their caretaker, she would just shut them up ; changing the subject.
They both had the same goal in mind. It would be hard to achieve, but Tommy believed they could do it if they tried.
It was a stupid goal, really, and only based on assumptions ; but the blonde boy woke up from a dream, five years before, with the name 'L'Manberg' on his tongue. Even without remembering the dream –only flashes of memories coming back to him– Tommy knew this name meant something important which could bring up his past on the surface.
They later learnt that L'Manberg was the name of an independent town at the south of the Empire. A bit bigger than Snowshester, it grew in popularity ten years ago when the Royal family moved in there.
The blonde was so caught up in his thoughts, he didn't notice Tubbo had stopped walking and bumped into him ; both of them nearly falling in the snow.
–"Tubbo, what the fuck?!" Tommy exclaimed, looking at his best friend who had his face turned towards what seemed to be the end of the forest.
–"Snowshester." he answered, still looking in front of him with amazed eyes.
–"What-" the younger started to ask, before turning his head the same direction Tubbo faced.
Then he saw it.
The town was not really far from them. They could see the top of some typical woods houses and light coming from the center – although it was day –. Pine trees were planted in some places creating a wild-ish aspect, contrasting with the comfort the lighted houses brought. The old abandoned castle was resting on top of its hill, overlooking the town beneath it.
They could hear music and people laughing in every street as they walked down a large pathway, looking around them and pointing at each new thing they discovered. 'That orphanage really shut us off from all the outside world.' Tommy thought, looking at his best friend's smile. 'I don't think I've ever seen him this happy...'
After a few more minutes of walking and contemplating, declaring they weren't tired enough and the sun wasn't down in the sky ; they decided to go look at the castle.
Tubbo brought the idea first, and who is Tommy to say no to Tubbo?
So they went.
Tommy kept complaining about how his feet hurt from all the escalating, Tubbo kept asking if they were there yet – which they weren't. – but they finally arrived. The white castle stood fiercely in front of them. They weren't sure if they were supposed to be there, but there was no one around they could see. So Tommy estimated they weren't in immediate danger.
The front gate was inaccessible, big trees and large bushes were laying in front of it, making it impossible to cross. Nevertheless, they managed to find a small gap, big enough of one person, between two stones on one side of the property enabling them to sneak in.
The interior was like the exterior.
Left off.
There were fallen planks everywhere, making it difficult to navigate through and they could barely see a corridor a bit ahead of where they were. Most of the windows were shattered, and the room they stumbled in was covered with dust and particles flying everywhere. One went into Tommy's eye making his vision go blurry as tears gathered in his eye from the sting it caused. He stumbled a bit but managed to catch himself on a fallen beam ; Tubbo right behind him.
Unfortunately for them, the beam Tommy caught on wasn't steady and the sudden move after years of unuse made it fall along with a part of the ceiling on top of their head.
The blonde quickly moved away from the crumbling and began to cough, the dust's particles making it hard to breathe.
After opening his eyes –his vision less blurry now– and seeing most of the fine powder fell completely on the stone floor and the tickles in his throat soothed, he looked around, seeing he was separated from the entrance they snuck in, meaning he couldn't get out by the same way they entered. After a while of everything calming down around them, Tommy heard his name being shouted behind the now 'wall', the crumbling created.
–"Tubbo!"
–"Oh my god Tom', are you alright?!"
–"Could have been better honestly! But I'm not hurt!"
–"I'm not either!" Tubbo reassured before he stopped talking for a bit, which didn't dispel Tommy's fears.
–"Tubs?! You went all quiet!"
–"I think we can find a way to get you out of here!" Tubbo exclaimed a few seconds after. "You have a corridor behind you, and it seems like I also have one on my side! I'm sure it could lead to the same place, meaning we could get out together!"
–"Got it, so we just have to walk until our path crosses!" Tommy resumed, standing up.
–"Guess we can still explore this castle!" Tubbo finished and Tommy could hear the smirk on his best friend's face.