Someone requested more hermits, so have more hermits + angst <3
At this point, minor things like the spawn building have been erased from my memory. If I can recall the bibs and bobs that have remained correctly, it was an egg-shaped build but I am unsure, so it shall be referred to as a building :)

...probably. Anyway, Enjoy!

---

Xisuma hadn't known what had hit him when Dream had first escaped. Then again, Dream was known for being light and quick on his feet; of course he wouldn't have had seen it coming- or, in that case, going.

He had strewn out every book he had stored in the library shelves on a makeshift table of jungle wood planks and some sticks (it was something that he had hastily put together due to such short notice). Everything regarding Admin power and etiquette, he had found and placedd it on that mess of wood for... well, both for Tommy and Dream's sake. The faster he was done teaching Dream everything about being a proper administrator and overseeing him manage his server with less interventions, the sooner Tommy could return to living his life on Hermitcraft.

And the sooner he could put his mind at ease that there would be one less corrupt admin roaming the halls of the Hub. Something inside him purred at the reality that he would've helped in the efforts.

Sitting Dream down for a lecture was incredibly awkward but thankfully, Evil X buzzing about the room eased the atmosphere. Xisuma didn't want to hold a grudge against the much younger man as he spoke, and so, he kept himself as impartial as he could. There had been many opportunities that he could've made a jab at Dream's previous actions against his friends and the much harsher ones against Tommy. He had to constantly remind himself that Dream was still young constantly.

Dream was in his early twenties, not even half of Xisuma's age and holding near no experience. Power can corrupt, Xisuma knew that firsthand from his own experience... he had been on the receiving end of corruption once, years and years back. It had been so long ago that he couldn't remember the name of the server he'd been a part of, nor the individual who was causing unrighteous chaos. Thankfully, he had caught up on the abuse quickly and managed to whisk away some of the friends he'd made back then.

Back then, he hadn't known that he could've had reported them; to have them handled by someone stronger and have the lives of the people on the server spared. Back then, all he knew was how to help and save himself and a few others.

He felt... justified, in a way, that he had the honor of changing someone who had been molded in such a wicked way.

So, he had put his best teacher demeanor on, tried to muster his inner Cleo, and he taught; impartial and going by the word of the book.

He had no idea what Dream was thinking behind that mask of his and he didn't know where he was looking but Xisuma could feel the scrutiny; that he was being studied. That had been satisfying enough because despite the circumstances under which they met weren't fortunate, Dream was listening. If not listening, at least he was present in both body and spirit and that, Xisuma had deemed, was enough.

Dream hadn't asked any questions. Instead, he had been eerily silent, drumming his fingers on the surface of the jungle wood and just... studying him. Xisuma wondered for a moment how Cleo could put up with that sort of behavior from her own students for as many years as she had been going from school to school and mentally commending her for surviving the first day.

There Xisuma was, trying his best to be a teacher and simultaneously trying not to show that he was sweating bullets about it. The years he'd accumulated living, thankfully, made things a little easier- that and Evil X's presence in the room. Even though his evil clone was in his bee form, the fact that he was there and the idea that he could sound the alarm if something horrific happened put Xisuma's head at ease.

It was when he'd stood up to get something else from a shelf that tragedy struck. Well, it wasn't that much of a tragedy as it was Dream making a run for the exit- the exit that was an opening in the very top of the tower (where they were), hundreds of blocks in the sky. Dream had jumped out of there and disappeared beneath the line of sight of the room within a few seconds.

That was also when Xisuma learnt how fast of a runner Dream actually was, as he couldn't locate him in the vicinity moments later. Not Evil X had spotted him -Xisuma made him promise on his infamy that he wasn't lying and that was as close to having Evil X say the truth.

It was a miracle that he stopped at Stress', although it was worrying how he'd passed so many people's bases and no one had seen him. Dream could blend into his surroundings incredibly well and he hadn't walked through any main roads or clear paths to let his presence be acknowledged. The thought sent shivers up Xisuma's spine: that Dream could've somehow apprehended one of his hermits and done something terrible to them- not everyone on the server had experience in fighting.

If it had been Mumbo, who only wielded a sword (in the most awkward of grips, too) to kill a stray zombie once in a week, Xisuma didn't want to even think about what could've had happened. Stress, at least, had Iskall and False's sword training to back her up if she needed to defend herself -something that Tommy had yet to learn, apparently.

The zombie bite was taken care of once Xisuma had retrieved Dream and properly scolded him for running off like he had. It was inevitable that the younger admin would repeat such an action, at least until Xisuma earned his respect.

It would take time to calm a rowdy teenager, or to even have him not go jumping out windows every chance he got but Xisuma was a patient man. He could wait.

Φ

And wait he did. The third time, Xisuma found him near the shore of the ocean that touched the jungle. Dream had been making a boat, probably to sail off towards the shopping district or go sight-seeing on a server he was a 'guest' of. It was Iskall who had stumbled upon him on his way to the Hermit Challenges temple, carrying a stack of chopped bamboo under his arm.

The trip back to the towers had been as awkward as the other two times. Xisuma hadn't given Dream a pair of elytra and so, he'd carry or escort the man through air and soil. It was always a silent trip, which he very much disliked.

After the fourth time, when he'd somehow found an enderpearl and wasn't spotted for two days and Tommy was prowling with an axe and Tubbo with a crossbow, it was high time they had a talk about Dream's escapades.

"I know you feel a little cooped up in here", he started once they'd both sat down at the makeshift table.

Books were piled in the middle, ready to be grabbed and referenced and read through if either of them needed. They were mostly there for Dream, as Xisuma had had many years to study them and know each page word for word but the other had only sifted through the first one -probably just to humour him or something. Xisuma was still wondering how Cleo had dealt with such audacity.

Xisuma was a patient man, however, and he could wait.

Dream's mask shifted on his face just a tiny bit. He was paying attention then and his fingers stopped drumming on the table top. Evil X buzzed in the background, interested and curious about what the younger man had to say.

"It does get quite boring", he replied.

"Right", Xisuma sighed and put his hands on the table, interwining his fingers. "Howerver, I can't let you out of my sight for certain reasons-"

"What reasons?"

Xisuma took a deep breath. Dream knew the reasons, yet he was acting innocent. It made his skin prickle but he couldn't do much about it other than continue with the conversation he'd set up for the two of them.

"I don't know how far back you, Tommy and Tubbo go but I can tell that you are trying to scare them", he stressed, "I would appreciate it if you stopped that"

The other leant his weight forward, like he was trying to push Xisuma's limits both verbally and physically. Like he was trying to corner Xisuma in his own chair; or trying to test him on something that only Dream knew.

"No"

The bee shook his head. Dream had taken on the responsibilities of an admin, even though he was acting irresponsible as one. Regardless, he had forced himself to take on the mind of an adult way too soon into the business and he was asking to be heard as one. Now that Xisuma thought about it, it made sense why Dream wasn't behaving around him; he was babying him too much (and to be fair, he was doing so for the right reasons).

"How about we create a little pact?" -that certainly caught Dream's attention. It had the younger leaning back, straightening in his seat.

"What sort of pact?"

"You will not try to get to Tommy and Tubbo"

"And in exchange?"

"In exchange...", Xisuma paused for dramatic effect, "You will be allowed to leave my base. Of course, you'll be allowed only with my supervision. So, how does that sound?"

Dream took a moment to consider the deal he was about to respond to. He looked, if Xisuma was allowed to speculate, excited.

"That sounds fair", he said. Xisuma was satisfied with the positive answer.

"So, how about we set a schedule?"

Φ

Finding Callahan had been quite the task. Fundy had led the search right after he had put Wels in a secure place with Ranboo to guard him. The young enderborn had never seen the other admin of the server and therefore, there wasn't that much need for him to tag along.

Instead, Fundy asked Puffy to keep a look out and to shoot him a message if she found Callahan. The silent man had always liked to roam the server from the shadows and only ever showed himself if he was meeting with Dream, George or Sanap.

With that information, he tried to get ahold of the two. It wasn't hard to find George, seeing as he decided to move out and in with Sapnap and Karl at Kinoko Kingdom. Fundy had never gone to said kingdom before, not before nor after Foolish had finished building it.

Sapnap had pressed him on the matter. Why are you looking for Callahan?, was what he asked each time Fundy tried to weasel out of the question in order to get his information. In the end, the fireborn threatened him with, well, fire, so he had to tell him what had happened. Phil had told him that Sapnap didn't seem to be supporting Dream in whatever it was he's doing, so it had to be fine to tell him.

It took some time to say the whole story but when he was done, Sapnap looked...

He looked fucking mad. Fundy could almost see the smoke coming out of his ears whilst they made their way back to the Community House.

"He should be around here this time of day", Sapnap had told him through gritted teeth. Fundy didn't know to who the man's anger was directed at; probably Dream.

"I hope so. Phil and Technoblade have been trying to mine bedrock for hours at this point. They've managed to free her arm", Fundy commented offhandedly.

When he'd learnt what had happened to False after she shoved him out of that basement, he was guilt-ridden but also grateful that she took a place that wasa supposed to be for both of them. He hadn't seen her state of being up close, Phil and Technoblade disallowing him from going near the basement of the cabin in case there was some hidden trigger placed for him.

Phil had shook him from the shoulders when he'd cried. He shook Fundy and told him in a stern voice that there had been nothing he could've had done to have a different result.

"I prefer it be her to you taking her place", Phil had added to his own words when he thought that Fundy couldn't hear. It made him feel warmer that his grandad wanted no harm to come to him, even after what he'd done to Technoblade with the Butcher Army.

"Hey, Callahan!", Sapnap yelled, hands framing his mouth in an attempt to enhance the reach of his voice. Fundy joined in, looking for any sign of a silhouette with antlers in a deer onesie.

"Callahan, we kinda need you!"

They didn't notice the man standing behind them right away. Callahan was always too silent for his own good, lacking all and any sound from his footsteps to his sneezes. Fundy always found it very ominous when he thought about it. 

"There you are!", Sapnap seemed incredibly happy and relieved to see him.

Fundy explained the situation once again and Callahan nodded along. In the end, all three of them left for the snowy tundra.

Φ

"She's in here!", Phil called once he spotted them in the distance, pointing to Technoblade''s cabin. He was returning with a new pickaxe when he saw them and he was incredibly relieved when he saw Callahan alongside his grandson.

The addition of Sapnap was a surprise but not an unwelcome one. They'd need all the manpower they could get if Callahan couldn't reverse the bedrock and free False from it and Sapnap looked like he was on their side ever since Dream's trial. Out of the 'Dream Team', Sapnap always was the one for being righteous and the closest to Tommy after the meeting between Dream and Tubbo that led Tommy to being exiled.

That last thought always made Phil fume; to think that Dream was so manipulative that he almost drove two best friends apart. Almost, because Tubbo was on Hermitcraft with Tommy and they couldn't be safer there -even with Dream being on the server alongside them.

To think that he couldn't protect his own son on a server with barely any rules, yet he was safer somewhere where murder was mostly looked down upon. The irony of it.

"Down in the basement", he directed, to which Fundy huffed a chuckle.

"Not shady at all"

Phil rolled his eyes and grabbed the ginger by the scruff of his clothes and held him back.

"You'll wait outside", he told him, leveling him with a serious look. Fundy looked at him, stunned and eyes wide and Phil sighed. "I don't want you to see the... damage. It's bad"

"I already know it's bad, Phil!", Fundy protested. "I want to see her, she saved me!"

There was something like hurt in his tone- Phil didn't like it. So, he stepped aside before anything could escalate; before any bad memories could resurface and a fight broke out- he wasn't in the mood for yelling- as much as he didn't want his grandson to see even more blood and ugly wounds.

Fundy stormed past, following Callahan and Sapnap into the basement. Phil followed a second later.

In their efforts of excavating False, they had torn many of the floorboards and dug the surrounding area out. The bedrock cocoon was in full view from all sides and the only visible evidence of there being a person inside was the arm they'd exposed about a day or so ago, before they decided that they should've had looked for Callahan while they were digging.

Techno was still digging away at the inside of the cocoon, gingerly and painstainkingly chiseling and grating the walls with a netherite pickaxe.

"What the fuck", Sapnap breathed. Techno paused at the new voice, then looked up with a questioning eyebrow.

"This is a no-swear zone", he simply drawled and it made Phil chuckle at the reference to Hermitcraft's no-swear reputation. He thought he heard something like a cut-off laugh from inside the cocoon as well, prompting him to think that the damage wasn't as bad as they'd thought.

Sapnap blinked but didn't get to respond before Callahan was pushing him out of the way to see the bedrock in the basement for himself.

"Can you fix this?", Fundy asked, worried.

After a second of examination, Callahan nodded.

Φ

When Tommy saw the messages on his communicator, he blinked. He blinked multiple times, actually and tried many times to wipe the tears off his face. It was False and Wels entering the chat with their respective greetings, and Tommy couldn't have had been happier to finally see their names pop up in the lines of letters.

It had been days, maybe weeks -he'd lost count- since he'd seen them and he hadn't thought that he'd have the opportunity to see them again that soon, unharmed. If they could type on the communicator, they were healthy enough to think.

He didn't need to inform Tubbo of leaving for the shopping district, seeing as his friend had gone off to explore Scar's village and chat with the mayor himself. Tubbo had told him that he wanted to experience what the mayor was like, claiming that he couldn't believe that a server could have anything but democracy. They both knew it was a lie and that Tubbo was simply intrigued by the injury-prone man but neither of them pointed it out; it was an incredibly white lie anyway.

He left Shroud to his own stuff, trusting the spider to not run off through the open window and thrusted himself into the air with just three rockets. It was all he needed to clear the jungle area before stopping at Ren's newly transformed biome of lava and pitch-black sand. There, he popped down an enderchest and riffled through the void of its insides until he grabbed onto a red shulker box. He couldn't remember from whom he'd taken it from but no one complained about a shulker full of rockets gone missing so he'd kept it.

Grabbing half a stack more, putting the shulker back in its place and picking up the ender chest, he continued on his way to spawn.

He wasn't the last one who arrived to welcome the hermits. There were about a dozen of them, all crammed into the space of the building surrounding the incredibly small spawn island. None of the jungle dwellers had come yet, except for Iskall, who had been in the shopping district when the two missing hermits had arrived.

Tommy excused himself many times as he pushed his way to the very front, using his lean frame to squeaze through the gaps in the crowd. They let him pass through once they saw him, and Cleo helped carve a line to the two waiting hermits.

False was sitting in a wooden chair, wearing her signature leather jacket and striped shirt but they were bloodied and torn in places, like something had pierced through her body. There was cloth wrapped around parts of her legs, under her skirt and all around her right arm -it was white in color but it was stained red.

"False!", he screamed before he could think to keep his distance because she's probably tired; she probably didn't want to deal with a loud teenager in that state. Fuck it, Tommy didn't care; how could he keep his distance when all he'd done was worry?

"Tommy!", False shouted in surprise once Tommy had half-hurdled himself into her, stopping himself short of actually tackling her.

He wrapped his arms around her torso with as much care and caution as he could muster with all those wild emotions running 'round his head. There were arms that wrapped around him also, and there was laughter -cheerful laughter- sounding from somewhere behind him and above him and all he could do was let those emotions run free.

He cried and he was cradled by a bloodstained arm, an assuring hand on his shoulder. The tears burnt his cheeks and wet the fabric he'd pressed his face into. There was chatting around him, others crying, and soon he felt a heavy weight ontop of him.

Tommy caught the voice of Stress right above him and his fingers curled into pink wool; his safety blanket that was the woman who had taken him in, securing both him and False and crying with them.

"This is quite the reunion", he heard someone comment from the side, tone teasing and familiar in a nice way. Feathers craned around his body; Grian. Then there was Mumbo and Etho; everyone of the jungle dwellers but Xisuma was there to greet the two. Tommy thought he heard Tubbo shout his name from somewhere within the crowd but buried as he was under the bodies of people and fighting against his shaky gasps, he couldn't quite call back to him.

"Woah, woah, people, slow down!", he heard Wels protest. "You're crushing the child"

Promptly, most of the hermits that were piled on him moved away and a rotten hand grabbed his shirt and helped him stand. He leaned into Cleo, feeling his legs go weak after having had them bent for as long as he was bundled into False, his kknees hurting from where they'd hit the floor.

"There, there", Cleo patted his head, carding a finger through his curls. It was weird seeing such a soft side of the zombie woman, who was usually sarcastic and liked to tease -Tommy wondered if he'd missed some alien abduction while he was hunting the green escapee in the foliage of the jungle. "Let's not have your eyes explode from the tears"

Nevermind, there that teasing was, although light-hearted and so it made Tommy chuckle under his breath before hiccuping a sob. He didn't think he could've spoken if he tried.

"Alright, everyone!", Grian pulled away from the pile of hermits and clapped his hands to garner everyone's attention. "I'm sure we've all missed them but let's let them rest for now. False is pretty beat up"

The hermits agreed in unison, though they were hesitant ass they filed out of the room. Tommy held onto Cleo as they exited together and his eyes fell on Tubbo the moment he faced the sun.

His friend was talking with Scar, probably asking more questions or simply chatting. If Tubbo accidentally had accidentally jumped into the rabbithole of Scar's favorite subjects, it would be a while until he'd be available. So, Tommy, being a good friend, left Tubbo to Scar's rumbling.

It wasn't long until Hels arrived and merged with Wels in a disturbing fashion. After that small scene, the knight looked a hundred times better than he did previously (he wasn't incredibly beat up, just had a couple bruises here and there from healed wounds that were mirrored on Hels' body). Tommy had let go of Cleo so she could escort False to her base with Keralis and instead stumbled over to Stress and Iskall, who were getting ready to return to their bases.

"You're leaving?", he asked. Stress turned to look at him with a small smile. Iskall was discussing something with Mumbo, who apparently wasn't in a rush to leave. Tommy guessed that he had business in the shopping district.

"Yeah, we're heading back", she said, "I'll visit False or invite her for tea once she's feeling better"

"Can I come back with you?", he asked. He didn't really have to ask, seeing as Stress wouldn't tell him no if her life depended on it and on top of that, he still had his little room in her base. He'd be in and out of her way regardless and he missed her company; she obviously missed his by the way her face lit up at his question.

"You don't have to ask, Tommy!", she giggled. "Your room is waiting for you- Iskall, I'm heading back with Tommy!"

"That's fine! I'm sticking with Mumbo for a bit", Iskall said, waving as he and Mumbo moved to the direction of the shopping district. Mumbo had probably introduced some crazy redstone idea that Iskall just had to check out. Out of the corner of his eye, Tommy caught Tango and Impulse moving to tag along. Nevermind the 'probably'; that one was a definitely.

"I'll tag along for the trip!", Grian shouted, already bounding in the sand, ready to take off with Tommy and Stress.

Family trip it was- I mean, what.

Φ

The trip wasn't long, though it'd felt like time had passed way too quick for it to be that short. The flight was filled with idle chatter and Grian's majestic aerial maneuvers, which had both Tommy and Stress left in awe as they followed behind the winged man.

They landed at Stress' base and Grian stayed for a bit to pick up some glass for his mansion's new expansion, since Stres had forgotten to stock her shop. After he paid, he bid them farewell and took off without further delay.

Tommy settled into his old, homey room of cobblestone walls and random blue-painted spots. He fell into his bed with a thud and groaned into the mattress- it felt nice to be there again. Perhaps, he'd do it more often. Something about that bed made it feel like he belonged there more than the one in his base with Shroud.

Speaking of Shroud... He had to go feed him... in a bit. He'd enjoy the joys of Stress' base first.

He lied there for a solid minute before breathing in the flowery scent of the mattress sheets and standing up. He had to feed his little spider boy; he couldn't delay that if he didn't want his snack stash to go missing overnight.

"Stress, I'm going to go feed Shroud!", he called as he was leaving. Dandelion stopped him for a few pets on his way out the door and then Tommy sent her off into the front garden.

"Okay, stay safe!", he heard her voice from somewhere inside the skull.

With that, he set off on foot. His base wasn't that far away from hers anyway, so it'd be a quick walk. Maybe he'd stop by Iskall's tree on the way back and see if the man had returned from his and the other redstoners' redstone trip.

A few steps into the thick jungle, he saw something out of the corner of his eye; some movement that was too fast for it to be a random zombie. It must've had been a creeper, so Tommy quickly diverted from the path before the mob saw him and silently chased after him- he really didn't want to tend to burns -he hadn't needed to tend to many wounds ever since he'd settled in, just the random zombie or spider bite and stray arrows.

His attention was grabbed by a second pair of footsteps joining his. He had expected it to have been Grian trying to scare him by sneaking up on him, or maybe it had been Doc which would've explained the flash of movement he'd seen (but the mad scientist of a creeper hybrid lived on the other side of the fucking world- other than visiting Ren from time to time, Tommy didn't see him often in that part of the server; near Stress' especially).

Instead of every other hermit he could've had thought of, he faced a smiley mask; Dream.

Tommy stumbled backwards with a gasp- Xisuma had said that he had everything under control regarding his past abuser and war instigator; Tommy hadn't expected to see him at all after that. Xisuma, for as long as Tommy had known him, never went back on his word. What had happened?

"What the fuck are you doing here?!", he demanded, fumbling for any sort of weapon he had on him- his diamond axe would have to do. He caught a glimpse of a hilt protruding from his back but Tommy couldn't tell if it was a sword or an axe- scratch that, it fucking buffled him that Dream had been let near anything sharp, let alone be allowed to pick it up.

"Hello to you too, Tommy"

That could've only happened in the scenario that... No, no, Xisuma was the admin of the server; he could take care of himself but the evidence of something gone wrong were in physical form before him.

"What did you do to X?!", he fell into a stance, like he'd done so many times with False. Wait... Had he been the one to hurt her? Tubbo had been saved too soon for him to know what had happened to her but there was only one person who could've done such damage unprovoked. "If you hurt False, I swear to fucking Prime, you'll pay for it!"

"How about we relax for a second?", Dram sounded calm. Too calm; the sort of calmness that came before a storm. It was unnerving and the bad sort of familiar. "I haven't done anything to anyone"

His word was not to be trusted, Tommy knew, but if Dream didn't want to talk, there was no way to persuade him.

"What are you doing here, then? Where is Xisuma? He's supposed to keep tabs on you"

Dream laughed like that was the most hilarious thing he'd ever heard.

"No one can keep tabs on me", he said in a mirthful tone. "I'm simply taking out two birds with one stone"

Two birds with one stone? 

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"How come you're not swearing?", Dream asked, sounding curious as he leaned closer. "Or, not swearing like a sailor like you did on my server?"

Tommy took a step back.

"What, did X scold you for swearing?" -but Dream didn't swear much, just the random fuck or shit in the heat of the moment.

"I'm just... getting rid of your attachments"

Before Tommy could analyze his words, Dram had dived forth, unsheathing a sword from his back. He went for Tommy's legs and Tommy stumbled back and to the side, swinging his axe. Dream dodged and caught the staff of the axe the second time he swang. He tugged harshly and dragged Tommy towards him.

Tommy fell and Dream straddled his waist.

"Get off me, you stupid son of a bitch!", he shouted once his weapon was knocked out of his reach. He tried to push Dream off with his hands but his wrists were easily caught and a sword was at his throat in record time. He glared at the smiling mask.

"I will", Dream said, and for a moment, Tommy believed that he would, "Once you sound the alarm"

Before he could ask what that meant, the blade was moving away from his throat, going somewhere behind Dream.

There was a stinging pain in his calf that  left him breathless for a moment, eyes blowing wide, and then he screamed. The sword dug further and he screamed louder and then there was the drag of metal sliding out of the fresh wound.

Dream disappeared from his sight but the weight remained in the way his lungs flared for air. He screamed; he screamed for help.

=====
GUYS WE ARE ENTERING THE FINAL ARC FOR THIS FIC, HAVE I TOLD YOU THIS? I DON'T REMEMBER BUT AHHHHHHHHH, ALMOST DONE WITH THIS ONE! >:D