T/W: Suicidal Behaviour (Again)
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The warmth of the coffee cup feels comforting in Philza's colder hands as he's looking at Ranboo, who's watching the television. The particles that usually surround him seem a bit more aggressive than usual, although they might just be filled with more energy than usual. It paints a smile on his face to know that there's at least someone who feels relaxed here.
Philza is not. Philza is not at all relaxed.
He got some concerning calls from both his sons. Wilbur on the calls sounded... psychotic. Delusional and manic. Technoblade, meanwhile, told him about some deal he had managed to make or something that he'd been wanting to do for years now that he could finally be able to do. Neither were right in the head at the time of the phone call, and Phil is wondering if he maybe should go after them. But what can he do?
Niki also went with them and apparently, so did some others, under whom Quackity and Fundy.
"Phil? Are you okay?" Ranboo asks, getting Philza out of his cursed thoughts and anxious mind. The old man simply lets out a sigh.
"I am, I am. Don't worry about me, mate."
"Something's bothering you, though. What is it?"
Ranboo's knowing eyes are focused on him, the two different colours shining just as bright as their twin. Unlike inside of the walls of the Syndicate's home, Ranboo always has had to pretend. To pretend to be something else, just in order to assure his own safety. Just to make sure that he wouldn't be taken away and experimented on. Of course, Philza also has to hide his wings from the public, but he chose to have them, while Ranboo did not decide to be what he is.
"I'm just thinking about Wilbur and Techno. I'm glad that they're talking again, of course, but surely, it can't be me that thinks their behaviour was quite alarming?"
Ranboo keeps staring at him for a moment, a slight hint of confusion in his eyes. "Do you... not know?"
"Do I not know what?" Philza asks right away, realizing that the young friend knows a lot more than he does.
"Do you not know why they're working together?" When Philza shakes his head, Ranboo continues. "It's Y/N, Phil. Y/N is the reason why they're getting along so well."
"What do you mean?" Of course, Phil knows how much Techno cares about you. He knows about all the times that Technoblade regretted ever leaving you like he did. And yet, he does not understand what Ranboo is getting at.
"I can't explain what it is about them. They're like crypto: everybody knows it's a scam, but they still fall for it." That's the moment Philza knows. The moment he understands. The moment he gets what Ranboo means. "I don't know what it is. Maybe they're cursed, maybe they have something in their aura. Maybe it's thanks to a failed experiment. Maybe it's how they're born. Maybe they're an anomaly like me, maybe they're just human like you. In any case, quite some people seem to love them in an unhealthy way." Philza puts his cup on the table and comes closer to Ranboo.
"How do you know all of this? I know you've met them, but still."
"Apparently, some crazy shit went down at DeMeter yesterday. Tubbo told me about it. Y/N cut off their arm just to escape them."
"Escape? Surely, it can't be that bad."
"Nobody would cut off their arm just to escape someone if it isn't that bad, Phil." Phil falls silent. He doesn't want to believe that his sons could bring someone to do that. But the desire to ignore the story is not any stronger than his fear to lose another person he loves.
"Then we should help them," Phil states firmly. "We can't have anyone die just because we choose not to intervene."
"I don't think we should, Phil. The fog outside is too thick to properly look through, so your wings will be useless. Besides, Y/N will be able to solve this themselves, I bet."
"But what about my sons?"
"The only people who I think might be in danger are Tommy and Tubbo, but even then, I think they'll survive."
Phil lets out a sigh as he puts his hands on his arms, not feeling very relaxed. "I hope you're right."
Following Technoblade further and further into the City, you quickly come to discover that the familiarity of it is not without reason. Especially not when you're standing in front of a very familiar building. "Let me guess," you start, "you want to go up again? Are you going to let me beat you once more, Technoblade?" Techno chuckles.
"How'd you know?"
"You're predictable," you simply shrug and you cross your arms, climbing up in the same way as last time. Technoblade also does this, before the two of you are standing on one of the highest buildings in the City. You want to look down and watch the ant-sized people down there, but the clouds below you, you can almost touch, while they hide what is underneath.
"Don't fall down, Y/N," Technoblade states. "A fall from up here will be your death."
"I'm not an idiot," you simply respond as you look over the edge of the building. You've looked death in the eyes before, so this doesn't terrify you. Technoblade seems a lot more stressed about this, though.
"Come on, let's get away from the edge a little," he says, as he grabs your arm and drags you a bit back. His warm pig paw is now around your wrist, which at first doesn't alarm you, but it does when he doesn't let go.
"Techno? You said that you would be able to help me, so what is it?" you ask, trying to come over as genuine and hide your suspicion. Technoblade's grip loosens, but he doesn't let go yet.
"We have to talk, Y/N." The serious look in his eyes is unmistakably sinister, but you don't point it out just yet. What is it that the pig has to tell you? "You probably know this already, but I've had feelings for you for a much longer time than you might realize. I just- I really like you. As in, love you, not just 'you're a good friend'. I don't know, I just admire you and I have done so for a very long time."
"Tech, no," you tell him strictly, not wanting to hear anymore, but he continues.
"Y/N, yes. I can't just act as if I want to be your friend when I want to be more. And you know this. I know you do. I also know that you've had to deal with a lot of things lately, but neither of us can act as if there's absolutely nothing going on." When you remain silent, not wanting to respond, he continues. "I really, really, like you and I can help you and I want to help you. But I can't do that when I know that you don't feel the same."
"So you did lie to me," you say and he lets out a sigh.
"It's not betrayal, Y/N. It's a deal. I am the one who has had to deal with these feelings for over a decade now, the least you can do is help me too." You hate him for this. You hate him so much for this. Is he really trying to play the victim?
Instead of giving him what he wants, you spit in his face with disgust after which you get a cough attack. When you're finally done, you look at him with hatred. "Fuck you, Techno," is all you say, not wanting to get into a debate with him about this. "I have a lot more shit to worry about at the moment than your victim complex." Technoblade looks at you offendedly, but before he can say anything else, other voices enter your mind.
"Well said, Y/N," Wilbur's familiar voice speaks after the door to the building opens. "You're so amazing with words, don't you agree, Dream?" The man turns his head to the robot next to you, who holds his eyes on you.
"It's one of the things I admire about them, yes," he responds and you can feel your heart freeze. You feel like a man who's about to be overthrown by his own people. A revolution, ready to torn down everything you've been trying to build. Niki, Fundy, Quackity, Sam, Karl and Sapnap are there too. And Tommy and Tubbo. Tommy and Tubbo seem to immediately know why they're there when they see you, but Quackity is clueless, although it seems like he's slowly putting the pieces together. Sam holds no emotion on his face, but considering he's looking at Dream and Wilbur, you guess that he's waiting for the moment to pin them down.
"We are here to compliment Y/N?" Quackity asks confusedly, looking at Wilbur and Wilbur laughs, throwing his arm around the man's shoulders immediately.
"No, Quackity. We're here to let them make a choice."
"What?!" That's the moment he realizes properly as he glances over at the teenagers. "Hold up, no, no! We can't just do that fucking shit! What the fuck, Wilbur?"
"What about you keep your mouth shut, Quackity. Let the professionals do this." Quackity looks over at Sam, who stares back. You see Quackity's hand reaching into his pocket, but you can't focus on what he does as Wilbur quickly comes closer, while Technoblade holds his hand on your back. And you remain frozen in place, staring at him with hostility in your eyes.
"The only thing you're a professional in is sucking your own dick, asshole," you snarl at him and his cheeks darken a little. "Fucking masochist," you mumble at the event and he only laughs, putting his hand on your chin, but before any of the other people behind him can protest, you bite him.
Yes, you fucking bite him, and hard too.
He lets out a scream as you managed to make him bleed and he takes a few steps back, looking at the blood. Even if his face heats up, you hope that it's out of embarrassment. "That was for Sally, you fucking bitch-ass tomato face!"
"What we went through," Wilbur starts, panting through his words as he keeps his eyes focused on the blood, "was mutual."
"So? Just because you get poisoned by the person who you poisoned and you two die at the same time doesn't make it any better, you useless toe-eyed cabbage!" And right after you say this, you punch Technoblade in the face as well. "And this is for always playing the victim, you stupid rectum socket!"
A/N: Credits to Satan in a Sweater for the unique ways to insult people.
Technoblade also backs off now, thank God, but he quickly draws his weapon and points it at Tommy. The message is clear. "Behave yourself, Y/N," Dream states as he takes a step forward as well. "Otherwise Tommy will be gone." Tommy makes eye contact with you. A terrified look in his eyes, although there seems to be more concern in them for you. Tubbo wants to protest, but he cannot find the courage to stand up against this group.
"What the fuck do you want?" you ask him, and the other as well, as Sapnap takes a step forward himself. He has his arms crossed, a scratch on his face, which immediately infuriates you. You suppose that drunk you was right about him being the one responsible for Sherlock's death – if drunk you, at least, had come to that conclusion.
"We want you to choose," he says. "We want you to choose for us, or one of us, or for any way to solve this problem. I've been helping you for long enough and I think Karl and I deserve something back for it."
"What Sapnap is trying to say," Niki says as she also steps forward, "is that we want you to choose one of us. There has to be a soulmate amongst us, right? Your soulmate? And don't feel pressured to choose anything! We'll expect the outcome no matter what happens."
"That's why we're here?" Quackity asks confusedly. Either he's acting or he has genuinely not been informed, but in either case, you don't care. He's patient. He always has been. And you bet that his patience will never run out.
You take a step back, getting closer to the edge, as you scan the people in front of you. "I'm not going to choose any of you. I'm not in love with any of you and you're all fucking crazy if you think that I'm ever going to feel any different about this." Dream tilts his head at you slightly as you point at him angrily, going from him to Wilbur. "You fuckers literally killed a man that I cared about. How are you so delusional that you think you would ever have any chance?!" You look at Techno, your finger also moving toward him. "You are already not that good of a friend, so how are you going to be a good partner?" Your finger moves to Quackity. "You're a my best friend. You seem to have no idea what the fuck is going on here, so I'm not going to shit on anything more than I have been doing for the past twenty years, but we're not going to be more than that." Your finger goes to Sam. "I already rejected you." You go to Karl and Sapnap. "You killed my cat. You are the fiancé of the person who killed my cat." Then you look at Fundy and Niki. "I just can't be with you. Even if I wanted to, which I don't, I can't be with either of you."
You lower your hand again, before glancing at Dream, tilting your head as well.
"You got what you wanted. All of you got your own, personal rejection. Are you happy now?"
"No, Y/N. I am not happy. You still have to choose." Dream takes a few steps forward, but you keep him at a distance with your own robotic arm. He chuckles. "If you don't, I will do it for you." There is no way out. Rejecting them all again, will likely result in Tommy getting harmed and you too. But you can't choose for any psychopath whatsoever. And even if you did choose for a safer option – such as Niki or Quackity – that will not lead to any good either. Realistically, they'll just get killed off too, until the last one is left, who will not let you go.
There seems to be only one escape. Only one way to solve the problem.
You take a few more steps closer to the edge before you spread your arms, as if they are the wings that will carry you. The wings that will bring you close enough in the fog for you to disappear in their eyes, but will assure you to not fall to your death. Wings which they cannot see yet, but you know will be there once they have a job to fulfil.
"You want me to choose, Dream?" you say mockingly, already too close to the edge now. "Then I have made my decision." You can feel a grin creep up on your face as you chuckle a little. "I choose Sally."
Barely anyone can properly process what happens in time and before they can do anything, you've thrown yourself into the clouds below, while the people who claim to love you watch.
You choose Sally.
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FANART SECTION
Y/N in Omori Style (plus robot arm)
Made by: Avery!