A week had passed since Schlatt's drunken attack, and he acted as if nothing had happened.

Although, he has taken to the idea of using violence when he deems it necessary. Whether that be hitting me, Tubbo, or Quackity. It was whoever was in his line of vision when he was drunk or angry.

The bruise on Tubbo's face was faded, but scratches and welts marked his arms and neck from other outbursts. The same was mirrored on Quackity and me. The violence never had a reason behind it, other than pure joy for the sick man.

Whenever Schlatt did that to me though, the darkness didn't take kindly to it. I almost always ended up slapping him or yelling at him before storming off. The gods were becoming agitated with his drunken mind.

I was on my way out of the white house, leaving a drunk Schlatt sleeping on his desk when I stopped dead in my tracks.

A lone figure stood at the base of the L'manburg flag, staring up at it. His red hair sparkled in the light.

The flag was covered in ruby flames.

A day before, Schlatt had announced the renaming of the nation. "We don't take L's!", was what he simply said, deeming the nation 'Manburg'. Fundy and him had later talked about the flag, but I hadn't expected him to burn it.

I rushed over to him, noticing two other figures running towards him as well.

I reached the base of the flag at the same time as them, Niki and Eret much more out of breath than me. We all stared at the flames for a moment in silence, before Niki shattered it.

"Fundy what are you doing!" She screeched at him, running over to grab his arms. "Put the flames out!" She shook him, tears flowing down her face. I could see the heartbreak on her face as she stared at her own handiwork get burnt away by one of her closest friends.

It had shocked us all when Fundy turned to Schlatt instead of running off with his father. But the boy never mentioned Wilbur, and when he did, disgust usually filled his voice.

Eret rushed over to me, his sunglasses reflecting the orange glow, "Y/n put the flames out! Use your powers!"

The darkness just laughed at him, mocking his desperation mentally. When it could contain itself, my voice came out cold, "No. Fundy is doing the right thing."

All three stared at me, one grinning in satisfaction. I could feel Niki's heart break even more, her face falling.

She snapped out of it, staring at Fundy once more, "I ran in the election with you! How could you do this?!"

He swished his tail around once in irritation before speaking, "L'manburg is no more. We are in need of a new flag for the new nation." His voice sounded confident, but there was a sad look in his eyes for the briefest moment.

Niki stormed off, shaking with sobs. Eret gave me a disgusted look before running after her, leaving Fundy and I watching the flag. The flames lapped at the end of the flag until there was nothing left.

The next morning a black and red flag was flapping in the previous flag's place.

-

"I say we have a festival!" Cheers arose following the president's words.

I was standing next to Schlatt on the podium, picking my nails in boredom. The darkness didn't care about a festival, it wanted bloodshed and pain. Quackity and Tubbo stood on the other side of Schlatt, more interested than I was.

"All will be welcome, except for the two exiles of course. It will be held here, in two days' time." Schlatt grinned, turning towards Tubbo. Tubbo's face turned red at the attention, "And my man Tubbo, will be in charge of the decorations." With his new task, the boy's face lit up.

People assumed the speech was over, beginning to get up from their seats. But Schlatt's words stopped them, "One more thing." His smile turned dark, his eyes darting to Niki.

She stared fiercely back at him. I mentally cheered her on for not backing down. The girl had more gut than any of them.

"I wanted to bring to everyone's attention the shocking actions of one of our citizens. Late last night, when Fundy was taking care of the new flag, Nihachu tried to stop him." Everyone's eyes turned to Niki, but that didn't bother her. She just continued to stare Schlatt down as we went on, "Niki, may I ask you why you thought it would be right to not put up the new flag?"

She walked closer to the podium, people parting to let her through. Eret followed behind her, his crown glinting in the light. "Fundy was burning the L'manburg flag! He had no right to do that!"

"Oh Niki, L'manburg is no more. A new era calls for a new flag. You have to move on, or I will be forced to raise your taxes." A few gasps arose from his words but none stood up for the girl.

"Bring it on." She shot back at him, not once breaking his stare.

Her face was turning slightly red which earned a dark smile from Schlatt. He was enjoying making her angry. She turned on her heel, Eret on her trail, marching towards her home. I couldn't imagine she would be able to pay what Schlatt intended.

When people began to trickle away from the area, Schlatt turned towards Tubbo. The boy was still smiling faintly, giddy at the idea of decorating. But when the three of us faced him, it quickly disappeared.

"Tubbo, I want you to get to work on the decorations immediately." Schlatt patted Tubbo on the back a little too roughly, making him stumble forward. Tubbo wandered off the podium in search of decorations when Schlatt turned to me, "I want you to supervise him. Make sure he's getting shit done."

I simply nodded, following after the boy.

-

Tubbo pov

He could feel her eyes on his every movement. Or not her eyes, but whatever was inside of her.

He knew that she was somewhere still in there, she had to be. But what he saw when he looked at her proved otherwise.

She stood off to the side, arms folded. He assumed Schlatt had informed her to watch him so he moved efficiently, not lingering too long on one section. He had finished part of the decorations but there was still plenty to be done. He didn't want to upset the president.

He tacked one side of a banner to a stand, trying to keep his eyes open. For the past several nights he had been sneaking out to Tommy and Wilbur's new base, leaving him with little to no sleep.

He had found their base, named Pogtopia according to Tommy, but hadn't told y/n. He couldn't trust her anymore. He knew that she wasn't in control anymore, so she would've gone straight to Schlatt with the news.

Chills still snaked down his spine whenever he thought about how close he was to being caught the other night in the woods. He hadn't expected to see her and Dream there. It still shocked him that she had not questioned him more, but she seemed distracted after her interaction with the masked man.

When he was trying to tack the other side of the banner, it slipped his grasp. It fluttered from his hands, earning a snicker from y/n.

She truly had changed. Before, she would've been helping him set up the decorations. But then again, if she hadn't changed, they wouldn't have been here.

His cheeks heated with embarrassment as he quickly crawled down the ladder. When he picked up the banner, he raised his head.

He didn't want to feel weak anymore. He was always being pushed around by Schlatt and he couldn't take anymore. Taking a deep breath, he focused on putting up the decorations.

The blush crept away as he gained some confidence, thinking, yeah I can do this.

Each banner he put up successfully filled him with more satisfaction.

When the shadows began to grow with the setting sun, y/n walked off towards the White House. Not saying a word to him. He didn't mind that though, her voice sounded different now. Cold, dark. It broke his heart to lose one of his best friends to darkness and the other to exile.

He brushed off the creeping sense of loneliness as he placed the final streamer in place. Stepping back to view his work, he sighed. He was exhausted.

But he just looked around wearily, before walking straight into the woods.

-

By the time he saw the oak door nestled into the side of a hill, Tubbo's bones yearned for sleep.

It was quite a walk to Pogtopia, plus he wasn't running on much sleep already. But the walk was worth it to feel safe while sleeping.

The first night after sleeping on the cold ground of the van, alone, he went and looked for Tommy. He had barely slept that night, shadows and creeks keeping him awake. His brain wouldn't let him slip into the veil of sleep when there was the threat of Schlatt and y/n.

He hated that he had to consider her as a danger now.

When he walked into the small room that held a single bed and some chests, he could hear faint voices coming from below. He dragged his hand along the stone wall as he walked down the narrow spiral staircase, taking in the ravine that appeared in front of him.

Considering they were working with a literal hole in the ground, Wil and Tommy had fixed it up nicely. It glowed warmly with hanging lanterns, giving him more of a sense of home than Manburg.

Following the voices, he walked through the ravine towards a newly built room. Upon entering, Tubbo found himself looking at rows and rows full of growing potatoes. His eyes trailed to the source of the voices, seeing Tommy, Wilbur, and ... Tubbo's eyes widened.

"Techno?"

All three heads snapped to him, each of their hands going to their swords instinctively. While Wilbur and Tommy's hands lowered, the pink-haired man kept his hand in place. It was understandable, considering he hadn't seen him in years.

His hair had gotten considerably longer, now coiled into a long braid. His features had gotten sharper, his ears now pointer. His eyes had also changed to more of a red-brown color, instead of the deep brown he had grown up with.

Although Tubbo wasn't related to the three brothers, they had treated him as family growing up. It was strange to see them all together once again, besides Phil.

Tommy grinned, walking over to him. He didn't try to step around the sprouting plants when he made his way to Tubbo, earning a stare from Techno. But Tommy didn't pay him any attention, "Hey Big T! Look who I got to join our side, the 'Blade!"

Tubbo gave the tall man a small wave. He didn't return it, his pointed ears just twitching in response. His crown glinted in the low light, his blood-red cape thrown to the side while he worked in the dirt.

Tommy reached him, ruffling his hair briefly. It made Tubbo wonder how the boy still seemed so high spirited, even after getting exiled. Maybe the happiness was just saved for him.

But Tommy's crystal blue eyes softened slightly when he noticed how Tubbo sagged from exhaustion, "C'mon, let's go to bed." Tommy reached out, gently grabbing his wrist, but it wasn't light enough.

He flinched as Tommy accidentally gripped the deep bruise Schlatt had caused. He tried to hide his grimace, but the other noticed. He quickly pulled Tubbo's green sleeve up, eyes widening.

It was an ugly blue, almost black. Schlatt had hit him hard with an empty bottle, harder than usual. It made his skin look so much paler. The two others must've noticed, quickly making their way over.

He tried to tug his arm away but Tommy held it tightly. He didn't want to worry anyone, they had so much else to worry about. He didn't need to add to it.

"Did he do this?" Tommy's voice was angry, examining the bruise. Tubbo nodded shakily, "That piece of SHIT! He deserves to bloody die!" His blue eyes softened once more after his outburst when they landed on Tubbo's.

Wilbur looked on, worry filling his face. Techno's deep voice rumbled out as he stared at his arm, "Do you mean Schlatt?" If anyone had been eavesdropping, they would've thought the man was bored from his monotone voice, but it was just the way he spoke.

Tubbo gave another shaky nod, a blush creeping up his face. He could feel tears beginning to form from the pain in his arm and exhaustion. He was so tired, mentally, and physically.

When Tubbo glanced at Techno, surprisingly, his eyes were soft. The crowned man never showed this much emotion, only to the ones he truly loved. Techno grabbed the boy's wrist gently, inspecting the damage.

Tommy watched his older brother's every move, ready to snatch Tubbo away from him. It made Tubbo smile slightly. He was always so protective and clingy to Tubbo, even when he called the dark-haired boy clingy.

"Tommy, get some ice for him. You two go rest and make sure you keep the ice on there until you are ready to go to sleep. With the ice, it should heal quickly." Techno released his arm, the two teens turning away to head out the door, but the man spoke once again, "If he does that again, let me know." After he said that, he turned back to his farming without waiting for a response.

The two boys left, heading towards the other end of the ravine. Tommy searched through a small freezer, muttering to himself about how he was going to beat up Schlatt. He pulled out a bag of crushed ice, wrapping it in navy cloth.

That's when Tubbo noticed his change of clothes. Tommy had discarded his L'manburg uniform, replacing it with a simple red and white shirt. The cloth must've come from the uniform's coat.

Tommy held out the ice for him to take but Tubbo didn't take it. Tears began to prick his eyes once more.

Before Tommy could ask what was wrong, the smaller boy wrapped his arms around his friend. He let a few tears slip-free, clinging to the other. After a moment, Tommy returned the hug, savoring the moment he had with his best friend. He was as tired as Tubbo, long nights of collecting supplies and the cold ravine keeping him from sleep were getting to him. But he didn't tell his friend that.

At least he wasn't being attacked on a daily. After all, he was able to be with his brothers, leaving Tubbo to be alone.

"Tommy, I'm so tired." Tubbo's voice was wobbly. He could feel his eyes beginning to droop but he forced himself to stay awake. He didn't want to let this hug go yet.

"I know. I'm sorry, we'll get you out soon buddy." Tommy gripped his friend, feeling him get heavier. Then something struck him, "Tubbo, why didn't y/n stand up for you when Schlatt did this?"

Tubbo became stiffer suddenly, realizing he hadn't told him about her yet. He mentally smacked himself, how could he forget?

Tubbo leaned away from Tommy, not looking him in the eye, "Because she can't."

"Why not?"

"She gets hit too. And well... u-um," He paused, more tears flowing down his cheeks. Tommy didn't push, letting him catch his breath, "S-Schlatt made some sort of d-darkness overtake her."

Tommy's face fell, his mouth agape. When he didn't say anything, Tubbo filled him on the events of the election and how she had been acting. He could see the same feeling Tubbo felt reflected in his best friend's eyes. It hurt him too.

His friend just shook his head, his eyes easing when he looked back at him. His whole face softened, "We can talk about this tomorrow. We need to get some sleep, especially you big man."

Tubbo chuckled softly at the nickname as he followed Tommy into a small area. It was just a spot off to the side of the ravine, but it was cozy. There were two beds, a lone lantern sitting between the two.

Tubbo nestled into one of the beds, grateful for it. He couldn't stand sleeping alone in a cold, dark van. The van was filled with sad memories anyway, making sleep even harder.

But here he could sleep peacefully. Next to his best friend, knowing they were both safe.

For now.

Before sleep could snatch him away, Tubbo took part of his sleeve, ripping it. Tommy gasped, "What the hell are you doing?" His words weren't harsh, just surprised.

When he was satisfied with the size and shape, Tubbo beckoned over his friend. He sat on the edge of the bed, staring at Tubbo in confusion.

The boy just simply took Tommy's wrist in hand, wrapping the cloth around it. He tied it into a knot, a small makeshift bandana. It was the best he could do without ripping more from his shirt, "To remind you of me."

He swore he saw tears fill Tommy's eyes for the briefest second, but they were gone when the boy smiled at him, "Thanks. Tubbo I promise we'll keep you safe as best as we can."

Tommy looked away for a second at the bandana, glancing back at his best friend. But when he looked back, Tubbo was fast asleep. His breaths were even and deep.

He sighed, standing from the bed. He took his discarded uniform coat off the floor, draping it over Tubbo. He needed more sleep than him.

He blew out the lantern candle, bathing the room in almost complete darkness. Light still glowed softly around the corner from the ravine, but he took comfort in it. He knew neither of them could sleep in the pitch black.

He laid down, taking one last look at his best friend before letting sleep tug him away.

~~~~

I just wanted to clarify I am in no way shipping Tommy and Tubbo. I tried to make it very clear that they are just very close best friends. Please don't ship them, they have said they are uncomfortable with it and they are also minors.