"Good morning, messieurs!" Clay awoke to Vincent's unnaturally cheery voice. "I take it the two of you slept well?"

Clay looked down at the teen in his arms, who was currently trying to bury his face in Clays chest in order to block the light.
He tried getting up, but found the teens grip incredibly strong, like Clay would disappear if he let go.

"Tubbo, c'mon, we need to get up." Clay said softly, shaking the teen a bit.

"Five more minutes..." Tubbo mumbled, holding Clay tighter.

The older male gave Vincent a 'help' look, to which Vincent just laughed.

"I'll let him sleep a bit more while I get food prepared. But we can't stay long, if you're planning to attack tonight." Vincent said, smiling at the teen. "You know, if I didn't know any better, I would've guessed the two of you were related. You act like a big brother to him."

Clay nodded, smiling down at the teen. He heard the door softly shut, signaling that Vincent left the room. He sighed, playing with the younger males hair.

"No one will hurt you. Even if I die, promise me that you'll stay safe. Run away, live with Mega or Vincent. Just.....I don't want you to get hurt."

Breakfast was quiet. It wasn't anything spectacular, just some berries in a bowl of cooked oats, but it was enough to provide them with energy for the time being.

"Alright, so I'm going to teleport the three of us to Mega's, yes?" Clay nodded. "Make sure you have everything, because I won't be able to make another trip back anytime soon."

Clay looked in his bag. Food, water, weapons. Yep, everything he needed.

"Dream, where's your mask?" He heard Tubbo ask.

"Shit, I must've left it in the bedroom." Clay cursed, turning to the bedroom to retrieve his valuable mask.

"L-let me get it! I-I need to go get something from the bedroom anyway." Tubbo said, stopping the older male in his tracks.

Before Clay had a chance to argue, he found himself back in the forest, in front of Mega's cabin, with Mega watching a bee work intently on a flower.

Tubbo sighed as he watched Clay disappear within the blink of an eye. He turned to the bedroom, walking inside.

First he grabbed his bow and arrows. Weapons were more important.

Then he found Clays mask, which sat on one of the nightstands. The teen took a moment to admire it.

It was clearly old, or at the very least, well used. It wasn't pristine white, but more of a cream color thanks to the amount of sun and dirt the mask was exposed to daily. It has cracks and chips here and there, but still covered the face entirely.

The most prominent feature was its smiley face. It was simple, nothing to write home about.

Except for the fact that it looked almost...unsettling. The mask radiated a sort of energy that Tubbo was not a fan of.

He hesitantly put it in his bag anyway, and ran up to Vincent, who swiftly teleported the two away.

Tubbo gasped at the beauty of the cabin, and the forest in general. He'd never been this deep in the forest before. His parents and teacher told him that the forest was dangerous, especially in the heart.

He watched as Clay and another man talked. Well, Clay talked, the man just did weird symbols with his hands that he didn't recognize.

He gawked at all the flora around. Most flowers he recognized, his mother was a florist after all, but others were unfamiliar to him.

He saw daises, freesias, white heathers, ivy's, white poppies, and white and yellow tulips.

And those were just some he knew.

He walked up to Clay, the man and Vincent (who had joined the two at some point).

"But what if-"

"If you want George back, that's the best option."

"But....." Clay looked over at Tubbo, who looked very confused. "...fine. I'll go back to the kingdom and give Nick and Darryl the heads up. We're attacking at five, right?"

The two men nodded.

"Alright.....I'll see you guys tonight."

"So were going into a full blown fight?" Nick asked, unsure.

It was currently noon.

Five hours remain.

"That's What Mega and Vincent concluded to."

"Thats insane." Darryl said. "He's gonna kill you."

"Maybe, but not without a fight." Clay said. "I'm not a toothpick, you know. I can take him, at least for a while."

"But still..."

Clay waved them off. Nick sighed, knowing that there was no way to convince his friend otherwise. "So how's this going to work, then?"

"If all goes according to plan, then Mega and Vincent distract the guards, I go break out George, and if it comes to it then I'll also have a dead king." Clay said. "Worst case scenario....."

All was silent for a moment before Clay turned to Darryl. "You're gonna stay in the bakery, right?" Darryl nodded. "When Mega and Vincent arrive, they'll most likely be accompanied by a teenager. Promise me you'll look after him and make sure he doesn't get hurt?"

Darryl nodded. "I swear on my life that I won't let anyone hurt him."

Clay nodded. "Alright then."

"Tonight we strike."

~<•>~

"You are my sunshine,"

The woman sang as she watched her son play with the flowers.

"My only sunshine."

'My little yellow tulip', she always called him.

"You make me happy,"

She watched him play with the butterflies and bees, who have grown accustomed to the tots nature.

"When skies are grey."

She hoped that her little yellow tulip will put himself into the lives of others one day, and become their sunshine as well.

"You'll never know dear,"

From beyond the grave, she watched her, now teenage, son follow a boy like a lost puppy.

"How much I love you."

She watched her son and this mysterious masked man bond almost instantly. She felt the almost paternal love he had for the teen, and knew he would die for the teen.

"So please don't take my sunshine away."

Quite literally.

~~~~~

1024 words

Next chapter will be the last

So prepare for angst

Yay

Also, I will never listen to "You are my sunshine" without associating it with Tubbo ever again

And if it isn't clear, I'm soft for Dream being a straight up dad to our chaotic wholesome boyo 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺