Chapter Text
They enter into a small but well-lit office space, with a large wooden desk as the centerpiece. It’s warm, almost uncomfortably so, between the turtleneck sweater and the collar. The metal of the collar seems to burn into his neck, a harsh reminder of why here’s here. The potted plants are nice, though, he supposes, arranged in between books in the shelves lining the room. A few books sit on the desk in a neat pile. Otherwise, the surface is empty. This guy seems like a total neat freak. The blinds are shut over the only window in the room, but the warm, bright lights give the illusion of sunlight. None of it is particularly strange, except for maybe the mask hanging on the wall behind Dream’s chair, like a focal point. It’s smooth and blank, except for a simply-carved smile. Yeah, this guy is definitely weird.
Dream waves them over to three chairs set up in front of the desk before taking his own seat. Tommy sits in the middle, flanked by Phil and Techno, folding his hands over his lap in an attempt to look professional.
It feels a little like he’s playing at being an adult, when he’s so much younger than everyone else in the room. And the most vulnerable . He can’t help the way his brain keeps circling back to it. Phil and Techno still have complete control over him. Even if they’re trying to help him get the collar off, it doesn’t change the power they hold.
“So, Theseus ,” Dream says, sitting down. “I’ve taken a look at the pictures Achilles sent me—”
“Achilles?” Tommy interrupts.
“Uh, me,” Techno says. “That’s definitely my real name.”
“Wait, but I thought—” Tommy stops at the expression on Techno’s face.
Dream smiles, but it seems strained. “They don’t want me to know their real names,” he explains with a dismissive hand-wave.
“Why though?” Tommy asks.
“I’m a fae,” Dream says. “Names have a lot of power, for us.”
Tommy nods, as if that makes any sense. “Cool.” That explains why Techno gave him a fake name, and why Phil advised Tommy to do the same. “But then why do you know Wilbur’s name?”
“I had to know it, for the reanimation to work,” Dream explains.
“Reanimation?” Tommy repeats. “The fuck is that?”
“Wil can tell you about it when we get home,” Phil quickly says. “It’s a long story. Dream, you said you saw the photos?”
Dream nods. “Yeah. I think I have an idea of how the enchantment works, but I need the full picture. Could I have a demonstration?”
Tommy can’t stop himself from curling inward slightly, body responding almost instinctively to the idea of the collar being used again. “Do we have to?” he asks, hating how close it sounds to a whine.
“If you want it gone, then yeah,” Dream says.
Tommy stares down at his lap. “Fine,” he manages. His hands start to clench automatically and he has to force them to relax.
A hand lands on Tommy’s shoulder. Tommy looks to his side, where Phil is watching him. “Are you sure you’re okay with that, mate?” he asks.
Tommy shrugs. “I guess,” he mutters. It’s not like he has another choice. Really, he should be used to this now. Being backed into corners. Stuck at the whims of others. It brings with it a familiar bitterness.
“Okay,” Phil says. He clears his throat, and then, keeping his hand on Tommy’s shoulder, says, “ Raise your hand .”
Tommy raises his right hand, grimacing as he does. He can feel Dream’s eyes on him, watching the motion and his reaction to it.
Dream hums. “What does it feel like?” he asks. “When you’re given a command?”
“ Bad ,” Tommy says. “It feels bad .”
“More than that,” Dream says. “Does it feel like you can resist it?”
Tommy frowns. “I—I dunno. No?”
“Are you sure?” Dream presses. “Phil, tell him to do something else.”
“Er—” Phil pauses for a second. Tommy nods. It’s fine. Whatever they have to do to get this stupid collar off. “ Put your hand down again. ”
This time, Tommy tries to think about not doing it, about refusing the order, but he just can’t. It’s like the order goes straight to his arm, bypassing any part of him that could make a decision about it.
“I can’t.” Tommy confirms.
“Hmm, okay,” Dream says. “Is there anything else the collar does?”
Tommy shrugs. “I can’t attack my, er, my— them, with it,” he says, gesturing to Techno and Phil. “Couldn’t attack the guy who was selling me either.”
“Was it a command given? Or has it always been like that?” Dream asks.
Tommy scrunches up his face, trying to think back. “I think it was always like that.”
Dream tilts his head. “Interesting.” He takes one of the books off the pile on his desk and opens it up, pulling a pen out of a desk drawer and starting to write. “So we have a compulsion enchantment, an unbreaking enchantment—”
“Unbreaking?” Tommy repeats.
“It’s why you won’t be able to get it off without removing the enchantments,” Dream explains. “I’m not entirely sure what this last enchantment is—loyalty, perhaps? I’ll have to check.” He pulls out his phone. “Can I take some pictures of it?”
“Uh, sure,” Tommy agrees.
Dream stands up and walks around his desk to Tommy, gesturing for him to stand up, and he does. He tries not to feel too exposed as he pulls down the neck of his sweater, putting the collar on full display. Dream takes several photos, going all the way around the collar, before stopping.
“That should be enough,” he says, and Tommy sits back down, pulling the turtleneck back up over the collar. Even though the metal is still there, he feels safer, less vulnerable, with it hidden.
“So?” Techno asks as Dream sits down. “Can you get it off or not?”
“Almost certainly,” Dream says, and the relief hits Tommy so hard that it nearly takes his breath away. He sighs out, starting to slump in his chair, until—”For a price, of course,” Dream finishes.
Tommy swallows. “What—What kind of price?” he dares to ask.
Dream hums at that, tilting his head slightly in consideration. He looks from Tommy, to Phil, to Techno, and then back to Tommy, green eyes sharp. “Two favors,” he says.
“Favors,” Tommy repeats, grimacing, the word sour in his mouth. That sounds ominous.
“Nothing crazy,” Dream assures him. “Just two.”
“It’s alright, Theseus,” Phil says. “Dream, what kind of favors are we talking about here? Two small ones, yeah?”
“Of course,” Dream agrees easily. “Two small favors. That’s all I’m asking for.”
Phil and Dream stare at each other for a long moment. Tommy’s eyes dart between them both, wondering who will be the one to break the silent stand-off.
It’s Phil. “Okay,” he says.
“Wait,” Tommy cuts in. He’s not so sure how he feels about this. Even if they’re small, two favors seems like a lot to owe a guy. Tommy doesn’t exactly have a lot of resources to use to carry out two favors, either. “Does it have to be two?”
“The kid’s right,” Techno says. “A favor for a favor seems a lot more fair, I think.”
“I don’t think any of you are in much of a position to bargain, actually,” Dream says, eyes almost amused. “Two small favors, take it or leave it.”
“We’ll take it,” Phil quickly says. “Right, Achilles?”
Techno grunts out an affirmative. Tommy can practically feel his displeasure radiating off him, and it’s putting him even more on edge.
“Do I get a say in this?” Tommy asks carefully, looking at Phil.
Phil looks at him back and smiles slightly. “Don’t worry, Theseus. Achilles, Wil, and I will take care of them, yeah?”
Tommy frowns. He can feel a weight growing in his stomach, getting heavier and heavier, bringing with it a wave of nausea. None of this sounds like something for him to not worry about. “But then I’ll owe you lot two favors.”
“It’s alright, Theseus, really,” Phil repeats.
“But—”
“We’ll talk about it later,” Techno interrupts. Tommy swallows and nods. “Dream, I wanna hear these favors before we agree.”
“Fair enough,” Dream says. “First, I need you to find a kid named Ranboo, and get some of his blood for me.”
“ Blood? ” Tommy repeats.
“Well, any bodily fluid would work, really,” he corrects. “But if you’re anything like your friends here, I thought blood might be the easiest.”
Tommy is surprised at the wave of defensiveness that rises in him. “What’s that supposed to mean?” he shoots out.
Techno snorts. “He just means we’re not always the best talkers.”
Tommy thinks back to last night, to how hard they tried to talk to that vampire before Tommy was the one to kill them. He thinks of how they convinced him to stay with them, that they could help. He thinks they might not be giving themselves enough credit.
“Okay, so get blood from some guy Ranboob,” Tommy bites out, hearing Phil snort next to him. “What’s the other one?”
“The other one is for Phil and Achilles,” Dream says, pulling out his phone.
“Wait, but this is for me ,” Tommy says, watching Dream type something out. “Why are you giving it to them?”
Techno’s phone buzzes in his pocket and he takes it out, reading Dream’s message. Whatever Dream sent him must have pissed him off, with the amount of anger that flashes across his face. That can’t be good, right?
“Really?” he says to Dream. “That’s not very cool of you, man.”
“What is it?” Tommy demands. “This is my problem, I’ll do it.”
“It’s my price,” Dream says, shrugging. He splays his hands. “Take it or leave it.”
Techno sighs. “Fine,” he agrees.
“I thought this was my deal?” Tommy protests, feeling himself start to panic. Dream is just building up Tommy’s debt to these guys higher and higher. He can’t owe them even more.
“ Later, ” Techno says firmly, and Tommy has no choice but to shut up, because he sounds so angry already , and he owes them, and he has to go back to their house , he can’t risk pissing them off more —
Dream offers out his right hand, and just like that, Techno accepts it and they shake.
A strange scent fills the room, like the smell preceding rain, and the lights all seem to brighten slightly before returning to normal as Dream and Techno release each other’s hands. Neither of them react to the shift in atmosphere, and Tommy can’t tell if it’s something he imagined or some type of magic. He wouldn’t really be surprised either way.
“Your turn, Theseus,” Dream says, holding out his hand once again. “Do we have a deal?”
“Just get this guy’s blood, right?” he checks. “That’s it?”
“That’s it,” Dream confirms. “And then I’ll get the collar off you.”
Tommy takes Dream’s hand.
This time, Tommy is sure he isn’t imagining it as the lights temporarily surge and the strange smell in the room grows stronger. And he definitely doesn’t imagine the feeling of something passing between their hands, like a static shock but painless. Dream shakes their hands once, twice, thrice, and then releases, and Tommy practically snatches his hand away.
“What the fuck was that? ” he demands.
“Us sealing the deal,” Dream explains. “It’s harmless, unless you break our terms.”
It’s hardly reassuring, but Techno and Phil don’t seem put off by it, so Tommy nods. “Fine.” None of this seems fine , really, but it’s not like he’s had much of a choice.
“As always, it’s been a pleasure doing business with you all,” Dream says, sweeping his hands out. “I’ll see you all again when you have what I’ve asked for.”
And with that, the three of them take their leave.