we can all learn things(just maybe in different ways.)

in which a hunter doesn't regret

(Again, I know that sleeping potions don't exist in Minecraft, please pretend they do for plot convenience lmao also leave a comment if you want i crave human interaction /hj)

also I'm fucking mad that Tommy died man I miss him it's literally been just over a day since he died and I'm still in denial

Dream rolled over, tucking his shield close to his chest, and leaped to his feet. Technoblade collapsed to the snowy ground beside him, his teeth clenching and axe dropping to the ground beside him. His eyes fluttered shut and, though he tried to resist, he was quickly pulled into a deep, dreamless slumber.

The Hunter whipped around when he heard a pained, broken cry from one of the trees above him. Suddenly, Tommy leaped down on top of him, wings flapping powerfully, another person falling from his arms into the snow and rolling into a fighting stance, dagger drawn. Dream quickly parried one of his slices and pulled out another potion, leaping backwards as it smashed on the ground. "Tubbo!" Tommy yelled, but it was too late. He had already fallen to his knees and then his side, out like a light.

"How could you do this?!!" Tommy yelled, his eyes filling with tears. "Why won't you fucking leave us alone?!!"

"I wish I could, but you're not the only one with someone you love on the line." Dream responded, gritting his teeth. Before Tommy had a chance to respond he made the mistake of flying within a couple of feet of the ground. Dream lashed out and knocked him into the snow with his shield before splashing the last of his three potions directly beside him, making sure that at least half of it landed on his bare skin.

Tommy's eyes fluttered shut and he relaxed, all of the fight just barely leaving his body. Dream exhaled, standing up fully and unstrapping his shield, grabbing and sheathing his sword from where it rested on the powdery snow. He downed one of the bottles of milk he had hidden in his belt to make sure the potions had no lasting effect on him.

He hadn't wanted to have to use the potions. It wasn't honorable or fair or right. But if he hadn't, he would've died, he wouldn't have ever seen Sapnap or George again, he would never laugh at a shitty joke his friends made or cuss them out when they(rarely) succeeded in pranking or trolling him again, he wouldn't ever have seen the rest of the hunters again(and though they were cold and cruel and unforgiving he still cared about them, had even grown up with some of them and watched the brutal training twist them into heartless monsters. Better than anybody, he knew that there was more to someone than what met the eye, even if it was buried under layers of thorns and black oil and barbed wire and hidden away, maybe never to see the light of day again).

They had gotten to him, too, now. Here he was, violating the sacred rules of a duel, just to capture his prey. But even if he was a monster, even if George and Sapnap saw what he'd become and recoiled backwards in fear and disgust, he had to do this. A George and Sapnap horrified by him and his actions was so, so much better than a dead George and Sapnap.

He called his horse back to him and walked only a couple of feet into the forest to brush the snow and branches the cart he had bought(he had thought he would only have to carry one body, but it had enough room for three. Right now, it was the best he could do). Hauling it upright with a grunt, he wheeled it over to his horse and attached it to the saddle, securing it tightly with rope. Dream grabbed more rope and walked over to Techno's still, unmoving body. Easily, he bound his arms and legs together and gagged him before picking him up(he was surprisingly light, but Dream assumed that was because he had recently spent several months in self-exile) and laying him down in the cart. He did the same for Tommy and Tubbo, but realized he hadn't brought enough rope and that he could only bound two of their arms together and both of their legs separately before putting them in the cart with Techno and covering all three of them with a blanket. He secured the blanket down with small rocks to make sure it wouldn't fly away in the wind and left a small hole at the very top to make sure they could breathe.

Then he saddled his horse, exhaled, and started off.

For hours he rode, the wind whipping at his hood and blowing the few strands of hair that escaped onto his face. Snow started to fall gently from the sky but he only coaxed the stallion to go faster until he was galloping as quickly as possible without dislodging the cart. It was a bumpy ride, but he had to get back to the kingdom within ten hours. The sun would be just reaching above the peaks of the pine trees if he could see it through the thick clouds, and he needed to reach the gates of the palace before the full moon crested in the sky tonight. That meant traveling a distance that would take three or four days on foot within hours on a horse. But he had to make it. If he failed in the final stretch, everything he had done would be for nothing.

So he kept going, the clopping of the horse's hooves on the snowy ground fading into background noise as he pressed forward, his cloak whipping backwards in the wind. Eventually, the tiny drift of snow that had started early in the morning stopped and the clouds blew away to reveal the sun reaching towards the horizon, painting the sky in reds and oranges. Dream gritted his teeth and guided the horse to go faster. He knew the trees and the paths he followed as he rode into the sun well. After all, he had grown up around this area, and had spent almost a month scouring it for his prey before realizing that there was a far smarter way to find it. Now he was back. Back near the kingdom, back to the only family he had ever known.

Finally, finally, he saw the stone gates. Letting out a sigh of relief, he held the torch he carried higher as he rode towards the guards barring the way. They eyed him with hostility until he pulled up his hood and they recognized his mask. Nearly instantly both guards recoiled in fear then and backed away, nearly tripping over themselves to let him through the outer wall.

Dream pressed his lips together in frustration. He hated it, hated the way that the mere sight of him incited fear in so many. But he had more important things to worry about.

He passed another grove of pines and several fields of wheat and beetroot before reaching a large tree surrounded by tall grass at least somewhat free of snowfall and yanking on the reins, slowing to a stop. The moon still had a little ways to go before it reached its peak. He had made it.

Carefully, he lifted the blanket and quietly set Tommy and Tubbo with Techno's satchel on the ground beside the tree, knowing full well that if he took them into the kingdom with him they would be imprisoned with Techno. There was no need to make this more difficult than it needed to be.

He hesitated before standing and, after a moment of indecision, pulled a scrap of parchment from his cloak and scribbled down a short note, tucking it into Tubbo's pocket. The compass nearly fell from its place tucked into his belt into the snow and he frowned. It was practically useless now that he had Techno with him. Nevertheless, he tucked it into his boot where there was no way it would be dislodged before readjusting the blanket and sliding back into the saddle.

The town was nearly asleep, the only people still awake at this hour the guards posted at every street corner. Dream traversed through the kingdom easily, steering the horse and cart through the familiar cobbled roads he had grown up in. Now he realized that he should have treasured those simpler times before they had been shattered to dust and slipped from his grasp.

He shook his head to clear it in the cool night air. This was no time to be reminiscing on his childhood.

He had an audience with the King, after all.