"What are you all laughing about," a voice asked from behind Dream. He turned to see a small boy with brown hair and a long green shirt. His hair was short, nearly buzz cut, but still managed to be absurdly messy. Horns stuck up out of his head, but one was jagged and broken. He had dark brown, almost black eyes with odd flecks of yellow in them that added an unexpected intensity to them.
The oddest part about him was the scars. Seeming to have been created by some kind of heat or explosion, they carved up the side of his face and dipped down beneath the neckline of his shirt. The angry red stood in stark contrast to the milky pale skin that had obviously not seen sunlight in ages and what little skin was showing was covered in scars and bruises.
Dream felt his heart drop to his stomach and his empty mug clattered against the countertops. He was on his feet in a second, anger coursing through him like a drug. It clouded his thought process and reasoning and made his hands shake. His vision narrowed as his eyes became angry slits carved onto his face.
"They. Didn't."
Silence rang through the kitchen just as loudly as any sound, the joy and laughter draining out. Tubbo curled in on himself, his hands grasping for his arms and his shoulders curving forward. He ducked his head, looking away as if embarrassed.
"Didn't what," Phil asked, his voice laced with venom.
"The explosives," Dream snarled, turning away from Tubbo. "They were testing a new interrogation tactic involving fireworks and high class explosives. Schlatt passed a law saying it was forbidden to be used against a minor."
Tommy's angry growl echoed throughout the kitchen as he crushed the coke can in his hand. Wilbur was white-faced, frozen to his chair. Techno looked faintly upset, a small frown on his face. Phil swept past Dream and scooped Tubbo up in one fluid motion, holding the boy close to his chest.
"You're safe now," he muttered to Tubbo as the other three started talking amongst themselves about plans to take this down. Dream regained control of himself, stumbling back at the sheer weight of the situation. Importing illegal drugs, bribery, and now this?!
"This is getting out of control," he muttered, holding onto the couch for support. "We need to stop this. I need to stop this."
He looked up, his eyes cold and calculating now as they swept over the family. Tommy had moved to help Phil carry Tubbo to the couch while Techno and Wilbur continued a heated discussion.
"I have an idea," Dream announced in a dark tone, getting the entire room's attention. "And it involves harassing a government official."
//
Dream was perched on a rooftop overlooking the city. The sun was setting behind the grimy buildings and he smiled bitterly at a memory from the past. He had been on this very rooftop before, watching the same sunset paint the sky orange and red and pink. He had come up here on a picnic with George, just a small thing meant to give them both a break from their hectic lives. He remembered popping a grape into his mouth, watching even the worst buildings become beautiful in the golden and rose rays of dying sunshine. He had caught Tubbo that day and couldn't decide between Pandora or a local holding cell. The decision had, ultimately, been his. Dream had known Tubbo was with the Sleepy Boys; he knew there were things the young teen hadn't told. So he caved.
Now, he stood alongside the boy he had sentenced to jail and was watching the last of the sunbeams highlight every crack and weed on the street and sidewalks. He wore a smiling mask and had a plan to get revenge for an unjust crime he had helped commit. The feeling of content washed over him and he relaxed, watching the city come to life as natural light faded. Lights flicked on in windows as teens and adults prepared for a night of binging or partying or something relaxing. Cars honked and swerved, trying to get home or to a night shift somewhere. Neon lights for clubs flashed on and off, beckoning the public. But none of these things were worth Dream's attention.
Wilbur was sitting next to him, picking at a string dangling off his fingerless gloves. He had gone for a skintight black turtleneck and ripped black jeans. The entire outfit hugged his lithe, dancer-like body and Dream had to constantly keep himself in check. Tubbo and Tommy were concealed in a fire escape nearby, their voices quietly floating over. Techno and Phil were overseeing their alleyway, watching for their target.
He felt a jab to his ribs and turned to see Wilbur gesturing him over to the alleyway. He hurried over and crouched down, peering into the darkness. He saw the light glint off of colorful glasses and nodded triumphantly.
"Bingo. That's Jack Manifold, the president's secretary of defense. He just got funding for some new program and has been meeting a client back here to discuss it. It's someone on the police force, but I haven't figured out who," Dream whispered.
Techno shook his head. "Fantastic. Let me guess, withers?"
"We'll find out in a second," Wilbur cut in. "Tommy and Tubbo are up."
The four on the roof fell into silence, waiting somewhat patiently for the teens. The two on the fire escape were silent now, the only person talking was Jack.
"Hello," the man called out, turning in a circle. A lamp from a nearby street kept catching his red and blue glasses. "Please don't keep me waiting."
One of the two stood up on the fire escape and raised their hand while Jack had his back turned. He threw something and it hit the ground with a loud crack. Purple smoke filled the alleyway and Jack shouted once or twice. Techno dropped from the roof and then the man went dead silent. Hopefully not dead though, they need him alive.
"Let's go," Wilbur said. He jumped as well, using their fire escape to to slide closer to the ground before dropping and rolling. Dream nervously followed. It had been a while since he had jumped around on rooftops, he was a little rusty. He ended up dropping from the lowest level of the escape and landed next to Wilbur. As his feet hit the ground, he landed weirdly and stumbled into Wilbur. The other grabbed Dream's arm to hold him up.
"Not a word," Dream threatened as Wilbur tried not to laugh, regaining his balance.
"Sure, whatever you say."
The smoke cleared from the alley to reveal Techno behind the hostage, lazily holding a knife against Jack's throat. Phil floated down, his wings spread to their full length. He looked like an Angel of death with his twin katanas by his side and the look of pure loathing in his eyes. Tommy and Tubbo dropped down behind him, Tommy helping Tubbo stay steady. Tubbo was pale faced and not speaking, his eyes wide and afraid as he took Jack in.
"Well well well," Tommy said dramatically, smirking. "What do we have here?"
"Get to the point Tommy," Techno said, rolling his eyes.
Tommy threw him a glare but shrugged all the same.
"So my friend here, Tubbo, you know Tubbo, right?" Jack nodded and Tommy snorted in disgust. "Of course you do you prick. Anyways, Tubbo was your hostage.... thing, until a few days ago. So we decided to return the favor."
Jack paled, shaking like a leaf in Techno's grasp. Techno distanced his body slightly, a look of disgust scrawled across his face.
"If he cries or wets himself you're dead Tommy."
"Yeah yeah."
Phil groaned and leaned back against the wall.
"This is going to take forever," he complained.
"Fine, fine," Tommy said, rolling his eyes. "You tortured my best friend and I'm not gonna let that go." He grabbed the folders from Jack and Dream watched the light drain from Jack's eyes. Tommy opened the first folder, his eyes scanning the papers. The further in he went the paler he got until he closed the folder. Tubbo kept an arm around him, looking worried.
"Tommy?"
"This is bad." Tommy looked directly at Jack. "This bitch is starting a nuclear program."
Silence settled over the alleyway like fog. It descended from the rooftops and blanketed them all, invading the cracks and inviting horror and repulsion into their small slice of the world. Dream was leaning against the wall, frozen with shock. Nukes? That's what Schlatt was up to? This was getting very, very bad. He unpeeled himself from the wall and Jack's eyes shot over. His pupils dial aged in terror and Dream smirked from behind the smiling mask.
"Your government really messed up this time," Dream said, crossing his arms and looking down at Jack. He was a few inches taller and leaned down, towering over the politician like an angry spirit.
"P-p-p-please," Jack stammered out, his first time talking since calling out. His voice was higher and breathier than Dream remembered, probably more out of fear than anything. His eyes darted around at the criminals surrounding him and Dream felt a rush of confidence. Jack was on the defense; he could use this to his advantage.
"Please what," he said in a simpering voice, lifting Jack's chin with his finger.
"Please don't hurt me," he begged, starting to tear up. "I didn't know what was in the folders, I just had orders to deliver them to Sam." Dream's stomach dropped.
"Who's Sam," Wilbur asked, his voice colder than Dream had ever heard.
"He's the prison warden," Tubbo cut in, his voice like ice. Dream heard footsteps as Tubbo brushed past him and up to Jack. Their hostage flinched away, and Techno snarled at him. "Jack pushed the button, but Sam ordered the fireworks because I wouldn't talk. He ordered the feral animals because I called him a loony, sock-faced apple of the archives."
If the situation wasn't so grave, Dream would have laughed hysterically at that statement. But now his blood was boiling and he felt a surge of protectiveness course through him.
"I should slit your throat," Tubbo said, sounding almost happy at the idea. "I should chop off each of your joints, one at a time, until you bleed out."
"But you won't," Phil said, intervening. "We're taking these," he held up the folders he had gotten from Tommy, "and letting you off with this warning. Hurt anyone in this city again, and we will find you."
Tubbo gave Phil a look that was downright murderous but he didn't say anything. He took a few steps back, not taking his eyes off Jack. The man was nearly sobbing with relief, making Techno drop him with a disgusted expression.
"Go away," Techno said. "The voices are making this really hard and you're very lucky I haven't killed you by now."
Jack nodded and ran out of the ally, leaving nothing behind. Dream relaxed, his shoulders slumping. He felt a little guilty, this wasn't his fight but he still stepped in and threatened someone.
"You," Techno said, pointing at Dream. "That was amazing, where the hell did that come from."
Dream jumped, surprised. Phil and Wilbur both burst into laughter and Dream smiled a little, embarrassed.
"I don't know, it just kinda slipped out."
"Well let it slip out more often! The way you lorded over him was scary."
Techno thought he was scary? Dream grinned even wider, feeling validation and praise run through his veins. He didn't even realize he had that kind of anger and viciousness in him. He never did interrogations or anything in that vein, he wasn't used to being harsh.
"That was pretty terrifying," Wilbur agreed. "I'm extremely surprised he didn't piss himself."
Phil chuckled while Dream felt like he was glowing. Techno was one thing, but Wilbur thought it was cool too? His cheeks flushed and got confused. Why did he care about Wilbur more than Techno? They'd said the same thing, what was it about Wilbur that made his heart race and his lips tingle? He watched the arsonist flip his hair out of his face, his eyes catching the moon every once in a while and sparkling for a brief moment.
"Well, the warden guy is gonna be here eventually," Techno said, stretching his back. "Do we wanna wait around or go do something else?"
"I'm gonna-"
"Go ahead," Phil said, cutting Wilbur off. "Just make sure no one gets hurt." Wilbur grinned happily and ran over to Dream. He grabbed Dream's hand and started dragging him away. Dream didn't fight it but started asking questions.
"You'll see when we get there," Wilbur promised, climbing a ladder back up to the roof. Dream groaned followed, his thighs burning from exertion.
"Wilbur, please just give me a hint," he said in exasperation. Wilbur turned around, his hand still enveloped in Dream's. He had a maniacal sparkle in his eyes now, his posture straight and his hair finally out of his face. The moonlight painted him in its silvery glow and Dream's heart started to race in anticipation.
"What's your opinion on arson?"
//
I mean, arson is nice and all. Very warm, gets rid of evidence, pretty, and like literally so relaxing (for legal reasons, this is joke. I have not committed crimes, ever). So anyways, how have you guys been? I've been sobbing over tests and deadlines for the past week.
Headcanon: Tubbo is extremely sensitive to loud noises, especially bangs and things breaking. They make him jump and set him really on edge, so Tommy (and sometimes Wilbur) will do whatever they can to cheer him up.
Word Count- 2313