Feathered - DSMP Tangled AU

Silent Apologies

The next morning was tenser than their recent ones had been. The silence was now uncomfortable. There were so many things Tommy wanted to say to Tubbo but he didn't have the courage to voice them. After eating Tubbo silently went off and did chores around the house. He watched Tubbo for a bit and noticed the dark bruises that wrapped around his wrists. He stood up and grabbed some bruise cream and bandages from the first aid kit in the bathroom. It was meant for emergencies but Tommy knew it was used fairly often.

He made his way back to Tubbo and lead him away from the sweeping he was doing. He sat Tubbo down at the couch, crouched down on his knees and took Tubbo's wrist into his hands. He pushed the sleeve up slowly and rubbed the medicine over the bruise as gently as possible. He noticed Tubbo's shoulders losing their tension as he did so. After covering the bruise he wrapped it in the bandage before repeating on the other wrist. When he was finished he looked back up at Tubbo's eyes. Tubbo stared at him smiling lightly.

Tommy half expected Tubbo to hate him. He sat by and let it happen after all. However Tubbo was nothing but grateful for Tommy. He wrapped his arms around the boy's middle as they stood up and mumbled a thanks into his chest. For a moment he thought of how wonderful it would be if Dream didn't return. It would be just him and Tubbo. Tubbo would be safe and they'd be peaceful. Then he quickly realized how selfish that was. How could he think such a thing about his own brother?

It was dinner when they actually spoke for the first time. Tubbo and spent most of the day after Tommy wrapped his wrists working. Just like the morning. He usually did this after Dream got physical. Even though Dream hadn't even said anything about the house work, he did it out of habit. The shakiness in his bones only eased when he couldn't see a single thing wrong with the house. Tommy offered to help a couple of times but he refused. The work gave him something to put his mind to so he didn't have to think about other things.

Tommy had barely eaten anything, pushing the food around on his plate the whole time. It wasn't that the food tasted bad, it was delicious. Tommy just didn't have an appetite. He spent most of the day trying to sort through his emotions but it only made him feel worse. The sick feeling in his gut grew. He looked down at the his plate as he thought of the music again.

"I can't believe Dream won't let us go" he huffed irritated. Tubbo paused halfway through taking a bite of his food and looked up at him. "I mean it's so unfair" Tubbo nodded in understanding. "I know how much you wanted to go to listen to the music." Tubbo said before he continued eating. Tommy's leg bounced anxiously. He knew if Dream was here he'd be reprimanded for it but Tubbo never minded. "Maybe we can sit up at the window and listen together?" Tubbo offered. Tommy considered his proposition. While it wouldn't be as nice as listening to the music closely, the thought of sitting at the window with Tubbo while the music played sounded nice. "Okay, as long as Dream isn't here we'll listen to the music."

He had already started to plan a way to convince Dream to let him go. Tommy never could take no for an answer. He just asked the wrong way he figured. This time it would be better. He didn't bring the plan up to Tubbo, nor the stuff in his room he'd use to convince Dream. They played another card game before bed, and this time Tommy's mind was so focused on his plans for Dream's return Tubbo won all on his own.