Dusted Gold and Dulled Emeralds (Royal SBI AU)

Chapter 7

When Tubbo woke up, he woke up to an empty room and the weight of a blanket on him.

All the snacks had been cleared and the room was cleaned. It was already 9 am and he was the last to wake up. Great. He pushed himself up and rushed to the door, stopping only at the mirror to make sure he was presentable. He wasn't.

Someone had drawn on him with sharpie while he slept. It was probably Tommy seeing as the word 'REVENGE' was written across his forehead in bright red. Definitely Tommy. Hopefully no one important would be at breakfast because he was not going to do anything but change. If someone had an issue, they could help plan revenge.

So, no one important was at breakfast. Well as long as you had Tubbo's definition of important. He arrived just in time to see Ranboo and Dream leave a table of Sam, Wilbur and Phil, as well as two empty place settings. One for Tommy, one for someone else. Too tired to care. He sat down next to Sam and begin to silently gather food onto his plate, it was more than normal but it was likely to be a long day.

At half way through his plate, Tubbo felt a new presence in the room. He looked up from his conversation with Sam to see Wilbur (Phil left) perk up at the new arrival. Ah, the possible head ache solution was here.

Technoblade walked into the room, trying his best to ignore Wilbur, and sat at a seat. He nodded at Tubbo and Sam before getting some bacon, eggs and salad. He had planned to bring Theseus' birthday gift to breakfast before deciding that maybe he wouldn't want to ruin the perfect wrapping with egg stains. He had worked hard on it. He had missed last year's birthday so there were two gifts worth in there and his winnings allowed for nice gifts and even nicer wrapping. He was just going to peacefully get breakfast before doing a little sparring with Dream. 'Peaceful' was ruined pretty soon though by an excited shout of "Techno, I've missed you!"

Wilbur felt quite smug, his prediction of Techno joining them was right. Though it meant nothing, he just really needed a win. With both him and Techno, they could definitely convince Theseus to take back their family.

It was likely that Techno didn't know of their replacements seeing as he just nodded at the two men. Which now that he looked closer, both had gained new, red features. Tubbo had bright red words across his forehead and Sam's hair had red streaks among the usual green. Probably Dream or the Ranboo kid pranking them. It was too inappropriate for Tommy to have done it, plus the colour red passed over and the last time he checked, Tommy preferred blue.

He decided to come back to reality to find Tubbo and Sam walking away in opposite directions. Techno was still at the table but he looked ready to run at any moment. He was talking to two men named Skeppy and Bad. Something about a honeymoon or something. He handed his plate to the maid and moved over, hoping to join the conversation and isolate it to be just him and Techno.

Techno had a different plan however. This involved ending his conversation and hurrying away from his ex-brother. It wasn't that he hated Wilbur or anything. It was just uncomfortable seeing him after all this time. He knew about Wilbur's escape from the role, how could he not, he did it first. He had learnt of the assassination of Dream's parents and how Theseus had taken in a new family. At the time he felt slightly upset, but he knew it was justified.

Maybe it was this that sparked the want in him to reconnect and possibly gain forgiveness from the King. He hoped even if they couldn't be brothers, atleast they could be friends. He did not expect to be greeted with tears. He thought that anger followed by possible confusion would be appropriate but instead it was tears. His prediction of what would happen then followed, though more civil than he could've expected. He was relieved that he could apologise and was happy that Theseus would consider forgiving him.

Again the unexpected happened. He had left again, though this time sending letters to Theseus. They talked a lot, glad to have someone to talk about their issues with. After a couple months into his journey he received another letter, not uncommon but this time it was different. It weighed more than light banter and petty complaints. It felt as if it held the weight of a million.

The letter inside detailed how Theseus asked for Technoblade to rejoin the royal family. He was free to decline the request and everything would move on.

If he were to accept, he would not be able to get his original room back as it now was inhabited by someone else, though he was free to use the newest room in the Royal Family's wing. He would be crowned crown prince due to his blood relationship but little responsibilities would be placed for him. He was free to live his life but would be required back in case of the King's death or another disappearance. Then it rambled about the usual stuff like if the King produced an heir, his allowance, if he was to have a family and, finally, his coronation.

He had several options for this. He could have a big celebration across the kingdom, a small ceremony that welcomed him back or just sign the documents and move on. He opted for the last option. It was likely that there were still a few in the kingdom that disliked him (Which was fair). Having a celebration would send a message that the rich may do what they wish without have to face consequences. He broke one of the most ancient rules so it was not ideal to make a huge show of his return.

Wilbur could not know any of this though. For the plan to succeed, avoidance was key. He continued to rush through the castle, his updated knowledge better than Wilbur's rusty one. He was quick to find an exit that Wilbur probably forgot existed. It lead to the court yard where Dream was beating another gaurd that had mistakenly volunteered to help him train. Deciding to help the guards he yelled out, "That was sloppy wasn't it BrOTheR?"
"Don't call me that. We both know that you only see Tommy and Ranboo as your brothers," said an exaggerated Dream.

(When the two were told they were brothers they were both unsurprisingly upset, one better at hiding it then the other. They eventually came to the mutual agreement that as long as the other protected their mutual siblings no issues would be had.)

"Nice subject change. Seeing as you think I'm wrong, come here and prove it," Techno said back. He had already picked up a practice sword and was preparing his stance when Dream groaned and did the same.

The Captain of the royal gaurd, Skeppy, was about to commence the spar when Count Beast stepped in.
"This seems a bit boring, huh? Why don't we make this a bit more fun. Better weapons and better armour. First blood. No murder. Yes or no?."
"..."
"I'll take that as a yes. I'll fund it all, of course. I'll arrange a meeting to smooth out the details." Then he walked away. Being one of the richest nobles, Count Beast known to be eccentric or crazy at times but he was also intelligent and kind. Something people valued in him.

Techno and Dream stared at Count Beast for a second more before getting into stances once more only to be interrupted again. This time by a maid.
"There's an issue sires," she said, as if she was a mouse and just walked into a lions den. "The king is missing. No one has seen him since breakfast. The only thing on his desk is a letter that seems to be written to him from his father. The paper is old and ripped, and the date signs for 14 years ago. What shall we do?"

Both princes dropped whatever they were holding and rushed to find the rest of the royal family. They both had a suspicion about why and where Tommy was but they needed confirmation. They located them in Sam's office, all sitting around a table looking worried. The letter lay in front of them, guarded, as if it could end the world in a moments notice.

As a one family worried and one family plotted, black roses climbed up a pristine marble grave.