Dream woke up sometime after dawn, unsurprised to see George asleep.

He blinked as his eyes adjusted, slowly waking up. George was curled up less than an arm's length away. Sunlight drifted onto the floor of the cave, illuminating the brunet's face. His eyelashes rested on his cheekbones gently and his mouth was parted, relaxed in his state of sleep.

George's arm was reached towards Dream, his fingers barely brushing the ends of Dream's hair. Dream smiled softly and looked towards Sapnap, who was watching Dream quietly.

Sapnap gave him a small smile before turning to look at the cave entrance and saying quietly, "He was up most of the night..." he trailed off and glanced at Dream.

Dream nodded, his eye catching on a small piece of fabric laying on the bandages on his chest. He picked up the cloth gently, his face softening once he realized what it was. A bracelet, crafted from the remaining fabric of his cloak.

He blinked back tears at the effort George had put into it. Neat braids tied off at the end, long enough to fit around Dream's wrist. His eyes clothes, remembering the giver of his cloak― Fundy.

Dream reopened his eyes and struggled to tie the bracelet to his left wrist. Sapnap walked over and quietly tied it around Dream's wrist.

"Thank you," Dream whispered.

Sapnap nodded and sat back down across from him. He said quietly, looking back to the cave entrance, "I woke up sometime in the middle of the night, I don't know exactly when, but it was late... and over the fire I could hear him."

Sapnap looked to George and smiled softly, "He was singing, I couldn't hear him clearly, but I opened my eyes to find him humming and running his hands through your hair." Sapnap's eyes darted to Dream's as he said, "I watched him spend hours making that bracelet. He would start over if he thought it wasn't good enough and when it finally was... I've never seen someone so happy. He fell asleep moments later."

Dream opened his mouth, but no words could come out.

"The way he looks at you..." Sapnap whispered, looking away, "it makes me miss Karl."

Dream closed his eyes and held back his tears of gratitude and guilt. Sapnap would never see Karl again and he didn't have a clue.

George woke up less than an hour later. He yawned, cutting off when he saw Dream's wrist. And although Dream wasn't looking at him, he could sense George's smile.

Sapnap greeted George and offered him some leftover goat meat. George took it, his eyes darting back to Dream and a small smile never leaving his face.

"Where's my mask?" Dream asked suddenly.

The smile faded from George's face as he cleared his throat and looked at Sapnap. Sapnap cringed and said, "It... broke."

"It broke?"

Sapnap and George nodded. Sapnap reached behind him and pulled out Dream's mask, holding up two separate pieces and wincing. He said, "It was cracked over half way after the dragon thing knocked you against the wall... when you said we could remove it, we didn't know where the buckle thing was. So we just snapped it the rest of the way to get it off you."

Sapnap handed Dream the mask and Dream blinked, studying the broken mask. It had been his signature ever since he started working for Technoblade and now it was gone. Dream couldn't bring himself to feel sad about losing it, he had always hated it and used it only for some anonymity.

But now he would have no anonymity. His mask was broken clean in half and his cloak... Dream's eyes drifted to the dark green fabric on his wrist before quickly looking up and saying, "Good riddance."

Sapnap and George visibly relaxed and Dream added, "I'll need to get another cloak though."

They nodded and the group left the cave hours later when Dream had gathered enough strength to get up. He had to rely on the support of George and Sapnap, slinging his arms over their shoulders with their arms around his back and upper waist.

He disliked being so dependent on something that wasn't himself. Dream could tell that George and Sapnap had noticed, but they didn't say anything. They eventually left the mountains, no sign of the amphiptere, and entered a dense, dark oak forest.

Thick trees grew in abundance and Dream warned the mortals to be careful. It was more likely than not that the forest was enchanted and full of magical creatures. Dream could see the awe on George and Sapnap's faces as they looked around.

Mushrooms were scattered among the large trees, the whole forest completely shaded by the thick forest ceiling. Light was provided by the soft glow of mushrooms and lichen. When Dream looked up, the trees seemed to stretch up for ages.

Dream was caught off guard when a presence shifted between trees. He froze, holding George and Sapnap close to him. Since the mortals didn't have his eyesight, they couldn't see the nymph hiding behind the shadows.

"It's okay!" Dream said quickly, "We mean you no harm."

The tree nymph, or dryad more specifically, stuck her head out curiously. Wavy brown hair fell past her shoulders, reaching her waist. The only clothing she wore was a dark brown cloak that seemed to consume her entire body. After a moment, she stepped out of the cover of the trees.

Sapnap and George gasped in surprise. It the better light, Dream could see her ears point from beneath her hair. Dryads were a specific type of Fae, but they lived forever, immortal. Their spirits were bound to trees, so unless someone were to destroy the tree to which she was bound, the dryad in front of them would live forever.

"Who are you?" she asked timidly.

"Just travelers," Dream assured her. "We have no mal-intentions."

She tilted her head. "You're hurt."

"Yes," Dream said, "but, I'm okay. We'll leave your forest as soon as possible."

"It isn't my forest," the dryad corrected and gestured to the trees, "this forest belongs to the earth. I just look after it."

Dream nodded. Sapnap said, not wanting to leave all the talking to Dream, "Will you let us through?"

She looked to Sapnap, then to George, and finally, back to Dream. She noticed Dream's ears and murmured with a small gasp of delight, "It's been so long since I've seen someone like me... I will let you pass on one condition."

Dream frowned and asked, "What condition?"

"I cannot heal you, it is not within my capabilities, but please take my cloak," she said, "the forests ahead are no friend to mortals and you will need all the strength you can get. I hope this cloak will provide you with some warmth."

Dream looked down to his bandaged torso, his only clothing being his pants, boots, and bandages. He looked at the dark brown cloak wrapped around the dryad's shoulders and said hesitantly, "I don't want to take your source of warmth."

"Please do," she insisted, "I get my warmth from the trees. Besides the person who gave me this is long gone, I hardly remember who he was. It's been so long."

Dream nodded. "Thank you."

The dryad smiled and closed her eyes. Vines sprouted from the ground, climbing past her feet and up her legs as she took off the cloak. Her long hair and vines, which were now sprouting roses, covered her body modestly. A thick vine branched out, the cloak hanging off it, and stopped in front of Dream. George took it with wide eyes and put it in the pack for later.

The dryad opened her eyes and smiled in goodbye, disappearing back into the forest behind her.

They all stood in silence for a moment, processing over what had happened. Dream cleared his throat and said, "We should get going."

He felt George turn to look at him. The telekinetic asked, "What did she mean when she said 'the forests ahead are no friend to mortals'?"

Sapnap answered with a tinge of sarcasm in his voice, "Exactly what she said, George."

George glared at Sapnap, his arm tightening around Dream as he asked, "How are you feeling?"

"Better," Dream said and looked to his stomach, where he could feel the wounds healing. He added, "I should almost be at full strength when we reach the forests she was talking about."

"Still," George said, "we should still stop for rest before them."

Dream nodded and the group continued until they reached the end of the forest. He could tell where one forest ended and the other began. The warm trees around them were comforting, glowing almost. The dark oak trees provided a sense of security. The spruce trees ahead of them were tall as well, but thinner. The forest was even darker than the one they were currently in and there was a fog creeping along the ground.

He felt George shudder at the sight. Sapnap said, "Let's rest before we go there."

Dream and George agreed and they sat down, a distance away from the spruce forest. Sapnap sat across from him, wanting space after just supporting Dream. George, however, sat beside Dream, leaning against the same tree.

Sapnap and George ate the remaining berries and nuts in the pack. They saved the rest of the dried meat for the morning. Dream didn't eat, not because he wasn't hungry, but because they were running low on food and the mortals would need it more than him.

Sapnap fell asleep first again, bringing the bandana he wore down around his eyes, giving him darkness to sleep to. Then it was just Dream and George. Dream took out the new cloak and put it on, wrapping the fabric around his shoulders.

"You can sleep again," George said quietly.

Dream looked to George, who was watching him carefully. Dream shook his head, "No, you need sleep more than I do."

"But you'll heal faster if you rest."

"True, but you won't be able to stay awake tomorrow if you don't sleep."

George shook his head stubbornly. "I'm not sleeping, so either we both stay awake or you get sleep."

Dream narrowed his eyes, seeing nothing suspicious with George's behavior. He sighed and muttered, "You're such an idiot."

George shrugged. A small smile tugged on his lips as he whispered, "Goodnight Dream."

Dream opened his mouth to ask about the previous night and George's actions, but instead he closed his mouth and swallowed, looking away as his eyes slid shut.

It was a certain trust that Dream had to display for him to sleep in front of another. He didn't know how he felt about that.

Half an hour later, Dream hadn't fallen asleep yet, even with closed eyes. His mind had just started to relax, on the verge of falling fully asleep, when he felt fingers trace down his forearm in a simmering drag. Dream inhaled quietly, unnoticeable to George, whose fingers were fiddling with the bracelet on his wrist.

Dream steadied his breathing, listening to George hum quietly. Fingers traced over the lines on Dream's palms and hovered over his skin. The gentle tune and soothing touch caused Dream to fall asleep seconds later, against his will. His tired mind tugged him into the realm of sleep, free of nightmares or bad memories as George calmed him.

~

A loud howl woke Dream. He sat up, looking around wildly. He was about to dismiss it as a nightmare, but then he noticed George was no longer by his side.

Another deep howl pierced air, causing Sapnap to shout and wake up. Sapnap shoved his bandana up his forehead and met Dream's eyes. His eyes widened as he asked, "Where's George?"

"I don't―"

A scream echoed from the spruce forest and Dream stood up abruptly, leaning heavily against the tree. His wounds had healed significantly, but he was still in pain. Sapnap stood up as well, saying slowly, "There's no way that was George... right? Why would he go there?"

Sapnap looked at the dark forest in front of him and Dream answered, "I would think he's smart enough to know not to go in there."

"Yeah," Sapnap said, relaxing, "he's probably taking a piss―"

Another scream rang out followed by a bark, one from a large creature. Dream's stomach pooled with dread as he said, "That was definitely George."

Sapnap paled and Dream checked his belt, making sure his sword was still attached before he headed into the spruce forest with no hesitation.

Sapnap grabbed his elbow, "Dream, wait, you're still hurt."

Dream glared at him, "Let me go, Sapnap. He's mortal and I know a werewolf howl when I hear one."

Sapnap hesitated, reluctantly letting go of Dream's arm. He grabbed the pack and summoned fire, lighting a path for them as they started into the foggy forest.

Dream led the way, watching the trees ahead of him, a soft orange glow bouncing off them. Sapnap sent a spear of fire into the sky.

Dream turned around and hissed, "What the hell Sapnap?!"

"What?! George knows where we are now!"

"And so does every other creature in this forest," Dream snapped.

Sapnap blanched. "Oh, shit."

Dream gave him a pointed look and muttered, "We need to hurry."

"We just can't catch a break," Sapnap grumbled.

Dream couldn't disagree; they had been coming across creature after creature, good and bad. Hopefully soon they wouldn't have to worry about more problems. Dream's thoughts were disrupted when he heard something running at them.

Dream froze and lifted his sword. Sapnap brightened his fire, his eyes narrowing as they scanned the forest ahead of them. Loud panting was heard and then bushes rustled. George sprinted out seconds later with wide eyes filled with fear.

Dream analyzed him, dropping his sword to his side when he noticed it was just George. George didn't stop running, however, and Dream stepped back. George ran into him, wrapping his arms around Dream and burying his head into his chest.

George's chest was rising and falling rapidly and Dream could hear his heart. Dream stood dumbfounded for a moment, his hands in the air, hovering above George. He gave a confused look to Sapnap. The pyrokinetic gave him a knowing look and walked forward, giving them space and scouting out the area.

Dream blinked and stabbed his sword into the ground, embracing George seconds later. He whispered, "George... are you okay?"

George nodded and breathed, "I am now."

Dream stepped back and lifted George's chin with his hand. He scanned George for any wounds and muttered, "Are you hurt?"

"No," George replied, his breath calming, "but I don't know where the thing chasing me went. I think it was a werewolf."

Dream nodded, not tearing his eyes from George as he asked, "Why did you leave?"

George looked away and muttered, "I wanted to practice."

"Practice for what?"

George looked back to Dream with sad eyes, "I... I want to be useful."

"You are useful."

"Not really."

"George," Dream said softly, "you've taken care of me and Sapnap. You bandage my wounds and help me sleep." Dream paused and lifted his wrist for George to see the bracelet. He murmured, "You made this for me... you have no idea how much that means to me."

George's face softened. He grumbled, "I don't want to be the mum of the group."

Dream laughed softly, taking his fingers from George's chin. He joked, "Why is that so bad?"

George crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. He opened his mouth to respond, but Sapnap cut him off, saying, "Hurry up slowpokes, we need to hurry through this forest!"

Dream offered George a small smile and picked up his sword, walking to follow Sapnap. He heard George exhale slowly before jogging to catch up.

Dream let Sapnap lead for once, seeing as he had fire and could light the path as well as scare off predators. The werewolf was nowhere to be seen or heard so Dream was on edge. George walked beside Dream, quietly humming.

His shoulders slowly relaxed as he listened to George. That's how they walked the rest of the night; Sapnap lighting the way, Dream scanning the area, and George humming to ease their tense moods.