Tricks and Treats

9 - Left My Mind on the Battlefield

Tommy was 16 but he wasn't in the moment where he would be 16. Tommy didn't recognize the place, but he knew who the short blonde child was who sliced down army men from the battlefield. Tommy watched his younger self fight against Dream's army, one soldier falling to the ground after another.

Tommy had blocked out all memories of the war. It kept him sane. As far as he was concerned, he remembered the drug van and the war's conclusion. Everything else was completely cut out. To Tommy, he was 16 the entire time and the war only lasted a few weeks. Now, Tommy was confronted with his worst thoughts.

Tommy was a murderer. It was for war so he wasn't considered a murderer, but Tommy knew that his hands had killed people by his tenth birthday. Tommy didn't want to face the reality, so he pretended like it never happened that way. No one mentioned the in between of the war anyways. It was easy to fake, and even easier to repress the memories.

Now, they flashed in quick succession. Tommy was caught up to date on every moment from when he promised Wilbur he would fight alongside him to his death at Dream's hand during the duel. Tommy woke up to the rising sun in his cave after he felt the sting of an arrow in the chest.

Tommy rubbed his chest sourly, stumbling to his feet. Tommy stretched his wings in the small cave, cleaning up his mess. Tommy crawled out of the cave, headed for Sam's bunker.

——

SapNap was in his twenties and he felt worry coursing through his veins. Sam and Captain Puffy were arguing in the kitchen about where Tommy could have been, and Karl was playing a card game with Foolish and George on the couch in the living room. SapNap sat at the window, eyes peeled for something, anything.

It had been a few days since Tommy was reported missing. Sam said that Tommy was last seen at Wilbur's grave, and then he had completely disappeared. There wasn't a trace of him. Looking through his house, everything seemed to be there still. Tommy hadn't run away, unless he was stupid enough to not bring any supplies.

SapNap had no clue why he was worried. He had fought against Tommy in the L'Manberg revolution, and they were bitter enemies, each responsible for large casualties to the other side. While SapNap lended a helping hand during the Doomsday war and the Disc Confrontation, he wasn't close to Tommy.

SapNap drew the line of his worry to when Tommy had been there last. He seemed fragile, barely holding himself. Tommy was persistent to stay in the dirt house instead of a large mansion bunker. SapNap had felt a strong guilt when Tommy started panicking after seeing him. What had he done to cause a 16 year old to experience PTSD without even looking at the kid?

SapNap was about to join the conversation between Sam and Puffy when he saw something in the snow. It wasn't a mob, SapNap realized. It had feathery wings and was limping slowly, clutching its body. SapNap felt his eyes widen as he recognized Tommy, all bloodied and bruised. SapNap shot from his seat, running across the room to the door. He slammed it open, ignoring the concerned comments of the others. SapNap ran across the snow, barely managing not to face plant as he ran to Tommy. The blonde smiled at SapNap before tripping forwards. SapNap caught him before he fell. Tommy smiled, burying his face into SapNap's shoulder.

SapNap thought he should have stopped worrying when he saw Tommy again, but his anxiety was only amplified. Tommy was freezing cold, almost as chilling as the air around SapNap. Blood stained his clothes, and scars littered his arms. Some weird green colored shell was caked against his skin like dried mud. His wings were tiny, burn marks fringing the edges. Tommy's breathing was slow, and his lips were as blue as his eyes. "Hey..."

"Tommy, stay awake. Please. Hold on," SapNap said, pulling Tommy close to his body to carry him inside. The others stared with wide eyes, but SapNap started to yell at them. "Warmth. Immediately. Blankets, fire, soup, hot cocoa!!"

Everyone ran back inside. Foolish started to make a fire in the fireplace while Karl carried all the blankets he could handle from the guest bedrooms. Puffy and Sam shared the kitchen, making food and drinks. George pulled out his medical supplies, preparing an area for Tommy with a grim expression.

SapNap held Tommy close, sitting in front of the fire. Karl curled into SapNap, pulling the blankets over them all. Foolish sat beside them, a small blanket covering his body as he stared on. George started with Tommy's wings, plucking all the dead feathers before washing the soot off the others. SapNap had to lay Tommy on the ground for George to finish the check up.

George bandaged Tommy's arm after applying ointment. George tugged the scraps of Tommy's shirt off, and everyone fell completely silent at the horror. His back was a blistering red from the fire, but everywhere had thin white and pink lines, and a few larger and longer ones. George gingerly touched the skin, flinching back when Tommy whimpered. George didn't look at anyone when he said, "They didn't heal properly. No one treated them."

SapNap had to remind himself that Tommy was 16. SapNap had to tell himself that all these wounds were from the countless wars Tommy had fought in. SapNap didn't want to admit that a few of the wounds came from him. That it was his sword that cut one of those lines into what should have been baby smooth skin.

"Heal what you can," Sam said, walking over. He gently lifted Tommy's head up, letting the blonde drink the soup from the bowl. Tommy made a sour expression after a few gulps, and refused to eat anything more. Sam sat the bowl down while Puffy leaned down with a mug.

"Would you like some hot cocoa while George dresses your wounds?" Puffy said. Tommy opened his eyes more, shaking his head. Puffy held the mug in her lap while George rubbed ointments across Tommy's back. The blonde bit his lip, but didn't make any noise to indicate he was in pain. SapNap would have believed Tommy was fine if he didn't see his lip bleeding.

"Tommy, how about you squeeze my hand instead of biting your lip?" SapNap offered, not wanting the blonde to hurt himself anymore. Tommy stared suspiciously before he gripped SapNap's hand. SapNap would have never guessed Tommy was this strong. SapNap's eyes widened when Tommy started squeezing, muscles gleaming in his arm. SapNap was sure his hand was going to break when Tommy let go.

"SapNap!" George said worriedly, grabbing SapNap's hand with both of his hands. The skin was a red with purple spots, and it looked like it was going to bruise. George rubbed a cream against the hand, and SapNap flexed his hand.

"He's asleep," Puffy whispered, Tommy laying contently on her thigh. She ran a finger through his hair, smiling when Tommy let out a nearly silent purr. "He's like a cat with wings."

Everyone enjoyed the moment, but Foolish had to break it, "Who... what happened to him? Where did the burn marks come from?"

"I don't know. But I'm going to find out," Sam said with a firm expression. SapNap agreed immediately, and Captain Puffy swore she would protect Tommy while Sam and SapNap investigated. Foolish said something about a new brother, and Karl seemed very distant from the situation.

George had this look of guilt on his face. SapNap laughed, knowing the feeling well.