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Chapter Text

The Night Of

Tape recorded interview between Detective Nook and Thomas Innit at the L’Manberg Central Police Station

SN: Detective Sam Nook here, L’Manberg Police Department. Today’s date is [REDACTED]. The time is 11:23 P.M. This will be a taped conversation with Thomas Innit, last name I-N-N-I-T, first name T-H-O-M-A-S. Age 18.

SN: Tommy, I’ve turned on this tape recorder so I don’t have to constantly stop and take notes during our conversation. Before we get started though, I just want to make sure we confirm that I did advise you of your rights, correct?

TI: You did.

SN: You’re speaking a little quietly. Can you-

TI: Yeah, sorry.

SN: That’s better.

SN: So this is how it’s going to work. We’re going to go over what happened tonight and you’re going to tell me everything you can to the best of your ability. I know you’ve been through a lot so if you need a break, let me know.

TI: Okay.

SN: To start, you called us roughly three hours ago to report that you’d found Dream Hunter, your legal guardian before you turned eighteen, dead in your home.

TI: Yeah.

SN: How did you discover him?

TI: I- I was coming back from hanging out with my friend, Tubbo. We’d been over at his place playing video games but I had to get back before my curfew.

SN: What time was your curfew?

TI: Nine.

SN: So what time would you say you got back to your house?

TI: About… 8:30ish or something. Maybe a bit later.

SN: Is Dream usually home around that time?

TI: Yeah, he’s always home waiting for me by then. I called out to him when I got inside the house but didn’t hear a response.

SN: Did you hear any noise inside the house at all?

TI: No. It was- it was real fucking quiet. Eerie.

SN: Once you were inside the house, where did you go?

TI: I went to the kitchen to see if Dream was cooking dinner. Then- then-

SN: It’s okay. Take your time.

TI: Then I saw him.

SN: What did you see?

TI: There- There was- (unintelligible)

SN: Can you repeat that?

TI: There was a fucking bullet in his head.

SN: So he was dead?

TI: No fucking shit he was dead.

TI: He was on the ground all splayed out and shit and- and there was blood. So much blood. I stepped in it and it got all over my shoes and when I kneeled down next to him…

SN: And that’s why your clothes are covered in blood right now?

TI: Yeah. I think so. I tried to, like, lift him up you know?

SN: Why were you lifting him?

TI: To see if he was dead!

SN: Did you see any weapons in the vicinity?

TI: Yeah. Dream’s gun was on the ground next to him.

SN: Where exactly was it? Do you remember?

TI: It- It was like on the ground a few feet from him or something. It was sitting in a pool of blood.

SN: And you know for sure that Dream owned a gun and that the gun present at the scene was his?

TI: Dream had shown me his gun before so I knew what it looked like.

SN: And this gun you found matched the gun you knew to be Dream’s?

TI: Yeah.

SN: Were there any signs that someone had broken into the house? A broken window, open door, something like that?

TI: The back door was open. Dream didn’t usually leave it open so that was weird.

SN: Was there any other sign that someone else had been in the house? Drawers pulled out, cabinets left open, any kind of mess in the house?

TI: I… I’m not…

SN: Just try to remember as best you can.

TI: I don’t… I wasn’t really paying attention to what the house looked like, you know?

SN: That’s understandable.

SN: So that’s when you called us?

TI: Yeah. I called you guys.

SN: Was there anything else around Dream that you saw besides the gun? A note maybe?

TI: I didn’t see anything.

SN: Had Dream been acting strange at all before tonight? Isolating himself at all? Losing interest in activities?

TI: Are you asking me if I thought he was suicidal?

SN: Yes.

TI: I don’t know. Maybe. He wasn’t acting like- I mean, I’ve seen that before but…

SN: What do you mean you’ve seen that before?

TI: My brother killed himself about a year and a half ago. That’s why I lived with Dream.

SN: Oh. I’m sorry to hear that.

SN: And you were… a witness to that?

TI: I’m the one who found him.

SN: Are you saying that Dream didn’t act like your brother did before he…

TI: Not- not exactly.

TI: Or, well, maybe. I don’t… I don’t really know. Maybe.

TI: Maybe he did.

Two Days After

Email from Ponk Drops to Sam Nook.

Subject: Fingerprint Analysis

Hey Sam,

We got the results back for the fingerprint analysis on the gun for the Dream case. There were only two sets found. Dream’s own fingerprints, alongside Thomas Innit’s fingerprints. From what we can tell, no one else held that gun. The bullet also matches the bullets in the gun at the time.

Ponk

Email from Sam Nook to Hannah Rose.

Hannah,

Emailing you this so you can be caught up tomorrow when you get back from your vacation. We have a possible homicide case we’re going to be dealing with for a while. A 23 year old male named Dream was found dead in his kitchen with a gunshot wound to the head. The body was discovered by his ward, an 18 year old named Thomas (Tommy) Innit. Tommy says Dream was already dead when he came home from hanging out at a friend’s house. There were no signs of any forced entry into the house although the back door was left open, which Tommy says was unusual. The gun was found right next to the body and it has both Dream’s fingerprints on it and Tommy’s. Tommy told me during his interview he’d picked up the gun when he first discovered the body so that’s to be expected. Most factors point to a suicide.

But there’s one issue. The medical examiner said that given the angle of entry for the bullet, it would’ve been incredibly unlikely for the wound to be self-inflicted.

Also, it turns out one of Dream’s neighbors had security cameras on their property. We requested the footage from the night of Dream’s death and found out the timeline Tommy had given us for when he returned home was off. He claimed to have gotten back to the house around 8:30 P.M., but we have footage of him going inside the house closer to 7:30.

Tomorrow we’re going to look into Tommy Innit’s history and also try to determine if Dream had any history of suicidal ideation. Also, we should start making a list of neighbors we want to interview to see if they heard anything the night of Dream’s death.

Wish I had better welcome back news after your vacation but you know how it is.

Sam

Five Days After

Tape recorded interview between Detective Nook and Thomas Innit at the L’Manberg Central Police Station

SN: Detective Sam Nook, L’Manberg Police Department. Today’s date is [REDACTED], the time is 3:18 P.M. This will be a taped conversation with Thomas Innit, last name I-N-N-I-T, first name T-H-O-M-A-S. Age 18.

SN: I’m taping our conversation like last time so that, like I said before, I don’t have to stop and take notes the entire time. Can you please confirm that I’ve advised you of your rights?

TI: Yeah.

SN: Okay. Thank you for coming back to talk to me again.

(ten seconds of silence ensue)

SN: (coughs) So I just wanted to talk to you again about some things you told me before that don’t exactly seem to line up.

TI: What do you mean?

SN: Well, you told me that you got back to the house around 8:30 P.M., is that correct?

TI: It was somewhere around then.

SN: Were you aware that one of your neighbors has security cameras on their property?

TI: No… I wasn’t.

SN: One of those cameras looks at your property.

TI: Okay.

SN: The camera footage we acquired shows that you arrived at the home at 7:43 P.M.

TI: I only said it was around 8:30, could’ve been earlier.

SN: Almost a full hour earlier?

TI: (shrugs)

SN: I mean, I could accept that. But a gunshot is loud. Multiple neighbors have told us what time they heard that gun go off.

(Around thirty seconds of silence follow)

SN: The gunshot that presumably killed Dream went off sometime around 8:20 P.M. Meaning you would’ve been home when the death occurred.

TI: I- I- Look, I got the time wrong but-

SN: Why did you lie earlier, Tommy? Was it that you heard Dream kill himself and you didn’t want to be placed in the home?

TI: Okay, look, I got- I got nervous okay? I got freaked out when I heard-

SN: But here’s the thing. We can tell that the bullet wound was not self-inflicted.

TI: What?

SN: It would’ve been impossible for Dream to shoot himself at that angle. Someone else was holding the gun, and there are only two sets of fingerprints on it.

TI: (hyperventilating)

SN: Why did you do it, Tommy? Why did you kill the man who took you in after the death of your brother?

TI: You don’t- (garbled) you don’t understand!

SN: What don’t I understand? Tell me what happened that night.

TI: He was trying to- (unintelligible)

SN: Can you repeat that? What was Dream trying to do?

TI: I didn’t want to do it! I had to!

SN: Why did you have to shoot him?

TI: Because he was trying to kill me!

L’MANBERG NEWS

[A news anchor sits in front of a digital screen showing the L’Manberg city skyline]

“Breaking news, six days ago a 23 year old man was found dead in his home. His body was discovered by the 18 year old boy he’d been a legal guardian to. Investigators first suspected a suicide, but this has quickly turned into a homicide investigation. Out in the field we have Tina Kitt getting the latest information.”

[Camera switches to a young woman with dark hair standing in front of a police station]

“Tina Kitt here reporting from the L’Manberg Central Police Station. Just last night, 18 year old Thomas Innit was arrested for the murder of his former legal guardian, Dream Hunter, who was killed via a gunshot wound to the head. While originally considered a suicide, investigators later determined the cause of death to be homicide. According to a police representative I spoke with, investigators did in fact obtain a confession from Innit, in which he claims the shooting was an act of self-defense. However, the DA’s office has informed us that they do intend to pursue a murder charge for this case.”

“L’Manberg news will continue to follow this case as it develops. I’m Tina Kitt, back to you.”

From the records of the Las Nevadas Law Group

[Phone Call Transcript]

Charlie: “Hi Quackity! I know you said not to leave you any messages during your lunch break, but we just got a consultation request for a case that I really think you’d be interested in. I’ve emailed you the information so check it out when you can!” (pause) “By the way, it’s Charlie! Your assistant-”

(Sound of phone being picked up off the receiver)

Quackity: “Charlie, you don’t need to remind me who you are every time you leave me a message.”

Charlie: “But I like making sure you know who I am!”

Quackity: (sigh) “Whatever. Is this case really important enough to interrupt my break?”

Charlie: “You used to know a man named Wilbur Soot, right? I remember when you had me rent you a suit for his funeral.”

Quackity: “...I mean, we knew each other, yeah. But he’s- he’s dead. What does a new case have anything to do with him?”

Charlie: “Well, his younger brother is looking for a defense lawyer because he’s been charged with murder. A friend of his reached out to us asking for a consultation.”

Quackity: “Wait, fucking- Tommy’s been charged with murder? What the hell? Who did- I mean- Wilbur’s death was a suicide.”

Charlie: “Oh, he’s not charged with killing Wilbur. He’s been charged with murdering a man named Dream.”

Quackity: “...is he in police custody right now?”

Charlie: “Sure is.”

Quackity: “Cancel all my appointments for today. I need to go talk to my new client.”

L’Manberg News

[Camera focuses on a young woman with dark hair standing in front of a courthouse]

“Good morning, this is Tina Kitt here coming to you live from the L’Manberg Courthouse. Today marks the first day of the trial of Thomas Innit, who has been charged with the murder of his legal guardian, Dream Hunter. Thomas has claimed the murder was an act of self-defense. However, suspicion has been raised on this claim due to the fact that no neighbors reported sounds of any kind of struggle or fight before hearing the sound of the gunshot. Also, many have pointed out that when first questioned by police about Dream’s death, Thomas claimed to have not been home at all when the death occurred, leading police to suspect a suicide. Only when police obtained evidence that Thomas had been in the house at the time of Dream’s death did he confess to shooting his guardian.

“Some sources claim that Thomas himself might take to the witness stand during the trial, but as of right now that remains to be seen. I will continue to give you all live updates as the trial proceeds. Right now though I have to get back to the courtroom.”

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

[The following is an excerpt from the prosecution’s opening statement]

Eret King: Over the course of this trial we will prove to you that Thomas Innit was not acting in self-defense when he shot his legal guardian. That night, he attacked Dream with every intent to end his life. Then he lied to police in the hopes that it would be looked at as a suicide rather than the homicide that it was. Based upon this evidence, it will become apparent that this murder was unlawful and unjustified, resulting from a history of aggression and violence tied into a deep-rooted resentment towards his guardian that you will hear about over the next few weeks.

[The following is an excerpt from the defense’s opening statement]

Alex Quackity: Look, Thomas Innit, or Tommy as he prefers to be called, killed Dream. This is not the question we are dealing with in this trial. We know where it happened, we know when it happened, we know he was the one who shot Dream point blank in the head. Those are all facts of this case. The question we are raising here is why it happened. The prosecution has suggested to you that it was done out of anger and hatred for the man who had been taking care of Tommy since he was 16. What we will prove to you however, is that it was done out of fear. You will hear evidence that when Tommy began living with Dream when he was 16, his life turned into a living hell. You will hear witness testimony to the cruelty Dream enacted on his charge. You will hear what kind of man Dream was behind closed doors. You will learn that not only was he capable of threatening to end Tommy’s life, you will be surprised it didn’t happen sooner. You will come to understand that what Tommy did was not an act of hatred or malice, but one of fear and desperation to survive.

Chapter Text

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Testimony of Toby Underscore)

Counsel Appearing:

For the Plaintiff:

DEPUTY COUNTY ATTORNEY

By: Eret King, Esq.

(EK)

For the Defendant:

By: Alex Quackity, Esq.

(AQ)

AQ: Could you please state your name and spell your last name for the record?

TU: Toby, although I go by Tubbo, last name Underscore. U-N-D-E-R-S-C-O-R-E.

AQ: What is your relation to the defendant, Mr. Underscore?

TU: I’m his best friend.

AQ: How long have you known one another?

TU: God, I don’t know, since we were fourteen maybe?

AQ: And how old are you now?

TU: I’m eighteen.

AQ: So you’ve known him for at least four years?

TU: Closer to five, I think.

AQ: A long time either way. So I believe it’s safe to say you know Mr. Innit fairly well then, correct?

TU: Pretty sure I know him better than anyone else.

AQ: What about Dream? How well did you know him when Tommy first moved in with him?

TU: Not that well? Like, I’d known him from the whole school mentorship program thing since he’d been our other friend Ranboo’s mentor and later Tommy’s, but I hadn’t had a lot of chances to talk to him myself.

AQ: From the interactions you did have, what impression did you get of Dream?

TU: That he was kind of intense. He joked around and stuff but also seemed kind of bossy, especially when he became Tommy’s mentor.

AQ: What did you think when you found out Tommy was moving in with Dream?

TU: I was pretty confused, to be honest. I didn’t understand how Tommy ended up in Dream’s custody of all people. Like, I guess I get it because he didn’t have any other family who could take him in after Wil died, but it still felt like it came out of left field.

AQ: After Tommy moved in with Dream, did you notice anything unusual? Any changes in Tommy’s behaviors?

TU: Yeah, first he stopped being able to hang out as much. He said it was because Dream was trying to get him to focus on school and stuff. It was fine because we’d still hang out pretty often, it just wasn’t every single day like before. But then some nights he’d tell me he could hang out only to call me an hour later saying he couldn’t come after all. I’d see him the next day at school and he would get really defensive about it and tell me he’d just forgotten about an assignment or something, but it kept happening. He started snapping at people a lot and would get frustrated really easily.

AQ: Did you try asking Tommy if there was something going on?

TU: Of course I did. But he told me everything was fine and got pissy if I tried to push it.

AQ: Did you ever suspect that he was unsafe living with Dream?

EK: Objection, that’s a leading question.

THE COURT: Sustained. Mr. Quackity, you cannot ask that. Please move on.

AQ: Fine. Then I will simply ask this: Mr. Underscore, did you think that there was something wrong with Tommy’s living situation after he moved in with Dream?

TU: Absolutely.

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Cross-Examination of Toby Underscore)

EK: So Mr. Underscore, how did you and Tommy first meet?

TU: First day of school when we were fourteen, I’d just moved here and didn’t know anyone, and we got seated next to each other in class. He introduced himself and we hit it off pretty much immediately.

EK: And how did you first meet Dream?

TU: Well, I’d seen him around campus before but I didn’t officially meet him until he became Ranboo’s mentor. One day when we were, like, fifteen maybe, Tommy and I wanted to meet with Ranboo after school but he was having his one-on-one with his mentor. So we showed up to the library they were at and waited outside until they were done. When Ranboo saw us there he introduced us to Dream. We talked a little bit before heading off.

EK: And you didn’t have many more interactions with Dream outside of that?

TU: Not often, no. I’d see him in passing sometimes but we never really, like, talked or anything. Nothing except exchanging hellos or something.

EK: Now, after the death of Tommy’s brother and legal guardian, what did you think was going to happen with Tommy’s living situation?

TU: I wasn’t sure. I wanted to let him come live with me but I was legally emancipated at the time, so even though I was sixteen I was living on my own. We both tried to argue for it but got turned down.

EK: Judge, may I approach?

THE COURT: You may.

EK: Mr. Underscore, let me show you Exhibit 18. Do you recognize this screenshot I’ve printed out here for you?

TU: I do.

EK: Now, Mr. Underscore, these are text messages between you and Tommy from several days prior to Tommy moving in with Dream, correct?

TU: Yeah, that’s right.

EK: And in these text messages, you are encouraging Tommy to move in with Dream despite Tommy telling you he has reservations. Is that accurate?

TU: …yeah, I did.

EK: Earlier in your testimony you said that you had always thought of Dream as ‘intense’ and ‘bossy’. If you already wanted Tommy to live with you and you disliked Dream, why would you encourage your best friend to move in with him?

TU: I mean at this point there wasn’t much of a choice. It was either this or he’d go into foster care and he got told if that happened he might end up being sent to a different town entirely which he didn’t want to do. So I was just trying to, you know, cheer him up about the whole thing.

EK: Now let me show you Exhibit 19. This text conversation happened roughly a year after the previous conversation, correct?

TU: I don’t remember that exactly but that’s what the date on the message says, so yeah.

EK: Tommy had been living with Dream for nearly a full year at this point, correct?

TU: Yes.

EK: And in these messages Tommy is telling you how much he hates Dream and how he can’t stand living with him, am I reading that correctly?

TU: That's one way to put it, but you’re leaving a lot of colorful language out.

EK: Mr. Underscore, please just answer the questions.

TU: Sorry. Yeah, that’s what he’s saying.

EK: And your response to this was, and I quote, “we’ll work something out.” Correct?

TU: Correct.

EK: What did you mean by that? How were you going to ‘work that out?’

TU: I didn’t really have a plan or anything, but I was thinking he might be able to run away. He could hide at my place until things died down then we could get on a train and just leave.

EK: Did you talk to Tommy directly about this idea?

TU: At school, yeah. But we didn’t end up going with it since he was going to be turning eighteen soon anyway.

EK: But then he turned eighteen and still didn’t move out. Why was that?

TU: He had to finish school. Also Dream didn’t like the idea of him moving out and wasn’t going to help him figure out how to do that, so he was going to have to save up.

EK: Why didn’t Dream want Tommy moving out?

TU: Well, he said he was worried Tommy would be too ‘unstable’ without him around to keep things structured or something like that.

EK: You didn’t agree with that?

TU: Obviously not. Tommy wasn’t a baby. He could take care of himself if he needed.

EK: So Tommy wanted to move out, but was unable to because Dream wouldn’t provide any support for him to do so. Would you say that made Tommy feel any resentment towards Dream?

AQ: Objection, leading.

THE COURT: Overruled. You may answer.

TU: It definitely made him frustrated and annoyed, but I don’t know if I’d say he resented Dream for it.

EK: Would you say that being frustrated or annoyed at someone unwilling to provide help that you feel they should is a feeling similar to resenting them?

AQ: Objection, that’s leading.

THE COURT: Sustained. Move on.

EK: Where were you the night Dream was murdered?

TU: I was at my apartment.

EK: Alone?

TU: With Tommy for most of it.

EK: What time did Tommy leave your apartment to go home?

TU: I don’t know, like, eight maybe?

EK: Our records indicate Tommy arrived home close to 7:45 PM. What time would he have had to leave your apartment to get to Dream’s house at that time?

TU: Probably like 7:20 to 7:30ish. But I told you I didn’t remember the time exactly.

EK: And was there anyone else with you that night in your apartment?

TU: No.

EK: So it was just you and Tommy alone until Tommy left, correct? And no one else saw you?

TU: Yup.

EK: What did the two of you talk about that night, before Tommy left?

TU: I don’t remember exactly. Probably homework? I think we were also talking about going to see a movie that weekend.

EK: Did the subject of Dream come up at all?

TU: I mean… I don’t know. Maybe.

EK: What did you two talk about regarding Dream?

TU: Tommy was just- I don’t know. We were talking again about him moving out. He was telling me how having a curfew sucked and he hated Dream watching him all the time and things like that.

EK: Were these all things Tommy had complained to you about before?

TU: Yeah, though I had a weird feeling that he wasn’t telling me everything. That there was more going on that he didn’t want to talk about.

EK: But you didn’t try to push to find out what he wasn’t telling you?

TU: No. Tommy’s my best friend, you know? If he wanted to tell me something I knew he’d tell me eventually.

EK: Would you say Tommy got upset over the course of your conversation?

TU: Kind of? I think he was frustrated again.

EK: So when Tommy left your house to go back to Dream’s house, he was angry?

TU: I didn’t say angry. I said frustrated.

EK: And during these talks, whether it was the one you had the night of the murder or any other time, did you and Tommy ever discuss the notion of killing Dream? Even hypothetically?

TU: What kind of a question is that?

EK: It’s just a question, Mr. Underscore. Did Tommy ever make comments to you about wanting to kill Dream or see him dead?

TU: …no.

EK: Are you sure, Mr. Underscore? Lying under oath constitutes perjury, keep in mind.

TU: I already gave you my answer. What next? You gonna ask me if I helped Tommy plan to murder Dream or something?

EK: Well, did you?

TU: No. Obviously not.

EK: Would you though?

TU: What?

EK: If Tommy had asked you to help him kill Dream, would you have done it?

TU: This is stupid. I’m not answering that.

THE COURT: Mr. Underscore, you are under a legal obligation to answer the questions you are asked. If you refuse, I can hold you for contempt of court.

TU: Fine. Tommy’s my best friend. If he asked me to help him kill someone, yeah, I’d probably do it. But he didn’t ask me to help him kill Dream.

Chapter Text

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Testimony of Jack Manifold)

Counsel Appearing:

For the Plaintiff:

DEPUTY COUNTY ATTORNEY

By: Eret King, Esq.

(EK)

For the Defendant:

By: Alex Quackity, Esq.

(AQ)

EK: So how do you know the defendant, Mr. Manifold?

JM: We went to school together.

EK: When did you first meet?

JM: Roughly when I was about fifteen and he was fourteen, I’d say.

EK: Would you consider yourself friends with Tommy?

JM: Not anymore.

EK: And why is that?

JM: About, uh, maybe a year and a half ago now there was an incident that happened between us that ruined our friendship for good.

EK: What was this incident?

JM: Well, I’d say it happened about a month or so after Tommy moved in with Dream. It hadn’t been too long since his brother died and I knew Tommy was still having a rough time with all of that, especially since Wil’s birthday was coming up. So I decided to invite him out, try and get his mind off of it and all that, y’know? There was this forest not too far from school and we decided to head out there at night to… chill.

EK: ‘Chill?’

JM: Oh, you know, just sit and watch the stars through the trees and all that.

EK: Are you sure that’s all you were doing? Remember, you are under oath up here.

JM: Well… there might have been beer involved.

EK: Even though you were both underage?

JM: I had recently turned eighteen so I wasn’t underage. But Tommy was sixteen, yeah.

EK: So you were both drinking. How much did you have?

JM: Just one beer each. I was barely even buzzed.

EK: And what happened from there?

JM: Well it started out fine. We were chatting about random things like school and whatever. Once we finished the beers we got up to leave and got a bit lost trying to find our way out. While we were wandering we ended up getting in an argument about something stupid, and things just escalated until Tommy pushed me off a bridge.

EK: He directly pushed you off a bridge?

JM: Yup, he did. He could’ve killed me too. It was so dark out neither of us had any clue how high up the bridge was, or if there was water underneath or anything like that-

TI: Objection, I wasn’t trying to-

AQ: Be quiet.

THE COURT: Listen to your counsel, Mr. Innit. If you have an objection, you can bring it up to your attorney.

AQ: Judge, we apologize for the interruption.

THE COURT: You may proceed.

EK: As you were saying?

JM: Uh, yeah, so I got lucky that it wasn’t a far drop, but I nearly broke my damn leg because of it.

EK: What injuries did you sustain from the fall, Mr. Manifold?

JM: Cuts and bruises mostly. Also sprained my ankle having to crawl out of the ditch I fell in. I was just glad I didn’t die though.

EK: And after that you ended your friendship with Tommy?

JM: Obviously.

EK: So regarding this incident and how long you’ve known Tommy for, would you say that Tommy is a violent person?

JM: I didn’t think so until he attacked me, but apparently he is.

EK: Do you think that Tommy is capable of murder?

JM: Not pre-planned. Nothing like that. But in the heat of the moment… maybe.

EK: He could’ve killed you.

JM: Yeah, I guess he could’ve.

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Cross-Examination of Jack Manifold)

AQ: So Mr. Manifold, we’ve already established you knew Tommy for a while before his brother’s death, correct?

JM: Right.

AQ: How would you say that affected Tommy? Were there any behavioral changes you noticed from him?

JM: Yeah, it was pretty obvious. He got a lot more closed off after Wil died. Me and our other friends would try to check in on him, ask him how he was doing and all that, but he usually wouldn’t answer. He’d just change the subject or something even though we could all tell he was struggling.

AQ: So the night you invited Tommy out to the forest, would you say Tommy was enthusiastic to go out with you?

JM: Well, not exactly.

AQ: Do you mean Tommy didn’t want to go out?

JM: I mean it’s not like I forced him. But originally yeah, he said he wasn’t in the mood.

AQ: But you pushed him to go out drinking with you?

JM: …yeah, I guess you could put it like that.

AQ: How was he acting that night? Did everything seem normal?

JM: No, not really. Even from the start he seemed pretty… on edge. A bit jumpy and out of it. Like he wasn’t really sure how he’d ended up out there with me.

AQ: Did this get better at all as the night progressed?

JM: I thought it would, especially with the beer, but it didn’t really. He kept looking over his shoulder like he was expecting someone to barge in on us. Also flinched just about every time I moved.

AQ: So the argument, what was it about?

JM: It started out really stupid. We were just arguing about how to get out of the damn forest because we’d gotten all turned around. But it kept going and we kept getting more pissed at each other until it was a pretty serious argument.

AQ: How was it serious? What were you two talking about?

JM: Look, I don’t even know how we got on the subject, okay? One thing led to another and one moment we were talking about trying to find the trail, and the next we were talking about Wilbur. I don’t even know which one of us brought him up.

AQ: Where were you at this point in the forest? Were you on the bridge yet, or still making your way towards it?

JM: When we got to the bridge we stopped walking for a minute since it was kind of a ‘landmark.’ That’s when the argument got serious.

AQ: So just to clarify, you were on the bridge when Wilbur came up in your argument?

JM: Yes.

AQ: What exactly set Tommy off, Mr. Manifold? Do you remember what was said?

JM: I… I do.

AQ: Care to tell the court?

JM: Look, it was stupid and I didn’t mean it. I was just annoyed and my socks had gotten wet and Tommy was pissing me off-

AQ: Please answer the question, Mr. Manifold.

JM: …I don’t remember it exactly, but I ended up pointing out how self-centered he was. We went back and forth escalating until I said something along the lines of, “if you weren’t so insufferable to be around, maybe Wilbur would still be here.”

AQ: Did you have any reason to believe that Tommy drove Wilbur to suicide?

JM: No, of course not. I was pissed and just said the first hurtful thing I could think of.

AQ: Did you regret saying that?

JM: Of course I did. I was about to apologize but before I could, Tommy launched himself at me and that’s when I fell.

AQ: How close were you to the edge of the bridge when Tommy pushed you? And what directions were you both facing?

JM: Well, we were facing each other and while Tom was definitely more in the middle, I was closer to the edge than he was. But I wasn’t, like, right next to it or anything.

AQ: Would you say it was dark in the forest that night?

JM: Yeah, really dark. We both kept tripping over things trying to find our way out.

AQ: Were there any light sources on the bridge?

JM: Besides our phones? No.

AQ: So while you were arguing the only sources of light you had available were the lights coming from your phones?

JM: Yeah.

AQ: During the argument were either one of you moving your hands around as you talked?

JM: Uh, probably?

AQ: So the only light sources you had weren’t very stable, you’d say? They were moving around the entire time?

JM: Yeah, I’m pretty sure they were.

AQ: So it’s reasonable to say that Tommy might not have been able to see just how close you were to the edge of the bridge when he pushed you?

JM: I… I guess it’s not impossible, no.

AQ: After you crawled out of the ditch and got back up to the bridge, was Tommy still there?

JM: Yeah. I thought he’d left because I’d been shouting his name, cursing him for pushing me and all that and he hadn’t said a word. But once I got back up there I found him sitting on the bridge with his knees pulled up to his chest, just kind of staring at the ground. Then when he saw me he got up and let me use him as a crutch so we could get out of the forest together.

AQ: Did he apologize?

JM: Yeah. When we finally made it back into the parking lot he turned to me and said he was sorry for pushing me.

AQ: Did you apologize for what you said during the argument?

JM: …no, I didn’t.

Chapter Text

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Testimony of Niki Nihachu)

Counsel Appearing:

For the Plaintiff:

DEPUTY COUNTY ATTORNEY

By: Eret King, Esq.

(EK)

For the Defendant:

By: Alex Quackity, Esq.

(AQ)

EK: Miss Nihachu, how do you know the defendant?

NN: I was friends with his older brother, Wilbur, so I met Tommy through him.

EK: How long had you known Wilbur for? Was it a long time?

NN: Well, he moved here when he was seventeen and we met at school, so it’s been a while I’d say.

EK: How old was Tommy when you first met him?

NN: I think he was around nine? Maybe ten?

EK: How well would you say you knew Tommy?

NN: I mean, I’d known him since he was a kid so there was that. But the only time I actually spent time with him was if I was hanging out with Wilbur and Tommy was there too. Which was most of the time when Tommy was younger, since Wilbur had to take care of him.

EK: After Wilbur’s death did you see much of Tommy?

NN: I ran into him a few times but that's about it.

EK: How did Tommy seem to be handling Wilbur’s death? At least from what you saw of him?

NN: Well, at the funeral he was very quiet and looked like he didn’t want to be there. I thought it was strange given that it was his brother’s funeral, but he looked like he was trying to figure out how to escape. I didn’t see him again for a few weeks after that, but when I did run into him again he seemed totally fine. I saw him laughing and bickering with his friend like nothing had changed.

EK: Did you see much of Tommy after he moved in with Dream?

NN: That first time I saw him after the funeral he was already living with Dream, although I didn’t know that at the time. I only found out through a friend. After that I saw him a few more times but never for very long.

EK: Did you know Dream?

NN: Not personally, no. A friend of mine was his neighbor so I’d seen him before and heard a bit about him, but that was mostly it.

EK: So pivoting slightly, as someone who has known Tommy for quite a while what would you say he’s like as a person? What’s his character?

NN: One of the first things anyone will tell you about Tommy is that he’s loud. He shouts a lot especially when he’s either excited or upset about something. He’s also aggressive.

EK: Define what you mean by ‘aggressive.’

NN: When Tommy was a kid he’d get into fights a lot. More than once if we were getting lunch or something Wilbur would have to cut things short to go pick Tommy up from school because he got into a fistfight. He liked to taunt people and would insult them to their faces. He didn’t have much of a filter and would say whatever went through his head.

EK: What would you say his relationship with Wilbur was like? Did he get along with his older brother?

NN: I think… I don’t mean this in an unkind way, but Tommy followed Wilbur like a loyal dog. He was always trailing at Wilbur’s heels, desperate to be included in whatever he was doing. Although Tommy would insult him and bicker with him, you could tell he was very attached to Wilbur.

EK: Considering how close you both were to Wilbur, did you ever try to talk to Tommy about his death? Grieve together and all that?

NN: No. Even though I saw Tommy several times after Wilbur’s death I had no desire to actually talk to him.

EK: And why is that?

NN: Because I think Tommy could’ve done more to get Wilbur help. I think he gave off a lot of warning signs that Tommy just didn’t pick up on because he was too wrapped up in himself to realize how depressed Wilbur had gotten. Tommy was always like that. It was always about him and his problems. He never cared how what he said or did might hurt others because he only ever thought about himself.

TI: That’s not-

AQ: Do not.

THE COURT: Mr. Innit, I’ve already warned you once about interrupting testimony. Do not make me warn you again.

AQ: I apologize for my client. I’m sure you can understand that this is a sensitive subject for him.

THE COURT: I understand but it does not excuse the behavior. Keep your client under control, Mr. Quackity. Miss Nihachu, you may proceed.

EK: So you believe Tommy ignored the signs that his brother was suicidal?

NN: I wouldn’t say he intentionally ignored them, I think he just didn’t care.

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Cross-Examination of Niki Nihachu)

AQ: Miss Nihachu, we’ve already established that you’ve known Tommy since he was around 10 years old, correct?

NN: Correct.

AQ: But you didn’t know him all that well, correct?

NN: I knew him but not as a personal friend of my own. He was just my friend’s little brother.

AQ: When was the last time you saw Tommy before Wilbur’s death?

NN: It was about a month before he died. I’d been trying to get in contact with Wil but he wasn’t answering my calls, so I went to their house to try and talk to him instead. Tommy answered the door and told me to leave.

AQ: Did Tommy give you a reason for turning you away? Was Wilbur not home at the time?

NN: Wilbur was home.

AQ: Tommy told you that?

NN: No, but I could hear Wilbur shouting about something from another room. I tried asking Tommy if something was wrong and he shut the door in my face.

AQ: How often did you see Wilbur in the months leading up to his death?

NN: I didn’t see him much. I wanted to see him but like I said, he’d stopped returning my calls at one point. The only times I got to talk to him would be if I just happened to run into him in public, but towards the end he stopped leaving the house for the most part.

AQ: Didn’t he have a job?

NN: He worked from home.

AQ: Was Wilbur only ignoring your calls, or were other friends having a hard time getting in contact with him as well?

NN: It was all of us. He pulled away from most of the people he knew. I think Tommy was the only person seeing him on a regular basis.

AQ: What would you say their relationship was like? Tommy and Wilbur?

NN: I already answered that.

AQ: You talked about Tommy’s side of things, but you didn’t say what Wilbur thought of his younger brother.

EK: Objection, I don’t see how this line of questioning is relevant to the case at hand.

AQ: Considering you’re attacking the character of my client I’m trying to explore all sides of his relationships so the jury can get a full understanding of the kind of person he is.

THE COURT: Mr. King, given you also questioned the witness about the defendant’s relationship with his brother, I will allow Mr. Quackity to do the same. The objection is overruled. Miss Nihachu, you may answer.

NN: Can you repeat the question?

AQ: What did Wilbur think of Tommy? How was their relationship from his side of things?

NN: It… It was hard to tell. Sometimes it seemed like Wilbur adored Tommy and would do anything for him. But other times Wilbur treated Tommy less like his younger brother who he had to take care of and more like a right-hand man. The two of them were always planning something together. Sometimes Wilbur would get these grand business ideas that he was convinced was going to make them rich and he’d drag Tommy along until they either hit a wall or he ran out of motivation for it. In a way, their relationship almost reminded me of a general with his lieutenant. Wilbur gave orders and Tommy followed them.

AQ: You said it was difficult to tell what Wilbur thought of Tommy. Can you elaborate a bit more on that?

NN: It’s hard to explain, but Wilbur was never a very easy person to read. It was difficult to figure out what he was thinking or what he thought of the people around him. It was like he never wanted the people around him to know what he was actually like, so he was always putting on a performance.

AQ: Given that, don’t you think it’s possible that Tommy might have had similar trouble reading Wilbur? You said that you believed Tommy could’ve done more to notice Wilbur’s struggles, but don’t you think there’s a chance Wilbur hid how bad things really were from him?

NN: No, none of that applies to Tommy.

AQ: Why not?

NN: If anyone could’ve read Wilbur’s mind, it was Tommy. He knew Wilbur better than anyone. All he had to do was pay attention.

AQ: And you’re under the impression that if Tommy knew what Wilbur was going through, he would’ve been able to prevent him from committing suicide?

NN: I don’t know if he would’ve been able to prevent it, but he could’ve done more to stop it.

AQ: Like what? Call a hotline? Get Wilbur put in an inpatient ward?

NN: Well, no, not like that.

AQ: Tell his friends what was going on?

NN: Yes, something like that.

AQ: Do you know for sure that Tommy never tried that? After all, you were trying to get in contact with Wilbur during his final months. Don’t you think it’s possible that Wilbur didn’t want his other friends to know what he was going through?

NN: I’m sure he didn’t, but Tommy should’ve told someone anyway.

AQ: Even though it would’ve upset Wilbur?

NN: Yes. It was Wilbur’s life on the line.

AQ: Miss Nihachu, are you aware that Wilbur was Tommy’s legal guardian?

NN: Um, yes.

AQ: Are you also aware that during the time frame you’re referring to, when you’re saying that Tommy should’ve made more of an effort to tell others what was going on with his older brother, that Tommy was sixteen years old?

NN: Yes.

AQ: If you had a suicidal parent when you were sixteen, Miss Nihachu, one who made it clear they did not want you telling anyone else what was going on, what would you have done?

NN: I- That’s- Look, that’s a different situation.

AQ: How so? Sure, Wilbur was his brother, not a parent, but he was Tommy’s legal guardian all the same. Tommy looked up to him like you would look up to a parent. Is the situation really all that different?

NN: It’s difficult to understand if you didn’t see what Wilbur and Tommy’s relationship was like yourself.

AQ: Would you blame a sixteen year old for their parent’s suicide?

NN: …no.

AQ: Do you blame yourself for Wilbur’s suicide, Miss Nihachu?

NN: I- Do I have to answer that?

THE COURT: Mr. Quackity, is this line of questioning relevant to the case?

AQ: It is. Please, let me finish.

THE COURT: Fine. Miss Nihachu, please answer.

NN: …sometimes I do blame myself, yes. I wish I saw more. I wish Tommy told me what was going on.

AQ: You described Tommy as self-centered, Miss Nihachu. But I’d like you to think back to when you were a teenager yourself. After all, you’re only in your early twenties yourself. So was he actually particularly self-centered, or was he self-centered in the way so many young people are as they try to figure out their place in the world?

NN: I don’t know.

AQ: Do you believe that Tommy loved his brother, Miss Nihachu?

NN: Yes.

AQ: Do you think that Tommy wanted Wilbur to die?

NN: Of course not.

AQ: Then do you truly believe he didn’t do everything he could think to do given the little life experience he had at his age?

NN: Can- Can I be done now? Please?

AQ: Please answer the question.

NN: I don’t know, okay? Maybe he did everything he could, maybe he didn’t. I don’t know that for sure.

AQ: I’m not asking whether he did or didn’t, I’m asking what you believe.

NN: And I’m telling you I don’t know what I believe anymore.

Chapter Text

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Testimony of Philza Craft)

Counsel Appearing:

For the Plaintiff:

DEPUTY COUNTY ATTORNEY

By: Eret King, Esq.

(EK)

For the Defendant:

By: Alex Quackity, Esq.

(AQ)

AQ: Mr. Craft, to start off would you please tell us how you know the defendant?

PC: I first met his brother, Wil, back when he was in school. I was his teacher and after he graduated we stayed in touch, and eventually I met Tommy through him.

AQ: So as someone who had a fairly close relationship with Wilbur, how close would you say he and his brother were?

PC: They were incredibly close. Tommy looked at Wil like he put the stars in the sky.

AQ: Were you at all aware of Wilbur’s mental health struggles?

PC: I wasn’t. He never mentioned anything about dealing with that kind of stuff when we saw each other.

AQ: Did you ever suspect he was grappling with something like that?

PC: In retrospect of course I want to say I did, but honestly I didn’t. Everything seemed fine. He told me he was doing well and whenever he came to see me he looked fine. I’m sure if I actually had ever gone to his house or saw him more than just once a month I could’ve picked up on it, but I just didn’t.

AQ: Did Tommy ever say anything to you about Wilbur’s mental health?

PC: No, we never really had much reason to interact unless Wil was there. Sure if I saw him in the halls I’d say hi and ask how he was doing but that was about it.

AQ: Had Tommy been aware of the full extent of his brother’s mental health struggles, what do you think he would’ve done?

PC: I think he would’ve done everything he could to try and help Wil out. Of course being a kid there would only be so much he could’ve done, but I have no doubt that if he knew, he would’ve wanted to help.

AQ: Alright. To change the subject for a minute, did you know Dream, Mr. Craft?

PC: I did, but mostly through mutual friends. He was part of the school mentor program so I saw him on campus a lot, but we didn’t really interact all that much outside of a few conversations.

AQ: What did you think when you learned that Tommy had moved in with Dream?

PC: First I was surprised that those two even knew each other. I had no idea that Dream was Tommy’s mentor so it kind of came out of left field for me. But then I was even more confused because I didn’t think that Dream was really the type of guy to take a kid in like that.

AQ: Can you elaborate on what you mean by that?

PC: Well, from the little I knew of him, I’d picked up on the fact that he wasn’t the most patient guy. He got annoyed really easily and had a temper. Not to mention the fact that he was even younger than Wilbur.

AQ: Dream had a temper?

PC: Oh yeah, I only knew him because my best friend was his neighbor. When we realized he was the kind of guy who would blow up if things didn’t go his way we both decided it was better to keep the guy at arm’s length. Kept things friendly and all, but neither of us really had the patience for dealing with a person like that.

AQ: Someone who had an explosive temper?

PC: Someone who would tunnel vision like he did. Dream would get so wrapped up in what he thought was right or wrong he would refuse to take what anyone else said into consideration. And if you tried to contradict him, that’s when he would get upset.

AQ: And you were so concerned about Dream’s ‘tunnel vision’ to the point where you didn’t want to be around him?

PC: Yup.

AQ: And it’s because of this you didn’t think he was well-suited to taking on Tommy as his charge?

PC: I didn’t think he’d want to, let alone be any good at it.

AQ: Were you at all concerned for Tommy after you learned that he was going to live with Dream?

PC: A bit, yeah, I didn’t know how he and Dream would get on. Also I knew he was probably going through a rough time after Wilbur’s death so that worried me too.

AQ: But you never tried to seek Tommy out at the school? Never wanted to check in on him to see how he was doing?

PC: It didn’t really cross my mind. I had other things going on and it’s not like I ever saw Tommy on campus. In retrospect, yeah, I should’ve done that. But I just… didn’t. And look where we are now.

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Cross-Examination of Philza Craft)

EK: So Mr. Craft, given your close relationship with his brother and the length of time you’ve known him, how well would you say you know Tommy?

PC: Not terribly well. I never ended up having Tommy in my class, so I mostly just saw him around campus. Whenever Wil and I met up for lunch or something Tommy was usually off doing his own thing.

EK: What did you think of Tommy? What were your impressions of him as a person?

PC: Loud. Very loud. Also he was really good at figuring out how to annoy people.

EK: He purposefully annoyed the people around him?

PC: Well, yeah, but in a kind of a joking ‘trying to be a shithead to get laughs’ kind of way. Nothing malicious.

THE COURT: Mr. Craft, please refrain from swearing in this courtroom.

PC: Oh shit- I mean not- I didn’t mean that. I’m sorry, I forgot for a second. I swear a lot.

THE COURT: Don’t let it happen again.

PC: Understood.

THE COURT: Mr. King, you may resume.

EK: So even though Tommy purposefully tried to annoy others, you claim it was something he only did out of… humor?

PC: Yup. Tom’s a funny guy. He likes to make jokes out of everything. He’s not afraid to make himself the butt of the joke if it’ll get him laughs.

EK: Did you ever witness any aggressive behavior from Tommy? Anything that indicated a violent temper, perhaps?

PC: I mean, he’d insult people a lot. But again, it was mostly in a joking way. If he was bantering with someone he’d call them ugly and dumb and lame and just a bunch of stupid empty insults like that. If he was actually upset then yeah, he might actually throw out an insult here or there, but I never saw him get physically aggressive with anyone.

EK: His school records show that he was involved in multiple fights. Given that you worked at the school, were you a witness to any of those fights?

PC: No, I didn’t see them.

EK: Did you hear anything from other teachers? Get any context as to what started the fights?

PC: I heard about one from Wilbur. He was in the area and decided to come by during my lunch break so we could catch up. While we were talking, he got a call from the front office saying Tommy had been in a fight. Later he told me that the other kid was apparently bullying one of Tommy’s friends so Tommy stepped in to defend him, and things escalated until someone threw a punch.

EK: Do you know who threw the first punch, Mr. Craft?

PC: Probably Tommy, but I don’t know for sure.

EK: Because Tommy was more prone to violent reactions?

PC: That’s one way you can look at it, sure.

EK: What was Wilbur’s reaction when he got that call?

PC: The first thing he asked was if Tommy won.

EK: So he wasn’t upset?

PC: Nah, he knew if Tommy punched a kid he probably had good reason to do it.

EK: Most parents would not want their child to think that violence is an appropriate answer to solving problems.

PC: Wilbur wasn’t a parent though. He was a twenty-four year old who was trying to figure out how to raise his teenage brother.

EK: Being brought up in a turbulent situation like that could lead to a lot of behavioral problems in a person, wouldn’t you say?

PC: Wilbur did the best he could in his situation.

EK: I’m sure he did. But that doesn’t mean his situation was the best for Tommy. Do you think it’s possible that Tommy developed his aggressive tendencies because of this?

AQ: Objection, leading.

THE COURT: Sustained.

EK: Fine. Mr. Craft, were you aware of the incident that occurred between Mr. Manifold and Tommy several months after Wilbur’s death?

PC: Not until I was in this courtroom.

EK: Does that violent reaction he had sound in character for Tommy?

PC: I hadn’t spoken to Tommy much after Wil’s death, so I couldn’t really say.

EK: I meant regarding the Tommy you knew. Did that sound like something he would’ve done even prior to Wilbur’s death?

PC: I mean… well, he got mad and pushed the guy, right? Probably couldn’t see how close they were to the edge of the bridge? Tommy could be pretty impulsive at times. So yeah, I could see him doing that. But not with the intent to actually hurt his friend.

EK: So despite knowing that Tommy regularly got into fights at school, that his violent behavior was encouraged by his older brother, and that after his brother’s death he pushed a friend of his off a bridge, you still maintain that Tommy wasn’t an aggressive person?

PC: I said I never saw him get aggressive myself.

EK: Then do you believe he is an aggressive and/or violent person?

PC: No. I think Tommy has a temper and poor impulse control, but I don’t think he’s violent.

EK: But a temper and poor impulse control can make for a dangerous cocktail in an emotionally turbulent teenage boy. Would you agree or disagree with that statement?

AQ: Objection, leading.

THE COURT: Overruled. Mr. Craft, please answer.

PC: I guess it could, yeah.

EK: So regardless of whether or not you believe Tommy was an aggressive person, you agree that he had the potential to be?

PC: Yes, I suppose I do.

EK: Then I have no further questions.

Chapter Text

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Testimony of Puffy Ovis)

Counsel Appearing:

For the Plaintiff:

DEPUTY COUNTY ATTORNEY

By: Eret King, Esq.

(EK)

For the Defendant:

By: Alex Quackity, Esq.

(AQ)

AQ: So Dr. Ovis, would you please describe your occupation for the court?

PO: I am a licensed psychologist who specializes in the treatment of adolescent trauma.

AQ: Will you please explain how you came to meet Tommy?

PO: After Tommy was arrested, I was called to the station to evaluate him and prepare a report.

AQ: Upon meeting Tommy, what was your first impression of him?

PO: At first I thought he seemed like a young man who had gone through some very difficult things in his life, but I found he was very unwilling to talk to me about anything beyond superficial questions.

AQ: Define superficial questions.

PO: How he was feeling, how he was handling everything, if he was tired of the food there—he’d tell me things like that. But whenever I tried to broach the subject of Dream he wouldn’t want to talk. I got the impression that he thought I wouldn’t believe him.

AQ: So what did you choose to do from there?

PO: Although I had only been asked to meet with him a few times, I decided to meet with him twice a week. I could tell there was more going on and I wanted to find out what that was, and that’s not something that can be accomplished in only three, one hour long sessions.

AQ: What conclusion did you eventually reach?

PO: Well, it took a while but eventually Tommy did tell me more. And I reached the conclusion that he has extensive trauma from both the suicide of his brother but also from the severe abuse Dream enacted on him while he was under Dream’s care.

AQ: He told you that Dream abused him?

PO: That’s not the word he used, I’m the one who had to identify that as abuse for him. He had gotten to the point where he knew how Dream treated him was wrong, but he wasn’t willing to identify it as outright abuse even though by textbook definition that’s what it was.

AQ: Can you go into more detail regarding the kind of abuse Tommy suffered under Dream?

PO: It was both emotional and physical. Dream was incredibly controlling of Tommy. He wasn’t allowed to leave the house without Dream’s permission, and he would only grant that permission if he knew exactly where Tommy was going, who he was seeing, and what he would be doing. He demanded to know everyone Tommy spoke to including his friends at school. Sometimes if Tommy disobeyed him, Dream would lock him in his room for up to two days. Other times his mode of punishment would be to destroy any possessions Tommy had, usually by lighting them on fire in the backyard.

AQ: Define what you mean by Tommy ‘disobeying’ Dream.

PO: Disobedience for Dream could mean things like Tommy staying out a few minutes past his curfew, if he talked back to Dream while Dream was scolding him, if there was something he didn’t want to tell Dream like who he spoke to or what he did that day.

AQ: You mentioned physical abuse as well. Can you tell us what that entailed?

PO: According to what Tommy told me, it wasn’t physical at first. It was a slow escalation. Sometimes Dream would grab Tommy by the hair if he talked back to him, sometimes he would shove him. Food was also used as a punishment. Sometimes Dream would withhold food from Tommy for up to twenty-four hours or more.

AQ: So far we’ve heard from multiple witnesses who knew Tommy while he was living with Dream and none of them have mentioned knowing anything about this abuse. Why do you think Tommy didn’t tell anyone?

PO: From what Tommy told me, Dream’s reasoning for everything he did was that he was trying to ‘help’ Tommy. He told Tommy that he was the reason his brother committed suicide, and that he was trying to ‘fix’ Tommy and make him ‘good’ again. Dream manipulated Tommy into believing that he was a terrible person and that if he wanted to be better he had to listen to Dream. Like I said before, Tommy didn’t even identify this treatment as abuse until I told him it was. It took him a very long time to even accept that he was treated unfairly in the first place, because for most of his time with Dream he believed that he deserved it.

AQ: Why did Tommy believe Dream when he said he was the reason Wilbur committed suicide?

PO: From what Tommy told me about Wilbur, I’ve gotten the impression that the two had a rather unhealthy relationship. They were incredibly close and not in a way that was good for either of them. Wilbur was reliant on Tommy for his mental stability to a very unhealthy degree. Tommy soon became responsible for keeping the house clean, making sure Wilbur ate, reminding him to get out of bed—all things that people with major depression tend to struggle to do on their own.

AQ: And just to remind the court, how old was Tommy when he was having to take care of his brother like this?

PO: While it seems like Wilbur’s depression began when Tommy was fifteen, things really took a turn once he’d turned sixteen.

AQ: So at sixteen how responsible would you say Tommy was for Wilbur’s mental health?

PO: Keeping Wilbur going was almost entirely on his shoulders. Wilbur didn’t want to tell anyone else about his struggles and would get very upset at Tommy if he ever suggested it. From Tommy’s description it sounds as though Wilbur was prone to bouts of mania and would get lots of energy out of nowhere with an idea to build some new business or start some new enterprise, but this would only last a few weeks before he would fall back into a severe depressive state.

AQ: Did Tommy ever try to get Wilbur help?

PO: Tommy didn’t understand what was going on with Wilbur at the time. While he knew something was wrong, if he ever brought up the idea of Wilbur telling one of his friends what he was going through he would get incredibly upset. He suffered from bouts of severe paranoia and would often tell Tommy he was the only person he could trust.

AQ: From what Tommy told you, would you say he did his best given the circumstances?

PO: Absolutely. But even still, after Wilbur died Tommy blamed himself for not doing enough.

AQ: If Wilbur didn’t want anyone knowing what he was going through, how did Dream know to target Tommy’s guilt?

PO: Dream was assigned Tommy’s mentor through a school mentorship program roughly a year before Wilbur’s death. This was right around the time Wilbur’s mental health truly went downhill, and while Wilbur had made Tommy promise not to tell any of his friends about what he was going through, Tommy needed someone to vent his stress onto. Dream didn’t know Wilbur and he was positioned as an authority figure Tommy could trust in his life. So Tommy did share some of what was going on with Dream and by the time Wilbur died, Dream had heard everything he needed to.

AQ: So prior to Wilbur’s death, Dream was aware that Tommy’s only legal guardian was severely depressed and not receiving help?

PO: According to Tommy, yes. He made Dream promise not to tell anyone.

AQ: And then Dream took custody of Tommy.

PO: And then he took custody and proceeded to emotionally and physically abuse him.

AQ: In your professional opinion, would you say all of this culminating in Dream’s death was a surprise?

PO: Not at all. Given everything Tommy said Dream did to him, it doesn’t sound out of character at all for Dream to have eventually put Tommy in a life or death situation.

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Cross-Examination of Puffy Ovis)

EK: Dr. Ovis, how long have you been a practicing psychologist?

PO: About five years now.

EK: How did you come to work here in L’Manberg?

PO: I’m from here originally. I grew up here, left to go to university and get my degrees, and then I came back once I was licensed to open up my practice.

EK: So given your background having lived in L’Manberg for most of your life, is there any personal connection you have to this case?

PO: Define personal connection.

EK: Did you know either the defendant or the victim prior to this case?

PO: …I knew Dream when we were both younger.

EK: How did you know Dream?

PO: We went to the same high school at the same time. I was a senior while he was a freshman and I tutored him on occasion. But I never spoke to him after graduating and at the time of his death he and I hadn’t been in contact in nearly a decade.

EK: Were you two on good terms the last time you spoke?

PO: I can’t remember. I’m sure you can understand given how long it’s been.

EK: So you have no memory of how you left things off with Dream? Whether it was positive, negative, nothing like that?

PO: Like I said, we hadn’t spoken in nearly a decade.

EK: When the L’Manberg Police Department asked you to evaluate Tommy, were you aware of who he had been arrested for killing?

PO: Not until I got to the station and was able to look at the file with my own eyes.

EK: But you recognized Dream’s name?

PO: I did.

EK: You’ve worked with the L’Manberg Police Department on cases like this before, correct?

PO: I have.

EK: So you’re more than familiar with the concept of conflicts of interest?

PO: I would say I am.

EK: Care to explain then why you still chose to evaluate Tommy even knowing you had a personal connection to this case?

PO: It had been nearly a decade. I had very little feelings regarding Dream’s death so I figured it wouldn’t be a conflict for me.

EK: You had little feeling over the death of someone you used to tutor?

PO: Of course I was saddened to hear he passed, but we had no personal connection at the time of his death.

EK: Some might say that’s a rather cold way to react to the death of someone you knew. Are you sure your relationship didn’t end on bad terms?

AQ: Objection, leading.

THE COURT: Overruled. Dr. Ovis, please answer the question.

PO: As I’ve said, I don’t remember how our relationship ended given how long ago it was.

EK: Had you known before going down to the station that you were going to be evaluating Dream’s murderer, would you still have gone?

PO: I can’t say. All I can tell you is that in the moment I found out, I considered my position and determined I would be able to remain impartial in my evaluation.

EK: But you did not disclose this connection to any officers in the room.

PO: No, I did not.

EK: Nor did you disclose this connection to anyone else.

PO: No.

EK: Am I correct in assuming that if it had been up to you, this information would not have become public knowledge?

PO: …yes. I believe focusing on it distracts from the case at hand.

EK: You don’t believe it’s relevant to the case? Even though you’re claiming some incredibly accusatory things about Dream’s character that contradicts what almost everyone else around him said he was like?

PO: I’m reporting what Tommy told me.

EK: And you believe Tommy was telling the truth?

PO: Yes. I’ve seen many adolescents who have gone through similar abuse. Tommy ticks all the boxes for what I would expect him to be like.

EK: You believe him, but how can you expect this jury to believe you given your intention to hide your conflict of interest?

PO: I’ve explained my reasoning. All I can offer is my own view, nothing more.

Chapter Text

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Testimony of Ranboo Beloved)

Counsel Appearing:

For the Plaintiff:

DEPUTY COUNTY ATTORNEY

By: Eret King, Esq.

(EK)

For the Defendant:

By: Alex Quackity, Esq.

(AQ)

AQ: Mr. Beloved, how do you know the defendant?

RB: I met him at school a few years ago. I think when we were, uh, fifteen?

AQ: And how did you know Dream?

RB: We were paired for the mentorship program at school. I was also fifteen when I first met him.

AQ: What did you think when Tommy moved in with Dream?

RB: I was really surprised. I mean, like, I knew that Dream had taken Tommy on as a second mentee so I guess it wasn’t totally out of nowhere. But it seemed weird to me. Even though Dream had been mentoring me longer I didn’t feel like if I had been in a similar situation he would’ve taken me in.

AQ: Why not? Did you not feel like you were close to Dream?

RB: I mean, we were close, yeah. I considered him a friend of course. But Dream just didn’t seem like the type of guy to take in a teenager like that.

AQ: You were the only person who was allowed to visit Tommy at Dream’s house, correct?

RB: Yeah. Dream didn’t like having strangers at his house but since he knew me, I was allowed to come over.

AQ: During the times you visited Tommy there, did you witness anything strange?

RB: It was a lot of, uh, little things I guess. At least at first. Like I saw ashes in the trash sometimes and when I’d ask Dream about it, he’d say that he and Tommy burned things in the backyard for fun sometimes. I’d also noticed things disappearing from Tommy’s room. Like one day I’d see a video game figurine he had or a pair of headphones he used or something and the next time I came over it’d be gone. Whenever I asked Tommy he said he just lost things a lot. Also, I noticed he was losing weight but, like, obviously I didn’t really want to comment on that. I figured he might’ve just started working out or something.

AQ: Is it true you keep a daily journal, Mr. Beloved?

RB: I do. I have some memory issues sometimes so writing down things that happen helps me not forget anything important.

AQ: Judge, may I approach?

THE COURT: You may.

AQ: Mr. Beloved, I’m going to show you Exhibit 32. This is a print out of a page in your journal, which you submitted to my team as evidence, correct?

RB: Yes, it is.

AQ: Can you tell the jury about the event detailed here in your journal?

RB: Well, one time I went over to Dream’s house really early in the morning. Usually I would ask Tommy or Dream before I came over, but this time I just wanted to stop by really quickly because I’d left my jacket there the night before. But when I got there the door was locked and no one seemed to be home. I went to the backyard to see if they’d left the backdoor unlocked and I found Tommy sleeping on the ground.

AQ: What month did this happen in, Mr. Beloved?

RB: December. You can see the date on the page.

AQ: How cold was it that morning?

RB: It was really early in the morning so the sun hadn’t been up for long, so it was in the forties I think. Maybe the high thirties.

AQ: Did Tommy seem to be appropriately dressed to be outside?

RB: No. He had jeans and a short sleeve t-shirt on, but no jacket.

AQ: Was he cold?

RB: He was shivering a lot and his lips were a bit blue.

AQ: Was the backdoor unlocked like you thought it might be?

RB: No, the entire house was locked up.

AQ: What did Tommy say when you found him?

RB: I woke him up and he told me he fell asleep outside by accident. I asked if he had keys on him and he didn’t, and Dream had already left the house so we weren’t able to get inside. I took him to a coffee shop so he could warm up.

AQ: How did he sleep outside by accident?

RB: He said he’d gone out to look at the stars and fell asleep.

AQ: Did you believe him?

RB: I mean, I didn’t really have a reason not to? It sounded weird to me but it wasn’t- I don’t know. I didn’t really think of what the alternative could be.

AQ: After moving in with Dream, did you notice any behavioral changes with Tommy?

RB: Not at first. But after a while, yeah, he stopped wanting to hang out as much. Sometimes when we did hang out he’d get in these weird moods. He’d either get really loud and overly excited about something—almost like he was trying to hype himself up—or he’d get way quieter than I ever saw him before. Also I noticed he had a lot of bruises, but he always told me he just bumped into things a lot.

AQ: The bruises didn’t make you suspicious?

RB: I had a feeling he wasn’t telling me the whole truth about that, but again, I didn’t really know what the alternative could be. I figured maybe he had anemia or some kind of disorder that makes you bruise easily and he just didn't want to talk about it.

AQ: So you never suspected that Dream might be responsible for any of this? Tommy’s missing things or the bruising or anything like that?

RB: I… I didn’t want to think it was him..

AQ: You didn’t want to?

RB: No. I just- I wasn’t sure enough in what I was seeing. I could tell something was going on but Dream was my mentor, you know? I didn’t think- I mean, it just didn’t cross my mind as something he was capable of- well, no, that’s not true. I knew he was capable of that stuff. I just didn’t think he’d do it to Tommy.

AQ: You knew Dream was capable of that kind of abuse?

RB: Well- I don’t- it’s hard to explain, okay? Dream was an intense guy. Like, did I think to myself Dream might be destroying Tommy’s things or physically hurting him? No. But if Tommy had told me Dream locked him out and made him sleep outside in thirty degree weather I would’ve believed him immediately. Because it was the kind of thing he’d do.

AQ: I’m going to show you Exhibit 33 now. Can you tell us about the event detailed here in your journal?

RB: Yeah. One time I went over to the house to see if Tommy could hang out. Again, usually I called ahead but this time my phone had died and I was nearby so I figured I’d just stop over. When I walked up to the front door I heard shouting coming from inside.

AQ: Could you tell who was shouting?

RB: It was Dream. I couldn’t understand what he was saying, but I could recognize his voice. And he sounded really angry. Way angrier than I’d ever heard him before.

AQ: Did you hear Tommy at all?

RB: I heard Tommy shout something back before being cut off. I heard something that almost sounded like he’d gotten hurt but I wasn’t sure at the time. I didn’t know what to do but I guess Dream saw my car in the driveway because he opened the door before I even rang the doorbell.

AQ: What did he say?

RB: He told me to leave and not come back. Ever. Said he didn’t want me coming by the house anymore and that he’d only see me at school. I tried to apologize and say that I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop but he kept cutting me off.

AQ: So you just left?

RB: …look, if there was one thing I knew about Dream, it was that you didn’t ignore what he told you to do. He could be terrifying if he wanted to be.

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Cross-Examination of Ranboo Beloved)

EK: So Mr. Beloved, after telling us all about these many strange and concerning incidents you witnessed between Tommy and his guardian, you never thought to report the situation to anyone?

RB: No, I didn’t. I just- I knew something was going on, but I didn’t know what. I wasn’t sure if… I don’t know.

EK: You weren’t sure about what?

RB: I wasn’t sure if I was imagining things.

EK: What about your memory problems? You’ve mentioned your struggles with memory, so did that have anything to do with your hesitancy to come forward?

RB: Well, not exactly. I- I have my journal, you know. And other ways of dealing with it. So it wasn’t the memory thing that was a huge issue, it was just me not being sure what was going on.

EK: So you’re saying that whenever you witnessed these incidents between Dream and Tommy, you always wrote them down in your journal?

RB: Uh, some of it, yeah, I did. But other things I just remembered on my own.

EK: But if you have such severe lapses in memory that you have to rely on a journal to remember what you did that day, how can you be sure your memory of those events is accurate?

RB: I don’t- I don’t make up memories. I didn’t make those up and I’m not misremembering them, I know it.

EK: Well, I’m sure more prominent events like the time you found Tommy sleeping outside will stick in your mind. But what about smaller details? Did you write down notes about the bruises on Tommy’s arms? His things going missing?

RB: I didn’t write those down, no. But I remember them.

EK: Mr. Beloved, you have special accommodations with your school for your memory loss issues, correct?

RB: I do.

EK: Yet you expect this jury to believe that you just ‘happened’ to remember these specific instances. Instances which paint a very troubling picture of Dream’s character. Is that correct?

RB: I- I don’t know what you want me to say. I remember it.

EK: But you didn’t write these instances down. Why not?

RB: I was worried about Dream finding my journal.

EK: Was he aware you kept a journal?

RB: Yes.

EK: So you were worried that if Dream got his hands on it, he would go through it and see you were suspicious of him, is that correct?

RB: Basically, yeah.

EK: What were you afraid he’d do to you? Did you think he’d harm you?

RB: What? No, of course not. But I knew he’d be upset with me.

EK: Look, Mr. Beloved, you have to recognize that this seems like a very convenient excuse. You have a daily journal that you write down every detail of your day in because you have severe memory issues, but when it comes to these tiny details about the time you spent at Dream’s house you didn’t write them down yet still remember them. It looks suspicious, does it not?

RB: I’m not lying.

EK: And I’m not accusing you of that. You are under oath after all. I’m just saying it raises eyebrows.

RB: I know what I saw.

EK: Yet you never told anyone about it. You never made an effort to get your friend help.

RB: …no, I didn’t.

Chapter Text

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Testimony of Techno Blade)

Counsel Appearing:

For the Plaintiff:

DEPUTY COUNTY ATTORNEY

By: Eret King, Esq.

(EK)

For the Defendant:

By: Alex Quackity, Esq.

(AQ)

EK: Mr. Blade, can you tell us how you knew both Dream and the defendant?

TB: Well, I was Dream’s neighbor. I’d been living right next door to him for a few years when, well, y’know.

EK: And did you meet Tommy when he came to live with Dream?

TB: Actually no. I’d met Tommy about a year or so earlier. You see, my best friend, guy named Phil, was close with Tommy’s brother, Wilbur. Wil had been one of his students and after Wil graduated he was kind of like a mentor to Wilbur and all that. So I knew Wil through Phil, and one time when I was over at Phil’s place Wil had stopped by and Tommy was there too. Tommy wasn’t there for very long so it was a pretty brief meeting, but yeah, I’d met the kid before. Didn’t really see him again though until I found out he was becoming my neighbor.

EK: Given that you’d known Dream for quite some time, what would you say he was like?

TB: He was a pretty impulsive guy, had a short temper and all that. But he and I went to the same gym so we’d sometimes train together. Unfortunately Dream was a pretty bad spotting partner, but he was one of the only people I knew who could keep up with me when it came to sparring. So we’d spar a lot.

EK: So you’d say Dream was a friend of yours?

TB: We weren’t close.

EK: But you were casual friends?

TB: Guess you could say that.

EK: Were you surprised when Dream took Tommy in?

TB: I was pretty confused at first why Tommy ended up moving in with him of all people. I didn’t realize they knew each other but Dream told me about the mentor program which I remember Phil mentioning so I figured it made sense. I didn’t really take Dream for the kind of guy to wanna take care of a teenager, but again, most of our interactions consisted of trying to punch each other in the face so I didn’t really get a good sense of his parental instincts or anything through that.

EK: Did you ever suspect that Dream might be the type of person to hurt his ward?

TB: Not when Tommy moved in with him, no. Like I said, we only talked at the gym. I feel like it’s a little rude to look at your gym buddy and think to yourself, ‘hm, you seem like the type to be abusive to a teenager.’

EK: So have the accusations laid out in this trial against Dream come as a surprise to you?

TB: Eh, I wouldn’t say that. Dream was kind of an unpredictable guy. He could’ve done a lot of things that wouldn’t have surprised me.

EK: Alright, uh, let’s pivot slightly. The night of the murder did you hear any noises coming from Dream’s house?

TB: I heard the gunshot.

EK: Did you call the police?

TB: Nah.

EK: You heard a gunshot but didn’t call the police?

TB: It happened in the neighborhood sometimes. Gotta keep rent low, right?

EK: Um, alright. So beside the gunshot did you hear any other noises coming from the house? Shouting, yelling, anything indicating there was some kind of confrontation or argument going on?

TB: Not sure. I had my TV turned up pretty loud at the time.

EK: Had you ever heard any arguments coming from the house before?

TB: Yeah, it wasn’t unusual for me to hear Tommy’s screechy voice shouting about something or another.

EK: How often did you hear that shouting?

TB: It depends, but maybe once a week or so.

EK: And it was usually Tommy who was the one getting upset?

TB: Nah, I’d hear Dream shouting too. Usually once Dream started yelling that shut Tommy up real quick.

EK: Do you have any idea what these arguments were about?

TB: Nope.

EK: And you were never worried about the frequency of these arguments?

TB: Tommy was loud. I didn’t know for sure if they were having arguments. For all I knew he could’ve just gotten excited about a video game.

EK: But you didn’t hear an argument going on the night of the murder?

TB: I didn’t say I didn’t hear anything. I said I wasn’t sure because my TV was turned up. I thought I might’ve heard some noises coming from outside, but I couldn’t tell if it was actually coming from outside or if it was just the movie I had on.

EK: How can you not be sure? You’d heard the arguments before, you knew what Tommy’s voice sounded like, so either you heard something or you didn’t.

TB: I’m not gonna perjure myself by telling you definitively either way when I’m not sure. I’m under oath up here, y’know? So there’s your answer. Besides the gunshot, I couldn’t tell you what I heard that night.

EK: But-

THE COURT: That’s enough, Mr. King.

EK: Fine. No further questions.

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Cross-Examination of Techno Blade)

AQ: So Mr. Blade, we’ve already established you had met Tommy before he moved in with Dream, correct?

TB: Correct.

AQ: After he moved into Dream’s residence next to your own, did you see much of him again?

TB: I did, actually. Tommy ended up becoming a semi-regular visitor to my place, especially in the later months.

AQ: How did that happen?

TB: Well, the first time happened when I was sitting on my porch one evening reading a book. I had Steve with me-

AQ: Sorry, Steve?

TB: My dog. He’s one of those Alaskan Malamute’s so he’s pretty big and fluffy, but he’s also all white so Tommy always used to say he was like a polar bear.

AQ: Tommy knew your dog?

TB: Yup. That evening I was reading on my porch and I had Steve out there with me when Tommy walked by the front of my house looking upset about something. When he saw Steve he got really excited and asked if he could pet him. I said yeah so he ran onto my porch and started petting Steve. I thought that was gonna be it, that he would just pet my dog and leave, but then he started chatting my ear off about some Marvel movie or something. I was trying to get back to my book so I wasn’t really paying attention to what he was saying, but then his stomach growled loud enough that even I could hear it. So he asked me if I had any food in my house.

AQ: And you gave him food?

TB: I’m very susceptible to peer pressure.

AQ: Peer pressure? Was there someone else there?

TB: Steve. He was loving the attention and didn’t want Tommy to go. Plus, like, sending a hungry kid away? I’m not religious but I really didn’t feel like getting into cosmic debt thanks to bad karma or something.

AQ: Even though Tommy lived next door and could presumably go get food at his house?

TB: He told me that Dream wasn’t home and he didn’t have his keys on him, so he couldn’t get inside.

AQ: So you fed him.

TB: I did. And somehow it became- well, not a regular thing, but often enough that it wasn’t surprising for him to show up. If Dream wasn’t home Tommy would come by to pet Steve and raid my fridge.

AQ: And you were okay with this?

TB: It was kind of annoying.

AQ: But you didn’t stop letting him in?

TB: Well, Steve liked him, y’know?

AQ: Were there any times where Tommy came over that stand out in your memory as unusual or strange?

TB: There was this one time when I couldn’t sleep. Just one of those insomnia nights, y’know? So it was, like, two in the morning and I wandered down to my kitchen to get myself a glass of water. I looked out my window and I saw Tommy pacing up and down the sidewalk. Now keep in mind this was late winter so it was somewhere in the thirties outside and he was only wearing a short-sleeved t-shirt with jeans. I opened my front door and asked him what he was doing and he said he’d gotten back after curfew so Dream locked him out. Obviously I wasn’t going to just, like, let the kid get hypothermia so I told him to come inside. He spent the night on my couch but left around dawn. Not before taking a ton of food from my fridge though, of course.

AQ: Did you think it was unusual for Dream to lock Tommy out for an entire night because he’d missed curfew?

TB: Sure. But Tommy didn’t really give me a lot of details. For all I knew Dream could’ve given him a key that he lost, so that’s why he was unable to get in.

AQ: Were there any other strange instances you remember?

TB: One time I heard Tommy shouting a lot in the house. I couldn’t tell what he was saying but I could tell it was his voice, until it cut off really suddenly. A few minutes later Tommy stormed over to my place with a big red mark on his cheek that I could tell was going to bruise. When I asked him what happened he told me he ran into a door and refused to say anything else.

AQ: And you believed him?

TB: I wasn’t sure. I know the whole ‘running into a door’ excuse is pretty lame, but Tommy isn’t the most coordinated guy out there. Like, one time he ran into my screen door and nearly broke it. So the idea of him walking into a door wasn’t that hard to believe.

AQ: It’s been brought up in this case that Dream used to burn Tommy’s things in their backyard. Being their next door neighbor, did you ever see any evidence of this?

TB: I’d see smoke coming from the backyard a lot, yeah. But I just figured Dream was really into barbecue.

AQ: So you didn’t suspect that Dream was abusing Tommy?

TB: I wasn’t sure. I could tell that something weird was going on, but it wasn’t really my business so I didn’t wanna go poking around or anything. Also, I figured that if things were actually bad then Tommy would tell me.

AQ: So Tommy never implied to you that he was being treated badly by Dream?

TB: No but- well, there was this one time that was weird. One night I was making dinner for myself when I heard a lot of screaming coming from Dream’s house. Like, more than just the usual shouting I’d hear when Tommy got worked up about something. This was actual, proper screaming. So I walked over there and rang the doorbell to see if things were alright. Dream answered the door and told me everything was fine. He explained that Tommy had been watching a scary movie while Dream made them dinner.

AQ: Did this sound believable to you?

TB: Well, I knew Tommy got scared of horror movies really easily, so it made sense. And while Tommy didn’t come to the door himself, he did shout at me from inside the house that everything was fine. But I didn’t actually see Tommy’s face. I just heard his voice.

AQ: Did he sound like he was in distress?

TB: His voice sounded a little strained but I figured that could’ve been from screaming at the movie. Anyway, I said my goodbyes to Dream and headed back home. I didn’t think about it much for the rest of the night, but the next morning when I took Steve out into the backyard I noticed something. Now, my backyard fence is pressed right up against Dream’s backyard fence. They’re right next to each other meaning it’s pretty easy to throw something from Dream’s backyard into mine. And, well, I don’t know why I did this but while I was talking to Dream I’d asked him what he was making for dinner.

AQ: What was he making?

TB: Chicken and mashed potatoes. And you wanna know what I found sitting in the middle of my backyard?

AQ: What did you find?

TB: A potato. Half-broken and absolutely covered in blood. Almost like it’d been used as a weapon.

AQ: Did you see Tommy after that night?

TB: I didn’t see him leave the house again for nearly two weeks.

L’Manberg News

[Camera focuses on a young woman with dark hair standing in front of a courthouse]

“Good morning, this is Tina Kitt reporting to you live from the L’Manberg Courthouse. The trial of 18 year old Thomas Innit has had quite a fair share of twists and turns. While many are still debating the veracity of the claims Innit’s defense has made that Dream Hunter was abusive towards his charge, no one can deny that tensions are higher than ever in the courtroom. This tension is only expected to grow as we are mere hours away from Thomas himself taking the stand. Will hearing from Thomas give us any more shocking revelations about this case? Will we finally learn exactly what happened on that fateful Tuesday afternoon that resulted in the death of Thomas’ legal guardian? That remains to be seen. But of course we will continue to give you all live updates as the trial proceeds.”

Chapter Text

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Testimony of Thomas Innit)

Counsel Appearing:

For the Plaintiff:

DEPUTY COUNTY ATTORNEY

By: Eret King, Esq.

(EK)

For the Defendant:

By: Alex Quackity, Esq.

(AQ)

AQ: So, Mr. Innit, we’ve spent a lot of time in this trial hearing what your life with Dream was like from other people. But now we want to hear this from you. If you can, please describe to the courtroom what it was like to live with Dream Hunter?

TI: Well, uh, so he had these rules, right? Rules I couldn’t break or else he’d get real pis- real mad at me. Like there was the curfew and no matter what, if I didn’t make it back to the house before curfew he’d lock me out. I also had to tell Dream what I was doing every time I left the house. School was obvious but, like, if I wanted to go to a movie or go over to Tubbo’s place I had to tell him. And I had to tell Dream about everyone I spoke to during the day. I had to tell him which kids in my class I talked to, what teachers I joked around with, even if I just chatted with some stranger on the street about his dog Dream wanted to know.

AQ: Were these rules in place from your very first day living with Dream?

TI: No. For the first month there weren’t really any rules. But then one night, about a month since I’d moved in, I came back from Tubbo’s place at, like, midnight. Dream was waiting for me and told me I couldn’t pull that kind of stuff anymore so that’s when he gave me a curfew. Everything else just… trickled in later.

AQ: So Dream wasn’t always this strict with you is what you’re saying?

TI: No, he wasn’t.

AQ: What was he like before you moved in with him?

TI: Well, like, he was my mentor, y’know? And I always thought he was a pretty cool guy. Yeah he could be a bit hard on me, but he wasn’t, like, a dic- a jerk about it. He was funny and seemed like he really wanted to see me do well, and I admired him a lot.

AQ: So during this period before you moved in with him, would you have considered Dream someone you could trust? A confidant?

TI: Yeah, I did. I told him a lot of things I didn’t tell anyone else.

AQ: What things?

TI: Well, uh, I told him a bit of what was going on with Wil. I told him he was going through a hard time and I wasn’t really sure what to do to help.

AQ: Did you tell Dream that Wilbur was suicidal?

TI: I… I mentioned it once. I said that Wilbur kept talking about wanting to die and stuff and that I wasn’t sure if he was just saying it to say it or if he actually meant it.

AQ: What did Dream suggest you do?

TI: He said it was probably nothing to worry about, but that I should keep an eye on him all the same. He told me to be there for Wil as much as I could.

AQ: He didn’t say you should get help from an outside source? Find him a therapist or even just call a hotline?

TI: I told him that Wil didn’t want anyone to know and made him promise not to tell anyone else.

AQ: What would Wilbur have done if he found out you told Dream?

TI: God, I dunno. He would’ve probably shouted a bit, called me a traitor and all that. He was really paranoid in those days. Always told me I was the only person left he could trust. I didn’t want to lose that, y’know? He was already falling apart and I didn’t want him to stop talking to me about it. I was the only person he had left. I didn’t want to think about what would happen if he thought he was all alone.

AQ: So Wilbur never found out that you told Dream about his struggles?

TI: No. But he went and killed himself anyway.

AQ: Did Dream ever tell you that Wilbur’s death was your fault?

TI: Yeah. It was that night he gave me the curfew. I tried to argue against it, insisting I wasn’t a kid and that I could stay out on my own. Dream got upset and ended up telling me, “fine, go ahead and leave without giving a shit-” wait, I’m quoting something. Just making that clear.

THE COURT: We understand that you’re quoting something, so you are allowed to swear.

TI: Got it. But yeah, he said, “go ahead and leave without giving a shit about anyone else. You already drove your brother to kill himself. Of course you don’t care.”

AQ: How did you react to that?

TI: I kinda just stared at him in shock for a minute. I couldn’t- I didn’t think I’d heard him right because it came out of nowhere. When I didn’t say anything though Dream kept going. He said I was, “selfish, and that selfishness drives people away, Tommy. No one can stand to be around you. Wilbur tried and look what happened to him.”

AQ: Did you respond then?

TI: I tried. I tried telling him that wasn’t true but, I mean, I don’t think I was making a ton of sense. But Dream kept insisting it was true, that I was a horribly selfish person and just couldn’t see it. But then he said he could help me. That if I listened to him he could make me a better person so that I didn’t do what I’d done to Wilbur to anyone else.

AQ: Why did you believe Dream when he told you that you were a selfish person who drove your brother to suicide?

TI: It- It wasn’t, like- it wasn’t surprising, I guess I should say? I mean, it was. It was surprising to hear someone else say it. But when I walked into my house after school one day and found my brother’s body hanging in the middle of our living room- it- it was my first thought. That it was my fault. That I hadn’t done enough. That I should’ve been able to save him.

AQ: So that’s how you found Wilbur’s body? You walked in from school one day and there he was?

TI: Kind of. He’d- he’d left a note on the front door. It said, “Tommy, don’t go inside. Call the police and wait for them to get here.” The second I read it I- I knew he was dead. I knew he’d done it. But I had to see it- I had to see him with my own eyes. So I went inside the house anyway.

AQ: Did Dream know that’s how it happened?

TI: Yeah. He asked me how I found him.

AQ: He asked you?

TI: Yeah.

AQ: Why?

TI: Said he was just curious how it all went down.

AQ: So Dream knew all of this. He knew what you’d been through and directly told you it was your fault your brother was dead, right?

TI: Yup.

AQ: Tommy, do you still believe that Wilbur’s death was your fault?

TI: …Puffy tells me it’s not. Sometimes I believe her, sometimes I don’t.

AQ: Okay, let’s pivot back to Dream. Once you moved in with him, how did the abuse begin?

TI: It wasn’t- It didn’t just, like, start all at once one day, y’know? It took a while. The first thing was after the curfew rule got put in place, Dream said that if I broke it he had to punish me so I wouldn’t do it again. The way he decided to punish me was that he’d choose something of mine from my room and burn it. It usually wasn’t anything major. Just a figurine I’d gotten or maybe a shirt I really liked, but I never got any say in what it was. I just had to sit and hope he didn’t pick something that was really important to me. Eventually I started hiding all my important things so he wouldn’t find them when he was looking for something to burn.

AQ: Like what important things?

TI: Uh, pictures mainly. Like pictures of me and Tubbo, a few pictures of me and Wil. Gifts Wil had given me that I didn’t want to lose.

AQ: You really believed he would’ve burnt photos of you and Wilbur? Or gifts that he’d given you?

TI: Yes. There was this pair of headphones I had, just worn-out earbuds where the wire was already starting to fray and whatever. They were on their last legs to be fair. But they’d been Wilbur’s. Dream burnt them even when I begged him not to.

AQ: How did the abuse escalate from there?

TI: Well, once I figured out to hide the stuff that was important to me I didn’t care as much about what he burned. At least I wasn’t panicking as much every time he did it. And I think he picked up on it because he said he needed a new way to punish me since clearly just the threat of losing my things wasn’t enough to keep me in line. So he started locking me in my room if I upset him. At first it’d only be for, like, six hours or something. But it wasn’t long before if I upset him on Friday night, I could be locked in my room until Monday morning when I had to go to school.

AQ: So by locked in, you mean you weren’t allowed to leave your room at all? Not even to get food?

TI: When he first started doing it he’d bring me food if it was, like, twelve hours or more. But soon he stopped doing that. I tried to hide food in my room but he started keeping an inventory of everything he had in the kitchen, so it was hard. Usually I’d still be able to sneak a granola bar or two in there, but that doesn’t help much when you’re stuck in there for nearly two days.

AQ: And this was still for breaking curfew?

TI: Oh no, not that. After Dream realized burning my things wasn’t enough when it came to curfews he decided to lock me out if I got home late. Sometimes if I was just two minutes late I’d have to spend the night outside. The locking me in my room and not giving me food and stuff was usually if I talked back to him about something.

AQ: If Dream would lock you out for an entire night, why wouldn’t you go stay somewhere else? Why did you choose to sleep outside?

TI: I thought about it, but if I’d gone to, like, Tubbo’s house or something he would ask me why I couldn’t get back in the house. I didn’t want him to know because he’d get really upset with Dream and that’d just make things worse.

AQ: Mr. Blade told us you spent the night at his house once when Dream locked you out.

TI: Yeah, well, Techno’s the one who found me out there. That wasn’t really my choice. But I woke up early enough to get back outside before Dream was up so he wouldn’t realize.

AQ: So when did the physical abuse start?

TI: It… It was about six months after I’d moved in, I think? Maybe seven? There was this one night Dream was questioning me about everyone I’d talked to that day and I was really just not in the mood. I’d had a bad day and didn’t want to rehash all the stupid things I’d said but Dream kept pushing me and I snapped. I shouted at him that it wasn’t any of his goddamn business. So he grabbed me and slammed me really hard into the wall. Didn’t even say anything, he just did it.

AQ: And after that he continued to be violent?

TI: It was usually only if I really made him angry. Most of the time he’d just shove me or grab me by the hair and yank until I apologized. But he did properly hit me a few times. He tried not to because that left marks, but sometimes he’d lose control of his temper. Then he’d tell me it was my fault I angered him so much. But the thing was I wasn’t even trying to upset him. I was really, really trying to do what he wanted. Like, I’ll admit there were a few occasions where I was just sick of it and tried to push him just to see how far he’d go. But most of the time I didn’t want to upset him. It was just that he was always finding new things to be mad at me about. No matter what I did I was always messing up.

AQ: Mr. Blade told us a story involving a potato he found in his backyard covered in blood. Can you explain that for us?

TI: …yeah. One time I was helping Dream cook dinner and I- I dropped a plate. The thing was, breaking a plate wasn’t a huge issue. But Dream was in a really bad mood that day. I don’t know why, I’d been at school all day so it’s not like I’d done anything. But he’d just woken up on the wrong side of the bed or something because he didn’t have any patience for me. And because I couldn’t keep my big mouth shut, I ended up making a stupid joke about the plate instead of apologizing for it. Dream had been in the middle of peeling a potato and, well, he just kinda lost it.

AQ: Tommy, are you saying Dream beat you with a potato?

TI: Kinda stupid sounding, innit? But yeah. Potatoes hurt, man. He beat me with it until my entire face was black and blue. I guess that was too far even for him though because he did apologize to me afterwards. It was the only time he ever said he was sorry for hurting me. Told me he shouldn’t have lost his temper like that and he didn’t end up doing anything to me again for a whole month.

AQ: Mr. Blade told us he went over to your house after hearing your screams and that you shouted out to him to tell him you were okay. Why didn’t you yell for help?

TI: Look it- it’s hard to explain. At this point I knew what Dream was doing to me wasn’t okay, but he was still telling me it was to make me a better person. That the only reason he had to keep punishing me is because I wouldn’t stop fu- screwing up. And every time I’d think about telling someone what was going on I’d just remember what he said to me about Wil and how it was my fault. But also there was the fact that even if I did yell for help, there was a chance that Techno wouldn’t hear me. Or even if he did, what was he going to do? He already knew that Dream made me sleep outside if I missed curfew, and he’d made enough jokes about how I ate like I was starving that I was pretty sure he suspected Dream wasn’t feeding me enough, so I didn’t know if he’d actually do anything if he found out. I thought maybe he was just going to decide he didn’t want to get involved. And I didn’t want to find out what my punishment from Dream would be if that happened.

AQ: So then how did the potato end up in Mr. Blade’s backyard?

TI: Later that night, after Dream had helped me clean up and a bit and went to bed, I looked in the mirror and saw just how horribly bruised I was. And I realized that Dream might end up killing me one day. And I was just- I was so terrified of no one finding out what happened to me if he did. So I threw the potato over to Techno’s yard and hoped that if anything ever did happen, he’d be able to put the pieces together.

AQ: Alright, so let’s get into the shooting. Can you tell the court what exactly happened that night?

TI: Um, yeah. I’d gone over to Tubbo’s after school to hang out for a bit before I went home. After I put my stuff down I went into the kitchen because I heard Dream was in there and he was angry. I’m not sure what he was angry about but, y’know, I wasn’t gonna go ask and risk upsetting him. Especially when I saw that he was in the middle of cleaning his gun.

AQ: Dream owned a gun?

TI: Yeah, he did. He’d shown it to me before and taught me how to use it just in case there was ever an emergency.

AQ: Where did he usually keep the gun?

TI: In a locked safe in his room.

AQ: But he had it out in the kitchen that night because he’d been cleaning it?

TI: Yup. So I figured avoiding Dream was probably the better option right then and I told him I was gonna go do homework in my room. About thirty minutes later he called me down asking me to help him make dinner. I’d hoped that Dream would’ve calmed down by then but he was still mad. I ended up making some stupid comment about how old our dishwasher was because it kept breaking and that was, uh, the wrong thing to say. He started ranting about how I had no right to complain about that stuff because I was a freeloader taking advantage of his kindness and how he did so much for me and all that.

AQ: How did you respond to Dream saying this to you?

TI: Well, I kind of felt like it was a bad idea but I’d talked to Tubbo about moving out before, so I reminded Dream that since I was eighteen now he didn’t have to keep me around anymore, so maybe it was time for me to move out.

AQ: How did that go?

TI: Not well. He called me selfish for wanting to leave after everything he’d done for me, reminded me that no one else could stand to be around me for very long, and, uh, it didn’t take long for him to get physical.

AQ: What did Dream do?

TI: Shoved me into a wall, grabbed me by the hair, told me he was the only person who was always going to be there for me and that I was selfish for pushing him away, and I don’t- I don’t know why I kept arguing back. Usually once Dream got violent I would shut up but this time I just couldn’t. I wanted to leave. So I kept trying to argue my side and Dream got more and more upset. Then, he threw me on the ground and grabbed his gun. I wasn’t sure what he was doing at first but then I realized he was loading it, and once it was loaded he pointed it right at me.

AQ: Did he say anything?

TI: He told me I had no idea what it was really like out there, that he’d been trying to help me but clearly I was a hopeless case. At this point, I was on the ground and he was standing. There was some noise in the backyard which I think was just a bird or something, but it distracted Dream, just for a second. He looked away from me and so I used the moment to kick his legs out from under him.

AQ: Did he drop the gun?

TI: He did. I grabbed it before he could, got to my feet and just… I don’t know. My mind went blank. I was so panicked I didn’t even think about what I was doing.

AQ: That’s when you shot Dream?

TI: Yeah. It is.

AQ: In that moment did you truly believe that if you didn’t shoot Dream, he was going to kill you?

TI: Yes, I did.

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

(Excerpt of the Cross-Examination of Thomas Innit)

EK: So Tommy, what was going through your head right after you shot Dream?

TI: I just kind of sat there in shock. I’d been so panicked and suddenly he was just- he was gone. I stared at him horrified as I realized what I’d done.

EK: At the time you shot Dream, were you aware that according to self-defense law, it is legal to kill someone if they pose an immediate threat to your life?

TI: Yes.

EK: So why did you lie to the police when they asked you what happened?

TI: I didn’t think they’d believe me. I hadn’t told anyone about the stuff Dream did to me and as far as I knew, no one even suspected anything. I figured it’d look pretty weird to claim Dream tried to kill me out of nowhere. So I- I panicked. I panicked and lied.

EK: I know you already discussed this a bit during Mr. Quackity’s questioning, but why didn’t you ever tell anyone about the abuse you were suffering? You said at one point you truly thought Dream might end up killing you so why wouldn’t you report that?

TI: I know it doesn’t make a ton of sense. But… I don’t know. It’s hard to explain what was going through my head back then. Everything about Dream was all twisted up because I thought he was my friend. He always told me he was just trying to help me. And every time I thought about telling someone, I’d wonder if Dream was right about me. If I really was just a horrible person who needed to learn how to be better.

EK: Changing topics slightly, do you know why Dream decided to do all of this to you in the first place? After all, you weren’t the only one he was mentoring. He also mentored your friend, Mr. Beloved, but he didn’t treat them the same way.

TI: I mean, I think part of it was opportunity. Ranboo didn’t have their legal guardian kill himself, you know. But also I just think our relationships were different. Dream spoke to me in a way I’m pretty sure he never spoke to Ranboo.

EK: Can you elaborate on that?

TI: Well- Ranboo and I have talked about this, you know? How even before Wil died, Dream would sometimes joke that I was like a little brother to him. He even said I could be a Dream mini-me if I wanted. I played into it a bit, thinking they were just jokes, but when I moved in with him things got more intense. Sometimes Dream would tell me that since Wil was dead, he had to be my older brother now so that’s why I had to listen to him. That he was my best friend and I was his. He said that I was lucky to have him in my life because no matter what I did, no matter how awful I was, he wasn’t going to give up on me.

EK: Didn’t you say that when Dream pointed the gun at you, he said you were a hopeless case? That would constitute giving up on you, I believe.

TI: Yeah. I guess he changed his mind.

EK: Alright. Now I’d like to ask you about an incident you had with your other friend, Jack Manifold.

TI: Okay.

EK: Do you know what incident I’m referring to?

TI: The bridge, I’m guessing.

EK: Yes. Can you explain for us what was going through your head when that happened? Why did you push him?

TI: I- I don’t really have a good answer. I don’t know. I was just out of it that night. Jack had convinced me to go out in the first place even though I really didn’t want to. The beer didn’t help so when we got into that argument I was already in a bad mood. Then when he said that if I wasn’t like this maybe Wil would still be around… I don’t know. I genuinely didn’t realize how close he was to the edge of the bridge. It was really dark and I could barely see two feet in front of me. I just got so angry I shoved him without thinking and next thing I knew he was gone.

EK: Mr. Manifold told us this happened about a month or so after you’d moved in with Dream. Earlier you told the court that that was around the time when Dream first told you that Wilbur’s suicide was your fault. Which one of these events happened first?

TI: Dream told me first. I think it only happened like, god, maybe a week before the thing with Jack? Maybe even less? I was still kind of in shock over him- over Dream telling me that. I felt so guilty all the time but a part of me really didn’t want to think it was true, but then to hear someone else say it- to hear my friend say it to my face like that… it made it real. And it hurt. Next thing I knew I’d shoved him.

EK: Did you feel guilty for shoving Mr. Manifold over the edge like that?

TI: Of course I did. As soon as he landed down there he started cursing up a storm, shouting at me and calling me a dickhead and all that, so I figured he wasn’t seriously hurt. I knew I needed to go down and help him but I just- I couldn’t move. I’d just pushed my friend off a bridge. In that moment I knew everything Dream said about me was true. That I really was a horrible person who hurt everyone around me. So I just kind of sat there frozen listening to Jack climb back up.

EK: Was there a part of you, however small that part might’ve been, that was satisfied about hurting Mr. Manifold?

TI: No!

EK: When you shoved him, were you trying to hurt him?

TI: I mean- I don’t know. It all happened so fast. I didn’t think. My body just kind of moved on its own.

EK: And then you didn’t even help him climb back up?

TI: I told you, I couldn’t move afterwards.

EK: But once he was back up, you stood and helped him out of the forest. You were able to move then.

TI: Actually seeing Jack snapped me out of it. Kind of. I was still thinking about what I’d just done and how horrible I was for it, but I was able to come back to my senses enough to get him out of there.

EK: Alright. Well, there’s something you’ve already discussed but I would like you to shed some further light on. Why is it that you felt so much guilt over your brother’s suicide in the first place? Was it because you were aware of his plans and did nothing?

TI: No that- I mean- he talked about it a lot, okay? He talked about wanting to die and how much better off the world might be without him and how sometimes he wished he could just blow his entire life up but Wil was- he was always saying stuff. He liked talking in metaphors a lot. Acted like his life was a play. When he talked about wanting to die at first I wasn’t sure if he meant it literally or if he was speaking in one of his weird poetic metaphors again.

EK: At first?

TI: Yeah, it didn’t take long for me to realize he was being literal. But I always managed to talk him down. And I knew that if I tried to call a hotline or something he’d stop trusting me.

EK: How many times did you have to talk him down from suicide?

TI: I- I can’t remember exactly. A few times. Mostly though it was just him staring at a bottle of pills and I’d tell him to get out of his head and go to sleep. But one night I heard footsteps on the roof, so I went up there and found him standing on the edge. We talked for a while, I tried telling him the fall wasn’t high enough to kill him anyway which seemed to make him second guess the idea. But it wasn’t until I told him if he jumped I’d jump too that he actually stepped away from the edge.

EK: You were sixteen when this happened?

TI: Yes.

EK: Do you think it was fair that you were put in that situation in the first place, Tommy? That a sixteen year old should have had to talk his brother down multiple times?

TI: I mean, he was my brother. Who else was going to do it?

EK: Even still, you were a child. It wasn’t fair to have that burden on your shoulders. Did you realize that in the wake of Wilbur’s death?

TI: Mostly when I thought of Wilbur I could only think of how guilty I felt.

EK: Are you sure this is all you felt? Even though you were sixteen and weren’t properly equipped to help your adult brother who should’ve known better? I’m sure you recognized that you hadn’t been put in a fair situation.

TI: What are you getting at?

EK: I’m asking if there was a part of you, Tommy, very deep down, that was angry at Wilbur for what he did to you. If you were angry that he put so much of his struggles onto you, only to kill himself in the end anyway.

TI: Do I have to answer that?

AQ: Objection, I don’t see how this is relevant.

THE COURT: Mr. King, is this going somewhere?

EK: It is.

THE COURT: It better be. Mr. Innit, you have to answer.

TI: …fine. Yeah. I think I was a little angry at him for that.

EK: Are you still angry at Wilbur for killing himself?

TI: I’m not sure. I might be.

EK: Did Dream telling you that Wilbur’s death was your fault make that anger any stronger? Deep down, was there still a part of you that knew that you hadn’t been in a fair situation, and you resented Dream for saying it was on you?

TI: I- I’m not sure. I was more guilty than anything and figured Dream was probably right.

EK: Sure, guilt might’ve been most of what you were feeling, but it wasn’t everything. Did you really not feel any resentment towards Dream for the things he said to you? Did a part of you ever think what might’ve happened if Dream had told someone else what you told him about Wilbur? Did you ever think that maybe, just maybe, if Dream did more your brother might still be here today?

TI: I told Dream not to tell anyone.

EK: I’m aware of this, but I’m sure you knew when telling Dream something that serious that there was a chance he would go and report it anyway.

TI: I- I knew Dream wouldn’t do that.

EK: But you had to have recognized that there was a chance, however slim, that by telling him you were taking the matter out of your own hands. That more people would find out, and suddenly you wouldn’t be alone in trying to keep your brother alive.

TI: I don’t-

EK: You were a sixteen year old who was scared for his brother’s safety. It’s okay to have wanted some help.

TI: …I guess a part of me knew he could tell someone else.

EK: Do you wish that’s what happened, Tommy? That Dream told someone what you told him and that your brother had gotten the help he needed before it was too late?

TI: I mean, of course I wish my brother was still alive. So yeah, I would’ve preferred that to him killing himself.

EK: Did you ever resent Dream for not helping you when he could have? For not helping Wilbur?

TI: …yeah, there were times I wish he’d done that.

EK: Did you ever wonder if Dream chose not to help for a reason, Tommy? That he wanted Wilbur to kill himself so he could get custody of you?

TI: I’ve never thought of that.

EK: Really? It never crossed your mind? He offered to take you in awfully quick after Wilbur died, didn’t he?

TI: I- I guess so.

EK: At this point in your life, Dream was one of the only trustworthy adult figures you had left. You were grieving your brother after doing everything you could, and the only adult who knew how long you’d been trying to help Wilbur for took you in and blamed you for his death. That had to leave a bitter taste in your mouth, didn’t it?

TI: I mean… yeah, it messed me up a lot.

EK: Well, now that we’re all on the same page about that, let me tell you what I think happened. After Dream took you in, he blamed you for Wilbur’s death even though he’d been in a position to help and chose not to. Understandably, you resented him for this. Then, Dream became a cruel person to live with. After all, we have eyewitness evidence of him burning your things and forcing you to sleep outside in freezing cold weather. So I’m sure that only made your resentment towards him grow. Dream was controlling and manipulative and emotionally abusive and one day you just couldn’t take it any longer. He was berating you, there was a gun on the table, and you snapped. Just like when you pushed your friend off a bridge, you lost control of yourself and shot him in the head. You tried to see if you could get away with calling it a suicide at first, but when that didn’t work, you concocted a story about how Dream was physically abusive in addition to the emotional abuse to make it sound more plausible that he would attack you, so you could claim that you killed him in self-defense.

TI: No! That’s not- that’s not true! I’m not lying about the physical stuff, I swear!

EK: Really? Because while we have witness testimony for the emotional abuse and neglect, we have no direct evidence that proves Dream was physically abusive towards you. Sure, some people saw you with a bruise here and there, but even Mr. Blade testified that you were a clumsy person. You never mentioned the physical abuse to anyone even though you had plenty of opportunity to do so.

TI: Techno told you about the potato though!

EK: Ah yes, the potato. Really Tommy, what’s a more likely explanation? That Dream beat you with a potato of all things, or that you cut your hand while peeling potatoes. Then, when you saw the blood on the potato you realized you had a chance to lay the groundwork against Dream in case an opportunity to kill him ever presented itself. So you threw it over the fence and hoped Mr. Blade would fill in the empty parts of your story for you.

TI: That’s not- No, that’s not what happened. He- He fucking beat me with it-

THE COURT: Watch your language, Mr. Innit.

TI: He beat me till I was all black and blue with the potato! I know it sounds ridiculous but it’s true!

EK: Do you hate Dream, Mr. Innit?

TI: I don’t- what?

EK: Do you hate Dream?

TI: I don’t know. I don’t think so. It’s hard to explain but it’s- everything about him is all twisted up in my head.

EK: Are you sure you don’t know? After all, it would be understandable given everything you said he did to you. I think most people would hate someone like that.

TI: No, it’s- it’s complicated, okay? I feel like- it’s like my brain is conditioned to be Dream’s friend. Even now, after everything he did to me, saying I hate him just feels wrong. But… but I think I do hate him.

EK: Enough to kill him?

(No response given)

THE COURT: Mr. Innit, you have to answer the question.

TI: I just wanted to live.

Chapter Text

“Tommy, is that you?”

Tommy bit back a grimace as he tossed his backpack to the ground, the front door slamming shut behind him. “Yeah, it’s me.”

“Come here,” Dream called back. Sighing, Tommy left his backpack behind as he made his way across the living room before ducking into the kitchen.

Tommy found Dream standing in front of a blood-stained cutting board. He had a piece of raw beef resting on top, rolled in salt and pepper and resting for the time being. A large knife sat on the edge of the cutting board only inches from where Dream’s hand was.

“How was Tubbo’s?” Dream asked as soon as he saw Tommy.

“Fine,” Tommy answered, eyes darting over Dream’s face as he tried to figure out what kind of mood Dream was in tonight. While he didn’t seem like he was in a bad mood, Tommy knew just how quickly that could change. He kept his focus on Dream’s expression as he leaned against the opposite counter.

“What’d you guys do?” Dream asked as he turned the stovetop burner on. There was a dark pan sitting beside him and he moved it to the heat, drizzling a bit of oil on the surface.

“Played video games. Talked about school. The usual,” Tommy said, folding his arms over his chest.

Dream raised an eyebrow. “Did you only talk about school?”

The echoes of Tubbo’s voice rang in Tommy’s ears. I don’t get why you’re still living with him. You’re eighteen. He can’t keep you there. Just tell him to fuck off and move in with me already.

If only it was that easy.

Careful to keep his expression relaxed, Tommy shrugged. “We talked about going to see a movie this weekend.”

Dream narrowed his eyes and Tommy’s heart picked up speed. He forced his breathing to stay even as dread crawled up his throat, but then the moment was gone as soon as it appeared. Dream nodded once as he turned back to focus on the stovetop.

“You gonna go?” He asked.

“Am I allowed?”

“You won’t be staying out late, right?”

“No, we were thinking of going to a matinee.”

Dream nodded. “Ask me again on Friday and we’ll see.”

Tommy already knew Dream had no real reason to wait till Friday to give him a straight answer. It’s not as though he was expecting any last minute scheduling conflicts to pop up. It just depended on whatever mood he was in that day.

Tommy watched as Dream picked up the beef with a pair of tongs and brought it to the pan. There was a loud sizzling sound as Dream seared the beef, turning it over every few seconds to ensure all sides browned.

“By the way,” Dream said, the sound of beef simmering in oil almost drowning out his voice, “the dishwasher is broken again so you’re on dish duty tonight.”

And for all Tommy had learned to keep his emotions in check over the past year, he couldn’t stop the groan that escaped his lips. “Again? That’s the third time in three months.”

The sizzling stopped as Dream moved the browned beef off the pan and let it rest on the cutting board again. “Things break, Tommy. That’s life.”

“It’s not life that’s making it break. It’s that the dishwasher is a piece of shit,” Tommy scoffed.

Dream went perfectly still at that. A rock dropped into Tommy’s stomach as his eyes darted between the knife on Dream’s right, and the pan on his left. The silence suffocated Tommy as the seconds ticked on because he knew what was coming. The anticipation was always the worst part.

“It’s a piece of shit, huh?” Dream finally asked, his voice deceptively casual.

Tommy pressed himself against the counter. “I- I didn’t mean it like- it’s a fine dishwasher, you know? It’s just a bit old that’s all. Figured it might be easier to get a new one instead of getting it fixed all the time.”

“New dishwashers cost money, Tommy,” Dream said, slowly turning to face him. “Not that you would know that. It’s not like you pay rent or buy groceries or contribute to our cost of living in any way.”

“You’re right, yeah, of course. I just- I know it costs money to fix the dishwasher, right? So I thought it might save us more money in the long-run to get a new-”

“You don’t know anything about money,” Dream snapped, cutting him off. “You’ve never had a real job. You’ve never had to pay for your own food. You’re a freeloader, Tommy. Do you realize that?”

“Dream, I didn’t mean it-”

“I don’t even think freeloader is the right word for it,” Dream continued, fully committing to his anger now. “You’re more like a parasite, you know? You latch onto other people and suck them dry of everything they offer you, slowly killing them in the process. We already know that’s what you did to Wilbur, and after his death I took you in out of the kindness of my heart. I’ve never asked you to pay me back for all the money I’ve spent on you but here you are, still complaining that my house isn’t good enough. You really have some fucking nerve, Tommy.”

At this point, Dream had spat Wilbur’s name in Tommy’s face so many times it almost didn’t hurt to hear him say it anymore. Almost.

On any other day, Tommy would’ve swallowed his anger and apologized. He would’ve let Dream’s words needle themselves into his brain, telling him that he was exactly the kind of parasite Dream described. But he couldn’t get his conversation with Tubbo out of his head. That he was an adult now. He could leave.

A part of his brain didn’t want to even consider leaving. Because if he did, who was going to reign him in like Dream did? When Tommy was being selfish or uncaring or terrible to the people around him, who was going to teach him how to stop being like that? Without Dream, he would drive everyone else away. It was only a matter of time.

But in that moment, there was another part of him that struggled to give a shit about that. He might end up alone, but maybe that was still better than this.

“What if I moved out?”

Dream blinked, his expression unreadable. “What?”

Ignoring the fear twisting his gut, Tommy forced himself to continue. “I’m eighteen now, right? You don’t have to keep me around. I don’t want to be a burden for you anymore.”

His heart pounded in his ears as he waited for Dream to respond. After several agonizing seconds, he tipped his head back and laughed.

“Seriously? You think you can just move out?” He shook his head. “Where would you even live, Tommy?”

Tommy clenched his jaw. “Tubbo said I can come live with him.”

“Oh, that’s rich,” Dream scoffed. “You really think Tubbo’s gonna put up with your shit like I have? No way.”

“Tubbo’s my best friend,” Tommy argued.

“But he’s never had to live with you,” Dream pointed out. “Trust me, Tommy. You’re tolerable in small doses but that’s it. If you were to actually move in with Tubbo he’d realize just how selfish you really are and you’d be out on the streets in a matter of weeks.”

Tommy’s eyes began to burn. “That’s- That’s not true. He wouldn’t do that.”

“You didn’t think Wilbur would actually kill himself either, did you?”

The words knocked the wind out of Tommy. He stood there staring at Dream, trying to will his hands not to shake. Dream raised an eyebrow at him, his eyes darting over Tommy’s face before he took a step towards him.

“Tommy, I get it. I’m not always the easiest guy to live with. But you and I are a team now,” he said, gesturing between them both. He wasn’t sure when Dream picked up the knife again but when he pointed it at Tommy, the underlying threat was as loud as could be. “No matter what you do, no matter how insufferable you are, I’m not going to leave you, okay? Because I know you can be better, Tommy. You just need someone to teach you how.” He then turned back around to the opposite counter, putting the knife down before pulling out a drawer to search for something. “You should feel lucky. You’re not going to find anyone else who will stick with you like I will.”

Tommy stayed silent, any argument he had prepared dying in the back of his throat.

“What? Nothing to say?”

“I…” Tommy had to fight to keep his breathing steady as he tried to find something to counter him with. But after a moment he said, “You’re right, Dream.”

When Dream turned around again, he was holding a small object in his hand. He held it out to Tommy as an offering. “So you’re not moving out?”

Looking down revealed the object to be a peeler.

Tommy swallowed down the lump in his throat. “I’m not moving out.”

Dream smiled. “Good. Now, why don’t you help me finish up dinner?”

He pointed to a plastic bowl settled near the meat. There, Tommy’s breathing hitched when he noticed two russet potatoes sitting in it.

His fear must’ve shown on his face because Dream huffed. “Oh come on, I didn’t mean- they’re just potatoes.”

Tommy’s breathing was picking up speed now as he glanced between the potatoes and Dream’s face. Dream must’ve realized he wasn’t getting through to Tommy because he stepped away and began to peel the potato himself.

“It’s dinner, Tommy. You don’t need to freak out.”

Finally, Tommy found his voice. “The last time we had potatoes for dinner I couldn’t go to school for a week because I looked so fucked up.”

“In my defense, I really thought the potato was going to fall apart by, like, the second hit,” Dream said, shrugging as he dumped the potato peels in the bowl. “These things are a lot sturdier than I realized.”

“You beat me with a potato,” Tommy told him, having to force each word out.

“And you’re never going to let me forget it,” Dream huffed, rolling his eyes. “C’mon, I said I was sorry, didn’t I?” With the first potato done, he reached for the second one and held it out to Tommy as an offering.

Tommy could only stare at it, his gut churning as he curled his hands into fists. When he didn’t make any moves to grab it, Dream sighed and started peeling it as well.

“Whatever. If you’re just going to stand there looking scared shitless by a vegetable you might as well go upstairs and do your homework until dinner’s ready,” Dream said, waving him away.

Thank fuck. Tommy turned on his heel ready to escape the kitchen, but before he could make it two steps-

“Oh, one more thing. Do you think you could grab my phone charger and bring it down here for me? It’s in my office upstairs.”

Tommy breathed out a sigh of relief. “Yeah, I’ll bring it right now.”

With that he escaped the kitchen and picked up his backpack where he’d abandoned it by the front door. He hurried upstairs, throwing his backpack on his bed before heading further down the hall in the direction of Dream’s office.

The door was unlocked. Tommy made his way inside, gaze darting over the maps Dream had plastered to his walls and the books strewn open on his desk. He found the phone charger and grabbed it, but then his eyes fell on something else and paused.

The gun safe was open. Although Dream had opened it in front of him plenty of time he never let Tommy see the code, even after teaching him how to shoot. He always said Tommy would have to earn that kind of trust.

But here he was, standing in front of the open safe. It was easy to figure out what happened. Just this morning while he’d been getting ready for school Dream had sat at the kitchen table, methodically cleaning the gun like he did every few months. He must’ve forgotten to close the safe properly when he put it back.

Glancing back at the door to make sure Dream wasn’t coming down the hall, Tommy knelt down and pulled open the door a little wider. Sure enough, the gun sat right in the middle of the safe with a small box of bullets beside it.

Tommy’s eyes widened.

“Tommy! Are you bringing my charger?”

Dream’s shout brought him back to his senses. Turning away from the safe, Tommy hurried back downstairs and handed Dream the charging cord. His blood roared in his ears as he listened to Dream ramble about dinner before saying something about homework and rushing back upstairs.

Then, he stood in the hallway, staring at the door to Dream’s office. His backpack was thrown on his bed, his notebook dangerously close to sliding onto the floor. He did actually have homework to do. That’s what he should be focusing on. He needed to go in his room, shut the door, and work on his history essay until Dream called him down for dinner. He didn’t need to think about the gun. The gun shouldn’t have mattered to him at all.

But he couldn’t tear his eyes away from the office.

His feet moved on their own. He made his way into the office, careful to leave the door cracked open so he’d be able to hear if anyone was making their way down the hall. Kneeling in front of the safe, he reached inside and took the gun in his hand. Even though he’d held it before, enough time had passed that he was surprised at how heavy it was. His hands were steady as he took a single bullet out of the box and loaded it into the magazine, just like how Dream showed him.

Dream was never going to let him leave. Sometimes Tommy wondered if Dream was just biding his time, waiting to kill him, but he knew that was never going to happen either. He’d seen it in Dream’s eyes when he said he was never going to leave Tommy. No matter what he did, no matter how badly he pissed him off, Dream would never let him die.

As he stared at the gun, Tommy wondered if Wilbur felt trapped like this. Even though he didn’t have someone like Dream making every moment of his day a living hell, his mind was his tormentor. Just like Tommy would never be able to escape Dream, Wilbur could never escape his own mind.

Tommy brought the gun up to the side of his head. The muzzle was cold against his temple. Maybe this was the answer. Wilbur would probably have called it poetic. One brother kills himself, the other follows a year later. The two of them had always been a team. Partners in crime, Wilbur liked to say. Then Wilbur had gone and left him behind. But Tommy spent his whole life following his brother so why should that change now?

Standing in the middle of Dream’s office, Tommy willed himself to pull the trigger. It shouldn’t be difficult. One loud noise and that was it. If it hurt, it would only hurt for a second.

But… he couldn’t do it. He couldn’t bring himself to push down on the trigger.

Tommy didn’t want to die. But he couldn’t keep going like this. Terrified day in and day out of, each conversation like walking through a minefield. Dream always said he was Tommy’s friend but he sure didn’t feel like one. He didn’t feel like a brother either. Even at his worst, Wilbur loved him, Tommy knew that. But Dream didn’t.

Dream liked watching Tommy get upset. He liked hurting Tommy. He thought it was funny when Tommy shouted in pain. He always told Tommy it was for his own good, that he was trying to help him but Tommy couldn’t tell if that was true anymore.

He lowered the gun. It sat in his hand, the sheer weight of it a demand in itself. Tommy wouldn’t get another opportunity like this again. If he was going to do something, he needed to do it now.

Once again, Dream’s taunts echoed in his mind. Selfish.

His grip on the gun tightened. If he was selfish, so be it. He just wanted to live.

Tommy didn’t remember going downstairs again. One moment he was in Dream’s office, the next he was standing outside the kitchen. The gun was cold in his hand. His heart was pounding out of his chest.

He stepped inside the kitchen. Dream had just taken the beef out of the oven, resting it on top of the stove before turning to Tommy with a raised eyebrow. “Oh, you’re here. I was just about to call you down to eat.” He met Tommy’s eyes, only for his face to fall when he saw the gun pointed at his forehead.

“Wait-”

Tommy didn’t think.

The gunshot rang out across the house. Tommy flinched at how loud it was but when his eyes blinked open again, his heart dropped into his stomach.

The first dead body Tommy had ever seen was his brother’s. The memory of those glassy eyes staring straight through him haunted his nightmares for months. There was something terrifying about seeing the empty shell of someone you knew so well. Looking into their eyes and knowing there wasn’t anything behind them anymore.

Dream’s eyes were glassy in the same way. Blood trailed down his forehead and pooled on the kitchen tile beneath him. His empty gaze was fixed on the ceiling and didn’t move even when Tommy stood over him.

The gun clattered to the ground. Tommy fell to his knees.

“Wh- What have-” Tommy’s breathing was picking up speed now. The blood was spreading out from under Dream’s head and if Tommy didn’t move, it would get on his jeans. He sat there, frozen in place.

The blood was warm.

What had he done? Dream was dead. Just like that, the man who had made his life a living hell for the past year was gone. He would never hit Tommy again. Never mock him. Never smile at him or make him laugh. He would never offer Tommy advice or promise to always be there for him. Everything that Dream was to Tommy was just… gone.

Tommy didn’t cry. He didn’t scream. He just sat there staring at the body in front of him, unable to think of anything outside of this current moment.

Dream was dead. He was dead because Tommy killed him.

Wilbur’s blood hadn’t been on Tommy’s hands directly. Even if it was his fault he couldn’t pull his brother back from the edge, Wilbur had still been the one to take his own life. But now Tommy was a true murderer.

Hours could’ve passed while he sat there, staring at Dream’s dead body as the blood puddle grew bigger and bigger. Days. Weeks. Later he would learn he’d only been sitting there for two minutes, but those two minutes had held an eternity Tommy would never forget.

Then, the eternity ended when he heard a knock.

Tommy’s head snapped up. There, standing with one foot through the back door was Techno.

Fear seized every atom in Tommy’s body. “I-”

“I, uh, came in through the back gate,” Techno explained, holding his hands up by his head as he took a slow step into the house. “Don’t freak out.”

“Techno- I-” Tommy was starting to hyperventilate. “I did- I killed-”

“I know,” Techno told him, crouching down a few steps away from the growing blood puddle. “I heard the gunshot.”

He knew. Techno knew Tommy was a murderer. He met Techno’s eyes and waited for the disgust to settle over Techno’s features. The anger. The fear.

Instead though, Techno’s dark brown eyes were eerily calm as he glanced between Dream’s cooling corpse and the gun sitting beside him. “I know why you did it.”

Tommy’s whole body had started to tremble. “You knew? You knew what he did to me?”

Techno winced. “I wasn’t sure. I had my suspicions, especially when you threw that potato in my yard- that was you, right?” Tommy nodded, his head not feeling as though it was attached to his body. “Yeah, I was starting to put the pieces together but I just- I wasn’t sure.” He paused and focused on Tommy’s face again. “I thought you would’ve told me though.”

“I didn’t know if you’d believe me,” Tommy admitted.

“Yeah, I should’ve figured that out,” Techno muttered.

Tommy was still shaking. “But you didn’t.”

“I didn’t. And now look where we are.”

Silence enveloped the two of them for a moment. Techno looked between Dream’s body and the gun, before focusing back on Tommy. He eyed the growing blood puddle and moved further back when it got close to shoes.

“Alright, here’s what you’re going to do,” Techno suddenly said, his gaze locking onto Tommy’s. “That gunshot was loud. One of the other neighbors has probably already called the police, but you still need to call them yourself.”

“You want me to call them?!”

“I do,” Techno told him. “Dream’s held that gun recently, right?”

“What- What the fuck are you talking about?”

“Fingerprints, Tommy,” Techno said, snapping his fingers in front of Tommy’s face. “Look, I know you’re in shock right now but you have to stay with me. What I’m telling you is important.”

Tommy forced himself to take a breath and nodded, although he still didn’t understand what Techno was doing. “He cleaned the gun this morning. So, yeah, he’s held it.”

“Good. Now what you’re going to tell the police is that Dream attacked you. He was waving the gun around and kept pointing it at you and threatening to shoot. You were one hundred percent convinced he was going to kill you. Somehow, you managed to get the gun away from him and grabbed it yourself. You were terrified for your life so you shot him before he could shoot you.”

“But- that’s not- he didn’t attack me, Techno! I shot him before he could even say a word to me!”

“Tommy, do you want to go to jail for the rest of your life?” Techno asked.

Tommy flinched as though he’d been slapped. “No.”

“Then from this point on, the truth is that you killed him in self-defense,” Techno’s voice sounded more intense than Tommy had ever heard it. “Dream was going to shoot you, you shot him first.”

“But-” Tommy’s heart was still pounding out of his chest. “I can’t tell them I killed him! I can’t do that!”

“Tommy, they’re going to find out eventually.”

“I can’t,” Tommy pleaded.

Techno looked at him for a moment before sighing again. “Alright. Then what you’re going to do is you’re going to tell them you just came home from a friend’s place and found him like this. You picked up the gun when you saw it on the ground which is how your fingerprints ended up on it.”

“Okay,” Tommy breathed, nodding to himself. “I- I can do that, I think.”

“You can tell them that, but I’m telling you that the police are probably going to find out you shot him either way,” Techno pushed. “If they do, then you need to tell them that Dream was going to shoot you and you killed him in self-defense. Afterwards you were in a complete panic which is why you lied and said you found him dead. Got it?”

Tommy nodded. “Okay. If they find out then I killed him in self-defense.”

“It’ll probably take the police a few days to figure out you were the one to shoot him. Use that time to get your story straight. Keep it as close to the truth as you possibly can. The more details you change the harder it’ll be to remember, so only change what you absolutely have to. Then you need to ingrain it into your mind. If you slip up once, the police will pounce on you.”

“Keep my story straight. Got it,” Tommy murmured. “And my story is-”

“Dream was going to kill you.”

“Dream was going to kill me,” Tommy repeated.

“Police can lie to you,” Techno warned him. “But there’s no way for them to know this wasn’t self-defense. You and Dream were the only two here, and you’re the only one left who can say what happened. Whatever you tell them is going to become the truth one way or another.”

With that, Techno rose to his feet again and made his way to the back door. “I have to get back to my house. They can’t find out I was here or else they’ll wonder why I didn’t call the police.” He paused in the doorway. “You’ll be okay though.”

“Wait,” Tommy called out. “Why are you doing this? I- I’m a murderer, Techno. Why are you helping me?”

Techno had to consider this for a moment before he could answer. “You’re not a murderer, Tommy. You did what you had to.”

Tommy looked down at Dream’s body again. “It… It was going to be me. But I couldn’t bring myself to do it.”

“I’m glad it was him then.”

With that, Techno left the house. Tommy heard the distant clink of the back gate shutting. Just like that, he was alone. Alone with blood on his hands, the gun on the floor, and Dream’s corpse laying in front of him.

Taking one more breath to steady himself, Tommy reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone.

REPORTER’S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

THE COURT: Ladies and gentlemen of the jury I understand you have reached a verdict.

JURY: We have, Your Honor.

THE COURT: The defendant will rise and face the jury and hearken to its verdict.

JURY: We the jury duly impaneled and sworn and the above-entitled action upon our oaths do find the defendant, Thomas Innit, as to count one of second degree murder not guilty.

L’Manberg News

[Camera focuses on a young woman with dark hair standing in front of a courthouse]

“Good afternoon, this is Tina Kitt reporting to you live from the L’Manberg courthouse. Jurors have been in deliberation since yesterday to decide the fate of Thomas Innit. Only minutes ago, the jury delivered a verdict of not guilty. I repeat, Thomas Innit has been found not guilty of the murder of his legal guardian, Dream Hunter. In just a few minutes we should see him leaving this courthouse as a free man. For those just tuning in, Thomas Innit claimed to have murdered his legal guardian in self-defense after…”

[She goes into a brief explanation of the case, struggling to hide the smile on her face. A small crowd gathers around the courthouse behind her until another loud cheer goes up]

“Oh, I think he’s coming out now. Let’s see if we can go talk to him.”

[She begins making her way through the crowd, her cameraman following close behind. Then, the camera finds a young blonde man standing beside a shorter man with dark hair]

“Tommy, I’m Tina Kitt with L’Manberg news. We’ve been following your case since the start. How do you feel walking out of this courthouse right now?”

[Tommy’s eyes are tinged red as he flashes the camera a weak smile]

“I can’t- trying to describe how much relief I’m feeling right now is pretty much impossible. I’m just so fucki- wait, we’re live aren’t we?”

[Tina laughs]

“Yes, we are.”

[Tommy snorts as he wipes his cheek with the back of his hand]

“No cursing then, got it. Uh, I’m just so grateful for everyone who came to my defense, especially my lawyer here Alex Quackity. I pretty much owe him my life now.”

[He slings an arm around the dark-haired man at his side who laughs as he’s tugged in front of the camera. Tina holds the mic to him]

“Mr. Quackity, what are your thoughts now that your client has been found not guilty?”

[Quackity straightens up]

“I’m incredibly glad the jury was able to see the truth for what it was. My client has been through a lot the past few years and I think he deserves to be able to live a happy, fulfilling life as a free man.”

[Tina smiles and turns back to Tommy]

“And what will that happy life look like for you, Tommy?”

[Tommy glances around the crowd]

“My friend Tubbo was here a minute ago- he’s probably already at the car. But right now I think my plans are to move in with him and, I don’t know, probably graduate? Kinda had to put off my classes because of all this.”

[Tina nods]

“Well, I hope you can resume your education without any-”

[Tina is cut off when Tommy’s eyes go wide seeing someone in the crowd. He turns away from the camera]

“Sorry, I got someone I gotta see!”

[He makes his way through the crowd. The people part and for just a moment, Tommy is seen hugging a tall, pink-haired man. The camera then turns back to Tina]

“Well, I’m sure Tommy Innit is going to be quite the busy guy for the next few weeks. But from us here at L’Manberg news, I’m Tina Kitt and I have been reporting to you live on the trial of Thomas Innit. Now let’s take it back to our team at the studio.”

(5:32) So I’m really hoping this is your new number and

not some stranger because that’ll be awkward

(5:32) But uh

(5:32) [img.jpg]

(5:33) Steve misses you

(5:47) HE LOOKS SO SAD WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM

(5:48) Bruh I didn’t do anything you’re the reason he’s sad

(5:50) make him not sad asshole

(5:51) I think if you want him to stop being sad you gotta

come over here and pet him

(5:52) You’re living at Tubbo’s now right?

(5:54) yeah

(5:55) How’s that working out for you

(5:56) really good tubobs a great roommate except he snores like a motherfucker

(5:56) told him id rather sleep outside again than deal with his snoring

but I don’t think he found it that funny

(5:59) What he can’t handle a little dark humor? Lameeeeee

(6:00) ikr

(6:00) maybe I gota tell him if he doesn’t laugh at my trauma jokes

he’s going to make me sad

(6:01) What’s the point of having trauma if you can’t get some

comedic benefit out of it

(6:03) knew I could count on you to understand me techno

(6:03) but uh

(6:03) steve misses me?

(6:04) He does

(6:05) If you ever wanted to stop by for dinner or something I think

it’d make him really happy

(6:10) you sure?

(6:11) I’m sure Tommy

(6:13) ok

(6:13) maybe later this week

(6:14) stock your fridge

(6:14) Bruh you’re still gonna steal my food?

(6:15) obviously

(6:16) that’s what you get for having so many good snacks

(6:18) Now I’m rethinking the dinner invite

(6:20) too late cant back out now asshole

(6:21) uninviting me will ruin your karma

(6:22) Ugh you’re right

(6:22) I’ll stock up

(6:34) thanks techno

(6:36) for everything

(6:39) Yeah yeah no need to be a sap

(6:40) We’ll talk about it at dinner

(6:41) ok then fuck you btich

(6:42) see you soon