Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Tommy stood hidden against the alley wall.

He had really done it this time.

But it really wasn’t his fault. (this time.)

That stupid prick Siren was practically asking for it!

“Where did you sneak off to Theseus? Come out.” The Voice demanded from the street.

Tommy could feel the pull from Siren's power, it was strong.

Unfortunately for the villain, one of Tommy's powers countered it quite perfectly.

Hard to be controlled when you have an immunity power.

Siren ran through the streets, trying to spot the hidden vigilante.

however that wasn’t going to happen, Tommy was not in the mood to be caught by some big bad villain.

Tommy moved off the alley wall and looked at the fire escape located deeper in the alley.

The blond looked back to Siren who was getting angrier by the second.

“Just wait till I get my hands on you. GET OUT HERE NOW” Siren commanded.

Tommy ran towards the fire escape, the ladder wasn’t down. fuck.

He’d have to jump to reach the platform.

A covered dumpster seemed like a perfect spot to jump from.

The teen readied himself, trying to take a few deep breaths to calm his nerves.

“T—- mmy! Tommy can you h—- me” the voice came from his ear.

“Tubbo?” Tommy whispered back.

“Don’t move! I'm sending ender to get you!”

“Okay, hurry!” Tommy said in a hushed tone.

“There you are.” a monotone voice said from above.

Blade.

Shit.

Tommy had seriously done it now.

“Heyyy blade what's up Big Man!” The blond said nervously. Stepping fully off the wall.

“Mmhm” Tommy heard the other mumble.

“Found you Theseus~”

oh shit.

The teen had forgotten about this prick.

“Heyyy Siren, good to see you” Tommy said nervously, sweat dripping down his forehead.

“Oh you have no idea how happy I am to see you.” Siren stated.

A thud came from behind him.

It was Blade.

Who had just jumped off the 4 story building into the alley.

“Seriously man, how the fuck do you do that?” Theseus questioned.

Suddenly Tommy became very aware of the situation he was in.

Siren blocking the way out. Blade blocking the retreat.

Fuck he hoped Ranboo would show up right about now.

“Gentlemen!, Lads!, Fellas!, let's not do anything we’d regret now”

“Oh I'm not going to regret this Theseus. Firstly I’m going to return the Punch you gave me 5 minutes ago.” Siren sounded Pissed.

“Oh that… haha you need to let it go man, it’s in the past.” The blond spoke uneasily.

Tommy could practically feel the rage vibrating off Siren after he said that.

“Pffft loser, you let this kid punch you Siren? L” Blade commented from behind.

Tommy had honestly forgotten that THE BLADE was standing behind him.

“SHUT UP Blade,” Siren commanded.

Tommy was surprised to say the least.

Though he supposed everyone fights sometimes, even these two.

Blade stopped making any noise after Siren’s command.

Tommy wasn’t sure if the man was even breathing.

“Are you even breathing dude?” the teen asked cautiously, not turning his back on Siren.

Tommy could see blade give a thumbs up out of the corner of his eye.

“Damn Siren you really are a sensitive bitch” Tommy said focusing on the other again.

“OH. I’ll show you sensitive you little fuck” Siren leapt from the spot he was standing and rushed at the vigilante.

Tommy was ready for it.

Totally ready.

Siren practically tackled the boy, while trying to grab him, Tommy moved faster thankfully.

Dodging Sirens hands, not avoiding the male body that came crashing down on him.

Tommy felt a pain shoot through his chest.

This fucker definitely just bruised one of his ribs!.

“You bitch!” Tommy shouted, rolling out from under Siren.

The Vigilante scrambled to get back on his feet.

Seriously where the fuck is Ranboo!?

As if on cue, fluttery purple particles surrounded him, about 5 seconds later ender appeared next to him.

“Sorry Theseus!” Ender apologized woefully

“Now is not the time, idiot!” Theseus shouted, grabbing the other.

Siren, still lying on the ground, looked up to growl at the two Vigilantes.

“STO-”

“GO!”

Right before the Villain’s eyes, the Vigilantes evaporated into thin air, leaving nothing but a few purple particles floating around.

“FUCKING HELL” Siren shouted.

Getting up and immediately punching the alley wall.

Immediately regretting it.

“Damn it!,” The brunette spoke calmer. Still pissed but calmer.

Siren turned to blade who was still silent.

“Why didn’t you do anything!?”

“.....”

“Say something!”

“....”

“....”

'Oh. opps. ' Siren thought, finally remembering his earlier command.

“You can talk again”

“You suck.” was the first thing that came out of the blade’s mouth.

“I Hate you”

“Hate you more”

“Shuddup”

“Hurry up and get off the ground loser”

Blade walked out of the alley leaving a pissed Siren trailing behind

.

.

.

.

As the two villain’s faded from Tommy's sight, he was met with a flash of darkness, a recurring effect when teleporting with Ranboo.

The blinding lights of his friend's apartment overcoming the darkness.

Tubbo stood in front of him, and angry expression residing of his face.

“Hey tubbs..”

“That's really all you have to say for yourself ‘hey tubbs’ seriously!?” The shorter yelled.

Tommy was really in for it now.

“Look Tubbo” Tommy said, taking off the red neck scarf that covered his mouth and nose.

“I really don’t have an explanation”

“WHY DID YOU PUNCH SIREN! seriously, are you trying to get yourself killed?” Tubbo shouted 

Tommy looked at the ground in shame.

He didn’t know why he punched Siren. He just did.

To be honest Tommy knows exactly why he punched Siren but it wasn’t something he could tell anyone.

Not even tubbo.

I mean it's not exactly an easy thing to comprehend.

Y’know how do you even bring it up? ‘It’ being the fact that Tommy's entire family are supervillains.

Tommy couldn’t tell tubbo.

He just couldn’t.

“Tommy, we just want you to rely on us more.” Ranboo expressed softly.

“And Stop making stupid decisions,” Tubbo added, walking out of the room, ranboo following 

Tommy supposed they were right, not that he’d ever tell them that.

“Yeah yeah, I’ll try to be less stupid in the future” Tommy mumbled

“GOOD!,”

‘How the fuck did he hear that!”Tommy thought periking up a bit The blond vigilante took the rest of his vigilante gear off, grateful that he’d left his plain clothes underneath the costume.

A light blue bag sat in the corner of the room, Tommy grabbed the vigilante gear he’d just taken off and stuffed it into the bag.

Tommy reached for the phone that was in the bag's front pocket.

-No new messages-

Tommy sighed, putting the phone into his back pocket.

He didn’t expect anyone to notice his absence anyway.

It’s not like they gave a shit about him anyway.

Tommy finished stuffing the rest of his gear in the bag.

No one checked his stuff anyway, so he had pretty much no chance of being found out. Pretty much.

Grabbing the light blue bag Tommy rushed out of the room.

“You staying for dinner, boss man?” the shortest asked standing near the stove.

A warm homey smell always drifted in his friend's apartment.

The smell mixed in with the cooked pasta fumes.

It smelled really good.

Tommy assumed his friend was cooking pasta from the smell.

“Nah gotta be heading home”

Tommy liked Tubbo’s apartment, it was classy and comfortable. Affordable too. Tubbo had really lucked out with this place.

Tubbo had earned himself a well paying job being an apprentice software developer for the hero tower.

It was a super duper important role according to Tubbo. Tommy believed it.

“Well then Tubs, I’ll see you Saturday, don’t forget to sleep you damn workaholic”

“Yeah sure, see you saturday boss man”

“Bye Tommy!” Ranboo said from the next room.

“Bye Ranboob!” Tommy yelled, rushing out the front door.

“Ser-” the words getting cut off by the door slamming behind him.

The teen ran down the stairs of the building and into the street.

It was late, but if Tommy was fast,(which he was) he could beat all of his family back home before anyone noticed his absence.

As Tommy took off running down the streets he pulled out his phone and headphone, playing a shuffle playlist on spotify.

The first song?

That's what I like - Bruno Mars

“Jump in the cadillac-”

Chapter Text

The street lights guided the way for Tommy as he continued to run through the streets.

Dodging and weaving passed the few people on the street.

The music filling his ear, a Black Eyed Peas mix was his go-to running playlist.

The teen continued down a streets that lead to the highway, it was practically empty at this time, so when he arrived at the large road he leapt over the blockade and started sprinting down the tar road.

As the song - pump it - played in his ears the boy continued down the highway.

It took Tommy maybe 15 minutes to run home, thankfully he knew all the shortcuts so that saved him an extra 10 minutes.

Once Tommy reached a familiar street he slowed his pace.

The houses of the streets lit up with the noise of family, cheers and happiness. 

Every house on his street seemed to share that in common.

That is until he reached the biggest house on the street.

His house.

His cold empty house.

Tommy stopped at the edge of the grass. Taking a deep breath, he readied himself for his family's bullshit.

The teen walked onto the concrete path that led to the front door. 

There was nothing scary about the door but whenever Tommy opened it a shiver ran down his spine.

The teen opened the door with a lot of hesitation.

Entering the house, the feeling began to settle, never fully disappearing.

Tommy walked into the darkness, feeling for the light switch next to the door.

Turning the lights on, Tommy was met with the familiar view of his house.

He walked into the living room, leaving his shoes at the door.

Tommy entered the kitchen, turning on the light. He went straight to the fridge. It was practically empty.

He'd have to go shopping tomorrow.

Tommy sighed listening to the quiet of the house.

No one was home.

Tommy closed the fridge, opening the cupboard next to it. 

A sack of potatoes stared at him, it'll have to do.

Tommy could cook anything out of pretty much anything.

A talent he had found out pretty quickly. You find out lots of things when you have to fend for yourself.

Tommy grabbed three potatoes from the bag.

Took them to the sink and gave them a light wash.

Pulling out a wooden chopping block from under the counter, Tommy began to peel the potatoes.

Turning the oven on to 180°c (360°F) the teen began slicing the potatoes into thin slices, vertically, never cutting all the way through.

It was one of his favorite potato dishes. One his mom used to make when he was a kid.

Tommy really missed h- 

"FUCKING HELL," Wilbur shouted from outside.

The front door shot open as Tommy’s brothers walked through the door.

"Seriously dude chill out" Techno said, closing the door behind a pissed Wilbur.

"Chill out!?. Chill out!?. That asshole punched me and your telling me to fucking chill out" The brunette shouted.

Tommy watched as his brothers flopped down on the couch.

They didn't even acknowledge him. What a surprise.

"Hey guys, great to see you too," Tommy whispered under his breath.

Wilbur, also known as Siren, turned to look at his brother. Now that Tommy could see clearly he had really done a number on Wilbur's face.

It would take a while for the huge bruise on the side of his face to heal.

"Tommy seriously shut the fuck up." Wilbur sounded pissed.

"I'm really not in the fucking mood to deal with your shit today" he added.

Tommy raised his eyebrows. Fucking typical.

"Typical" the boy muttered under his breath. 

"What the hell did you just say?" The brunette said standing up.

Tommy backtracked quickly.

"Nothing.." he replied shyly. 

"Oh no no Tommy. If you've got something to say. Say it." The man began walking towards Tommy.

Fucking hell why couldn't he just keep his stupid mouth shut, Tommy scolded himself.

"Wilbur, stop." Techno cut in from the living room.

Wilbur seemed to ignore the other, and continued to walk closer to Tommy.

Tommy took a step back. Wilbur was too close. It scared Tommy. 

"Seriously you prick if you've got something to say spit it out." Wilbur practically shouted in Tommy's face.

"I-"

"Wilbur stop. He's not worth it." Techno cut Tommy off.

The brunette looked the teen up and down. A disgusted face consumed the others face.

"Heh, I suppose you're right," Wilbur answered, taking a step away from Tommy.

"Hey one more thing Tommy, piss off " Wilbur commanded.

Tommy was on the verge of tears at this point. But even so he couldn't let them know he was immune to their powers. 

So he was forced to comply. 

The teen began to walk past Wilbur and head for the stairs. 

" Stop " 

Tommy stopped. 

"Don't forget to clean your mess " the other said smugly.

Tommy really hated Wilbur.

The blond walked back to the kitchen, picked up the cutting board with the potato's on it, and threw it in the bin. Leaving the cutting board in the sink.

Tommy turned back to Wilbur. The tears starting to fill the corner of his eyes.

"Good, now piss off " Wilbur commanded, a smirk painted on his face.

Tommy practically ran to the stairs, grabbing his bag and rushing up the stairs.

Once Tommy was out of their view he stopped. 

The tears fell down his face. Tommy used his hands to cover his mouth, trying not to make a sound as he fell to the ground.

Tommy listened to his brothers in the living room, neither really caring about what had just happened. 

The teen sat there, listening to the bickering of his two brothers. They seamed so happy without him.

Tommy let out a quiet sob. 

It hurts. 

The blond managed to pull himself off the floor, and walked slowly to his room at the end of the hall. 

Tommy opened the door quietly, throwing his bag on the bed. He closed the door quieter than he had opened it. 

Tommy wasn't hungry anyway.

He'd lost his appetite.

.

.

.

.

"Boy's I'm home!" Phil said walking into the house.

"Hey dad" the twins responded.

"How'd the hunt for the vigilante go?" The blond man asked, taking off his shoes.

Phil was met with the sight of a snickering techno and Wilbur with a bruised face.

"Oh mate…" the man sighed and looked at his son.

"When I get my hands on that fucking I'm going to make him wish he was never born" Wilbur muttered.

"Seriously will? How do you let that happen?" 

Wilbur shot up shocked

"It's not my fault the little bastard snuck up on me!" 

"Why didn't you just command him to stay still mate?"

Wilbur looked down as if slowly recalling memories and putting things together.

"I.. did" the brunette whispered, almost shocked.

"Oh yeah we think Theseus is immune to Siren's power" techno added from the kitchen. 

"Wait immune? Really?" Phil wasn't sure it was possible. 

The winged man thought for a moment, this was a lot worse than he'd thought. 

Was it a simple immunity against Will's powers or against all powers? 

Was it just a tolerance or full immunity?

Phil had felt uneasy ever since the vigilante appeared on the scene a few months ago.

Now he knows why.

"Put a hit out on Theseus. Kill on sight" The leader of the syndicate ordered.

The two villain’s looked at their father shocked. One's shock turned to joy, the others turned to dread.

Something just didn't sit right with techno about the whole situation. 

Though he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

"Got it dad, I'll let the syndicate know tomorrow" Wilbur said, sounding pleased.

"Good, now what do we want for dinner boys?" The blond asked more positively.

"Can't we just get takeout?" Wilbur asked trailing after his father. 

Phil walked into the kitchen, opened the fridge, then sighed.

"Takeout it is!" The man cheered 

"Heck yeah!" The brunette shouted walking back to the living room.

The elder began to look around the kitchen, noticing the chopping block in the sink.

"Was someone cooking?" The older asked 

Techno and Wilbur shared a glance.

"Yeah… Tommy was." Techno responded.

The elders' faces turned sour at the mention of the younger.

"Oh yeah" Wilbur started "he was cooking something when we walked in, he threw it out then ran up to his room" 

" …." Techno gave Wilbur a blank look.

Phil had a calm angry aura flow over him.

"That ungrateful child has the nerve to waste food. Fucking hell" 

"Yep" the brunette corroborated.

The blond went quiet and headed towards the stairs.

Wilbur snickered quietly. Proud of the mess he'd placed on his little brother.

Tommy sat quietly at his desk, he'd stopped crying a few minutes ago, now he was Tending to the bruise on his chest. 

Fucking Wilbur. That bastard just had to fall on him didn't he.

Tommy put his hand softly on the bruise, activating his second power.

Blood control.

Tommy could feel every bit of blood flowing in his veins, the teen pushed a bunch of white blood cells to the wound, in doing so he speeds up the healing process 10 fold.

Tommy looked up catching a glimpse of himself in the mirror. 

His eyes always turned a light shade of crimson red when he used this power. He sorta liked it.

Red had always suited him, that's what he thought anyway.

Tommy felt the pain on his ribs lessen, when he looked down the bruise was completely gone.

The teen pulled his shirt back down. The sound of footsteps outside set alarms off in his head.

The was no knock on the door, it was simply shoved open revealing his very angry father.

Tommy shuddered at the aura being cast.

"H-hey dad" 

"Tommy, if I ever catch you wasting food again, I'm going to make sure you regret it." The avians eyes darkened.

Tommy nodded, not really understanding what was happening.

"Do you understand?" 

"Yeah," 

"DO YOU UNDERSTAND?" he snapped 

Tommy shivered. Fear tearing through his body.

"Yes sir." The teen answered mechanically.

"....good, and stop being such a pest Tommy" the boy's father added, closing the door with a bang.

The sound making Tommy jump.

He really hated this fucking family.

Tommy shot up from the desk and headed straight for his bed.

His bed was the only thing that could bring him any sort of peace right now.

Tommy fell into a flakey slumber.

As the tears rolled down his cheeks, his pillow became stained with the boy's broken tears.

Tommy really hated his family, all he wanted was to eat some fucking potatoes. 

Chapter Text

Tommy was abruptly woken by his alarm. His eyes shot open, quickly reaching to stop the alarm.
  
He didn't want to wake anyone up and pay for it. It had happened before and Tommy learned very quickly not to let it happen again
  
-5.30 AM- 
  
Was shown on the phone.

It was a Saturday morning and Tommy had the opening shift at the cafe.
   
Tommy rolled himself out of bed, catching himself before he fell on the ground.
He had to be there at 6, to set everything up as well as starting the prep.
  
Tommy grabbed his uniform and a fresh pair of pants and headed to the bathroom.
  
After having a quick shower Tommy felt refreshed. He'd forgotten to shower last night. 
  
(Because of Wilbur’s bullshit)
    
Changing into uniform was pretty simple, the uniform consisted of a light bay button up, a pair of long black pants, and a slightly darker bay apron, Tommy didn't put the apron on.
  
Just simply folded it up.
  
Tommy grabbed his phone and wallet.
Leaving his room the teen closed the door softly behind him, being very careful not to wake anyone.
  
Tommy tiptoed down the hall, being basically invisible, walking past Wilbur's door was the easy part.
  
Tommy could hear the older snore loudly.
  
Tommy shook his head contemplating whether to give Wilbur another right hook, or maybe pour cold water on the asshole.
  
The teen continued down the hall. Now walking past his father's room was the real challenge.
  
Tommy had basically mastered walking silently, but he had to always be on guard.
  
Philza had super sonic hearing, being an avian and all.
  
The blond snuck passed his father's door, listening to the quiet breaths of the older, Tommy carefully listened to the rhythmic breaths.
  
Making sure that rhythm didn't change as he snuck passed.
  
It didn't, and he was safely at the end of the hall now.
  
Tommy moved swiftly down the stairs. Avoiding all the creaking spots. Making it safely down the stairs.
  
The sound of the kettle boiling alerted Tommy quickly, the boy looked around, spotting a pink haired individual standing in the kitchen. 
  
Tommy calmed recognising his brother, techno hadn’t noticed the younger yet, the teen wasn’t sure about what to do.
  
Should he make a noise and alert his brother…
Or… 
Try to practice sneaking past the blood god.
  
Tommy practically vibrated at the chance to practice against his unsuspecting brother.
The teen slid up against the wall some-what shielding himself from the others' view.
    
Tommy watched techno’s body language, waiting. 
The moment came as quick as it passed

The moment Techno's body shifted to turn.
  
Tommy shifted his body weight, making his body roll silently along the floor.
  
A perfectly timed Summersalt! 
  
Tommy made it to the other side of the room, unseen and unheard. 
The teen pushed his body up against the door, he took a moment to listen to the others breathing.
  
It seemed to stop, the room went completely still, techno had stopped moving.
  
Tommy had just figured he’d been spotted, but if there was a tiny chance he could get out of the house unseen, he’d fucking take it.
.
.
.
Techno scanned the room, Chat had spotted something, at least they claimed to have. 
    
The pink haired male scanned the room. Positive that there was no one there. 
1. It was way too early for Wilbur. 
2. Philza would have walked right up to him.
3. Tommy couldn’t be quiet if his life depended on it. 
If there was anyone in here he’d know.
  
The male shook his head trying to ignore chat, they’d been getting worse lately, going on and on about that vigilante,Theseus.
  
Techoblade turned back around; now he really wanted his tea.
   
The blade focused on his tea, walking to the other side of the kitchen when a loud slam startled him.
  
The front door; closing.  
  
Huh.
  
Someone really had been there.
  
Welp shit.
    
.
.
.
As soon as the door closed Tommy made a run for it, shoes in hand he sprinted down the pathway. Only stopping when he came to the street corner, and couldn’t see his house anymore.
  
Tommy couldn’t believe it. He’d fucking done it.
He’d snuck passed the fucking blade.
The blade! 
  
Tommy’s blood rushed, adrenalin filling his body. 

He stopped at the street corner, and tried to steady his breathing. Unable to do so, the teen slid down on the side of a random building.

Tommy quickly became painfully aware of his feet, they were bare. He didn’t bother putting on socks, just grabbed his shoes and ran out the door. 

Thankfully there was a pair of old socks stuffed in the toe of the shoes. Tommy hurriedly started putting the socks on, his feet starting to feel the sting of the cold.
  
Tommy had to stop and breath for a serious minute. He was so fucking proud of himself.
  
This meant he was improving. With a smile plastered on his face Tommy grabbed his socks and shoes, putting them on with a shaky hand was a real problem. Tommy was just so excited.
   
Right as Tommy was about to finish tying up his left shoe and shadowy figure came into view.
  
Tommy squinted his eyes, trying to look harder at the stranger. Suddenly very alert. 
  
Tommy recognised him instantly by the green mask covering his face.
  
It was Dream, one of the top heroes in L’Manberg.
   
Oh shit. Has Tommy finally been caught!?
What was this guy doing here?
Crap crap cra-
  
"Hey kid you alright" 
  
Tommy stopped his freakout at the mention of being called a kid.
  
"Kid?. I am not a kid," the teen shot up, not worrying about the untied shoelace.
  
The hero seemed almost shocked at the kid's response.
  
"I'm not a fucking kid, I'm the biggest man alive!" Tommy practically shouted at the man.
  
The hero let out a low chuckle.
  
Was this prick serious?
  
Tommy was getting more pissed off by the second.
  
. 
  
“Okay ‘biggest man’ what are you doing out at this time of morning?” Dream asked mocking the shorter 
   
“For your information asshole, I’m going to work, y’know where some people have real jobs” Tommy sassed the other.
  
Dream was honestly shock at the audacity of this damn child
  
Most kids flip out when they meet hero’s. Don’t they?
   
“Look kid I think we got off on the wrong foot-”
  
“Tommy”
  
“What?”
  
“My name. It's Tommy. Not kid,” The blond cut in.
  
Dream tilted his head slightly 
  
What an interesting kid.
  
“When then Tommy, I think we got off on the wrong foot,”
  
Tommy didn’t respond, he’d been conditioned to ‘hate’ heroes all his life. It was different meeting them all up close and personal.
  
Tommy thought this fella might be okay though. Maybe
  
“And to make up for it, maybe I could give you a lift to your job?” the hero offered 
  
Tommy was intrigued to say the least. It's not everyday the number 3 hero offers a free ride!
  
“I suppose I can let you make it up to me,” the blond said, trying not to sound like too much of an asshole.
   
“Well then grab on, ki- Tommy” dream corrected himself quickly.
  
Tommy grabbed the apron that still layed on the ground, as well as his phone and wallet.
  
Clutching the items close, Tommy grabbed onto the others neck, Dream was essentially giving Tommy a piggy back.
  
  
“So where to?”
  
“The muffin cafe,” 
  
“Oh that place! I love their coffee!” Dream sounded excited.
     
Before Tommy got the chance to respond Dream leapt from his spot and into the air.
  
“Hang on Kid!” The hero shouted.
  
Tommy closed his eyes tight, the wind whipping his hair around.
  
Once the two were steady in the air, the thrashing winds turned into a gentle breeze. Tommy slowly opened his eyes, taking in the view as they glided in the air.
  
The first thing Tommy noticed was the bright green neon strings coming from the hero, the strings that were pulling them through the air.
   
As The teen looked past the strings, he got to see the bright morning light shining through the streets of his home.
It filled him with a sense of pride to see his country in all its glory.
  
The way the light danced off the building windows, the street lights that hadn’t turned off yet, and the most beautiful thing of all. The sun, breaking its way through the darkness.
  
Tommy took it all in, sure he’d seen the sunrise when he was out patrolling, but something was different about this sunrise, about this moment.
  
“Like the view?” the voice came from below.
  
“Yeah,” Tommy answered simply.
   
Dream chucked at the boy's response. 
  
Tommy continued to look at the sky in awe as the two continued jumping from building to building.
  
Before the blond realized it they had landed in front of the cafe.
   
 “Well here we are!” Dream cheered, bringing Tommy’s attention back.
     
“Holy shit we got here fast” The teen commented, sliding off the taller’s back.
  
“Well I am the number 3 hero of course I’m fast” the green man said smugly
  
“Yeah yeah whatever asshole” Tommy mocked, grabbing the keys from his pocket and walking over to the door. 
  
Unlocking it, Tommy quickly walked over to the alarm system, putting in the 6 digit pin. Stopping the silent alarm.
  
Dream followed after the teen.
  
“What’d you say your name was again ‘big man’?” The hero asked, sounding strangely sweet.
    
“....” Tommy hesitated for a minute wondering why the hero needed that information.
    
Though Tommy didn't want to appear suspicious, so he answered 
  
“Thomas Danger Watson” 
  
“I’ll be sure to remember that!” Dream said, making a mental note.
  
The teen gave the other a strange look. This guy wasn’t creepy at all. 
  
Dream, oblivious to the way he was acting, decided it was time he got back to work.
  
“Well I’d better be going, hero work to do, people to save,”
   
“Uh huh” Tommy commented, not really paying attention to the other.
     
Dream looked back at the boy, watching as he pulled chairs off tables, setting them up in an orderly fashion.
  
He’d be perfect for the job.
  
With the final glance at Tommy, Dream exited the shop making sure the door closed behind him.
   
A genuine smile appeared behind the mask.
  
.
.
.
  
Tommy watched the hero leave out of the corner or his eye.
  
What a strange dude.
  
Definitely a wrong’un, Tommy thought.
   
Once the teen finished putting all the chairs down he walked behind the counter, turning the lights on. 
Tommy walked over to the coffee machine; turning it on and leaving the nozzles loose. A trick he found that heats the machine up quicker.
Tommy continued setting everything up, from putting the pastries out, to filling sugar and salt packets.
  
By 6:20 almost everything was ready.
  
Tommy looked around the store wondering what else he could do. Nothing particularly jumped out at him.
  
He loved working at the muffin cafe, he’d started working here when he turned 15, right when the cafe had first opened.
  
Tommy was 17 now and was trusted to do all jobs in the cafe.
  
The owners were pretty good people, at least by Tommy's standards.
  
Bad and Skeppy. A lovely couple.
  
The teen really liked them, they always let him work the shifts he wanted, and took his side whenever Karens tried to complain about him.
   
Tommy was pretty sure the two were married or at least engaged.
  
They were pretty private people, but would always answer a question if asked.
  
Tommy mainly worked with bad, Skeppy was always more in the office, doing paperwork and all that crap.
  
As the blond walked into the staff room that was off to the side, he went to check the timetable, he hoped he was working with Niki, another employee, she’d been here almost as long as Tommy.
  
She was definitely his favourite though, she made the best strawberry pastries. 
  
Looking at the timetable Tommy noticed a new name at the bottom.
  
Grayson
  
It hit Tommy as fast as he’d forgotten it, there was a new employee starting today.
   
Fuck.
  
Hopefully Tommy wasn’t training them.
   
Looking past the new trainee, the teen looked for which co-worker he’d be working with.
  
From the look of it, Bad was rostered to work. He started at 8:00am.
  
Cool, Tommy liked working with Bad.
  
Pulling out his phone, Tommy took a photo of the roster. Making a note to look at his shifts later; the blond walked back out to the counter.
  
Looking at the clock on the P-O–S Terminal, it was 6:25. 
  
Tommy sighed, he guessed it was close enough to open.
  
Walking over to the front door, he flipped the sign and took the ‘open now!’ board out.
  
The board had a coffee doodle in the corner and a Muffin cartoon drawing in the other.
  
That little muffin always made Tommy smile.
  
Walking back inside, the teen yawned, his caffeine addiction demanding its fill. 
Tommy usually liked more sugary drinks, but a caramel latte in the morning never hurt.
  
Tommy grabbed one of the latte glasses and sat it next to the coffee machine 
He picked the coffee spout up and put it under the grinder, allowing the needed coffee grounds to fall into the spout.
Quickly tamping the grounds, he put the device into the machine.
  
The blond grabbed the caramel syrup off the counter and put a few squirts into the cup.
   
Steaming the milk was the next step, placing the milk jug under the steam wand, Tommy pressed the automatic steamer.
 
After the milk steamed for a bit, Tommy pulled it from under the wand, grabbing the fresh coffee shots he poured them into the cup with the caramel.

Combining all the ingredients together, a near perfect caramel latte came out.
  
Taking a sip Tommy instantly perked up, the sweet caramel taste making him feel warm.
  
Tommy walked back over to the console, setting his coffee down waiting for the first customer of the day.
  
The blond fiddled with the console screen, until he heard the door open, looking up Tommy greeted his first customer of the day.
  
“Welcome to the Muffin Cafe, what can I get you?”
    
“I’ll have -”
. 
.
.
.
“Hey Tommy!” Bad greeted walking behind the counter.
  
“Oh hey Bad” Tommy answered back.
    
It was 7:45 by this point, Bad always had a habit of turning up early. 
  
Tommy fround at that. The demon was the one who should be relaxing the most, he worked all the fricken time.
  
Though Tommy’s pretty sure the other is a work-aholic.
  
Bad walked into the staff room, dropping off his stuff only to return a while later  in the same uniform as Tommy.
  
“Been busy?” The shorter asked 
  
“Ehh sorta, nothing I couldn’t handle though" 
   
"Great!" 
    
Tommy looked around the cafe, a few people sat at the tables quietly chatting and drinking coffees. 
   
It was unusually quiet today. 
   
"Oh that reminds me-" bad beamed, bringing Tommy's attention back "-we've got a new trainee starting today!" 
   
"That Grayson fellow?" 
  
"Yep that's the one" bad finished, popping the p as he talked.
   
"What time does he start?" Tommy asked intrigued.
    
“2:30”
  
Tommy finishes his shift at 2.
The teen wonders if he should stick around to meet this new guy?
It is only half an hour.
  
“Niki’s going to be training him, he’s here to learn,” Bad continued, walking away.
  
“So be nice Tommy!” 
  
Tommy looked at the other shocked, he was always fucking nice. 
  
“I'm always fucking nice!” Tommy shouted 
  
Bad whipped around, and glared lightly at the other.
  
“Language!” 
   
“Fuck!”
  
“Language!”
  
“Pussy!” 
  
“Tommy!”
   
.
.
.
.
Tommy looked up at the clock, 1:50, almost time for him to head out. He looked back at Bad, who was still taking orders at the counter.
  
‘Glad I’m not the one dealing with crappy customers today’ The teen thought to himself.
  
A  smirk appeared on his face as he turned back to the coffee machine, finishing the coffee order in front of him.
  
A cappuccino with an extra shot of coffee
An iced coffee 
And finally a Chai latte.
   
Tommy finished the order quickly, putting all the drinks into a wooden carry tray. The teen walked over to the pick up station and read out the order name as he’d done for every order today.
   
“Order for Clay!”
   
Placing the order down he scanned the room quickly, looking for a hint of movement from anyone. 
  
Nobody seemed to move, this was one of Tommy's pet peeves. People that don’t fucking listen. Then they have the audacity to complain when they don’t have their order.
  
Well not today! Tommy is not taking any of that bullshit today (also he doesn’t want to get written up again)
   
“OI LISTEN UP” the teen shouted over the loud chatter. The room went almost dead silent, all eyes turned to the shouting blond.
  
“Oh no” Tommy faintly heard Bad whisper. 
    
“ANYONE WHO DOESN’T GET THEIR DRINK WHEN THEIR NAME IS CALLED”  Tommy waited a few beats “WILL NOT GET THEIR DRINK!” 
  
“Now-” Tommy continued more quietly “-Order for Clay.”   
  
The room was basically silent from Tommy’s rant, everyone waiting for this ‘clay’ fellow to come and collect his drinks.
  
A tall blond man pushed through the back of the crowd. Tommy shot the guy a nasty glare as he approached. 
  
The teen could tell the other was filled with shame and embarrassment. The look was practically branded on his face. Good. 
  
Clay reached the counter rather swiftly, head kept down as he picked up the drinks mumbling a quick thanks as he turned swiftly to leave. 
    
Tommy walked away from the counter and continued to make the rest of the orders. 

The rest of his shift ran rather smoothly after that.
And what was more surprising Bad didn’t write him up for the outburst! 
  
That was a win in his books at least!, apart from that one prick clay. But Tommy couldn’t be bothered.

Today was a good day!

Chapter Text

.

.

.

About 20 minutes earlier 

Dream walked along the street, stopping once he reached muffin cafe, he was now out of his hero uniform and in a pair of comfortable jeans and a casual T-shirt.

His teammates following closely behind also in casuals, Dream or rather Clay stopped right before the door quickly turning to face his teammates. 

“Seriously Dream? What are we doing here?” 404 or Gorge asked lazily.

“I Found it or rather him” Clay slightly shouted.

“Ooo Found what or who?” Flame or Sapnap teased 

Clay gave the flame hero an annoyed look.

“A new Assistant!” 

The other two hero’s gave their captain a slightly concerned look.

“Look he works here, just meet him and you’ll understand” Clay tried to sound as convincing as he could to his friends.

“How did you even meet this dude?” Sapnap asked curiously.

“Doesn’t matter, C’mon” The dirty blonde ended the conversation as he walked into the cafe.

George and Sapnap shot each other a knowing look. This was probably going to end badly. The two followed quickly after their friend.

The group had been to the cafe many times before, it was their go to coffee place, so they were pretty regular customers.

The cafe was slightly busy, about 6 people in line waiting to order, and another 5 or so waiting for their drinks 

Clay quickly jumped in at the back of the line, eyes searching for the familiar blond. The hero spotted him over at the coffee machine with a line of coffee orders in front. Clay noted how focused the kid was on his task. Good. 

Clay waited till he felt the familiar presence of his friends behind him, then pointed out the teen.

“There” He pointed sneakily at the blonde “That's Him,” 

“Sooo what’s his name?” Sapnap whispered.

“Tommy-” clay began quietly 

“Welcome! What can I get for you today?” The demon worker asked sweetly, accidentally cutting the other off.

Clay hadn’t realised they’d made it to the front of the line so quickly. His brain short circuited for about a second, before George pushed passed him and began ordering.

“Hi, I’ll get an Iced coffee, a chai latte and a cappuccino with an extra shot,”   

“Of course, will that be all today?” The demon asked.

“Yep” George fished popping the ‘p’ 

“Awesome, could I get a name for that please?” 

“Sure, Clay, that's the name thanks” The brunette turned back to the two stunned hero’s and quickly grabbed the green hero’s wallet. Dream didn’t protest since he’d planned on playing anyway.

Quickly tapping the card, George watched as the payment went through before handing it back to its rightful owner. 

“All good, that’ll be out in a few minutes” The demon finished.

The group gave a quick nod of thanks, before walking out of the line and towards the pick up station. 

Clay Continued where he’d left off “As I was saying His name is Tommy, the blondie making coffee” He pointed at the teen.

“Seriously Dream? You drag us down here for some guy that ‘might’ be a good fit” George didn’t sound impressed, which was honestly fair enough, Dream had dragged them all down here as soon as his patrol ended.

Sapnap cut in “Does He even know about the job” 

Clay paused.

George faced the blond head on.

“He Doesn’t Even Know About The Job” The brunette half yelled at the other.

“...no… But he will! And he’s perfect for the job! Trust me George” Clay pleaded with the latter.

“How did you even meet this Tommy kid D?” Sapnap asked changing the conversation

“I met him this morning on patrol,” Dream answered shortly.

His two teammates seemed unconvinced.

“Look you’ll understand when you meet him ok?” Clay reasoned 

The two shared a look between each other before turning back to the blond.

“Okay but you better be right about this clay.” George finally caved, letting out a tired sigh

“I am, trust me he’s perfect-” 

“OI LISTEN UP!” The voice shouted, catching almost everyone’s attention.

The hero’s turned to face the counter, where a pissed looking Tommy stood. 

Holding what looked liked the trio’s order. Shit. 

“ANYONE WHO DOESN’T GET THEIR DRINK WHEN THEIR NAME IS CALLED” The kid waited a few beats. 

Then Continued 

“WILL NOT GET THEIR DRINK!”

A silent agreement flooded over the cafe. 

The blond calmed quickly after that, then called out again.

“Now order for Clay.”   

Clay almost felt himself die. This was totally not happening!

Almost instantly George pushed dream forward, urging him to go get the drinks.

That little bastard.

Dream was 100% getting the brunette back for this later. 

Clay stepped forward pushing passed a few people, all eye’s falling swiftly on him as he approached the teen.  

Clay watched as Tommy shot him a nasty glare. Just great, the kid wasn’t even hired and he’d already had a horrible first impression .

As Dream reached the counter, he kept his head down, the pure shame and embarrassment of the situation forcing him too. 

Muttering a quick thanks, Clay picked up the drinks and walked rather quickly back to his friends, pausing to looking back at the teen, dream could have sworn he saw a look of smugness in the kids eyes.

George and Sapnap were already practically out the door, trying to avoid any further embarrassment from the look of it.

The three quickly exited the building, turning into the alley next to them, Clay let out a deep sigh letting himself relax.

Sapnap and George whipped their heads to face the blond.

Quickly snatching their respective drinks.

“Well that was a shit show” the fiery hero said cheerfully.

“Tell me about it,” Dream answered, taking a sip of his cappuccino.  

George stood there silently, sipping slowly at his iced coffee.

The two heroes looked at the brunette slightly worriedly.

It was unusual for George not to make a comment, particularly when it was at Dream’s expense.

The brunette pushed past the others, stopping at the alley entrance.

“Clay wastaken,” Dream tensed at the mention of being called his full name “Make sure the kid wants the job, before you give it to him” 

And with that George continued off down the street, no doubt heading back to the hero tower to finish his nap. 

Sapnap turned to follow the other, stopping just as George did.

“Go get him clay, he seems like a cool kid” 

Dream stood there stunned. He thought for sure, the others would reject the teen based on the interaction 2 minutes ago.

A smile started to grow on his face. 

It was going to be an interesting week.

.

.

.

.

Tommy would reach his house rather quickly at this rate, he’d been jogging slowly, but it was still quicker than walking. 

The teen was pretty pumped, he was going to head over to tubbo’s apartment in a few hours, they had plans to study, and then Tommy was going on Patrol. 

Patrol was one of his favourite things to do, it gave him a sense of purpose and freedom, Tommy had become ‘Theseus’ about 4 months ago, just before he’d turned 17. His first night out had been a total disaster. 

He’d been getting used to the anti-gravity shoes Tubbo had given him, Tommy had fallen off like 4 buildings that night.

He had stopped wearing those shoes about a month ago, his physical stats had been improving dramatically, so he didn’t really need the shoes anymore. Tubbo had wanted the shoes back anyway. Something about needing improvements, Tommy hadn’t really been paying attention when the other mentioned it. 

Tommy had been learning to use his blood control to lower himself, and jump off buildings.

Honestly speaking Tommy was scared of his own powers, the Teen knew he was special, it's not everyday you come across someone with two powers. Tommy knew that for sure, mainly because it was never mentioned on the news or by his villain family. 

A shiver ran down the boy’s spine, he didn’t even want to imagine what would happen if they ever found out. 

The only people who knew about his second power were Tubbo and Ranboo and that was already too many people for Tommy’s liking. 

The teen stopped for a second, shaking the anxiety that had begun to rack his body.

Tommy took a deep breath and told himself to get his shit together, now was definitely not the time to be having an internal conflict. He could save that for later.

By this point Tommy had turned down his street; recognising the familiarity he slowed his pace.

A small vibrate from his pocket made him pull out his phone, a new message from Tubbo stared up at him.

-Study group at 5! Don’t be late dummy- 

Tommy looked up from his phone, a smile plastered on his face. 

Almost mechanically the teen marched up to his house, suddenly becoming desperately aware he needed an excuse.

Unsurprisingly Tommy’s family doesn’t know about his job, despite him having worked there for just over 2 Years.

The blond had tried to tell them years ago when he’d first started; they’d had basically ignored him, so now it was just a fun way to see what excuses Tommy could get away with when they asked where he’d been.

Well not ‘they’ just Phil. Tommy honestly thought the man was bi-polar with how much his attitude switched up.

It gave Tommy whiplash most of the time. 

The blond sighed as he turned the doorknob to the house.

Locked.

Huh.

Fuck yes.

Tommy grabbed his key out of his wallet and unlocked the door, only to be met with the sweet sound of silence.

No one was home, His brothers must be out doing villainy stuff and Phil was most likely at work by this time.

Almost giddy with joy Tommy rushed up the stairs, quickly grabbing a change of clothes and jumping in the shower.

-15 minutes later- 

Tommy walked back down the stairs now in a comfortable change of clothes, work always left him pretty tired. 

He flopped down on the couch with a thud. 

Usually he would be pretty hungry by this point, but he’d eaten just before he left work. One of niki’s famous strawberry pastries always filled him up.

The pastries in question were made with two freshly made raw pastry sheets that were cut into rectangles then cooked. 

Becoming holo pastry pockets, after letting them cool, they get filled with a strawberry cream filling. And topped with a light pink glaze, with a few thinly sliced strawberries placed on top and sprinkled with icing sugar.

They were Tommy’s favourite comfort food. Hold up. Second.

His mom’s cooked potato recipe was definitely his ultimate favourite. 

Though thinking of all this food, Tommy began to get hungry again. His tummy let out a low rumble.

Pushing himself off the couch, he walked into the kitchen and opened the Pantry. 

It was practically empty, those fucking brothers of his had eat basically the last of the fucking food.

Tommy for the life of him, couldn’t understand the people around him. They were all literally rich, like really rich. It was the family’s blood money. But money was money in Tommy's opinion.

So why even with all this damn money can none of them go fucking shopping.

It honestly pissed Tommy off. Because at the end of the day he’s going to get blamed for not going shopping.

It was a recurring fight.  

One that Tommy was seriously sick of by this point.

Well not today wilbur!. 

Today the teen wasn’t in the mood to get into it with his brothers. Well Wilbur more specifically. The brunette always had a habit of using undone chores to pick on Tommy.

And Tommy just had to stand there and take it. He hated having to hide immunity, but knew it was better kept a secret. 

“Fuck this” The blond whispered under his breath. 

Walking back to the front door, Tommy reached into one of his father’s coat pockets, pulling out a small leather wallet.

The blond was quite aware of Phil's forgetful habits and for once knowing those habits was useful information. 

Pulling out one of the gold credit cards, he quickly slipped the card into his pocket and the wallet back into the jacket.

Putting on his pair of red crocks, Tommy grabbed his phone and wallet off the couch and rushed out the door.

A few blocks away there was local Cosco, it was the closest thing Tommy was willing to walk too.

So Cosco it is!

Besides, it was cheaper to get everything he needed in bulk.   

Tommy walked peacefully down the path, planning out a mental shopping list.

It was about a 15 minute run to the store, Tommy had started to admit that maybe he worked out a little bit too excessively.

His own mind countered with ‘stamina training’, a better chance of getting away if he could run for long periods of time.

Grabbing a stray Shopping Cart Tommy strode in through the automatic doors, the cool air of the store hitting him.

The first thing on Tommy’s metal list!

Potatoes. 

Walking to the familiar aisle, the teen picked up 3 bags of the -5kg White Potatoes- 

Some might say it's excessive, but Tommy would say those people are stupid.

Next Item!

Coke 

-About an hour later- 

Tommy finished tapping the card, making sure the piece of plastic made it safely back in his pocket. Phil might actually kill him if he lost the card.

“Thanks for Shopping with us, Have a great day..” The overworked worker repeated mechanically.

Tommy pitied the other slightly, he knew the feeling well, having to repeat the same scripted phrases to every person that walks through the damn door. He felt for this employee truly.

“You too,” Tommy said quite positively, making sure to grab the 20 dollar note from his wallet and shove it safely into the tip jar.

Giving the worker one final smile before pushing the cart (full of food) out the doors.

Walking Back outside, the teen came to the rude awakening that he’d have to push this whole damn cart back home.

Fuck.

Tommy suddenly wished someone, anyone would offer him a ride.

Literally anyone

“Well well well, look who we have here” 

Well not Anyone.

Nevermind he’d rather fucking walk home.

Fuck no.

Why does God hate him?

What could Tommy have possibly done in his past life to deserve this bullshit.

“Hello Wilbur” The blond turned to face the smug brunette.

“What’d ya doing here?” The Taller asked 

Tommy paused, looking down at the shopping cart, back to Wilbur and down to the cart again.

“Seriously?” The teen asked unseriously.

“Aren't you supposed to be like a genius or something?” Tommy continued “Y'know what- no, no” the boy started muttering to himself. 

Tommy knew better than to internationally pick a fight with Wilbur, it was a losing game; and both men knew it.

The teen calmed himself before continuing “I was getting groceries-” 

“Ahhh well isn’t that nice of you, since all you do is sit around all day” Wilbur cut him off.

Tommy resisted the urge to slap the brunette across the face. 

“...hurry up and put this shit in the car.” Wilbur said more bluntly, clearly annoyed at the non-reaction from Tommy. 

The teen nodded stiffly. Rolling the cart over to the back of the car, the boy opened the trunk, and started loading in the groceries. The brunette leaned on the side of the car being useless as usual.

Wilbur simply stood there, watching Tommy.

Tommy simply chose to ignore the others' presence.

The blond finished loading the car rather quickly. 

“Don’t forget to take the cart back” Wilbur commented as he sat in the driver’s seat. 

“Yeah, yeah, Prick” Tommy whispered the last part under his breath.

The blond quickly rushed the Cart back to its respective spot, which just so happened to be on the other side of the lot. 

It took the boy a few seconds to figure out how to get the cart into the Corral.

Turning back to the car, Tommy looked to where the car had been parked only to be met with emptiness. 

That fucking cunt.

Tommy honestly didn't even have the energy in himself to stay angry. The teen lowered himself down to the curb and sat down.

This is a seriously shit day.

Tommy let his head fall into his hands, a wave of pure disappointment and distraught flooded through him.

It was hard to breathe, Tommy's throat felt tight as the feeling in his gut worsened.

The boy cursed himself for not expecting it. 

Tommy just wanted to curl up and cry right now.

The blond wished he could be a different person, even have a different family. Tommy wished for a change. Something. 

He wished for something in his life to go right, to be cared about for once in his fucking life.

Tommy just let his head hang in between his knees.

A hand landed on the boy’s unsuspecting shoulder, Tommy jumped at the sudden contact, whipping his head around, the teen came face to face was a slightly familiar blond.

“Looks like you need a lift” 

It was the bastard from the cafe 

Tommy racked his brain, trying to think of the name. As he stared at the other in surprise 

The taller offer the younger a gentle smile.

The name went off in his head like an explosion. 

Clay.

Chapter Text

Tommy stood staring at the dirty blond male.

Was this guy serious?

The sadness he’d felt a moment ago disappeared and was replaced with hostility.

“Soooo?” Clay added

“Sooo what?” Tommy mocked. While somehow being blunt

The taller huffed.

“Look kid, do you want a Lift or not” 

Tommy stared at the other.

“No, I don’t. Thank you very much”  

The blond began walking in the opposite direction.

Clay became slightly panicked at the boy’s quick exit.

“W-Wait Tommy wait!” The taller blond rushed to grab the other's arm.

Tommy quickly concerned for his own safety, Stopped the hand coming his way, deflected it and tried to sock the other in the face.

Clay being the number 3 hero had very good reflexes. Thankfully.  

Tommy stalled for a second, he hardly ever missed such a close punch.

“Tommy Stop.” Clay said firmly a hint of concern tracing his voice.

The teen stopped, letting his breathing settle, then decided to try a different approach .

“Bit creepy you remembering my name, don’t ya think?” 

“I remembered it because I wanted to apologise” Clay took a step back, allowing Tommy some much needed space.

The teen couldn’t help but feel a little bit bad at the revelation, all the guy did was offer him a ride and Tommy had tried to punch him.

Okay so maybe it was a tiny overreaction on his part, but that's besides the point. 

“I offered you a ride as a way to sort of make up for being a crappy customer”

Clay offered Tommy another genuine smile.

‘Seriously who the heck smiles this much?’ The boy asked himself.

“...Fine,” Tommy reluctantly agreed, not wanting to cause any more trouble.

Anyway if the guy tried anything Tommy could just make his blood explode.

Clay’s smile widened if that was even possible.

“Come on then!” The taller turned back to the lot and started heading towards a group of parked cars.

Tommy trotted closely behind.

The two stopped in front of a classic white suburban mom car.

Tommy stared at the car curiously.

“This yours?” 

“Yep!” 

“Seriously?”

“Seriously.” 

Clay wandered around to the driver's side door. Clicking the electric key the doors clicked unlocked.

Tommy opened the passenger door, The Car had a reasonably clean interior, a few stray McDonalds Cups but nothing particularly alarming jumped out at him. 

Clay, seeing the cups at almost the same time, quickly grabbed them and threw them into the back of the car, offering Tommy a sorry smile.

‘Seriously, what's with this guy and smiling?’ the teen thought, lowering himself into the front seat. 

Tommy watched the other put the key in the ignition, starting the car .

The car pulled onto the highway and the hero started to get lost in his own thoughts 

Clay looked at the boy, a wave of pity bubbling inside. He’d seen the brunette from earlier drive away without the boy. Dream assumed the other was somehow related to Tommy. 

But still who the hell leaves a kid alone in a Costco parking lot!? 

Doesn’t he know that someone could take Tommy? 

Kidnapping still happens in this day and age!

Clay, clearly not seeing the irony, continued to ramble in his own head.

“-urn left here.”

Being pulled abruptly out of his thoughts, Clay swerved to the left, forgetting his blinker and almost crashing into the car next to him.

Earning a few pissed honks, the hero pulled into the left exit, taking a second to look at Tommy he was met with the sight of a frightened cat.

The Teen had pushed himself as far as he could into the seat and against the window. And looked like his eyes were about to bulge out of his head.

“Holy shit, sorry Tommy, I'm usually a better driver than that…” Dream profusely apologised.

‘WHYYYYY’ Clay cried internally  

Was it possible for clay to fuck up anymore then this?

Tommy sat looking like a startled stoat.

The hero slowed the car down to the appropriate speed.

Clay cast another shy glance at the boy.

Tommy had started to un-curl himself from the corner.

The hero focused back on the road.

The two sat in an awkward silence for quite a long while, Dream was honestly scared to say another word out of fear, fear of screwing up even more.  

Tommy had calmed down by this point and was sitting normally in his seat again. 

Dream looked at the now calmer boy and decided it was safe to speak.

“Do you like music?”

Tommy looked at him like he was stupid.

“What kind of dickhead doesn’t like music!?” 

Clay taken aback by the sudden statement, chuckled lightly.

“You can turn the radio on if you’d like” 

Tommy reached hesitantly towards the button. Pressing the button lightly, the sound of music began to fill the car.

“-at’s what the mask is” 

Tommy wanted to smash Clay's radio at that moment. 

“That’s what the point of the mask is”

The amount of times the blond had heard this song recently was fucking crazy.

“So you can see I'm tryin', You won't see me cryin' ” 

“So you can see I'm tryin', You won't see me cryin' ” Clay began singing along.

Tommy had liked the song when it was first released, Dream was one of the only heroes to release any kind of music. 

 “I'll just keep on smilin', I'm good (yeah, I'm good)”

 “I'll just keep on smilin', I'm good.. Yeah i'm good” The darker blond continued missing a few beats.

When Dream had become the number 3 Hero the song had blown up dramatically, it was ridiculous honestly. The song was played like 3 times every hour, every hour of every day.

“And it just keeps on pilin', It's so terrifying” 

“And it just keeps on pilin', It's so terrifying” 

If Tommy had one true nemesis it would be this damn song. He would never escape it.

“But I keep on smilin', I'm good (yeah, I'm good)”

“But I keep on smilin', I'm good, yeah I’m gooood”

The teen decided to keep his disgusts to himself, Clay seems to be enjoying the song so in a very un-tommy like fashion, he’ll keep his mouth shut. 

“I've been carin' too much for so long”

“I've been caring' too much for so long” 

Clay casting a quick glance at Tommy caught the subtle look of disgust on the younger’s face.

“Been comparin' myself for so long”

“Do you not like this song?” Clay asked, turning the music down.

Tommy, not one to hold back his opinion if asked, simply replied 

“I’d rather be burned alive then listen to this fucking song again” 

“.......Soooo Thats a no, Good to know,” The dirty blond acknowledged

“Take the next right,” The teen said early, giving the hero plenty of time to make the turn.

“.....How can you not like it!?” The driver asked, seemingly insulted 

“Just don’t” 

“B-but how, it’s sung by the number 3 Hero?” Clay continued, rather persistently Tommy noted.  

“Not that it’s any of your business, but I hear this fucking song atleast 20 times a day,” 

“...Seriously?”

“Seriously.” 

Clay internally sighed, he could definitely see why the teen was sick of his song. It did get painful to listen to after the 4th time.

Dream remembered when Sapnap used to play it on repeat to piss him off.

“Stop at the white brick house up there,” Tommy pointed to one of the largest houses Dream had ever seen.

‘Seriously, this kid’s rich too!?’ 

“Stop gawking dickhead,” The blond commented.

Clay honestly couldn’t utter another word as the two stopped at the giant house. 

Opening the car door Tommy hesitated for a second, turning back to Clay 

“....Thanks for the lift,”

Caught off guard by the sudden politeness, Clay replied quickly.

“No problem big man,” 

Clay couldn’t help the smile that crept onto his face. He was really starting to like this kid.

“See you round then,” Tommy spoke softly, closing the car door behind him.

The dirty blonde threw the teen a light wave, before quickly reaching for the radio once more 

“That's what the mask is”

“THAT’S WHAT THE MASK IS!” 

“That's what the point of the mask is”

“THAT’S WHAT THE POINT OF THE MASK IS!” 

Tommy heard the other singing (screaming) as the car pulled out of his driveway and down the road.

The blond rolled his eyes as he walked down the path to the front door.

Grabbing the house keys out of his back pocket, Tommy felt Phils card and the shopping receipt he’d shoved in there earlier.

Everything, still stuffed safely in there. 

Turning the door handle the blond was unpleasantly surprised to find the door unlocked, opening the door slowly Tommy entered the seemingly unoccupied house.

 The teen entered the house swiftly, kicking off his shoes, leaving them inline with the rest of the family shoes.

Walking into the living room, Tommy saw Techno sitting on the couch, reading some book on Tactical Warfare.

To his right stood Phil, in front of the load of shopping Wilbur had stolen earlier.

Oh boy, Tommy was about to cop it, he could just feel it.

“Welcome back Tommy. And just where have you been all day?” Phil asked, his voice laced with venom and false compassion. 

“...Out shopping,” the teen purposefully did not mention his job.

“Really mate?” Phil questioned as pushed himself off the counter he was leaning on and walked over to Tommy.

Placing a firm hand on the teen’s shoulder he continued.

“Because from what I hear, you’ve been out with those no good friends of yours, again.” 

Tommy tensed at the mention of his friends, a small moment of clarity let the blond figure out this was probably another one of Wilburs lies.  

Phil took a deep breath and moved his hand off the boy’s shoulder.

“You don’t do anything around the house Tommy, So the next time one of us asks you for help with something. You do it,” The elder raised his voice for the last part.

“Oh don’t be too hard on him dad,” A sly voice came from the kitchen.  

Tommy looked over to where the brunette stood. 

A cocky smile appearing on the other’s face.

“I’m sure Tommy just got busy and couldn’t help with the shopping” 

The teen silently took the verbal punches, clenching the fists at his side. 

“Will please don’t try to excuse this behaviour,” Phil cut in.

“Dad, you remember what it’s like being an immature child, Tommy’s still growing up, cut him some slack” The brunette continued, as he began to unpack the groceries.

“I suppose your right Will,” The elder turned his attention back to the teen “Tommy the next time one of your brothers or I ask you to do something. You do it,”

As if finally finding his voice, Tommy worked up the courage to ask a question.

“....What didn’t I do exactly?” The question came out in a low whisper.   

Tommy watched as Wilbur’s smile curled up even more.

“Tommy, no need to play dumb, you know what you did. I mean how can you not remember telling me to Fuck off when I asked you to come shopping with me?” 

Tommy turned to face his father.

“Dad, that's not what happened!” 

The avian rubbed his temple lightly.

“Please believe me” Tommy knew it was a losing battle, but he’d still try.

“Please!” desperation spewed from his throat.

“Just give me a chance to explai-”

“ENOUGH.” Phil Shouted, his wings flaring up.

“Enough Tommy, I don’t want to hear your fucking excuses. You're grounded, 2 months” 

The blond, unable to speak the words that rested on his tongue, stood there frozen.

Sure his brothers yelled at him a lot, but it was different when it was Phil. when it was his dad. Tommy hated how he wasn’t even given the chance to defend himself.

“...Yes Sir.” 

Turning towards the stairs, the teen hesitated, remembering the Card and receipt in his pockets. His proof. 

Ponding it for half a second Tommy came to the conclusion that it just wasn’t worth it. Even with all the proof in the world, Phil would never believe Tommy over Wilbur.

Phil would never believe Tommy.

But he wasn’t just going to stand there and let Wilbur call him a Liar.

Turning back towards the kitchen, Tommy marched towards Wilbur, the counter being the only thing in between the two men.

Reaching into his back pocket the blond pulled the plastic and paper out, he slammed the two items on the countertop with a loud bang.

Glancing at the brunette, Tommy watched the others' mouths fall open.

Wilbur hadn’t expected the boy to actually have any proof.

Tommy wordlessly rushed back towards the stairs, ignoring the mess he’d just caused.

Practically running up the stairs Tommy barely caught the call from his father.

“-ommy!”

Ignoring the Calls from downstairs, the blond dashed to his room. Shutting the door gently, Tommy slid down the door's surface onto the ground. Tears began to well in the younger's eyes. He’d managed to avoid crying infront of his family’s gaze, thankfully. 

Crying in front of them would have just given Wilbur more ammo and Phil more excuses.

Walking into his bathroom, Tommy faced himself in the mirror. His eyes’ red with sadness, but checks dry as a bone. The teen felt a stroke of pride in himself.

Getting better control of his emotions was one of his goals. Tommy was really trying to look on the positive side of the situation, (if there even was one) when his phone vibrated.

-New message From Tubee🐝-

Opening the message quickly, Tommy hoped Tubbo would brighten his mood, a message that could possibly distract him from his distraught. 

- Hey Big man! Just reminding you about tonight… again. 5 o’clock Don’t. be. late.-

Tommy couldn’t help but smile. Giving his eyes’ a quick rub, the teen glanced at the digital clock on his bedside.

-4:30-  

He would have to leave within the next 5-10 minutes if he wanted to be on time.

Walking out of the bathroom, Tommy headed straight for his bed, or rather under his bed more specifically. 

Kneeling down on the wooden floor, he reached into the darkness. Searching with his hand for a few seconds, Tommy finally latched onto the nylon fabric, pulling the bag out of the darkness.      

The blond threw the red school bag onto his bed, standing up; Tommy opened the bag, checking for 5 things.

1. Sun-glasses (Which are technically night vision glasses)

2. Voice altering scarf (something Tubbo made that tommy doesn’t really understand)

3. Red and white shirt 

4. Black pants 

4. Med kit (just in case)

Check, check, check. 

With everything in order, Tommy zipped the bag back up and pulled it onto his back.

Reaching under his Bed once more, he pulled out a pair of red and white converses. They still had a little blood on them from the previous patrol. 

Oh well, no matter. 

Doing a final pat down, making sure everythings in order; Tommy decided he was good to go. 

Unfortunately he was forgetting a few important things. 

His school shit. Y’know the stuff he would need to study. 

 Tommy, obviously oblivious to his own forgetfulness, finished putting on the bloody converses, and with a quick makeshift disguise, Pillow Tommy would be covering him all night.

The teen didn't think any of his family would come check on him, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

So throwing a few long pillows under the covers, Tommy successfully made a sleeping Pillow version of himself.

Tillow was the real hero of this household.

Tommy chuckled at the name, he’d come up with it a long time ago, but it still made him laugh to this day. 

Walking over to his window, Tommy pushed the glass panel up, opening the window about half way.

The window didn’t open all the way. The blond had no clue why, it was one of the many mysteries of his life.

But those mysteries would have to wait, because Tommy currently had half his body hanging out a window. A window that just happened to be on the second story.

Just below the teen’s window, a very conveniently ledge was placed, as well as a water pipe that ran from the roof to the ground.

It was the perfect escape root.

Stepping down onto the ledge Tommy hugged the wall, sliding one foot along to the other, after shimmying along the wall a few paces, the pipe came into reach.

Letting his hands curl around the metal, Tommy, still holding the pipe, took a deep breath, and stepped off the ledge.

Sliding down the pipe was relatively easy, a few bumps and screws on the way down, but nothing too challenging.

Landing safely in the bushes, Tommy gave himself a quick once over, making sure nothing was bruised or broken.

Finding his way out of the bushes, the blond took a final look at the house.

Despite living there his whole life. Tommy felt no attachment to the place.

Not anymore.

It was just an empty house to him now. 

Turning back towards the city, Tommy headed off to be with his friends. 

Off to where he belonged.    

Chapter Text

Tommy sprinted down the sidewalk, his feet thundering as they hit the ground.

Getting a shaking look at his phone Tommy glanced at the time.

- 4:54 -  

He had approximately 5 minutes and 23 seconds left before Tubbo would be murdering him for being late (again..)

So Tommy did the only thing he could do in that situation. Run.

Weaving and dodging around the few people on the street had been simple enough but Tommy was seriously pushing his luck, and his time.

Turning around the final corner, Tubbo’s building came quickly into view.

Unlike Tubbo, Tommy basically lived in a mansion, while Tubbo lived in one of the largest apartment complexes in L’manberg.   

Dashing towards the familiar entrance, the security guard quickly took notice of the approaching figure. A flash of recognition rang through his eyes as he stepped off to the side allowing Tommy to pass easily. 

The blond gave the security man a nod of thanks, most of the security here knew Tommy one way or another.

The man showed the teen a playful glare before opening the double doors.

Tomy dashed past the other quickly, entering the lobby of the building.

When the security guards had first started letting him in without ID and a phone call ahead, Tommy was slightly concerned about Tubbo’s safety.

Like what other neanderthals were these security pricks letting in?

But soon enough Tommy had the reason; Tubbo had talked to the property manager, and somehow convinced him to stop ID-ing the blond.

Tommy came here often enough that even some of the renters knew him. 

So it wasn’t a far fetched idea that it would eventually happen.

But right now was definitely not the time to be wondering these questions.

The teen looked quickly between the stairs and the elevator. Glancing down at his phone once more.

- 4:58 - 

Stairs it is!

Tommy bolted past the people getting onto the elevator and into the stairwell, running up the flights of stairs, the blond read the floor number as he continued his ascension.

Ground floor 

First floor 

Second floor 

Third floor

Penthouse  

Oops too far.

Jumping down the inside of the stairs, Tommy landed right in front of the third floor door, entering the overly lit hall, the teen thundered down the corridors, taking the next left and counting the doors 

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.  

Tommy pulled himself to a halt, almost tripping over in the process. 

Turning to face the door, the blond knocked rapidly, hearing subtle movements on the other side of the door, Tommy glanced down at his phone a final time.

- 5:02 -

Aw shit.

“THOMAS DANGER WATSON!”

The door swung over to reveal a fuming Tubbo.

“Heyyyy Tubs-” Tommy tried to finish as a hand whipped out and dragged him inside.

The door closed behind the two with a thud.

After being pulled violently into the apartment, the blond stood up straight, internally preparing an apology/excuse for the shorter.

Tubbo leaned in close and whispered in Tommy's ear.

“We have a quest so be nice, and come up with an excuse quickly” 

Tubbo took a step back from the blond, whipped around and walked back to the kitchen.

Tommy let himself relax, before letting out a sigh. He’d almost forgotten how intense tubbo could be when it came to punctuality. 

Walking through the kitchen and into the living room, Tommy saw Ranboo sitting on the floor in front of the couch, head stuck in a maths textbook.

A stranger caught Tommy’s eye quickly, the dude looked slightly older than himself with a darker shade of blond than his own.

“Who the fuck are you?” 

Both boys looked up from their spots.

Ranboo had a horrified look grow on his face.

“Tommy! Be polite” the tallest practically begged, while pulling himself off the ground.

The blond looked up to the taller and pulled a face. Being polite was not on Tommy’s radar.

Ranboo looked quickly defeated. 

“Tommy met Grayson, Grayson Tommy” The two boys eyed each other quickly. A silent standoff between the two teens. 

Grayson looked away first. Sucka. 

Tommy smiled into himself. He’d won that battle.

Looking back down to male that had reimbursed himself back into his laptop, Tommy felt a twitch of sympathy.

He’d been told many times, mainly by Tubbo and Ranboo that he sometimes came off as unapproachable. 

Clearly the two had been right. Tommy sighed and walked over to ‘Grayson’

Sitting down next to the stranger. The blond tried to awkwardly start a conversation. 

“Soooo what’d ya workin’ on?” 

Grayson looked up to meet the blond's eyes.

“School shit” He replied with a certain level of sass.

“K… cool” 

‘Well that went well’ Tommy thought to himself.

Ranboo watched the two from his spot on the sofa.

Tubbo had met Grayson a few days ago at school in the library, when he’d told ranboo about the encounter, tubbo suggested they should invite him to their study session.

Ranboo had agreed easily, and the two made the unanimous decision to keep Tommy in the dark about their new ‘friend’.  

It probably wasn’t the smartest move to leave Tommy in the dark, however it was better than having Tommy pester them constantly about Grayson. The blond would most likely accuse the newbie of being a spy or some other paranoid shit Tommy came up with.

Shaking his head lightly, Ranboo went back to focusing on learning a new algebraic technique.

Tommy and Grayson sat in an uncomfortable silence for what felt like forever.

The blond eventually pulled the bag off his back and opened the second pocket (not the one with all his vigilante gear), expecting to be met with school books and textbooks.

He was ready to slap himself when the bag showed nothing but emptiness. Tommy opened the bag up further and felt around rather aggressively, as if expecting the books to be hidden somewhere in the open bag.

Grayson pulled his head out of his computer for a second to comment, “Why don’t you try the other pocket dude?”

Tommy gave the other a look before retorting back 

“How dumb do you think I am? I know what’s in that pocket and it's not bloody books.” Tommy half shouted with too much emotion and a fake shocked expression appearing on his face.

Grayson looked slightly panicked for a second, before he realised Tommy was joking.

“Shit…” The blond muttered, finally coming to the conclusion that he’d left his school stuff at home.

At that exact moment Tubbo decided to enter the living room, carrying a plate full of freshly made sausage rolls. Hot out of the oven, everyone could still see the steam basically radiating off the food.

Tubbo sat the large plate down in the middle of the group, grabbing his own book and laptop. Tubbo joined the makeshift circle and started chatting.

“Dig in everyone!” 

Everyone was quick to grab a meat filled pastry.

“Tommy heads up!” The shortest called out.

A red can came barreling at the blonds head.

Tommy being the amazingly talented vigilante he is, reflexively caught the can before it hit him in the face.

It was a can of coke. 

Tommy gave the shorter a thankful nod, before cracking the drink open and taking a sip.

Grayson stared at the blond in disbelief, how the fuck did he catch that, grayson could hardly see the can as it was been thrown so fast. But somehow this dumbass blond who couldn’t even remember to bring study books to a study session could catch it.

The trio, clearly unaware of what just really happened, continued chatting and enjoying the food.

Grayson decided to keep his qualms to himself for now and just continue the night. He decided then and there to look deeper into the strange trio.

Focusing back on his schoolwork, he re-read the same paragraph for the hundredth time. Understanding it less than he did before. 

Grayson groaned and thought to himself; English sucks.  

.

.

.

“Bye Grayson! See you at school” Tubbo called into the hallway. Greyson threw a quick wave over his shoulder and continued to walk away.

Closing the door behind himself, Tubbo turned back to his friends. Ranboo and Tommy sat quietly, each focusing on their respective subjects, occasionally asking the other questions.

Tubbo treasured the few quiet moments he got with the two, don’t misunderstand him, he loved and treasured all the crazy and wild shit they do together. But a quiet moment shared was a rare and wonderful thing.

Tommy was the first to look up at him.

“Sooo who the heck was that guy?” 

Tubbo sighed and went to join the duo on the floor.

“I met him at school about a week ago, he seemed pretty cool, so I figured inviting him couldn’t hurt” The shortest shrugged 

Tommy thought about the others words before coming to the quick conclusion.

“I suppose having him over wasn’t all bad, but please don’t make it a habit of inviting randos over, please toby?”

“Deal!” Tubbo jeered as he and Tommy high-fived each other.

Ranboo decided to pipe up at this point, “ So are we going out tonight?”

“Shit, I almost forgot about patrol” The blond commented standing up.

“Right! Everyone, let's get changed and head out!” Tubbo ordered 

“Sir, yes Sir.” the two responded mockingly.

.

.

.

.

“HURRY UP TUBBO!” Tommy shouted standing in the living room.

It had only taken a few minutes to change into his vigilante costume. 

His costume consisted of; plain black tights, a white shirt with red sleeves, a utility belt with a few gadgets (all made by Tubbo), and a light brown leather jacket.

Ranboo finished changing almost as quickly as Tommy, his costume consisted of; a long black cloak, a white shirt lined with purple stars and a black long sleeve underneath, finished with some white shoulder pads, and grey tracksuit pants.  

Tommy thought he looked a little too much like some sci-fi fantasy wizard, but the costume was pretty cool nonetheless (not that he’d tell boob boy that.)

The two taller vigilantes stood leaned against their respective walls, they always seemed to be waiting for their explosive friend.

“I'M COMING, CALM YOUR TITS DOWN” Tubbo shouted back from his room.

Tommy rolled his eyes while ranboo sighed defeatedly.

Footsteps came tapping down the hall. The brunette came into vision carrying a laptop bag, and a folder.

Tubbo’s costume consisted of; incredibly baggy tracksuit pants that had stains of green neon spray paint, a grey shirt branded with a biohazard symbol, a black and green neon jacket, black combat boots with green neon laces, and the piece de resistance a gas mask that he’d actually stolen from toxic waste worker(or so he claims)

“Took yo ass long enough” Tommy commented, pushing himself off the wall.

“Shuddup Tommy” Tubbo ignored the blonds usually shit stirring.

Ranboo grabbed both teens' hands as purple particles started surrounding them.

“Both of you shut up”

“Oi-”

“Ser-”

Poof.

.

.

.

The dimly lit view of the street came into view, The trio stood atop one of the many buildings.

“I’ll take Nuke back to base, Theseuse you good here?” 

“Yep, got it cover ender” 

Nuke reached into his bag and pulled out 3 sets of black ear pieces.

Handing them out amongst themselves.

“Be careful, and don't break it,” Nuke said, looking obviously at Theseus.

“Yeah yeah, I got it. Get out of here dummy” The blond answered, waving the other two vigilantes off. 

A flurry of purple sparks surrounded the two, before they disappeared into thin air.

Tommy slouched down, hanging his feet off the edge of the building. The night was loud, the streets in the distance buzzing with life, the shop lights illuminating the street and creating a familiar environment.

Tommy loved this city and Theseus longed to protect it.

It didn’t take more than a half hour for Nuke to alert him about a possible store robbery, it was just a few blocks from his current location.

Theseus look off, jumping from roof to roof, leaping onto fire escapes and climbing pipes.

It didn’t take him more than a few minutes to come across a pair of dumb criminals trying to break into a pharmacist of all places.

Theseus jumped lightly into the alley that faced across the street. Landing silently he peered out at the two thieves. 

Not the brightest tools in the shed, they’d been fiddling with the store’s lock for about 5 minutes now. 

Theseus figured it was time to put these fools out of their misery, taking a few steps towards the opening, a gut instinct kicked in.

The vigilante stopped at the mouth of the alley.

Something in the air had changed, he wasn’t so alone anymore.

Looked around to the visible rooftops, no one came into view. But the blond knew someone was there, he was sure of it.

Just as the two thieves finally opened the lock, green strings surrounded the two, grabbing them by the ankles as they let out horrified screams.

“Honestly the criminals just keep getting dumber and dumber” The hero mutters, landing behind the two thieves.

 “Welp anyways better get a move on. Up you idiots go!” The hero gave an easy wave of his hand as the green threads pulled the two criminals up, hanging the poor idiots by their feet.

The hooded hero Turned to face the surroundings, the dim street lights allowed Tommy to see the hero.

The stupid smile mask.

It was fucking Dream.

The number 3 Hero in all of L’manberg.

A wild Smile grew on Theseus’s face, this was going to be fun.

Chapter Text

Dream jumped swiftly from building to building, a silent alarm had gone off nearby and he had been requested to check it out, it was in some of the lower districts, most hero’s typically avoided the lower districts but being the well rounded hero he is, Dream responded to the request straight away.

Landing on the edge of the opposing building, the hero watched as the two thieves struggled to open the pharmacy door.

And so he waited patiently. It wasn’t really a crime until they actually opened the door.

A few minutes had passed at this point and Dream was getting seriously sick of waiting.

‘Seriously, how long does it take to unlock a damn door?, aren't criminals supposed to be skilled or something?’ The smile hero thought.

After what seemed like the most gruelling process on earth, the two criminals finally opened the door.

The men stopped to cheer for a second, Dream decided that was the perfect moment to rip away their joy.

He held up his hands and watched the cluster of neon green strings rise from his fingertips, all he had to do was think about what he wanted, and the strings would obey.

The strings barreled down towards the criminals, latching onto their ankles tangling themselves in an untieable knot. 

Terrified screams tore out of their throats. Dream loved scaring criminals, at one point he thought he could scare the criminal behaviour out of them, but that was incredibly unlikely.

The Blond hero jumped from his spot into the streets, landing softly.

Dream sighed to himself and muttered “Honestly the criminals just keep getting dumber and dumber”   

Shaking his head, the hero internally decided he had better things to do with his night.

“Welp anyways better get a move on. Up you idiots go!”

With an easy wave of his hand, the two criminals were pulled upside down, and hung by their feet. Tied to the roof of the Pharmacy.

The police would be here soon enough to take the two into custody.

Turning back to the streets, he became acutely aware of just how dark the lower districts are, the few street lights barely illuminating the streets.

The street was however bright enough for Dream to catch a glimpse of something being hurled at his head.

Seeing the object and reacting to it were two very different things.

So unfortunately for Dream, the rock that was launched, hit him directly in the forehead.

His vision turned fuzzy as the wind was swiftly knocked out of him.

Who knew a perfectly aimed rock could do so much damage?

(Theseus knew, that who!)

Taking a few steps back, Dream began to steady himself, letting his vision clear.

Now Dream hadn’t been trying to sound like a knight from the 16th century but it just sorta slipped out 

“Who goes there!?”

“I knew you were the jumpy type” 

The voice came from the alleyway.

Dreams' vision clearing enough to get a blurry look at the perpetrator.

 A masked individual, with prominent blond hair.

“And who the hell are you?” The hero asked, not too sure of the individual's identity.

“None of your goddamn business prick” the Blond answered 

Fully focusing on the other Dream began putting a few points together 

Most heroes knew the lower districts were mainly protected by rogue vigilantes.

He personally liked Vigilantes, but others had warned him about certain Vigilantes, one being a recently debuted Theseus.

Not much was known of any vigilantes to be honest, all of them were surprisingly good at keeping their own secrets hidden.

Could this guy be one of those vigilantes?

Could he be Theseus ?

Dream didn’t have time to ask before another rock was hurled at his head. Thankfully he dodged it this time.

Looking back to the alley the rock thrower was gone.

Rushing to the entrance of the now empty alley, Dream looked frantically around trying to find the culprit.

His hero instincts coming back in full swing.

Locate the assailant. Now. 

Dream used his strings to pull himself to the roof, he could gage a better idea of the others location from up there

With a quick jump and pull method, the hero was atop the roof.

Scanning the surroundings, Dream found the blond, standing on the sister roof.

Almost as if the other was waiting for him.

But why would a wannabe criminal try and intentionally get caught by a superhero? 

Only two possible reasons.

1. They’re bloody stupid 

Or 

2. A fucking Genius. One with a plan. 

For some reason Dream was leaning towards the latter.

There was something about this kid. Something dangerous.

“I’ll Ask You Again; State your Name and Purpose”

“...Really dude”

Dream began glaring at the blond

“Fine Fine.” The kid threw his hand up slightly in defeat.

Clay didn’t believe him for a second.

“My Name is Theseus, And my Purpose is NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS”

The hero couldn’t even register the words being said before a smoke bomb blew up in his face.

Dodging the smoke, Dream searched for the newly confirmed Vigilante.

The kid Vanised. Again. 

Dream decided it was time to handle this properly, he really didn’t have the time to be playing cat and mouse with some loudmouth vigilante.

Letting his mind manipulate the power in his fingers, the strings fanned out across the rooftops, now all he’d have to do was wait patiently.

His strings always caught their target.

……

Standing in the silence, Dream was becoming increasingly more distreasted, his strings hadn’t caught anything yet.

They never took this long.

Was it possible the vigilante got awa-

“WHAT THE FUCK” The shout came loud and fast.

Dream almost jumped for joy, Springing from his spot leaping from roof to roof, finding his way to where the voice came from.

Stopping at the edge of a large apartment building the hero looked down, only to be met with the sight of the rocking throwing vigilante being tied awkwardly to the fire escape.

Thesesus thrashed around wildly, as if trying to wiggle his way out.

“You won’t escape. Those strings are condensed fibre energy. It would take a damn miracle for the likes of you to break them” Dream gloated.

Theseus glared up at the hero.

He’d tried to hide from the relentless green strings that seemed hell bent on trying to find him, surprise surprise they’d caught him.

Mid jump too. Latched themselves around his arms, pulling him down and attaching to the fucking fire escape.

His body screamed at him as it collided with the harsh metal, he’d accidentally let out a harsh muffled scream followed by a loud curse.

And now the number 3 hero stood above him. Almost looming if you asked him.

“Shut up fuck-face” Theseus hissed at the other.

Jumping from the roof to the fire escape, Dream kept an unnatural silence.

Even Tommy was slightly put off. Dream was known for being one of the more banterful heroes.

But now the hero just stared blankly. 

A million thoughts were running through Clay's head. He was trying to understand why the Vigilante had thrown rocks at him for one, also trying to figure out if there were anymore wannabe ‘heroes’ out and about.

Theseus particularly hated Dream’s mask, he hated that he couldn’t see the others eyes. Eye’s were very telling features.

Tommy could guess what was going to happen simply by looking at the other person's eyes.

But Dream, he couldn’t read Dream at all.

It made him nervous.

“What are you doing here?” The hero asked.

Theseus decided to be stubborn.

“...”

“...”

“Is there some kind of operation going down?”

“...”

Dream shook his head, this kid was already turning out to be a real headache.

“Are you someone’s backup plan?” 

Now that pissed Tommy off.

“I’m not the fucking backup plan; Im the only plan dickward” he spat

‘So the kid has a temper’ Dream thought. ‘Good, I can work with that’ The hero smiled.

“No, no, no. I think you are the backup”

Clay could see the vigilant get visibly upset at the comment.

“So if you're not back up, what are you even doing here?” 

As if recovering quickly, The vigilantes face changed.

“I'm here patrolling, what does it look like genius?” Theseus answered smugly.

Dream wasn’t a fan of the taunting but he held the power here. Or so he thought.

Catching a glimpse of the vigilantes wrists, blood began seeping out at the seams.

“Hey kid cut that out-” Dream tried quickly, he hadn’t wanted to hurt the kid. But the vigilante was pulling forcefully against his strings.

So forcefully that it was cutting him.

“Don’t. Call. Me. Kid.” Theseus muttered.

The hero began to panic. Then he felt it. The bust.

His strings breaking.

Snap.

Theseus forced himself to stand, then launched himself up the fire escape. His wrists hurting like a bitch.

“STOP-” Dream reached out to grab him, missing him by a hair.

The vigilante began ascending the metal framework. Dream following in pursuit, not for the purpose of catching the boy, but to check the kids wellbeing. 

Even normal criminals don't go around slitting their wrists just to avoid getting caught.

Worry overcame the hero as the two reached the roof.

The kids blood leaving a steady trail

“WAIT” Dream tried again. Somehow knowing theseus wasn’t going to listen to anything he had to say.

“You need a hospital man!” The hero began pleading, a distressed tone taking over.

If this kid dies, Clay isn’t sure how he’s going to live with himself.

The vigilante suddenly stopped, looking frantically at the edge before him.

He was in no condition to be jumping across alleys and rooftops. They both knew it.

The Hero stopped not wanting to corner and make the kid do something reckless.

The blond turned to face the hero.

Dream watched as the stream of blood pooled at the kids feet. Clay felt his gut churn.

“I Don’t need Anything!. I don’t need yours, or anyone else's help!” Tommy’s voice began to break.

The hero began creeping towards the vigilante.

“...Kid everyone needs help, and right now you need a lot of it. Let me help you. Please?” Theseus swore he could hear the hero’s voice break at the end.

Dream moved to take another step towards the younger, but quickly found himself unable to move.

His body felt paralyzed. Panic set into the hero’s consciousness. What was happening!?

Looking back to the vigilante, a new feature caught him by surprise. His eyes.

Though filtered by the sun-glasses, Dream could clearly tell that the vigilante's eyes had changed colour. 

They were red. 

.

.

.

.

Tommy let himself slump down on the inside of an alley wall.

Pulling his scarf and sun-glasses off, he took in a deep breath of the cold night air.

Looking down at his wounded wrists, the cuts from those strings still bleeding lightly. Tommy tried to keep quiet as he wept. 

 He sat alone in his own pain and misery.

Being strong hurts sometimes. Tommy knew this, but it didn’t change how he felt.

After a few minutes he started doing a few routine breathing exercises until he’d calmed himself enough to heal.

His blood powers had a nasty habit of going haywire when his emotions were out of control.

Letting the power rush through himself, he focused on his left wrist first.

The cuts healed rather quickly, he hadn't sustained any internal injuries thankfully. They took longer to heal. A lot longer and more focus.

With his left wrist now healed he switched to the right.

Letting the power flow through the other side of his body.

With his body in a barely suitable state, he dragged himself up the wall of the alley. Tapping on the device in his ears, the small earpiece turned on easily.

A few connected sounds rang through his ears before he heard Tubbo’s voice on the other end.

'All Done Theseus?' Nuke asked, a slightly worried tone added to his voice.

Tommy knew Tubbo hated it when he went off grid. But sometimes Tommy had to do things alone.

Ranboo and Tubbo were well aware that he could ‘handle himself’ when injured.

But the blond still knew the two held a deep desire to help their friend in that type of situation. 

“Yeah, all good. Over” 

'Okay….' Tubbo sounded unsure.

'Ender requires your assistance, I’m sending you his location now' the oldest continued.

“What’s the problem?” Theseus asked curiously. Ender was pretty good at handling most situations nowadays. 

He used to shy away from conflicts every time, but with a lot of encouragement and assistance from Tommy and Tubbo, the tallest was a pro at negotiating sticky situations. 

'....a mugging issue is getting out of hand….'

“...Got it, be there in 5,”

'Thanks Theseus, Over and out'

The earpiece went silent. Tommy tied the scarf back around his mouth and slid the sun-glasses back on.

Theseus was needed now.

A phantom pain still stinging in his wrists as he took off running down the dead streets of L’Manberg. 

Chapter Text

Ender hadn’t been that far from Theseus’s location, Surprisingly. Usually the two were on separate sides of the city.

But Tonight the taller Vigilante was only a couple minutes away, at least a couple minutes away with the speed he was going.

The blond wondered what kind of situation Ranboo was in that required backup.

Tommy would soon come to find the reason, Though he heard it before he saw it.

“She Stole them!” 

“YOU LYING BITCH!”

Similar profanities were thrown around until the blond joined the scene.

And what an amazing fucking scene it was; Ender Holding what looked like a bag of Lemons, and two full grown women, trying to rip eachother apart, while trying to snatch the bag out of Ranboo’s hands.

Ender however stood quite a few feet taller than these ladies. He had one hand held straight up holding the lemons keeping them very much out of reach, while the other was being used to keep the two women separate

Theseus turned the corner to come into view of the others.

“Theseus!” Ender sounded so relieved.

 The boob boy hated verbal conflicts, and just yelling in general.

Tommy could tell why Tubbo had called him here. 

“All good ender?” 

“help.” The answer was short and direct.

Theseus got to work quickly. Walking over to the scuffle and getting right in between the two ladies.

“Ladies, Ladies, break it up” 

The vigilante continued to try and keep the women apart.

Ender had teleported to the other side of the street the second Theseus took over. Still holding the damn lemons.

The two women had taken a few steps away from each other.

Stopping the physical assault on each other, they turned to the best thing.

Verbal Assault.

“She. stole. My. lemons”

“LIAR!”

“YOU’RE THE BLOODY LIAR”

Theseus sighed.

Fuck it.

“Ender come here” 

Tommy stepped out of the middle as the two went back to mindlessly scratching and clawing at each other.

Ranboo teleported behind Theseus, clutching the lemons rather tightly. 

“Okay listen, you take left, I'll take right, and we’ll try and figure this shit out.” 

“Why do I have to take the left one? I think she bit me earlier” 

“Because I’m always right. So I get the right one.”

Ender sighed in defeat as he and Theseus walked back to scream match in front of them.

Sneakily placing a hand on the left lady’s shoulder, he teleported himself and her to the closed roof.

Neither lady realised what happened before it had already been done.

The brunette in front of Theseus whipped around to face him.

“Where’d you take her and the Lemons?”

“Ma'am, please take a second to calm down, just explain the situation to me and we can have this whole thing sorted out.”  

Seemingly wanting to comply, the brunette walked over to one of the bus benches and sat down.

Motioning for Theseus to sit down next to her.

The vigilante sat down next to the woman, She looked hesitant to meet his eyes.

“It started a few days ago, I’m house sitting for a friend and that lady just comes and starts knocking on the door one day, asking if she can have some lemons”

Theseus nodded his head, listening intently 

“My friend has a lemon tree in his yard, but they aren't mine to give away, so I told her No, and that she could ask again when he comes back”

The vigilante was starting to get an idea of what happened.

“What happened next?”

The brunette shook her head low.

“She came back everyday asking for the same things, and tonight I chose to ignore her, and that bitch” The woman seethed but continued 

“She just went up to the tree and started picking the lemons, I looked out the window and caught her, when I went out to confront her she look off running and well here we are”

The brunette looked up at him, her eyes asking if he believed her.

He did.

“Okay, we’ll sort this whole situation out then, Ok?”

Theseus’s gaze softened on the woman.

“Ok.” She answered with a small smile

The vigilante stood up, turned to the building ender was on, and leapt up.

Tommy could tell Ender almost jumped out of his skin, but he hid it surprisingly well.

The lady not so much, she let out a horribly pitchy scream and started ranting about how she was going to report them.

The two vigilantes shared a look before Ender handed the lemons back to Theseus, The older woman looked at the two shocked.

“What the hell is he doing with my Lemons!?” 

“Ma’am no offence but I can smell the bullshit radiating off you” Tommy couldn’t help but comment.

The woman's mouth almost fell on the floor.

Now you might think Tommy was just picking who and choosing who he believed, but he’s been surrounded by a pain in the ass pathological liar all his life.

And this woman was a crappy liar compared to his brother.

“Now I don’t ever want to see you stealing anyone’s lemons again, and if I do, I will leave you on the top of that 50 ft building with no cell reception. No managers to call up there.” Theseus pointed at one of the largest buildings within sight.

The woman looked at him totally gobsmacked.

Tommy could tell no one has ever told this woman no.

“Can you handle getting this lady home?” Theseus asked ender.

The Taller vigilante nodded, placing a hand on the stunned woman and disappearing into thin air, leaving a few floating purple particles floating in the air.

Clutching the lemon’s carefully Theseus jumped from the roof, landing almost gracefully next to the woman.

She looked slightly startled but not afraid.

The vigilante handed the bag back to the brunette, she smiled softly, looking at the lemons.

“Thank you,” the brunette gave him a grateful nod, and began to turn away.

“Are you alright to get back?” The blond asked.

The brunette nodded and began her way back down the street.

Theseus stood in place waiting till he could no longer see the lady.

The woman seemed to remember something and turned around once more, She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted,

“IF YOU EVER NEED LEMONS COME FIND ME, MY NAMES HANNAH!”

Tommy let a smile crack onto his face, as he held a thumbs up in response.

Hannah Disappeared around the corner, Somehow Tommy knew she would be just fine getting home. 

Turning his head in the opposite direction, the earpiece buzzed before he got the chance to move.

“Theseus come in, report. Come in”

“Listening,” 

“Just had a silent alert set off from the hero laboratory,”

“Not just an accidental trip?”

“....I made that alarm myself. It doesn’t just trip itself.”

Tommy gulped slightly, he’d forgotten that Tubbo makes the gist of the alarms in the Hero buildings.

A few hero buildings weren't connected to the main hero base, the lab being one of them . Tubbo figured that they were doing some kind of experiment that could potentially hurt people, that is why it was located so far from any civilization.

“Righto I’ll head over now, can you try and get visuals?”

“On it. Ender will meet you there, he’s just wrapping things up with that bitchy karen.” 

“Got it, Thanks Nuke”

The earpiece went silent.

Theseus ran towards the nearest fire escape and ascended it, with uncanny speed.

Leaping across the lower L’manberg buildings was easy.

It was when he entered the upper part of the city things became slightly complicated.

The whole part of this snobby place was lit up more than the damn sun.

It made hiding in dark alleys a pain and moving unseen almost impossible. Almost. 

This particular part of town wasn’t Tommy’s neighbourhood but it all basically had the same layout.

The vigilante still knew the way to get to the hero laboratory, he’d had to break into it once before.

But that’s a story for another day. 

Hitting the forest, Theseus continued by jumping from Tree to Tree, it was good agility practice. Tommy made a mental note to add it to his training regimen.

Flying passed the surrounding at phenomenal speed a large building came into view quickly.

It was the Laboratory 

The white almost luminescent building stood out easily against its green forest surroundings.

Landing on a tree large enough to conceal his current position, Tommy looked around; searching for his vigilante comrade. Ender would most likely be here already, scoping out the area for Nuke. 

Spotting a large rock garden a few hundred metres away. It would be the perfect place for Ender to hide out.

Theseus knew ender wasn’t the biggest fan of climbing or sitting in trees 

Leaping from the Branch, Tommy made his way around to the rocks.

It didn’t take him long to spot the other vigilante who was currently crouched down, assumingly scoping out the Lab security systems.

Landing softly behind the other, Theseus gently tapped the other's shoulder to alert him of his presence.

Ender gave a quick head nod in response.

Tommy tapped his earpiece, tuning into the conversation between the other two.

“It’ll be the best course of action- welcome to the call Theseus.” Nuke said with a little too much sass.

“Yeah yeah, what's the game plan?”

“...As I was just saying, I’ll disable the motion detectors on the fence, allowing you two to jump over, Ender no teleporting until inside the Lab.”

Ranboo muttered a quick ‘Got it’ before Tubbo continued.

“Once over the fence, run straight at the building, I can only take the system offline for 30 seconds. Theseus, you remember the way in?”

“Of course”

“Of Course, anyway the alarm was set off in the lowest level lab, get past the main entrance and I’ll guide you the rest of the way. ” 

The two vigilantes looked at each other and nodded.

“On your mark Tobby,” 

Ender and Theseus moved in front of the rocks, facing the large meshed fence.

“Ready. Set.”

The two stared at the fence intently.

“Now.”

The two vigilantes sprung into action, Theseus simply jumped the fence, Ender and the other hand climbed.

You can guess who won.

Landing on the other side of the fence, they waited.

“Go go go” 

Taking off in a sprint, the teens rushed towards the building, they had a maximum of 30 seconds to run at least 250 Metres.

"20"

Almost half way.

"15"

Half way and making good time 

"10"

Faster.

"5"

Hurry up.

"4"

Almost there 

"3"

Shit 

"2"

Fucking hell hurry.

"1."

Theseus proceeded to throw himself against the double push doors.

Opening them and allowing himself and Ranboo to fall through, with literally only a second to spare.

The two vigilantes landed on the floor with a loud bang.

Tommy taking the brunt of the fall landed first, with an out of control ranboo landing pretty much on top of him. 

Biting his lip to contain the pained noises that wanted to erupt, Tommy pushed the other away, and off himself.

Letting the air return to his lungs, Nuke’s voice rang through their ears.

“No Time to rest gentlemen. Hurry up and go down the hall to your left.” 

Left with little other options, the vigilantes tried to pick themselves off the ground as quickly as possible. 

Sprinting down the hall Nuke mentioned the 2 came to an elevator at the end of the hall and a set of stairs.

Nuke instructed them to use the stairs.

Climbing over the sides Tommy jumped down 3 flights of stairs in one go, turning to look back up at Ranboo smugly he found the checked vigilante missing.

Making a slightly annoyed face, the blond looked down.

Ender sat smugly below, looking cocky and somehow pitiful.

Son of a Bitch.

“Stop making that stupid face boob.” Theseus spat gruffly.

Ender rolled his eyes and motioned for the other to hurry up and follow. 

Theseus muttered a quick ‘asshole’ under his breath and jumped down to the others position. 

Chatting between themselves as they descended the stairs, the earpieces came alive in their ears.

“Shut up you two, I just tried to tap into the lower Labs security cameras and they’ve been covered”

Theseus and Ender stopped and threw a concerned look at eachother.

“Covered with what?” Tommy asked quietly 

“Looks like spray paint, But that's not important now, You two need to get down to that Lab right fucking now. And be quiet about it ”

“Got it, keep us updated.”

“On it, stay alive, idiots.”

The earpiece went dead as the vigilantes sprung into action.

It took them a few minutes to reach the correct level, but it wasn’t hard to guess which door was the entrance.

The huge RESTRICTED AUTHORISED PERSONNEL ONLY, written on the door was almost a dead give away.

The final nail in the coffin was a small dagger wedged in between the wall and door.

Tommy almost froze when he saw the Dagger, He recognised it.

And that could only mean they were in for a world of trouble.

They Were about to face off against the Syndicate.

Ender reached for the door, about to open it.

A hand reached out and grabbed it.

Theseus motioned for them to listen

Ender moved closer to the opened door.

Now completely silent, the low sounds of voices rang out through the other side.

“Shit, this fucking system is a pain in the ass”

“Obviously, it's a government facility idiot,” 

“Shut up Blade” 

Ranboo almost gasped, pulling back from the door.

The Blade?

The Syndicate? 

He was about to face the Syndicate.

They were about to fight the Syndicate 

Ender's anxiety rose in his chest. 

Turning to look at the blond, Ranboo could see the resolve set in Theseus’s face.

Looking at Ender, Tommy sent a silent message.

‘Get out of here.’ 

Ranboo looked back to the door, straightened his back and shook his head at Theseus.

No matter what happens he wouldn’t back out, He wouldn’t leave Theseus.

He wouldn't be a coward. 

Not this time.

Seamingly surprised, The blond gave him an unsure nod back.

The two vigilantes moved back to the door, listening.

“-etter be Important”

“Zephyrus says it is.”

“Yeah, yeah I know what he Said, But what exactly can this stupid drug do?” 

“I don’t know Siren, just keep going”

Tommy and Ranboo shared a look.

Ender pulled out his phone and send Nuke a quick message 

-Are you getting this?- 

“.....No fucking way, listen to me very closely, you cannot let them get their hands on that drug, its called (T21) and very dangerous. Listen, you can’t let them get it”

“What the Hell’s T21?” Tommy whispered into his ear.

“No time to explain, Just get in there and stop them.”

Theseus wasted no time in conveying a game plan to the other.

Motioning with hand signals the plan followed.

‘You take left, I go right, good luck’

Ranboo rolled his head in annoyment but gave a quick thumbs up.

Tommy counted down on his fingers.

3

2

1

Kicking the large door open was a simple enough task for Tommy, now came the hard part.

The loud bang of the door instantly alerted the Villains, Siren sat in front of a computer and a vault on the right side, while blade leaned against a wall on the left.

Good, it was better that Theseus faced Siren anyway.

“You are fucking everywhere.” Siren shot up off the ground and charged towards the blond.

Blade pulled himself off the wall and grabbed his sword, following Siren and rushing at Theseus.

After taking a few steps, Ender appeared in front of him, cutting him off from the others.

Siren continued charging at the Vigilante, a fiery rage consuming him. 

“I’ve Been meaning to return that punch from before, so hold still you little Prick” The brunette Commanded.

Theseus obviously wasn't going to let that happen.

“Just try and catch me Fuckface” The blond leapt from his spot to the other side of the room, Siren following in pursuit. 

This move had two specific purposes.

To keep himself from being punched 

To keep Siren far away from Ender, while he was immune to the villain's power Ranboo was not.

Thankfully the brunette was too caught up in his own rage to even realise this.

Catching back up with the blond, Siren lunged at the other.

Not letting himself be caught in the same trap as before, Tommy swung a powerful blow to Siren’s mouth.

The villain stumbled back a few paces, brushed his lips with his hand and got ready to lunge at the vigilante again.

A crazy grin widening on his face, blood leaking from his busted lip.

Tommy might have been scared if it had been anyone else, but this was Wilbur, his Jerk and Crappy older brother.

The Teen had seen that look enough times to know what it meant, it meant this shit was on.

Ender wasn’t having any luck trying to fight the Blade.

An axe came flying towards his face, as he teleported behind the villain again, just trying to dodge all the weapons coming his way until Theseus came and joined him in this fight.

Combat really wasn’t Ranboo’s specialty.

After Dodging a particularly nasty swing from the axe, the villain stopped.

“Haven’t seen you before, Name?” 

Ranboo shifted uncomfortably under the others' gaze.

“Ender.”

The other scoffed.

“And I’m guessing your power is teleportation.” Blade stated rather than asked.

“Guess it is” 

Without another reply the beast was on the move again, putting the axe back on his back and unsheathing a sword.

Ender gulped.

A serenade of alarms went off behind everyone, and suddenly the vault was oppended.

Revealing rows of different drugs and chemicals.

Everything inside that vault was dangerous and deadly in the hands of Villains.

“Seriously? Now you open?” Siren yelled at the metal door.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Theseus rushed Siren, tackling the other onto the concrete floor.

Landing on his stomach, the wind in the brunette's lungs was knocked out, allowing the blond vigilante to grab his arms and pin them behind his back. Locking Siren in place.

Glancing over to the others, Tommy was met with the blades piercing glare.

“Siren Swap out.” 

“WATCH OUT” Ender screamed too late 

Without giving the other a chance to answer, blade launched, sword drawn. Ready to kill.

Not giving Theseus any time to react, all the vigilant could do was try and not die.

Simple right?

Leaning back at exactly the right time, the sword aimed for his heart, piercing his shoulder.

Theseus could do little as the flesh within him was being forced apart.

The pain ripped through the left side of his body, muscles screaming at him.

A muffled Scream tore from the boy’s throat, as he fell off Siren and scrambled back to the lab wall. Theseus rushed to apply pressure to the open wound.

Pressing a hand down on his shoulder, a hiss of pain escaped his lips.

Blade walked back into his field of vision, sword pointed at his head this time.

Out of the corner of his eye, Tommy could see Siren getting back up and walking over to Ender, who was basically frozen in fear. 

“Run as hard as you can at that wall” the command rang out and Ender had no way to stop the mind control that overcame him.

Turning to the concrete wall a few metres away, Ranboo ran at it full force.

A loud crack ran out as his body collided with the wall, Tommy could only make out the other dropping to the ground, most likely unconscious.

 Looking back at the man with a Bore mask, Tommy felt like he was face to face with death, but he wasn’t scared, no it was much different, a wave of calm flooded over him. 

But Tommy wasn’t ready to die, not here, not now. 

Steadying himself to unleash the bloody power within, what sounded like a hundred alarms went off above him.

The two Villains looked up, shared a look, then stepped back.

Blade sheathed his sword as Siren entered the Vault.

Emerging a few seconds later, drug in hand.

Tommy almost attempted to pull himself off the ground and fight, but he could see that plan would only end in disaster for himself and his comrade.

With the alarms above blaring the Villains made their way towards the door, Siren Exited without another word.

Tommy hadn’t expected anything less from him to be honest, Blade surprised him however.

The Syndicate member stopped at the foot of the door they’d all entered through, and turned around.

Face to face with the Blade again, Theseus could do nothing except raise his head and look at his brother.

“You should have never crossed the Syndicate” The words left his mouth smoothly.

“Your days have been numbered Theseus, Stay away from Syndicate business or next time it won’t be your shoulder I pierced” 

With the final threat layed out, The Blade walked out, Leaving Tommy alone as his blood stained everything once again.

Chapter Text

Forcing himself to stay awake, Tommy pressed down on the wound, hard. The pain shot through him, as his body began releasing adrenaline in a panic.

With the sudden rush of energy, Theseus pulled himself off the ground and stumbled his way over to Ender.

Looking back to where he was stabbed there was a surprising lack of blood spilled around, somehow Tommy managed to keep all the blood on his person. Not in, but on.

This was somewhat good news. He was glad to not be leaving any DNA behind.

Looking down at his comrade, Tommy attempted to shake the other awake.

It had no effect, Ender laid limp in front of him, and Tommy was almost out of ideas.

“Nuke?” The blond tapped his earpiece.

“Tommy?” the others voice came uneasy, Tommy could feel the worry in his friend’s voice.

“We failed.” He almost couldn’t choke out the words.

“....Don’t worry about that right now toms, just focus on getting the hell out of there”

Tommy didn’t answer but nodded his head, not sure if Tubbo could see him.

“Get Ender Up.”

“How the hell am I supposed to do that?

“Inside his cape, there’s a little pocket, grab the capsule out and break it under his nose”

Doing as the other said, Tommy felt inside the pocket pulling out a pill like capsule.

Unsure of the result, the blond decided just to listen to the other and break it.

Snapping the pill in half, a waft of purple smoke drifted out and entered Ranboos nose.

For a few seconds nothing happened, Theseus was about to ask for another solution when the latter shot up.

Very quickly regretting this action, Ranboo hissed in pain and began clutching his forearm. Reacting quickly, Tommy pulled up the other sleeve gently.

Revealing a huge bruise and lots of swelling on the injury.

It didn’t take a genius to guess that the arm was broken. 

Ranboo bit his lip in pain, trying to keep the whimpers inside.

“Any chance you can heal it?” Ender asked painfully.

Tommy hesitated. Healing himself was one thing, but it was different for others.

He was more likely to hurt Ranboo than heal him.

But he had to try 

“I can try.”

For his Friends sake.

Ender gave a quick nod and held out his arm to the other, Theseus grabbed under the arm gently.

As his eyes turned a Crimson shade of red, the power began to flow from his fingers.

Ranboo watched the other intently as the black and blue mark began to fade, the pain lessening as Tommy continued.

 Looking away from his injury to face the blond, the brunette could tell something was wrong, Tommy was beginning to break out in a cold sweat and Ranboo was sure his hands had begun shaking.

Reaching out with his other hand, the vigilante attempted to stop the other.

“Theseus Sto-”

The sudden black and blue bruise turned a dark shade of red, a throbbing pain came over his arm, the bone felt like it was being re-broken and his blood was clotting.

Ripping his arm away from the others grasp, Ranboo pulled himself back to the wall

The action seemed to bring Tommy out of his trance 

Falling back onto his knees the blond slowly opened his eyes, the glow of red slowly slipping away.

Releasing what he’d done Tommy instantly began to apologise.

“Shit man, I'm so sorry, I didn’t m-” Theseus trailed off.

Ranboo held his good hand up. 

The blond sat there silently.

“Forget about it, we’ll figure this out later for now let's just get out of here,”

Tommy nodded slowly, as if scared he’d somehow hurt Ranboo even further. 

“I’ll Teleport us as far as I can, your going to have to get us the rest of the way,”

“I can do that.” Tommy continued to look at the ground.

“Alright then, now help me up idiot” Ender conveyed sassily 

Scrambling to his feet as quickly as possible the teen went to the opposite side of his friend, put his hand on the other's back and pulled his good arm over his shoulder.

With the combined forces of the vigilantes, they managed to pull the taller one to his feet.

Taking a minute to steady themselves, nuke spoke to them again.

“back on your feet yet? Good. you two need to get the hell out of there.”

Ender clutched onto Theseus’s shoulder and the two vanished into thin air.

When Tommy opened his eyes they hadn’t gone very far.

The two had barely made it outside the Laboratory fence.

Ranboo slumped onto the ground.

The blond was beginning to suspect the other might have a concussion.

Unfortunately the two had no time to rest.

In the distance Tommy could see the flashing of Red and Blue lights.

It would be practically impossible to hide with the army of police officers and heroes that would no doubt be arriving in a few minutes.

Theseus attempted to pick the other off the ground once more, from the look of it Ranboo could barely hold his own weight up.

Taking a deep breath, the blond reached behind the brunette once more, lifting his friend onto his shoulder, more blood began to pour out of his wound with the added pressure.

“To- Theseus” Ender mumbled with his head hung low.

Looking down at his friend, Tommy made a decision then and there.

They were getting out of here tonight, no matter the price.

As the chequered Vigilante fell into a state of unconsciousness, the blond let a powerful power flow through him once more.

As a Crimson glow consumed the entirety of his eyes, the night faded into a red blur

.

.

.

. 

Coming back to reality, Tommy was greeted with a throbbing pain in the head.

Opening his eyes slowly he was faced with the familiar surroundings of his friend's apartment, propping himself up against the side of the couch, a sharp pain spread through his shoulder.

Looking down to find himself without his vigilante shirt and bandaged at the shoulder.

Looking around unsure, Tommy tried to remember how he got here, after Ranboo became unconscious he couldn’t seem to remember anything.

Swinging his legs off the side of the furniture, he spotted his blood stained Shirt and Jacket hung off to the side.

Looking around one his spare sweatshirt was hung up next to the bloodied clothes.

Surprisingly it was one of his favourites, one he thought he’d lost a few weeks ago.

 It was a Teal Sweatshirt that read ‘Sunday Club’ and was thankfully big enough as to not rub on his bandages.

He’d have to heal the shoulder later.

After putting on the piece of clothing, Tommy walked into the kitchen to see Ranboo and Tubbo sat there eating breakfast.

The blond began to worry about how long he’d been blacked out for.

Tommy couldn’t help the pained expression that came over his face when he saw the taller brunettes Head and Arm wrapped up in bandages.

A fire ignited within him, Wilbur would pay for this.

Tommy silently promised himself and Ranboo.

Tubbo was the first to notice the blond's presence.

“Morning sleepyhead” It was said in a lighthearted tone, but the hint of relief told Tommy it was a little deeper than that.

“Mornin’ dickheads,” the blond replied as he entered the kitchen.

Ranboo gave a slight nod and went back to eating his cereal.

“How ya feeling big man?” The shortest asked, getting out of his chair and walking to the pantry

“Like I just fought the Syndicate, how do you think I feel?” Tommy sassed, taking the seat that was just occupied by Tubbo.

The dark Brunette gave the other a look and went back to searching in the pantry.

The blond sighed and looked at Ranboo once again. An overwhelming sense of guilt filled his gut.

He really had to get a better handle on this power before he tried to heal anyone again.

Tubbo sat a bowl of Corn Flakes in front of him and handed Tommy a spoon.

“Eat.” 

The youngest made no effort to protest and dug into the meal placed in front of him.

As the Vigilantes sat in silence, ranboo suddenly reached for the TV remote.

Turning on the Television, the Channel was set to the news.

They were interviewing a police sergeant in front of the Hero Building, talking about a break in within the Laboratory.

The Lab they’d been in the previous night.

Tommy suddenly dropped his spoon, the sound grabbing the attention of the other two in the room.

The drug. 

The whole reason Tommy and Ranboo had gotten hurt in the first place.

And the fucking Syndicate had it.

“We gotta go out and find that drug,” The blond basically shouted.

“Tommy, wait, just calm down for a second.” Tubbo tried to reason with the other.

“Calm down, are you kidding me!? Toby The syndicate got their hands on a powerful drug that does who knows what, and you're telling me to calm down.” Tommy had shot up out of his chair by this point and was heading for the door.

“TOMMY STOP,” Tubbo rushed to stop the desperate Teen from leaving.

Ranboo looked like he wanted to interfere but after a stern look from the shortest, he backed out.

“I HAVE TO GET THAT DRUG BACK-”

“THEY DON’T HAVE THE DRUG” 

Tommy froze in place as he heard the words spoken by the other.

“What the fuck do you mean they don’t have the drug. I saw them take it.”

“I know toms, but they don’t have it. We do,” 

The blond took a second to process the information in his brain. 

He then walked to the table he was previously sitting at and stopped.

“Okay then. Please explain to me how the fuck we have it.”

Tubbo and Ranboo shared a look that was not missed by Tommy.

“You?” The blond pointed at the Tallest.

He nodded 

“When?” 

Tubbo cut in and began to explain the full story.

When Ranboo had yelled at Tommy to look out, Tubbo had tuned in through the earpiece telling Ranboo to swap out the drug with one on the bottom shelf. No one was any the wiser and Siren wasn’t smart enough to check if he’d grabbed the right drug.

“Okay But that still doesn’t explain how we have the Drug”

Tubbo moved to continue but Tommy held his hand up.

“Y’know what it doesn’t matter. We have it that's what’s important,”

The shorter Slowly nodded in Agreement. 

“I trust it's in a safe place right Toby?”

Tubbo tilted his head “Of course”

“Good, then let's not worry about this shit for the rest of the day”

The Brunette chuckled likely “lets,” 

One more question nagged at Tommy though, What the hell was this drug?

“Just one more question, What is this thing?” The blond simply couldn’t help himself.

Tubbo looked down at the ground once more.

He gestured for the two others to take a seat.

They did.

Even Ranboo was interested by this point.

“The Drugs called Titassion or T21 for short, from what I know the Lab’s been developing it for a few Years now, The drug is still in prototype form, but it's the basic foundation for something stronger,”

“How the Hell do you even know about this?” Tommy asked, confused.

Tubbo scoffed “You’d be surprised by how much the Tech apprentices talk”

The youngest nodded in understanding, Tubbo always had a keen ear for important information.

“As I was saying, from the look of the drug I’d say its a power enhancement type, something that could amplify anyone's power two fold,” 

“No wonder the syndicate was trying to get their hands on it,” 

The shortest hummed in agreement with the blond.

This drug was powerful and dangerous, but that also begs the question, why would the heroes need something like this.

Tommy could smell something corrupt going on.

But then again government business wasn’t any of his, so for now the Drug would stay put here. Safe, out of the hands of both Villains and Heroes.

“Anyway, Good job you two,” Tubbo congratulated the other vigilantes and went back to eating his breakfast.

Ranboo went back to eating his cereal as well. 

And Tommy had lost all of his appetite.

Standing up again the blond headed in the direction of the couch, sleep calling his name.

Unfortunately Sleep would have to wait.

The Wound on his shoulder began screaming in pain, Tubbo had given Tommy a shot of Morphine a couple hours ago, and it was suddenly starting to wear off.

Being almost unable to stand due to the pain, the blond stubbled, almost falling into a wall in the process.

Ranboo appeared next to him, and assisted him over to the couch. Tommy gave a quick nod of thanks and ripped the sweatshirt off.

Blood had begun to seep out of the wound, red staining the white bandages and his skin, Tubbo joined the two quickly, as Tommy began to groan in pain.

Through gritted teeth, the vigilante pulled the bandages and began to unwrap his shoulder.

Tubbo attempted to stop him, but ranboo pulled him back, stopping the attempt quickly.

Disregarding the cotton on the ground, Tommy pulled the soft patch off the wound, leaving the injury exposed.

Using his better arm, he placed a hand onto his shoulder, The youngest let out a low groan as the stab wound began to close.

Ranboo and Tubbo watched intently, scared their friend might hurt himself more.

The shortest almost couldn’t watch anymore as the blond dug his fingers deeper into the open flesh.

Tommy's face overcame with agony then relaxed, he slowly pulled the fingers out of his shoulder and opened his eyes.

A tired sigh left his lips and only Ranboo caught the glimmer of red disappearing from the others eyes. 

Tubbo was too preoccupied, checking Tommy was alright to notice.

Ranboo could admit to himself that the blond's blood powers scared him, but that didn’t mean he was afraid of Tommy.

Taking a leap of faith had never been the tallest strong suit, but he needed to prove that those powers could be used for good.

Ranboo missed some of the dialog between Tommy and Tubbo, but it ended with Tubbo handing the blond his sweatshirt and a smack to the back of the head.

Before Tommy had the chance to move, Ranboo motioned for him to stay. He Did.

After some silent conversation between the two the blond asked “if he was sure?”

The brunette nodded.

Tommy looked incredibly uneasy, as did Tubbo.

But nethertheless, the blond did as the other asked.

Ranboo hesitantly took his arm out of the sling, and placed it within Tommy’s grasp.

Holding the arm extremely carefully.

Steadying his shaky breath, he began.

The power flowed through him as it’d done a minute ago.

Tommy began to close his eyes as they turned a crimson red.

“N-o” Ranboo croaked out dryly.

The blond stared at him for a few seconds, confused.

The brunette used his unbroken arm to point at his eye.

Tommy began to understand and readied himself again this time while keeping his eyes open.

The Red consumed his pupil and the blond fought to keep his eyes open.

Gripping the arm slightly tighter, Tommy began to Heal.

Ranboo could feel his bones moving within, The red bruise beginning to fade.

A smile appeared on Tubbo’s face, but the blond's face only appeared to tense up more.

The tallest reached out, placing a hand on the shorter’s shoulder.

Tommy visibly relaxed with the new contact.

Watching the youngests eyes glow brighter, Ranboo began to feel the pressure in his head lighten.

Tommy was healing the two wounds at once.

As the pain in his arm lessened and the pressure in head lightened, the tallest made the decision not to tempt fate.

Using the hand that was already placed on the blond’s shoulder, Ranboo gave him a light tap.

Tommy looked up from the arm curiously, the brunette motioned for him to stop.

The shorter slowly retracted his hands, the red in his eyes slowly fading out.

“Thank you Tommy” gratitude rang through Ranboo’s voice

“Don't worry about it dickhead” The blond stood up from the couch and walked in the direction of the bathroom.

Ranboo and Tubbo smiled as their friend exited the room.

Safe to say the rest of the day went smoothly for the three vigilantes, the group hung out with each other, watching cheesy movies, and yelling at politicians on the news. 

Eating greasy food and just recuperating themselves.

By the time Tommy had to go, the sun was already setting and the clock read

-5 :50- 

The three said their goodbyes, and waved each other off.

Walking down the street, Tommy was in no rush to get home, he would have to utilise most of his self control as to not try and kill wilbur.

Fury burned under his skin, taking a deep breath the blond exhaled gently.

Tommy would make the brunette pay for this, but only as Theseus, not Tommy, he couldn’t risk it. Not yet anyway.

The evening walk was good for him, it let him take a break from everything.

Unfortunately his walk ended quicker than he would’ve liked, reaching his own house brang him almost no joy.

Seeing the lights on in the living room, Tommy assumed his family was home. Most likely celebrating their victory.

A small smile appeared on his face, knowing that a group of rookie vigilantes managed to fool one of the most powerful crime organisation in all of L’Manberg

Stopping to enter the Front door, Tommy hesitated and wondered if he could just make a run for it.

He’d thought about running away before, but something kept him tethered there, while he’d basically given up on any chance at a relationship with his brothers, a part of him wished for their fathers attention.

To be doted on as his brother’s are. 

Stopping that train of process, Tommy scolded himself for thinking about that sort of useless shit.

Pushing the door open, the smell of Pizza greeted him, after leaving his shoes at the door he entered the main room.

Wilbur and Phil sat on the couch, Pizza boxes resting on the coffee table.

Techno sat at the bench drinking tea and reading some mythology book.

His eldest brother was the only one to notice the new presence in the room.

“Hello Tommy,” Techno greeted.

This action alerted the other two about Tommys presence. 

“Well well well welcome home little brother, out a little late aren't we?”

Tommy ignored both of them and entered the kitchen, grabbing a plate from one of the cupboards and walking around to the Pizza boxes.

The blond knew better than to just take, he looked to his feathered father for permission.

The older looked down at his youngest son and nodded slowly.

No matter how much his distaste for the youngest, he wouldn’t be so cruel as to deny the kid food.

Tommy looked almost surprised, but grabbed a few pieces of the cheese Pizza and muttered a quick ‘thanks’ before heading up the stairs to his room.

Phil paid the teen no mind and went back to his conversation with wilbur.

Techno’s eyes lingered a little longer on the blond child than the rest.

Something was going on with the youngest, Techno couldn’t decide if he cared or not.

Tommy on the other hand, could give a single fuck about any of his family downstairs.

All he cared about at this current time was eating pizza, and studying for his english test tomorrow.

Pulling out an English textbook from his drawer, the blond got to work.

He may hate english.

But he hated Failure even more.

And so that's how an exhausted vigilante fell asleep face first on his desk. Passed out from exhaustion. Not a single page of the textbook was read.

Chapter Text

It was no surprise that Tommy was up before most of his family.

Tiptoeing down the stairs, the blond carried his school bag and laptop. 

Techno was most likely down stairs, Wilbur would be out cold sleeping till like 11am and Phil didn’t have to get up for another half hour.

To no one’s surprise the pink haired blond was drinking tea in the kitchen. Tommy had about 10 minutes before his bus got there at 7:30.

He decided to eat breakfast today.

“Morning,” Tommy greeted walking past the other.

Techno grunted in response 

‘Typical’ the blond thought 

Tommy held a slight resentment for the elder, The brute did stab him in the shoulder after all.

Grabbing a piece of bread, the youngest threw it in the toaster.

Turning his back to the other, Tommy couldn’t help but feel eyes watching him.

Technoblade had always been incredibly observant. But never towards Tommy. 

The blond ignored it, pretending his senses were duller than they were.

“Where were you yesterday Tommy?” 

The question almost made Tommy drop the jam in his hand.

“Out” the youngest responded a little too quickly.

The blond could practically feel the face the other made.

“With friends, am I not allowed to do that?” Tommy turned to face the other. A hardened look appeared in his eyes.

Clearly not impressed with the younger’s attitude, Techno walked up to the blond, the older stood at least a full head taller than him.

Tommy couldn’t help but find it slightly intimidating in situations like this.

Taking an unconscious step back, the blond looked the brute in his eyes.

A harsh gaze was all he was met with.

“Watch your tongue Tommy, I won’t remind you again,” The words spoken were cool and laced with venom.

Wilbur’s brutality the youngest could take, but Technoblade’s words cut deeper than any punch he’d taken recently.

Not uttering another word the pink haired blond grabbed his tea off the table and headed back upstairs.

As the toast behind him sprung up, Tommy found it hard to move.

Turning around almost mechanically, the blond grabbed the toast out and threw it straight into the Trash.

His whole body began to tense up, but not waiting for that jerk to get the better of him, Tommy didn’t allow himself to shed a single tear.

Grabbing his stuff off the counter he shoved his laptop in his bag, and headed for the door, not wanting to stay in this stupid house a second longer.

Shoving the shoes onto his feet, he opened the door and exited the house, careful not to slam the door despite his rage, that would only end in a fight later.

Running to the sidewalk, Tommy turned around to face the house, flipping it off as he walked backwards.

You might not think this action means much, but this was Tommy’s way of taking control back from the asshole’s in that house, even if it was only a little bit.

Walking backwards a few paces, the blond turned in a swift motion and headed for the bus stop which was only a few hundred metres away, at the end of his street.

A few kids in different uniforms stood waiting with their parents, amongst the crowd a little blond girl popped out from the middle and rushed at Tommy.

“Tommy!” The little girl cheered when she reached him.

“Hi Clem,” Tommy greeted picking the girl up.

Clem, short for Clementine, was a little girl the blond met at the start of the year. She’d gotten separated from his mother on the way to the bus and ran into Tommy by chance.

He’d spend a solid hour comforting her, missing his bus in the process, but after the two began walking, the blond could hear frantic cries coming from in front of them.

Clem had perked up hearing the voice, and alerted Tommy to the fact it was her mother calling out frantically.

The blond guided the child back to the frantic parent. 

The two shared a warm embrace which Tommy almost envied, which was followed by profuse thanks and gratitude from Clementine's Mother.

Tommy had assured her it was no trouble and he was glad to help.

From that day on, Clem had always rushed up to him and demanded a hug.

And that brings us back to the current moment, with a small child wrapping her arms around his neck.

“Oh dear me, Clementine don’t run off like that, Oh Hello Tommy dear” She greeted pleasantly.

“Hello Ms Mothra,” The blond added, trying to put the little girl down.

While the small child seemed hell bent on staying in his arms.

“Clementine Rose Mothra, you let go of Tommy right now young lady,” The woman said firmly but not harshly.

Clem made a grunting noise in Tommy’s arm and slowly released his neck. The Teen placed the smaller gently on the ground, and she proceeded to wrap her entire body around his leg.

Ms Mothra just sighed tiredly, and continued talking.

“How was your weekend hun?” 

“Pretty quiet if I’m being honest ma'am,” Tommy lied.

“Well that's good, oh look here comes the bus, Clem quick, go and get your bag honey,” Clem’s mother always had a way to distract her daughter from latching onto Tommy.

Completely unaware that she’d been fooled, Clem let go of the older’s leg and rushed over to the other kids, where her bag lay abandoned on the ground.

“It was good seeing you Ms,”

“You too Tommy, have a good day at school,”

Nodding a quick thanks, the blond moved closer to where the approaching Bus would stop.

Clementine appeared next to him after saying bye to her mom.

The two got on the bus, and Tommy stopped and helped Clem into her seat as he always did. She was on the shorter side of kids, even for a 5 year old, Clem was practically tiny.

She gave him a quick thumbs up and he gave one back before heading to the back of the Bus. He was the only highschooler on this bus at any time, meaning he got the whole back row to himself.

Slumping down in the seat, he pulled out his phone and headphones and soon enough the music came flooding into his ears.

Ironically the song that began playing was ‘Mask’ by Dream, what’s surprising is that Tommy didn’t skip it like he usually did.

The song felt different this time round, somehow enjoyable.

Closing his eyes, the world around him became dark.

It was about a 40 minute bus ride to his school.

Opening his eyes after about 30 ish minutes, the bus pulled up to its first drop off.

The Pre-school.

A teacher stood at the stop, waiting for the kids to exit the vehicle.

Tommy has seen her enough to know she worked for the school, and wasn’t just some random adult kidnapping a group of children.

Clemintine and a few of her classmates moved into the aisle and exited out the door.

Clem was the last one off, stopping to wave at Tommy once more before she rushed into the Pre-school.

The bus departed quickly, stopping at a few other middle schools and then finally arriving at Tommy’s High school.

Logshedshire.

It was one of the top highschools in all of upper L’manberg.

Known for having 60% of the city's smartest kids attending.

The only one that outranks them is Pogtopia, which is where all the rich fucks go.

His brothers both went there, but Tommy had opted to choose the underdog school, which suited skill over wealth.

Techno had gotten into Pogtopia easily with his amazing fencing skills and full marks in anything English related.

Many schools had wanted him, however he was set on attending the same school their Father had when he was younger.

Wilbur on the other hand hadn't been accepted as easily, but after a hefty donation from Phil, the school had changed their minds. All coincidently of course. 

Tommy hadn’t even bothered to apply to Pogtopia. Something about Logshedshire just drew his attention in. 

The blond gave the bus driver a quick wave as he stepped off the bus.

Walking into the school grounds, the teen’s eyes began searching for his friends.

Looking down at his phone.

-8:12AM- 

Tubbo and Ranboob would be here within the next 5 minutes. Tommy decided not to wait around and headed to the trio’s spot instead.

A huge ass oak Tree out the Back of the school.

It’s located behind the out of bounds area, so no younger kids can get to it.

Tommy had found it their first year at highschool, and dubbed it his Tree.

He’d almost climbed the whole thing entirely. 

Ranboo could climb the Tree easily, with his long legs and arms making it pretty simple.

Tubbo on the other hand struggled to make it off the ground sometimes.

He would wine for a bit, then Ranboo would teleport the shortest into the tree.

It really is a great Tree.

The blond reached the large Oak quickly, unfortunately for Tommy he was interrupted before he got the chance to climb the branches.

“Ah Tommy there you are, I was hoping to catch you.” 

The Teen turned around suppressing a groan.

“Misssss, What can I do for you?” Tommy dragged the s out. Trying to keep his facial expression neutral, recently he’d swapped the Sugar out for salt in the cafeteria. 

“I just wanted to let you know about your internship,”

The blond let out a relieved sigh. He wasn’t in trouble.

“What about it?”  

“Well…” The teacher took a deep breath. 

“There has been a little mishap, with yours and another student’s paperwork,”

Tommy kind of shrugged then asked “What kind of mishap,”

“So, You might know Jack Manifold from year 12,”

“The dude who got held back, Yeah I know of him.”

“Well he was supposed to do an internship with the Hero tower, while you were supposed to go to that cafe,”

“What do you mean ‘supposed to’” Tommy asked, getting slightly concerned.

“There, might have been- well there was a bit of a paperwork mixup, And as it turns out, you’ll be going to the heroes tower instead of Jack,” 

Tommy’s jaw dropped, No fucking way was this happening. Why the Hero tower of all places!

The blond stood there gobsmacked. Not even being able to muster up a single response.

“Unfortunately it is too late to fix the mistake, So you will be at the Hero Tower for your internship.” 

Without giving the younger a chance to respond the Teacher finished up.

“Thank you for being so understanding. Enjoy your internship and try to get the most out of it!” She began walking away very quickly, so quick that Tommy lost sight of her.

Staring blankly at the tree, Tommy had to resist the urge to lose his mind.

“AHHHH This can’t be fucking happening to me! The hero tower of all places. WHY!” The blond screamed up at the sky.

What the Hell did he do in a past life to deserve this shit? He asked himself.

Sliding down the trunk of the tree onto the ground.

Tommy attempted to put a positive spin on this horrific situation.

Maybe he wouldn’t be working anywhere near actual heroes.

Maybe he’d be working with a receptionist or a general manager, just running errands and useless shit like that! 

No way he’d be with Heroes. They’d never let an intern work with top Superheroes, no way not possible.

Right?

Tommy almost passed out from the sudden stress he was putting on his mind.

Thankfully by this point, his two friends were walking up to join him under the tree.

Concern Quickly growing on their faces.

Tommy almost tackled the two as he began to explain this terrifying situation.

Usually the blond wouldn't have cared, and taken the mixup like a champ. But he’d met Dream, who’d given him a lift to work.

Granted it was in piggyback form. 

But that's besides the point.

He was a vigilante, and going to the hero tower could only bring him trouble.

And- holy shit.

What the fuck would happen if his syndicate family found out. They would skin him alive! Nevermind, Scratch that. They Didn’t care enough about him to get involved.

“Woah Woah Tommy slow down,” Tubbo tried to calm the blond down using his most gentle voice.

“Did you get any of that?” Ranboo asked the darker brunette.

“Yeah basically, this gremlin is going to the Hero tower”

Ranboo paused for a minute processing the information.

“HOLY S-”

.

.

.

.

Tommy sat in the back of his maths classroom, spacing out again.

Ranboo and Tubbo had managed to calm him down enough to get him into class.

But that hadn’t stopped the internal turmoil.

This was bad, really really bad.

He started his Internship Tomorrow morning.

How had this happened?, Tommy thought as he banged his forehead on the desk in front of him. 

Everyone in the class turned to look at the blond in concern, and confusion.

Tommy ignored every one of them, including the teacher. 

They didn’t matter, their stares of concern didn’t matter.

The blond was stuck between a rock and a hard place, and he knew it.

The Bell rang loudly in the room.

Tommy made no attempt to move. Only looking up once a shorter brunette entered the room, panting like crazy.

“Sorry Sir, He’s in the middle of a crisis”

“....Right, Is he going to be alright?”

“Yeah, Yeah, Yeah. Don’t worry about a single thing Sir” Tubbo manipulated as he pulled Tommy out of his chair and exited the Maths classroom.

Leaving a dazed and unsure teacher in the room, The brunette dragged the blond down the hall.

“Look man you gotta pull yourself together,” Tubbo whispered in the blonds ear.

Tommy stopped dead in his tracks.

The brunette almost running into the other in the process.

Pulling his hand out of the shorter’s grasp, the blond proceeded to use both hands and smack them into his cheeks simultaneously.

“Right Toby, I have decided to face this shit,” Tommy suddenly said, cheeks turning bright red.

“Righhhhht buddy,” 

“NO, I'm serious Tubbo, I will go to the hero tower, and do such a crappy job that they’ll kick me out before the first weeks up!”

The brunette couldn’t help but chuckle at the blond's plan.

“Well I wish you luck with that Tommy,”

“Oh yeah that reminds me, where are you doing your internship?”

“I’m going to be at the hero tower too! Over with all the security and coding IT department,”

Tommy nodded in understanding, he’d expected Tubbo to go somewhere like that.

“Seriously dude how do you understand all the code stuff,” 

The shorter shrugged.

“Dunno just do!” 

The two continued chatting and bickering as they made their way to the next class,

English….. Yay.

The day seemed to fly by as quickly as it came.

Before Tommy knew it, it was his favourite time of the day.

Lunch!

I mean who doesn’t love lunch?

Not Tommy that's who.

Entering the cafeteria at a run, the blond quickly located his friends, Ranboo and Tubbo sat at a corner table towards the back of room, food sat in front of them.

Making a quick detour, the blond joined the line of people with trays.

Monday was fish and chips day, Fuck yes.

The food was quickly placed upon his tray, grabbing some cutlery off the side, Tommy made a b-line for his friends at the back of the room.

Dodging a particularly loud group of year 7’s, the teen arrived at his destination.

“Took you long enough, big man,” Tubbo joked.

“Oh please, it would’ve taken you twice as long,” Tommy fired back.

Ranboo sighed in exhaustion, trying to come up with a way to stop the inevitable bickering.

“Sooooo Tommy, are you going to be staying at the hero tower full time?” 

Sitting down, the blond became increasingly confused.

“What do you mean ‘staying’ at the hero tower?” 

Tubbo and Ranboo shared a look that wasn’t missed by Tommy.

The shorter brunette began to speak again.

“You’ll probably have to live at the tower for your internship Toms,”

“WHAT.” the blond replied, dropping the fish stick in his hand.

“Though you might be able to stay with me,” Tubbo offered an alternative.

“Fuck yes, Two week sleepover here I come,” 

Tubbo laughed along with the blond.

With a slightly altered plan in place, the day continued.

The Bell rang, signalling that last Period had finally arrived.

Ditching modern history sounded like a great plan right about now. Tommy really wasn’t in any mood to be lectured on how great the city of L’manberg.

Taking the stairs, the blond remembered he had to borrow another AP calculus book.

That was a good enough reason and excuse.

And so with a quick ascension up a flight of stairs, Tommy was face to face with the Library Doors.

Entering almost silently, the teen noticed the librarian beginning nowhere in sight, A grin spread across the blonds face.

Ducking passed the desk, Tommy made his way into the rows full of shelved books.

Reading the aisle signs, the blond followed his way further into the library.

Fiction

Nope 

Non-fiction 

Not even close 

Study

Getting there

Maths

Almost 

Calculus 

Bingo!

Turning to head into the chosen Isle, Tommy failed to look at his surroundings.

Causing himself and another student to run face first into each other.

As both teens landed on their asses with a thud, Tommy looked over quickly, already composing an apology in his head.

Only to be stopped dead in his tracks.

A familiar face greeted him.

Tommy instantly had to rack his brain to try and remember the guy’s name.

‘ Jeremy? No. Garry? No, Grayson? Grayson!’

“Shit man, are you made of fuckin’ steel, I feel like I just walked into a brick wall,”

Grayson commented rubbing his forehead slightly, while gathering the now scattered books

Tommy quickly followed suit, grabbing the textbooks within his reach.

“Shit man, I'm so sorry,” 

The teen pulled himself to his feet and grabbed the last book remaining on the floor.

The darker blond, sighed.

“Don’t sweat it dude, just give me a hand,” 

Tommy obliged immediately, extending his hand to the other.

Grayson grabbed and pulled himself to his feet.

“Just chuck the book on the table over there,”

Looking at the books within his hands, Tommy nodded and spun around, walking to the desk behind him.

Grayson followed.

The two teens dropped the books on the table with a thud.

Blue eyes met purple ones and an awkward silence fell over the boys.

“Well I gotta study sooo-,”

“I better get going- “

Silence.

Fucking hell this was arkward. 

“Catch up some other time?” Tommy quickly commented.

“Sounds good,” Grayson agreed at the same speed.

The blond spun around and began walking to the isle he’d previously been trying to enter.

“Hey Tommy,”  

The teen stopped and looked over his shoulder at the other

“Don’t crash into anything else okay?”

The previously awkward atmosphere suddenly lifted.

Tommy couldn’t help but laugh a little bit.

“Heh, thanks man, I’ll be sure not too”

The two teens exchanged a small wave with one another, and Tommy finally departed.

A Calculus book and new friend acquired.  

Chapter Text

Tommy’s luck couldn’t possibly get any worse.

While it might have been good to find his family not home, the front door was currently locked and he’d forgotten his key. (again)

‘Fuck this, I’m gunna smash a fucking window!’ The blond thought to himself, wandering around to the side of the house 

Pulling on all of the first floor windows, Tommy found they were all locked.

Walking around to the back of the house, there was only one open window.

Wilbur’s.

Tommy was wrong, his luck could clearly get worse. 

Refusing to give in and bash his head against a brick wall, the blond began to climb.

Grabbing onto the drain pipe attached to the wall, Tommy began to climb.

Pulling himself onto a ledge halfway, he threw his bag in ahead of him. 

Now all he had to do was pull himself to his feet and reach for the window frame.

The task was easy enough.

Finally inside the house, the blond paused and looked around Wilbur’s room. It had been years since he’d seen the inside of this room.

The room had the same layout as his own. A main bedroom and a bathroom and closet on the side.

Wilbur’s room was slightly bigger than Tommy’s, that didn’t piss the blond off at all.

While Avoiding the brunette’s bed as he stepped inside, The teen crashed into the guitar stand on the other side.

“Fucking hell no!”

Grabbing the stringed instruments before they fell onto the floor, Tommy froze. Double checking to make sure nothing was broken or damaged.

Placing the instruments back in exactly the right spots. The teen looked around, positive he hadn’t damaged anything else.

Deciding to make a quick exit quicker, Tommy grabbed the backpack he’d previously thrown to the floor and headed for the door.

Opening Wilbur’s door slightly, the blond peeked out into the hall. He knew no one was home, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

Stepping into the empty walkway, Tommy quickly made his way to his room at the other end of the hall.

Slipping into his room, he dropped his school bag onto the ground and flopped down onto his bed.

Still unmade from the morning.

Sighing deeply, Tommy couldn’t help but replay the events that had occurred earlier at school.

How did this stupid situation happen?

And why him of all people?

Rolling over onto his stomach, the blond yelled into the mattress.

This fucking sucked. No matter how he tried to look at it.

Pushing himself off the bed, the blond quickly grabbed a change of clothes from his closet and headed into the bathroom to change.

Emerging a few minutes later in a casual shirt and jeans, Tommy headed down stairs, solely  controlled by his stomach.

After descending the stairs carefully, the teen entered the kitchen.

Opening the pantry a room full of food greeted him, however none of the food within view were really appealing to him.

Closing the pantry door, the blond turned to the fridge in hope.

Seriously he went shopping literally two days ago, how was there no fucking food in this house.

Opening the fridge doors, leftover Pizza caught Tommy’s eye.

‘Good enough ’ The blond thought to himself.

Grabbing the cardboard box, Tommy peeked inside, 3 slices of Cheese Pizza, 2 hawaiian and a single meatlovers piece rested in the box.

Pulling the entirety out of the fridge, the teen grabbed a plate. Sitting everything on the bench, He grabbed all the Cheese slices and the meatlovers slice.

Placing the plate in the microwave, Tommy set the timer for a minute and a half.

In the meantime, he returned the pizza box to the fridge.

Watching the food rotate inside the machine, Tommy began to contemplate going on patrol.

Getting out in the streets could help him clear his head.

He’d most likely be doing it alone if he did; however, Tubbo typically worked Monday afternoons at the hero tower.

And Ranboo was studying for his chem exam.

The machine in front of him began beeping, after pulling the food out Tommy headed to the table.

The blond decided to go on patrol regardless, He couldn’t always be relying on his friends.

Not that teamwork was a bad thing, but Tommy enjoyed some independence.

While shoving Pizza down his throat, A car could be heard pulling up in the driveway.

Abandoning the plate on the table, the blond walked over to the living room window and peeked out behind the curtain. 

Turning around to quickly glance at the clock behind him.

4:05

Fuck that ment it was Wilbur. Tommy Quickly moved to unlock the door for the other, then quickly rushed back to the table.

Avoiding Wilbur was almost inevitable, the blond simply didn’t have enough time to get upstairs and seek refuge in his room.

Listening carefully, Tommy could hear the scuffling of shoes on concrete approaching closer.

A few seconds later a cranky brunette flung the front door open. 

“-hat do you mean it's not working!?”

As Wilbur entered the house yelling into his phone, he didn’t seem to notice Tommy, the teen decided staying quiet was the best course of action.

“I was there you fucker, of course I grabbed the right one.”

Tommy couldn’t hear the other side of the line.

“ Shut up and fix it ” 

Wilbur slammed the phone onto the counter with a hate filled fury.

“Fucking idiot,”

Looking up, the brunette’s eyes met the blond’s.

“Oh so you did manage to get in,” Tommy didn’t like the tone in Wilbur's voice.

His brother was angry and looking to take that rage out on him.

“Yeah, the back door was unlocked,” the blond lied.

“Right,” Wilbur didn’t sound convinced at all.

The brunette looked down at the younger, noticing the empty plate sitting there.

“Hungry aren't we Tommy?”

“Fuck off Wilbur” 

The elder slammed his palm down on the table, a loud bang echoed through the room.

“Don’t Fucking talk to me like that you little shit,” 

All it took was 3 little words to set Wilbur off.

The brunette lunged at the blond, shoving the younger from his chair.

Tommy could do little as the chair and himself toppled over and gravity pulled him towards the ground.

“YOU FUCK!” the blond cried out as his body collided with the hardwood floor.

Tommy quickly jumped to his feet and leapt over the table.

Wilbur clearly not prepared for the retaliation, short circuited for a second.

A second that allowed Tommy to neck tackle the other.

As both brothers crashed to the ground, the boys began throwing punch for punch.

Wilbur punched the blond in the ribs and Tommy Pulled the others hair.

Insults were being continuously thrown as the front door opened once more.

The eldest brother entered the house, a bewildered look crossing his face as he watched the two youngsters roll around on the floor.

Clearly not amused.

Techno said nothing just lent against the Wall and watched.

Tommy was the first to notice the brute standing in front, Wilbur seemed too preoccupied with trying to break his ribs to notice.

Not noticing wilbur’s feet coming under him, the blond could do little as the brunette kicked him in the gut, the kick was strong enough to send Tommy flying.

The teen crashed into the table legs.

Wilbur took the opportunity to get to his feet.

Tommy did the same.

“How dare you fucking hit me, you useless piece of shit,” the brunette sneered at the younger.

“You started it!” 

“I did not!”

“Did too.” 

Wilbur looked like has ready to kill. And Tommy wouldn't be surprised if the older did kill him one day.

“Oi dude chill out,” Techno began to move in between the two.

“ Don’t Interfere. ” Wilbur commanded not looking away from the younger.

The oldest made a face, but stopped dead in his tracks, Techno could do little with the command given.

“I had no idea you had that much fight in you Tommy,” Wilbur was looking down on him.

“Of course you didn’t. You don’t even know me” the blond spat back.

The brunette chuckled at the response.

“Oh I know who you are Tommy. You’re the fucker that killed my Mom.” 

Tommy’s anger instantly vanished at the mention of her name. 

His beloved mother. The Woman who gave him life and loved him from the moment he was born.

His beloved Mother who he’d killed.

Tears began to well in the youngests eyes.

Wilbur really is a cunt sometimes.

Deciding to abandon this hopeless battle, Tommy made no effort at a response and headed for the stairs.

Neither brother’s made any attempt to stop the younger.

The two villain’s watched the blond rush upstairs and out of view.

Wilbur began to turn, fully intending to go to the kitchen, but was abruptly stopped when the hand of his eldest brother wrapped around his neck, shoving him into the wall.

“Don’t ever use our mother like that again wilbur.” Techno threatened.

“Get off,” the brunette choked out.

“I don’t care what you say or do to Tommy. Just don’t mention her.”  the hand around Wilbur’s throat tightened.

Given little other choice, the brunette gave a strained nod.

A second later the hand relaxed, allowing air back into Wilbur's lungs.

.

.

.

.

Slamming the door shut, the blond child rushed into his bathroom, quickly locking the door and letting himself fall down against the door.

Holding his head in his hands, Tommy couldn’t stop the salty liquid escaping his eyes.

Tears fell along his pale face.

It wasn’t fair. He hated it. The pain. The blame, why was it his fault?

Tommy was just a kid when it happened.

He was just naive, and stupid and dumb and an idiot.

The pool within his soul couldn’t take it anymore.

Burying his face further into his arms.

Tommy couldn’t stop the tears or the sobs that escaped from within.

The boy had begun crying so hard that the air in his lungs became thin.

Coughs erupted from the blond, and soon the room around him began to spin.

Tommy had stopped breathing altogether with all the emotions of sorrow and pain consuming everything.

Taking in short shallow breaths, the boy attempted to calm himself.

“Stop it.” he whispered to himself.

“Cut it out, you're fine.” triggering an internal switch with the words he’d just told himself, slowly his chest began to rise.

Oxygen filled his lungs and Tommy took a much needed breath of air.

Falling back against the door, the blond pushed all the clouded emotions back down, shutting them so deep within himself that no one would ever reach them.

Pulling himself to his feet, the blond looked at himself in the mirror, eyes bloodshot, wet trails running down his face, and a small cut on his forehead, he hadn’t even noticed the wound.

He must have gotten it sometime by fighting with wilbur.

Not that it mattered, he deserved it anyway.

Turning away from his own reflection, Tommy walked out of the bathroom, shutting all his feelings behind him.

He deserved this. 

The abuse from Wilbur 

The silence from Techno

And the Isolation from Phil.

He deserved everything.

In Tommy’s mind he was no better than a filthy murderer.

Chapter Text

TW: brief mention of Rape

Waking up to the ringing of his phone, Tommy’s eyes shot open, the blond quickly rushed to find his phone within the mess of blankets.

Finally finding the device, Tommy answered the phone with a groggy tone.

“Hello” 

“Ah hello! Is this Thomas Watson?”

The teen paused to look at the number, it wasn’t one he recognised.

“This is he- me,” Tommy stopped talking, not wanting to make himself seem more like an idiot than he’d already done.

“ Great! Just wanted to give you some information about your internship at the Hero tower. Is now a good time?”

Looking around the room, Tommy figured he must have passed out from exhaustion.

“Uh yeah, sure” the teen replied, focusing on the conversation.

“Awsome, So your internship starts tomorrow at 8:30 and finishes at 3:30, this will be the same for everyday. The internship lasts two weeks, not including weekends,”

“Uh huh, quick question. What exactly will I be doing?” The blond asked curiously, I mean seriously no one had told him anything about this new internship!

“Oh dear, has no one told you anything? Well nevermind that, You’ll be helping out the marketing team, and running errands for some of the heroes!”

Tommy took a second to process the information given to him.

“....That's it? all I’m doing is just being an errand boy? I don’t have to go fight villains or anything?”

“Uh… that’s one way to put it”

With only a few sentences, Tommy’s anxiety vanished.

The blond had never been so happy to be an errand boy.

Tommy basically jumped for joy at the news.

“ Thomas? Are you still there?”

Almost dropping the phone, the teen stopped celebrating and scrambled to answer the voice on the other end.

  
“Yep. still here,” he answered a little too quickly,

“ Fantastic! We’ll see you tomorrow then, Mr Watson” 

 Tommy couldn’t help but cringe at the name, that was Phil’s name not his.

Without waiting for a response, the call ended and the blond’s phone went dead once more.

Flopping back onto his bed, Tommy glanced at the clock on his bed side.

- 6:45-

He’d passed out for about two hours, shit. There goes his sleep schedule.

Reaching to touch the open wound on his forehead, a stinging pain shot through when contact was made.

Tommy hissed at the sudden pain.

Slightly annoyed at the fact he wouldn’t be able heal the gash due to the fact of being discovered.

Both Wilbur and Techno saw the injury, it's not like he can just walk downstairs suddenly in perfect health.

Not suspicious at all.

Rolling off his bed onto the floor, Tommy reached for the spare first aid kit he kept hidden under there.

Pulling out the tin box, the blond moved into the bathroom.

Grabbing a disinfecting wipe, Tommy carefully applied it to the wound, the cut wasn’t deep enough to need stitches, but it would take at least a few days for the stupid thing to heal completely.

Fucking Hell this stupid cut was going to scar wasn’t it.

After disinfecting the wound, the blond applied a large bandaid. Everything was mostly hidden by his hair.

Good fewer questions.

Walking out of the bathroom, Tommy’s stomach growled.

He was still fucking hungry.

But in no mood to face his family.

The blond figured he could always get food while patrolling.

Besides, going out as Theseus would help him clear his mind.

Deciding then and there, the vigilante rushed to get his gear together.

All up it only took him about 15 minutes to get all of his shit together.

Looking at the time,

- 7:03-

Not a bad time to go vigilanting, but not a great time to sneak out either.

Phil would probably be up soon to yell at him for fighting with wilbur.

However! Tommy had a fantastic strategy to make a cover up.

Tillow!

Basically a bunch of Pillows made to look like Tommy.

Not that his family would notice the difference anyway.

Opening his half broken window, The vigilante jumped out, becoming nothing more than a whisper in the night.

Jumping from building to building, Theseus made a b-line towards the lower district, crime would be coming alive within the hour.

The vigilante’s night had only just begun. 

.

.

.

.

Currently exiting the hero tower a trio of superheroes walked into the quiet street.

George the number 5 hero known as ‘404’ walked lazily behind the others.

He was always slightly cranky after waking up from a nap.

The two other heroes noticed and decided to stir George up as much as physically possible.

"So George, are you excited for patrol?” Sapnap, also known as ‘Flame’ teased the other, knowing full well the brunette hated patrol with a passion.

“Fuck off flame,” 404 was in no mood to be teased, the last time they’d gone on patrol he’d gotten slimed by some villain. The stupid green goo stayed in his hair for at least a week.

“Come on George, aren't you excited to hang out with us all night tonight?” Dream poked.

Basically fuming by this point, the hero stormed off in front of the others.

“Wait for us goggy!” Sapnap yelled chasing after the other.

Dream followed his comrades at a steady pace.  

Staring at a darkened alleyway, the number 3 Hero could help but wonder about a certain blond vigilante.

Dream hoped the teen was okay, just knowing he was alive would be enough for clay, but the dirty blond had no way of finding out.

He didn’t remember much from that night but, the hero knew that kid was hurt and dream couldn’t help him.

The rest of the night faded into a red blur, he doesn’t even remember how he got back to the hero tower.

Deciding now wasn’t the best time to be thinking about what had happened, dream  jogged up to his friends.

Just as the blond caught up, the group’s raido’s each went off.

- ‘Heroes come in, we just got a call about an armed robbery down in the lower district, it’s in a highly active villain area, possibly the work of the syndicate.’ - 

The group gave each other a quick look then nodded.

“Dream team on it Sir, Well be there in t-minus 15 minutes,” Clay answered into the radio,

- ‘Be safe Heroes,’-

Fixing the goggles on his face, George the number 5 Hero was ready.

Tightening the bandana on his forehead, Sapnap the number 4 Hero was ready.

Pulling his Smile mask over his head, Clay the number 3 Hero was ready.

The Dream team moved out. Silently travelling through the night.

.

.

.

The Wind whipped around the teen vigilante, Theseus jumped from building to building, carefully watching the streets below and listening for any crime.

It was his job to protect this neighbourhood. 

Landing atop an powerline post, the blond took in a deep breath, He was already feeling better.

Freedom really was an amazing thing. Tommy never understood how some people took it for granted.

Even if the teen was a billionaire, he’d trade it in a heartbeat for this kind of freedom.

The sound of shattering glass grabbed his attention.

Possible break in?  

Leaping from the post, Theseus headed towards the noise.

Landing on the opposite roof, Tommy watched as someone dressed in all black climbed through the shattered window.

Looking closer at the figure, the blond could make out a shiny metal attached to their hip.

It was a Gun.

Tommy was sure.

Leaping from the post, the vigilante landed on the fire escape, The assailant was already inside the apartment.

Carefully dodging the Shattered glass, Tommy stepped inside the pitch black room.

Taking a second to look around, the burglar didn’t appear to be in the current room anymore.

Carefully walking towards the room’s door, Theseus hugged the wall, listening for anything within the dead of night.

Tommy only barely caught it, A muffled scream coming from the next room.

The teen sprung into action, tearing into the next room.

He’d arrived just in time to see the assailant, holding a young woman hostage.

He had the lady grabbed by the hair, almost ripping it from her scalp.

“DON’T MOVE” Theseus shouted at the assailant.

The figure whipped around, shocked by the vigilantes' presence.

A muffled whimper came from the woman, Clearly petrified.

Tommy had to act fast before that bastard hurt her anymore.

“Just run along ‘wannabe’, This doesn’t concern the likes of you” The fucker threatened.

Not bothering to waste anymore time, Theseus rushed the crook.

Caught off guard by the teen’s speed, The assailant stumbled back, Tripping on the edge of the lady's bed.

Both victim and criminal fell backwards, landing on the hardwood floors with a bang.

Before the fucker had any chance to stop it, Theseus was already on top of him, Both guys kicking and punching at eachother, 

Letting the woman’s hair go in the midst of the scuffle, the scumbag focused on trying to get to his gun while fighting off the vigilante.

“FUCKING VIGILANTE, THIS IS NONE OF YOUR FRICKEN BUSINESS!”   

“I’m Not going to let you hurt that lady!” Theseus growled.  

The woman had now escaped to the corner of the bedroom and was fumbling with her phone.

The blond figured she’d be ringing the police or an ambulance.

Checking on her was Tommy’s mistake, The criminal took the chance to grab his gun, right as the teen realised  the gun that was pointed at his lower abdomen, it was already too late.

A loud ringing went off in his ears, and pain shot through his gut.

The ringing in his ears began to quieten and he could hear screaming again.

The lady had began screaming as soon as the gun went off. 

Tommy’s hand instinctively put pressure on the wound.

He was getting real sick of having to use this power.

Standing up from the ground, the criminal pointed the gun at the woman once more.

Tommy could see she’d put her hands up in fear.

Clutching the bullet wound in his stomach, the vigilante pulled himself to his feet.

The shooter had his back to theseus as he approached the woman.

The young woman let out a low gasp as she caught sight of his eye.

Tommy's eyes glowed red within the darkness of the apartment.

The criminal suddenly found himself unable to move. Frozen in place by nothing. Trapped inside his own body.

The vigilante walked past the shooter, grabbing the gun on his way towards the sobbing woman.

Realising she was no longer being held at gunpoint, the lady rushed for the lights, Switching them on, a room of red came into view.

She gasped at the pool of blood on the floor, eye’s darting towards the vigilante.

“Oh my god, He shot you…” She trailed off trying not to let her voice break.

“Ah, Don’t worry about this!” Theseus tried to reassure her “ are you hurt anywhere, miss?”

The woman looked like she was about to chuckle.

“You’re the one that got shot, and you're asking me if I’m okay?” 

Theseus nodded his head unsure of how to answer.

The lady didn’t say anything for a few seconds.

“....Do you need an ambulance?”

As if suddenly becoming aware of the gunshot wound again, Theseus looked down at his bleeding abdomen.

“No I got this covered, But you might want to call one anyway,” The vigilante answered.

“W-what Why?” She asked confused,

“Your scalp’s bleeding,” Thesuse pointed out, while pointing at her neck.

A small line of blood trailed down down her neck and back, the blond assumed it was from when that asshole was holding her by her hair.

“Oh shit, I am too. I’ll call them now,” she walked over to her phone again and began dialling.

Theseus looked back at the frozen criminal, Eye’s still glowing red.

Letting his emotions take control, Tommy looked at the fuckers legs, He didn’t even need to move his hand, his powers instinctively did what he’d wanted them to do.

They Broke his legs. A loud snap rang through the apartment.

The woman whipped her head around in surprise, face to face with the vigilante standing over a broken legged intruder.

Tommy’s eyes glowed brighter, As if only driven by bloodlust.

The intruder screamed at the sudden pain, with a wave of Theseus’s hand, the sound coming from the other's mouth stopped.

The vigilante made the criminal kneel on his broken legs and look towards the woman.

“Apologise.” 

The fucker did nothing but shake his head, while Theseus kept him still in a painful agony.

Dropping the phone, the young lady rush towards the vigilante,

“Please stop! I know what he did was wrong, but please don’t screw up your life to get revenge,” She pleaded with him.

Her words touched something within his heart, the words allowed him to control his emotions once more.

Theseus’s eyes stopped glowing and he let the criminal go. 

Not that he was going anywhere anyway……

“...Thank you,” Tommy whispered behind his scarf.

“You saved me it was the least I could do,”

Theseus nodded in appreciation.

“You should go, I called the police, they probably won’t show up but, you never know” She stated.

The blond teen and young woman looked down coldly at the criminal.

A small black bag in the corner of the room caught her attention.

Theseus noticed but made no effort to move, as he was still bleeding.

(he’d heal himself later)

The woman walked over to the bag and ripped it open,

Tommy watched carefully as she pulled items out.

Rope

Duct Tape

Knife 

A second gun.

And

….Condoms 

Tommy was instantly prepared to break more than this guy's legs.

The lady held a stone faced expression. Something resolute in her eyes. 

“We won’t be able to explain his legs,” 

The teen wasn’t sure what she meant by that.

“Let's throw him off the fire escape,” 

Tommy couldn’t believe the words that had just left her mouth.

She didn’t want to kill him a minute ago, but now she was ready to toss him from her window.

Fair enough Theseus thought.

The two worked quickly, she grabbed his arms, while he grabbed the fuckers mangled legs.

His silent pleas went unnoticed and unheard.

The teen quickly checked the streets for any civilians. Thankfully there were none around.

The two shared a look contemplating what they were about to do, with one huge shove he fell. And fell. And fell. And- thud.

The young woman didn’t even bother to look, she just turned on her feet and headed back inside to her bedroom

Tommy followed her lead.

His head was surprisingly clear after killing a man. No he wasn’t a man, that fucker was nother but a violent fucking rapist.

And if he’d been allowed to live, he’d do it to some other poor woman.

Tommy wasn’t going to let that happen.

The two entered back into the apartment, Blood stained himself and the floors.

“Are you sure you don’t need an ambulance?” The lady asked again.

“Positive, just give me a second and I’ll clean your floor too,” Tommy chuckled

“Oh nonsense dear, I’ll get to that later,”

A small smile crossed the vigilante’s face, without saying another word Tommy’s eye glowed again, all the blood that was previously spilled onto the floor, began to rise up and made its way back  to the blond's wound.

Placing a hand over the bullet, Tommy amplified his power, healing himself while pushing the small piece of metal out.

The woman's face dropped.

Lifting his hand off his stomach, there wasn’t even a scar to be seen.

“Holy shit, you weren’t kidding when you said you could handle it,” She commented.

“Promise not to tell anyone?” Theseus asked half joking.

“Kid we literally just shoved a guy off a fire escape, I’m never telling anyone anything,” the lady chuckled.

Holding the bullet in his hand, Tommy tossed it towards the woman, she caught it, a surprised look on her face.

“Keep it, To remember me, and the fact you survived this whole shit show,” Theseus said as he stood up, heading for the exit.

Clutching the bullet tightly, she gave him a nod of gratitude.

Tommy could see the tears that were beginning to well in her eye, the teen decided now would be the best time to make his exit.

Picking up the fuckers bag on the way out, He gave the woman a quick wave, she waved back silently sobbing.

Closing the door behind him, he headed for the window he’d entered through originally.

The shattered glass still scattered everywhere.

Exiting the apartment, he was careful not to cut himself. Stepping into the night once again, the cold air hitting his face was a gentle force.

He quickly jumped up to the roof and looked down at the splattered person below.

Theseus felt nothing, He turned and spotted a dumpster, quickly tossing the bag inside, the garbage would be picked up in the morning.

The vigilante sat down on the edge of the building, letting his feet hang off the side.

Sometimes Tommy forgot how ugly L’Manberg could be.

Theseus stayed for a minute, Be knew he’d have to keep patroling soon.

Pulling himself back off the edge, something caught his eye.

More like someone.

Or someone’s.

Flipping onto his stomach, Theseus watched a group of Top heroes appear in the street.

He recognised all 3 of them.

‘404’ the number 5 Hero.

‘Flame’ The number 4 Hero 

And Dream

The number 3 Hero in L’Manberg.

What the fuck were they doing here!?

Tommy watched as the group approached the splattered body with caution, he could see ‘404’ turn away from the group and talk into his radio, presumably to report the body.

‘Flame’ looked to be taking a closer look at the body, while Dream was looking around.

The vigilante decided then and there, that he’d better make his exit now, and he’d better make it fast.

Just as he was about to shuffle back, His eyes locked with Dream’s.

Now he was really fucked.

Chapter Text

Standing face to face with the top heroes of L’manberg was not on Tommy’s vigilante bingo card.

“Sooooo what’d you say your name was again kid?” Flamed asked impatiently

Theseus’s brow furrowed at being called a kid (again)

But he decided not to be too much of a hot head around a group of top heroes.

“It’s Theseus” Dream cut in before the teen could answer.

“...What he said,” the blond answered finally 

Something heavy sat in the air between the hero and vigilante. 

“You're a vigilante right? Is this your handy work?” 404 said coldly pointing at the smashed body.

Pulling a slightly disgusted face Theseus shook his head.

“Not mine, I just got here. Got a gunshot call,” 

Flame and 404 nodded seemingly convinced.

Something told Tommy the smiling hero wasn’t convinced though.

Dream didn’t appear to say anything, just walked closer to the body. The vigilante stepped back giving the heroes plenty of room.

“Possible suicide?” Flame commented.

“No, look at the direction of his body, it's more likely he fell off the fire escape,” Dream pointed out.

Throwing a quick look over his shoulder, Dream glanced at Theseus.

“Or he was pushed.” the dirty blond muttered.

Tommy felt his breath slip away from him.

The number 3 Hero pulled himself to his feet.

“Lets move out, the police will be here soon, they can handle this,” Dream commented.

The other two heroes shot each other a look but began to Turn around and walked back the way they came.

Dream began to follow suit but not before he walked right passed Theseus, tossing the teen a small object.

The blond caught it with ease and some surprise. 

Looking at the object, Tommy almost cursed.

It was the rock he’d hit Dream in the head with.

Fuck.

Before the Teen had the chance to say anything, the Hero whispered something as he walked to catch up with the other heroes.

“I'm glad you’re okay,”

Tommy did a double take on the words that were just said to him.

Without even looking back the Dream Team collected themselves and headed off back towards upper L’Manberg, Leaving an emotionally shocked Vigilante standing in the street next to a dead body.

Frozen in place Tommy only moved when he saw the red and blue flashing lights coming his way.

Leaving the area with rapid speed, the vigilante decided he’d heard the hero wrong.

No fucking way did the number 3 Hero say he was glad Tommy was Alive.

Not even his fucking family cared if he was alive, so why did Dream?

The vigilante stopped running when he hit the docks. Stopping only once his feet were just about to enter the water.

The cold air filled his lungs and Tommy desperately tried to calm himself down. Finally focusing on his breathing the teen began to calm down.

Taking a second to look around, the harbour had a few smaller fishing boats tied along the doc, looking further away, A huge cargo ship was docked.

Staring at the huge ship for a few seconds, Tommy could feel something was off. 

It was too quiet.

Nothing good happened when it was quiet in lower L’Manberg.

Immediately after thinking that, A huge bang went off on the cargo ship, followed by an explosion of Fire and smoke.

The Teen rushed towards the flames, Reaching the edge of the shore the Vigilante had no idea how he was going to get onto the ship.

While trying to figure out a way onboard something else caught the Vigilantes' attention.

Screams coming from the Ocean.

Theseus figured that they must have jumped from the giant boat, after the explosion.

Without even thinking the vigilante dove into the ocean.

The salty water instantly began to burn his eyes, but it didn’t matter, Tommy pushed the pain away and kept going. 

He reached what seemed to be a dock worker holding onto the side of a rock as the wave bashed against him

“OI” Theseus yelled from the crashing waves.

The worker only barely looked up. Tommy wasn’t even sure the man had seen him.

The waves helped push the teen towards the standard civilian.

“HANG ON-” The blond began to shout as a huge wave came plummeting down on top of them.

The wave passed as quickly as it came. With only a few second window the vigilante grabbed the worker and jumped.

Thanks to the amazing shoes made by Tubbo the two made it safely back to the docks with one Huge jump.

The Teen didn’t have time to check on the worker before another civilian caught his attention.

Setting the worker on the ground, Tommy leapt into the air once more. 

This time he had to aim directly at the ship. A woman was hanging off the railing, holding on for dear life.

The second before Tommy grabbed her another explosion went off, sending the woman flying, the teen ricocheted off the side of the boat, safely grabbing the woman before she fell into the water.

She screamed loudly as they began to descended, while the woman thought they were falling, but they were flying instead.

The vigilante guided them through the air back to the solid land.

Tommy gently sat the woman down next to the worker. More screams could be heard from behind him. He launched back into action.

Within the next 20 minutes Theseus ended up saving 26 people. Checking the surroundings, he was sure there were no more civilians to save. 

Another explosion came from the boat. Tommy decided it was time to go investigate.

Leaping into the air again, he was only barely able to grab onto the side railing of the boat. Pulling himself up, the boat’s deck was filled with giant shipping crates.

Hiding behind the large metal boxes, Theseus followed the sound of shouting.

Peeking over the side of one of the shipping containers; Tommy could make out the dream team on one side of the boat and….. The syndicate on the other side.

Shit. It was Phil and Techno. The blond could recognise them anywhere.

By the looks of it Flame and Blade were fighting one on one, while Dream and 404 were trying to handle Phil. 

Theseus observed as Techno slashed at flame with his sword, while flame let off explosions as soon as the villian got close to him. 

They looked pretty evenly matched in terms of strength. 

Phil was a different story. 

His strength was otherworldly, the large black wings on his back could cut through almost anything with amazing speed, and the talons that came out during a fight were razor sharp.

By the looks of things Dream was trying to wrap Phils wings up with his strings, not that they had much effect with the avian cutting through them like butter.

Theseus wasn’t really sure what 404’s powers were, but they must have something to do with touch.

404 was attempting to touch Phil whenever he got close enough.

It wasn’t looking good for the hero’s. Tommy didn’t particularly care if they lost or not, the teen just quietly hoped they wouldn’t die. 

The vigilante watched as the fight went on, flame getting stabbed more than once, Techno getting set on fire a couple times.

Dream and 404 getting slashed from Phils talons. Phil remained unhurt and uncaught.

Then the tipping point wandered into view. Fuck Wilbur had just arrived. With 3 of the top syndicate members here, the hero's chances just drastically dropped.

Tommy started to move closer to the fight, hiding behind a closer shipping container. 

He could hear the conversation now. 

“Well well well, look who we have here, little dreamy lost his way,” Siren mocked.

Anyone could tell something had shifted in this fight.

“I’ll tell you what, If you guys stop and admit defeat, I promise to kill you quickly.” Wilburs tone was full of insanity.

“I’d never admit defeat to the syndicate, my team will fight to the bitter end.” Dream declared.

Flame and 404 gave a nod of approval, agreeing with their leader. 

Tommy could tell those words had infuriated wilbur.

“Fine. to the bitter end it is. I’ll be sure to destroy everything you’ve worked for. All the people you’ve protected will be for nothing,” Siren’s tone changed, to something darker, more dangerous.

Something inside the vigilante's soul tugged at him. Wilbur would likely say the same words to him one day. Tommy couldn't stay still anymore. Theseus was ready to fight.

“Stop,” Siren ordered Dream, the hero froze unable to move.

“Mhm, maybe I should make you kill your friends,” The brunette chuckled at the thought.

“Siren hurry up idiot,” Blade commented, still slashing at Flame.

“Shut up blade, Dream I want you to kill-” Before Siren could finish his command, a certain blond vigilante tackled him.

The villain and vigilante went flying backwards, With Wilburs concentration broken the voice control stopped, and Dream was freed.

Both heroes and villains were frozen in shock for a second at the sudden appearance of the vigilante.

“FUCKING HELL,” Siren cursed at Theseus. “How the hell are you alive!?” 

“How are you still the biggest asshole around?” the blond mocked.

“Today is the day I fucking kill you, you little prick,” the brunette screamed at him.

“Dont. Fucking. Move.” Siren commanded him.

“Honestly Siren we both know your little power doesn’t work on me,” Tommy pointed out smugly.

Siren really fucking hated this vigilante, first the little brat tackled him now the fucker is patronising him. 

“Siren. Let me handle this.” Zephyrus ordered from above. A smirk appeared on wilburs face.

“Oh you're in for it now you little brat,” Siren hissed at Theseus.

Siren walked back over to Dream and 404, taking Phil's place in the fight with the heroes.

Tommy gulped, he’d faced Blade and Siren plenty of times, but never Phil, or rather Zephyrus the Founder of the largest criminal organisation in the world.

Shit. 

Theseus gulped coming head to head with the villian. 

Without saying a word the avian swooped down at Tommy, sharp talons trying to cut him every second.

The blond watched his fathers moves incredibly carefully, predicting the avian's moves. Avoiding most of the swipes.

“So you’re the vigilante, I’ve heard so much about, what's your name mate?”

Zephyrus already knew Theseus’s name perfectly well. He just wanted to see how the vigilante would respond.

“I”m Theseus.” Tommy said slightly nervous, he was subconsciously concerned that Phil might recognise his voice. 

“You live up to your reputation, I’ll give you that. So Theseus, why don’t you tell me just how you're resisting Siren’s power hmm?” While the sentence had been worded like a question. The teen could tell it wasn’t.

Before Zephyrus asked any other uncomfortable questions, Tommy moved.

Caught slightly off guard, the avian froze for a second, before slam landing in front of Theseus.

“Where do you think you’re going mate?” The Villain threatened.

Stopping abruptly, the blond slipped on the ship's wet floors.

Falling and unable to dodge the talons heading his way, a scream ripped though Tommy’s throat. 

Zephyrus had plunged his talons into the Vigilantes Stomach. Phil had stabbed him. His father had hurt him. His dad was trying to kill him.

The elder had his hand locked through Theseus’s stomach, blood spilled onto the floor of the ship, Tommy's body started to go limp, He was going to bleed out soon

The vigilante grabbed his fathers arm. Trying to pull the hand out, but to no avail. 

“This is the end for you mate, you shouldn’t have tried to play hero.” The villain said coldly.

Zephyrus twisted his hand, cutting the teen's insides up further. 

“DAD WATCH OUT,” Siren shouted, panicked.

Phil whipped his head around only to be hit in the face with neon green strings. Zephyrus moved to cut the strings, but found himself unable to move.

Dream stood behind him, blood running down his mask and arms, The strings had turned to a darker colour.

With his wings entirely wrapped, the Avian couldn’t fly, much less move.

“You little fuck….” The villain spat as the hero approached .  

Zephyrus tried lunging at Dream but was unable to move, the dirty blond walked right past the elder and over to the vigilante. 

Phil’s talons, still cutting the kids insides with every second, Theseus couldn’t tell what the hero was thinking as he approached. 

Dream carefully placed a hand on Tommy’s back and one placed firmly on Zephyrus’s wrist.

“...I’m Sorry. 1, 2, 3.” the Hero muttered as he pulled the villain's talons from the teen's body.

 Theseus Immediately let out a soundless scream, his vision blurring as blood spilled out.

Dream quickly put pressure on the teen's wound, Using his strings as a makeshift bandage to stop the bleeding.

The villain chuckled from behind them. “You’re trying to save him? Don’t bother, he’s as good as dead,” 

Dream didn’t even dignify the comment with a response. 

Theseus would be okay, he just had to be.

The Hero picked up the vigilante, the teen limp in his arms. 

Dread surfaced in his gut. 

A 6th sense within him, made the hero jump back a few steps.

A loud thump landed behind him.

The blade had thrown an axe at Dream. Attempting to cut his strings, the strings glowed brighter and didn’t falter. 

However With dreams focused slightly broken, the strings weakened just enough for Zephyrus to move his wing and cut through them.

Techno rushed up to Phil, pulling the older man's arm over his shoulder and helping him stand properly.

Siren was still too busy with 404 to come help. 

Techno decided it was time to go. Part of him was scared for his fathers safety, the other part was unsure about what dream would do next.

Heroes had gone berserk before, for the sake of another, and the way Dream was looking at them made Techno slightly shiver.

“Siren Retreat,” Blade shouted over his shoulder. Holding Phil on his shoulder the two villains made their exit.

Siren stayed. Still stubbornly trying to fight 404. Dream sat the kid down gently on the ship's floor.

Turning his attention to the brunette, The hero sent his strings after the villain. 

The green threads wrapped themselves around Wilbur’s throat and arms.

Dream pulled back on the strings with as much force as he could muster in that moment.

Being pulled suddenly off his feet, Siren was sent flying. Dream had tossed him into the ocean without a second thought.

George looked shocked for a second at Dream’s acctions. His face twisted with worry as he stared at the hero. Something was wrong and 404 guessed it had something to do with that vigilante.

A groan caught the brunette's attention, Flame was lying flat on the other side of the boat. 

(Blade threw him into a window, then hit him on the head with the base of his sword)

Sapnap sat up still disoriented. George walked over to his comrade and friend, helping the flame hero to his feet.

“You okay,” George asked, concern lacing his voice.

“No.” Flame muttered.

The brunette chuckled lightly, however quickly the two heroes' attention was turned back to their leader.

Dream had picked the unconscious vigilante up again, and was making his way over to them.

“Are you two okay?” Clay asked.

The two heroes gave conscious nods.

“Good. I need to get him some help. Lets head back to the hero Tower” Dream said looking down at the vigilante.

Casting a quick glance at Flame, Dream quickly added “lets get him some help too” 

The group of heroes jumped from the ship and started making their way towards the hero tower. Right before the group entered upper L’manburg, Dream stopped.

George and Sapnap stopped as well.

“Dream what's wrong?” the brunette asked nervously.

“It’s nothing, why don’t you guys go on ahead, I’ll catch up with you later,” the dirty blond replied.

404 and Flame shared a look but went on ahead, leaving the hero and vigilante behind.

Dream gently layed Theseus down on a random rooftop.

“Look kid, I don’t know if you can hear me or whatever. But if you can, you need to do that weird blood thing again. If I take you back to the hero tower they’ll arrest you." 

Theseus didn't even stir.

"Please wake up…” clay trailed off quietly 

Sitting down next to the teen, Dream hung his head low. If he hadn’t been caught under Sirens Control, Theseus wouldn’t have had to save him.

He was a failure. 

He’d failed this kid and everyone who believed in him. 

Whilst in the middle of spiralling, A low groan came from next to Dream.

Theseus slowly opened his eyes, the pain in his stomach making him spit up blood.

Tommy reflexively started healing himself. Placing a bloodied hand onto his open stomach, Dream only noticed the kid had awoken when the space around him started turning red.

The hero jumped back and watched as the practically dead vigilante revived himself.

Dream would never ever admit it, but he cried at the sight of the vigilante sitting up.

“You’re okay,” the dirty blond tried to keep his voice calm.

“Of Course i'm okay shithead, I’m the biggest man in all of L’manburg” Theseus’s voice came across hoarse.  

“You know what kid, you probably are,” Dream admitted.

Tommy couldn’t help the embarrassment that spread across his face. The number 3 fucking Hero just told him he was the biggest man. He was totally fine.

“SHUT UP DICKHEAD” The vigilante shouted standing up.

Dream chuckled at the teens' reaction.

“Are you okay with getting yourself back?” Concern lacing his voice.

“Yes.” Theseus said bluntly. 

Dream’s smile widened under the mask. He ruffled the kid's bright blond hair before moving the leave.

“....Wait…. Thank you for saving me back there” The teen begrudgingly spoke.

The hero paused and looked over his shoulder.

“Theseus. Thank you for not letting me kill anyone.” 

Tommy looked up at the hero shocked. The dirty blond smiled under the mask.

“Stay out of trouble, Theseus!” Dream yelled, jumping off the roof.

The blond stared at the spot where the hero had stood.

What the fuck just happened.

Chapter Text

Theseus began heading home, still stuck in a daze.

His brain was having trouble contemplating the words the hero had spoken to him.

The vigilante jumped from roof to roof making his way back.

Tommy landed on his own roof, swinging down from the roof to his bedroom window. The blond landed in his room with a thud.

The house stood consumed by silence. Phil, and his brothers probably wouldn't be home until later.

The vigilante replayed the events in his head, from Phil trying to kill him to Dream of all people saving him.

The realisation hit him like a brick wall. Tommy ripped the scarf and glasses off his face. Tears welled his eyes. 

But he felt nothing. Just nothing. Maybe he should have expected this, that his family, his father would one day grow resentful enough to kill him.

Tommy let himself fall to the ground, the weight of everything was too much. It hurts. 

That was the real root of everything wasn’t it? All his pain and suffering.

All the abandonment issues and the simple longing to be loved. To be cared about.

At the teens heart he was just a boy wanting his family.

Tears fell quietly down his cheeks, Tommy buried his head into his arms, curling himself into a ball.

“Mum,” The blond whispered to the painfully empty room.

“Mama, please.” 

As Tommy layed balled up on the floor of his room, his window snapped open and a sharp breeze filled his room.

The teen lifted his head off the floor allowing him to look out the window.

The Moon stood in a glow of white glory shining down on him.

The blond slowly uncurled his body, and moved to stand, standing steady he approached the window carefully. His eyes fixed solely on the Moon. 

Tommy stood in front of his window, his hand reaching out in an attempt to grab the shining light.

A soft breeze blew onto his face.

Deep within his soul Tommy knew this was his Mum’s only way of comforting him.

The wind blew through his hair softly.

The smell of lavender filled his nose.

“I miss you,” The blond whispered to the moon.

Gentle air pushed back.

A loud bang from downstairs snapped Tommy out of his trance. Looking back at the Moon, The teen made a promise.

“I’ll be strong, for you.” 

With the promise made The teen stepped back from the window. A new sense of strength rising within him.

Clenching his fists, the Vigilante turned to face his bedroom door.

Tommy made the decision there and then he could be strong with or without anyone.

As a set resolve grew within the boy, the man on the outside grew stronger too. 

.

.

.

.

Morning sunlight blasted through Tommy's window. The light stirring the teen awake.

The blond groaned softly, opening his eyes slowly. 

The teen slowly sat up in his bed, stretching his arms and back.

A slight pain panged within his stomach.

Tommy sighed. He got Phantom pains sometimes after healing a big injury.

Looking down to check the healed wound, the vigilante got quite a shock to see himself still in his suit.

“Shit” The blond shot out of bed and rushed to the bathroom, basically ripping the vigilante suit off and shoving it in one of the bathroom cabinets.

The teen stood suddenly freezing, and started desperately looking for the closest pair of clothes. 

Tommy grabbed a dirty pair of shorts and a slightly stained shirt.

They’d have to do for now.

A bang at his door startled him.

The blond quickly rushed out of the bathroom and to his bedroom door, just in time to see Wilbur storming into his room.

“Why The Fuck are you being so fucking Loud,” the brunette half whispered half yelled. 

Tommy quickly spotted the bags under Will’s eyes and the faint smell of the ocean lingering on him.

“I’m late for school,” the blond lied smoothly.

“Then hurry the fuck up, because im not driving your stupid ass,” 

“Got it.” Tommy slightly snapped.

The brunette just rolled his eyes and headed back to his own room.

Closing the door behind his brother, an alarm went off on his phone.

The teen walked over to his bedside to turn it off, and a message appeared with the alarm.

- Hero tower internship today, Don’t be late -

He’d set the stupid alarm yesterday, Fuck now he needed to go to the fucking hero tower.

Tommy prayed. Prayed. That he wouldn’t run into any of the Dream team today, especially not Dream.

The blond was in no emotional position to handle it.

Grabbing a large duffle bag out from under his bed, Tommy started stuffing in the clothes he was preparing to wear for the week.

The internship lasted two weeks not including weekends.

SO.

He’d be staying at Tubbo’s for the week, then come back on the weekend to do washing and other shit.

Opening his closet, the lack of clothes emotionally slapped him in the face. Most of his clothes were hand-me-downs, passed down from his brothers and the odd shirt and pants from Tubbo and Ranboo.

The blond ended up shoving a few pairs of jeans into the bag, a couple button ups and a few T-shirts. 

Hopefully it would be enough to get him through the week.

Looking down at the dirty clothes he was wearing, Tommy made the smart decision to change before he got to his internship.

While he wasn't happy about working at the hero tower, that didn’t mean he would go looking like an idiot who couldn’t even wash his own clothes. 

Putting on a pair of semi-nice pants and an okay looking Top, Tommy grabbed the duffle bag and his school bag then headed for his bedroom door.

Walking through the hallway, the teen kept his steps as quiet as possible, not wanting to wake anyone.

The blond descended the stairs as quickly as possible only to be greeted by his oldest brother.

“Tommy.” 

“Fuck!” the teen yelped in surprise “You scared the shit outta me techno.” 

The brute just made a humming sound and went back to drinking his tea.

Tommy continued down the stairs.

Techno glanced at his younger brother, only then did he notice the duffle bag that the blond carried.

“Are you going somewhere?” the eldest asked

Techno’s question surprised the The teen.

“Yeah, We have our school internships starting today,” Tommy answered hesitantly.

His brother made a small sound of understanding.

“How long?”

The increasing list of questions were making Tommy understandably more uncomfortable.

“2 weeks,” The teen paused. “But I’ll be back on the weekend.”

“Hmm, Don’t cause any trouble Tommy.” Techno warned.

The blonde gave a slight nod back, taking a slightly closer look at his brother Tommy could make out the faint remains of burn marks on Techno’s arm.

It must have been Flame, the teen thought.

Without another word, the blond exited the house as fast as physically possible.

Unbeknownst to the vigilante, his Villain brother had noticed something that not even Tommy himself had noticed.

The cut from the day prior, the one he’d ended up getting from in the scuffle with Wilbur.

It had healed. Like it had never happened.

Techno’s face twisted with something he couldn’t understand, Tommy was hiding something.

Blissfully unaware of the circumstances he’d just left behind, the blond kept running down the sidewalk.

Looking at his phone as he ran, the time read -6:19AM- 

At the rate he was going he’d get to Tubbo’s in about 20 minutes.

The teen shoved his phone back into his pocket and picked up the pace.

By the time he’d reached Tubbo’s Apartment is was just around -6:43- 

Tommy had to take a minute before entering the apartment to catch his breath, panting as he leaned against the brunette’s door.

The faint sound of footsteps approaching caught his attention.

The apartment door swung open as Tubbo stood in the doorway.

“Morning boss man, thought I heard you puffing out here,” Tubbo greeted Tommy, handing him a coke as he entered the apartment.

“Mornin’ Toby,” the teen said breathlessly.

“Ready for your first day at the hero Tower?” the brunette asked, a little too excited.

Finally catching his breath, Tommy responded, “No, I'm a vigilante going to work in a building full of Heros,” 

The shorter chuckled lightly, “You’ll get used to it Toms, just try to fly under the raider.” 

“Have you met me?” 

Rolling his eyes, Tubbo picked up the duffle Tommy had left in the hallway.

“Come on boss man, we haven’t got much time left,” 

“Yeah Yeah, How are we getting there anyway?” the blond asked, closing the apartment door behind him.

“I’m driving,” 

A terrified expression grew on Tommy’s face. “Y-you're driving?” 

Tubbo made an annoyed face.

“What the hell was that look for!?” The brunette asked, pissed.

“Nothing Toby, It’s just that you don’t have the best history when it comes to driving…..” The blond trailed off.

“That was one time Tommy!” Tubbo shouted

“Ehhhh, more like 3 times buddy,”

The brunette let his face go deadpan.

“Let's go. I’ll show you how good I can fucking drive!” 

Dread crept into Tommy’s stomach.

“Please, Whatever God is out there, Don’t let Tubbo Kill us Today,” Tommy prayed looking upwards.

“HURRY UP TOMMY!” Tubbo shouted from outside the apartment.

A single teardrop fell from the blond's eye as he exited the apartment.

After an adrenaline inducing, seat jerking and terrible Car ride the two teens finally arrived at Hero tower.

“Okay! We’re here! See I can drive,” Tubbo proudly declared.

Casting a quick glance at Tommy’s face, Tubbo’s confidence slightly shattered.

The blond was clutching onto his seat belt for dear life, A terrified look shaped his face.

The brunette sighed.

“Hurry up Tommy or you’re going to be late,”

The blond shakily removed his seatbelt and exited the car as quickly as possible.

“Have a good day Boss man!” Tubbo shouted from the car before driving off again.

The brunette was working in the Labs Today.

Throwing a quick wave over his shoulder at the car, Tommy started to get his shit together, calming himself after that traumatic car ride.

With the shakiness finally leaving his body, the blond stood before the huge glass door of the Hero tower.

No turning back now. It was only two weeks he’d be fine. Right?

Taking a deep breath, Tommy walked in through the automatic doors.

He spotted a receptionist on his left. That was probably his best bet at the moment.

The blond walked up to the desk, still a little nervous but not showing it anymore.

“Hi miss,” Tommy called quietly.

The woman looks up from her computer.

“Hello dear, How can I help you today?”

“Um- Well- I'm here for an internship, my name is Thomas Watson.” Tommy tried to keep his voice calm.

“Oh yes! I was made aware of your arrival yesterday, So you’ll be working on the Hero Floor, mostly running errands and other things for the Heroes and if you have time helping out the marketing Team.” The lady at the desk said, handing him an Id-Badge.

The blond reluctantly took the badge. “Wait- I thought I was with the marketing team more than the Heroes?”

“You were dear, but there was a slight change in plans. Best head on up now Hon, they'll be waiting for you!”

Tommy could do little as the lady shooed him away, he clutched the ID card in his hand tightly as he walked to the elevator.

He watched as the other workers tapped their Cards on a little panel to the side, then the elevator doors opened.

The blond walked up to the panel and tapped his ID Card. Tommy held his breath a little until the panel dinged and then the elevator door opened.

The teen basically threw himself into the metal Box.

The doors closed in front of him as the Elevator started ascending. 

It took about a minute to get to the Hero Floor. It was like the second Top Floor of an 18 Story building. 

The Doors opened and the room filled with buzzing life.

People running around everywhere, papers flying everywhere.

The blond stepped out of the elevator carefully and starts walking around the buzzing office.

“Hello Young man, can I help you?” 

Tommy looked up to where the voice came from.

Holy shit. 

It was Fucking ‘Warden’ the number 6th Hero in L’manburg

“Holy shi- you’re-” The teen stuttered, a little starstruck.

Warden chuckled lightly at the teens reaction.

“That I am, First time meeting a hero up close?” The hero asked

“Y-Yeah, it is,” Tommy lied smoothly.

“So you’re the Intern?” Warden asked curiously.

The blond nodded his head, “Yeah, Im Tommy,”

Warden slowly pulled off his helmet.

“Hi Im Sam,”  

The hero reached out to shake the teens head.

Tommy took in Warden's features, blond hair with a green tinge, black eyes with green pupils. He was at least a few feet taller than himself.

Realising he was staring again, the blond quickly composed himself and shook Sam’s hand

“You’ll be with me today kid,” Sam says as he makes his way across the room. Tommy trails behind him quickly, 

The hero heads towards a large conference-like room.

“This is my office kid, you’ll get a tour of the floor later okay?” Sam says gently sitting down at his desk.

Gadgets littered around the room, Tommy tried to take it in. He couldn’t believe he was really inside the goddamn hero tower.

Snapping back the teen answered, “yes sir,”

Sam chuckled a little, “Okay do you mind getting me a coffee? Black with a dash of cold water please,”

Tommy nodded and exited Sam's office.

Walking back out into the main office it was more settled this time, assistants sat at their desks and managers walking about holding documents.

The blond walked over to the coffee machine, it was shiny and expensive. Heck, it might be even better than the one he worked with at the cafe.

And that one was fucking expensive.

Muscle memory kicked in quickly as the teen made the ordered beverage.

Tommy walked back to Sam’s office, pushing the door open. The blond was met with emptiness, he quickly placed the drink on the hero’s desk.

The day ran relatively smoothly, with Tommy making coffees and running paperwork around for a few hours.

At about 1:30 the teen got his first break.

Sitting down in the breakroom, Tommy pulled his phone out

-New message From Tubee🐝-

The blond clicked on the message.

-‘How's it going so far big man?’-

It was sent about 2 hours ago. Oops.

-‘doing good tubs just boring office crap’- 

“-Hey! You're the intern right?” An excited voice called out from behind him

Tommy turned almost dropping his phone when he saw Flame standing in front of him.

The flame hero walked over to him and shook the teen's hand.

“Hi- uh yeah, I'm Tommy…” the blond introduced nervously.

Flame reached for his mask, pulling it off to reveal his fiery features, deep black hair and eyes that burned like embers.

“Im sapnap,”

“Nice to meet you,” Tommy added nervously 

Flame chuckled at the teen, “No need to be so nervous kid,” 

The teen kept his head down deciding this conversation was going nowhere.

“Well anyways! You're with us now!” Sapnap cheered

“What do you mean? I thought I was with Sam for the rest of the day?”

The hero looked at him, slightly apologetic.

“Wow, they really didn’t tell you anything,”

The raven haired man paused

“Oh well, I’ll explain as we head up,”

Tommy interjected quickly “Head up where?”

Sapnaps smile widened, “To the Top floor, you get to work with the big dogs now,” 

The blond could feel the proudness in the hero’s tone.

The two walk over to the elevator and head up to the top floor.

For being the Top hero floor it was surprisingly quiet. Just a few secretaries scattered around the place, and one big ass conference room.

Sapnap led Tommy through the floor pointing out where everything is, and what goes where.

The teen listened intently as he followed, the two soon reached the conference room, Tommy couldn’t see inside because of the tinted glass.

But the sound of low muffled talking could be heard.

“Stay here Tommy, I've just gotta go listen to this meeting,” Sapnap said, leaving the teen outside the room.

The blond made his way to a couch a few meters away, he figured it would be better to wait for the hero here. 

About 10 minutes go by and the conference door slams open, and a man with large goat horns storms out, muttering something about ‘doing it his own way’

It takes Tommy a few seconds to realise that it's the number 2 hero, Jschlatt. 

Jschlatt is one of the only heroes that don’t wear a mask and use their real name, Tommy always though he had a bit of an ego….

The hero gave the blond a disdainful look before walking off.

Sapnap and 2 other guys walk out, they headed over to the teen.

Tommy watched the approaching figures. He knew them.

It was that asshole from the coffee shop, the stupid idiot that didn't listen for his name!

Tommy started racking his brain trying to think about the guy's name.

….Clay.

“Hey Tommy this is George and C-”

“Clay. I remember you.” Tommy cut in.

Dream Froze. An awkward laugh slipping out.

“Wait. Wait. Wait. This is all too suspicious.” The teen started.

The dream teams Face pale. Had Tommy figured out they messed with his original internship? Had he figured out they’d basically been spying on him? WHAT DID HE KNOW!?

As the three heroes were having an existential crisis, Tommy was racking his memories for times he might have seen these three before.