TW: SWEARING, YELLING, FIRE, BLOOD, VIOLENCE
(Fanart by @Shmeckdoesstuff on twitter they're super pog and I love their art go check them out) (also this is how I imagine Shroud looks)
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"I still want you to come with me," Dream sighs tightening our embrace. I smile slipping my thumbs through the back belt loops of his jeans. His mask, sitting on top of his head allowed me to have a last glimpse of his pretty face, glowing in the morning light. Sunrise was slowly coming to an end which meant Dream had to go into the SMP.
"I would come, but Tommy needs me and so does the kid," I smile regretfully wishing we could be spending more time together. My arms felt electric from where Dream's hands were resting on them thoughtfully. He rolls his foresty eyes making me chuckle.
"I also need to keep our information up to date, Lorelei and Myles should be coming back here sometime today with notes from territories about recourses and all other kinds of fun shit," I sigh thinking about how much effort it is to hold together a rebellion. Did Wilbur ever do this much work?
"Lorelei and Myles might only get here tomorrow, you know what the roads are like," I hum knowing exactly what he meant. Travel that should take a day could sometimes take a week if Dark Army patrols got in the way. It's too dangerous to send sensitive documents by crow so we need to deliver them by hand.
"You know they all think you're the queen right?" Dream teases and I blush burying my face into his chest trying to enjoy more of the warmth he gave me.
"Shut up," I muffle and smile when Dream's chest shakes with laughter.
"I'll be here when you come back," I say composing myself and looking back up at Dream. He pulls a face and then presses a kiss on my lips that I would have liked to last a while longer.
All too soon I feel the familiar cold air as Dream steps off the verandah to his horse. I wave and he waves back before he pulls his mask on and sets off at a brisk trot. I groan when the voices start muttering their protests as if they hadn't already been listening to our exchange.
"You guys are so needy," I mumble to them going back to the door.
Says you.
I roll my eyes at their reply and shut the front door behind me. I feel myself melt when I spot our spider-hybrid curled up under blankets and cuddled by pillows bigger than his body on the window seat. Tommy cleans up dishes from breakfast as quietly as he can, rolling up the sleeves of his blue cardigan when they slip down and get in his way. I cross the room and take a seat at the kitchen bench.
"Do you think Ranboo and Tubbo bringing Michael is a good idea?" I ask feeling unsure. We had asked them to come before we found the kid. Ranboo had sent a letter asking if it was alright that they still came this morning by a crow. I smirk remembering how excited Cosette had been to see the crow, she seemed to like this particular one.
"Well he needs a bloody name first before he sees anybody," Tommy scowls struggling to clean a pan. He gives up and lets it sit in the water instead, he wipes his hand and comes around the bench to me. We watch the kid quietly.
"I don't want to wake him," Tommy says.
"Me neither, he seems so peaceful," I reply.
"I'm getting the raw pasta," Tommy says and I hum in agreement. He pulls two thin, dried-up spaghetti and breaks them both so they're short and then he breaks one of them again to make it shorter than the other.
"Short spaghetti has to wake him," he declares rolling them around in his fist. He stops and we pull out one each, I draw short.
"I swear you're cheating," I say remembering all the other spaghetti draws I'd lost to Tommy, specifically when he was holing the spaghetti. He sticks his tongue out at me and brushes his longish hair off his face.
I gently sit on the window seat in front of the kid and touch his knee. He wakes instantly with a jolt that nearly makes me jump. At least now he wasn't so keen to run away and hide, but I didn't miss how he pulled the blanket up higher.
"Hey, how did you sleep?" I ask gently. The kid gives me a shy thumbs-up and Tommy comes down and sits cross-legged on the floor by the window seat.
"That's great! We were just wondering if we should give you a name, we don't want to be calling you a number all the time," I explain. The boy nods slowly showing me that he understands. His expression saddens in a way that suggests he wasn't fond of being called "fifteen" either.
"Do you have any names that you like?" I ask but the kid stays silent. I look to Tommy.
"We can pay 'Yes or No' until you like a name," Tommy suggests nonchalantly. The kid nods his head quickly showing us that he likes the idea.
"Alright then, how about Josh?" I ask. He shakes his head and pulls a face making me laugh.
"Kalvin?" Tommy shoots and the boy shakes his head profusely. I laugh again and Tommy grumbles.
"Ben?" He shakes.
"Clementine?" Definitely not.
"Miller?" No.
We go on and on but nothing seems to stick. We sit quietly mulling over all the names we can remember.
"Do you like Shroud?" Tommy suggests. I pull a face feeling sure that the boy will say no again. But instead, he hesitates and thinks for a moment. I watch carefully as the he nods his head smiling.
"Well then Shroud, it's nice to meet you," Tommy sticks out his hand and Shroud shakes it. I'm still confused.
"How did you come up with Shroud of all things?" I ask.
"I actually thought of it last night but it felt stupid so I didn't say anything," Tommy shrugs and Shroud looks at him shyly. Tommy raises a brow but then Shroud slowly crawls closer to Tommy and Tommy works it out and opens his arms for Shroud to climb into. Tommy hugs Shroud and takes his spot on the window seat.
Now for the trickier question.
"Shroud, how do you feel about meeting somebody?" I ask. Shroud's grip on Tommy tightens visibly.
"Don't worry bud, they're very nice people, they aren't going to hurt you," Tommy runs his hands up and down Shroud's back, fingers bumping up and down as they glide over Shroud's six extra legs. We sit letting Shroud digest the idea slowly.
Nervously, he nods.
****
Tommy and Shroud are sitting on the back verandah when I hear knocking on the door. Tommy had been complaining about the butterflies, I could hear his belly-aching from here. Occasionally, Shroud would protest and take the butterflies into the meadow where the flowers swayed gently in the summer breeze. Michael didn't even wait for the door to open properly before he bolted into the kitchen to find me.
"Y/N!" He shouts excitedly and I scoop him up and spin him around.
"Rascal!" I say with just as much energy and just as bright a grin. He giggles as I toss him up in the air and catch him again. I mentally note how strong our latest training routines had made me.
"Michael!" Tubbo scolds as he enters the room. "What did we talk about on the way?"
"Being quiet," Michael drones and flops about in my arms making me laugh. Ranboo is just behind Tubbo with a doting smile on his face. Tubbo crosses his arms making his thick muscles look even larger and gives Michael a sort of stern yet approving look.
"Y/N, where's my new friend?" Michael says to me much quieter than before, but his energy was not lost.
"He's on the back verandah-"
"Great!" Michael moves to leap out of my arms but I hold onto him tightly.
"But!" I stop Michael and turn him around so he's facing me again. "He's very nervous, you have to be gentle, he doesn't come from a good place like Snowchester," I make sure my words are stern. Michael gives me a confused look.
"What happened?" he asks innocently.
"Well, he hasn't told us yet. But we would like him to once he's comfortable with everybody. So, we have to be kind and look after him, promise?" I hold up one pinky finger for Michael. He locks his pinky with mine with a determined expression.
"I promise," he vows and I put him back down on the floor. Michael immediately runs off again, just a little quieter this time. I sigh and turn to the boys with a smile.
"Hey guys," I say hugging them both tightly.
"Are you sure it's a good idea for Shroud to be meeting people so soon?" Tubbo asks keeping his hands on my shoulders as he pulls out of the hug.
"Shroud said he was ok with the idea, we just have to trust him," I explain.
"What's he like?" Ranboo asks.
"Super shy, basically never says a word to Tommy or me. Actually, very much like you when we first met," I smirk at Ranboo and he frowns jokingly and flicks me with his tail.
"Hey!" he whines making Tubbo and I laugh.
"Oh, before I forget, I have correspondence from L'Manburg," Ranboo digs in his suit pocket and pulls out a thick pile of letters bound with twine.
"Can you make copies for me? I want to look after Shroud since Tommy is pretty lost when it comes to kids," I ask and Ranboo agrees almost instantly.
"I'll be in the basement," he waves to Tubbo and me and then disappears down the stairs. Tubbo and I look at one another, nod, and then head out to the back verandah.
I'm surprised when I only see Tommy sitting on the steps with three blue butterflies scattered on his hands.
"Tommy, where is Michael?" Tubbo asks immediately. Tommy says nothing and just points to the meadow. We look up and see the boys picking flowers. Michael chats and chats and runs and makes wild gestures whilst Shroud seems content just to listen. My smile hurts my cheeks.
"I love their friendship already," I mumble to nobody in particular. It's not long before Michael spots me and waves. He looks at Shroud, says something and then grabs his hand and the two of them run over to us. They're both breathless and smiling like idiots; hands teeming with bunches of flowers. I don't think I've seen Shroud so happy.
"Y/N! Y/N! Y/N! Shroud and I want you to braid flowers into Tommy's hair," Michael bounces around excitedly whilst Tommy groans and shakes the butterflies off his hands.
"I told you already, forget it, I don't need more butterflies than I already have," Tommy whines but Tubbo and I just laugh.
"Why can't I have flowers?" Tubbo pouts jokingly.
"Well, you can but we need to pick more," Michael explains showing us all his flowers. Shroud follows suit copying his new friend.
"Or you could just do Tubbo instead of me because there aren't enough flowers," Tommy explains with his hands making him look even more desperate and ridiculous. I smirk as an idea forms in my mind.
"Oh really?" I look down at Tommy and raise an eyebrow. He gives me a confused look, I keep eye contact as I wave my hand forcing a sea of flowers to bloom around the verandah steps. Michael starts jumping around excitedly and Shroud simply looks at me with stars in his eyes.
"I forgot you could do that," Tommy mumbles still in shock making Tubbo howl with laughter as he sits down on the steps next to Tommy.
After some more complaints, we agree to do Tubbo's flowers first. Shroud sits next to me picking flowers to weave into Tubbo's thick mess of hair whilst Michael sits with Tommy looking at butterflies. Tubbo's hair isn't quite as long as Tommy's which made putting flowers in it nearly impossible. We resolve to make mini flower crowns that Michael slides onto the base of Tubbo's horns.
Shroud was pickier when it came to Tommy's hair. He only picked alliums, poppies and cornflowers and Tommy grumbled about how at least the flowers were good. Tommy's hair was the perfect length for weaving the flowers in. I braid poppies into Tommy's white streak and gently weave the rest into his thick blond waves. Shroud, not knowing how to braid flowers in, simply stuck flowers through the little braid by Tommy's ears by their stems. The more flowers we used, the more butterflies landed on Tommy and us.
Tommy doesn't let up his complaining once but it was clear he enjoyed the attention. I tuck flowers behind Shroud and Michael's ears and when Ranboo emerges from the basement we force him to sit down too. Ranboo's hair is long enough that I can braid alliums on the white side which makes the purple colour look even brighter.
I sit back with Shroud and Michael admiring our work.
"We look silly," Tommy grumps again and we all burst out laughing whilst he argues at our indifference.
"That's the fun part!" Tubbo laughs and Tommy just gets more perplexed.
"You're all crazy," he shakes off the dozens of butterflies he had collected but they just hover for a while and land on him again. I laugh taking some off with my fingers and putting them on the flowers in Ranboo and Tubbo's hair instead.
Shroud and Michael run around in the meadow some more and then we all go inside as the hottest part of the afternoon comes around. I pull sandwiches out of the fridge that I had shoved in there before Tubbo and Ranboo arrived.
The boys settle onto a window seat with their sandwiches and a bag of marbles that Tubbo had brought with him. Michael teaches Shroud how to play and once Shroud understands they seem as though they could play together forever.
"What are you guys going to do with Shroud?" Tubbo asks quietly as we sit at the table with our sandwiches and watch them. I purse my lips in thought, I didn't want to send him away but it was what we said we would do. As much fun as he was Dream, George, Sapnap and I are too busy to keep him in the house.
"The orphanage is full but Dream is keeping the extra kids in the castle with Eret. I suppose we'll be taking him there-"
"Absolutely not," Tommy blurts causing all of us to look at him. He starts fumbling with his words as he feels all our unspoken questions at once.
"Shroud isn't like the other kids. He's sensitive and he needs extra care," Tommy stumbles through his bullshit excuse and I feel a grin sneak onto my face.
"You've become attached," I poke and Tommy is quick to reject the accusation.
"No, I haven't. I just think it would be better if Shroud stayed here."
"That wouldn't work, Y/N and Dream are leading the rebellion. They're not here all the time to care for Shroud," Ranboo points out. Like an empty kettle, Tommy reaches his boiling point quickly.
"Well then I'll look after Shroud," Tommy shouts at first but quickly drags his voice down to a mumble so the boys don't understand. His words don't hit me.
"What?" I ask.
"I'll look after him. I'll feed him and shit and I can make clothes for him so he's not wearing shirts with holes in them," Tommy rambles but I still frown.
"Tommy, looking after a kid is a lot of effort, it's not like having a puppy. Are you sure about this?" Tubbo points out. Ranboo and I nod. Tommy was deadly serious, but he was also naive.
"I'm fucking sure guys," Tommy was absolute in his answer. "I just... I don't want him to feel neglected..."
It hits me faster this time. Tommy understands Shroud, on a level that none of us does. Tommy, like Shroud, was abandoned and alone for the longest time in more ways than one. He lost his brothers, found them and then lost one again in the worst way possible. He was exiled by the people he trusted the most. Like Shroud, his light is dimmer than it used to be, dimmed by trauma and fear and anxiety.
I look at Shroud and Michael playing with the marbles. They haven't seemed to notice the seriousness of our conversation and were content to simply enjoy one another's company. I look back at Tommy. He fidgets with his fingers and the hems of his blue cardigan, the one I found for him. His white streak was prominent in his hair and his eyes were greyer than they used to be. He looked older. We had all aged prematurely. We were all broken in some way.
Tommy just wants Shroud to be safe and feel loved. He wants for Shroud the polar opposite of what exile and limbo were. I feel my heart break a little. I just hope Tommy's trauma doesn't hurt Shroud and that I'll be able to step in if it does.
"It's your decision to make Tommy, but," I start and look at everybody at the table seriously.
"If you're keeping Shroud I better be getting another nephew," my serious expression cracks as soon as the words slip from my mouth. The others chuckle and Tommy groans and winges about how everybody is somebody else's aunt or uncle or something these days and how I'll end up like Phil.
Michael and Shroud end up getting on so well that we decide Ranboo, Tubbo and Michael should stay the night instead of going home. I stay up late reading the correspondence Ranboo kindly copied for me, I smile when I notice there are some bits in Enderian from where Ranboo couldn't remember how to spell a particular word. I suppose it's better for confidentiality anyway.
I yawn feeling the late hours getting to me. I keep a hopeful eye on the window waiting for the familiar sound of hoofbeats to tell me that Dream was back. The night gets later and I finish reading all the letters. I sigh taking them to the basement and leaving them lazily on the desk before climbing back upstairs and to our room to get ready for bed.
I frown remembering that it was too hot for sweatpants and pull on some comfy shorts and a tee-shirt instead. I slip into the bathroom, wash my face, brush my teeth. I'm overwhelmed with a sense of loneliness as I walk around the silent house.
I hated being in the house alone. After months of living with George and Sapnap, this house became a place of noise to me. Good noise, the kind of noise that makes something feel like home. Like how I find rain calming or the sound of crunching leaves or wind through the meadow brought me energy and peace.
I flop onto the bed wondering where Cosette is and then remember that she likes to sleep in the forest on warm nights. I toss about unable to sleep and then tiptoe back down the stairs to the front verandah. I sit on the seat by the door and watch the stars.
My mind drifts to places I hadn't thought about in a while. Looking at the stars, I wonder if the gods have an eye on me. Wilbur's words drift around in my head. "History has its eyes on you". He said it so often I never really took in the meaning.
He couldn't have been more right. History has its eyes on us, but Wilbur was wrong to obsess over the fact. It's something that should be accepted, not manipulated. You cannot manipulate history that hasn't happened, it's not our story to tell. It's for the people we leave behind, they tell our stories. I'll tell Wilbur's story, good and bad, people deserve the truth. It will give both of us some peace.
I bring my eyes back to the treeline and squint as I spot a glowing light in the trees. It draws nearer and soon I hear hoofbeats as Dream cuts through the trees holding a glowing object close to his body. I smile and hop off the verandah and make my way to the stables instead. Dream chuckles as I open a stall door for him so he can ride his horse into it.
I shut the stall door and lean on the outside of it so Dream has enough room to take off his horse's tack.
"You waited for me?" he questions peeling off his mask and setting it on his belt. I feel something inside me warm as I note the ease of his actions. The memory of his addiction to the mask is still prominent in my mind.
"Of course," I shrug and open the stall door for Dream as he walks out carrying the massive saddle. I follow him and open the chests where we keep the hay and pull out a flake and take it back into the stall, shoving it into the hay bag. I chuckle as the horse perks up at the notice of food. He nudges me out of the way with his big nose and I slip out of the stall as Dream comes back around the corner.
"What's that?" I crane my neck noticing how Dream seemed to be hiding something behind his back. He angles himself so I can't see.
"You have to close your eyes first," he teases with a handsome grin. I feel my insides get fuzzy at the look.
"Alright," I jokingly eye him making him laugh and then shut my eyes. Dream's hand gently brushes down my arm and to my hand. He brings my hands in front of me and I shuffle letting my eagerness get the best of me.
"Ready?"
"Yes! Show me already!" I demand impatiently stifling my laughter.
"Ok, ok," Dream surrenders and then I feel the weight of a glassy object in my hands. My face must show my perplexion because Dream chuckles heartily.
"You can open your eyes now," he mumbles sounding a lot closer. The first things I see are his eyes and cute freckles. I look down at my hands and gasp when I realise the glass jar is filled with fireflies.
"Fireflies," I breathe and Dream presses his palms to the sides of my face and kisses the top of my head.
"Surprise," He mumbles. I look up quickly and kiss him back, this time letting the kiss last for as long as I want it to. I'm hit by a wave of nostalgia.
Our last night together before I disappeared. I was so happy that night. That was the first time I felt it, the first time I felt like we could last forever.
"Come on," Dream says. "Let's go inside."
We go inside and head upstairs. Dream changes into sleeping clothes in the bathroom. He comes back and we lay on the bed facing one another with the jar between us. I swear the yellow light makes him look even more perfect than he already does. I reach out a hand and trace my finger over the scar on his eye. He smiles sweetly and takes my hand in his making me feel warm.
We eventually fall asleep that way.
~~~~
HELOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
We stay winning.
Here's some information from the inside: I have a massive planning document full of story and fanfiction ideas. It's currently got 3-5 full rough plans for fanfictions and then 12 other small half baked ideas that I'll probably delete later.
I HOPE YOU ALL HAVE AN AMAZING MORNING/DAY/EVENING/NIGHT <3 <3 <3 <3
You're allowed to feel however you're feeling <3