Doubled Powers (Hermitcraft & Dream SMP Crossover AU)

35. Torn Feathers

Grian had never felt so miserable his entire life. He was being led down a familiar, blank hallway by Sapnap, his hands and wings bounded by ropes. Tubbo was beside him, mouth muffled and held in place by Bad.

Grian was thrown into a cell, and a thump beside him indicated Tubbo with him. Grian twisted around to try to catch sight of his surroundings. Grian grunted when the ropes tying his hands together dug into his wrist as he tried to turn around.

"Here." Tubbo said, and Grian turned his whole body to see the boy holding a sharp rock in his hands. Grian scooched over to the boy and let him saw through the rope on his hands.

Tubbo cut through the binds on Grian's hands as well as his wings. "Thanks." Grian said as he stood up, stretching his wings.

"No problem." Tubbo said. "I'm sorry you got dragged in with this." He added, a sorry look in his eyes.

"Oh, Tubbo." Grian leaned forwards and wrapped his arms around the younger boy. "You don't have to be sorry for that. I'll always care for your safety." Grian paused, a brick of nostalgia hitting him as a memory surfaced.

I will stay with you forever, Tommy.

Grian's shoulders slumped with grief. Tommy. How does the young boy feel now? When his best friend and his mentor were gone? How could he deal with this situation?

"Grian?" Tubbo asked, moving towards the avian.

"It's fine." Grian replied. "I'm just... thinking about Tommy." He said softly.

"I think a lot about Tommy too." Tubbo replied gently. "And Phil. And False. And everyone, basically."

"Yeah." Grian said. He was starting to regret making those promises to Tommy. Who knew how many of those he could keep? Grian sighed deeply. "So how's life in prison?" He teased weakly.

"Well, apart from Dream not feeding me enough and the abuse, it's actually quite nice. Peace and quiet, you know." Tubbo replied, putting on a fake cheerfulness.

Grian's gaze travelled down Tubbo's body, and his heart clenched with pity as he saw how thin the boy was. "Oh, Tubbo!" Grian whispered, bringing the boy into his embrace again.

Tubbo hugged Grian back, pressing his head into the avian's shoulder. Grian wrapped his arms around the boy's frail frame and hugged him tight. Grian soon felt his clothes turning wet. "Oh, Tubbo." He whispered, feeling the boy shake against him.

"I'm-I'm sorry." Tubbo whispered. "I'm sorry you got dragged into this, and you're now stuck with me, and I-" He gulped, his body shaking.

"Tubbo, this isn't your fault!" Grian said. "I wanted to save you! I put myself in danger! I shouldn't even have volunteered in the first place, but my stubborn mind didn't let me. Maybe if I hadn't come, then you would have escaped real fine." He sighed, disappointed in himself.

"Big G..." Tubbo said, and Grian looked at the boy, surprised. Only Tommy had called him by that name. Tubbo smiled weakly as he recognized the surprise on his face. "I picked up that habit from Tommy." He said.

Grian smiled, and when he saw Tubbo's face fall again, this time probably because of the memories of Tommy, he changed the topic. "Let's not be pessimistic, ok?" He asked. "Let's think about something happy."

"Something happy..." Tubbo repeated, his face blank.

"Yeah." Grian said. He decided to go with the same approach that he did with Tommy. "Did I tell you that one time, I trapped Scar's base?" He asked.

Tubbo immediately perked up. "You did what?" He asked.

"I trapped Scar's base." Grian replied. "It was a brilliant plan. I found a zombie spawner near my base, and I built a water tunnel that pushed them to Scar's base. He was bombarded with zombies. It was hilarious." He giggled, and so did Tubbo.