Flashing Lights

2: DiscDuo Dynamic

He planned the evaluation on the way to Logstedshire, as he'd kind of bullshitted his way through Quackity and Tubbo's questioning. He didn't actually know what kind of test he'd be putting Tommy through or what he was meant to be grading him on. He couldn't let Quackity get a leg up on him, though, meaning he had to be prepared to follow through on the things he said or have valid excuses not to.

He had a rough idea of what he could do to test Tommy. The details needed to be fleshed out further, however, such as the marking criteria. He thumbed over the piece of paper in his pocket, something he'd quickly nabbed off of DreamXD. It was so much easier now that he knew of the God's existence. He remembered the entire tangent he went on, wondering about the formation of XD, their role, their powers, everything. Techno had thrown so many potatoes at him in the many hours he'd spent ruminating over the server God.

The meds he'd taken prevented something like that from happening again. As a side effect, the world seemed a lot more dull and he felt mildly miserable.

He could see Tommy's blond head of hair making his way back to camp. Dream forgot how raggedy and haggard he had looked back then. His hair was greasy and dirty, his clothes were ripped and hanging off of his skinny frame.

Dream suppressed the flare of satisfaction when Tommy's empty expression changed to one of apprehension upon seeing him. He couldn't feel like that anymore, he was a good guy now. He was a good friend that did good things. He was not a monster or a manipulator. A murderer. An abuser.

"Hey, Tommy! I've got good news!" He called out as he ambled over, his gait relaxed.

The teen looked skeptical at that. "What kind of good news?"

Dream smiled behind his mask, even though Tommy couldn't see it. "I've been watching your progress for a while now, and the punishment period of your exile can be ended at my discretion after an evaluation."

Tommy's jaw dropped and Dream's smile turned into a pleased grin.

"The total length of your exile can also be shortened by half should the evaluation be satisfactory." He continued, ignoring the gaping teenager. "The restrictions on you can be lessened and you will be allowed as much freedom as you can get."

The younger blond started shaking, before sitting on a nearby tree stump. "You-- you're serious? You're saying that I--" He let out a shaky breath.

There was the tentative hopefulness that Dream wanted to see.

"Yes Tommy. I trust that you've learned the lessons I want you to learn and I trust that you can go through the evaluation with ease." Dream assured. "I've talked to Tubbo and Quackity about it. Quackity doesn't think you're quite there yet, but Tubbo is very excited at the prospect of you going home early."

Tommy paused and Dream let him absorb the meaning of his words. When he frowned, Dream knew that he'd picked up on the part he wanted him to.

"Why doesn't Big Q think I've done enough?" He asked nervously, a hint of betrayal shining in his dull eyes.

Dream took a seat near Tommy but not close enough to make him uncomfortable. "He said that he talked to a few of your visitors and he thinks my rules haven't reached the desired outcome yet. He says that you need to be punished longer because of your tendency to revert back to old behaviours, once you're no longer required to act a certain way."

Tommy opened his mouth to protest but seemed to lose his words for a moment. He appeared to be struggling with the knowledge that his friend didn't have faith in his ability to learn from past mistakes. His breathing turned shallow and sadness mixed with anger in the expression he wore.