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post-apocalyptic small talk

Summary:

TOMMY: At least. At least we’re both here? Right? We get to watch it crumble and burn while we just- sit. Together.

 

TUBBO: Yeah, Well. I think we deserve it.

 

TOMMY: After all of this shit? Yeah, we really fuckin’ do.

 

 

Or, The end of the world is the best time to catch up with old friends.

Notes:

(See the end of the work for notes.)

Work Text:

(It is dead silent. The sky is a deep, angry red and it’s impossible to tell if the residual white particles falling in the air are radioactive dust or snow. Or both. TUBBO and TOMMY sit on a cliff together in Snowchester. A name that is now apt for the majority of the landmass, considering the serverwide snowfall. There is a small flask of presumably alcohol in TUBBO’s hand. All nearby trees are leafless or knocked over entirely. There isn’t any grass, just a murky mixture of dirt, snow and fallout.) 

 

 

TOMMY: So that’s it then, gods, the end of the world and it’s like that. Fin.

 

 

TUBBO: Fin?

 

 

TOMMY: Y’know like? What they put at the end of all films- Fin. (TUBBO does not look enlightened by this information) Argh. We need to watch every single film there is in the time it takes us to keel over

 

 

TUBBO: Whatever you want, bossman.

 

 

TOMMY: Yeah.

 

 

TOMMY: No wars anymore, hey? No stupid battles to be dragged through or Dream looming over us. Now it’s just us.

 

 

TUBBO: (wearily) Just us. 

 

 

(TOMMY motions towards the flask, takes a prolonged sip, grimaces, then passes it back)

 

 

TOMMY: How do you just ignore it all? Everything you- we went through? All the wars, the betrayal - y’know - how fuckin’ Wilbur was in Pogtopia and then you working under Schlatt. Your death at the festival. Don’t you have dreams? Nightmares? Don’t you see it every single day? Hell, I barely saw you grieve Ranboo. Why didn’t you- how do you act like it didn’t affect you?

 

 

(TUBBO turns his head to face the red sky, and glances at the flask in his hand, then starts nervously tapping his leg)

 

 

TUBBO: I know it changed me. I didn’t want to be weak again - like during the war or in that stupid yellow box. I didn’t want to be hurt anymore.

 

 

TOMMY: So?

 

 

TUBBO: So I hid away in my own new village! So I built some god damn nukes and made absolutely bloody sure everyone was scared. Of me. Thinking nobody would ever dare to fuck with me again. And I was right, people were scared. But it never really worked out how I expected, did it?

 

 

(He groans)

 

 

TUBBO: We still ended up with a dead fucking family in a dead fucking world wasting away ‘til the radiation poisoning kills us both.

 

 

(TOMMY lightly grasps TUBBO’s arm)

 

 

TOMMY: At least. At least we’re both here? Right? We get to watch it crumble and burn while we just- sit. Together.

 

 

TUBBO: Yeah, Well. I think we deserve it.

 

 

TOMMY: After all of this shit? Yeah, we really fuckin’ do.

 

 

(A couple of seconds pass. TOMMY leans into TUBBO)

 

 

TUBBO: I miss them. Ranboo. And Michael.

 

 

TOMMY: I’m sorry. Obviously- I mean- it’s not the. Yeah. I miss them too.

 

(Snow falls)

 

TUBBO: It’s just- I spent so goddamn long- (he tries to avoid tearing up) trying to protect us. Them. And look. They both just died. And I was powerless. I couldn’t do anything. Or maybe I could’ve. Maybe I should’ve - I don’t know. Seen it coming.

 

 

TOMMY: Well, you can’t do anything now, can you? Everything, and Gods I mean everything, is over now. Nothing changes that now.

 

 

(A beat)

 

 

TOMMY: It wasn’t your fault.

 

 

TUBBO: I guess not.

 

 

TOMMY: You need to believe that. Or this will kill your before the fuckin’ bomb does.

 

 

(They laugh)

 

 

TOMMY: Hey- hey. I’m being serious now.

 

 

TUBBO: Yeah, yeah. Well I think bombs are generally more lethal than grief.

 

 

TOMMY: Okay, okay what are you? A nuke expert?

 

 

(TUBBO stares at the apocalyptic wasteland in front of him)

 

 

TUBBO: Sure.

 

 

TOMMY: Maybe a bit overkill.

 

 

TUBBO: Maybe. Maybe a bit.

 

 

(TUBBO sighs)

 

 

TUBBO: I did have dreams of it all. Ranboo would wake up to me just- just screaming. That it burnt and that I couldn’t see. He didn’t know what I was talking about for a while.

 

(TOMMY nods)

 

 

TUBBO: ‘Course I had to tell him at some point. I mean with the scars, the nightmares, the trembling at firework explosions. He deserved to know.

 

 

TUBBO: Even then, I never really explained L’manburg to him.

 

 

TOMMY: (laughs) Ah! The olden days.

 

 

TUBBO: It scares me. But. I think I miss it. Sometimes. It was always too quiet, too passive over here.

 

 

TOMMY: War really did change you! No more pacifist little bee boy.

 

 

TUBBO: (jokingly) Shut up, man!

 

 

TOMMY: The quiet was nice. I enjoyed it, while it lasted.

 

 

TUBBO: I’m glad.

 

 

TOMMY: Why couldn’t you have stayed? You didn’t need to just- you drifted away. And now I don’t know you.

 

 

TUBBO: I’m sorry.

 

 

TOMMY: No- no. Not for me. It wasn’t good for you. To run away and - no matter how cool they are - build some motherfucking nukes!

 

 

TUBBO: They helped, didn’t they?

 

 

TOMMY: Well! (he rolls his eyes)

 

 

(TOMMY closes his fist around TUBBO’s hand, who reciprocates)

 

 

TOMMY: C’mon, stand up.

 

 

(TOMMY stands himself, then pulls TUBBO up along with him)

 

 

TOMMY: You’re my brother, Tubbo. I don’t blame you for it. Any of it. Anymore. Even if it was really, really shitty of you.

 

 

(TOMMY reaches for a hug, TUBBO looks a bit averse, then leans in, and softens)

 

 

TOMMY: I love you.

 

 

TUBBO: I love you, too.

 

 

(TOMMY and TUBBO stand at the edge of a cliff together)

 

 

(They won’t let the radiation poisoning take them.)

 

Fin.

 

 

 

Notes:

hiya! I'm not really sure if this is *technically* a screenplay as i believe it contains information that wouldn't generally be in one to make it more interesting, but oh well..

please comment or leave kudos if you enjoyed, it means a lot :).

and lmk of any issues i wrote this in a day...

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