After successfully beating Techno home, he had told me that he had some errands to take care of before dinner later. He didn't tell me exactly what it was, but I knew it was something for Tommy.

I led Ash around the side of Tommy and I's house, giving her an affectionate pat on the neck as she walked into her stable. She neighed happily when I offered her an apple as her reward.

From the stable, I could see the chaotic movements of Tommy in Techno's house. There was a flash of white and black, the sound of barking following.

I just smiled to myself and walked up to the front door. There was a bridge now at the top of the steps, leading to Phil's almost complete house on the other side. A small pond ran underneath.

Inside, I found Nyx on top of Tommy, who had been pushed to the floor, with Ghost barking excitedly from the side.

"Alright, alright! You win!" Tommy said to the pup, a broad smile on his face. Nyx gave a happy yap and bounced off the teen.

"What in the world is going on here?" I asked, drawing their attention.

The dogs' ears pricked and they bounded towards me, Ghost putting his paws on my shoulders. Nyx was too short so her paws fell on my knees as her tail wagged.

I laughed and scratched both of their ears. The two became content with the attention and jumped down, giving me some space.

"That one," Tommy said, teasingly glaring at Nyx. "Thought it would be hilarious to gang up on me with Ghost."

I worked at untying my boots, a joking tone in my voice, "Tommy you probably asked for it."

An offended expression appeared on the teen's face. But in response, Ghost barked, sounding like he agreed with me.

I gave Tommy a pointed look. "See, he agrees with me."

Tommy just crossed his arms and huffed. His grumpy demeanor dissolved slightly when Nyx waddled into his lap, trying to lick his face.

"Fine, but I do not forgive you," He said to the puppy.

He definitely forgave her.

My boots slid off with a thunk, relieving my tired feet from their weight. Next, I pulled off my cloak and threw both into a chest for now.

Soreness shot through my legs and arms, and some bruises littered my arms, but I could care less. I was just happy to have the feeling of normalcy from the training.

The only sound for a minute was the fire crackling in the fireplace behind Tommy. I eased myself onto the windowsill, letting my muscles relax after working so hard.

"Where did you go this morning?" Tommy asked.

"Techno and I went to train," I said, letting some fire dance on my fingertips.

Surprisingly, after the session, my magic didn't feel tired. It still felt full of energy and adrenaline, ready to be released.

"Y/n-" Tommy started but was cut off.

Ghostbur floated through the door in a frantic way, a break in his easy-going personality. His dull eyes were wide and fearful.

"You have to hide," He urged, his voice high. "Dream's coming."

This made every warning bell go off in my head. I bolted off the windowsill and ran for the chests on the other side of the room.

"Ghostbur, send Nyx and Ghost to the other house," I said, searching through the chest. The door closed and the sound of the dogs running through the snow was all the confirmation I needed.

"Y/n, what do we do?" Tommy asked fearfully.

Sure, we had gotten away from Dream once thanks to Techno, but that didn't mean we were totally safe. Techno wasn't here right now and Dream definitely wasn't at his peak in power yet, so all we could do was hide.

I shoved an invisibility potion into Tommy's hands, popping the cork off my own. We both downed the potion and slowly began to disappear.

Before we were totally invisible, I grabbed Tommy's hand and pulled the two of us into a trapdoor box, just big enough to fit both of us.

Just as I pulled Tommy into my side, wrapping my arms tightly around him, I heard footsteps outside the door. Tommy clutched the compass in his fist and placed his other hand over his mouth.

I did the same, sinking into the eerie silence I always trained to have.

Tommy disappeared from my view, and my own body vanished. I could still feel Tommy's racing heart against my side and the brush of his cape.

The door opened and Dream, followed by hoof's clicking, entered the house. I squeezed my eyes shut and went completely still.

"Where did you find Friend?" Ghostbur asked, somewhere near the chests.

"Just around," Dream said casually. Why did Dream have Friend?

"Thank you!" The ghost said his cheerful demeanor in place of the frantic one. "Please make yourself at home."

There was some shuffling and Dream walked past our box, probably looking around. "Do you live here now?"

His tone sounded gentle and calm, but I could hear the lingering question behind it.

Do Y/n and Tommy live here too?

There was a corner of the box where light seeped in and we could see a bit of the house. Dream came into view, his mask tightly over his whole face and his hood pulled up over his blonde hair.

"No, no, this is just where I've been for a little while," Ghostbur reassured. "Technoblade said I could stay here for a little bit."

Dream didn't respond, and instead, he moved and it sounded like he climbed down the ladder to two floors below. I'm assuming Ghostbur followed because it went quiet.

But thanks to my heightened senses, I could hear their conversation perfectly. Tommy could probably hear a bit, but not as well as me.

"I have a question for you," Dream said, his voice a bit muffled through the floor. "Have you seen Tommy and y/n?"

My heart burst into a frenzy, loud enough that I was sure Dream would hear.

Just because we were with Techno that day we saw Dream, didn't mean he knew we lived with him.

There was a pause, and Ghostbur said after gulping, "No."

"Alright. Well, have you seen them anywhere in this area at all?"

"No."

I knew Dream could hear the way Ghostbur's voice pitched as he lied. Dream had always been observant.

"And I have a question for you down here," Dream continued, the gentleness leaving his voice a bit. "This list-"

"Yeah, these were written by Tommy and y/n-" Ghostbur immediately cut himself off.

I pulled Tommy tighter into my side, his wings thankfully pulled in at the minute. If they were out, there was no way we could've both fit in here.

My heart was crashing in my ears now, roaring in the silence that followed. I could faintly hear Tommy's racing heart as well.

It wasn't Ghostbur's fault he was like this, but we were definitely caught now.

"When?" Dream said, his tone chilling my blood.

"I don't know, but Tommy showed me earlier," The ghost said naively. He seemed to catch himself again though. "Oh, I-, I um this was their to-do list..."

Ghostbur just kept digging us into a deeper hole.

"Why are you staring blankly?" Ghostbur asked a hint of fear in his echoey voice.

There was another pause that made seconds feel like years. Anxiety welled in my stomach and shot through my veins like ice.

"Oh," Dream said, finally. "No reason."

Even if Ghostbur didn't hear it, I did.

I heard the recognition of victory in his tone. He knew we were here, even if the other house hadn't given it away.

Dream climbed back up the ladder, appearing in the corner where we could see. From his posture, I could tell he knew we were somewhere in the house with him.

He walked a bit closer to the box, leaning towards the window next to it.

"That's a nice cobblestone tower," He mused, pushing at Ghostbur's already frantic nerves.

I mentally swore and pictured how the tower Tommy had built was practically a beacon to our location.

"Yes! Why do you mention it?"

Dream just hummed in response, backing away from the window. He swept his mask around the room, looking for any tiny detail out of place.

That's when my heart completely stopped and the roar in my ears died.

The infinite smiley face landed on the one spot where we would be visible. His head paused there as if he could see our invisible forms.

I heard Tommy's heart screech to a stop as well, and his body shifted nervously against my side.

The mask held my gaze, and I couldn't seem to look away. There was an evil air around him that my magic could sense like it was a prison.

And as I stared, I strained my magic, trying to see the person it held prisoner in his own body.

Before I could, Dream abruptly looked away, breaking my magic's focus.

It was as if he knew I was looking.

"I know they were here, Wilbur," Dream said flatly.

"I-I have no idea what you are talking about."

Something clicked in Dream, and he had enough. "Alright, I'll be around."

He walked out of my line of sight, the door creaking open. His ax scraped the ground for just a second, the sound sending a pulse of fear through me.

Tommy squirmed, trying to make a move to go see or be with him. I wrapped my arms tighter around him, keeping him in place.

Some part of Tommy still believed Dream wanted to be his friend. And that part would follow after Dream even if it meant getting put back in exile, or worse.

Ghostbur followed after Dream, and only after a few minutes of silence, did I allow for the box to open.

I took a deep breath and wrung my hands to get rid of the nerves. Tommy automatically pulled out his wings and wrapped them around himself in comfort.

"That was close," I said, my voice quiet. "Closer than I would've liked."

Tommy nodded, and my eyes wandered over to the front doors. Next to them was Friend, laying down in his blue wool.

"Do you know how Dream had Friend?" I asked Tommy, crouching to pet the sheep.

"Friend had gone missing this morning, and Ghostbur spent all day searching for him. And somehow that green bastard found him," Tommy said, his voice wavering slightly.

My magic flickered to life in flames within seconds when Ghostbur appeared next to us. Tommy swore and jumped, his wings spreading wide in surprise.

"It's me!" Ghostbur said, putting his palms up in surrender.

I let the flames go and Tommy's wings settled again. We were a little jumpy after our near kidnapping experience.

A saddened look rippled in Ghostbur's eyes as he cast them to the floor. "I'm sorry, guys. I tried my best."

Even if Ghostbur had basically exposed our location to Dream, I couldn't bear to be mad at him. He couldn't help his truthful and kind ways.

So I mustered the warmest smile I could offer at the moment and said, "It's alright, Ghostbur. You did alright."

This seemed to help him feel a bit better because the frown disappeared off his face, replaced with a shy smile. He clutched some of his blue in his see-through hand and bent to lay against Friend.

Recently, I had noticed how whenever Ghostbur held blue, it was never white.

Like it was constantly absorbing his sadness.

For the next few minutes, I swept my magic out around us while Tommy went and got the wolves again. If Dream intended on returning so soon, my magic would be able to pick it up.

Nyx and Ghost seemed to sense the tenseness, keeping their eyes on the door. Ghost made an effort to keep the pup close to him at all times.

Once I felt like we could relax, I welcomed the dogs into my arms. I was sitting on the floor, leaning my head against the stone structure of the fireplace.

Ghost's white fur was orange in the fire's reflection, while Nyx's remained as dark as ever.

With the way they curled up in my arms side by side, they looked like a yin and yang symbol.

Tommy had left his wings out for some comfort, wrapping them around himself as he sat across from me against a chest. The fire warmed us as snow began to fall outside in the coming night.

My eyes were shut when Tommy said, "Y/n, I was going to give this to you earlier, but Dream showed up."

This drew my attention, making me open my eyes. Tommy was fidgeting with something in his bandaged hands, keeping his eyes off me.

"What is it?" I asked gently.

He glanced up at me, his blue eyes glazed over in the firelight. Without a word, he reached his hand across the gap with something in it.

I placed my palm just below his and he dropped the tiny item in it.

It was a wooden charm, like the ones that dangled from the bracelet on my wrist. The cutting job was slightly sloppier than the others, but it was still clear enough to tell what it was.

A small feather, matching the shape of Tommy's own wings.

I smiled at the trinket and hooked it beside the charms. It was the missing piece amongst the others.

A look of pride found itself in Tommy's eyes. "I made it myself."

"I love it. And I heard it was your idea to make this?" I asked, gesturing at the charms.

A hint of pink warmed on the teen's face. It was a strange sight seeing someone so proud and confident blush at the mention of a gift idea.

"Yeah," He mumbled. "I hope it isn't shit."

"No, it's perfect. Thank you, Tommy."

He smiled widely, a glimmer of happiness in his expression.

There was some scuffling outside, and I tensed, making the wolves look up in concern. Tommy did the same, his face going pale.

But when the door opened, we all relaxed. The edge of my magic disappeared back into its slumber.

Techno, with flakes of snow stuck in his pink hair and crown, entered holding a brown bag that was wet with snow. Ice clung to the edge of his cape and dark boots as he removed the shoes.

When he saw how tense we were, he paused. "What's wrong?"

I sighed, looking at Tommy. He gave me a small nod for me to continue.

Techno set down the bag, carefully stepping over Ghostbur's sleeping form on the ground. He kneeled next to me, absentmindedly petting Nyx as I told him about Dream's visit.

"But he didn't actually see you?" He asked once I was done.

"No, we were hidden in that box," I pointed to the trapdoors. "And we were both invisible."

He contemplated for a second, his eyes focused on the fire. "Hm, then we should be alright. We haven't done a very good job at hiding you."

Both of us looked at Tommy then, who smiled sheepishly. "What? The cobblestone tower isn't that noticeable."

I just rolled my eyes, while Techno stood to grab the paper bag. "Tommy, the tower looks awful."

This made me laugh, earning a death glare from Tommy. Techno wasn't afraid to tell his brother the truth that we all wanted to say.

Before they could erupt into an argument, Tommy's curiosity got the best of him. "What's in the bag?"

Techno handed over the bag to him, coming to sit next to me. Tommy took it without hesitation and opened the bag with innocent interest.

From the bag, he pulled out a green helmet made out of a small turtle shell, and a music disc with a blue inner lining. Enchantments danced on the green helmet.

"It's for you, Tommy," Techno said, watching his brother.

I was quickly realizing that Techno's way of showing appreciation was through gifts.

"Wait!" Tommy shouted in realization. He quickly pushed the helmet onto his head and rushed over to the jukebox.

When the disc slid in, the cheerful chirps of wait played in the air. Techno bobbed his head with the rhythms, and I laughed as Tommy began freely dancing.

Tommy shimmied over to me and pulled me up from underneath my dogs. He threw my hands around, making me dance with him.

I laughed and smiled, Techno soon joining us in the small circle, any thoughts of Dream gone.

Techno knew what he was doing when he gifted Tommy a disc.

~~~~

Im feeding you all happy chapters to make up for a certain part

the bracelet and charms were inspired by some headcanons in my discord! so give the discord children some love

also, I have only seen one or two correct guesses at the character like foolish >:)

i may not post until next week again, or on Sunday because I will be on vacation!

love you guys sm, thank u for 20K! have a wonderful day and stay safe/healthy! :)