Dreamnoblade one shots for funsies

Barkley marathon

{a/n ok, so this ones a little weird, so I'm going to preface this. The other night I watched a really good documentary about this super hard race, over a hundred miles, difficult terrain, 60 hours, sleep if you dare. Anyway, I watched it, loved it, then my mind immediately went to dreamnoblade fanfic. Because I'm weird like that. So I wrote this all in like 3 hours straight, and it's mostly personal growth and overcoming challenges focused, not intentionally, I wanted there to be a lot more interactions. But this is how it turned out, enjoy I guess.}

Dream drove down the small Tennessee road, breathless with anticipation. It wasn't his first time running the Barkley Marathon, but it didn't matter, with the amount of chance that comes along with it, every year seemed to be different. He turned down the small street to the starting line while the multiple other cars came into view, all checking in or setting up tents. He parked but just sat in his car for a minute, this was it. This was the start of the beginning, and he was determined to finish it this time. No more fun runs, he was going to go the whole way.

He stepped out of his car and greeted George and Sapnap. He had met George their virgin run two years ago, and he had recently convinced Sapnap to join them for this one. He was glad to see them both again, and it made him even more excited.

They were chatting away while Dream checked in and gave Lazarus, the race director, this years entrance fee. They talked about tactics and preparations, each more excited than the last. Eventually, Dream asked, "Where's the master map?" Lazarus pointed over to where three people were hunched over in the bed of a red pickup. Dream recognized the pink flannel immediately.

Of course Technoblade was here. It was his fourth try, he had accomplished four loops last year, and he wasn't one to stop there. Neither was Dream. Dream walked up to his rival and declared, "Can you stop hogging the map sometime soon?"

Techno and his friends looked up from their compasses and personal maps to look at him. "Yeah, sure, it won't matter when you tag out anyway." Techno retorted, scooting to the side to make room for them.

"As if, you're probably just going to flub it." Dream was taking out his own mapping supplies and climbing onto the truck.

"Oh no, I'm going to finish this year, just you wait."

As they bantered, Techno's friends, Wilbur and Phil, were hard at work copying the map. It was Wilbur's second try, and Phil had returned after a couple of attempts a few years ago. The banter between the six of them gradually dissolved into sharing tips. They were competing, yes, but no one wanted to see their fellow racers fail.

Eventually, after hours of prepping food, water, and bandages, after all the runners had finished copying the map, they were all ready. Each got a few hours of light sleep, and many were awake staring at 11pm. This included both Dream and Techno, who bumped into each other around the camp.

"Hey Dream, can't sleep?" Asked Techno.

"No, last year's started at 10:30, so I'm worried this time it's going to be before the sun rises."

"Ah, you're being smart while I'm just nervous."

"You? Nervous? I think you're the most experienced one here."

"Once the shell blows I'll be fine, but right now I'm incredibly nervous yes."

"I get that."

They both silently agreed to try and sleep.

The conch shell blew a little past 4:15, while the sun was just barely starting to light the sky. All the runners rushed to get ready. They only had an hour before start time, and that weighed on everyone. Dream was careful, he took the clothes and bag pack he had prepared, making sure to double check everything. One wrong move, and his chances of completing the race would be out the window. At 5:15, everyone was in front of the yellow gate. Lazarus gave his short speech, and then everyone was off to the races. Dream and George jogged at a fast pace, not that it would matter much in the early parts. Sapnap was close behind them. As they turned a corner, Dream saw Techno behind him, slow and steady. He was beating him for now.