Tw: Manipulation, Gambling, Panic Attacks, Swearing
[Eden POV]
The day Tommy came over to Snowchester, we'd spent the night at Michael's home. Tommy didn't have the heart to wake us up and leave Michael alone.
The next morning however, Tommy was able to get in contact with Ranboo. Resulting in him stopping by the house.
Shroud, Michael, and I played upstairs while Tommy and Ranboo talked downstairs.
From what I was told, Tommy wrote the letters "BM" on Ranboo's arm. The letters stood for "Big Mike", which is what Tommy had been referring to Michael as. Every time Ranboo would see it, it was to remind him to check on Michael and make sure he was okay. Given Ranboo has some memory problems you can't really blame him for.
Content with his solution, Tommy felt okay taking Shroud and I back home. However made it routine to go eat dinner with Michael each night, to take care of him and to give the kid something to look forward to, as Tommy put it.
Visiting Michael at night made it so I still had time to venture each morning, without having to worry about my best friend.
~~~~
Double checking my inventory, I headed out. It was a little later in the day due to Tommy making me eat breakfast before heading out, the sun was at a sort of 45 degree angle in the sky now.
Walking outside I turned to the left road rather than the right, which connected over to the center of the SMP, AKA the community house.
This road led to L'manburg, or what once was L'manburg.
The glass had been removed, vegetation having taken over the crater in the ground, a singular rope bridge connecting either side.
I found my body moving on my own, stopping at the edge of the devastation.
I really had wished I could've seen L'manburg, mom always spoke so highly of it, like it was a paradise you could only dream of. Though, Mother's knowledge on the nation was as good as mine. She didn't know the war that had taken place here.
At least, I don't think she did?
That part of my memory was still fuzzy, it hurt my head to think about. Lost in thought, I faintly smelt smoke. Looking up from the hole, I turned to the smell.
My eyes met with the tired eyes of my father.
He'd took another drag of his cigarette, before putting it out in the floor.
"Good Morning my love, enjoying the view?"
He walked over to me and sat beside me legs dangling off the side of the cliff.
"Good morning Dad."
I took a seat as well, not really answering his previous question.
A silence laid upon us, though I couldn't tell why, a tension hung in the air. One I couldn't quite pinpoint, but knew I don't exactly want to break.
"Eden."
Wilbur's voice echoed across the land, as if all the previous sound disappeared with his presence.
"Yes Dad?"
"How did you get here?" His gaze was set on me, his eyes no longer tired, layered with some emotion I couldn't identify. I didn't like it.
"What do you mean?" I responded, maintaining eye contact with him.
"Here, this SMP. How did you get here?"
I opened my mouth to speak but stopped, furrowing my eyebrows as I looked around for an answer.
"Well, Tommy found me here. In the snow biome, by Snowchester."
"Snowchester?" He raised a brow.
"Tubbo's home."
Nodding me looked back at the sky, before my answer processed and seemed to raise more questions than answers.
"Wait, sorry, Tommy found you? Alone? In the snow?"
I nodded.
Wilbur turned his body towards me, giving me what I guessed was his full attention.
"Eden the last I left you was with your Mother. That's thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of blocks way. And you made it here?"
"I know! I lived with Momma for a long time! She told me we'd head here one day and... and.. she- she um..." I trailed off.
"I don't- I don't know."
I concluded.
"You don't know? What do you mean you don't know?" Wilbur's tone sounded a bit more serious now.
"I was with Momma, at home and then she told me about Fundy, and you, and L'manburg, and then we had dinner, Momma put me to bed, and then um, she woke me up at night, and she- she um, she..." I paused again, now staring at my hands like they'd give my the answers I wracked my brain for. My head stung, I instinctively brought up a hand, a plead to try and ease the pain.
"I don't know! My head gets and fuzzy and weird, and it hurts then I'm at home with Tommy. He told me he found me in the snow, asleep. I don't know what happed at home!" I shouted a bit, most of it unintentional.
Trying to regulate my now rapid breathing. I squeezed my eyes shut. Only opening them when I felt a sudden weight surround me.
Will had enveloped me into a hug, bringing my body to his chest as he still sat in the grass, holding me.
"I'm so sorry, I wasn't there for you and your mother and now you had to bear a burden alone." His voice wavered, sounding like he'd started tearing up by the end of it.
"If I was there I could've protected you both. You're not safe on your own." He let me go, using his sleeve to dab the tears out of his eyes. "You should stay with me! I could protect you then!" His eyes lit up, all previous emotion switched in an instant.
"Dad I don't-" he kept talking before I could say anything in protest. "You could stay with me at the burger van! I'd always be able to keep and eye on you then!"
"Burger van?" I questioned.
"Yes the burger van, it's in Paradise!" He explained excitedly.
"Paradise?" I continued asking, my confusion growing.
"Here come, come, come, come, I'll show you!" He arose from the offered his hand, taking it we walked down towards the direction of spawn.
A singular caw of a crow in the distance, took my attention elsewhere. Seeing one fly above me before turning back around and continuing to caw loudly.
Wilbur continued to drag me across the SMP, his grip showing no signs of letting up. He wasn't hurting me at all, he was simply holding my hand to lead me somewhere. Even so, something in me wanted to turn around, a gut feeling that I should run back home to Tommy and hide.
Why would I need to run?
My stirring emotions argued as I kept walking, unable to make the decision or not.
He's my Dad.
I'm safe with him, aren't I?
~~~~
The bright colors and lights of "Las Nevadas" captured my attention instantly. Though quiet, it looked fun. Like the big amusement parks I'd seen in pictures.
That wasn't where we were headed though, Wilbur was walking to the side of the entrance.
"Dad, what's that?" I asked, pointing to the glowing city.
"That's- probably not somewhere I should bring you." Wilbur stopped at the start of the road. "Plus it's not a very fun place, it's run by this stupid man-"
"Wilbur?"
As if on cue with Will's words a voice sounded from behind us. Turning around I saw Big Q, he was wearing different clothes now, unlike the jumper he was wearing the last time I saw him.
Which was actually the first time I saw him, as it was right after Tommy came back, that was a while ago now.
"Ah, Quackity my friend." Wilbur stressed the word friend. "How lovely to see you here."
Apparently his name was Quackity, and not Big Q. That sucks I liked "Big Q".
"Well it is my country after all." Quackity chuckled.
"How about this little one? Hello there." Quackity looked down to me, leaning down a little to wave at me.
Though he didn't have to look down as much as Dad did, Dad is really tall, even compared to Big Q.
I'm still gonna call him Big Q.
"Hello!" I waved back. I felt Wilbur tense up at my interaction with the man, paying it no mind, he seemed nice.
"Quackity, this is Eden. My child." Wilbur's voice went stern, like he was trying to be intimidating. Quackity wasn't phased.
"Well then, would you like to come see Las Nevadas? I could give you a tour?" Quackity redirected his focus back to me, ignoring Wilbur pulling be backwards slightly.
Nodding excitedly I let go of Wilbur's hand and took hold of Quackity's.
Big Q led me down the streets of Las Nevadas, letting me look around in awe at all the lights, covering my view of one building. Saying, "it's a little early for you to go in there." Whatever that means.
Finally he lead me over to the large white building right in the center.
"And this, is my casino."
"What's a casino?" I questioned.
"It's um- a place where people trade stuff, but with games."
"Oh."
Walking down the pathway Quackity led me to the side of the pathway, opening part of the wall rather than going in the front entrance, Wilbur wasn't too far behind.
"The main building isn't ready just yet, so for now we have this!" Big Q gestured to the large machine in front of me.
Only noticing my puzzled expression, he handed me a Diamond.
"Here, I'll show you. Put the Diamond in there, and push that button."
I did as he said, the light landing on the middle one as three more diamonds, plus the one I originally put in in came out.
"Hey you won! Good job kiddo!" Quackity ruffled my hair.
Laughing I looked down at the diamonds in my hands, holding them out to Big Q.
"Oh no, you keep them." He protested.
"But you gave me the Diamond? And it's your machine, aren't the diamonds yours?"
"Well..." He seemed shocked at my question. "You see-"
Big Q was cut off by Wilbur walking up behind him and resting his elbow in Quackity's head. Making Quackity snarl at Wilbur and shrug his arm off.
"Sweet Eden, these machines are meant to do that. You take peoples things away and you win!" He explained, keeping a smirk on his face even through Quackity's glares.
"You take it? Why? What if they need them?" I shouted, not understanding how things that steal could be fun.
"Well, when you put the diamonds in the machine didn't steal from you did it?" Quackity budded in.
"Well no-"
"That's how it works darling! It tricks you! What a nasty machine, tricking such a young child."
Wilbur walked over to pick me up, I placed the diamonds at the bottom of the machine before holding my arms up to him, allowing him to lift me.
Holding me at his hip, Wilbur turned back to Quackity.
"Come now Eden, Let's go to Paradise shall we? Just across the way from here."
Wilbur and Quackity seemed to be having a staring contest of some sort, I count really tell but the two seemed excitingly angry at each other?
Adults are weird.
Quackity scoffed at something Wilbur mouthed to him, causing him to break eye contact. As Wilbur walked pays him, bumping his shoulder on the way by.
Wilbur walked down the road as I saw Quackity exit the room we'd just been in.
"Bye Big Q! Thank you for showing me your pretty country!" I shouted from over Wilbur's shoulders, waving at him.
Looking up Quackity gave me a big smile, and a salute as he walked away.
~~~~
Wilbur had led me across a river, setting me down at the other side of said river. Some logs made a sort of wall around some trees. A big red and white van being the main focus.
It kinda looks like the old Caravan from the museum. Isn't that how Dad started L'manburg-?
Snapped out of my thoughts when Wilbur opened the door, gesturing me inside.
Going inside the van it was primarily empty, however it did have a storage unit for what really was a ton of burgers.
Laughing at the simplicity of it, Dad started rambling for a bit. I'm not entirely sure what he was talking about though, I wasn't really listening.
Maybe it's better I wasn't.
While he was looking out the window, I pulled the radio devise out of my bag. Tommy had gotten me one for emergencies now.
<Tommyinnit> Eden where are you?
<Tommyinnit> get home soon it's late
Just then I realized it was almost sunset, and on top of that Dad was getting particularly angry about what he was talking about.
My heart dropped as his voice raised. Frantically doing the first thing that came to mind.
You whisper to Quackity: help please
Shoving the radio back into my bag I tried to scoot backwards towards the door, just as I did the van shook.
Wilbur had slammed his fist into the wall, not damaging it, but shaking the van in the process.
Jumping back slightly, I looked out the window where Dad was facing. A wave of relief hit me when I saw what was outside.
"Well speak of the Devil and he shall fucking appear." Wilbur grumbled, turning around to exit the van.
I followed behind him, as Quackity started up some petty argument with him. Allowing me to slowly back away and eventually leave, before I did however I turned back to Big Q, Wilbur standing with his back to me, and mouthed a "thank you". A small nod, gave me all the confirmation I needed. Running back to the SMP, more specifically, home.
~~~~
Out of breath I swung the house door open. Now stopping to actually catch my breath. However, I was greeted by darkness.
None of the lights were on.
"Tommy?" I called out.
No answer.
"Shroud?" I tried again, met with silence.
No.
No.
No.
No.
Not again.
I ran throughout the house, throwing open the doors, lashing through our things. I couldn't find them.
"Tommy!" Yelling in a much more panicked tone by voice started to crack, and my eyes stung.
I fell on the floor unable to breath, gasping for any amount of air I could, the tears made their way across my face.
I didn't even hear the front door open.
"Eden? Oh my god Eden!" Tommy's voice came from the doorway as I felt him pick me up off the ground, cradling me like a baby.
I threw my arms around him the moment I saw him there.
"Tommy.." my voice was still trembling, "I thought you were gone again."
Burying my face into his shoulder, he tightened his grip on me, more say hugging me now than holding me.
"Oh Eden, I'm not leaving again. Ever. That promise I won't break."