Lionhearts ||Skephalo||

69

Skeppy's head was pounding when he woke up, and the pain was yet to go away as he listens to Dream's voice, suddenly strangely humble and grateful.

"I'd be honored," Dream says gently, "Ma'am—if I may, what's your name?"

"Isku," she says simply, "I think you missed that earlier with Mason's little interruption." Dream laughs awkwardly, and Skeppy leans down to trace his hand over Sapnap's cheek, wondering if he should rouse the exhausted boy.

"I did," the prince admits, "I don't know Piglin. Yet." The way the last word is so hastily tacked on makes Skeppy snort, and Isku chuffs softly in kind.

"Perhaps I could try to teach him while you are gone," Isku jokes lightly, and then becomes somber. "I have to warn you, that creature is very powerful. It killed at least six of us—without even touching a single one. My legs were snapped by the air, almost. If it weren't for that boy doing whatever he did, we'd surely all be dead. Please, be careful."

In times of great danger, Skeppy reflects, laying back down in hopes of helping his headache, you make unlikely allies.
Dream seems as surprised as he is by how welcoming she is; another piglin nearby pipes up, in slightly less coherent English,

"Mir is right. Hefin, for you, hold vigil." The meaning is fairly clear, earnestly said in a rumbling voice that reminds Skeppy of the carpenter of his village.
Dream tips his head in thanks.

"A vigil in this case is more of a prayer," Isku murmurs, "The best of luck. If the world should end as they say it might, I hope to someday meet you all again, under better skies."

The phrase strikes him harder than Skeppy expected—under better skies.

"Under better skies," Dream echoes wistfully, "Is that a saying in your culture?"

"It is. Even though we've lived most of our lives in this place, with no sky but rock, we remember your skies. And someday, we all are under the same sky together, as friends. In the next life, perhaps," she says lightly. Skeppy squeezes his eyes shut, tears beginning to prick at his eyes as his throat grows tight. He shouldn't be here. He's trespassing—he's out of place in this moment, this show of unity.

His heart aches painfully, wishing he could tell Bad about these things, these words he hears and sayings he learns; such mundane things, yet so strange. He swallows down a sob, and takes a breath.
Sapnap shifts, accidentally bumping his head against Skeppy's. Lilac eyes open to blink at his distraught friend, and he murmurs,

"Uh—you doing alright there?" Skeppy draws in a shuddering breath.

"I miss him," he admits, barely audible, "I'm so fucked up, Sap." His friend reaches up to tease his hand through Skeppy's hair, and Skeppy flinches, his headache throbbing.

"Sorry," Sapnap apologizes, seeing the look of pain. Or, Skeppy thought he did. Maybe there was something else he was apologizing for. But the touch grows gentler, until it's bearable, and Skeppy realizes just how battered his body was after casting that spell. He hadn't known what to do—just throwing himself recklessly into the flow of the world, and tearing the results forth with raw willpower. There was no skill to his spellcasting, he admits, just desperation.

"...what will happen if we're too late?" He asks, loud enough for the others to hear. Dream shrugs.

"Then our next life will be sooner rather than later, I fear," he says softly. "How do you feel? Your body is probably sore after how you cast that spell."

Skeppy flexes his hand, and remarks,

"Less my body, more my head and hand. I—Uh, I thought I was going to fall, I'm not going to lie." Dream sucks in a sharp breath.

"What kind of head pain?"

"Just a headache, throbbing and all that," he shrugs. "Why?"

"You could've been infested," Dream sighs in relief, "As it is, you might've gotten a bit of the venom, but you should be alright; you were the center of the seal's blast radius, after all." Skeppy nods. Sapnap asks, his voice still thick with sleep,

"Are we going any time soon? Should we take a few hours to like, get ready and everything?" Skeppy winces, but agrees internally. As much as he hates leaving Bad any longer, he knows they can't just leave; everyone is hungry by now, thirsty, exhausted...And he's injured.

"We'll take two hours for preparation," Dream murmurs, "With Techno's blessing, that is. Isku, would you like me to move George closer to you?"

Isku nods enthusiastically. She seems so genuine and eager to help; perhaps that's her way of coping, of dealing with the issues that she'd been burdened with.
Dream carefully lifts George from the bed he'd been placed in, and slowly moves him to the bed next to Isku. Skeppy asks Sapnap softly,

"Are you okay? Like, after all that shit?"

Sapnap nods, smiling.

"I feel like shit," he admits, "But mentally I'm fine, I'd say. I dreamt about him again."

Of course. Skeppy's expression freezes, a mixture of indiscernible emotions, and he says quietly,

"Was it nice?" I dreamed about Bad, too. But I wish I hadn't, he's...

"...enough about that, how about something else?" Sapnap avoids answering, suddenly not interested in sharing. "How the hell did you know what to do, man? How did you just—make it? It was like someone showed you how everything would play out."

Skeppy's gaze unfocuses, and he slowly turns to watch Dream as he tentatively begins to explain, sitting up again.

"I had a dream about it, a long time ago," he begins, "I had several like it. I don't remember all of them—but they were strange, visions of things I'd yet to see. Some have come true. Some haven't. I barely know which were dreams and which weren't though...I once remember standing with Bad somewhere, and seeing the world cracked open, water everywhere. I saw stars falling, the sky broken like a plate- and suddenly it was normal again. Nothing happened. I saw suns dying and the world ending, and just like that, nothing."

Sapnap's hand stills in his hair, and he murmurs,

"Holy shit. We need to get going then, who knows what the hell that could mean." He sits up further, blinking furiously, and Dream looks up from his conversation with Isku.

"Are you two leaving?" He asks. Sapnap nods.

"We should get ready to get going," he says cautiously, "Things could go wrong if we don't get there soon enough. And like, I mean soon soon kinda 'soon enough'."

Dream's face is crestfallen as he glances between the duo and George; eventually choosing to lean down and place a soft kiss on George's forehead, whispering something to Isku before he stands.

"Alright," He nods, "Let's get going then."

They make their way to the door, all too aware that they might never see George in a better state ever again—or at all.