Three Forces Empowered | Dream Team

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Sapnap accepted the bundle of clothes from the tailor, putting it underneath his arm to hold it steady while he paid the man with the gold that George had given to him. "Thank you."

The tailor smiled at him. "Not at all. Take care of your clothes this time!"

He started putting away all the thread he had gathered, though with the amount already tossed all over the floor, Sapnap doubted whether or not that was really helping.

"So how are you feeling?" he asked, turning to Dream as they exited the shop.

"I'm okay," Dream shrugged.

That's it? Sapnap thought, raising an eyebrow. Just "I'm okay?"

Sapnap stopped walking. Dream stopped beside him, his brow furrowing slightly. "What?"

"We have to talk about your past, Dream," Sapnap said. "You can't keep it in forever. It's going to ruin you."

Dream hesitated, then started walking again. "I don't know what you mean."

Sapnap reached out an arm in front of his chest, blocking his path. Probably not the best move, seeing how he was forcing an assassin to do something that he didn't want, but he didn't care. "PTSD doesn't often just happen. Most of the time, it takes a while. Seeing George gone was horrible, but for you, it must've triggered a memory. Am I right?"

He watched Dream carefully, waiting for a reaction. Finally, Dream sighed. "Yes, it did. Just something to do with what I did as an assassin. Losing a person close to you."

"We haven't lost George."

Dream nodded. "I know. But the feeling is here again, and I can't shake it off. Please stop asking."

Please. A word Sapnap didn't hear from Dream often. "Alright, Dream, I won't bring it up again. But next time it does comes up, I want it to be because you want to tell us."

His friend managed a slight smile. "Okay."

Sapnap gave him a nod. "Come on, let's go find George."

***

"So how do I look?"

Sapnap raised an eyebrow. "Are you serious? I'm not answering that."

"Come on, I feel like a teenager again," George complained. He tugged on the bottom of the sweater and then rolled up the sleeves. "It's pretty comfortable, actually."

"That's all we need. You look fine," Dream reassured him.

George laughed, then turned to Sapnap. "Did you get the cloaks?"

Sapnap took out the bundle from underneath his arm and handed George his blue cloak. He gave Dream the sweater, then started fastening his own cloak around his neck.

"Oh... I missed this sweater," Dream mumbled, rubbing the fabric with his hands.

"You've still had it this whole time," Sapnap pointed out.

"It wasn't the same when it was ripped and scorched, you know."

They turned and started heading back towards the north of the village, where they had first entered. Hopefully, our horses are still there. In all honesty, I wouldn't be surprised if they're gone.

Sapnap glanced over at Dream and George. The prince seemed calm and happy, perfectly at peace. Glad to be surrounded by friends and finally living a life of his own.

Dream looked a lot more on edge. He was constantly glancing around, as if expecting someone to jump out and attack them at any moment. His face was just as calm as George's, if not less happy, but every now and then his jaw clenched.

"Loosen up, Dream," Sapnap said, elbowing Dream in the side. "Everything's fine."

"Don't jinx it," Dream grumbled, but he allowed himself a small smile.

Sapnap made a face at him. Dream gave him a playful shove. "Ow!" Sapnap protested. "Come on, I jab you with my elbow and you push me?"

"You have bony elbows!" Dream said defensively.

"Buddy, these are the elbows of a juggernaut."

"You're elbows are pretty bony, Sapnap."

"Are you serious? George, help me, I'm being attacked."

George shrugged. "I dunno, Sapnap, I think I might attack you along with him."

He reached out towards Dream, who still looked uneasy, and gave his fingers a comforting squeeze. Sapnap frowned slightly. He knew that Dream was suffering from post-traumatic stress and that George was the one causing it, even if he himself didn't know that. And the bittersweet look on Dream's face just made it even worse.

"The horses are still here!" George said excitedly, running ahead to the animals. "I thought they might have wandered off or something."

"I thought someone would've killed them for their hide by now," Dream said with a shrug.

Sapnap gave them both a nasty look, even though he had been expecting the horses to be gone as well. He got up onto his horse and glanced back at his friends.

"We should name our horse," George suggested.

"No," Dream said immediately. "No personal connections to the horse. They're gonna die and you're going to be too emotionally invested."

"Alright, No," George said, running his hand along their horse's back. "You're a beautiful horse, No."

"Stop kissing up to the horse, George," Dream sighed, getting onto the horse's back. George jumped up behind him.

"Since when did you become the person always holding the reigns?" the prince complained. "I'm pretty sure I used to be the person steering."

"The horse likes me better."

"No, No likes me better."

Sapnap rolled his eyes and flicked the reigns of his own horse. Should I name my horse? Nah, Dream's right. It's not good to get too close to an animal, only for it to die.

Is that what happened to Dream? His mother died at childbirth, so he didn't have much time to get close. Was it his father, then? A sibling or a relative?

No, stop. Leave his past alone.

"Do you have an idea of what to expect in Suspiro?" Sapnap asked.

George shrugged, but Dream nodded. "It's a more free kingdom. Not much happens there. The royal family is very detached from its subjects and doesn't really do much, but they hold pride in having a select handful of incredibly skilled warriors that follow their every command."

"Have you had any assassin journeys there?" George asked.

Dream shook his head. "No. But Suspiro is known for that aspect."

"It's starting to feel like Kingdom Superiora is the best," Sapnap remarked.

George laughed. "I mean, we're biased since we come from here."

"I'm from Guerrier," Dream shrugged, "but close enough. I still think that Superiora is the nicest kingdom anyway."

The prince smiled to himself. Sapnap threw Dream a sideways look. He had to admit, the guy was good at keeping his emotions bottled up. But Sapnap could see through his charade. He knew.

Being around George was reminding him of everything that had went wrong in his past.