TW: SWEARING, YELLING, VIOLENCE, TRAUMA
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My feet thunder down the prime path with the following booms of Ranboo, Sapnap and George's footsteps close behind me. My axe is comfortingly heavy in my hand, as is the weight of my crown and armour. People watch us as we pass them, they all knew where we are headed.
Why the fuck is this happening now? Is all I can think, is all the voices will speak. Of all things to come up today, this was the last on the list. Whoever this woman is, she's formidable and has nerves of steel. Kidnapping Schlatt? We ruled out that option a long time ago. It was too risky, his defences too strong and too many.
The crowds thicken so much we're practically shoving people out of the way. Confused and infuriated voices thicken the air making it feel like soup. I peek over shoulders to spot Tommy and Tubbo trying their best to control the front of the pushing and shouting crowd.
"MOVE PEOPLE!" Sapnap's voice booms but our authority means nothing to the angry mob.
"MURDERER! VILLAIN! BASTARD!" I hear people shouting. We break through to the front after shoving through what felt like hundreds of civilians.
The first thing I see is Schlatt. Ranboo takes a sharp breath beside me. Schlatt's head was in a bag, but that didn't stop the blood from seeping through it on the side. His clothes are in tatters, tie loose and torn, suit jacket discarded, trousers muddied. Seeing him made something inside me want to hide and something else inside me want to swing my axe and cut off his head right then and there. His wrists and ankles were cuffed with the thickest iron chains I had ever seen.
A/N: Image from interest <3
Next, I see the woman, but she was more like a girl. I would even say that she was younger than Tommy if I could see her face. A hood and mask veiled her complexion. Only her eyes were visible. Green and almost glowing, she didn't quite seem human.
Atop her massive black stallion, decked out brilliantly in Netherite armour, she was like an ant. Petite and fit, a great Netherite longsword on her back that gleamed with enchantments.
For someone so young, she was incredibly intimidating. But there was something else too. I felt it radiate from her like heat from a stove. An incredible air of wisdom, far beyond the years of anybody here. Wisdom and great knowledge and something I couldn't place. I decide to be wary of it until I can be sure she's trustworthy.
"What is your business here?" I ask her over the roar of the crowds.
"I've captured Schlatt, and I'm handing him in obviously," she rolls her blazing green eyes. Her voice tweaks something familiar, but I don't bother to place it. I take a deep breath knowing that there's only one way to deal with the situation.
"If you would please follow us to the prison. We can deal with this matter properly there," I swear her eyes crinkle up in a smile.
"I'd be delighted," her voice was sweeter now. Not knowing how to react I nod and then turn to Tommy.
"Do you have a radio?" I ask him, it takes a moment for him to process my words but then he nods profusely and takes a radio off his belt.
"Dream, Techno, meet me at the prison immediately, Eret we need you for crowd control," I say into the radio hoping that I can be heard clearly.
"We'll deal with crowds, you start walking," George says motioning to Sapnap who was already working on it. I thank him and turn to the girl again. I feel so small next to her.
I walk past her horse and run a hand down his silky neck. His mane was braided tightly as was his tail. I lean into his aura trying to get a feel for the animal and his partner. A wave of calm rushed to mind, but also a sense of formidable power. He watches me carefully but is ultimately completely relaxed and waiting for his next command by his master.
He was a good horse, well trained for any situation. Bombproof was the best way to describe him. I turn to the girl who was watching me examine her horse intently.
"Would you walk with me?" I ask, she shrugs indifferently.
"Sure."
I offer her my hand and help her down from her steed. Tubbo takes Schlatt's chains whilst Ranboo takes the girl's horse. Tommy keeps guard behind Schlatt eyeing anybody who gets too close. As we walk I feel the air grow awkward and decide to attempt some conversation.
"It's not often that someone like you appears around here with a gift so rare," I state. The girl chuckles.
"Was it dramatic?" she asks and I feel my lips tug upwards in a smile.
"It was."
"Then my plan is partially complete," she stretched her arms out in front of her, cracking her interlocked fingers with a melodramatic sigh. At least she had a sense of humour.
"Do you work as a mercenary?" I ask trying to get a handle on this girl's talents. She walks like a mercenary. Tall, despite her slight stature and with her palms brushing close to her belt of tools, potions and knives.
"Of a sort," she shrugs. I can't help but be intrigued as she continues.
"I saw what the Dark Army was doing, and I thought it would be fun to take matters into my own hands seeing as nobody has gotten anywhere," I'm beyond amazed at this point. She snuck past what could have been thousands of soldiers, outposts and weapons... for fun?! I try to keep a calm exterior.
"We are spread thin, but morale will skyrocket once our troops hear of Schlatt's capture," I say. The girl hums in thought.
"Are you the goddess ruling the war?"
I laugh. It was comforting to her more innocent words fall from her mouth. She reminded me of Tommy when we first met in that sense.
"Is that what they're calling me?" I chuckle.
"Yeah... it's pretty cringe," she chuckles with me.
Our conversation stays light as we walk slowly to the prison. The whole way people would look and shout but at least we were past the thick crowds. I was surprised by how easygoing the girl was. For a mercenary, she was relaxed and humble unlike so many I had come across during the war.
Although the mood was light and the young girl was clever, Schlatt's calm silent presence behind us was enough to keep the voices talking.
****
I am glad to have a wall between me and Schlatt. But I couldn't help looking at his horrible face. I don't want to look, I don't want to be reminded of all he had done to me. But a niggling fear wormed in my stomach forcing me to watch him. The fear he would escape and take me with him if I looked away for a split second.
Every time his eyes seem to land on me, I am reminded of who I was in the city. How I had screamed and wailed and then ultimately complied under his orders. The look on his face when I would come up gasping for air, my hair soaking wet from the water. He wouldn't smile, but he would pretend to sympathise with me, pretend to wish he didn't want to hurt me. When I was brainwashed, he would offer his arm like a gentleman, talk politely, let me keep things like they were special, always pretend to care.
Sam stood menacingly by the door that lead into the interrogation room. Inside, Schlatt was chained to the Blackstone walls with Netherite cuffs on his ankles and wrists. Antfrost and Bad were guarding just outside the door. I was startled when I saw Badboyhalo at a regular human height. I was so used to seeing him in his naturally giant form, it hadn't occurred to me that a devil could shrink to whatever size he pleased.
Tubbo, Tommy and Ranboo sit around the table we have in the centre of the room. It was empty now, but I knew soon documents of all sorts would be strewn across it. The mercenary girl, still hidden behind her hood, leans on the wall.
I jump when I feel something brush my ankle, I look down and see Ranboo's tail. When had he gotten up? I look to my side and see him there. He puts an arm around my shoulders comfortingly.
"⊬/⋏, ⏁⊑⟒⍀⟒'⌇ ⋏⍜ ⌿⍜⟟⋏⏁ ⟟⋏ ⍙⏃⏁☊⊑⟟⋏☌ ⊑⟟⋔," he tells me quietly. I notice Tubbo perk up and I wonder if he's learnt some Enderian. The girl looks the most intrigued by the strange language on our tongues. It was almost strange to me too, I had become so used to Ranboo speaking English.
"⟟ ☍⋏⍜⍙, ⏚⎍⏁ ⟟ ☊⏃⋏'⏁ ⌰⍜⍜☍ ⏃⍙⏃⊬," I say turning back to the cell. I felt numb inside. Schlatt couldn't see us through the glass, to him it would look like another wall, but I swear to the gods that he's staring right into my soul.
"⟟ ☍⋏⍜⍙ ⍙⊑⏃⏁ ⊬⍜⎍ ⋔⟒⏃⋏, ⏚⎍⏁ ⏁⊑⏃⏁ ⎅⍜⟒⌇⋏'⏁ ⋔⟒⏃⋏ ⏁⊑⏃⏁ ⊬⍜⎍ ⌇⊑⍜⎍⌰⎅ ⏚⟒ ⌰⍜⍜☍⟟⋏☌," he sighs. I lean my head on his shoulder.
We feel the same way about this. When Schlatt is around, we change. Our brains switch to survival mode, take in all surroundings, expose all threats. It was terrifying to me, that one person could do that to another. It shows how delicate we are despite the strength of our armour.
I'm jolted from my daze by the sound of rushing footsteps and yelling. I know both the voices like the back of my hand. Dream is first to bust through the door, his mask looking more menacing than usual and his voice more desperate than it had been for a while.
A/N: strongly suggest you loop Cornfield Chase by Dorian Marko as you read this next section. I was listening to it when I wrote this and I swear to god it made everything SO MUCH BETTER LIKE I JUST GAHHHHH
"Y/N, are you ok?" the words fall from his mouth hard and fast as he sweeps me into an embrace. I hold him tightly as he grips the back of my neck and my lower back like his life depends on it. I feel sadness pang in my chest and my eyes threaten to tear as I realise the extent of his worry.
"I'm fine I promise," I say to him trying to get his grip to loosen. He pulls away but keeps his hands on my shoulders. I smile for him as best I can.
"I swear to the gods this is ridiculous," Techno mutters under his breath and paces the room, his cloak drifting behind him. He cusses and swears at how we've moved troops away from their positions for the attack we had planned for tomorrow because Schlatt's here.
Dream turns around spotting the girl and just about has a fit.
"Why is she still here?" he demands from the room.
"She brought Schlatt in," I grip his arm trying to remind him to stay grounded. I know he's scared, last time Schlatt was here he took me with him.
"She could be working for Schlatt! You shouldn't have let her in here-"
Dream freezes as the girl chuckles. I frown and try to work out what's wrong. But the mask is too good of a blockade for even me to break through. The girl's simmering laughter seems to have him in a trance. He turns slowly to looks at her, stiff as a board. The tension in the room was palpable.
"Wow," she smirks and Dream takes in a sharp breath.
"You're as stupid as when I left," she says cooly.
Slowly, her hands peel back her intricate hood. Blond curls tumble and bounce, free from their bond. She shakes them out with one hand and with the other she unclips her mask.
A memory hits me in the face. The photo. The one Schlatt showed me all that time ago.
It was her.
Her green eyes shone as she revealed her delicate face. Fine features and freckles reminded me of a newborn fawn. Freckles so prominent I swear they could've been drawn on. She was stunning.
I look to Dream as he finally moves. He takes his hand slowly from my shoulder, and I see that he's trembling horribly. Everybody in the room looked at one another in complete bafflement as Dream undid the buckle behind his mask.
It drops to the floor with a loud clack.
My heart cracks when I see the silent tears sliding down Dream's cheeks.
I look back to the girl and am surprised when I see her whistful smile and the cracks in her unshakeable facade.
"Hey, big brother," her voice cracks.
Dream opens his arms.
She leaps into them.
****
Drista and I comfort Dream as he sobs at the table, gripping her hand like a lifeline. I told Ranboo to get the others out before Dream broke down. Sam, of course, had to stay but he was an expert at being undetectable, I have barely noticed his presence unless I looked directly at him.
I gently rub circles of Dream's shaking back as Drista holds his hands.
"Wow, Y/N's really made you soft dumbass," Drista pokes, her blond curls bouncing.
"I thought you were dead!" he cries keeping his face pressed in his arms.
Everything had slowly been clicking in my brain. The photo Schlatt showed me meant nothing now that I know Drista is Dream's sister. Dream's abandonment issues and fear of being alone and fear of losing me were more understandable with context. We had never discussed it before, I was waiting until he was ready to tell me.
"Do you really think I'm that weak?" Drista scoffs.
"You left! The only thing you left behind was that fucking cryptic letter and this ring!" Dream bangs his fist on the table making the ring on his pinky finger clink. I had never asked about that either. I just assumed it was something he found. The delicate emeralds were weaved in a silver frame that made them look like ivy vines.
"I'm sorry, I had no choice," she says.
"Why did you leave?" I ask. She hurt Dream a lot, he deserves to know what she was doing. Drista sighs and looks up at the ceiling, her freckles catching in the dim Redstone light.
"My mother and I both were blessed with foresight at birth. Some hereditary bullshit. Anyway, I had a vision about Dream." Something in my brain lights up as I finally recognise why her aura was so strange. She was blessed, and the only beings who could give her and her mother such a gift were the gods.
"I was afraid, so I left," she admits shaking me from the thousand extra thoughts that were flooding my brain.
"If you're so afraid of me, why come back?" Dream's voice was steadier and inevitably bitter, Drista flinches.
"I wasn't afraid of you brother, I was afraid of what you would become," she squeezes his hands.
"What do you mean?" I ask. Drista bites her lip thoughtfully.
"In my vision, I saw Dream spiralling. Using power as a coping mechanism and then eventually destroying everything between the two oceans," I feel Dream tense under my hands. We knew all too well she was right about two things. He did spiral out of control and grabbed at power in the most destructive way possible.
"I came back because I had that same vision again, but it was Schlatt," I look away from Dream and up at Drista. She reveals nothing behind her eyes.
"You chose to fight instead of fleeing," I say for her, she nods.
"In my time away, I earned money as a mercenary. It was the only way to protect myself and Sparticus," I frown not recognising the name, but Dream stopped trembling for a second.
"Sparticus?" he asks, Drista's smile melts onto her face.
"He's waiting outside for you," she says softly. I notice her tap Dream's ring with her finger. Her eyes are wistful and full of acceptance, I'm sure she felt remorse too. I wonder if she's the sort of person to blame herself for things that are ultimately left to others.
"You kept it," her voice almost breaks as she slips into a whisper. Slowly Dream sits up and wipes his weeping face, eyes red from crying.
"It was all I had left of you, of course I kept it," he mutters. I feel something emotional choke my insides, catching my breath as I see Drista's expression grow teary. She hugs him again tightly and he buried his face in her hair. I only dare speak once Drista has pulled away.
"How did you know to come to us?" I ask her.
"People talk," she shrugs. "I hear my brother had found himself a goddess to be his queen and that they were leading a massive war to destroy Schlatt's armies," I force away my blush. Dream notices and slips one of his hands into mine, he feels warm.
A cough in the corner disrupts the tension we had built. I had completely forgotten Sam.
"Would you rather interrogate Schlatt another time?" Sam asks politely. I smile at him apologetically knowing how much effort it takes to move high-security prisoners, he smiles back. Dream looks to me and Drista before making a decision.
"We should go," he says. We nod and exit the room. As we do, I hear Sam mutter into the radio on his belt. We leave and straight away Bad and Antfrost go inside. I have a feeling they'll be moving Schlatt to the more specialised cell.
We weave through the guard hallways of the prison. At the front, a guard lets us out through the portal.
I hold my hand up to the yellow sun to stop it from blinding me as I step into the light from the small portal room. I instantly spot Ranboo, Tubbo, Tommy and Techno waiting at the fenceposts where the horses were tied up.
"You guys finished crying yet?" Tommy folds his arms and yelps as Techno elbows him. Drista laughs and assures him it's over.
"Do you guys want to stay at the house tonight?" I ask them noticing how low the sun had drooped in the sky. They all agree, Tommy, Tubbo and Ranboo especially since Michael and Shroud were at the house with Niki for the day anyway. I shake my head barely remembering how I had spent the morning with Ranboo on the battlefield. It feels like an age ago. Was I desensitized to the fighting now?
I'm pulled out of my thoughts as Dream lets go of my hand making me feel cold. He walks over to Drista who was patting her black stallion, Sparticus.
As Sparticus spots Dream, I notice his aura change almost visibly. He nickers as Dream runs a hand over his velvety nose to his big rounded jaw. Sparticus nudges Dream's hip where his mask was sitting on his belt. The clever horse remembered exactly what Dream was like before he left. I see Dream chuckle and then he waves me over.
"Y/N, I'm sure you've met Sparticus," he says quietly. I feel slightly moved as I watch the bond between Sparticus and Dream. I had only ever seen something this strong between Dream and Spirit.
"How's Spirit?" Drista asks although her tone suggests she already knows the answer. If she loved Spirit as much as Dream did then I'm sure her foresight would have shown her what happened. Dream's shoulders visibly sag.
"I'm sorry," is all he can bring himself to say. Drista takes in a deep breath to compose herself and then she pats Sparticus' huge shoulder.
"It's alright," she breaths.
****
I practically run to the door of the house, elated to see my favourite nephews. I kick my boots off at the front door and peel off my armour as quickly as I can. I leave it in the chest outside and bust the door open.
"Boys!" I call and step into the kitchen where I could smell food.
"Y/N!" they say and jump down from the kitchen stools and rush over to me. They giggle as I scoop them up and spin us all around and come into the dining room. I kiss their cute faces over and over making them groan and laugh as they try to push me off.
"You two are so rude," I pout jokingly. They erupt into protesting chatter making me laugh and cuddle them tighter.
"Hey save some for me!" I turn and am met with Dream's smiling face. He looked as if he couldn't be happier. He growls playfully and pulls all three of us into his arms making Michael and Shroud squeal.
"Uncle Dream!" Michael swaps from my arms to Dream's making me laugh. Dream is stunned, I have a feeling he's never been called uncle before.
I see Tecno plonk down on a chair tiredly and Shroud leaps out of my arms and onto the ceiling as he spots Tommy.
"Shroud! Don't leave any webs up there," he scolds but is unable to keep a straight face as Shroud drops onto his back.
"Hi Tommy," he simpers. Tommy pulls him around into a big hug.
"Hey kiddo," I feel myself melt when I see his proud smile.
"Michael?" Ranboo calls as he walks in with Tubbo just behind him.
"Boo!" Dream puts Michael down and he runs over to Ranboo who scoops him up with his tail. Ranboo dangles Michael upside down making him laugh like he's just heard the best joke in the whole world.
"There's my boy!" Tubbo steals Michael away and tosses him up in the air making the little piglet squeal excitedly. I spot Dream waving Drista into the house from where she had been nervously hovering in the hallway. She watches in amazement as the dads hug their sons and make them laugh. I don't think she'd ever seen anything like it, but for us, this had become the norm.
Since the war started, we had all promised ourselves to spend as much time as we possibly can with the boys. The truth was that any one of us could die on the field. Michael and Shroud knew that too but were too young to understand it. So now, whenever we saw them, we'd make them laugh and smile and squeal with delight. The greatest gift we could give them was the time we had.
"Oh dear, I wasn't expecting so many people," Niki chuckles nervously and looks at the oven. I smile and immediately join her in the kitchen and wash my hands.
"Don't worry Niki, I'll help make more," I smile at her and she smiles back.
"I'll help too, I'm Drista by the way," Drista says peeling off the last of her armour and tossing it into the now overflowing chest in the hallway.
As Drista, Niki and I chat and pull out leftovers and start boiling pasta to go with the casserole Niki had made, the kids push the boys around like toys. Except for Techno, somehow he had managed to escape and was sitting at the bench watching us cook intently. I hope he's trying to learn how to make something other than stew and rice.
The boys have taken coloured pencils from my room and dragged the bigger boys into the living room. Last I looked, Tubbo was laying down on the floor whilst Michael sat on him because the coffee table was an awkward height and Tubbo's back made the perfect chair. Tommy sat on the couch talking to Ranboo with Shroud using Tommy's feet as a chair sitting opposite Shroud. Dream sat with his back to the empty fireplace chatting to the boys as they drew on pieces of paper.
"Boys dinner!" Drista shouts as we put the last plates of food on the table.
Michael and Shroud sit on either side of me as we eat. They must have been hoping I wouldn't tell them to eat their salad, but they weren't getting off the hook so easily. The house is filled with joy and laughter and the occasional protests from Shroud and Michael as Tommy and Tubbo force them to eat their greens. Cosette flutters downstairs with a crow and a letter from George and Sapnap saying that they were staying the night in the castle and were exhausted from controlling crowds all afternoon.
We laugh and talk for what feels like hours. The room was warm and bubbling and full of light. Everybody helps to clean up and then we split off into our rooms. Techno says he's going to spend the night monster hunting and he'll be back in the morning. I hug him goodbye and tell him to bring back some spider eyes for my experiments. He laughs and agrees before galloping off on Carl.
Tommy and Shroud go to his room for the night and Ranboo, Tubbo and Michael to Tubbo's room. I give Drista my room and yawn as I walk down the hall to spend another wonderful night with Dream.
I stop short as I spot Dream sitting on the bed and staring at the window mindlessly. I enter quietly and shut the door behind me. We had all already changed into more comfortable clothes, swapping our tight clothes built for fighting for loose cotton shirts and tracksuit pants.
"Dream?" I say, he stays quiet only enhancing my worries. "What's wrong?"
He turns slowly to look at me. His eyes seem vacant and he twists the ring on his finger around and around.
"Y/N, am I dreaming?" his voice leaves my heart in shattered pieces.
It was a question he asked often before we went to sleep, but I hadn't heard it for a while, he was getting better. His mind forced him to believe that he was asleep and that I wasn't really in the room with him or that Tommy was still in exile. He'd sometimes wake in cold sweats and burst into tears when he finally saw me. It always took a lot of convincing to get him to believe me.
But now, I knew he wouldn't need much to be sure of himself again.
"No love, you're very much awake," I smile and sit on the bed next to him.
He lets out a breath he had been holding and rests his head on my shoulder. I hold his hand, slipping our fingers between one another and bringing it to my lips in a kiss. His touch made something in my heart sing and the voices quiet to barely a whisper.
I look away from his relieved face and realise why he was staring out the window. I see the sky littered with stars and know the moon must have disappeared for the night. He sighs peacefully finally starting to relax after the intense day.
"We're all here."
~~~~
HELOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
omg omg omg omg omg DRISTAAAAAAAAAAA SHE'S BAAAAAAACK
Felt like publishing this one today, it has been collecting dust waiting to be released for a while.
I HOPE YOU HAVE A WONDERFUL MORNING/DAY/EVENING/NIGHT <3 <3 <3 <3
You got this :D