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Chapter Text

Dream bit his lip as he continued to shiver horribly, it felt like his very bones were freezing over and no matter what he did he couldn’t get warm or stop the awful pain in his back. 

When his wings had come in yesterday he had been shocked beyond belief and also terrified, he had a lot of enemies so who knows what they would try and do to him if they found out about them. So he had planned on just hiding them away, out of sight out of mind. But this morning he had woken up to unrelenting pain and an unbelievable cold. 

He panicked, he knew very little about avian biology so he had no idea what was happening. So he had gone to the one person he thought would be able to help him, a man he thought was his friend. 

“What a stupid idea” He muttered to himself bitterly as he reached under his mask to gently touch the bruise forming there as he continued to walk. 

He had gone to Phil hoping that the older man would be able to help him but he should have known better, Phil and Techno weren’t his friends they were just temporary allies who had a common enemy and now that that enemy was gone they no longer wanted anything to do with him. 

“You're not wanted here Dream” Phil said coldly as he turned away from the younger blonde who felt a shock of fear fill him. 

“Please Phil I need your help!” He pleaded but the avian ignored him as he continued to prepare lunch. 

“I’m in so much pain Phil and you're the only one who can help!” He continued to plead and Phil huffed in annoyance as finally turned to face him. 

“Bad and Ponk are both medically trained go see them” He stated uncaringly and Dream held back a pained whimper as he attempted to shuffle closer. 

“They can’t help me like you can” He said desperately which earned him an annoyed eye roll from the older man. 

“I highly doubt that, now get out of my house Dream” He said coldly which made the chill grow exponentially. 

“Please Phil if I could just sho-” He began to say only to be cut off by Phil finally losing his temper and striking him across the face, he had trusted the older avian enough to take his mask off which was clearly a mistake. 

“I don’t care what your problem is Dream, I don’t want you anywhere near my family so get out” Phil hissed darkly and Dream sucked in a sharp breath as he nodded weakly and placed his mask back on his face to hide the tears that were beginning to well up in his eyes. 

“Okay” He choked out brokenly as he turned away, trying hard not to cry out as he pain in his wings increased at the movement. As he made his way to the door he paused as he passed Techno who was staring at him uncaringly. 

“Techno-” He began to say but was cut off by the piglin hybrid shaking his head. 

“Leave” He stated coldly and Dream nodded as a silent sob escaped him while he stepped out into the artic cold which was nothing compared to the bone-deep chill that filled his bones. 

After leaving the pain and cold had only continued to grow making walking almost impossible but he was too stubborn to give up so he slowly approached his last hope. There was only one other avian on the server outside of Phil but the chances of him helping him were slim to none as the man hated him, but he had no one else he could go to so he would just have to hope for a miracle. 

“What are you doing in my country Dream?” Quackity questioned coldly as he approached the admin who was hunched over and holding himself tightly. 

“Quackity, I know you hate me but I desperately need your help” He begged in a broken tone of voice which kind of startled the avian. 

“What could you possibly need my help for?” He asked gruffly as he eyed the blonde up and down only to furrow his eyebrows in confusion when he noticed that Dream was shivering, they were in the desert and he was wearing a hoodie how could he possibly be cold? 

“You are my last hope Quackity, Phil already turned me away before I could properly explain and I don’t know what to do” He said desperately and Quackity’s confusion grew, why were he and Phil the only people he could go to? The only thing that they had in common was that they were both… An inkling of an idea appeared in his mind as he started at the blonde thoughtfully. 

“Tell me what exactly you need my help for and I’ll consider helping” He grunted and Dream seemed to practically sag with relief as he shimmed his way out of his sweater and Quackity’s jaw dropped as a pair of pure black wings spread from the man’s back, they were beautiful but in desperate need of preening as the feathers were so twisted that his own wings twitched in sympathy. 

“When did you get wings?!” He questioned in alarm as he took a slight step forward. 

“They came in yesterday and this morning they hurt so bad and I’ve been so cold and I just don’t know what to do to make it stop” Dream whimpered which made Quackity nearly choke on his spit. Dream was just a fledgling! A fledgling without a nest, no wonder he was freezing! 

“Com with me” He said urgently as he grabbed Dream’s hand and started dragging him away so that they could get to his nest, the pained whimpers escaping the blonde making his instincts go fucking crazy. His hatred for Dream was pushed to the back burner as his concern for a fledgling took centre stage. 

He quickly made his way to his room and brought Dream into his nest, a relieved sigh escaping the fledgling as warmth seeped back into his bones. 

“Your wings are in need of a preening, all the twisted feathers are what are causing you so much pain” Quackity mumbled softly as he began preening the blonde who let out a soft relieved chirp. 

“And the cold?” He asked softly as he melted into the gentleness of Quackity’s fingers. 

“A fledgling needs to stay in a nest at night during the first year at minimum after getting their wings or they could freeze to death in their sleep” He stated in a slightly scolding tone of voice earning him a soft gasp of shock from Dream. 

“Did your parents never tell you about this?” He questioned a bit miffed over the thought of someone just leaving a young avian to suffer. There was a long beat of silence before Dream responded. 

“My parents died when I was very little so little in fact that I don’t even remember them and Puffy’s a sheep” He said in a pained tone of voice that made Quackity pause briefly before he resumed grooming. 

“Puffy’s travelled the whole freaking world surely she at least encountered an avian before and could have helped you” Quackity remarked as some of his previous anger bled back into his tone but Dream just shrugged seemingly uncaring. 

“I didn’t even know I was an avian so there was no way that she could’ve known either, besides even if she did know anything that could’ve helped it's not like she would tell me now” He mumbled in a soft tone of voice that made a spark of protective rage flare up inside of Quackity, why wouldn’t a mother want to protect her son from suffering? 

“Why?” He asked in a strained tone of voice. 

“She disowned me about two weeks ago, which I honestly should have seen coming as she has a better son now one who isn’t such a monster” He muttered brokenly to himself as he wrapped his arms around himself tiredly and Quackity pulled his hands away from the blondes wings as he finished preening them with a deep frown on his face. 

“I’ve hurt so many people and no amount of apologizing will ever make up for it, maybe I deserve to be alone” He mumbled softly to himself only to let out a startled chirp when Quackity gripped his shoulders and spun him around so that he could face him. 

“I want you to listen to me and not interrupt got it?” He said sternly and Dream nodded a little stunned. 

“I’m not going to lie to you and say that the things that you’ve done are okay cause they aren’t. You’ve done bad things and you’ve hurt people, but who on this god-forsaken server hasn’t? If they can be forgiven... if I can be forgiven for the horrible things that I’ve done then so can you as long as you work towards that instead of wallowing in self-hatred because that will get you nowhere” He lectured sternly as he stared straight into the beady little eyes of Dream’s mask while said man was stunned into silence, a silence that lasted so long that Quackity was a little worried he had gone too far only for Dream to reach up and slip his mask off. 

“Thank you Quackity, I really needed that” He said in an emotional tone of voice and Quackity’s mind blanked for a moment as he took in all of Dream’s features from the scattering of freckles to the greenest eyes he had ever seen in his life and he knew Foolish whose eyes were made of emeralds. 

“Think nothing of it fledgeling, just being honest” He mumbled a little stunned and Dream gave him a bright smile before he turned to look out the window and noticed that it was beginning to get dark. 

“I should probably get going, I don’t want to be to much of a burden” He mumbled as he went to stand up which made Quackity’s instincts immediately flare back up as he yanked the blonde back down and pulled him into a protective hug. 

“I am not letting you fucking freeze to death” He said sternly and Dream blinked a little in shock. 

“But-” He tried to protest but Quackity let out a sharp chirp that immediately silenced him. 

“Just stay here chick, please?” He requested softly and Dream hesitated for a moment before nodding and leaning into Quacity’s arms. 

“Okay” He mumbled softly as allowed himself to be warmed by Quackity’s presence who let out a happy little chirp as he wrapped his wings around Dream and began to run his fingers through Dream’s hair lulling him into the first peaceful sleep he had had in a long while. 

Quackity hummed softly to himself as he gazed down at Dream thoughtfully, he wasn’t totally why he felt so protective of the blonde as just a few hours ago he still hated the man but he suspected it had something to do with his instincts. Whatever the reason was it didn’t really matter Dream was his fledgling now and he was never going to let anyone harm him again. 

He hadn’t failed to notice the growing bruise on the blonde's cheek and though he had no proof he highly suspected that Phil was the culprit, if the other avian ever came anywhere near him or his chick again there would be absolute hell to pay. 

As he imagined all of the torture he would inflict upon anyone who even thought of hurting Dream he slipped off into his own peaceful sleep.

Chapter Text

Quackity scrunched his nose up slightly as he felt someone poking at his cheek repeatedly, when swatting at it didn’t work he finally cracked his eyes open and saw Fundy crouched beside him with his finger raised obviously getting ready to poke him again while Purpled stood behind him with an amused look on his face.

“Where were you two last night?” He asked grumpily/sleepily as he sat up while being mindful of Dream who was still cuddled up next to him sleeping peacefully.

“I took Fundy on a job” Purpled said simply as he took a seat next to Fundy who had thankfully stopped poking him.

“What have I said about your jobs?” Quackity asked tiredly as he pinched the bridge of his nose, Purpled and Fundy shared a look before shrugging carelessly.

“In my defence, Eret was the one who hired me” Purpled said in mild amusement and Quackity let out a tired sigh as he moved his hand away from his face.

“Do I want to know what she paid you to do?” He asked and the duo shared another look before once again shrugging their shoulders carelessly.

“Probably not” Fundy said cheerfully and Quackity let out another sigh, why did he think it was a good idea to take in a bunch of children? Oh yeah, stupid instincts that's why.

“Did you take Charlie with you?” He asked as he glanced around the room to try and spot the cheerful slime but he was nowhere to be seen.

“I was going to but he decided to stay and chat with Eret and Foolish” Purpled explained and Quackity nodded a little in understanding, those three had some of the most fascinating conversations not that he could understand half of what they discussed.

“Sooo who's your friend?” Fundy asked curiously as he gestured to Dream's sleeping figure and Quackity bit his lip slightly as he glanced at the blonde before glancing back at the other two.

“It’s um Dream” He revealed and Purpled and Fundy’s eyes went comically wide.

“What!” Fundy exclaimed loudly only to be shushed by Quackity who glanced at Dream pointedly who grumbled in his sleep before cuddling up closer to his fellow avian.

“Since when did Dream have wings?” Purpled asked in a softer tone of voice as he stared at the beautiful black wings coming out of the admin's back.

“They came in recently” Quackity explained and Fundy’s eyes softened in realization while Purpled tilted his head curiously.

“So he’s just a fledgeling, is that why he’s here?” Fundy asked softly and Quackity nodded as he ran his fingers through Dream’s hair, it was ridiculously soft just like most avians.

“Yes, he came here yesterday in distress because his feathers were so twisted it was causing him pain and he had gotten the chills from not sleeping in a nest” He explained softly and Fundy nodded in understanding as he gazed at Dream sympathetically while Purpled furrowed his eyebrows in thought.

“So wait, if Dream’s a fledgling does that mean he’s a kid?” He asked baffled to which Quackity made a so-so gesture with his free hand.

“Avians are different than most hybrids, whereas most are either born with their features or they come in during puberty an avian's wings can appear at any age at any time. Some have even lived to a hundred before their wings came in. But the reason I call Dream a fledgling is not that he is actually a child its because when avian's wings come in the bird-like instinct in other avians will see them as a child because in their eyes they are a newborn chick in need of care” He explained and Purpled made a soft sound of understanding.

“Legend used to say that an avian's wings would come in when they needed them most and that's why it varies so much” Fundy chimed in brightly and Quackity chuckled as he nodded in agreement.

“And others will say it's just because of what kind of bird you are” He said in amusement and the other two chuckled only for a groan to cut them off.

“You guys are loud” Dream grumbled sleeping as he sat up and rubbed at his eyes.

“Sorry Dream these two were being pests” Quackity apologized which earned him squawks of disagreement from the duo and laughter from Dream as he moved his hands away.

“It’s okay I liked learning more about avians” He said warmly and Quackity hummed thoughtfully as his eyes glanced towards his bookshelf so that he could do a quick rundown of all the books there.

“I have a few books on the subject if you would like to look at them” He offered as he glanced back at Dream whose eyes sparkled happily at the idea.

“I would really like that” He said cheerfully as he almost seemed to hop a little in place which made Quackity’s heart soften a great deal more for the fledgeling.

“So are you staying in Las Nevadas, Dream?” Fundy asked curiously as he leaned forward slightly and an unsure expression appeared on the blonde's face so Quackity took matters into his own hands.

“Yes, he will” He stated decisively and he felt Dream sag in relief at the decision which made his chest puff up slightly in pride.

“We can go over to your place later to pick your stuff up if you want?” Purpled offered only to blink in confusion when an embarrassed blush appeared on Dream’s face.

“I don’t exactly have a house” He admitted uncomfortably and the trio blinked in surprise.

“What do you mean?” Quackity asked worriedly which led to Dream playing with his fingers anxiously.

“Sapnap and George kicked me out of our shared house quite a few months ago and since my m- since Puffy disowned me I haven’t had anywhere to stay so I’ve just been sleeping in the woods” He explained and Quackity let out a sharp distressed chirp.

“No wonder your feathers were so twisted up” He exclaimed worriedly and Dream ducked his head a little bit only to blink in confusion and glance back up when Fundy took his hands into his own.

“Well you have a home now” He said comfortingly as he gently squeezed the blonde's hands who felt tears prick the corner of his eyes.

“Thank you” He mumbled softly and Fundy just smiled at him softly as he and Quackity pulled him into a warm hug.

Purpled watched on fondly only to yelp slightly when Fundy reached out and dragged him into the group hug, he grumbled good-naturedly before properly joining in.

Dream melted into the comforting embrace as he wondered, was this what a family was so supposed to feel like?

Chapter Text

“This place is beautiful!” Dream gushed as he leaned against the fountain so he could stare up at it excitedly while his wings flapped happily, Quackity smiled warmly as he came to stand next to Dream. Fundy and Purpled had disappeared to do who knows what so that left him to give Dream a tour and gods was it adorable watching him get all excited over every little thing.

“Yeah Sam and Foolish have done an excellent job, though Fundy and Purpled have also put a lot of effort into their own individual projects” He remarked proudly and Dream whirled around with a surprised look on his face.

“Sam lives here?” He asked eagerly and Quackity blinked a little in surprise before nodding.

“Uh yeah, for the most part, he does spend a lot of time at Ponk’s place as well” He said simply and Dream bounced excitedly.

“Can I see him?” He asked hopefully and Quackity nodded as a smile reappeared on his face.

“Yeah, of course, he’ll probably be up by the hotel” He agreed which made Dream bounce and flap his wings happily.

“Why are you so excited?” Quackity asked amused as he began to lead the blonde towards the hotel.

“I haven’t seen Sam in a long while, he’s one of my oldest friends and he’s always treated me like a little brother” He explained brightly before a frown appeared on his face as he stopped walking earning him a concerned look from Quackity.

“I wonder if that’s changed” He mumbled self-deprecatingly as he wrapped his arms around himself uncomfortably and Quackity frowned sadly before placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“Come on the hotel is just up ahead” He said softly and Dream glanced at him briefly before nodding and following behind him. As they came up to the hotel they noticed Sam standing outside texting on his communicator with a dopey expression on his face which made a cheeky expression appear on Quackity’s face.

“Texting your boyfriend while on the job? For shame Sam” He said teasingly earning him a giggle from Dream while Sam scrambled to put his communicator away with a flustered expression on his face.

“Quackity!” He practically squeaked as he turned to face them only for his eyes to widen in surprise when he noticed Dream.

“Dream?” He questioned surprised and Dream grinned awkwardly as he gave him a tiny wave.

“Hi” He said shyly which earned him a bright grin from Sam as he jogged over so that he could pull the blonde into a bear hug which he immediately melted into as he let out a happy little chirp.

“It’s so good to see you, and... are these wings?” Sam said in awe as he pulled away and gently touched one of the wings and Dream nodded rapidly as he puffed them out slightly.

“Yeah they came in the other day, do you like them?” He asked hopefully and Sam smiled warmly as he reached up to ruffle his little brother’s hair.

“There beautiful Dream” He said warmly which earned him a happy little chirp from Dream as he bounced in place and flapped his wings.

“So how long will you be here? We could go get lunch if you're not busy” Sam offered and Dream’s smile widened as Quackity wrapped his arm across his shoulders.

“Dream is actually a citizen of Las Nevadas now” He remarked which made Sam's grin widen.

“That’s amazing, then you’ll be attending family night tonight right?” He asked and Dream tilted his head curiously as he glanced at Quackity who was rolling his eyes fondly.

“Every Sunday night every member of Las Nevadas gets together for dinner and to play board games, the others have affectionately dubbed it family night” He explained warmly and Dream covered his mouth as he let out a soft ‘awe’.

“That’s adorable” He stated brightly and Quackity chuckled in agreement before glancing back at Sam.

“Will Ponk be joining us?” He asked and Sam nodded.

“Yup, they were just telling me about how they’ve devised the perfect strategy to beat us all at Monopoly” He remarked fondly and Quackity chuckled before glancing at Dream.

“They have never won and I honestly thought they were going to strangle Fundy when he won last time” He explained and Dream chuckled at the mental image.

“And Foolish texted me to say that he and Charlie are dragging Eret over as well as she has been attempting to lock herself in the castle again” Sam said softly and worried looks appeared on both Quackity's and Dream’s faces.

“What happened?” Quackity asked and Sam sighed as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“She got into an argument with Puffy and it didn’t end well” He explained which made Dream’s stomach twist uncomfortably.

“She just keeps climbing my hit list” Quackity grumbled angrily as he crossed his arms which earned him a startled look from Sam.

“What do you mean?” He asked worriedly, Puffy was his friend he didn’t want to see her hurt.

“Did you know she disowned Dream which has forced him to sleep in the woods ultimately leading to his feathers becoming super twisted when they came in?” Quackity asked as he stared the creeper hybrid down whose eyes widened in horror before they snapped to look at Dream who had shrunk into himself slightly.

“What?! When did this happen?!” He asked worriedly and Dream bit his lip anxiously before responding.

“About two weeks ago” He admitted which earned him a distressed sound from Sam.

“Why didn’t you come to me? You know you always have a place in my home” He asked worriedly and Dream wrapped his arms around himself uncomfortably.

“I… I didn’t want to be a burden” He said softly and Sam let out another distressed noise as he reached out and pulled Dream into a tight hug.

“You could never be a burden to me Dream, you're my little brother” He stated seriously as he gently ran his fingers through the blonde's hair who’s eyes had watered slightly as he buried his face into Sam’s chest.

Quackity watched on warmly, he was glad his little family was accepting Dream so readily now the only person he had to worry about was Foolish as he wasn’t quite sure how Dream would react to seeing the person who replaced him.

Chapter Text

Sam hummed to himself as he set the table while side-eyeing the area where Purpled and Dream were playing some card game while Fundy and Ponk watched on curiously.

“Do you know when the others will get here?” Quackity asked as he brought some of the food out to the table.

“They should be here any minute now” He replied and Quackity nodded before jumping in shock when a loud bang rang through the room, they both turned and saw that Purpled had slammed his hand down on the table and was glaring at Dream.

“I was cheating how the fuck did you win?” He questioned grumpily and Dream gave him a small smile as he shuffled his cards absentmindedly.

“I was cheating better than you obviously” He said casually and Purpled’s jaw dropped in shock while Fundy and Ponk howled in amusement.

“He’s going to fit in here great” Quackity chuckled as he watched Ponk begrudgingly hand Fundy a diamond who had a cheeky grin on his face.

“I’ve been meaning to ask, why did you let Dream live here? I thought you hated him?” Sam asked as he glanced at Quackity who grimaced slightly.

“He’s a fledgling, I can’t just leave a fledgling to rot” He explained and Sam let out a non-committal hum.

“And when he’s no longer considered a fledgling? Then what?” He asked seriously and Quackity pressed his lips into a thin line as he didn’t know how to answer that, thankfully he didn’t have to as Charlie came bouncing into the room happily.

“Quackity!” He exclaimed cheerfully as he pulled him into a tight hug and he chuckled as he accepted the hug, it had taken weeks but he had finally been able to break him of the habit of referring to everyone by their name and where they came from as Fundy had grown increasingly uncomfortable with being called Fundy from Lmanberg.

“Hi Charlie” Quackity said fondly as the slimy boy pulled away and proceeded to give everyone else a hug in greeting before pausing in front of Dream while Eret and Foolish walked into the room.

“Your Dream from Manhunt” He stated curiously as he tilted his head to the side and Dream blinked at him in confusion while Quackity facepalmed, they had been doing so good.

“Uh yeah, I am and you are?” He asked curiously as he watched the cheerful man bounce in front of him.

“Quackity gave me the name Charlie!” He introduced himself cheerfully and Dream blinked a little in confusion as he glanced at Quackity who just gave him a sheepish look and a half shrug.

“Well it’s nice to meet you Charlie” He said kindly and Charlie’s grin seemed to grow as he pulled Dream into a tight hug which he happily accepted only to stiffen up slightly when he heard Fundy’s chair hit the ground as the fox hybrid stood up and let out a distressed yip.

“What happened?!” He exclaimed loudly as he rushed over towards Eret, Dream glanced in that direction as well when Charlie pulled away and his eyes widened in horror as he noticed the bruises forming on the monarch’s face as well as the split lip.

“Puffy and I had a bit of a disagreement” Eret admitted as she licked at her split lip absentmindedly.

“A disagreement? No offence Eret but your face does not convey that at all” Quackity pointed out as he stepped closer with a concerned look on his face.

“Well it started as a disagreement and then she kinda caught me by surprise” She admitted as she poked at one of the bruises thoughtfully.

“What was the disagreement about?” Dream asked as he approached her which made her and Foolish perk up slightly.

“Well, it actually had to do with you” She explained and Dream’s eyes widened in shock.

“Me?” He questioned worriedly and Eret nodded as she gave him a comforting smile.

“You see, Puffy came to visit me today and I asked about you ‘cause I haven’t heard from you in a while and I got worried since you tend to self-isolate yourself” She explained only to be cut off by Foolish coughing into his fist and muttering something along the lines of ‘pot meet kettle', Eret shot him an unimpressed look before refocusing on Dream.

“You were worried about me?” He asked hesitantly and Eret gave him a soft smile as she nodded.

“Of course I was, you're my friend Dream” She said warmly and Dream practically melted at the kind words.

“So how did asking about Dream lead to this?” Purpled asked as he gestured to Eret’s face.

“Well she informed me that she had disowned Dream before going on a tangent about how much of a monster he was and I got a little bit angry” She explained only to be cut off by Foolish snorting in amusement.

“Right a little angry” He said in amusement and Eret slapped his shoulder.

“Stop interrupting me” She scolded and he just shrugged with a mildly sheepish expression on his face.

“Define a little bit” Sam suggested and Eret hummed softly.

“I may have snapped at her and started yelling about how bad of a mother she was which just made her yell more, but things took a drastic turn when Foolish took my side” She explained and Dream’s eyes widened as he glanced at Foolish who was rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably.

“Yeah I probably should have stayed out of it because it was me getting involved that made her attack Eret, but I just couldn’t sit there and do nothing” He remarked uncomfortably as he glanced at the bruises on Eret’s face, who let out a tired sigh.

“I already told you this was not your fault, she would have attacked me regardless” She stated stubbornly and Foolish sighed as he nodded in acceptance though there was still guilt lurking in his eyes.

“Now enough of this, how are you Dream?” Eret asked as she walked closer to Dream and pulled him into a hug which he quickly accepted, she blinked a little in surprise when she noticed the blonde's wings.

“They're beautiful” She mumbled warmly as she pulled away to give Dream a soft smile which made his wings flap happily but then her eyes focused on the bruise on his cheek which he quickly noticed.

“I trusted someone I shouldn’t have” He mumbled softly so that only she would hear and she nodded in understanding though she couldn’t help but notice the way Fundy’s ear twitched slightly, he had clearly heard.

“Well” Quackity said as he clapped his hands to get everyone’s attention.

“Dinner’s ready so Fundy do you mind getting the kids?” He asked and Fundy nodded as he slipped out the door while the others made their way to the table, though Dream tilted his head to the side curiously as he sat between Eret and Quackity.

“Kids?” He asked curiously.

Chapter Text

“This is unfairly adorable” Fundy muttered and the others nodded in agreement as they watched Dream interact with the kids. Finley was sitting on his shoulders as she played with his hair while her brother and Yogurt were clinging to his arms like they were a jungle gym, and all the while Dream just chuckled fondly at their antics.

“First he kicks all of our asses at Monopoly and now he’s stealing the children” Ponk huffed petulantly earning them amused eye rolls from the others, Ponk had sworn up and down that they would have won if only they had factored Dream into their plan.

“He’s not stealing the children” Eret huffed as she rolled her eyes earning her an amused look from Foolish.

“You're just jealous that you're not Finley’s favourite anymore” He said teasingly which earned him a deadpanned look from the queen.

“And what does that say about you?” She challenged back jokingly making the others laugh while Foolish just rolled his eyes fondly as he glanced back at Dream, his heartwarming at the sight of his brother getting along so well with his children.

“Fundy why is your face so red?” Charlie asked curiously which made Fundy’s blush grow as he tried to cover his face with his hand but not before the others caught onto what was happening.

“Awe does the little fox boy have a crush~?” Ponk asked teasingly as he leaned a little closer to Fundy with Quackity following suit.

“Imagining giving Yogurt a mama?” Quackity tagged on teasingly and Fundy groaned in embarrassment before he rammed his elbows into both of their sides earning him coughs/wheezes of amusement/pain from the duo.

“Worth it” Quackity grunted in amusement while Ponk leaned on Sam dramatically.

“Sam defend me” They whined earning them a fond chuckle from Sam as he patted their head.

“You kinda deserved that one” He said in amusement which earned him an overdramatic gasp from Ponk as they leaned away from him.

“How could you betray me like this?!” They questioned in joking outrage which made everyone else laugh with Ponk joining in quickly.

“What are you guys all laughing about?” Dream questioned curiously as he walked over, Yogurt and Foolish Jr running up to Fundy and Foolish respectively.

“Just some good-natured teasing” Foolish remarked fondly and Dream nodded in understanding as he picked Finley up off of his shoulders.

“Here hand her to me, I’m her favourite” Eret said teasingly and Dream nodded sagely as he handed the little girl over to the queen.

“A lady of fine taste” He said in teasing seriousness earning him a giggle from Finley and mock offended sputtering from Foolish.

“I see how it is, my princess just doesn’t love me anymore” He said dramatically earning him a distressed gasp from Finley.

“I love you, Papa, promise!” She rushed out as she held her arms outwards to her dad who quickly scooped her up happily earning him chuckles from the others and a fond eye roll from Eret.

“Guilt-tripping is evil” She hissed joking which just earned her a bright grin from Foolish.

“Whatever works” He said cheekily as he cuddled his daughter closer before glancing down at his son standing next to him.

“I’m still your favourite though, right?” He asked and Junior tilted his head thoughtfully before shrugging.

“I don’t know Papa, Uncle Dream is really fun” He finally said earning him a dramatic gasp from Foolish while Dream gasped in awe over being called uncle.

“Betrayed by my own children” Foolish whined childishly and the others chuckled while Fundy picked Yogurt up so that he could rest on his hip.

“You'll never betray me like that, right buddy?” He asked jokingly and Yogurt nodded with a bright grin on his face.

“Of course not Papa!” He said sweetly before tilting his head thoughtfully.

“Though Mr. Dream is very fun, he’s a very close second” He remarked and Fundy chuckled softly.

“As long as I stay your favourite I don’t mind” He said warmly and Yogurt giggled as they nuzzled noses earning them a soft coo from Dream.

“All of this cuteness is overwhelming” Ponk drawled teasingly and while the others rolled their eyes fondly Quackity nudged them with a smirk on his face.

“Just wait till Sam loses his self-control and decides to adopt a kid then there will be cuteness twenty-four seven” He snickered teasingly and Ponk’s eyes widened as they glanced at Sam whose face was bright red.

“I’ve never even thought of adopting” He defended which earned him deadpanned looks from nearly everyone else.

“That’s a lie and a half, we’ve all seen how you are with Tommy you already consider him your son” Eret accused seriously which made Sam whine as he tried to cover his blushing face.

“I am rather fond of Tommy, I wouldn’t mind having him as a son” Ponk remarked offhandedly which just made Sam’s blush grow tenfold.

“I think you’d make a great dad” Dream offered as he patted the creeper hybrid's shoulder, who let out an embarrassed sound as he sunk to the ground much to the other's amusement.

“The mighty builder has fallen” Fundy snickered which lead to the others laughing while Sam wallowed in his embarrassment.

Chapter Text

“Hey, Dream could we talk for a minute?” Foolish requested hopefully and Dream glanced at him in surprise. 

“Uh, yeah sure” He replied as he stood up before glancing at Quackity who he had been sitting with. 

“I’ll be right back” He remarked and Quackity simply nodded as he turned his attention towards where Purpled and Ponk were teaching the children something, if the disapproving look on Sam’s face was anything to go by it was probably something that young children shouldn’t know. 

Dream grinned a little in amusement before trailing after Foolish who led him out into another room. He was honestly kinda nervous, what in the world could Foolish possibly want to talk to him about? Was he upset that Foolish Junior called him uncle? Or was he mad that Eret got hurt because of him? Before he could question the man he was pulled into a tight hug which stunned him greatly. 

“I’m so glad I finally get a chance to get to know you” Foolish mumbled into the blonde's hair and all Dream could do was blink at the wall in confusion. 

“What?” He finally remarked baffled and Foolish grinned softly as he pulled away. 

“I’ve always wanted a brother and I got kinda disappointed whenever Puffy would tell me that you were too busy to have a proper meeting, but thinking back on it those were probably just excuses” He explained to which all Dream could do was blink at him in surprise. 

“You know that Puffy disowned me right? We’re… we’re not brothers” He said tiredly as he glanced, his heart twisting painfully. He had had a chance at having a brother and Puffy had stolen that chance from him, which almost hurt more than the disownment. 

“If you're comfortable with it I’d still like to consider you my brother” Foolish said softly as he placed a gentle hand on Dream’s shoulder who glanced back at him with a stunned expression on his face. 

“Why… why would you want to be my brother? Or have anything to do with me for that matter? I’m a terrible person with too much blood on my hands. You should be happy that you dodged a bullet instead of trying to get shot” He stated self-deprecatingly as he took a few steps back which earned him a sad look from Foolish. 

“The blood on your hands is nothing compared to the ocean of blood that haunts my past” He said softly as he gently took the blonde's hands into his own. 

“What are you talking about?” Dream questioned baffled as he glanced up at Foolish who had a sorrowful look in his eyes. 

“I’ve lived a very long life Dream and I wasn’t always a pacifist” He explained tiredly and Dream’s eyebrows shot into his hairline as he finally understood what the Totem God was saying. 

“But our futures do not need to be defined by our pasts, we can still grow and change into better kinder people. All you’ve got to do is take that first step and never give up” Foolish said warmly as he gently squeezed Dream’s hands, who had a few tears in his eyes. 

“Will you help me?” He asked in a near whisper and Foolish smiled softly as he pulled him into another hug. 

“Of course” He mumbled softly and Dream felt the tears slip down his face as he melted into Fool- into his brother's hold. He didn’t need Puffy to have a family because Las Nevadas was showing him just how big of a family he already had, a family that actually cared about him.

Quackity and Eret shared soft smiles as they walked away from the closed door where they had been eavesdropping on the conversation. 

“They both needed that” Eret mumbled softly and Quackity hummed in agreement. 

“I’m glad it went well” He remarked softly and Eret nodded in agreement only to suddenly stop walking alongside Quakcity when they noticed someone shuffling down the hall.

“Tommy?!” Quackity cried out in alarm as he finally recognized the blonde who was hunched over in pain, the blonde barely had time to give Quackity a shaky smile before he fell unconscious and hit the floor hard. 

Quackity and Eret rushed over towards Tommy only for the avian's heart to freeze up as he took note of the blonde's many injuries as well as the pair of red wings on his back, wings that were in even worse shape than Dream’s had been in. 

“We’ve got to get him to Ponk” Eret stated seriously which snapped Quackity out of his daze and quickly picked the fledgling up before rushing off back towards the room they left the others in. His instincts screamed for horrible things to be done to whoever did this to his chick. 

Philza Minecraft better sleep with two fucking eyes open because he either let this happen, was responsible for it, or his own son didn’t feel safe enough to go to him for help. If any of these options proved to be true then Quackity would raise hell.

Chapter Text

Sam bit his lip anxiously as he watched Ponk take care of Tommy’s main injuries while Quackity took care of his wings, Eret was rushing back and forth getting different kinds of supplies for the duo and Purpled had taken Charlie and the children into the other room to distract them.

Sam had never felt so powerless, there was nothing he could do for the boy he had grown to think of as a son but stand there and pray. He glanced away when he felt a hand on his shoulder and saw that Fundy was giving him a reassuring look.

“Don’t worry he’s going to be just fine, he’s a stubborn little shit he’ll bounce back in no time you’ll see” He said softly and Sam felt a weak smile appear on his face as he nodded in agreement only for his attention to snap towards the door when he heard a shocked gasp and saw that Dream and Foolish had returned.

“What happened?” Dream questioned worriedly as he and Foolish came to stand next to them.

“We’re not sure, Tommy just suddenly showed up looking like this and then collapsed in front of Quackity and Eret” Fundy explained and Dream let out a distressed chirp which caught Quackity’s attention as he turned away from Tommy’s fully wrapped wings to look at him.

He let out a soft comforting chirp as he opened his arms and Dream went rushing over as he accepted the hug while his eyes remained focused on Tommy, an even louder distressed chirp escaping him as he noticed how wounded Tommy’s wings were alongside his other injuries.

“Sshh chick it's okay he’s going to be okay” Quackity mumbled soothingly as he ran his fingers through Dream’s hair and while he leaned into the comfort the worry on his face was still very evident.

“There I’ve done all I can, all we have to do now is wait for him to wake up” Ponk said softly as she pulled away with a relieved but also anxious expression on her face.

“What do you think happened to him?” Foolish asked softly as he gazed at the blonde worriedly.

“If I had to take a guess I would say someone manhandled and beat him before trying to damage his wings” Ponk explained tiredly as she leaned back into Sam’s chest, who had moved forward to provide them with some comfort.

“I don’t think they intended to just damage them, there are shallow cuts near the base so it looks like someone tried to cut them off but were stopped by something” Quackity pointed out with a slight growl in his voice that made everyone pale sightly.

“Who would do that to a chick?!” Dream questioned in near hysterics and Quackity let out a soft chirp as he nuzzled the blonde to try and provide him with some comfort.

“How is he?” Purpled asked softly as he stepped into the room, having successfully put the kids to sleep while Charlie remained on guard duty.

“He’ll be fine, we just have to wait for him to wake up” Sam said softly and Purpled nodded as he came to stand next to Fundy as he gazed at his injured friend with a worried expression on his face.

Tommy let out a weak-sounding chirp as he began to stir which caused everyone to tense up expectantly. The blonde slowly blinked his eyes opened and a small groan escaped him as he sat up.

“Wha-” He mumbled sleepily as he blinked around unseeingly for a moment before his eyes widened in panic and his arms scrambled to touch his back before a relieved sigh escaped him when his hands made contact with his wings.

“Tommy, how are you feeling? Any pain?” Ponk asked softly as she pushed herself forward slightly so that she would be in Tommy’s line of sight. He blinked at her for a few moments before glancing around the room at everyone else, tensing briefly when he noticed Dream, before returning his attention to Ponk.

“I... I feel okay” He mumbled softly as he stared down at his bandaged hands.

“Can you tell us what happened?” Sam asked softly and Tommy tensed as his eyes widened fearfully once again.

“Sally’s alive! She- she did this to me!” He blurted out in a panic and everyone’s eyes went wide in shock while Fundy paled quite a few shades.

“How?! We all saw her die!” He exclaimed in alarm and Eret wrapped an arm around the fox hybrids shoulders to provide him with some comfort.

“I don’t know!” Tommy practically screamed nearly hysterically.

“That’s impossible” Dream mumbled and Tommy whirled around ready to snap at the older blonde for doubting him only to pause when he saw the genuine confusion on his face. Dream narrowed his eyes thoughtfully before he swiped his hand through the air and a bunch of screens popped up with writing on them in a language none of them could understand.

“The server says she’s dead” He mumbled confused as he stared at one specific screen with two names on it, Schlatt and Sally.

“How did she cheat death?” He continued to mumble and Tommy’s shoulders slumped a little in relief as he realized that Dream didn’t doubt him he was just confused.

“Do you have any ideas?” Dream asked as he turned to look at Foolish while simultaneously banishing the screens and Foolish purchased his lips together thoughtfully as he rocked on his heels slightly.

“Well if she made a deal with an underworld god then she could have been revived but the server wouldn’t list her as alive because the life she’s living now wouldn’t be her own it would be the gods” He finally suggested after a moment and Dream nodded a little in agreement before he turned to look at Tommy with a worried look in his eyes.

“Why did she hurt you? She’s your sister” He asked worriedly and the genuine concern in the admin's eyes kinda threw Tommy for a loop.

“I ran into her by accident and at first she was so happy to see me, for a moment it seemed like I had the old Sally back” He mumbled somberly before his eyes hardened in anger.

“But then she saw my wings and something in her shifted, she beat me down and said that she was going to fix me, make me more like her” He explained as he wrapped his arms around himself uncomfortably and the others shared worried/confused looks while Fundy paled even further if that was even possible.

“What do you mean she was going to make you like him?” Quackity asked hesitantly but it wasn’t Tommy who responded.

“Sally is an avian but she cut her own wings off maybe a year or so after they came in” Fundy revealed uncomfortably, loud alarmed chirps escaped Quackity and Dream at the mere idea while Tommy tightened his grip on himself.

“Why would she do that?” Dream questioned and Fundy sighed as he wrapped his arms around himself uncomfortably.

“Sally has a deep-seated hatred for hybrids, she believes they are nothing more than filthy animals, it’s why she grew so distant with Phil who is so proud of his wings, why she hated Schlatt long before the election because she never hid his genes, why she left my dD when She realized he was a shifter, why She…” He explained only to trail off at the end earning him concerned looks from the others.

“Why she what Fundy?” Sam asked worriedly and Fundy’s grip on his arms tightened slightly before he let out an exhausted sigh.

“Why she threatened to cut off my ears and tail if I didn't stay in line” He muttered bitterly and Eret quickly pulled him into a comforting hug while Quackity’s wings puffed out angrily at Sally’s audacity.

“I’m a shifter like my dad so I can hide my features if I want to but it takes a lot of energy and I don’t like doing it but I had to appease her” He mumbled softly which led to Foolish joining the hug while Dream let out distressed chirps.

“She tried to hurt you?” Tommy questioned heartbrokenly never realizing that Sally had been hurting family long before she hurt him, Fundy pulled away from the hug so that he could go provide the blonde with some comfort.

“She’s very good at pretending to be accepting but it's all an act” The fox hybrid mumbled and Tommy shook slightly as distressed chirps escaped him, just how many people had Sally hurt without him realizing? A sudden memory of Eret storming out of L’manberg in the middle of the night two weeks before the final control room resurfaced and he glanced in the monarch's direction who winced slightly at the unasked question.

“She got a look at my eyes and tried to gouge them out when she thought I was sleeping” She revealed tiredly and Foolish pulled her into a tight hug while Dream let out a nearly hysterical-sounding sob as he covered his mouth, he had let an actual monster onto his server and she had been running free doing who knows what for the last couple months.

“Dream it’s okay it's okay, you need to breathe, can you do that dear? Here follow my breathing” Eret instructed as she suddenly appeared in front of Dream’s very blurring vision and he desperately tried to suck in air as his panic died down slightly but his nerves still felt like they were on fire.

“Hey, fledgeling why don’t you go help Charlie watch the kids, hm? Maybe that’ll help calm you down” Quackity suggested softly as he gently nuzzled the blonde who took in a deep shaky breath as he nodded.

“Ye-yeah I’ll-I’ll go do that” He stammered before heading towards the room the kids were in while Purpled trailed after him to help calm him as well, Charlie always had the best intentions but sometimes his knowledge of things could unsettle people. Fundy had had a fair few panic attacks because of the slime.

Tommy stared after the duo as his eyes locked onto the pair of wings on Dream’s back in surprise.

“He’s an avian?” He mumbled shocked and Quackity hummed as he reached over to run his fingers through Tommy’s hair who couldn’t help but lean into the touch.

“Yeah it came as a surprise to him when they came in the other day, he came here cause he was suffering badly with the chills” Quackity explained and Tommy’s eyes widened in shock, he knew the bare minimum when it came to his own biology but he knew the importance of nests and had been able to construct one for himself when his wings came in, it was rather sloppy but it had done the job, the thought of not even having that made him feel a bit bad for the admin.

“Today’s been quite stressful, why don’t you get some sleep and We’ll talk more in the morning?” Ponk suggested when they noticed the blonde's eyes drooping.

“Yeah okay” He mumbled sleepily and Fundy gave him one more comforting squeeze before he helped him lie down comfortably, he was out like a light as soon as his head hit the pillow leaving the adults to stew in their worry.

Chapter Text

Tommy groaned softly as he slowly blinked his eyes open before he pushed himself up and glanced around the room, he was in a different room than when he fell asleep in fact he wasn’t even in a bed but in a nest, another glance around showed Quackity, Purpled and a slime hybrid he didn’t recognize sleeping.

“How are you feeling?” A soft voice asked and he nearly jumped out of his skin as he whipped his head around and saw a sheepish-looking Dream staring at him.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you” He mumbled softly as he shifted around slightly allowing Tommy to catch a glimpse of his wings, even in the darkness of the room he could tell that they were very pretty.

“I’m fine” He finally mumbled as he glanced away from the admin and instead turned to glance out the window seeing that the moon was still high in the sky.

“Do you need anything? Water? Food?” Dream asked softly and Tommy furrowed his eyebrows in confusion as he turned to look at Dream.

“Why are you being so nice to me?” He questioned a little harshly and Dream blinked at him shocked.

“Wha…” He trailed off confused and Tommy grit his teeth in annoyance.

“You’ve been a prick to me practically since I joined the server and suddenly you're all buddy-buddy with me? Is it cause I’m injured? Is that it? What’s your angle Dream” He questioned in frustration, Dream opened his mouth before closing it and ducking his head.

“I can’t justify my actions, the things I’ve done I can never take back no matter how much I regret them” He mumbled softly as he wrapped his arms around himself which just made Tommy’s frown deepen.

“How much do you know about admins?” Dream asked as he glanced back at Tommy who tilted his head in confusion.

“Not a lot, Phil would mention them on occasion but that's about it. Why?” He questioned baffled and Dream hummed slightly as he seemed to be getting his thoughts in order.

“Those born with admin blood have grown increasingly rare over the years and those that have it become a part of the admin's council, I am the youngest of those Admins which means I’ve always been under a lot of scrutiny from the older admins” He explained and Tommy perked up curiously, he remembered Phil mentioning this once, most people who own servers nowadays aren’t real admins and have simply been granted powers from true admins.

“When I started this server I wanted it to be a place for my friends where we could all be one big family and because my goals were so simple the other admins left me alone to do as I pleased” Dream continued to explain softly and a small frown appeared on Tommy’s face as his mind travelled back to the beginning of the server before all the conflict, Dream had always seemed like that protective older brother who sometimes got on your nerves.

“But when all of the chaos and conflict started the other admins started breathing down my neck, as a true admin I should have been able to keep control of my own server but I couldn’t and every attempt to regain control just got me labelled as a tyrant, a villain and a monster” Dream revealed tiredly and Tommy winced slightly.

“It was after I was almost executed by L’manberg that I realized that all of my efforts were for nothing and I spiralled into madness with no one to catch me, Puffy was pulling away from me, Sapnap and George want nothing to do with me and I couldn’t bring myself to burden Sam or Eret with my problems” Dream explained as a few tears slipped down his face and Tommy felt his stomach twist as he began sympathizing with Dream, he personally had nothing to do with the attempted execution, Dream’s or Techno’s, but he still felt guilty over what had happened even if he was still angry over the destruction of his home.

“After Doomsday and Puffy disowned me I isolated myself away from everyone and if my wings hadn’t come in I probably would have continued to do so” Dream finished as he reached up to wipe at his eyes before glancing up to meet Tommy’s eyes.

“None of that justifies what I did to you personally Tommy, I took two of your lives and I almost had you exiled from your home over an accident. I fully expected you to never forgive me and if it will make you feel b-better you can take two of my lives in revenge” He stated seriously with only a slight waver to his voice and Tommy’s eyes went wide in shock.

He quickly glanced away as he furrowed his eyebrows in thought, the idea was tempting but could he really go through with it? His mind travelled back once again to the beginning of the server before Sally had joined and he had considered Dream to be another big brother and even just a few hours ago when the older had gotten so distressed over what Sally had done.

“Taking your lives won’t fix anything” He finally said as he glanced back at Dream who looked very anxious.

“There’s got to be something I can do to make it up to you” He stated anxiously and Tommy hummed as he shuffled closer and pulled the older blonde into a tight hug.

“We can work on that together” He mumbled and Dream sat there in shock for a moment before he wrapped his arms and wings around Tommy protectively as a small warm smile appeared on his face.

“Okay” He mumbled softly as the two of them cuddled closer.

Quackity smiled softly to himself as he closed his eyes having been woken up by their talking, he was so happy that his fledglings were getting along.

Chapter Text

I don’t really have the words to express my disgust and disappointment in Wilbur for what he’s done to Shelby and so many others. But what I can say is that this story and all my other dsmp content will not be continuing. I haven’t yet decided if I am going to delete the works, especially the ones that don’t feature Wilbur much but I am no longer comfortable continuing to write them. I apologize to all those who are fans of my stories but I hope you can understand my stance on this.

Chapter Text

I’ve been doing some thinking since my last announcement, now that the overwhelming anger has simmered down enough to clear my head I’ve come to a realization. One of the things that have pushed me towards writing dsmp content even after it ended and my hyper fixation mellowed out has always been Technoblade. Keeping his memory alive is something that I have been so determined to do and I don’t want that to be tainted by one vile man.

What Wilbur has done is horrible and I will always stand by Shelby but I don’t think I’m quite so ready to leave these stories to rot. So I’ve been doing some thinking and I think I have come to a decision but I wanted some feedback on it before proceeding.

For the stories that I am able to I would like to remove Wilbur’s character from the narrative completely and for the ones that are rooted deep into the storyline of the dsmp in which removing him is nearly impossible I propose replacing him with Sally. She’s a completely fictional character with no real-life person behind her and she can essentially be moulded to fix whatever role I need for her. It will be like he never existed.

But of course, I want all your opinions on this, should I go forward with these changes or should I leave these stories as they are and move on to newer stories? Whatever you decide I will be perfectly content with it.

Chapter Text

I thought I had come to a satisfying conclusion by editing Wilbur out, I naively thought that would be the end and that I could move on with these stories. I was wrong. As more content creators are revealed to be awful people I just feel sick and I just don’t know if I can do it anymore. I know people have told me to separate the character from the content creator but I just can’t not when just seeing the name makes me think of them, it’s not the same as an actor playing a character.

This will likely be the last update for these stories unless I can think of something else, maybe I’ll write up an outline of where the storyline was supposed to go but honestly, none of my stories have a concrete ending I’ve always just gone with what felt right in the moment.

I just don’t know what to do and I’m tired, so very tired.