Chapter Text
The market was busy like it always was this time of day. The sun was high in the sky, shining brightly and unforgiving upon the backs of the kingdom’s residents. It was a perfect afternoon for the two thieves. Sapnap and Dream snuck through the crowds of people, giggling and laughing all the way through. They filled their old, brown, leather satchels with stolen trinkets from unsuspecting victims, golden and silver coins stuffed into their pockets.
The duo split off from each other to cover more ground, but they spared each other a glance; a silent promise to meet up at the center of town after rush hour. So, Dream drifted off to his more familiar side of the market, keeping an eye out for any unsuspecting shoppers. A green cloak enveloped his form, falling off his broad shoulders as he moved through the crowds with practiced ease. No one even spared him a glance--well, maybe except for some curious kids, but that was the least of his problems--as he swiped valuable objects from people’s pockets.
One man caught his eye from across the sea of people. He was short, and a vantablack cloak hid his skinny frame. To the average person, this man would have just looked like another average shopper, but Dream knew better. His clothes were in too good of a condition to be anything other than rich. He had unknowingly, but successfully piqued Dream’s interest.
As inconspicuous as possible, Dream trailed the noblemen, watching as they bounced through shop to shop within the market. Dream studied his surroundings, looking for the perfect time to strike, and found that there were at least two guards nearby wherever his noblemen went.
A challenge.
Dream loved challenges.
He bided his time, getting close enough to more thoroughly inspect his target. He noticed the soft-looking brunet hair that poked from underneath his hood and the royal blue vest that hugged his torso, along with the pristine white shirt that went underneath it. Another closer look and Dream realized that the trim of the blue vest was lined in gold. Upon one of the lapels of the suit, Dream saw exactly what he wanted to steal.
A beautiful, golden, brooch shaped into an eagle was pinned to his vest. It had emeralds implanted as eyes for the creature and a variety of other gems that lined the wings. It was beautifully crafted and very obviously kept in good shape. Dream set his sights on the brooch, making it his mission to steal it.
He waited.
And waited.
And waited.
And waited.
When the guards had finally turned their backs for a split second, he struck. He bumped shoulders with the noblemen, snatching the brooch off him while the other was distracted. “Ah, Sorry.” Dream gave a fake apology.
Dear gods, the mystery nobleman was the most beautiful man Dream has seen in his entire life. Dream couldn’t help but feel like he was looking at an opposite version of himself. The nobleman was short, while Dream was tall. He had short, brunet hair while Dream’s was blonde and had to pull into a bun at all times to keep from getting in the way. His eyes were dark brown, almost entirely black, while Dream’s were bright green. Gods, those eyes seemed to look straight past the mask he wore, and right into his soul. (No one would mind if he subconsciously fixed it so it was no longer crooked, right?)
He was just beautiful.
Of course, the comparisons also extended past physical traits as well. He was wealthy, while Dream was poor. He held himself with an air of royalty and power while Dream hunched in on himself to not be seen--courtesy of his job of course.
“No worries.”
He gave it two minutes tops before Dream became much more than just a worry to the nobleman. He slipped off into the sea of people once more, keeping his head low and inspecting his prize. It did seem eerily familiar to the blonde, but he couldn't place exactly where he knew it from. He just shrugged it off, shoving it into his pocket along with the rest of his stolen treasures.
He heard the telltale clanking of metal and guards yelling for him to stop.
So Dream did what he does best: he ran.
Dream took that as his queue to start booking it down the streets to make his getaway. He weaved his ways through the sea of people, down streets and back-alleys. He knew these streets better than any guard. One of the things he was most proud of, was his ability to improvise. That along with his parkour skills, Dream prided himself on being able to get out of any sticky situation.
Dream was able to evade the nobleman’s guards for longer than any average thief would. But he was no average thief. No, he was Dream! The one and only, a traveling pickpocket, always equipped with his famous smiley-face mask. He was known across kingdoms--continents even!--for never being caught by law enforcement. He could never be tied down to any specific kingdom. Instead, he opted to travel the world, stealing whatever he could as he went.
But every chase came to an end, and Dream was soon trapped in an alleyway on the east side of town, just outside the market and into the lesser-known slums. Dream was caught between an abundance of guards and an unstable brick wall. Three of the five different guards he had spotted following the nobleman and were all blocking the exit of the alleyway.
“C’mon, don’t you think we can all go out and discuss this over lunch or something. It isn’t that big of a deal that I--Oh my god! Is that person getting stabbed to death?” The guards followed his hand to where he was pointing, only to see nothing. By the time they had turned back to look at Dream, he was already gone.
See, there was one more teensy, tiny thing that made Dream stand out from the common thief. He could use magic, more specifically: portal magic. With ease, he pulled open a portal to a safer place. On the other side of the hazy, green oval, was a lush forest. His safe place.
With one more teasing look, Dream was gone. The portal had closed almost as quickly as it opened, sealing into nothingness with a flash of blinding light. Now, instead of the bustle of the market filling the air with noise, it was the rush of wind in the trees and the buzzing of cicadas.
Good.
This was good.
For contrary to what his job might imply, Dream preferred the forest to the city any day. The greens of his tattered cloak mirrored that of nature. Green was his favorite color after all, and it was found everywhere in the forests. The thing about portal magic was that you need to pick a safe place to be when you come out of portals. While realistically, you could portal anywhere(with some restrictions of course) it was best to have a set place every time. This was Dream’s place.
He called it Elysium.
It was quite funny actually, Dream was in no way deserving of a blessed afterlife. If anything, he would be burning in Tartarus for the rest of eternity. If mortality ever caught up to him, that is. Nonetheless, it was his portal location. Tall trees surrounded him, with a large stump in the middle. Rocks and pebbles were littered haphazardly around the base of the stump, and magically inscriptions--courtesy of Dream, of course--were carved into the top. Maybe he used to know what they said, but now he just knew that as the nonsensical scribbles that produce magic.
When he saw that the sun was already three-fourths of the way in the sky, he decided to take the scenic route back home. Rush hour was now far from over, and Sapnap would start to miss him if he didn’t come sooner rather than later. Still, a little nature walk wouldn’t hurt anyone.
Dream made his way steadily through the familiar forest. He passed each craving in a rock or a tree with a smile and a bounce in his step. His walk ended far earlier than he would have liked, but he rounded the last corner at the X-mark on the birch tree. He was met face to face with the tiny shack he called home.
It was a quaint little place, overgrown by nature and away from any prying eyes. He opened the creaky oak door and stepped into his Little House. “I’m home!” He called out into the creaky, Little House.
He was only half expecting the boy who barreled into him. Arms wrapped around his torso, and legs around his waist and he was pushed to the ground by his partner in crime. “Dream! You weren’t at the water fountain today, I thought you died, dude!” He complained, shaking the blond by the shoulders.
Ah yes, the exact reason he never took the scenic route home: Sapnap.
Sapnap was energetic, to say the least. He had latched himself onto Dream within days of him being in town. They happened to meet as Sapnap tried to pickpocket him, and in a funny turn of events, they became friends. Sapnap had one day followed him back to Little House, and they’d lived together ever since. He’d learned a lot about the boy since then. Things as simple as his age--Dream was proud to say that he was two years older, Sapnap looked much older than he did with the stubble on his chin and his larger build. But he also learned more complex things, like how he was touchy and enjoyed cuddling before they went to sleep.
The more Dream stayed with the younger boy, the more things he recognized about Sapnap. Only a week into living together did Dream realize that the other had a small scar on his left eyelid that traveled up to his split eyebrow, as well as the burn scars that littered his hands and forearms. Sapnap had a lot of scars, now that he thought about it.
But he also had learned how Sapnap’s deep maroon eyes seemed to express a thousand emotions at once. Dream couldn’t lie to himself, but sometimes Sapnap’s eyes scared him; they were so dangerously expressive. His caramel-brown hair was softer than it looked as well, Dream learned that the first time he had ruffled Sapnap’s hair.
Now, for the last month Dream and Sapnap had been going out and stealing things as a team. He was a good kid. Was he animated and vibrant, and maybe even a bit annoying? A thousand times yes, but still a good kid nonetheless.
“Yeah, yeah. But I got some good loot while I was at it, so it was totally worth it.” Dream explained with a shrug. He emptied the contents of his satchel onto the Round Table in the center of their living room. He fished the brooch from his pocket and set it off to the side, before continuing to pull out golden and silver coins and smaller treasures.
“Hey, Sapnap?” Dream asked.
The younger perked up from where he was dumping his own loot onto the Round Table. “Yeah?” He answered, “What’s up?” Again, he continued casually sifting through things, sorting things based on how valuable they were.
“How much do you think this is worth?” He held up the brooch for Sapnap to see. “The guy who had it looked super-rich--I mean like richer than rich!”
“Dude!” Sapnap exclaimed. “Do you even know what that means?” A simple shrug prompted Sapnap to continue. “Dude, you stole from the king! Eagles are a symbol of the royal family!”
“So...what I’m hearing is that if I sell this. It’s going to make me a lot of money, right?” Dream asked hopefully. It didn’t seem to clock in his brain that stealing from the king was a death sentence for anyone stupid enough to even attempt it, much less those who got away with it.
“No!” Sapnap screeched. “Dude, not even the deepest of black markets will take that. The king always gets what he wants, he’s notorious for being a dick!”
“Oh. So, should I return it or something?” Dream asked, rather dumbly.
Sapnap let out a groan, dragging a hand down his face in annoyance. “Yes, dumbass!” He said exasperatedly. “You shouldn’t have even stolen it in the first place.”
Dream scoffed, rolling his eyes at his friend’s dramatics. “Oh c’mon now. I’ll just return it then, no worries. It’s not like they’ll ever be able to catch me.” He proclaimed confidently. He glanced down at the brooch one last time, to see those emerald gems staring back at him. A silent promise was on the tip of his beak, but Dream, for the life of him, couldn’t figure out what the eagle was promising him.
War?
Peace?
Hate?
Love?
He had no clue.
So he paid no attention to the dark secrets within the gleaming emeralds. He would return the brooch and go about his life. He would continue to steal with Sapnap for a few more months, before moving on to the next kingdom. Maybe he’d bring the kid with him, but then again, maybe not. He hadn’t decided yet.
“Do you have anything for dinner?” Sapnap asked, snapping him out of his thoughts. Dream tore his gaze away from the brooch, placing it on Round Table once again. Dream internally cringed, he hadn’t thought to get anything while on his walk. It had completely slipped his mind.
“No, I didn’t get anything.” He said truthfully. “I was a little preoccupied with not getting caught. What about you?”
Sapnap shrugged, getting up from his position on the creaky couch. “No, I was a little preoccupied with making sure you weren’t dead.” He answered plainly, making a point to use Dream’s own words against him. It was worth it, to hear the quiet huff he let out.
“Nightmarket then?” Sapnap asked. Despite his earlier quip, he had a dopey grin on his face. Sapnap liked visiting The Nightmarket. Sure it was dangerous and filled with shady people, but the food was amazing, even if a little pricey.
“Nightmarket.” Dream agreed.