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Ghostbur doesn’t remember much from before . But the one thing Ghostbur knew is that he loved Tommy- and seeing him building to the sky block by block made his metaphorical heart race and his instincts kicked in.
“Tommy!” Ghostbur screamed, his voice echoing across the empty beach as he rushed closer to where Tommy was building. When Tommy didn’t react Ghostbur yelled for Tommy again.
He let out a breath of relief when Tommy stopped his building and looked down towards where Ghostbur was standing, but made no move to come down from his tower.
“I came to go mining with you,” Ghostbur said, the desperation clear in his voice that he hoped would convince Tommy to come down.
Tommy cocked his head to the side as he stared at Ghostbur for a moment before moving his gaze to the bottom of the tower. The panic crept up in Ghostbur’s throat again as Tommy stepped off the edge of the tower and began plummeting to the ground. The panic only subsided when Tommy safely landed in the water beneath him before making his way towards Ghostbur with a sad smile on his face.
As he came closer, Ghostbur could see something missing- the bright light that used to remain in Tommy’s eyes was gone now, replaced by a creeping darkness that only promised pain and suffering. With Tommy now safely on the ground next to him, Ghostbur took a second look around at what used to be Tommy’s new home. From the bright white tents to the enclosed storage area, it was all in pieces.
“W-what happened here?” Ghostbur asked, confused by his surroundings as the last time he was here everything was as put together as it could be in a place such as Logstedshire.
“What do you mean?” Tommy asked and Ghostbur could hear the hesitancy in his voice as the boy spoke.
“I saw Dream leaving here, Tommy.” Ghostbur confessed. “Did he do this?”
Tommy opened his mouth like he wanted to deny it, before closing it and slowly nodding his head in acceptance.
“But it’s my fault,” Tommy was quick to add on to defend Dream. “I did something I wasn’t supposed to do, but he’s my friend and he only wants what's best for me. He’s trying to help me become better than the old Tommy.”
“But there was nothing wrong with the old Tommy.” Ghostbur insisted. That was something he remembered from before . “A true friend wouldn’t get mad at you for being who you are, Tommy.”
“You’re wrong!” Tommy shot back. “Everyone was always asking me to change, to stop griefing, to be more like them. Dream’s just helping me do that, helping me reach my full potential.”
Hearing this made Ghostbur freeze, keeping him from immediately answering. It wasn’t until now that he could really see just how Tommy had changed. The boy that he knew from before didn’t match the one he was being faced with now. The boy from before would have never proclaimed that Dream was his friend and that he was helping him. Something was wrong, something had caused that light to leave Tommy’s eyes and Ghostbur had a feeling it was Dream who was responsible.
“Tommy, Dream isn’t your friend. Dream wrecked your home and left it in ruins- that isn’t a friend, it's someone trying to hurt you and everything that you love and represent.”
“No, no he’s my friend he would never hurt me.” Tommy insisted weakly. “He’s just trying to help me be better so that I can go home.”
“Tommy, he’s never going to let you go home, just look at what he’s done to Logstedshire.”
Tommy looked at Ghostbur before taking a glance around the ruins he once called home. The beach that remained set up for a party that never happened and the tree decorated for a Christmas spent missing his friends and family. This place was nothing but a physical reminder that he was alone and that no one had come for him, despite the numerous invitations he had sent.
“Tommy, do you remember when you had that dream that I was alive? The one where you wished for me to be coming to save you? Maybe I’m not alive, I’m still a ghost, but I am here and I want to help you. We have to go now, before Dream comes back- it isn’t safe for you here anymore and it never was.”
For a moment Ghostbur watched as Tommy took a final look at their surroundings before turning so their eyes met.
“Okay.” Tommy whispered quietly before raising his voice. “Okay, let's go.”
Hearing this, Ghostbur smiled and turned around to face the forest before holding his hand out for the boy to take just like he had mere weeks ago when they went mining. This time, Tommy grasped on quickly like he was never going to let go again. With a final nod at one another they start running to the forest, to safety , and they didn’t plan on looking back.
Ghostbur and Tommy had been running for what seemed like hours, but Ghostbur wasn’t quite sure how long it had really been- all he knew was the sun was beginning to set and the weather was starting to get colder as they neared their destination. Somewhere along the way when they stopped at a stream for Tommy to rest, they saw that pieces of ice were floating downstream and they realized where they were and made a decision to continue heading to Phil and Techno’s compound. All they had to do now was go through the tree line and cross the snowy plains and they would be at the back entrance to the compound. They were almost there, almost to safety.
When they broke the tree line Ghostbur froze and put his arm out in front of Tommy, pushing Tommy behind him as a familiar voice greeted them.
“Hello, Tommy.” Dream said, white mask shimmering in the light as his axe glittered and swung back and forth like it was nothing more than a toy. “Fancy seeing you here.”
Dream slid down from his perch on the rock and moved swiftly to stand in front of Ghostbur and Tommy.
“I’m only going to ask you once, Tommy. What do you think you’re doing?” Dream asked, venom seeping into his voice even though he still sounded scarily calm. Ghostbur tightened his grip on the boy's arm as Tommy stood silently behind him. “Since we’re friends, I’ll ask you one more time. What are you doing?”
Ghostbur felt Tommy’s arm slip out of his hold as he pulled himself out from behind Ghostbur and started to walk towards Dream.
“I’m sorry.” Tommy said meekly, looking down at the ground as he passed Ghostbur.
Ghostbur couldn’t help but feel that the apology was for him too. He watched as Dream placed his arm around Tommy’s shoulder and began leading him through the forest they’d just come from. As they passed Ghostbur, his eyes met Dream’s and Ghostbur couldn’t help but feel the look that Dream gave him was a promise that meant if he interfered again it would be more than his ghost life on the line, it would be Tommy’s. It was this single look that told Ghostbur everything he needed to know. He was never getting Tommy out of exile. He was never going to help him find his home. Maybe there was a little bit more of Wilbur left in Ghostbur than he thought because with that single look he knew he was never going to stop trying.