We're All Monsters, Now

Part Fourteen

Tubbo felt empty, numb, without his husband around. He hadn't said much at Ranboo's so-called funeral, too in pain to even begin to speak out his grief. When they'd left at dawn he'd shouldered his heavy pack, took Michael up into his arms, and just left. He felt bad, in a way, leaving Ranboo there to rot in the dirt, but there wasn't anything else he could do. Even thinking of him was painful, every time he tried to recall some happy memory it was flooded by the sight of his husband's cold, bleeding, mauled body, burned by the rain.

He hadn't stopped shaking, his body filled to its breaking point with invisible tremors. He'd barely even stopped crying, he was still sobbing, but his eyes were no longer making tears. He was thankful for his family, as he walked they'd each taken turns and let him lean on them, muttering soft apologies and consolations despite their own dark eyes and trembling hands. Tommy stuck the longest, telling him stories and even chiming into Wilbur's gentle music with a song, singing off key to make Tubbo smile— even if it was only for a moment.

After many hours of walking, Tubbo's legs had just... stopped working and he collapsed to his knees. Phil was immediately at his side, offering him his canteen of water and taking Tubbo's scarred hand in his, thumb rubbing over the skin between his thumb and his index; a method of relieving headaches quickly. "Are you alright?" he questioned over and over again and after a couple minutes Tubbo was finally able to answer with an unsure "yes."

They all just sat down in the road right there, even Technoblade. It was muddy, but honestly, none of them bothered to care. Tubbo's hand drifted mindlessly to the ring at his neck, he flinched slightly away from the cool metal before quickly taking hold of it again. Phil gazed at him with worried eyes. Tubbo felt the ring shift in his hands, the chain of the necklace warming in his palm, and began to scowl. He broke the necklace from his neck with a snap and let the chain fall. He opened up his hand, studying the simple golden jewellery. Then, without a second thought he stood, walking off the road into the tall grass, and threw. He didn't even linger around to hear or see where the ring landed, he was marching back to the road and heaving on his backpack before anyone could react.

"Let's go kill that son-of-a-bitch that took my husband from me."

They followed him without a single word, the grass turning to snow and tundra as the days— weeks— wore on until finally the audible crashing of waves against rock was just a few days away. Any towns they passed they got supplies at; and every person seemed to glance at them warily, for they'd become more beast and creature than man, pulled forward by a relentless tide that had become their mission to destroy. Tubbo was ready.

^^^

The sea was loud and chaotic in Tubbo's ears, a ceaseless crashing of wave after wave beating against the black rock cliffs. It was freezing, the cold seeping in through Tubbo's heavy coats and gloves and all of his clothing. This place had gotten its first snowfall a couple weeks ago, the ground now permanently covered with a thick blanket of snow at least half a metre deep. Maybe XD planned to freeze them to death.

They'd made camp at some abandoned cabins, they'd been left behind when the weather got cold. Thankfully, there was plenty of firewood and they'd had enough to last them a while. But once the snow had stopped and the sky had cleared— partially due to Wilbur's hours of intense concentration— they'd set off again. Part of the reason it'd taken so long was because of how long Wilbur had needed to take to get the weather clear for a prolonged period of time, and Tommy calling him "weather boy" while he tried to work hadn't helped.

They'd all slowly processed Ranboo's death, working through their grief in different ways. Tubbo had discovered that one of Michael's had become playing swords with Techno, and Wilbur had relentlessly taunted the Blade over it. "Can't believe you've been reduced to fighting children, Technoblade," he'd say with a coy smile.