#reminds us of jack wilbur

[bonesandthebees]

man ive spent the past few hours going over everything (i just found out abt this, ironically, cus of el's mod post in your discord lol) and honestly just fuckkkkk himmm.

im so mad abt it. like how could he fucking do that. not only to us, his fans, but to his friends????? how do people just. idk i just dont get how people can do that, look at their actions and go "yeah that was measured and not fucked up"

feel free to ignore this but i wanna say thank you for being open and honest abt this situation and your thoughts. im hoping we as a community can learn to grieve 🩵

and any way your writing turns know you'll have people behind you the whole way

ok real talk abuse is a complicated thing. often times abusers don't even realize they're abusing someone. this is in NO WAY a defense of abusers and certainly not a defense of wilbur fucking soot, but it is important to note. abusers are not wholly evil and terrible people. they are human beings who often don't realize the degree of harm they're causing someone else, either just through being too self-centered to notice, or because they're so blinded by their reasoning for their own actions they think whatever they're doing is justified, or they think they could never be an abuser because they're not trying to hurt the person they love.

I do think any human being can be redeemed, including abusers (with the caveat that no matter what a victim is never obligated to forgive their abuser no matter how much work they've done to redeem themselves), but the first step involves actually recognizing what you did and owning up to it. wilbur clearly cannot own up to what he's done. so fuck him for that. the therapy has clearly done jack shit.

anyway, sorry, tangent over. I'm honestly just so glad to hear how much my asks have been helping people. more than anything I just love this community and want to offer advice where I can, or offer comfort where I can't. just to remind everyone that we're not alone in this.

I'm so lucky to have readers like you guys <3

[cdroloisms]

On the note of c!Dream and the Revolution and L’manburg in particular, I actually wanted to touch on another argument that I see sometimes that I’ve been thinking about lately re. L’manburg’s legitimacy. Because among some groups that are more L’manburg-positive, one take that I feel is decently common is the idea that L’manburg couldn’t be a government because it was only four, five, six people, that the size of the group meant that it was functionally incapable of the power attributed to it. In this, the assertion tends to be that because L’manburg is small, the power it holds is meaningless; it doesn’t have the power and provisions backing it that a regular “government” has, so L’manburg is fundamentally no different from a group of friends that believe in the same thing and therefore work together. The argument, here, seems to be that because the power of L’manburg as a government is manufactured, the power doesn’t actually exist in any meaningful way. 

And the thing about L’manburg to me is that, well, the power being manufactured is...the point? Like. The whole point is that L’manburg doesn’t actually have jack shit to base itself off of, the whole point is that L’manburg is founded on a lie and writes itself into being treated as a legitimate entity through scapegoating other people in a story. That’s the reason why the mythos exists! The mythos needs to exist because it’s the foundation of L’manburg’s existence. Why does L’manburg exist? Because they were ~fighting against oppression~. Why does c!Wilbur have the power to do X, Y, and Z? Because if you’re opposing him you’re on the side of traitors and tyrants and enemies and get out of his fucking country. Just because L’manburg’s existing as a nation and government and what have you is illogical doesn’t prevent it from being treated as a legitimate country and government etc, because in the end people treated it as legitimate and therefore it had real power not only over its own land, but later on over how the entire server operated--see everyone being swept up in the elections, Manberg vs. Pogtopia, etc. 

(What’s especially funny to me about this take is that in a lot of ways, it really reminds me of c!Dream’s opinion of L’manburg during the Revolution. Because while c!Dream definitely saw L’manburg as a threat in terms of the people who were declaring war against him, in terms of the...actual ideology? The whole government thing, “we’re going to be a separate server”? It’s pretty clear that c!Dream thinks that all of that makes NO SENSE WHATSOEVER. He calls L’manburg a “delusional small part” of the server because from his perspective, what the fuck do you MEAN you’re a government now? What do you mean you’re a separate country--scratch that, what do you mean you’re a separate SERVER? Game rules? Whitelist? What the fuck?? You’re a group of people threatening violence because you have a grudge against me, not revolutionaries fighting a nonexistent oppressive rulership like holy shit I’ve NEVER EVEN MET YOU BEFORE? c!Dream approaches L’manburg’s shit as illegitimate and ridiculous and nonsensical from the get go, because yeah, I mean--they’re literally just a small group of people, not the government they claim to be or that they claim they want to form, or whatever. But things...don’t stay that way.) 

Like the whole point is that in the end, it doesn’t matter that c!Wilbur shouldn’t have been able to stick a flag in a piece of land, declare it as his own, make all these arbitrary rules about who could or couldn’t go inside and what they had to do and declare himself leader over these people and leverage joining his little club to keep them from opposing him and use all of that to threaten conflict against a guy he literally never even met before. Because...he did! And with the mythos established, no one challenged that. L’manburg’s policies and power and legitimacy and leadership and what the leader could and couldn’t do were all based in literally nothing and that didn’t matter because people acted like it was a real thing, so it became real. c!Dream fighting against L’manburg and discrediting its legitimacy at the beginning is part of what gives L’manburg legitimacy because the revolution ends up being used as the foundational story that made L’manburg a Real Thing. The elections and c!Quackity challenging c!Wilbur by running against him when the elections were originally rigged ends up reinforcing L’manburg’s legitimacy as the elections become a Real Thing and the leader of L’manburg as established by the elections are a Real Thing, etc. As long as people buy into L’manburg, as long as it’s TREATED as a real entity, then it remains real because that’s what people believe (which is part of why doomsday and L’manburg like, dying required the people within it to become disillusioned w/ the country so they didn’t feel inclined to rebuild it again.) 

People treated L’manburg as a real entity with real power, which gave it real power over people. Nothing should’ve been in place that allowed c!Wilbur to declare a rigged election, or c!Schlatt to execute the Red Festival, or c!Tubbo to create an extrajudicial army that put c!Phil under house arrest and would extend its influence outside of its own land to kidnap c!Techno’s pet and execute him. The reality of the consequences of L’manburg do not depend on whether or not it should’ve logistically had the power to back up what it was trying to do but whether or not people actually treated it like it did, and they did. Just because L’manburg shouldn’t have been capable of acting like a government doesn’t mean that people didn’t treat it as a government the entire time--from its conception to its death, L’manburg was given a lot of power and influence comparable to that of a government because of what was granted to it that allowed the leader of the faction to do a lot of things without challenge or argument “for the country” both to people within the country’s borders and outside of it, and this very real power and influence wasn’t challenged or disturbed because people believed that it had a right to exist. 

YES L’manburg was manufactured! YES that power didn’t make any sense! YES the legitimacy that L’manburg had as a government entity was basically a fucking crapshoot based on jack shit, and yes it had real power anyway. At the end of the day L’manburg was always treated w/ a level of power and legitimacy beyond just being a Group Of People, and therefore that power and legitimacy became real. L’manburg was a government because people treated it as one. L’manburg was powerful and legitimate and free and independent because that’s what the story said, and everyone believed the story, and that’s what’s important moreso than the logic of whether or not it had enough people to actually “be” a government in the first place.

[undescribed1mage]

breaking down my doctor who playlist by what from the show they remind me of the most <3

As The World Caves In by Matt Maltese — The Doctor & The Master, more specifically in The End of Time Part One & Two & Last Of The Time Lords. but also. just. vibes (vibes about the doctor holding the saxon master after he was shot).

Happy Xmas (War Is Over) by John Lennon — All of the Christmas specials but mainly, again, The End of Time part one & two. & . everything about that.

Two Birds by Regina Spektor — The Master and The Doctor, again (they're awful), but also twelve & clara with the bird symbolism and clara leaving when he tried to save her, clara being brave and letting go, and Jack & Torchwood &. everything with that (i've never seen Torchwood but I still know like. most of what happens)

Memories by Conan Gray — Martha Jones, specifically in the episodes after her season (also Jack in seasons 3 & 4). With 'It's been a couple months / that's just about enough time / for me to stop crying when I look at all the pictures / now i kinda smile / i haven't felt that in awhile'. 'You see / it's hard to find an end to something that you keep beginning / over and over again.'

I Know The End by Phoebe Bridgers — Ten's era, with different companions for different parts like — "When I get back I'll lay around / then i'll get up and lay back down / romanticize a quiet life / there's no place like my room." with Donna at the end of Journey's end, and "Out in the park we watch the sunset / talking on a rusty swing set / after awhile you got quiet / and i got mean / always pushing you away from me / but you come back with gravity / and when I call / you come home / a bird in your teeth." (the last line specifically with the fact that Jack was Supposed to be in a good man goes to war). I also think it works very well with The End Of Time Part One & Two & just. the world almost ending at the end of s4

Your Sister Was Right by Wilbur Soot — You know how like. every mother during the RTD (pt1) era slapped the doctor at some point? yeah. just. the doctor in reference 2 rose, martha, & donna & their mothers. as well as the doctor thinking that they're bad news which is something that comes up quite a bit with these songs.

Why Didn't You Stop Me? by Mitski — I don't really know how to explain this one it just. gives me ex-companion vibes, specifically with 'I look for a picture of you / to keep in my pocket / but i can't seem to find one / where you look how I remember'.

Long Live by Taylor Swift — In reference to a companion departure, from the Doctor's pov with 'will you take a moment? / promise me this / that you'll stand by me forever / but if, god forbid, fate should step in / and force us into a goodbye / if you have children someday / when they point to the pictures / please tell them my name.' & 'i had the time of my life fighting dragons with you.' I think, if we're going for a specific companion, it's very the Doctor & Donna coded.

Walking All Day by Graham Coxon — something about how multiple companions have followed the Doctor to the end of the universe (specifically martha & jack but I think it could also work with clara) & how devoted companions are to them, especially the ones that are interested in him romantically (that one rory quote that's him talking about how the doctor makes people want to impress them).

Never Love An Anchor by The Crane Wives — Part of my interpretation with this when it comes to Doctor Who is how the Doctor, after losing a companion, is always 'i will never love again this is the end for me...' & then he meets the next companion & does it all over again (& in specific situations, such as Donna & Amy & Susan & Vicki, they're very similar to the person he just lost), and also how awful ten was to Martha (& Jack) & oblivious to most of it because of the loss of Rose (it's a secret i keep tucked inside my chest / with this heart of mine that's guilty not remorseful / there is love that doesn't have a place to rest / but it would've buried you if it had settled on your shoulders). The Doctor just also (as seen in the Church On Ruby Road) just thinks they're bad news in general (no comment from my end on this) &. yeah

Two paragraphs for this one! The second interpretation I have is specifically the first doctor after the loss of Susan, and how he was (for the end of their time together, which was what we saw in Susans serials) very hard on her especially for her last two serials. Also, him leaving her behind & 'so I did the only thing that I could / and severed the rope that set you sailing from my harbor'. I don't have a lot to say about this but. the doctor & susan make me so :(

Be Safe, Be Good (For Rachel) from Ride The Cyclone — do you ever think about how many deaths (companions or otherwise) (no spoilers please i'm on series ten for nuwho & season two (soon to be three!) of classic who so) the doctor has caused. indirectly or directly. do you ever think about clara & how her family and her students will likely never know what happened to her. do you ever think

Blue Lips by Regina Spektor — originally when i added this to the playlist (back when i was first making it, probably around me watching series five) i had intended it to be about the doctor but now i think it's more about ashildr / lady me and how much she's seen and how much she's lost. she forgets anything she hasn't written down (and rips pages of things she wants to forget out) and she's seen the world in most of it's phases, she's seen societies crumble and rise &. yeah

The Main Character by Will Wood — I have so much 2 say about this one. buckle in. i'm that first person they talk about in all the books.' him being referenced in literally the first episode of torchwood (for valid reasons he is a very important part of jacks story). & 'imagine if protagonists just died in the first scene.' cut to jacks death in everything changes. & 'I loot plot armor from NPCs / well they are to me.' again. the amount of people that have tried to help him & died. specifically one off ones. & 'Villains are everywhere / that's how I know that I'm a hero.' yhe battle of canary wharf. enough said. & 'Her majesty says the royal we demand a stander of loyalty / an agreement to be reverent / link the emperor's new boots' something about tooth & claw. + so much more that i don't feel like elaborating on rn !!!! they even mention daleks in the song <3

Right Where You Left Me by Taylor Swift — SARAH. JANE. SMITH. It is so her coded. The way the doctor left her, and how in School Reunion she talked about how the Doctor was her life (such a good episode btw). & . she was just waiting. for him 2 come back. & . godddd. i'd break down these lyrics too but i'd be saying the same thing (basically just what i've already said) about all of them so. just listen 2 it or look up the lyrics & you'll see.

Thinking About A Potentially Awkward Interaction With An Old Friend by Crywank — another ex-companion song !!! I don't have any in particular for this but i feel like whenever past companions return for an episode or two it's never nearly as awkward as it should've been, especially with Martha & Sarah Jane, especially how much the tenth doctor had grown (& how much Martha had grown !!!) in between s3 & s4 Alone !!!! 'Well memories sure / they're precious / that's true / but I don't want to make any new ones with you' is sooo Martha. & 'It would be nice to underline it / but i know we're both doing fine without the other in our life.' & ESPECIALLY 'yes / time away has taught me that I like this distance from you'.

River Like You by Maya Hawke — the riverdoctorjack polycule is insane. man. & this is on here for them <3 i think a lot about how jack's other male love interests at least vaguely resemble the ninth doctor in some ways, and how he & river are both immortals so they'd be the perfect people to travel with. & how the doctor tries, at times, to separate himself from both of them (much more severe with jack). 'i've loved a river like you before / i'm a river too'.

Motion Sickness by Phoebe Bridgers — Martha Jones deserves to be SO bitter about how the doctor treated her. SO bitter. 'you said when you met me you were bored.' & 'i have emotional motion sickness / i try to stay clean and live without.' & . yeah. martha jones you will always be famous. also 'and while you're bleeding on your back in the glass / i'll be glad that i made it out / & i'm sorry that it all went down like it did.' in reference to the end of time part two.

Smoke and Mirrors by Emily Rohm — certain parts of it. are kind've the like traditional backstory for a companion (with nuwho) like. 19-25 year old girl who lives with her parents & is bored of everyday life & still waiting for her life to begin & then the doctor comes along & she's swept away into time & space & now she's sosososo important !! + 'She walks alone every morning / down the same old street / and wonders how she let her days get stuck on this endless repeat / she wants that movie life / a hero comes to sweep her off her feet / they'll run away'. & there's other parts that could fit but generally. just the same idea

Black Sheep from Scott Pilgrim — 'Hello again, friend of a friend / knew you when / our common goal was waiting for the world to end / now that the truth is just a rule that you can bend / you crack the whip, shape-shift and trick the past again.' literally no other part of this song matters in reference to this playlist. it is just that & the fact that it reminds me of the master <3

The Lucky One by Taylor Swift — companions drive me so crazy btw. specifically companions after leaving the doctor. 'It was a few years later, I showed up here / and they still tell the legend of how you disappeared / how you took the money and your dignity and got the hell out / they say you bought a bunch of land somewhere / chose the Rose Garden over Madison Square / and it took some time, but I understand it now.' with a current companion thinking about a past companion. & just. idk. something about bad wolf & the girl who walked the earth & the most important woman in all of creation & the girl who waited & the impossible girl & so on. the lucky ones.

Mr. Perfectly Fine by Taylor Swift — I've realized that from this playlist it makes me seem like a swiftie but i'm not i just enjoy some of her music & mr perfectly fine is the most tenjack coded song in all of existence. nine being at the very least interested in jack, traveling with him & flirting with him & kissing him & then ten turning around & running away from him & calling him wrong ('mr change of heart'). 'oh he's so smug / mr always wins'. 'hello / mr casually cruel'. 'always at the right place at the right time'. 'he goes about his day / forgets he ever even heard my name' . & last. but oh so definitely not least. ''cause I hear he's got his arm 'round a brand-new girl / i've been pickin' up my heart, he's been pickin' up her / and I never got past what you put me through / but it's wonderful to see that it never phased you'. I am so emotional about doctorjack can you tell.

Viva La Vida by Coldplay (Covered by Annapantsu) — don't ask me why i didn't add the original version on here i just didn't feel like it. anyways. it reminds me a lot of elevens era, with a good man goes to war & rory's line about how he (the doctor) doesn't make people brave, he makes them want to impress him (SO TRUE KING !!!) & the day of the doctor. i think it could also work with the time war & eight & the war doctor (i've only listened 2 some of eighths audios, working my way through them rn). & Maybe the battle of Canary Wharf. just generally. the doctor. & war. & how he is respected. oh & also him being the PRESIDENT OF THE WORLD IN CRISIS ???

Soldier Poet King by The Oh Hellos — saw a post about this in relation 2 ninejackrose & it got me thinking. rory soldier eleven poet amy king. i think if you tried hard enough this template could fit a lpt of the tardis teams. that's all <3

Little Soldiers by The Crane Wives — the master & the doctor. again. 'on the broken backs of all the words we spared / like little soldiers in the trenches' we're gonna take the metaphors a little seriously here & i'm gonna mention how the doctor has a habit of turning companions into soldiers and fighters. & . again. he makes people want to impress him. i think the rest of the song is still very them but that's the only part that i really have anything to talk about (besides 'i swear that you loved me / i swear that i loved you).

Not Strong Enough by Boygenius — 'Always an angel, never a god / Aways an angel, never a god /Always an angel, never a god / Always an angel, never a god / Always an angel, never a god / Always an angel, never a god / Always an angel, never a god / Always an angel, never a god / Always an angel, never a god / Always an angel, never a god / Always an angel, never a god / Always an angel, never a god' is so. companions in general coded. why can't they just have a nice time :(

Nowhere Man by The Beatles — I think this may be one of the only songs on here that portrays the doctor in a semi positive light :-) !!! — oh wait nvm forgot the lyrics. sorry we're criticising the doctor again (i adore them i swear. what a guy) 'He's as blind as he can be / just sees what he wants to see' @ ten. sorry buddy. you're really being attacked in this post aren't you. 'Doesn't have a point of view / knows not where he's going to.' do you ever think about how the doctor just sort've. wanders aimlessly in between companions. like. sir how'd you end up in victorian london wearing amy's glasses. 'Nowhere man / the world is at your command.' They are PRESIDENT OF THE WORLD IN EMERGENCIES. UNIT why would you let them have this power.

Interplanet Janet from Schoolhouse Rock — Added as a joke . for the sillies of it <3

Partner in Crime by Madilyn Mei — another Jack song (can you tell he's my favorite companion) but only like. a certain part of it (i have not listened 2 it all the way through but i heard a clip from it & went oh my god jack harkness... & here we are). 'Run for it / I'll keep 'em occupied for you / 'cause i love you / i love you so / left me hangin' at the station / but you'll be back for me soon / i'm 'bout to die / yet the only thing i'm worried about is you / something tells me you aren't coming / i guess i'm truly doomed.' it is so INSANELY PARTING OF THE WAYS CODED !!! Me when he sacrificed himself for the doctor & rose me when he was so ready to die for them. me when he woke up from DEATH to the tardis dematerializing and leaving him surrounded by dead bodies so far away from his home (which is the tardis. but yk). he was about to die and the only thing he was worried about was them. something tells him they aren't coming. he guesses he's truly doomed. j just. raigdhdjdhhdjd. he drives me crazy.

Don't Look Back in Anger by Oasis — 'Please don't put your life in the hands of a rock 'n roll band / who'll throw it all away.' so. many. fatalities, tumblr. that's all.

Oh Distant You by Wilbur Soot — okay i've already written this specific part out but tumblr deleted it when i switched from the page that i had the next songs lyrics in so i'm just gonna take a photo of the lyrics that are SO ten post rose coded & hope you read them

am i the biggest tenrose fan? no :( not on their own, at least, however i will accept that he loved & adored her. he loved her So Much. she was the first face that face saw !!!! & there are other companions that this song could work with but in my head. it's a them song. (this would probably be like. at the end of the end of time part two. him thinking about this.)

The Ballad of Lucy Gray from The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes — i've never seen the ballad of songbirds and snakes (or consumed any hungergames media) however i do think that this song is clara coded <3 i can't really explain it but. amelia pond i love you dearly. i think that specifically 'it's sooner than later that I'm six feet under / it's sooner than later that you'll be alone / so who will you turn to tomorrow, I wonder? / for when the bell rings, lover, you're on your own'. her talking about how twelve needs to be on his own in face the raven. & how she needs him 2 understand that he cannot keep her from dying & that it's her time (he's already lost her at least twice, and that's just when we see her in the show). ''cause I am the one who looks out when you're leaping / I am the one who knows how you were brave / and I am the one who heard what you said sleeping / i'll take that and more when I go to my grave' i think this is more twelve or ashildr about her. & how she said 'let me be brave' before she died, and how she slowly became more daring after spending time with the doctor because that's just what he does (not gonna quote rory again but. yk) & how the original clara oswald (not oswin oswald or clara oswin oswald)s first appearance in the show was her standing over her own grave !!! 'Well, all right, I'm bad, but then, you're no prize either / Al right, I'm bad, but then, that's nothing new / You say you won't love me, I won't love you neither / Just let me remind you what I am to you.' clara, you are exactly what he deserves. & vice versa. they are both so awful & it is so insane. the doctorification of clara is so much worse than the other companions.

No One Lives Forever by Oingo Boingo — i . cannot explain this one. it is PURE vibes.

All My Little Words by The Magnetic Fields — last song (as of rn! there may have been more added by the time you're reading this) & surprise surprise. it's a doctorjack song. 'I could make you fly away / but i could never make you stay.' imagine you're jack harkness & the man you loved (& the only other immortal you know) is REPULSED by you. he keeps running away. 'You said you were in love with me / both of us know that that's impossible' i think this is from the doctors pov. it just seems like something he'd think. 'Now that you've made me want to die / you tell me that you're unboyfriendable' the tenth doctor after flirting by asking jack if he wants 2 die & then holding the man that tortured jack in his arms as he died in a similar fashion to jacks first death (being shot in some way). his ass Is Unboyfriendable

[alexmey-does-an-arts]

hugeee post of my favorite songs that remind me of ten. and the most resonating lyrics from them imo just using spotify links here cause theyre the most convenient to grab

im not even posting lyrics for this one. its just the whole song

all of my friends was later adapted into

first version works better for him imo

the wholeass last verse

self- and -ish are mostly an opener and closer to the album. but theyre great in their own right too

adding on in a reblog because of the audio file limit

[faebriel]

and you caused it: chapter 5

In which Niki has a terrible secret, Puffy just wants to move on, Tommy sneaks into casino parties and Wilbur learns to deal with anger being justified. Or - the one thing they don’t warn you of, when dropping nuclear warheads on old friends, is fallout.

in chapter 5: resolutions are made on phil's verandah, wilbur finally understands how horrible it would be to die in a ravine underground, and once-old friends are made new again. niki, again, finds herself baking a cake.

welcome to the final entry! thank you so much for reading <3

wc: 5.6k

(cw: this chapter includes discussion of suicidal ideation.)

so life in the arctic settles back into relative normality.

there are still some patches of it that are painfully awkward - tubbo and techno are still trying to find their footing as they trawl the compound’s outskirts for sight of ranboo, and tommy still has his moments where he can’t stand to be near any of them without shouting his voice out, and wilbur and niki try very hard to pretend that the other doesn’t exist whenever they cross paths at breakfast and dinner. it feels like pulling on an old coat, one that’s too tight at the shoulders and too short at the sleeves. not quite familiar, not quite right.

at some point tubbo does curtly inform niki that tommy has forgiven her, and that he appreciates what she did for them in the underground city. niki is able to see the gap between those two sentences, but even if she doesn’t have tubbo’s forgiveness yet, she recognises and appreciates the olive branch.

they’re not quite friends anymore. she and techno and phil are still close, of course - but everyone else. the hurt was a long time ago, long enough that she thought it might have healed on its own, but the explosion and the mess dream made of her city have ripped the scabs wide open and she’s not entirely sure if they’re going to heal the same way again. that they won’t heal ragged.

but she’s getting used to it.

niki has a strange relationship with mourning. fungi, wilbur, l’manberg, the untimely disappearances of jack and fundy and puffy and so many more people from her life - she’s never quite managed to get it right. it’s always too much, enough for it to feel like it’s burning her alive. this, though… she knows she’s burnt those bridges, but she’s managing. they’re managing. they’re civil, and sometimes tommy offers to help her bake still, and techno spars with her out in the snow, and even though everything fell apart she’s not lonely. she’s not on her own anymore. fucked up and distant and hurtful as they all can be, they can exist in each other’s spaces now.

and the thing about the syndicate - and by extension, the arctic - is that they’re always busy. phil, niki and techno have their duties, of course (mostly book club. especially after niki returned from the city. but there’s still dream out on the server somewhere, and even if the syndicate technically has no quarrel with him, neither of them ever argue with the bitter scowl that settles on her face whenever she’s reminded of what he did to her city). tommy tends to stick to the compound, but he still feeds the animals and mends the fences and follows phil and techno like a duckling to the occasional abandoned mansion or village. wilbur goes for… walks. tubbo gets all thin-mouthed if he stays in the arctic for too long and ends up making off for a day in snowchester, no matter the hissed arguments he and tommy keep having on the front porch of the stables about it (techno’s guest room overlooks the paddock, and she doesn’t think they know she can hear them every time).

there’s always something to do. this is good for niki - she likes to keep her hands busy, she likes to feel like she’s helping. she fixes fences and feeds the turtles and babysits michael and yes, she bakes. she’s doing pretty well with feeling content these days, she’s not often sad - and at least when she is, she has something to devote her time towards instead.

(it stings that wilbur barely even talk to her anymore. she’d rather that than have either of them get into a spat and say something they would regret, though.

even this, still, doesn’t last forever.)

—

there are some days where tubbo wants to go look for ranboo (still missing - that is something that still troubles niki, something they can all agree on) and that means techno wants to go out as well, and then tommy insists on acting as escort whenever tubbo and techno are left alone together, and phil tags along under the excuse of making sure everyone comes back with their heads intact (untrue - niki thinks he’s scouting for another build site). so, of course, someone has to look after michael.

tubbo deposits him like a small sandbag in niki’s arms.

(there’s a secret hierarchy to who gets to babysit michael, one that niki only noticed about the sixth time tubbo asked her to babysit immediately after tommy said no - phil first, then tommy, then niki, and then… tubbo still doesn’t seem to like leaving michael with wilbur or techno without some kind of supervision.)

he’s a fairly lax parent, when it comes to babysitting - and it helps that michael is apparently used to staying inside, moving from house to ravine to cabin. he has colouring books and paints and a few hardcover picture books phil donated when tubbo moved up north and even a wooden toy sword, not that he uses it often. tubbo rattles off something about how he’s starting michael on some piston miniatures - tubbo has been putting them together this week, when he found the time (niki looks at the dark violet bags beneath his eyes…) - and that michael can keep playing with those if he wants, but nothing more than a finger-scrape of redstone yet please, because he’s not entirely sure what will happen if michael decides to try eating it. niki nods, and silently resolves to keep the pistons in their chest until tubbo returns.

michael is perfectly behaved, as he tends to be, and after an evening tiring himself out explaining his puzzles to niki he’s all curled up under blankets and sleeping softly on the worn, old couch. (there is a child’s bed in the spare room now, but tubbo is remarkably hot and cold on whether he likes it actually being used.) niki keeps an eye on him while she floats through the kitchen, brewing another batch of radiation sickness treatment. it’s another large one, with all three of them living in the arctic most of the time.

it’s almost peaceful, until wilbur makes his way down the stairs.

it would seem easy for them to keep ignoring each other. they have been ignoring each other, to some degree. but that’s only when wrapped in the buffers of other people. neither of them can last long in a quiet room, and after a few awkward minutes, wilbur makes his way outside.

after a few more - just long enough to take the potions off the boil, stack them in the kitchen chests and tidy up the spilt sugar - niki follows.

He’s smoking again, she realises. The cigarette winks like a tiny amber star in his hand, fallen from the night that blankets the arctic around them. “You shouldn’t be smoking again,” she duly informs his back. If she’s startled him, if he didn’t expect her presence, he doesn’t show it. “Are they out?” he asks instead. “They are.” No point wishing for pleasantries. “Looking for Ranboo again.” “Ah.” Wilbur’s chin tips towards at that, a weight upon his shoulders – he leans heavy against the railing, as if it props up most of his weight. She creeps forward, letting her fingers find the railing beside him. The wood is cold underneath her hands, laced with frost. “You were close, weren’t you?” He doesn’t answer. Niki bites her lip. “I’m sorry, Wil.” He barks out a humourless laugh. “It’s not like I was any good for him, in the end. I wouldn’t be surprised if he went down in flames with the casino.” “The comms would have notified us if that happened. I didn’t see a message.” Is that what Wilbur’s thinking to himself now, wondering if he had somehow missed it? It wouldn’t be the first time he let himself believe something entirely untrue. “And that doesn’t mean that you didn’t care for him. That it doesn’t hurt you.” Wilbur doesn’t look at her anymore. Not since that night over the crater, when she refused to tell him where Tommy was (does he wonder about that night? Does he ask himself how he didn’t know? Would he have ever known, if it weren’t for Dream?) - no more glances exchanged in the middle of one of Tubbo’s rambling or Tommy’s rants, no cheeky smiles and inside jokes, nothing. She still can’t tell whether she prefers it or not - whether she would rather see his expression twist into dismissive disgust when he lays eyes on her, or not at all. He still doesn’t look at her now, staring into the pearl-white plain stretching before them, as far as the eye can see from left to right before nestling itself into throngs of pine - but there’s a shift in his shoulders, the slightest incline of his head. He’s listening. “Tommy told me that you two were working together,” she continues. “Briefly.” He pauses, takes another drag. Niki resists the urge to crinkle her nose up. She’s never liked the smell of cigarette smoke. “Tommy didn’t say he’d been talking to you.” “We’ve been talking quite a bit, recently.” “Apparently.” His tone is not what she expected it to be - not that, really, she knew what to expect at all. Perhaps jealous. Instead, he sounds almost impressed, if humourlessly. “You did a good thing with the ravine, Niki. They needed to be somewhere safe. It was a good thing for you to do. Selfless, really.”

Now, that makes Niki turns to face him – his ember-lit profile, silhouetted against the snowdrift glow. She narrows her eyes, though, cautious. “I didn’t do it for your approval, Wilbur,” Niki says. He doesn’t even say anything to that one, just angles his face that slightest bit towards hers - just enough to catch his eye. His gaze is too assessing. She’s always been honest with Wilbur, anyway. “Not your approval specifically,” she amends. Wilbur hums. “Maybe it was too selfless,” he says - there’s that thoughtful note in his voice, musing. “You were always the good one, you know? Even in - even in Pogtopia, yeah? It was always, what would Niki think of this. That’s what Tommy would ask, all the fucking time.” He laughs. Niki does not want to ask what he thinks is so funny. “Drove me nuts.” “Is that why it didn’t work, in the end?” she asks. The question is clumsy, but it strikes Wilbur with all the clarity it needs - laughter immediately swallowed. “No,” he tells her. “No, Niki, that had nothing to do with you.” And isn’t it pathetic, that a sentence like that still stings? “People can always change, Wilbur. People do change.” Not that Wilbur has ever had it easy grasping that. This conversation, this argument - one they never even had - is almost two years old. Wilbur is dead and buried and pulled back again through the span of it. And still, it matters to her.  She sucks in a breath. The coldness stings her lungs, as if frostbite can gnaw at her from the inside out. “I think I changed.”

“Did I ever know you, at all?” Wilbur asks. The question is immediate, as if he’s been holding it on his tongue for some time longer than the last few minutes - days, weeks, maybe even years, like her. Keeping it close to his chest, keeping it warm and alive by nestling it in flesh and blood. “Of course you did,” she tells him. “You were one of my closest friends, Wilbur.” And I was yours, she doesn’t say, because Niki knows when she’s pushing it. He looks touched, even if it’s not what he meant by the question. “You knew me. In Pogtopia.” “Wil, I know that you were sorry - ” “I am,” he interrupts her. “I - I was. I know what you’re going to say, Niki,” his voice goes half-mocking, “that I was myself in L’Manberg, and then I changed. I changed, not that I knew exactly what I was - not that I knew it the whole time.” Niki’s mouth opens to retort - but Wilbur raises a hand to stop her, as if he’s expecting it. “That’s what you thought, wasn’t it?” Niki lets her mouth fall closed, sheepish. “I know it was wrong.” “Maybe. But I was listening, then and now - I don’t think it ever mattered how long we knew each other, Niki. There was too much you didn’t know. There was too much I couldn’t bear anyone else to know, I couldn’t bear anyone else to carry, that I couldn’t - ” he waves the cigarette in her direction. “Fuck, Niki, did you even know I smoked?” She looks down her nose at the small, glowing thing. “It’s not a very attractive trait.” Wilbur snorts out a laugh. “Right.” Doesn’t stop him from taking another drag. He’s not rude enough to blow smoke in her direction, or anything like that - but she catches him sending an expectant look her way after he exhales, like he’s waiting for her to tear him a new one over it. And seeming none too displeased about it, either. She doesn’t, for the record. All she does is roll her eyes slightly, and that seems to fulfil whatever Wilbur is looking for. “Y’know, I always thought - all that. I always thought, that’s me. This shitty, in-com-prehendable mess - I mean, you saw me, Niki, I was a mess. And I always thought that was just me. But… I don’t know. I’m starting to think there’s more than a few fucked up people on this server, honestly.” And everything seems less funny. Colder. “I don’t think I ever knew you,” Wilbur says, as conversationally as if they were discussing the weather. “How - how bad did it get? After I died?” “How bad did what get?” “You. Everything. I - everything. This server.” All Niki can do is shrug helplessly, swallowing the rabbit-hop kicking of her heart in her chest, in her throat. “I don’t know what to tell you. Things were bad, Wilbur. We were all mourning, we were grieving. Grief made it worse.” She leans against the railing, letting her weight sink into it. “It wasn’t all you, of course. There was - there was the Egg, and all of that. And so many other things, probably, I wouldn’t have known about it all.” Wilbur snorts again. Quietly, he echoes it wasn’t all about you under his breath. And Niki, her heart freezes over in her chest. A cold stone, sitting in the back of her throat - it sits there, with the last of her petty secrets. What else does she have to lose? Nothing. You know what they say, her mind reminds her, about a woman that has nothing to lose.

“I was thinking about killing myself.” The laughter stops. She’s not looking at him. She’s looking down at her hands again, fingers pale against the wooden rail, imagining them frostbitten. Imagining herself as a walking woman of ice, cold and clear and unaffected by the words she finally says aloud. She can see his hand too, next to hers - the other is holding the cigarette. His grip on the railing tightens. She told him this, she thought. He doesn't act like she had. He doesn't act like he understood fully until she spelled it out plainly. “Not - I didn’t make any plans for it,” she rushes to explain. “But I just assumed, I think… I just assumed that one day I would just get too hungry, or get too sick on my own in the city, and…” The ending of the sentence, that’s the difficult bit. She traces the grain of the wood with her thumb. “And it would all be over.” “You wouldn’t,” Wilbur chokes out. “I know, I know. There’s - there’s limbo. I didn’t believe in it for a long time, though. Did you know, Perfect is an endless life server? No - no death, really. I always thought that here must be the same, until…” She pauses. “L’Manberg wasn’t itself anymore, it was eating my friends alive - it ate you alive. I had nothing to care about, I had nothing to live for left. It was just… revenge. You don’t have to like it, but that was what kept me going. I was - I was so hungry, Wil. I was so hungry, but I couldn’t even bring myself to eat. I didn’t feel like I was living.” Finally, she lifts her head. Wilbur looks almost shellshocked. “...I didn’t want you to feel like that. I never want you to feel like that. Ever.” “It wasn’t your fault.” “Yes, yes, I know, but - you know I wouldn’t want you to be in that place, ever, don’t you?” A shadow casts over his expressed - half panicked, half soured. “Even after that stupid fucking casino - never, Niki. I didn’t mean for it to come to that. You have to believe me, I didn’t.”

“It wouldn’t have,” she assures him. “There was Tommy and Tubbo,” she nods towards the door leading back inside, “and Michael, as well. I couldn’t have.” A horribly morbid thought takes over her. “I wouldn’t have had the space, for one.” Wilbur does not laugh. In fact, he looks quite stern about the whole thing. “That’s not funny.” “I wasn’t joking!” she says - not quite defensively, but almost. She takes this seriously. “The three of them, they just take up so much space. And the mess…” Wilbur looks just about ready to harrumph at her - funny how the tables turn so quickly, now that the suicidal breakdown is on the other foot - but he comes up with nothing besides a few unhappy-looking expressions. “It was just hard,” she continues, eventually. “All I cared about was killing Tommy. I didn’t think about what that would have meant, what would happened if we pulled it off…” Wilbur is quiet. Niki breathes out another disappointed laugh. “I suppose I didn’t care about much of anything at all,” she says. “If we pulled it off?” Wilbur asks. She looks up at him, and - his gaze cuts right through her, steely and dark as anything. “Hm?” “There was always someone else, wasn’t there?” he asks - no, this is closer to a demand. Not in its ferocity - Wilbur is markedly gentle, and Niki gets the feeling she is going to have to get used to the feeling of kid gloves for a while - but in its intent. “It wasn’t just you.” Niki stiffens. “That isn’t my business to tell.” “Not my business,” Wilbur echoes, voice pitching up and down in all the wrong places - “isn’t it? Isn’t this how we got here?” “I got here because Techno half-dragged me back,” Niki shoots back at him, “and because Tommy was kind enough to ask him to. Does it matter if there was someone else? Really?” He pouts, the melodramatic thing. “I guess not.” She resists the urge to sigh. She might not have felt much kinship with Jack during their brief partnership - no, what they had was darker and emptier than kinship, barely even allies - but now, she can care for him in retrospect. She doesn’t want to bring the full storm of Wilbur’s frustration and confusion down on him, especially if he’s still in the same state Niki saw him in last. Her heart twinges, not for the first time. It keeps doing that when she thinks of Jack. If it weren’t for how empty those months were, how heartless and cold, Niki would almost think that she misses him. “It doesn’t matter, anyway,” she glosses over it. “I still made those choices. I knew what I was doing. I wanted him dead, so badly… it was an ugly feeling.” Is that what it felt like to be Wilbur, back in that ravine? She guesses it’s the closest she’s ever felt. She hopes it’s the closest she’ll ever be to how Wilbur felt. “So now you know me,” she concludes, “properly. And I know you.” “I suppose I do.” He huffs out a sigh. Niki bites down on another definitely-unwanted comment about the smoking. “We can’t do this one over, can we.” “I don’t think we can.” “Flown too close to the sun,” Wilbur murmurs. “Are we ever going to go back to normal?”

Wilbur considers it. “...was normal ever any good? Did it ever do any good, for us?” he asks. Did it? Oh, Niki longs for normal. She longs for summer days in redwoods that never seemed to end; she longs for the smell of bread and wildflowers wrapping her in their embrace. She longs for feeling secure, for feeling comfortable and safe. She longs for the time when she knew who her friends were, and knew that list of friends was one she wouldn’t be able to count on two hands. She longs for when things were easy. Less complicated. Normal. Yes, part of her still longs for L’Manberg. The old L’Manberg, her home. But that place is long dead. She thinks of her bakery - now burned, and thinks of every second she felt unappreciated. Every time she felt hungry, every time that she let herself starve. She thinks of the safety that slipped through her fingers like sand the moment that the old day ticked over into the new. She thinks of being stolen from. She thinks of walking on glass, never knowing if her home and her things would be griefed for kicks. She thinks of how much she trusted Wilbur, and the cigarettes he must have hidden in his office - she would have known about them, otherwise. She thinks of the cracks that she couldn’t see, but were there nonetheless. “No,” she decides. She cannot tell if it feels more like a victory, or a defeat. Maybe both, maybe neither - maybe, just plain relief. “I don’t think it was.” The quiet reigns. "I'd like to get to know you," she adds, barely louder than a whisper. Being vulnerable with Wilbur has always been easy, to some degree. He thinks on it. She can tell, because he goes quiet for a moment - a long moment - and it takes him a few tries to answer, mustering up breath for nothing. The seconds drag their feet. Niki watches birds play in the distant treeline. "I think I would like that," Wilbur answers, and when Niki finally looks towards him, he looks almost content.

and that is almost peace.

they are interrupted by a flurry of shouts over the horizon, one that snaps them both to attention. a small set of figures (figurines, really) stagger through the snow - when niki squints she can see techno leading the pack, charging through the snowdrifts with purpose, tommy buzzing around him like a golden insect. tubbo trails behind both, utterly fixed on something, as phil follows with haste.

"oh, my god," niki says, a murmur trailing tall into a cry, as wilbur's hand comes to cover his mouth - 

ranboo, slung over techno's shoulder.

there is going to be a reckoning over ranboo, weeks trapped in enderwalk, exhausted and bruised - over books and puppeteers and stacks of dynamite, over why it took so long for anyone to see dream as a threat, over how he roams the hills of the server with netherite in hand and blood on his mind - the fight rolling in like bad weather as they all stand shoulder-to-shoulder in the rain.

that's later, though, and something niki has no desire to lose friends over anyway - for now she clears space on the dining table as wilbur ushers michael into a spare bedroom, sticking his head through the doorframe to watch as techno dumps the kid's worn and bloodied body on the table and tommy shoves himself forward with torn cloth in one hand and the first of many healing potions in the other. for now she hovers by the doorway, one hand on tubbo’s shoulder, and waits for the sun to rise.

—

ranboo’s recovery takes a long time. he’s not dead, thank the stars above, but when techno and tubbo dragged him back to the arctic he was worn and filthy and callused in places that niki didn’t even know could get calluses. and they’re terrified, literally terrified on their own shadow, and there are nights where ranboo traipses up the stairs and sleeps in that spare bed in techno’s house (curled up around themself, like a turtle in its shell - niki knows, she wandered in one morning while they were still asleep) and tubbo goes out to stay in the little shack he and tommy have built near her cabin and it’s nothing but tommy’s loud ramblings that breaks the silence for days. niki thinks back to the dinner they all had, descending into arguments, and thinks of tommy’s words afterwards - and for a while, she genuinely does think they’re going to divorce. love has been made a martyr for less.

but they don’t. or, if they did, it was amicable enough that niki hasn’t noticed.

she’s never seen michael happier now that both of his dads are around, and he has a way of practically forcing everyone to get along - if he wasn’t so little, niki would almost suspect him of weaponising how cute he is whenever it looks like someone is going to fall into a spat again. tubbo unwinds - some days, he even smiles like he did back in l’manberg. he and ranboo spend a lot of time with the turtles. the bags under tommy’s eyes stay stubbornly dark, but he stops holding himself like he’s constantly waiting for someone to throw a punch, and lo and behold, he starts to get - loud. he follows techno and wilbur around like a squabbling bird, a cuckoo making itself well and comfy in the nest. wilbur, for his part, tends to just roll his eyes while making some equally immature and snippy comment back at tommy, as he passes niki her mug of tea.

and finally, they can all breathe.

niki starts to feel like everything is going to be alright.

—

they don’t do proper surprises anymore - it’s not safe to walk around with a blindfold, and niki gets uneasy when one of them is wandering off on their own for too long - but tommy insists that the four of them have a surprise for niki and then immediately slams his hand over tubbo’s mouth and starts filling the air with his and wilbur’s latest adventures (tommy claims to have found shroud a wife, who chased wilbur from the pine forest to the fences around the compound for a solid half hour) before tubbo can spoil anything.

they don’t tell her where they’re going, but niki knows the pathway to her city better than anyone.

a hush falls over the five of them (god, they move in packs these days, don't they) as they descend the staircase - not quite hand in hand, with the exception of ranboo and tubbo, but certainly shoulder to shoulder. niki, tommy, tubbo and michael are almost hyperaware of the damage that's been done to this place already, and ranboo is having one of his healthy degree of suspicion, or anxiety days. it's a slow descent. halfway down the steps tommy is possessed with a sudden, jerky shudder, and niki thinks for a moment that he's going to turn back - but he steels himself, chewing ferociously on his bottom lip, and soldiers on regardless.

she still isn't sure how to feel about her city anymore. it was supposed to be a safe refuge - but sometime it had stopped being her refuge from anything, and dream has certainly proven that it wasn't safe. she stays at the arctic these days, because she's come to realise that being around people is better for her at the moment. but that doesn't mean she doesn't miss it.

until she reaches the bottom step.

the place is still chaos, mostly. the dirt is still in piles on the ground, even if it has been swept to the walls. the stone is still pockmarked with the unmistakable imprints of TNT. iron beams, bent and broken, stick out of her ceiling like the ribs of a rotting creature. but - 

there is a small patch of grass tucked into a crevice, spotted with azalea bushes and wildflowers, surrounded with a short stack of beehives. a jukebox sits on the corner, spinning to itself - she doesn't recognise the melody, something quiet and stringy and sweet. the sound is almost lost under the hum of the bees clustered around tallest flowers, watching the newcomers with dark, curious eyes.

she cries.

(niki remembers, back when they all lived under the ground together - and what a nightmare that was - tubbo never spontaneously renovated her farms or walkways or bedrooms sitting unused without asking permission first.)

they made an exception for the beehive nook, but they still do ask: would she mind, terribly, if they spent some time fixing up the place? nothing too obtrusive. just fixing up the walls, mending the shattered beacon, rebuilding the high-speed rail network tubbo constructed from her kitchens to the apartments - tubbo's been nursing some thoughts on the place ever since their impromptu stay, and ranboo's been awfully curious about the city since their return, and frankly michael's missed the novelty of the underground - 

it’s not all right. they don’t wear caution well, never have. but part of her still sings, they asked. they know how important niki’s city is to her, watched her heart be ripped out and strewn across the floor, like every handful of dirt - and they asked.

so the syndicate (and associates) find themselves a new hobby. 

techno hauls debris up the staircase, dragging out broken chunks of walkways and rails as the others carry stacks of wooden planks down them. tommy throws himself into the thick of it, helping out wherever an extra hand is needed - the two of them almost trip each other up a few times, but they make it work. tubbo is in charge of the redstoning, setting up some complex kind of security system of tripwires and lights and pistons, so that next time niki needs to lock someone out, she can. iron is embedded in the walls of the city, along with long threads of redstone, like a shield built into every cave and cavern.

he also makes a valiant effort to supercharge a furnace for niki’s bakery. it doesn’t work like that, which she politely explains to him after he and tommy almost set the place on fire with their attempt at korova cookies - but michael does snack on a few of them that least resemble chunks of charcoal, and he seems quite pleased with their efforts. she appreciates the gesture, anyway, and then very kindly and very definitively sends them out of the kitchen until it is absolutely done being rebuilt.

ranboo takes it upon themself to piece the library back together. restoring books comes strangely easily to them, as wilbur hovers over their shoulder offering both unsolicited approval and advice and as they gossip with shy in a mixture of warbles and clicks. altogether, they’ve only missed a couple - and not that niki minds, not when she sees the lovely decorations and lamps that he and phil have carved from shroomlights.

tommy's supposedly in charge of the animals, balancing bowls of water and birdseed through the newly-planted pines for meowth and stubbornly hacking at the stone until he can make a nice little slope for wobbuffet to walk down, leading right into a stable cosy with the smell of hay and sugarcubes. michael fingerpaints a mural across the side of the stable as they all work, a beautiful scene in the brightest colours of a farm and a forest and turtles sitting on a snowy shoreline. that earns him a big cuddle from niki, and when she looks over at tubbo - acting first, thinking second, like she's coming to accept that she just does - he looks almost at ease in a way she hasn't seen in a long time.

phil presses another totem of undying into her hand when the others aren’t looking. he wants to give her the chance to stretch her wings again, but he wants her to stay safe.

wilbur, doing a poor job of hiding his contribution behind his back as they loiter in phil’s cabin,  swears up and down it's not a flag (as techno, sitting at the kitchen table, loudly questions what he thinks a flag is, then) and presents a banner in pale shades of white and purple - spotted with the shaky outlines of wildflowers and ender particles for shy. he says it's a mock-up, something niki can sew up properly later if she likes. she hangs it, with all of its messy, dropped stitches, above the doorway of her bakery.

it isn't safe, not anymore. and in the state she's recovering from, niki doesn't know if she can call the city home either.

but finally, she feels like it's more than just hers.

—

and after all this happens, niki knows exactly what she has to do next. it takes a while to find him, but she manages it.

this time, she has to take an entire picnic basket with her - and it's a damn far way to lug the thing, especially when she hasn't quite gotten the hang of using a trident with finesse and speed. a veritable stack's worth of radiation treatment potions weigh her down, along with a marbled coffee-and-cinnamon cake wrapped in wax paper.

jack does not look pleased to see her. he looks like hell, to be honest – dark circles beneath his eyes, too-thin, skin pale and sallow like he hasn’t been outdoors enough in too long. but he doesn’t turn her away, either. and in a world like this, that means just as much.

he lets her in, and this time, niki does not intend to leave without him.

[lasnevadaslaborunion]

Top 5 quckity moments??????

I assume you mean c!Quackity?

5. His conversation with c!Bad after being taken to the Egg. From c!Karl's message being the thing to snap him out of his stupor, to the sheer panic in his voice, to his declaration that he indeed wants power but never at anyone or anything else's behest, to him desperately trying to reason with c!Bad, to his insistence that they can use the Egg for good (???)... GOD it makes my brain do jumping jacks

4. Okay. We all know about c!Schlatt's funeral. We all know about the cannibalism. And I almost put that here, too (so consider it an honorable mention). But I don't think enough attention is paid to him trying to bring Schlatt to life for "political reasons" immediately afterward. Oh, this little bastard and his complicated grieving processes...

3. I could honestly fill this whole list with only scenes from the Manberg arc, but I'll highlight Plan Ass specifically as an S-tier c!Quackity moment. He went back to negotiate with and swindle the man he was scared would kill him (while allegedly pregnant with his child!) all to dissuade c!Wilbur from sending the country he loved up in flames...

2. Much like Manberg, all of Doomsday could go here (for him, at least. My feelings about the event itself are... somewhat more ambivalent). Him singing the anthem and remembering the second verse, him asking c!Niki what's wrong and trying to persuade her to help, his incandescent hatred for c!Dream, "SaPnAp HoLd Me I'm ScArEd..."

But my favorite part without a doubt is his pre-battle turnaround. Man was so close to getting the hell outta dodge, but he was persuaded to return by the words of someone he wanted to execute only 24 hours prior. Then, he spent half the battle trying to return the book. And THEN, after all was said and done, he reached out to that person as a possible ally. Where are my boober friends to talk about this with me PLEASE-

Also, "let the horse run free" still makes me tear up a little. He loved that bag of bones so much. It was a reminder of happier times...

1. The entire day's events of September 14, 2021. On the same day he tried to torture two men to death, he jumped into lava without hesitation to save his best friend's life. And both times, they slipped away from his grasp.

If that doesn't neatly summarize his character and the reasons I love him, I don't know what does.

Honorable mention: every possible variation of the scene I made up in my head of c!Fundy leaving Las Nevadas and c!Quackity not killing him despite the contract's threats

Honorable honorable mention: that one six-hour c!Foolish stream I'm fucking obsessed with. That's a better c!Foolish moment, though. So that's another potential ask at least partially filled out

Honorable honorable honorable mention (hey he's my specialest guy don't @ me): literally every time he's ever interacted with c!Tommy or c!Tubbo

[firesnap]

head writer wilbur discourse? In 2023?? God bless

More explaining what the discourse WAS than new discourse appearing. It all tangentially related to Tommy in Jack's new video where he was doing an impression and people were trying to guess what he was ranting during the censored bits. The whole thing reminded me of a few little jabs he used to make about people who thought they did everything to make the server big and how Tommy did his damn best to make sure that narrative never took hold.

[cdreambur]

continuation of this au because i felt like writing one lol

dream sees wilbur again at dinner.

after a day filled with talks, planning, and discussing defence strategies, he's glad when he can finally sink down at a table full of warm dishes and cold drinks.

tommy and tubbo plop down next to him, with niki and jack taking a seat opposite from them. after the two young witches found him shortly before lunch, they've been hanging around dream, subsequently dragging the two older members of their coven with them.

but it's fun, and dinner is so entertaining that dream almost forgets the reason he's here in the first place.

everything comes back though when the four witches leave and wilbur sits down on the edge of the table, reminding dream not only of the humans rallying against them but also of his faux pas from yesterday night.

with the resolution to do it right this time, dream bows his head.

"your highness."

when he looks up again, wilbur is grinning at him, brown eyes twinkling with amusement.

"what, not gonna call me beautiful this time?"

heat rushes up to dream's cheeks, and he lowers his gaze again.

"i apologize for last night. i truly hope i didn't offend you, i just-"

"it's alright. you didn't." the prince interrupts him. dream's eyes flit up, finding that wilbur's expression is a lot more sincere, a small smile on his face.

"to be honest, the royal etiquette becomes really annoying after a while. your behavior was a welcome change."

and with the way he says it, dream actually believes him.

he watches as wilbur scoots up the table until his feet barely brush the ground, fingers close to where dream's own are resting on the smooth wood.

"now that this little misunderstanding is out of the way, i'd like to tell you why i actually approached you."

his smile brightens when dream's eyes go wide.

"i wanted to compliment the work you did today. your reputation precedes you, and it was a delight to listen to your ideas in person. you're a valuable part of this alliance, and both my father and i are very grateful that you decided to join our ranks and are willing to defend our kind against the human species."

dream feels himself blush again at the words, giving wilbur an appreciative look.

"thank you. it's a compliment i can only return. you and your father are brilliant strategists and i'm honored that you hold me in such high regards. there's no alliance i would rather fight with and no leaders i would rather follow than his majesty and you, your highness."

his lips quirk up into a small, genuine smile, and the prince lets out a laugh, soft and sweet, reminding dream of wind chimes in a summer breeze.

"i mentioned that i don't like the rules. furthermore, my title really isn't something you have to use if we're going to fight together, dream."

his name falling from the prince's lips sends a shiver down dream's spine, and his heart races as he watches how wilbur's expression shifts into a teasing little smirk.

"so, just wilbur's fine. or wil. and i do also really like 'beautiful'."

with that, he slides off the table, sends dream a wink, and walks away.

dream stares after him.

fuck.

he is so horribly smitten.

[quotemenevervore]

Instinct unrelated noms go! This is all shrunken manhunt btw

George annoying people about something they asked him to do so they’d get fed up with him and just eat him, earning him a nap and not having to do the thing

Dream doing a similar thing to his friends that he’s worried are overworking themselves so they’d stop (Sam mostly)

Fiances all essentially taking turns pulling the same shit on one another to force them to take breaks, or helping each other with anxiety and nightmares

Phil putting all his sons in timeout if they’re getting to a bad point (Tommy getting anxious or reclusive, Wilbur seeming to get bad mentally again, Techno’s voices getting too hard to handle) none of them ever fight him on it, except at first because they won’t acknowledge why they’re being put there.

Quackity doing the same thing to Wilbur if he makes a joke too many that sounds like his mental health is beginning to decline, reminding him that he is not his mistakes.

Skeppy pulling the same stuff George pulls as a way of trolling, gets a consequence he wasn’t expecting, more at 10-

Bad threatening to put Sapnap in timeout, seeing how effective it tends to be with Phil and his sons. Too bad Sapnap’s gotten pretty good at evading and attacking thanks to his fiancés and Dream, which ends in the nommer becoming the nommed and Skeppy laughing his ass off

Ranboo storing Tubbo when he’s having a rough day with memories, Hugging Michael close by so that the goat hybrid can fully calm down, knowing he’s home and protected

Tommy pulling pranks and getting nommed as a result, Dream’s gotten him before by not giving him a chance to even pull his prank first

People on the sidelines having no fucking clue why they all engage in this behavior so often, like yea they’re supportive but what the fuck guys- (it’s mostly Puffy who’s only had to see instincts of her own, Dream and Foolish, and Jack. Niki’s pretty used to the instinct behavior, and she thinks it’s funny when they mess around as long as it doesn’t get her in trouble)

[argcicle]

i need soft wholesome headcanons abt characters making food.

jack likes to bake because it’s slow and easy to concentrate on, and there’s a lot of things that don’t require as much precision as other things (phil or tubbo helps him with any details but he much prefers to just slather frosting on a cupcake instead of any fancy designs)

quackity cooks to remind himself of home. he can really cook anything, it’s mainly the sizzle of the pan and the feeling of being in a kitchen. he runs around from thing to thing, pushes his hair back. wilbur would find it cute how he rushes, he tries to come up and wrap his arms around quackity’s waist and every time they smack into each other. jack buys quackity an apron, mostly to stop him from constantly wiping his hands on his own pants.

tubbo enjoys showing off with food. he finds unique recipes or difficult cakes to make and spends his days off working on them. ranboo appreciates the intricacies of the presentation but doesn’t eat much, tommy isn’t good at complimenting the looks but he loves all the flavors.

wilbur likes things that work low and slow. soup specifically, the prep work is much better to him than the idea of standing over a stove constantly

techno makes little things. it started as the best way to use the ingredients, but something about finger foods or small desserts is just fun to him. he likes bigger meals, though, so he mainly leaves the things he makes out for phil and ranboo or he’ll make dog-safe treats for the hound army.

[paperboy-pb]

Okay, so there isn't good art available of *everybody* yet, but I think you should all have a little somethin'-somethin' about Matthew's class. So... there's 12 kids you need to know!

1: MATTHEW I. BOSTON -- Our protagonist! Physically disabled, even though you can't see it. Often thought of as weak. He is artsy, imaginative, sensitive, and holds a great love for life itself. Wants to leave Special Ed in pursuit of a better life, due to the abuse that many of its staff dish out.

2: ANDREA Z. BELTRAN -- Matthew's best friend! Has Dyslexia & Conduct Disorder. Seen as a "lost cause" by most. She's a bit explosive, but there's more to her than that. Andrea is old-fashioned, cynical, surprisingly caring & MUCH smarter than she's given credit for. Tends to bully their bullies.

3: MATEO-RUDOLFO ("RUDY") N. DELACRUZ -- HoH (Hard-of-Hearing) boy who's known for selling all sorts of knickknacks-- snacks, fidget toys, etc.-- to his peers. Tends to hide his hearing aids under his long hair. Allegedly crushing on Aza. Doesn't talk much, not even with ASL. But his close friends know him to be serious, organized, a little uptight, & very stubborn... with a few silly or mischievous moments here and there. >:)

4: OLIVER K. HANES -- "Frenemies" with Matthew. Dysgraphic, Dyspraxic, + some other probably-undiagnosed neurodivergence. Is ALL about tech + social media-- even filming his own vlogs, skits & pranks! Oliver is very conceited, boastful, self-centered, impulsive, and a spoiled rich boy... but not at all shallow. Will always put others first when it matters the most. Close with Jack.

5: KARL HO -- One of Rudy's friends! Has Down Syndrome + Intellectual Disability. Is often babied & lowkey excluded by others... despite being (secretly) VERY perceptive. Known to be sociable, silly, messy, & chill. Absolute gamer. Loves cartoons. Always ready to talk about girls. Sometimes makes bad choices in the name of being included, like laughing along when other kids bully Matthew.

6: AZA A. KANAAN -- Disliked by Matthew, dislikes him right back. Loved by literally everyone else. Levi's "Right-Hand Man." Aza is an ADHDer, leaning way on the hyperactive side of things. Aza is rowdy, random, & LOVES immature, vulgar shock humor. Plus anything clowncore or neon. But somehow, those closest to her claim she's also the mom friend, very loyal, open-minded, and down-to-Earth. Matthew won't believe it till he sees it.

7: JACKSON ("JACK") J. MARINE -- Matthew's #1 bully since forever! Jack speaks with a very prominent stutter, which made him a bullying target. Started various sports outside of school, as well as Karate. Thus, Jack is now tough, mean, & the strongest of the boys. Uses that status to hold himself above others. Will ALWAYS take an oppurtunity to torment Matthew for some laughs. Still only has 1 real friend. (Oliver.)

8: AMELIA MILLER -- Matthew's 2nd favorite girl! Was born with one arm. Doesn't know if she's been diagnosed with anything else. Amelia is very bubbly & soft-hearted. She loves llamas, hanging out with friends, sweets, coffee, cute boys, and pretty much anything girly. More sheltered than other kids. Doesn't have much of a backbone. Seems to fear abandonment. Usually seen with Levi & Aza.

9: WILBUR B. MORA -- Matthew's now-distant family friend. Only has one working eye, which is slowly but surely losing vision anyway due to Retinitis Pigmentosa. Wilbur is a calm, collected & peaceful math / science nerd. He especially loves animals, and can & WILL remind the teacher about the homework. Introverted, but not shy. Feels VERY held-back by Special Ed academically & tends to overwork himself at other programs, trying to fill the void.

10: AARAN PATEL -- Rudy & Karl's 3rd friend! Aaran has Tourette's, which makes him a bullying target. Not only that, Aaran's also a little awkward & VERY spiritual. He's super into Tarot cards, zodiac signs, fortune-telling, third eyes, religions, etc. And all of those factors tend to weird people out. So most don't talk to him. And they're missing out; because he's excitable, easily-impressed, and always has PLENTY to say! He also has a bit of a random fascination with superheroes & the idea of magic. Never a dull moment with this one.

11: LEVI T. TRAINOR-FANG -- Matthew's #2 bully! Claims to be his best friend despite hating him. Levi never discloses what she has, but she has implied that it's an emotion thing. Levi is an edgy, dark-minded, and cut-throat Queen-bee. Like Regina George mixed with a scene kid. Starts drama for fun & feels little remorse. While she & Jack both have the most fun tormenting Matthew as they find him to be weak & a crybaby, Levi will go after almost anyone. Her other victims include Andrea, Rudy, Amelia, Aaran, Linus, and even Jack himself. Almost everyone is terrified of her. Seems to respect Aza.

12: LINUS S. TRAINOR-FANG -- Levi's twin brother & the most disliked kid in the room! He has ADHD (Inattentive type this time!) along with Epilepsy. Linus is a gloomy yet chatty emo boy who loves writing, music, dance, & spiders. Unfortunately, he's also pretentious + overbearingly desperate to be cool. Instead of being himself or seeing others as people, he makes every trend his personality, puts people on pedestals they don't want, & refuses to talk to other "unpopular" kids like Matthew or Andrea in public. Only to be called cringe by the cool kids anyway! It's a vicious cycle that he refuses to break... and Matthew is lowkey kind of concerned.

Phew, that's a lot! It... gets easier to keep track once you see their designs, I promise, lol.

[bonesandthebees]

Guess who’s awake again. It’s me. And I just want to repeat how good you are at foreshadowing and setting up the pieces. Like Jack pushing Tommy had been building for a while as this quiet annoyance and snidy remarks, but I didn’t realise what was going to happen until [In the corner of his eye, Wilbur noticed Jack lean over to whisper something in Niki’s ear. She nodded once, her face unreadable.]. This was the point where everything clicked into place and I had to pause to come scream in you inbox. Because this is the moment the plan forms in their heads, before that they were just kinda hoping Tommy’s lungs would kill him in that passive, “I’m not going to kill him, but I’m also not going out of my way to save his life, let alone risk my own while doing it” kinda way.

And it’s so obvious what they’re about to do and Wilbur is completely blindsided by it because he’s been so focused on Tommy the entire time that he either missed all the signs or didn’t care to interpret them. And it’s just, the narrative has been quietly building towards this for quiet some time, but I didn’t realise this was how it was going to end until the last ask I sent before chapter 27 when your “Niki will remember that” line suddenly snapped into place with actual canon. But it was always going to end this way. It’s the only way it could have ended.

Also, congratulations, Bee! You are now 4/4 on getting very close to killing major characters, but having everything turn out okayish in the end. And reading Wilbur’s breakdown was so much fun even though I’d already figured out what was going to happen. Just another thing to show what an amazing writer you are. It didn’t feel too drawn out if you knew, but it’s still long enough to make it plausible and let it have that emotional weight.

I’m skipping over the Priest and Schlatt, but I’ll get to those in the proper analysis. Just know that when Schlatt showed up I realised that we had only had 2/3 of the major scene and it hit me like a train. I really did get everything I wanted out of this chapter. Also, you managed to make me feel bad for Schlatt for 0.5 before I remember that he is an asshole who still could have tried. So good job.

I’ll probably write the analysis in my notes like I did with Stars and send them in in batches. So you’ll probably get those in a few days, because I’m about to dissect this entire chapter like a surgeon.

-🌲

aaa thank you spruce!! god yeah I've been building up to jack murdering tommy for a WHILE. it's been something I just wanted to leave in the background to brew, reminding the readers that yeah, jack and niki have held this grudge for a while. it never went away. and sure they weren't actively planning to murder him, but if the opportunity arose they were certainly going to take it.

niki will remember that :) yeah that was funny to me

and yes wilbur doesn't notice because he's so focused on so many other things! it's incredibly obvious to us as the readers but he just doesn't realize. not to mention, despite knowing that tommy did it to jack first and knowing how pissed both he and niki are about it, and knowing that niki and jack have the same kind of friendship he and tommy have, he never REALLY thought that niki would do something like that. jack? maybe yeah. but niki? his niki? his closest friend besides tommy? it just wasn't something he ever seriously considered. she wouldn't hurt him like that. she's niki.

god you're right I really do nearly/do kill a major character at the end of every long fic of mine. oops. didn't mean for that to be a theme.

I'm so glad you enjoyed that though. the main reason for tommy's brush with death was more about wilbur being forced to confront and make a decision both about his own faith and tommy's. he forcibly pulls tommy away from his goddess, while also finally shouting everything he's wanted to shout at his own goddess. he's truly done after this.

HA YEAH you think things are over and then boom schlatt appears and you realize oh yeah bee said there were 3 scenes she was excited for :) I'm very glad you got the conflicting feelings of feeling bad for him for a second before remembering what a dick he is

i'm soooo excited to hear all your thoughts spruce

[stere0typical]

Hello! Intro post here!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Minecraft Series I like:

Hermitcraft

Empires SMP

Origins SMP

The Traffic Series

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Games I like:

Minecraft (obviously)

Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion (<3)

Stardew Valley

Pokemon (I've only played a few of the newer games so far sadly)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Movies and Tv Shows I like:

Our Flag Means Death

BBC Ghosts

Good Omens

What we do in the shadows (the show and the movie)

The Owl House

Nimona

Doctor Who

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My favourite Youtubers and Streamers:

Rtgame

James Marriott

Jack Manifold

Tommy Innit

Wilbur Soot

Ranboo

Grian

Goodtimeswithscar

MumboJumbo

Scott Smajor

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Please do not interact if you:

are a proshipper

are a TERF

think the ocean mlm flag is problematic

disrespect transgender individuals, especially non-binary people and people who use neopronouns

disrespect neurodivergent people

disrespect furries

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Also reminder that I am a minor, so please don't be weird.

Thanks for Visiting my blog!

[aro-throughyourchest]

Our name is/A C!Rocket Duo Free Verse

Warning: Sui// Thoughts, Alcoholism

Your name is Niki Nihachu

It sits on an old plate in a place that no longer exists

Labeled “Treasurer”

I found it in your office

It’s covered in dust and when I go to wipe it

Gunpowder.

It doesn’t wash out

Why bother then?

Your name is Niki Nihachu

You often tell me you end up forgetting it exists

So used to never having to use a voice

It came with one use: Introduce yourself

They shake your hand before moving on to Wilbur

or Tommy

or Tubbo

“Niki Nihachu, Treasurer”

My name is lost in between a haze of noise

It’s nothing I don’t care or think to remember

Carved on the bottom of a bottle that says

“J#ck Manifold”

I don’t read a name

Just a time to unscrew the lid

And drink

My name is carved under a bottle of beer

That fills my gut and mocks my ancestors

It tastes like shit but for once that’s a good thing

Because killing yourself is hard work

This is easy. Far too easy.

Honey tastes nice but reminds you of other assholes

Water keeps you alive

This works.

Your name is Niki Nihachu

You started baking again

You joined the Syndicate

Whatever the fuck that is

My name is Jack Manifold

I found it on a beer bottle

It reminds me to drink and

I use it to drown out noise

You started baking again

I drank some more

Your name is Niki Nihachu

My name I try to forget

[hopalongfairywren]

Doctor

“It’s- you’re okay.” You have to be okay! Aimsey pleaded, trying to bandage him up. Ponk looked up at her sympathetically. She was nice, and showed promise in the field of medicine. It was a goddamn shame he’s never had the chance to teach her anything. The SMP was in dire need of more qualified doctors.

Ponk could already feel his life draining from him. The wounds where the wolf (or whatever that creature was) bit him were deep, and his mind felt heavy with sleep. Exhaustion tugging at his mind.

He opens his mouth to talk, but only clots of blood come up. Dark, thick and red. They remind him of something else.

Jack came into his office a couple years ago now, back before The Egg, or even Doomsday, one early December morning right after Tommy had been exiled, and the SMP had settled into an uneasy calmness. A sniffing chicken hybrid boy in toe. Ponk had been surprised to learn that the child, Timmy, was in fact, Jack’s own. He explained that right before Wilbur had destroyed L’manberg, he had met a girl. Unfortunately, she, like many other citizens on the SMP fled in the days and weeks after November the 16th.

“Can you tell me what’s wrong?” Ponk asked, as Jack sat the small child down on the table. The kid looked no older than a few months, although hybrids did tend to age faster than their fully human counterparts. The baby didn’t seem to show any signs of poisoning from toxic ash or dust, which was a welcome change on Ponk’s part.

But the kid certainly didn’t look healthy. Timmy was still on the table, unmoving and silent with the exception of tiny sniffles and coughs. Children his age shouldn’t be that despondent, or at least not slumped over with red crust around their nose and mouth. Ponk’s heart jumped at that. It didn’t have the consistency of blood, but…

“Have you hurt Timmy?” He asked, tapping his pen to his notebook.

“No! Of course not, he’s my son, and I'm not a bad father.” Jack said angrily.

“It’s just a standard question.” Ponk assured him, turning to Timmy.

“When did he start showing symptoms? This could be a case of creeper cough if you’ve had a run in with one recently, and somehow got the gunpowder near him.” 

“I, I was heading past Bad and Skeppy’s mansion from a trip to Niki’s with Timmy when Bad invited us into his house… This was a couple days ago.” Jack said, his voice low with worry.

“And was that where he began acting sick?” Ponk questioned. He bit back his own snide remark about Jack not coming sooner, before realizing it would have been impossible to come sooner. Roads and bridges had been destroyed in the bombing, and Ponk’s own office had been closed and just hastily reopened, with tarp covering what should be the roof of the building.

Ponk could only thank his lucky stars that he and his staff had managed to evacuate everyone, and nobody died when tnt crashed through the roof, into a maintenance room and starting a fire.

“Bad invited us into the mansion to eat. I had to use the bathroom, so I left his side for a bit. When I came back he was crying and had some red stuff smeared around his mouth… Bad said it was ketchup or something.”

“He was crying…” Jack’s brow furrowed with anger, and Ponk winced, trying to ignore his own alarm. Bad wouldn’t poison a kid, he just wouldn’t. 

He was never a parent, and quite frankly he didn’t want kids of his own, but he couldn’t imagine being on the angry side of one.

“So he started coughing last night, yeah?” Jack said, now pacing around the room with a grimace.

“And now he’s-” As if on cue, Timmy coughed so loud that Jack jerked back, startled. The little kid nearly fell over, and he looked utterly miserable as smaller coughs began to wrack his body.

“What’s wrong with him?” Jack pleaded.

“I don’t know yet. Do you know if he came into contact with anything else harmful?” Ponk asked, shifting his mask tighter over his nose and mouth.

“It’s alright!” Timmy squeaked, snuffling as Ponk handed him a tissue.

Jack’s expression turned distraught as he slumped. “No. Just please… Help him.” He muttered, kicking the smooth polished floor.

“Timmy can stay overnight so I can monitor symptoms. He’ll be okay.” Ponk assured.

Little did both of them know, but Timmy wouldn’t make it past dawn the next day. It was as mesmerizing as it was horrifying watching the illness attack him. Ponk tried giving him several coughing medicines, but there wasn’t much safe dosages he could give a young chicken hybrid, not when most of his stock had been depleted or destroyed in the aftermath of the bombing.

Timmy had been just one of Ponk’s victims to never make it. And now Ponk too, would probably not make it.

“It’s alright.” Ponk assured a teary-eyed Aimsey, as he felt his second life slipping away from him.

[emixunn]

//possible spoilers for the Dream SMP ending

Peace.

It all went blank. It all went quiet.

Tommy woke up.

He sat in his bed, feeling ever so normal.

He stood up on stumbling legs and looked at the pictures framed outside his room. L’manberg, Tubbo, Wilbur, his home, his family.

Was this his new limbo?

He remembered standing in the prison and heard a loud noise and crash before everything turned to white and static.

Tommy shook himself and walked out to the rest of his house where he’d expected to see ruins and collapsed planks. Instead it looked like it had a few months ago. Wood keeps the cold out and his chest were full. His floor wasn’t broken and there were no signs of destruction. No pain.

The sun was blazing right in his eyes. The sky was blue and Tommy shielded himself with a hand. His eyes slowly adjusted to the light.

“Tommy?” A familiar voice was heard a few meters away and Tommy could make out the short and broad shape of his best friend.

“Tubbo?” Tommy nearly whispered, he wasn’t sure if his vocal chords worked correctly.

Tommy broke into a run and threw himself into Tubbo’s arms, a single tear fell down his face.

“Woah hey there man, are you alright?” Tubbo lightly pushed Tommy away so he could look at him.

“What’s- how- ar-“ Tommy stuttered, his breath coming out in short gasps, “are you…real?”

“Wha- of course I’m real Tommy,” Tubbo said and looked into Tommy’s eyes, “did you have another nightmare?”

“No it wasn’t a nightmare it was real, I think, we were-,” Tommy began and struggled to find the right words. How could Tubbo be in his limbo? And why was limbo so…peaceful.

“What? You can tell me Tommy,” Tubbo said, “although this is kinda awkward you’ve been staring into my eyes for a very long time”

“Yes I’m sorry,” Tommy shifted so he stood upright and Tubbo rested one hand comfortingly on his shoulder.

“Tell me what’s bothering you,” Tubbo said and began taking Tommy to the bench- the bench! It was there and it was whole and it looked as beautiful as ever and the tree was so green. Everything looked so colourful.

They sat down and Tubbo reached for his enderchest and took out a disc, and placed it on the jukebox.

Soft tunes began to fill their surroundings.

“I- we…” Tommy took a shuddering breath, “don’t you remember?”

“Remember what?”

“The whole plan! The, everything…” Tommy noticed his arms were trembling and Tubbo rested a palm on his arm. It felt real. Tubbo’s hand was warm and comforting with a few scars and two missing fingers.

“What plan? We didn’t plan anything today,” Tubbo said.

“We were-, wait you don’t remember? At all?”

“Not in the slightest,” Tubbo said and he sounded cheerful. Had it all been a dream?

“Yeah, then, maybe it was just a dream…” Tommy said in a hushed voice, “then I’d rather not talk about it for now if that’s alright”

“You can tell em about the dream when you feel ready,” Tubbo said and stood up, “that reminds me. There’s someone here who wants to see you.”

Tommy took Tubbo’s hand and Tubbo lead him toward the ruins of L’manberg. If it had all been a dream maybe L’manberg still stood, how much had been a dream, what was reality? Tubbo didn’t seem panicked at all.

“Who is it?” Tommy asked

“Oh he came from somewhere far away and he said himself he never thought he’d come back, Ranboo found him coming from about where Las Nevadas used to stand,” Tubbo said casually. Ranboo! He’s alive!

They came to the staircase that led down to the ruins and Tommy was a bit disappointed to see that the hole was still there. But it flourished with life. It looked so colourful, the green, the red and blue and yellow and white all coming together. The waterfalls splashed and birds sang. Tommy could see Jack and Niki on the bridge reminiscing about old times. A raccoon climbed out of the hole and looked in Tommy’s direction before heading off to the sea.

But none of that could compare to the next thing.

At the bottom of the staircase, looking out over L’manberg, stood a tall, black and white Enderman in a suit, their back looking painful with his awful posture. And next to them.

Next to Ranboo.

Stood Wilbur.

They turned to look at Tommy and Tubbo and both their faces lit up. Both had white streaks in their hair that matched Tommy’s own golden streak. Both looked tired yet at peace.

Tommy stopped for a moment before running and throwing himself into his brother’s arm, crying.

“Wilbur…” Tommy whispered and felt a hand on his back.

“I’m here Tommy,” his brother said, with a little bit of surprise.

“You prick” Tommy said and pushed away. He wiped his tears out of his eyes.

He then gave Ranboo a hug too.

“I’ve missed you,” Tommy whispered.

They were all real and alive and standing in front of him. Everything was colourful. Nothing was burning. Nothing brought pain to him.

“I’m never leaving you again,” Tommy promised, a few hours later after a bit of crying, as he sat with his best friends and family looking out over a beautiful crater. Where his physical home once stood.

He was happy and nothing could take that way from him this time. They could stay like this forever.