trigger warnings: psychological verbal and physical abuse

HIIII I MEANT TO UPLOAD THIS YESTERDAY SO SORRY T-T the end of this chap rlly isnt my fav i think it rlly could've been done better but at the end of the day this is a fanfiction about minecraft roleplay so i'm really not going to lose sleep over it

anyways the support on this fic is AMAZING so thank you all so so so much. without further ado, i present to you: the chapter where it all goes downhill

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Phil had been… struggling; To put it lightly.

Wilbur was a good man, was something that rang constant in his mind. Stained with both pride and remorse, he clung to that thought with what little sanity he truly felt like he had, but the more memories he watched, the more the statement began to feel like a question.

Phil’s youngest was sitting far from him, nearly in the farthest possible seat. Coincidence or not, it stung slightly. Tommy was… different. He was still loud and rude, but somehow simultaneously more quiet. He took up less room, it seemed.

Before… well… before a lot of recent things, Tommy had quite literally been the room itself. He never hesitated to make himself known, always inserting his little head in conversations that didn’t concern him and drawing attention to himself and his family in the worst ways possible.

Phil hadn’t been around a lot when Tommy was growing, but when he first adopted him the kid was a blur of red and yellow. Constantly climbing things and nearly cracking his skull open at a moment’s notice, escaping his crib no matter how Phil modeled it, somehow fleeing the house dead in the middle of night simply because he saw fireflies outside his window and had decided he needed to see them then and there. Philza always smiled looking back at memories of his youngest. He was pretty sure he’d gone nights without sleep with the little one a constant danger to himself and others, but every time he felt frustrated he would just look at that little face and his heart would melt .

“No one knows Tommy like I do,” he used to laugh, holding the baby close as the twins played outside. They’d been too young to remember their brother at that age, and didn’t pay as close attention as Phil did, too caught up in their own adolescent lives.

Sitting there, in the stuffy, uncomfortable room, though, Phil knew that it had become quite the opposite. No one knew Tommy anymore, that was for sure, but least of all his father. He could no longer claim with absolute certainty that Tommy’s favourite colour was ocean blue, or that his favourite food was toast with strawberry jam, or that he liked to name the spiders he found outside because he just didn’t know anymore. Children change as they grow, and where Phil had once known his son inside and out, he found himself completely out of his depths.

Tommy was… a stranger.

And Phil hadn’t realized it till then.

Of course, he’d left with the very intention of protecting Tommy and Wilbur, but he wondered if at some point he could have returned more often, or perhaps just shortened the length of their trips, but his guilt for being away so long only kept him out longer.

Perhaps his excuses and reasonings were merely the rambling and musing of a guilty conscience; one he hadn’t ever wanted to face.

Phil took a deep breath, schooling his features. Puffy’s… implications were throwing him off. He was losing his cool and he needed to keep it together. Wilbur was good. Wilbur was good . Wilbur was a good person. Wilbur was loved. Wilbur was loving.

And you Killed him. It’s your job as both his father and his murderer to protect his honor.

Techno watched his father with pointed eyes, trying to catch his every movement. The piglin hybrid could sense Phil’s inner turmoil, and felt guilt brewing inside him. He quickly shut it out, not willing to ever face that side of himself. And yet, despite his insistence on not getting caught up in his own mind, Puffy’s words plagued him.

“Did Wilbur ever… hit you?”

Phil’s response had been thorough disgust, but in that moment Technoblade had frozen. There was a specific instance in his mind, one that had him swirling in despair, despite never having pondered on it before that moment.

“What happens in the pit, stays in the pit.”

Forget Wilbur, Techno had hit his younger brother, and more than once. In the moment it hadn’t felt wrong; hell, even months later he couldn’t care less. But there was something in Puffy’s tone, something deeply afraid, that seemed to force him to think back on that moment.

…Had he been in the wrong?

He remembered Tommy’s bitter snarl, the way the kid had been beyond enraged with him… but had he taken it too far?

Technoblade cleared his mind, willing the dark thoughts away. What was he doing? Stewing quietly over something that had happened months before and never been brought up again? Clearly, if he’d truly fucked up, then Wilbur or Tubbo would have said something. It was fine. There was no use dwelling on it.

“Oi ya fucking cock,” Jack called out, “can’t see the screen now can I?” He gestured to where Tubbo was standing, directly in front of the screen as he reached towards the ceiling, fingertips pointed outwards.

“Relax Jack,” Tubbo snorted, bending down to touch his toes, “I’m just stretching. Besides, the next memory hasn’t started up yet.”

“You look like a fuckin idiot you do.” Tommy grinned, laid back comfortably in his seat. Ranboo snickered quietly to himself.

“When you’re old and your bones don’t work for shit don’t come complaining to me,” Tubbo snarked back, twisting and turning still, “you won’t be able to escape me then.”

Tommy blinked at the implication, smile slipping from his face. Beside him Ranboo laughed harder, and Tubbo turned his attention to the tallest.

“That goes for you too, Ender boy,” he cracked his neck side to side, “I’d like to see you run from me in thirty years seeing how shit your posture is now.”

Ranboo’s laughs quieted, and he instantly shot up, back going ramrod straight. Almost immediately, he felt a gentle tapping on his shoulder blade. He looked back to see Quackity, trying to reach the top of his shoulder, looking at him.

“Down in front please.” The duck hybrid called in a high pitched voice, grinning. George, Sapnap and Karl all bursted into laughter around them. Ranboo sheepishly hunched back over on himself, grinning nervously. Tubbo and Tommy both let out loud laughs.

“That’s enough boys,” Puffy rolled her eyes endearingly, “back in places. The next memory’ll be any second now.” She was smiling softly at the trio. The tense air in the room had seemed to somewhat lift, and despite Drista’s promise of the ordeal dragging on, some of them were beginning to feel more optimistic.

The narrow and jagged walls of Pogtopia spanned across the screen. The twisting spirals of stairs without barriers were shown as two figures slowly made their way through the small crevice. It was rather dark, with few torches to illuminate the entirety of the place.

Tommy trailed behind Wilbur nervously, shoulders drawn as he hugged himself as tight as he could. His eyes were flitting around, scanning the area back and forth. He gently tipped his diamond helmet upwards so he could see better, frowning. He looked cold, jacket forgotten upstairs in their little shack of a home.

“... Did we have to choose somewhere so… tiny?” He called faintly, brows drawn together in a pinched expression. His unkempt hair poked out messily from all sides of his helmet, making him look a bit more crazed. The walls felt like they were closing in on him. He hated it.

Techno watched, eyeing the screen wearily. He’d never liked Pogtopia. It was… eerie. It felt like it was changing his twin bit by bit. The longer they spent in there the more Wilbur seemed to descend into something… less human. The more days they called it home the more Wilbur adjusted to the dark. Wilbur had become… part of Pogtopia, but what was Technoblade if not a loyal brother? He’d stood by Wil, even in complete insanity.

The insane Wilbur had actually been quite fond of Techno, and maybe that had half-blinded him. There was something abashedly comforting about a Wilbur that didn’t denounce him, that actively praised his indulgences in the voices. He’d spent so many years afraid of breaking his twin, so it was almost… a relief that someone else had done it. He was ashamed to say it looking back, but a part of him had liked the not-Wilbur. Maybe he’d just been so tired of being ‘the violent twin’ and ‘the crazy one’ that he’d actually embraced the degraded version of himself Wilbur had been in his final days.

Selfish… wasn’t it?

Wilbur let out a long suffering sigh, throwing his head down. He whirled around, jacket flaring out as he spun. The bags under his eyes had worsened, they were critical and narrowed, much of their love long gone. His lips were turned into a bitter frown, curved sharply. In his left hand he held a cigarette, half smoked already.

He took a drag from the stick, letting the ash fall to the ground. He paused for a moment before exhaling, most of the smoke billowing up into the high ceiling area of the ravine.

Phil blinked, eyes wide. Wilbur had smoked?

“Look Tommy,” he began, voice rough, “I know you’re claustrophobic, but we can’t make sacrifices for your personal comfort. This place is perfect!” He threw his arms up wide, spinning in a circle. “Techno’s already got a lovely synthetic farm going, it’s all great!”

Tommy glared, hugging himself tighter. He looked tired as well, large bruises beneath his eyes. “You’re a massive dickhead.” He hissed.

Wilbur chuckled, throwing his cigarette to the ground and stomping it out. “I’m just going with whatever works best!” He looked back to see his younger brother staring up at him and his face softened, “You’ll be fine, Toms,” he assured, “promise.”

Tommy smiled shakily, giving a halfhearted thumbs up, though the minute Wilbur turned his back the smile slipped from his face and he scowled, flipping the older off.

Wilbur didn’t notice, parading off into the shadows with intention.

Sapnap let out an amused huff, watching the two bicker. Tommy was always so expressive, and never hesitated to voice his opinion. It had become a bit comforting in the first months of the server, and he’d grown accustomed to it.

“Fuckin hate it here…” Tommy muttered, face sour as he kicked a rock at the wall. The rock bounced back, hitting him in the shin. He let out an affronted cry, clutching his leg and hissing profanities at the wall..

A group of them laughed at his antics, amused by how comical his behaviour was.

“Stop laughing you pricks!” Tommy chastised, face growing red.

The screen went dark and they all readied themselves for whatever was next. It seemed Drista was perfectly fine showing them short clips, as long as said clips had meaning. For example, no one had failed to pick up on the fact that the main purpose of the last memory was to portray Tommy’s distaste for Pogtopia, and to set the scene for future events.

Bit dramatic of her, but whatever.

Tommy was standing idly just outside the dirt home, neck craned down as he stared at his communicator in hand. It looked to be midday, and he was frowning deeply at the sun in his eyes as the long blades of grass tickled his ankles.

Tubbo_:

can we talk?

TommyInnit:

idk

wil says we arent supposed to

what if schlatt catches you

He hesitated momentarily in his typing, sighing and running a hand through his hair. He looked out into the distance, in the direction of L’Manberg, before looking back down.

TommyInnit:

i just dk if we should risk it

Tubbo_:

but i havent talked 2 u in forever :(

Tommy laughed at that, quickly going to reply when he heard the door slam beside him. Wilbur strode out, shoulders tense. He instantly turned to Tommy, eyes wide.

“Tommy!” He cried, reaching out and snatching the communicator, “what the hell are you doing?”

The blond blinked in surprise, quickly moving to defend himself. “I was jus-”

“You were talking to Tubbo? ” Wilbur practically spat, not looking over as his eyes scanned through the message logs, “I told you not to!”

Tommy winced, reaching out before letting his hand fall. “I- I know Wil but it’s just hard and-”

“What if Schlatt had seen? Hm?” Wilbur cut him off, taking three large strides forwards and into Tommy’s personal space, “What if he’d seen his right hand man talking to mine? Can you imagine what sort of advantage we’d be losing if he figured out?”

Tommy’s concerned face only worsened, and he took a quick breath. “I-”

“Do you know what might happen to Tubbo if Schlatt found out?”

He stopped at that, as if just realizing the danger Tubbo was in as their spy. He could seriously get hurt if he was found out.

“What if something happened to him because of you, Tommy?” Wilbur asked, volume lowering but tone staying accusatory, “what would you do then?”

Tommy blanched, looking to be in some sort of panic. He was beginning to sweat, looking more and more alarmed as Wilbur continued to stare him down.

The wind blew through their hair, and Tommy swallowed thickly.

“I… I don’t know.” He admitted finally, looking scared. Wilbur nodded curtly, grip tightening around Tommy’s communicator.

“If you want to put yourself at risk that’s one thing,” he began, “but your behaviour makes you a danger to others. It’s selfish, Tommy.”

“What the fuck is he talking about?” Tubbo demanded, looking at the screen perplexed, “I’m the one that texted first!”

“He was probably just misreading the situation,” Tommy laughed nervously, “I- uh- He was just worried about you, Tubs.”

Tubbo frowned, feeling somewhat uneasy about the entire thing.

“I’m sorry Wil.” Tommy whispered, eyes downcast. “Really I am.”

Wilbur smiled at that, relaxing. His tense hold on the communicator loosened somewhat. “I know. All that matters is that you understand what you did was wrong, Toms. I’m not a villain here I just… I worry, y’know? I- I worry about you and Tubbo. You’re just kids I mean, how can I expect you to stay out of danger?”

Tommy looked to be deeply ashamed, nails digging into his palms. “I’m sorry for making you worry, Wil.” He mumbled.

“Just don’t do it again.” Wilbur relented, “that’s all I ask.”

Tommy nodded mutely, still looking down. Wilbur placed a firm hand on his shoulder. “I’m going to keep this for a while,” he held up the communicator, “just until I know I can trust you with it again.”

“Course Wil.” The younger nodded, “whatever you think is best.”

The grip on his shoulder grew tighter as Wilbur beamed, screen going dark.

“He took your communicator?” Ranboo asked, looking concerned.

“Well… y’know…” Tommy gestured towards the screen, looking embarrassed, “I deserved it.”

“Uh no?” The enderman tilted his head, “and like, there’s nothing a player can do to warrant getting their communicator confiscated. That’s a rule on every server. He isn’t allowed to do that.”

“He’s my…” Tommy paused for a moment, eyes going wide, “... He was my brother,” he fumbled, “it’s different for us.”

Ranboo didn’t seem to agree, his mismatched eyes staring at the blond intently. Tommy grit his teeth, turning to stare back, directly into Ranboo’s eyes to spook him and make him stop. The taller shied away at the action, quickly moving his gaze to the ground, and Tommy smirked.

“Ranboo’s right,” Sam interjected, not impressed with Tommy’s evasion tactics, “He shouldn’t’ve taken it.”

“Well maybe you shouldn’t insert yourself in other people’s business, dick.” The blond hissed, flipping him off.

“Tommy!” Phil cried out, eyes widening at the outburst.

“Okay…” Karl chuckled nervously, “let’s all take a breather.” He wasn’t exactly fantastic at mediating, but thankfully the next memory started up before anything could get worse.

Wilbur was seated silently on the floor of the ravine. His hair was disheveled and his jacket was crumpled in all the wrong places. He was slumped up against the wall, looking worse for wear. There was no one else around, and the hall was eerily quiet. His features appeared more sharp and defined, accenting his cold eyes.

Above him came the sound of a door slamming and hurried footsteps. They descended down the stairway, echoing throughout the empty crevice. Wilbur lazily looked up, watching as Tubbo’s head poked over the edge, staring with wide eyes. His suit was messily buttoned, and his face was red like he’d just ran half a mile. He paused for just a second, panting and catching his breath.

“Tommy’s been spotted!” He gasped, frantic look on his face. Wilbur’s eyes widened.

The scene cut to Tommy, the boy racing in a confusing zig zag pattern, up and down hills and in between every tree he could find. His feet thumped loudly on the grass as his heart pounded in his chest. His gaze flitted over to a fallen tree on an angle, and quickly strayed from his route to scale it, using his newly gained height to leap over and heave himself onto a ledge. Once he’d successfully scrambled to his feet, he continued his sprint, checking over his shoulder every few seconds.

As he neared the other side of the ledge, a large pit in the ground made itself known and he hastily leapt into it, wincing and biting his tongue to conceal a cry of pain as he landed.

“What the hell are you running from?” Quackity asked, staring intently at the screen. Tommy gave him an odd look.

“You.” He replied. The duck hybrid looked slightly taken aback at that.

“Oh…”

He clamped a hand over his mouth, trying to keep his pants shallow and miniscule as he heard voices above him to his left. The pit he’d dove into was shrouded in bushes and roots, and he doubted they’d spotted him.

The voices grew slightly more muffled and distanced, but Tommy was still wary. He kept his hand where it was, trying to ignore the bugs crawling in the dirt around him.

“Oh that is just vile…” Jack mumbled, looking thoroughly disgusted, and Tommy almost wanted to laugh because in the moment it had been rather horrible, not necessarily the bugs, just the atmosphere itself, but he’d have spent ninety hours in that hole if it meant he could’ve avoided what was to come in the near future.

The people above were drawing even further, but Tommy couldn’t bring himself to check, terrified that they’d be right there when he poked his head out. He remained in his spot in the ground, head nestling into the dirt and closing his eyes.

It was… comforting. Surprisingly warm too, it seemed. He felt oddly at peace in that moment, like that little nook in the ground had been made for him. It almost felt like home. He wasn’t quite sure what home was at that point, but somehow it felt like he’d been made for that specific moment. He felt as though the body he inhabited was built to be buried there, cuddled into the mud, caked in with the bugs.

Phil squirmed at the sight, not liking how content Tommy seemed to be just laying half buried in some hole.

When he opened his eyes it was dark, and his body felt stiff. He blinked blearily a couple times, specs of dirt and gravel on his lashes. His body was cold, skin pale. He felt like a corpse. Turning his head from side to side, he took note of where he was, not recognizing the cramped little hole.

All at once it came rushing back to him, and his eyes shot open fully. He hastily clambered out of the hole, not caring by that point if anyone was still out there. He pushed through the roots, taking in a deep breath as he looked around.

It was night; And he had no idea how long he’d slept for.

He looked around at his surroundings in a panic; everything looked so similar in the dark. He noticed a spider crawling up his leg, gently letting it down back onto the grass and muttering an apology.

“How in god’s name do you just… do that?” Puffy asked, horrified.

“What?” Tommy looked over at her, genuinely perplexed.

“I- I mean there’s so many bugs, ” she shivered, feeling herself up and down at the idea of them, “and you just slept there!” She cried.

“I was tired,” the blond deadpanned, as though it was the most simple thing in the world, “and bugs are my friends.”

“Unbelievable…” Puffy muttered, looking away as if she was going to be sick.

Rising back up, Tommy pondered for just a moment, staring north. Further down the slope he was stood upon he recognized a small pond that he’d seen before. It was hard to tell in the dark but the moonlight reflecting on the water did enough. Without much hesitation, he began to make his way in that direction, limping slightly as he seemed to have hurt his ankle when entering the little ditch.

Niki frowned, watching the young boy trek forwards on screen. She’d always assumed they’d had somewhere before Pogtopia. She’d thought that the decrepit little cesspool of a base Wilbur was so fond of was somewhere they’d only moved after the former president had truly finally lost it, but it seemed she was wrong.

Where she’d imagined Wilbur and Tommy laughing, they were screaming at each other, and where she’d imagined them spending time together, they were at one another’s throats. Where in her mind she’d seen Tommy sleeping in a warm bed, surrounded by love that would have then been reserved specifically for him, she watched as he slept in a hole in the ground with the spiders and maggots.

It was… sobering. Terrifyingly sobering.

Her jealousy had blinded her from the fact that maybe, just maybe, things hadn’t been as perfect as she thought. She’d envied Tommy so fervently just to watch him struggle to stay afloat, and it made her feel sick.

It didn’t change the fact that she still wished Wilbur had chosen her, however. Instead of truly feeling pity all she could think to herself was that if Wilbur had chosen her maybe, just maybe, things would have been different. Deep down, beneath her covetous desires and enraged envies, she knew it wasn’t Tommy’s fault, but that didn’t stop her from purposely staying in the dark; in the shadows where Tommy’s bright smile and stupidly sunny self couldn’t get to her.

Could she not pretend for even a moment longer that Tommy was the problem? Niki was scared. She was terrified of coming to terms with the fact that she might’ve been brash and self-centered, that she might’ve put herself on a pedestal and left Tommy to pathetically crawl for salvation. The very idea that her actions might’ve not been completely justified left her feeling utterly paralyzed.

She’d spent so long doting on others, catering to everyone’s needs but her own. She was Nihachu, the forgotten mother of a cherished country. Every second during her time in the beginning was put towards making sure everyone around her was content. She baked for them, made presents for them, comforted them, she’d been everything to them. And she knew her anger in itself was justified, but the mere idea of it being directed at the wrong person after living in a blind rage for so long, after dedicating herself to eradicating that person, she didn’t know if she could truly cope with that. Niki didn’t know if she could face the truth in its whole.

Perhaps she’d continue to see it as Tommy’s fault… for her own sake, just for a little longer.

Tommy continued to stagger forwards, not completely lucid. He passed the pond, taking a second to stare at the water, watching as it rippled calmly. He saw the water bugs as they paraded around on top of the water’s surface, and his expression didn’t change as fish devoured them from underneath, coming up from murky depths to prey on the unsuspecting little creatures.

Wordlessy, he ambled forwards, and eventually was met with the warm glow of torches. Where moonlight was pale and cold, the light of a torch, of fire, was warm and orange. Tommy’s eyes reflected the flames as he neared the shack, still not speaking.

Before the door stood two figures. One was much taller than the other, shrouded in grey, while the other seemed to bounce on its heels, moving around in an annoying sort of way.

“Tommy!” One of them, the taller one, cried. And they were both racing out to greet him. Wilbur and Tubbo looked terrified, both sprinting.

Wil immediately engulfed Tommy in a large bear hug, holding the teen close. The tired daze the latter had been in finally seemed to break and he let himself smile wide.

“Are you okay?” Wilbur asked, pulling away from the hug so he could frantically go over his younger brother, checking for injuries. He plucked leaves and twigs out of the messy blond hair, befuddled. “What the hell happened?”

“I fell asleep in a pit.” Tommy said, not skipping a beat. Wil stared at him as if he’d just grown a second head while Tubbo gave him a similar glance.

“You wh-” Wilbur had to steel himself, “ Tommy ,” he insisted, interrupting himself as he gripped Tommy’s arms tightly, “Tubbo said you’d been seen by the enemy.”

“That’s why I was in the hole?” The youngest tilted his head, “I was hiding obviously.”

“You are a class-A idiot…” Sapnap muttered, shaking his head.

“Hey!”

Wilbur was very quiet for a moment, seeming to be calculating something. When he raised his head he seemed set in his way.

“Tubbo I think you should leave now.” He stated quietly, voice even and face impassive. The boy in question looked taken aback.

“But Tommy-”

“-Is fine.” Wilbur finished, turning to look at the shorter boy. “I know you’re worried but if you’re gone any longer Schlatt might start to suspect something, hell, he might already be suspecting something. Now that we know Tommy’s okay you can head back to L’Man- Manberg and come back here when it's safe.”

Tommy was beginning to grow nervous. He knew exactly where the memory was headed, and thought that it would have ended by then. His leg bounced up and down restlessly, and he couldn’t keep himself from panicking slightly.

If Drista didn’t cut it off soon…

He took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. If he called out then and Drista had been planning on stopping the others might get curious and insist she continue. He couldn’t tell whether or not it was worth the risk.

Tubbo frowned, looking over at Tommy with sad eyes. The blond didn’t really know how to react, so he just stared back. Tubbo looked him up and down, and then over at Wilbur’s reassuring smile.

He sighed, drooping considerably. “Yeah… Yeah you’re right.” He smiled sadly, “Life of a spy huh?”

Tommy grinned back, and Tubbo felt a weight lifted off his chest at that, moving to leave.

“Keep me updated, yeah?” He asked, “had me worried half to death tonight.”

“Bye Tubbo.” Tommy waved, watching the other as he went. He and Wilbur stood outside their door, waiting till they could no longer see Schlatt’s right hand man.

“Drista.” Tommy began, trying to hide the urgency in his tone.

She didn’t say a word, and the memory kept playing.

The second Tubbo had disappeared from the horizon a dark look overtook Wilbur’s features. The smile slipped from his face, and he looked much more like the typical ‘Pogtopia Wilbur’. He grabbed Tommy’s wrist tightly, nails digging into pale skin as he dragged the boy inside.

Tommy’s eyes widened, trying and failing to outstrength the older man as he was pulled further into their home. “W-Wil,” He began, tripping over his words, “you’re hurting me.”

Wilbur didn’t answer, lifting the trapdoor on the floor and beginning to descend the stairway, Tommy’s wrist still clutched tightly.

Tommy stared in horror at the screen, not knowing what to do. He couldn’t let them see.

They finally made it to the bottom and without hesitation Wilbur used his grip on the younger to slam him up against the wall. Tommy sucked in a sharp gasp, rearing back as Wilbur’s face came up close to his.

“You little shit!” The man hissed, eyes completely void of anything sane. His teeth were bared in a snarl, looking more crazed than ever.

No one in the room knew what to do, half too shocked to move and half too intrigued to stop staring.

“Drista.” Tommy said, more urgent that time through gritted teeth.

“Wil-”

“What the hell were you doing, huh?”

“...What?”

Wilbur pressed him further into the wall, and Tommy flinched back, clearly terrified.

“Don’t play dumb Tommy,” The taller laughed, “Tubbo tells me you’ve been spotted by the enemy and then you just, what? Disappear? For hours? I want names. ”

Tommy looked beyond concerned at that point, trying and failing to get out of the death grip his brother had on him. “Wilbur stop it!” He squirmed, “I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

“Who are you conspiring with!?” Wilbur cried. Tommy furrowed his brow.

“Wil I’m not conspiring with anyone I don’t-” He was interrupted as his brother shoved him roughly, moving to pace back and forth within the tiny ravine they called ‘home’. He was smiling to himself, muttering so quietly Tommy couldn’t hear a word.

“Drista!”

“Wilbur stop this,” Tommy took a hesitant step forward, “you’re not being yoursel-”

“DRISTA!”

Tommy was cut off by a backhand to the face, stumbling backwards right back into the wall. Wilbur stood with his hand outstretched, having stopped pacing, a dangerous look in his eye. The younger clutched his cheek in shock, staring up at his big brother, eyes stinging.

“You hit me…” Tommy whispered, betrayal and hurt interwoven in his words.

Tommy went completely pale, eyes locked on the screen. He was frozen in place, unable to move even in the slightest. His heart was pounding and he felt as though he was on death’s door but he could not move. He’d spent so long trying to keep those things hidden, to not reveal them to enemies and ‘friends’ alike, only for what? His friend? Someone he trusted? To go and show everyone the memories as if it was some saturday afternoon cinema viewing?

He felt sick, barely able to breathe or blink. Everything was too much .

He didn’t look over, couldn’t bring himself to look over at what the others must have been reacting with. He could only picture the disgust on their faces, or perhaps the glee at seeing his weakness exposed.

Wilbur didn’t seem to care, lost in his own head as he pondered. His eyes lit up just seconds later, and he zeroed in on his younger brother’s hunched frame.

“You’re with Schlatt, aren’t you?” He grinned, practically shaking.

Tommy’s hand slipped from his cheek, a large red handprint visible upon it. “What? Wil I’m not-”

“There’s a speech this morning in-” Wilbur looked down at his watch, “just a couple hours actually! You’re working with him!” The man seemed dead set on his theory, “you took advantage of me! You knew I’d stay up all night worrying about you and be disoriented at Schlatt’s speech today you- you planned this, didn’t you?”

Tommy was staring at him in horror, unable to think straight. His brother, his big brother who had always protected him, had just hit him. And he didn’t even care.

“Wilbur listen to yourself!” He tried, “I would never-”

“Come with me.”

The younger blinked, eyes widening even further. “What? No I-”

“Come with me!” Wilbur snarled, grabbing hold of Tommy’s wrist once more. His grip was vice-like, completely inescapable and consuming. Tommy gasped, letting out a panicked whine and clawing at the hand.

“Wilbur stop!” Tommy cried, pulling against his brother as hard as he could. “Wilbur!”

He dug his heels into the ground, nails bitten down to the bed scraping at the pale long fingers entrapping him. He whined again, tears building in his eyes.

Wilbur didn’t speak, dragging Tommy down the hall, completely ignoring his younger brother’s cries. They reached his quarters, and he brought the blond over to the corner. Tommy went white in the face.

“No no no,” He shook his head vehemently, pulling away desperately, “please Wilbur no!”

“Shut up!” Wilbur hissed, throwing a closet door open. He carelessly shoved Tommy in, watching the young scramble to protect his face from the stone.

Tommy panted on his hands and knees, turning around desperately only to have the door slammed in his face. He let out a low keel, banging on the wood.

“ Wilbur!” He screamed, tears beginning to flow freely as he let panic truly set in, “ Wilbur I’m sorry! Please! Don’t do this!”

No one in the room could move, horrified as they watched.

There was the clicking of a lock from inside the door and Tommy grew even more desperate. He slammed his fists against the door, begging to be freed. “ Please Wil I’ll do anything! I’m sorry! ”

“I’ll let you out when I get back, Tommy.” Wilbur’s muffled voice came from the other side before his footsteps slowly disappeared. Tommy sobbed, leaning against the door as he tried to keep himself calm. He went to reach for his pocket but felt his heart sink at the realization.

Wilbur still had his communicator. He couldn’t call for help.

“No no no no…” His eyes became more crazed, more frantic as he clawed at the door, bartering with no one, pleas falling on deaf ears.

Tubbo watched, shocked beyond his years as he saw his best friend, his other half, wail and cry, locked in the small closet. He covered his mouth with his hand, barely concealing a sob.

It couldn’t be real. The memories had to be fake, they had to be fabricated.

There was no way Tommy wouldn’t’ve told him Wilbur was doing that. There was no way he wouldn’t’ve noticed.

“Please!” Tommy sobbed, falling against the door, curled into himself as tightly as possible. “Please Wilbur!”

Ranboo felt his cheeks begin to burn, tears silently slipping down his face. He wanted to look away, to pretend it wasn’t real, but it was, and it was there. He cringed at every scream, felt his heart shatter at every sob, unable to do anything but watch. He wanted to stop it but it’d already happened.

He’d never known Wilbur. He knew Ghostbur, but the ghost of a man was friendly and charming, gentle with his words and soft with his actions. He was nothing like the man on screen. He wanted to compare Wilbur to a monster, but that would be insulting to all the beasts and creatures of the world.

Ranboo hadn’t had a clue anything even similar to what he was watching had transpired, and he suddenly felt extremely sick, unable to think of anything other than the fact that Tommy clearly hadn’t told them; which mean if anything similar had happened he wouldn’t’ve said either. Just how much was Tommy hiding from them?

Tommy’s breaths became even more shallow as he began to hyperventilate, gasping desperately for air and yet taking in none. He pawed at the door, tears streaming down his face as he wheezed and pleaded, but to no avail.

Without much warning, his eyes rolled back and his head thudded against the door, body going slack.

The screen went dark.

No one spoke.

No one could speak.

The tension in the air was so thick you could’ve cut it with a knife, and everyone alike was in varying degrees of grief.

Puffy sobbed silently into her hands, trying to keep herself together and failing miserably. Her boy, her sweet boy had been abused at the hands of his own older brother, a man he’d trusted. Puffy had done so much to prepare for Tommy’s healing process. She’d read up on child trauma, tried to pick up on his triggers because god knows he wouldn’t ever say them aloud; she’d even been in contact with therapists in other servers, trying to ready herself for helping Tommy through what exile and prison had been. But there was more. There was so. much. more.

She’d asked if Wilbur had ever hit him and Tommy had lied to her face and she didn’t know why. How could she help him if she didn’t even know everything he needed help with? How could she be the best parental figure for him if she didn’t know what to do?

Their silence was broken by Phil, standing abruptly. He looked deathly pale, tears tracking down his cheeks.

“I- I need to leave.” He choked out, looking on the brink of passing out. “I need to...”

Sam looked up, eyes red and puffy, frowning at the bird hybrid. “Phil…”

“I need to go!” Phil shrieked, shaking like a leaf, “He… He… Oh my god he- Tommy …” His incoherent speech dissolved into sobs as he sunk to the floor, holding himself tightly. No one moved to help him, though Puffy stared sadly.

Ranboo blinked at that, as if something Phil had said had set off bells in his head. He pondered for a moment before nearly snapping his neck at the speed he looked over.

Tommy.

Tommy had been in the room. Tommy had watched that all over again. Tommy hadn’t made a sound. Tommy wasn’t making a sound.

“Tommy?” Ranboo whispered, eyes wide as he turned to the blond. His hands hovered above the boy’s shoulders, unsure of what to do.

Tommy didn’t speak, he didn’t even acknowledge that Ranboo was there. He just… stared. At the carpet. His eyes were completely blank. There was no rage, no sadness, no spark. He wouldn’t move, completely unresponsive.

“Tommy?” It was Karl that time, voice hoarse as he cried but still looking over in concern. Everyone in the room was looking at the boy by that point.

“What’s going on?” Phil stood, hawk like eyes narrowing in on his son, “What’s happening to him?”

“I- I don’t know!” Ranboo’s voice shook, nervously surveying Tommy’s body. “It’s like he’s asleep or something but his eyes are open and he’s not- he’s not answering! ”

Phil moved forwards, kneeling at his boy’s side. He looked up at the blond, taking him in. He sobbed, hand covering his mouth as he watched Tommy stare into nothingness. “Tommy…” He whispered, shaking, “ Oh Tommy…”

What had he done? What had Wilbur done?

In all his years, in his centuries, his millennia of living, Phil had never been so enraged. He’d seen mountains rise and fall, countries and civilizations do the same, but it was all nothing compared to that moment. He’d trusted Wilbur, he’d loved Wilbur, and the man had been a monster.

Insane or not, there was no excuse for what he’d done to his younger brother, and Phil had the sinking feeling that what they’d seen hadn’t been the last time it’d happened.

“Tommy?” Tubbo whispered, crying still as he leant forwards.

Phil moved to put a hand on his son’s knee, but it was instantly slapped away by Ranboo, both him and Tubbo staring at him murderously.

“ Don’t touch him .” Ranboo hissed, face the most serious Phil had ever seen, “He doesn’t like being touched.”

The elder man stared, unsure of what to do. “B-But we need to snap him out of this I mean- look at him!”

“Don’t. Touch. Him.” Tubbo reiterated, looking ready to fight Phil with his bare fists if that was what it came to.

“Wh-”

They were interrupted by a bright light encasing the room, completely blinding them all. Phil moved to shield his eyes with his arm, shying away. The light slowly dissipated, and it took everyone in the room a good minute to see again. And yet when they looked to Tommy’s seat,

he was gone.

Phil’s wings flared in panic and shock, unable to comprehend the sight before him. Ranboo let out a startled vwoop, eyes scanning the empty seat. George and Sapnap stood at once, looking around the room as they grew more and more alarmed.

“Tommy’s unresponsive.” Drista’s voice boomed overhead, scaring them all, “I’ll take care of this.”

“What the fuck are you talking about!?” Quackity snarled, rising from his seat and staring up, “This is your fucking fault in the first place! Give him back right fucking now!” His fists were clenched, shaking with uncontrollable rage, his eyes still glistening in the small amount of light they had.

There was no answer from above, and they all grew more agitated.

“I know you can hear me!”

There was still no answer, and Quackity collapsed into his seat, burying his head in his hands. “ Fuck!”

Karl moved to sit beside him in a daze, barely aware of what he was doing. He placed a tentative hand on Quackity’s back, rubbing circles as he stared into space.

“I suggest you get back to your places,” Drista spoke again, “the memories will start up again soon.”

“Are you insane!?” Puffy cried, “After what just happened to Tommy!?”

“I already told you I’m dealing with it,” Drista gritted out, “I didn’t know he’d… react like that. None of you are leaving this room until you finish every single memory so I’d highly suggest just going along with what I say.”

Puffy laughed at that, crying as she did. Phil silently made his way back to his seat, wings dragging at his feet. He slumped down, putting his head in his hands as his tears dripped onto the carpet.

Everyone in the room was silent, save for the handful of people still in tears. They’d been unhappy with their situation beforehand but by then… it just seemed cruel.

Just how much more were they going to be forced to watch?

twt @ 47bats instagram @bi0sl

SOOOO? did u like it? did u enjoy? i certainly had some fun writing! there are going to be some HUGE internal monologues coming soon in the next chapter so don't worry about reactions to what they just saw TRUST me, there's a lot more where that came from. anyways thank you all so so much for reading and for the insane support!! love u all :D