Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“You know of him?” asked the man made of gold, pointing to the blond captive in the cell. Tommy frowned in return, turning his head as he continued to glare at Dream.

Dream said nothing; all he did was stare at the man, trying to capture every detail. Finally, he said, “Let him go, and he won’t bother you again.”

“Are you serious?” Foolish mocked him, mentioning the guards’ need to gather closer. “It was just a few days ago that I decided to do just that.” “I told this little wretch that if he ever comes back, then it’s to the dark, dingy cell for him!” He stared at the blond, his eyes glowering, before he continued. “And did you know what I saw?” “A small child, screaming at the top of his lungs while burning my precious roses.” A single drop of sweat fell from his forehead as he continued to listen to the man rant about his… ruined roses? In all honesty, he expected worse.

Foolish scoffed at the lack of response. “Why am I even telling this to you?” “Guards,” he said, pointing at the other two. “Arrest them.”

He turned slightly and said, “And confiscate that chest; it’s probably mine anyway.” He finished before proceeding up the stairs and into the next room.

Both men winced; there weren’t many people, sure, but he could tell that every single one was skilled and powerful enough to be by Foolish’s side.

Dream’s mask quickly transformed into his scythe as he dodged and dove his way to the cell where Tommy was imprisoned. Sam, on the other hand, simply focused on strength, throwing punches that could kill a man. With one swoop, the bars were sliced clean, and Tommy was dazed.

“I could sue you for that, you know.”

“You have until we get out of here.”

Dream grabbed him, pulling him closer as they ran towards the entrance, passing Sam, who was banging the wooden chest on one of the guards’ heads.

“We got to go, Samuel!” he shouted from across the room, displaying a confused expression when the man frowned at the name. He brushed it off though—there’s no time to think about feelings, is there?

In the end, the three finally exited through the small hatchet that had shown them to the rose garden before.

“Huh,” Dream said, “surprised they didn’t barricade this.”

“They still have no idea that it’s there,” Tommy replied cheerfully as he stepped out, trying his best not to make a sound.

“Come on, if we hurry, Foolish might no-” Tommy began, spinning on his heel, only to be met with the face he despises—to some extent.

“Gotcha,” Foolish said with a smile.

The lack of energy was a major problem in his case. Honestly, Fundy doesn’t know how certain people do it. Dream, for example, has been running around all hyper for days without eating or sleeping!

He sighed as the sun rose and reached its peak. It was blazing, but the people were still up and about as the trees provided small amounts of shade. Everyone seems friendly enough—most people seem friendly enough as he sees others handing out refreshments for their neighbours and offering help in any way they could. It made him smile as he was reminded of all the times he was eager to lend a helping hand to others around him. He considers himself the same way; he won’t lie, but in the past, it was safe to say that maybe he was too obsessed with helping. Hannah was never annoyed by his actions, but he could remember all the messes he would make while trying to aid her in making potions in cauldrons or the times when she told him to get something from the shelf—the prime of his life. The smile didn’t flatter as he made his way towards the town square. Looking for Dream was not an easy task, he realized, so he initially gave up. According to what he knows, Dream is perfectly capable of whacking the hell out of predators and can certainly win over anyone with a smile like his. Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough to get him to stop worrying. The buildings were somewhat squished together, making parkour easier as he envisioned the blond jumping from one to another in hopes of catching the thief. It was something he himself would never try; he would stick to magic, thank you very much.

Soon enough, he was lost in thought, mumbling softly as his steps got faster.

“So, the plan is to find Dream, get food right away, and get more supplies to try building… Maybe we could build a house here… It looks homey but maybe too far…”

What happened next was pretty self-explanatory and much anticipated.

“Oof,” said the man as he glared at Fundy with chocolate-coloured eyes.

“Sorry!” Fundy apologized, circling the man to see if we were alright.

“It’s fine.” The man said, squinting slightly as he observed the other, who was now standing before him. “Huh,” he said, “I don’t think I’ve met you before.”

“Well, it’s a big town; you can’t possibly…”

“Hush, this place isn’t big! I know everyone here!” The brunette exclaimed, folding his arms as he continued to try to figure out who Fundy was.

“You know, we kind of look alike.”

“What? We don’t!”

“No, I see it,” he laughed, “perhaps you’re my long-lost son or something!”

Fundy was perplexed as the man abruptly changed from them looking alike to ranting about… something about a fish?

This, for some reason, went on for more than 10 minutes.

“And then she left me!” He shouted at the top of his lungs, frowning immediately after. “For a man with f*cking social skills, ugh.”

“U-um, sir, I really need to get going. I have friends that need to be found an-”

“Sir? “No, no, no, call me Wilbur… son,” he says.

The ginger frowned in return but complied with his request.

“Well then, Wilbur,” “That was an interesting conversation, but I need to leave right now.”

“Aww, already? What?” “Gonna cover up that tattoo before your mother sees it?”

Tattoo?

Fundy’s eyes were unconsciously led to his arm as he lifted it for a closer look.

“Not on your hand, dummy.” Wilbur mocked him, pointing to his forehead.

“Here!”

Immediately, he ran to the fountain that made itself the centrepiece of the town square and stared at his reflection within it, trying to make out what the symbol was.

Although small, it was still very noticeable as it continued to glow a bright red before cooling down, becoming pink, and disappearing. All he noticed was the simple smile that lingered only for a second.

“When did…” he started before dropping it as he realized that everyone was gathering up towards a huge field not so far away.

“Are you serious?” “Another one this month?” Wilbur groaned, walking away slowly to follow the crowd.

Fundy immediately followed, bombarding him with questions.

“What are you talking about? What are they doing? Where are they all going? Why are we doing this?”

“Hey, hey, one at a time,” the brunette chuckled, pointing to the massive mansion ahead.

“To summarize, there’s a large field nearby where some rich guy lives and kills people for their crimes. To cut a long story short, someone is going to get fucked.”

“What!?”

“It happens all the time.” “The bastard always kills the innocent but never thinks to even try to capture that big bad gang walking around.” Wilbur frowned and returned his gaze to Fundy for a brief moment. “You might want to come along,” he said before continuing on the path.

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“Lord Foolish hates it when people are late.”

Within the most secure cell, they were held as the noble before them paced back and forth. The man made of gold sighed as he finally faced them.

“Look,” he started, “you have to know that actions come with consequences.” “It is the way life is.”

“To what? “Kill us for sneaking into your sh*t?” Tommy snarled in return as the others contained their glare.

“It’s the law.”

“It’s ludicrous!”

Foolish folded his arms as he spoke once more.

“Once a person disobeys the rules more than three times, it is mandatory that they are punished accordingly.”

“He’s a fucking kid!” Dream shouted, enraged by this foolish argument.

Foolish scowled as he moved closer to the dingy cell.

“Don’t try to argue with me. I didn’t make the rules; I enforce them at all costs.”

In emphasis, he swung the mask back and forth in mockery, smiling as he saw the reaction he got from the blond. When he finally drew the mask back towards himself, he looked at it closely.

“Where did you get this?” he asked.

“None of your business,” was his reply.

Foolish scoffed as he rolled his eyes.

“Fine then. If I can get no information from you… I deem you useless to me. I’ll make sure-”

“My lord, your people are outdoors waiting for your arrival.” A servant interrupted; their voice soft. Foolish sent them away with a nod as he continued.

“As you may have heard, many people are waiting outside for your execution. I must be going then.”

He finished as he walked away slowly, turning his head towards the three only for a short moment. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you” were his last words before he went to speak with the crowd outdoors.

Dream scoffed as he leaned back and closed his eyes. Once again, he deemed himself useless, as there was nothing he could do to help. His mask was taken away; the only thing that actually made him useful was now gone. He didn’t cry though; he’s had enough of that. Instead, he laughed. His cackle became increasingly maniacal as he ignored the disturbed expressions of his companions trapped alongside him.

“Okay, okay… I’ve had enough of this game.” He said as he arose to his feet and took a step towards the bars made of metal, doing nothing but grinning as he held onto two and pushed them aside, leaving a gap large enough to escape.

As expected, nothing but red was located in his eyes, yet it was confusing due to the mask being separated from him. At the same time, his hands felt like they were burning as he stepped out with no hesitation and went off to seek the one who stole his mask.

“You two, stay here.” “Don’t speak of anything and follow their orders.” He ordered as he left the two behind, making his way up the stairs and taking down anyone that tried to even touch him.

He had no idea what had come over him, but he went along with it because, after all, he was just a sheep. Nothing but a follower of something greater.

That’s going to change soon enough.

Foolish stared at the sea of people that stood before him and said nothing as he waited for them to settle quietly. He stood next to the guillotine, as expected, alongside another who would be responsible for such a deed. His hands tightened as he gripped his robe. He despised that he was the reason for the blood, death, and cries. He wanted nothing to do with it!

At this time, the assignment people will proceed to bring out the three that so-called “disobeyed his orders,” but they were nowhere to be seen. He sighed but said nothing as his eye trailed toward the crowd in guilt.

As he said before, he does not make the rules; he only enforces them, and he will ensure that this is perfect to please the one he intended it for. He had no idea why they wanted this to happen, much less to this one specific person, but he knew that they planned everything. They wanted it for a reason, and for that, he will follow.

“Citizens of Merigald,”

Finally, the criminals stated that they wanted to be killed, but wait…

1

2

…

Where’s the third one?

Maybe it could work without him. They’d still be satisfied, wouldn’t they?

He turned to address the crowd once more, only to realize…Where is everyone?

He spun on his heels to see nothing but white in an ocean of nothing but red chains that hung around the sky.

“You’ve failed me, Foolish.”

He turned to face the god as he bowed quickly. He knew what they were talking about; he just couldn’t bring himself to reply.

“Well?”

“My lord, I know not of this man’s power.” “You’ve instructed me to kill but stated nothing but the obstacles that I would face to do so.”

The deity did nothing but laugh as he shrank down to his size; note that he was still towering anyway.

With a swish of his hands, a small opening of colour appeared, showing what seemed to be currently happening while he was gone. The blonde hybrid was currently freeing his companions while also speaking towards his people in a promising voice. His words were silent to Foolish, but with him stood a brunette who did nothing but smile as the people cheered. The man frowned as the deity continued to speak.

“That is why they have replaced you.”

Foolish’s eyes widened, “W-what…?”

At this point, the man was on his knees, pleading for mercy that God refused to grant.

“My lord, please! I can do better! I will please you, I promise!” He cried in hopes of forgiveness, but they did nothing but grin.

“I want him dead, Foolish, one way or another,” they said in a calm voice as they returned Foolish to where he once was.

He watched through the opening as he grabbed a sword he stole from a guard and proceeded to duel with the blond sheep as the people evacuated from the field.

The sky turned dark as both continued to slash each other, blood now staining the grass.

“That’s why… I replaced you.” XD smiled as he stared at the two eagerly. They knew who was going to win…

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But why not have some fun?