The Gray | Bench trio AU

Chapter 6

Notes-
Well, it certainly picked up pace! Or was it just going slow before? Either way, the truth has been UNVEILED. For the most part. Well, some of it at least. And now, because I can, the plot is going to go by quite fast. Sorry about that but hey at least everything is action packed.

By the way there is some slight blood and gore this chapter so just letting ya'll know

Tubbo POV again

There was a rustle of feathers in the canopy above.

A bird, obviously. There had been lots of them- it was a forest after all. And the grey hadn't affected any wildlife, so they weren't in danger. What else had feathers, anyway?

It wouldn't take long to find the grey. It spread quickly. This was both comforting and not. I couldn't help thinking back to the first patch that we had found- what had started it? I thought back to the moment. There was confusion, panic, the rock my arm got caught under...
The rock! It hadn't been there when me and the others were talking, had it? And the patch of grey had the rock in the centre. But how did it get there when we were standing so close? I thought about it. There was a rustle of feathers, wasn't there, that I had dismissed simply because there was more going on?

A rustle of feathers in the canopy above.

"Guys!" I yelled. "Stop! Somethings above us!" The rest of the group paused and peered up through the branches. They barely had a moment to look before something swept out of the trees and knocked Puffy, Tommy and Hannah to the ground. The figure seemed to be yet another pixie, with huge crow wings stretching out from his back. His gaze was cold and determined, ready, analysing, then-

"Ranboo?" He asked. His wings dropped and his cool glare was replaced by a confused, vulnerable and almost frightened look. I looked over at Ranboo, to see him looking the same.
"Phil?" He replied, his voice barely audible.
"Phil!" Fundy spat, standing up and drawing his sword. "This is one of the pixies who helped Dream." Ranboo looked horrified. Fundy, Puffy, Tommy and Rose didn't seem to notice Ranboo's reaction.
"No- wait- Ranboo, I can explain-" Phil was cut off as Tommy swung his sword toward him. He quickly dodged out of the way, ducking to avoid blows from Fundy and Puffy. Hannah had readied an arrow in her bow and prepared to shoot, aiming straight for Phils heart-

Phil noticed. But he couldn't do anything. If only he hadn't let his guard down.

Ranboo, not thinking, ran in front of Phil to block the arrow. Hannah let it fly, a second later realising her mistake.

3

Someone yelled out. Maybe me.

2

It was hazy. I ran forward.

1

The arrow hit. Only, it hit me.

I cried out, doubling over. Forgetting everything but the pain, I pulled the arrow from my side and blood trickled out. I was losing blood fast. Everything seemed muffled and far away, and I vaguely heard yelling from somewhere. At least Ranboo's okay, I thought as I slipped from consciousness.

—time skep—

I woke to someone staring at me.
"Aaagh!" I yelled, jumping back, before flinching at a sharp pain in my side. I put my hand over it to find a bandage.
"Tubbo? Sorry Big T, are you okay?" Someone asked. I rubbed my eyes to clear the blur to see  Tommy worriedly looking at me. I nodded, wincing, and looked around to see that Tommy and I were sitting in a small cave with soft moss coating the floor. Tommy smiled, relieved. "Do you think you can move?" He asked. I sat up, then stood up, crouching to avoid the ceiling before collapsing down again.
"Yeah," I replied, "but it's difficult."
"Okay," he said, tossing me a shirt. "Put this on." I nodded, slipping on the beige top and smiled weakly at Tommy. He smiled back and waved before exiting the cave. I tried to call out to him, to ask him to stay, but something pulled me away from consciousness.

When I opened my eyes once more, I was in the same cave, but alone. It smelt faintly like dead flowers and stagnant water. I scrunched up my nose to avoid the stench and sat up slowly, the moss squelching under my hands. All my clothes were soggy, my skin was damp, and my side was stinging. I sighed, crawling to the exit, a little grumpy at what I had woken to. Outside, there was a dying campfire with a few remaining embers, surrounded by logs. It was a small clearing, barely fitting the logs and the fire, with puffy purple flowers dotted around the grass. But there was no one there.

I had a sudden surge of emotion which I couldn't put my finger on. I want to be with Ranboo, I realised. But I didn't even know where he was. I didn't know where anyone was. I stood up slowly, grimacing when my injury stung, and staggered over to the campfire. Someone was here recently. My goat ears pricked up in the night air, twitching until they caught the sound of twigs snapping under feet. I half ran, half stumbled toward the sound, trying to catch my breath as I went along. Eventually, I heard voices nearby, and burst through some bushes only to collapse on the ground. My skin grazed on the twigs and rocks and my side screamed out with pain.

"Tubbo!" Somebody called, helping me to my feet. "Are you okay?!"
"Yeah," I mumbled, while every cell in my body said no. I looked up into Puffy's and Hannah's worried gazes, blinking a couple of times.
"What are you doing here?" Puffy questioned anxiously.
"I woke up and no one was there, so I tried to find someone."
"I'm sorry! We should've been there. Oh, I'm sorry. Come on, let's go back now, though. It's safer," Hannah suggested, fretting a bit.
"Um, does anyone know where Ranboo is?" I asked quietly.
"Huh?"
"Never mind."

Puffy, Fundy and I sat around the re-lit campfire while Hannah tried to find some kindling to keep the blaze going. I shivered, wrapping my arms around myself to keep warm. On the way back to camp, we bumped into Fundy, who was just coming back from hunting, so the group of us headed back so that Puffy and Fundy could tell me about what happened after I lost consciousness.

Time skep

"So, Phil and Techno-"
"Who's Techno?" I asked, cutting Puffy off.
"Technoblade. A pig hybrid. He's the other pixie working with Dream. Anyway, apparently Phil didn't even want to help Dream that much, the only reason why he was is because his life was affected in the same incident as Dream, and Techno doesn't really care what side he's on. He just follows Phil. And, apparently, Phil and Ranboo used to be friends. So Ranboo kinda convinced Phil- and Techno in the process- to switch sides," Puffy explained.
"Wow," I said. "But what was the incident?" Puffy paused, a mixture of emotions crossing her face as she tried to find the right words.
"It was... Tommy, I think," she said softly, before quickly dismissing the topic. "But, that's not the point right now."

My brain whirred. Tommy? My funny, capable Tommy? Causing people pain and hardship? I pushed all the thoughts down, trying to focus on what was important.
"ANYWAY," Fundy said, over exaggerating the word. "Phil has a protection potion thingy. We can all touch the grey now."
"We can?" I asked, excited. Fundy nodded, and Puffy smiled at my eagerness and enthusiasm. I laughed, then stopped. We still needed to stop Dream.
"We're still saving the world, right?" I asked quietly. Puffy and Fundy both nodded, the latter a little reluctantly however. I grinned. We were still saving the world.