The Burning ~ Dreamnotfound + Skephalo

Chapter 2: Husbandry

Dream stumbles through the woods, blindfolded, as George drags him along. Sapnap walked close behind him to help support him if he tripped on a log or something while Bad and Skeppy hung back a little, laughing at the idiots in front of them.
"Dude, why are you walking like a newborn dear?" Sapnap laughs as he watches Dream swing his leg in the air before putting it down.
"Uh, because this is terrifying?!" Dream retorts. "I don't know why I have to wear your bandana around my eyes. I literally could've just closed my eyes."
"Nope! You would've tried to peek," George states.
Dream takes another step and gets hit in the head with a tree branch. "OW! YOU GUYS ARE TRYING TO KILL ME!"
Sapnap begins laughing so hard that he had to lean on Dream for support. "Sorry, not sorry, man."
"WE MADE IT!" George shouts. Dream reaches back to take off his blindfold, but George smacks his hand away. "Not yet! One second!" Dream hears George scamper away and mess with something before coming back and finally saying, "Ok, you can look now."
As soon as he took the blindfold off of his eyes, Dream looked forward and saw a beautiful wooden home that shone like a beacon in the forest. It looked so welcoming and cozy. He knew that whoever lived here was a lucky person. But then, Dream saw a sign planted in the front yard that read:

Welcome home
Dreamie

Dream's vision became blurry with tears as he reread the sign over and over again. He looked at George who was smiling widely at him. "You made this?"
George looks from Dream to his friends, and then back. "Most of it. Those dummies helped me with some bits though."
Dream looks at the house in disbelief. "This is a joke. It has to be a joke."
George wraps his arms around Dream and lays his head on his arm. "Nope. This is real. And it's ours." George was so thankful that he and Sapnap were able to finish the carpet on time. As the sun lowered behind the house, it cast a radiant glow around it, making the home appear ethereal.
"We should get going," Bad says. "It's doing time be dark soon."
Before anyone could leave, George and Dream were both sure to thank them for helping. George was in tears by the time they left. He couldn't have been more thankful for their help.

Dream marveled at the inside of the home. He walked through every room and traced his hand across the walls. George had already moved most of their stuff from their old house into the new one, so Dream went exploring to see where everything was put. He was overjoyed. Dream ended his walk around the home in the kitchen where he had plenty of room to cook or bake whatever his heart desired. Tonight was going to be a simple dinner, though. He wanted to spend more time relaxing in his new home.
George walks into the dining room just as Dream sets out two bowls of rabbit stew. He slides into his seat and takes a deep breath. "This looks amazing, Clay."
"It's nothing special," Dream laughs.
"Did you make it?" George asks.
"Uh, yeah?"
George takes a spoonful of the stew and holds it up to his mouth to blow away the steam. "Then it's very special."
Their evening was pleasant. George talked about the long process he went through to get the house built. He had decided to build it in a part of the woods that people rarely ventured into so that they could have complete privacy. George also mentioned making a moat around the home and adding a little bridge to get across it. While he claimed that it was for defense, Dream knew that he just wanted to have his own little river. Dream leans back in his chair, finally finished with his meal. George was a couple of bites away from finishing himself.
"Hey, George? I want to talk to you about something." Dream scraped the bottom of his bowl with his spoon while he searched for the right way to say what he wanted to say. George didn't verbally respond, but he looked up at Dream, ready for him to start talking. "You know Lily, right?"
George laughs, slightly confused. "Why wouldn't I?"
"Bad told me earlier that her grandmother isn't going to make it and that she needs a new home." Dream looks at George, hoping he'd put the pieces together on his own.
But, as usually was the case, he did not. "That's awful! I'll talk to Bad tomorrow to see how we can help. No child should be without a family."
As George takes a drink from his cup, Dream blurts out, "I think we should adopt her."
George nearly chokes on his drink. He slowly lowers the cup, waiting for Dream to laugh and say it was a joke. But the laugh never came. "You're serious?"
Dream reaches across the table to take George's hands in his. "I've never been more serious about anything in my life." Dream could feel George's pulse begin to speed, but it wasn't out of joy like he was expecting. He could feel the floor vibrate under him as George's leg bounced. George desperately avoided eye contact and instead stared at a spot on the wall, just past Dream's face. His face was blank, but it was still obvious that something was up. "George?"
Upon hearing his name, George's leg held still as his eyes found their way back to Dream. "We can't, Dream. We just can't."
Dream let's go if George's hands and places them in his lap. "I will respect that, but could you at least tell me why? We were talking about adoption literally last week."
George closes his eyes tightly and takes a deep breath. "I don't think you're ready, Clay. Raising a child is a huge responsibility."
Dream searches George's face in shock. "What are you talking about?"
"Well, for starters, you're not exactly employed right now," George starts.
"Oh, I have a job George," Dream disagrees. "I keep the village safe."
George stands up and takes his bowl to the cauldron. "Dream, nothing has happened these last few years that would warrant a protector of any sort. There have been no outside threats and this whole place is a beacon of light at night so nothing comes near us. You literally walk the perimeter of the village once a week and that's all."
Dream felt his blood begun to boil. George was one of the only people that encouraged him to take the job as a protector. He told him that it'd be perfect for him. But here he was, putting him down for it. "Are you listening to yourself right now?"
"You're also extremely messy!" George says. "You sit at home all day and you let the cats do whatever they want and you don't sweep up the hair or anything. And I'm always the one stuck doing dishes after dinner every night."
Dream scoffs. "Well, at least I don't track dye into the house every day! The walls of our last house are covered in rainbow streaks!"
"Well EXCUSE ME for working hard to put food on the table and clothes on your back!" George crosses his arms, still by the cauldron.
Dream stares at George in disbelief. "What is wrong with you right now?! Why are you saying these things?"
"Because I've kept them for myself for too long!" George walks back to the table to grab Dream's empty bowl. "Look, I love you, but if you think I'm going to adopt a kid with you, you need to grow up and act like an adult for once."
Dream shoots up, nearly knocking down his chair behind him. "Oh, you think I'm the one that needs to grow up?! George, you're standing there yelling at me when we have the chance of a lifetime here! Orphaned kids don't just show up on your doorstep, especially in this village. We have a shot to finally become fathers. Why isn't that enough for you?"
George heads back to the cauldron and dunks the dirty dishes into the cold water. "I just don't want to have to take care of two children at the same time when one of them should be my co-parent."
"Fine. You want to sit here and complain about all of our faults? Let's complain." Dream was no longer in control of himself. All he could see was red and, at that moment, he wanted George to hurt just as much as he did. "You never make dinner, you constantly complain about how miserable you are at work, you're always negative about everything, you're way too sensitive, and you don't give a fuck about anyone but yourself!"
George's heart was pounding out of his chest. He had seen Dream mad before, but never like this. But George wasn't about to apologize either. "You know what? Fuck you Dream. There! I said it! FUCK. YOU. I'm not going to sit here and take this shit from you. Not tonight."
"YOU STARTED THIS!" Dream yells. "Did you really expect me to take all of that bullshit from you? I just wanted to share some news that I thought you'd be excited about."
"Sorry, but there's no way I'm raising a child with you, asshole," George mumbles.
"FINE!" Dream screams. He heads towards the door but stops short. He yanks off his ring and throws it on the table. It bounces slightly, making a metallic echo. Dream storms out, slamming the door behind him.