Once again, as I walked towards our old house, my magic tugged at me.

It wasn't a harsh or angry tug, but it still made me feel uneasy. I don't know why it kept doing that, there wasn't any danger awaiting me at the house.

So as I stepped into the house, I ignored the magic. It complied by calming down but I still felt its presence in the back of my mind.

When I entered the house, all was silent but I knew for a fact that the four boys were somewhere in here. I unclipped the sword at my side to lean it against the wall. Without it, I felt lighter.

"Dream? George?" I waited for a response. When there was none I called out again, "Sapnap? Karl?"

My heightened senses had slowly returned to me throughout the day, allowing me to hear the small movement from across the room.

Moving towards it, I kept my magic pulled at my fingers. I doubted it was a threat but it was still better to be prepared.

The movement had come from behind the couch towards the corner, the small shuffle of a person. I leaned around the corner, releasing my magic when I saw the colorful hoodie.

Karl was curled up into a ball in the corner while he hugged a pillow. He had squished himself as far into the shadows as he could go, to hide from something. There was a second pillow pulled tightly against his frame.

His fluffy head snapped to me, amusement dancing in his eyes. He ushered me down to the ground, "Get over here!" Following his hushed whispers, I crawled over to the boy.

"Karl, what is going on?"

He glanced around before responding, "I'm being hunted."

My muscles tensed with his words, "What? Who's hunting you?"

He opened his mouth to say something but instead pulled me into the shadowy corner with him. Shoving the other pillow into my arms, he whispered, "Is there any way you can make the shadows darker?"

The darkness around the two of us deepened as I lowered the flames on the torches that were in the room. The growing night helped hide as well, casting the room in a blue.

I opened my mouth to ask my friend what was going on when he put a finger to his lips. A moment later, I heard faint footsteps coming down the stairs.

What the hell was going on?

Karl pressed himself tighter into me, trying to slip into the dark. The bright colors of his sweatshirt weren't helping his attempts to hide, instead helping the person who was hunting him.

The footsteps paused for a second somewhere near the bottom of the stairs. I couldn't even hear their breathing, they were standing so still. Whoever it was, they had the training to hide from magic.

Risking exposure, I leaned forwards slightly to see above the couch. Because I had lowered the flames almost to none, the house had grown murky with the blue colors of the night. But there was a person standing near the front door, frozen.

But I knew that form, even in the darkness.

Based on how their head tilted to the side slightly, I could tell they were listening. For something, or someone.

Leaning even closer, I could see the shape of a pillow in their hands. The person clutched it like a weapon.

Realization flooded through me. Oh.

A smile spread across my face and I looked back at Karl. He was mouthing something, probably trying to pull me back into the shadows but I just winked at him.

I felt Karl's fingertips brush my wrist as I darted out of the corner on silent feet. The shadows at the edge of the room moved like a curtain around me. I put all my focus into my magic, silencing every movement I took.

And because of who was stalking us, I had to quiet the magic that was constantly around me.

I had two options. I could either run and try to find the others, wherever they were hidden in the house. Or I could try to take down the person.

Nearing the end of the wall, I peeked around the corner.

Dream stood completely still, relying on his hearing to find us. The stillness of his form had been honed from years of training, plus, he was probably trying to feel for my magic through our strange bond.

But, because I had ushered the cloak of magic away from me, our bond was silent.

I was planning on going with the first of my two options, but it all went out the window when there was a thump from the corner.

Karl darted from our spot, rushing over to me. He clutched the pillow to his chest like it was his lifeline as he pressed himself to the wall behind me.

My instincts began to quick in with the high, my mind thinking I was in a fight.

But in reality, I was in the middle of a pillow fight.

Dream's body relaxed slightly, showing us that he no longer strained to hear. He had heard Karl, and now he knew we were somewhere in the living room.

Thanks to not only my adrenaline but also my magic, I could see much better than them in the dark. I could see the slight shift in Dream's walk when he moved, a swagger that only came out when he was confident.

As he stepped into the dark room, I sent the room into almost complete darkness. The low flames of the torches disappeared with my magic. But this only made Dream smile.

His voice sent a chill down my spine, "Oh y/n ... I know you're in here." He paused his footsteps again, listening, "And Karl is in here with you."

Karl went even stiller at my side, looking over at me. I had no idea how Dream knew Karl was in here with me, for all he knew, it was me who had made that noise. Yet, somehow he knew.

"You wanna know how I know you're here?" He asked into the darkness, "The shadows increased along the walls when I stepped into here. Meaning you used your magic."

I silently cursed myself. Why did he have to be so observant?

"And that was smart of you to hide your magic. If you hadn't, I would've found you within seconds."

The man spun around slowly, his green eyes scanning the walls. Karl's hand grasped my free one while his other gripped the pillow. Both of our bodies tensed as Dream's eyes came closer to where we stood.

I held my breath and pressed myself tighter against the wall. He shouldn't be able to see us. It was too dark for human eyes to make out forms in the shadows.

But he managed to do it, Dream's eyes snapping to my own. A sly smile slowly spread across his face as he whispered, "Gotcha."

All I could hear was the beating of my heart and Karl's scared laughter as I pulled the two of us around the corner and up the stairs. Adrenaline pushed my legs faster, making Karl run faster as well.

"Y/n! Karl!" Dream was right on our trails, his voice coming only a few feet behind us. There was a slight wheeze that followed his words.

As we were running up the stairs, I heard two people quietly laughing in a room to our side. Yanking Karl into that direction, I led us into Sapnap's room. It was pitch black but I knew they were in here.

Dream was inches from reaching us when I slammed the door in his face with a smirk. I quickly turned the lock on the doorknob as I felt it shake with Dream's hand on the other side.

The laughing had stopped when we entered so I whispered into the dark, "Guys, where are you?"

I heard some movement near the closet and soon after, two silhouettes appeared. It was too dark to see their faces but their frames were lined by the moonlight streaming in from a window. I could also make out the shapes of pillows in their arms.

Karl darted towards them, "You guys left me!"

I walked towards their forms, trying not to fall on my face in the dark, "Look, you guys can figure that out later. I say that we gang up on him and take him down as a group."

Their heads bobbed in agreement. I told them all where to stand and what we would do.

As they moved to their positions, I moved to my own which was closest to the door. I clutched the pillow to my chest and placed a hand on the doorknob.

It was silent outside the room. Dream was probably trying to figure out how to get into the room or was waiting for us to come out.

When everyone was ready, I quickly unlocked the door, whipped it open, and pushed myself into the wall. The door swung open with a high pitched screech, thudding as the knob hit the wall.

After a moment of nothing, Dream moved on silent feet into the room. His body was tense while he looked around for us. He spun in the direction where I was a moment too late.

"Now!" I screeched, raising my pillow above my head. I threw myself at the man, hearing the others do the same.

Dream helplessly raised his pillow in defense, changing it from a weapon to a shield. But the pillow did little to nothing as our own swung at him from every direction.

Karl's giggles were the first, soon followed by my own and the rest of the boys. Despite being in our twenties, we were acting like children.

But at the moment I didn't care as I collapsed into a giggling pile with my best friends.

George got up, flicking on the switch for the overhead redstone light. Dream sat up, trying to breathe in between his wheezes.

This was the Dream I knew. The one who never failed to make me smile.

I just hoped he wouldn't go away again.

He raised his gloved hands in the air in defeat, "Fine, fine! You guys win!" He pointed an accusing finger at me, "But to be fair, when we first started, it was a 3v1. Not a 4v1."

I laughed, slapping away his pointing finger, "Deal with it, green boy. You're just mad you got ganged up on."

He just rolled his eyes with a teasing smile, "Whatever. If Punz were here, we totally would've destroyed you."

He had a point. Punz always tended to take Dream's side, in war as well as smaller things like this. They were a powerful duo. I wondered what caused Punz to have such a strong alliance with the man.

I quickly clamped down on the thoughts of war. I wanted to enjoy this breath in between chaos.

Especially since I didn't know when I would feel this happy again.

-

The following days had been filled with as much laughter and happiness as the other night.

For a moment, it felt like how it had been before the wars.

But that quickly changed when George took Dream and I on a walk.

I had no idea where he was leading us, but I wasn't paying attention anyway. The seasons were once again changing, spring being trailed by summer. Soon, the days would grow longer, stretched with high temperatures and thunderstorms.

It wasn't an extremely hot day, but it was enough for me to push up my navy sleeves. The sky was cloudless, painting the image of what I assumed to be a perfect day.

George was talking to Dream about something having to do with his Kingly duties. Dream listened contently, holding my hand as we walked. Instead of joining the conversation, I stared at the blue sky.

Because I was staring into space, I didn't notice where we were. But when Dream's hand tugged me to a halt, I snapped out of my thoughts.

We were back in front of the burnt mushroom house. The black marks and ashes still lingered but there was no real evidence of who had done it.

Or at least I didn't see any.

I tried to cloak my anxiety that rose up in my throat like bile. If anxiety rippled off of me, Dream would surely be able to sense it. And that would lead to questions that I did not want to answer.

George ventured closer to the house, staring at the black marks, "What happened to my house?"

Oh, why did it have to be George's house?

Internally, I was facepalming. Of course, Tommy had to choose the one house that belonged to one of the most powerful people's best friends.

Trying to keep it together, I made my voice as innocent as possible, "George, when did you even make this house?"

"A few days ago. I think it was when you all were fighting."

Dream was completely still as if he were calculating something. His hand was still wrapped around my own but his grip was tighter than before.

He seemed to come to a conclusion, "I'll take care of it, George." Anger was hinted in his tone, but I could feel it begin to pour out of him.

Our friend turned to him, "What are you going to do? We don't even know who did this."

"Oh, I have a pretty good idea who did this."

My nerves spiked with his words. I fought to keep a shake out of my hands, trying to remain calm.

Surprisingly, my voice was steady, "Who do you think it was?"

His voice had turned colder, like how it sounded a few days ago in the castle, "Well, who is the one that causes problems on my land?" He waved his hand aggressively towards the house, "Who would burn the King's house for fun?"

I didn't understand why he was getting angry at me. He clearly didn't think it was me, but still, he was yelling at me. I tried tugging my hand free, however, his grip only tightened.

"He just won his nation back, and he's already causing problems. I shouldn't even be surprised."

His hand was crushing mine slightly, "Dream, let go of my hand."

Something paused in him and his mask tilted towards our clasped hands. He quickly released my own, letting me tug it towards my chest.

My knuckles were red from his clutch but there shouldn't be any bruises. Though, that's not what hurt.

Dream had never hurt me. Even in training, he would stop before his sword connected with my body. He even went out of his way most of the time to make sure I didn't get hurt. So it was slightly jarring when he did this.

"Oh, I'm sorry," He reached towards me, but stopped when he noticed the redness, "I didn't mean to."

There it was again. The quick switch in emotions. He had gone from yelling at me to trying to apologize.

My magic spiked slightly, angry that Dream had hurt me and weary of his change in demeanors. Instead of ignoring it like last time, I listened to it, stepping away from Dream.

George, who had watched the whole interaction with concern, stepped forwards, "Dream, what are you going to do?"

The anger once again took hold of the man. He looked at me for a second longer before walking off towards L'manberg without another word.

I gave a concerned look to George before running after the other.

-

By the time I had caught up with Dream, he was a few feet from the crater of the nation.

But now, the crater was filled with water. It was the same crystal blue water from the nearby ocean. Some pieces of coral had been moved in the crater, accompanied by variants of fish.

Not only had they fixed the pit, but construction was also beginning for houses. Spruce logs were pillared out of the water with the first platforms of buildings.

No one seemed to be around, but that didn't stop Dream. He stalked over to an ender chest, quickly sorting through it.

As he began to rise holding a big bag in his hands, I stopped next to him, "Dream, what are you doing?"

"Taking care of the problem."

"How do you even know it was one of the L'manberg citizens?"

He whirled on me, coming inches from my face. There was raw fury for a moment, but he stopped himself. The fury was wrangled into something calmer when he realized who he was talking to.

"Look, just trust me. I know it was Tommy. All the signs point to him."

I crossed my arms, not backing down. I reassured myself, I wasn't scared of Dream and there was no reason to be. He loved me, he wouldn't hurt me.

Or at least I hoped.

"What signs? You're getting yourself worked up over something that we have no evidence for. It could've been anyone."

He ignored my question as he pulled his mask to the side slightly. Despite the previous anger, his face was soft, "Why can't you just trust me? Why are you taking Tommy's side?"

My magic coiled inside of me, seeing through his emotional mask. Was he trying to manipulate me? Or was he genuinely hurt by what I was doing?

I hesitantly placed a hand on his arm, "I do trust you, Dream. And I'm not taking his side, I'm trying not to jump to conclusions and throw someone under the bus."

Once again, his emotions changed. He smiled slyly at me, "Don't worry, I'm not jumping to conclusions." He opened the bag for me to see inside, "I'm simply taking care of the problem."

I gave him a suspicious look but leaned forwards to see inside the bag. Stacks upon stacks of obsidian were piled into the bag, making it look like it went on forever.

He closed the bag, turning his back towards me while he faced the nation. His mask was back in place when he looked over his shoulder, "If Tommy shows up, let me know."

-

I felt completely helpless as Dream built tall walls of obsidian around L'manberg. I knew if I tried to intervene, he would just snap at me and continue building.

There was something changing in him. I could feel it with my magic, and because of his tone towards me. The man who had been present for the past few days was slipping away.

I don't know where it came from or why, but George's house being burnt seemed to be the last straw.

Instead of just standing there watching him, I leaned against the destroyed van. The drug van had somehow survived the explosions, as well as one remaining tree. They served as the last true remnants of the nation.

It was a strange thought knowing that the nation was gone. We had fought for so long to see it torn down, and now that it was, I felt conflicted.

Yes, I didn't want there to be government. All our problems would go away if they just listened to Techno and I.

But at the same time, I saw how Tubbo, and especially Tommy, saw this place as home.

My thoughts drifted away as I heard a group of quick footsteps coming down the oak path. The small cabinet of L'manberg was shuffling towards the walls, with Tommy and Tubbo arguing at the front.

I quickly stood, catching up to them as they scurried through the opening in the wall, into their nation. Dream was somewhere on the side of the nation, continuing to build the ugly walls.

They reminded me of the original yellow and black walls that surrounded L'manberg.

But these walls served a whole different purpose. The originals were built to protect those who stayed inside while these were meant to keep others out.

Dream noticed the group enter their nation, coming towards where we stood.

Before he got to us, I joined the group, while Tommy was mid-sentence, "Let's just talk to Dream!"

Tubbo sighed, glancing around at the others. When his eyes landed on me, I could see the conflict clashing inside of him. He wasn't used to separating his friendships and presidential duties.

"Y/n, do you know what's going on?" Quackity asked me.

I opened my mouth to respond but I heard a plop behind us. Dream had jumped down from the walls, now sauntering towards the group. His lips were in a thin line.

I stepped away from the group but didn't go to join Dream.

"Hello, gentlemen." His voice was serious and cold when he spoke to them.

Tubbo stepped ahead of everyone as the president, "Hey, Dream. I'd like to start by pointing out the massive obsidian borders you put up around L'manberg. I wanted to know if there was a motive behind that?"