The plan was simple. And by simple, I mean extremely rushed and not very well thought out. It was easy to follow at least.
We all agreed on going at night, meeting at Niki and I's house and then making a break for it for the woods, where it's much easier to lose people. They have guards at the parameters now, but there's a few blind spots, one around the side of the northern wall.
We'll pack light, mainly food and water and my expansive med kits. Armour will only slow us down, and we'll pick up the old tools and clothing we have at our old house outside of L'manburg. We can't live there, because Fundy and George will know exactly where to look for us, so from there we'll find a village to camp in and find Tommy and Wilbur.
I don't think we really care what happens after, we just want to get the hell out of here.
The only thing is, I could never leave Tubbo behind, not alone and not with Schlatt. So, I find myself on the day of the escape standing out the front of his little cottage, knocking on the door.
It squeaks slightly as someone opens it hesitantly, cracking a tiny gap that I can't see through.
"Tubbo?" I ask quietly. The door swings open a little wider, and I can see half a pale face, one wide eye.
"Rosie?" He responds in a scared voice. I can feel my heart breaking.
What the fuck did Schlatt do to him?
"Can I come in?" I keep on the voice I use when I treat little kids, sprained wrists and scraped knees, like I'm approaching a wounded animal that I don't want to frighten. I get my response despite the silence, as the door opens all the way and I step inside.
Tubbo's dressed in one of Schlatt's business suits, still looking every bit like a little kid playing dress up, in the worst way possible. His face is pale, too pale, and he's drawn back in a timid manner, as though I would snap and attack him at any moment.
"Are you okay Tubbo?"
He nods, too quickly, and far too unconvincingly. I look at him expectantly, for more of an explanation.
He swallows nervously. "Schlatt said I wasn't really supposed to be around you."
"Did he hurt you?"
"No. I'm fine." He says quickly, harsher than I've really ever heard him talk. It answers my question in an unspoken way, and so I cut to the chase.
"We're getting out."
"What? Getting out?"
"Niki, Jack and I are leaving. Tonight."
"No. No Rose that's illegal, Schlatt will punish you."
"Schlatt's already punishing me, we have to leave before he does any more damage Tubbo, we can't stay here."
"I'm not going with you."
"What?" It's my turn to be shocked. "Look at what he's done to you Tubbo! Look at what he's done to everyone! We have to leave before it's too late."
"It's against the rules." He responds almost robotically.
"Who gives a shit Tubbo? We're going to get fucked over anyway if we stay! We have to leave and we're leaving tonight." I try again imploringly, eyes searching desperately over his closed off face to try and find some kind of break through.
I refuse to believe that I will have to leave him here, that I will have to abandon him, like I was forced to abandon Tommy.
"Schlatt said no one can leave Rose. I'm apart of the cabinet, I have to follow the rules."
"You're not apart of the cabinet Tubbo, you're a seventeen year old kid who's being used by a psychopath. Please, please Tubbo you need to come with us. We're going to find Wilbur and Tommy, we're all going to be together again."
Something flashes in Tubbo's eyes at the mention of Tommy, and his face crumples for the slightest moment before he closes himself off again.
"This is exactly why Schlatt put the rule in. Tommy and Wilbur are fugitives of L'manburg and anybody who helps them is a traitor." He recites in the same monotonous tone, as though reading from something he was forced to memorise.
"You think we're traitors?" I ask, hurt.
"That's just the rule Rose." He says.
"So what? You're on Schlatt's side now? You're going to stay here and let him keep doing what he's doing to you?"
"Schlatt is the president now. Those are the rules."
Before I can stop myself, I barrel forward, pulling him into an airtight hug, and pressing my cheek into his shoulder.
"I love you so much. Please come with us." I whisper. His arms come up, wrapping around me, unsure, but he then squeezes them as though he's afraid of losing me if he lets go.
"I can't."
And then he lets go.
I'm pretty sure I sob the entire walk back home, wracked with guilt and terror. On one hand, I can't leave him here, alone, completely at the mercy of Schlatt. On the other, Wilbur and Tommy are also alone, no supplies, injured, maybe even dea- no they can't be dead, they have to be alive somewhere, and we need to find them. And we can't stay. Schlatt will destroy us all.
I know I'm never going to be able to convince Tubbo, who's chosen his side. I don't think I'll be able to forgive myself for leaving him here though.
Dream would tell me to let him go, that I don't owe him anything. Tommy would scream at me for leaving him behind. Niki tells me that I'll just have to live with that guilt.
So that's the decision I make. I don't know if it was the right one.
Night comes far too quickly, far too soon. We sit in tense, suffocating silence in our house, watching the silent clock for the moment to strike. Niki taps her fingernails on the plastic clip of her bag. I bounce my leg. Jack clenches and unclenches his fists.
When the time nears, we all stand up, staring straight ahead, and unspoken agreement between us. When we leave, we run, and there is no looking back.
There's the tiniest bit of poetry in this moment. How L'manburg symbolised my freedom, how it always seemed to be the other way around. Flee to L'manburg, not from it, and how the tables have turned.
I guess it's more irony than anything else.
I don't get to ponder on my existential reflection any longer, because the clock ticks over and my feet kick into action.
The air whistles in my ears, cold and unrelenting as it streams over my face, the only sounds the thudding of three pairs of feet on the grass and the rustling of our clothes. We reach the walls, swallowed up in their deep shadows, flattening against the rough stone.
I try not to breathe as we inch our way around to the north wall, thankfully no guards yet in sight. The nighttime silence is ominous, every little sound and movement setting my teeth on edge, making my heart thud almost painfully in my chest, dread continuously filling the pit of my stomach.
It's as though someone is standing on my chest, pressure made up of fear, guilt, regret and panic choking the air from my lungs, every cell on my body a second away from snapping into flight. We reach the forest quickly. Jack scans the perimeter which is quiet and still, murky edges of the forest beckoning us.
My feet fly underneath me as Jack pulls me along with him, Niki clinging onto my hand. We sprint to the edge of the forest, crashing through the undergrowth, and for the tiniest split-second, I think we've made it.
"Hey! Stop!"
Oh fuck.
We pick up the pace, all the building anticipation and fear now bubbling into pure adrenaline which propels me frantically forward. There's no stopping now. If they catch us, who knows what Schlatt has planned for people who commit the worst crime against their country.
I push Niki ahead of me, following behind, lungs burning, while Jack crashes through the curved branches and thick bushes. I can hear the guards near us, shouting at each other as they follow intently behind.
They're not going to stop.
And they're armed. The only thing we can do is outrun them.
We keep sprinting onward, even though I definitely was not built to do this, because I can barely breath, gasps of air coming out in ragged, short bursts, my legs are burning, lungs screaming at me to just stop. Fear keeps pushing me forward, faster and faster as we run for our lives.
It lessens, as I hear the footsteps fall back, the shouts ceasing into murmurs in the background. It almost feels like we've gotten away again. Almost.
That seems to be a theme. Almost free, almost there, almost won the election, almost didn't lose everything we fucking worked for, fought for, put our lives down on the line for. Always so goddamn close, but just never enough.
Almost escaped, almost outran them, but only almost, because the next words I hear clearly are in a voice which terrifies me down to my core.
"Go around the left side. I'll find them." Dream orders, unmistakably clear, despite still still far away in the forest.
Yeah, we're entirely fucked.
Niki whips her head around to lock her wide eyes on mine, mirroring the same scared expression that's most definitely on mine. There's still a good distance between them and us, but it'll close fast. Too fast.
Jack yanks both of us behind a tree, while footsteps pace near us, and through the trees, I can see the illuminated sneer of a guards face, glowing orange flicking from his torch.
Once they fade, I unclamp my hand from my mouth and nose. "What the fuck are we going to do?" I hiss urgently.
"Rosie! I know you're out there!" Dream's voice, fainter and a little incoherent through the wind, rings out. Still, it's too close for comfort. "Come on Princess, you know I'll find you, may as well give up now!"
The horror of my reality sinks in, and I glance up at Jack and Niki.
"He's never going to stop looking while I'm with you."
"What-" Jack starts to whisper, I shake my head.
"He'll never let me go." I say, a little dumbfounded in the sinking realisation. "He'll never stop looking."
"Rose what are you saying?" Niki whispers sharply.
"You- you both need to go. Now. I'll distract them." I say, shrugging off my pack and shoving it into Jack's arms. "I love you, find Wilbur and Tommy, I'll find a way to get out."
Niki latches onto my forearms with solid determination. "I am not leaving you alone there."
I don't budge. "Go Niki." I hiss. "I'll be fine, I'm not arguing with you."
"I'm not leaving you guys either." Jack adds.
I want to yell in frustration, because first of all this is exactly what I'd do, but second of all, it's fucking stupid. I won't let them sacrifice their freedom to be with me. Niki doesn't let me speak though.
"You'll never convince me to leave you."
I know she's right.
Jack looks like he's about to back Niki up, so I yank her pack off and throw it at him to. "No. I know Niki's too fucking stubborn to listen, but I'm not losing you too. Take this and fucking run Jack. Run. We'll see you soon."
And then I turn and start running in the direction I heard Dream's voice, leaving a stunned Jack behind, Niki still clamped onto my arm like she knows I'll try and shake her off. The last I see of him is the back of his head as he bolts deeper into the darkness.
Thank fucking god.
"You're an idiot." I huff out to Niki, in between breaths.
"So are you." She says right back, still we cling onto each other. The voices are getting louder, and Niki pulls me to a stop, making us walk towards them. I can the the warm light flooding through the twisting branches from their torches, pale orange washing over deep green leaves and grey trunks.
We emerge from the forest, stumbling out into a group of people, who I absolutely did not want to see.
"Rosemary. How surprising." Schlatt sneers.
Okay, new tactic. "What's going on?" I ask, feigning an innocent expression, tugging Niki closer to me. Dream erupts from the tree line, joining next to Punz in the semi-circle they stand in around us.
Schlatt surveys me, before scoffing in something akin to disgust, or maybe it's just disbelief. "We received reports that people were attempting to escape L'manburg, in order to ally with known traitors."
I glance back to Niki, before facing him again. "Uh that wasn't us."
Schlatt's lips press together, black eyes ablaze with the lights of the torches. "So what exactly were you doing in the forest then?"
Well. He got me there.
Niki however, steps in even closer to me, then giggles nervously. I almost turn to her in surprise. What is she playing at?
"Um well we were...you know, trying to get some privacy." She says breathlessly, and I almost choke on my spit, my cheeks heating up. The insinuation is immediate on everyone's face.
George's jaw drops completely open, Fundy looking mortified, even Punz's eyes widen to the size of dinner plates before he coughs nervously, turning away. Dream's face seems to completely drain of colour, almost as white as the mask. Schlatt smiles knowingly.
"Well in that case, we're sorry to disturb you." He says, lips still twisting into a satisfied smirk, words dripping with insinuation. "Have you seen anything?"
I'm either about to burst into laughter or start spluttering incoherently, so I just lean my head into Niki's shoulder and let her take the lead, as she wraps her arm around my waist. Somehow, Dream's face goes even whiter, and I think if he loses anymore colour he's going to pass out.
"No, we just heard a lot of yelling so we came out to see what's going on." She answers. Thank the lord for this angel of a woman.
"Well I'm sure we'll get them." Schlatt says, smile still glued disgustingly to his face. He jerks his head at Fundy, who heads off into the forest, unsheathing his sword. "We'll have you escorted back to your house."
"Me and Punz will take them." Dream suddenly interrupts. Punz doesn't react, hands behind his back as we presumably waits for orders. Schlatt nods. "Keep them there until we've located the traitors."
I can only pray Jack gets far enough before Fundy or the guards find him.
We walk back home, followed by Punz and Dream, hands entwined tightly together.
"He'll be okay." Niki whispers to me.
"I hope so." I whisper back, as she walks into the entrance of the cave. Both of us stand at the edge of the bench, while Dream and Punz file in. Punz glances around.
"You cleaned that up quick." He remarks. There's no taunt, no malice, no attempt to get under my skin, just an observation. I feel like this man is incapable of any kind of nuance, but its at least not exhausting to have to deal with. Speaking with Schlatt makes me want to tear out my eyeballs.
"Well we didn't have that much left to tidy, everything got thrown out." I say icily.
"You guys live alone." Dream says, glancing around. I lift an eyebrow coldly.
"And?"
"So why did you need...privacy in the woods." He continues, like it actually hurt him to say those words, and I have to stifle a laugh. He sounds genuinely upset at the thought of me and Niki being together in the woods.
"Jack was here earlier, and while I love him," I start, throwing that in just to twist the knife a little further in Dream's heart, "he cannot take a hint to save his life."
Okay, maybe it is petty and vindictive. Sue me.
"I know it was you in the woods." Dream says plainly, but I know half of his confidence stems from him trying to convince himself. "And I know the person they're hunting is Jack."
I freeze, then cover it with a nervous giggle, trying to shake my reaction of petrifying worry. "Sure you do."
Dream doesn't react, nodding at Punz who signals with his arm to Niki. She looks at me in worry, but I nod my head, trying to tell her to just go along with it before Dream does something stupid. Niki marches past Punz and into one of the other rooms, Punz turns and follows, apparently very bored, behind her.
Dream advances, coming to stand before me as I lean against the bench, arms crossed over my chest.
"You're lying." He says, pushing the mask up to rest on his hair, which has grown out since the last time I saw it. I blink, taking in the same familiar features of his face, which I begrudgingly admit, is still pretty handsome.
It's infuriating.
I let a tiny smile rest on my lips, lifting my chin in defiance. "You're jealous."
"Nice try." He smiles back. Unfortunately, I picked one of the biggest sociopaths in the SMP to go against, so he just rises to my level. "As if you'd move on that quick."
He steps into my space, and before I can push him away, he stretches his arms out, hand either side of me, trapping me against the bench, looking down smugly at me. "What was it that you said?" He continues, voice dropping so low I can feel it in my gut as he leans in, lips so close to my ear. "That I broke you? I'm still just as much apart of your life as when we were together Rosie, isn't that saying something?"
"Ugh get away from me." Is all I say, pushing at his chest. Instead he just leans even further in, pressing his body against mine, the edge of the counter top digging painfully into the middle of my back.
"You think I'd let you run away?" He continues, satisfaction coating every word. Of course he's enjoying this, the sick freak, all the power and control he could ever want. It just makes me want to throw up, especially the feeling of his hips on mine. "You're not going anywhere."
"Dream I'm not fucking joking, just get off me." I say again, feeling too trapped, too small under his looming presence, unable to get myself free. He laughs breathily, drawing back to look down at me properly.
"I'm not letting you go anywhere." He says, but finally releases me, stepping back. I finally stand back up, breathing in through my nose shakily, then shove past him, making sure to launch my shoulder into him as I go.
Niki and Punz are on opposite ends of the room as I stride in.
I can't stop my hands from fucking shaking.
"Rose are you okay?" Niki questions intently, rushing up to me. I nod, giving her a halfhearted smile.
"Yeah, yeah I'm good. You know Dream, power trip and all that." I tell her, side eyeing Punz who's watching our interaction with eagle eyes, same expressionless face.
"He said anything?"
"Just sat there." She shrugs. "Better than your experience."
It at least makes me smile. "True."
The sound of rushing footsteps and hushed voices draw us all back to the main room. Dream's mask is back on, but his head snaps towards me.
"Rosie go back into the other room." He says quickly, but it's not full of power and command, but rather worry. Something has gone horribly horribly wrong, and it churns my stomach into a frenzy.
There's only one reason they're back.
I think I almost faint when Fundy steps in to the room, suit jacket off, white dress shirt soaked to the elbows in bright red, splashed over his collar and chest.
Schlatt breaks the silence.
"I believe you know what this is." He says, tossing something out onto the ground. I lean down squinting at the object that bounces on the floor.
It's a headset. Covered in blood.
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A/N Um...I'm sorry?
Love ya,
Oopsies x