when you reach the top (there’s nowhere else to go but–)
[Image Description: A greyscale digital sketch of a semicircle of characters from this ice skating AU with skater!Ranboo in the center. Ranboo is wearing a plain skating costume, skates, a mask, and sunglasses, and is spinning to stare at the upper left corner. on the far left is Tubbo, wearing overalls, smiling, and holding his hands up to cheer in Ranboos direction. Behind him is Technoblade, standing neutral in a sweater-vest and glasses. Behind Technoblade is Philza, wearing a sweater and leaning on a cane. on the far right of the image, Tommy sits on a bench, grinning at Tanboo and sticking his prosthetic leg out in front of him. There is a dog behind Tommy at the end of the bench. behind the dog is Wilbur soot, standing neutral in a sweater and beanie and smiling at Ranboo. above the figures is the bottom half of semi-transparent smiling face.]
It was never meant to be, and Tommy knew that.
The second he lost everything, he found the best of things.
A family, though he wouldn’t admit to it, in the form of a pink haired American, a cane wielding (and pretty pog) old man, a non-verbal sweater wearing man, and a boy who only ever wore yellow and was obsessed with bees.
Tommy loved each of them, in their own way, and with a heart that had been hurt in the past but still insisted on caring for others. He hadn’t expected his little family to grow beyond them.
A figure skater with a past injury that hit just a bit too close to home for the blond amputee. Tommy knew he wanted to help him, so he did.
Tubbo, Tommy and Ranboo became inseparable in an instant.
And when you reach the top, there’s nowhere else to go but–
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[Image Description: a digital sketch of Ranboo, Tommy, and Tubbo, standing in that order from left to right. Ranboo is wearing a mask and a hoodie, and is looking at Tommy who is wearing a t-shirt and sweatpants and is gesturing with his right hand. to the right of Tommy, Tubbo is crossing his arms, wearing overalls, and smiling.]
It was the crackle of ice that brought Tommy such peace.
The sound of bladed skates carving smooth paths across ice that shouldn’t hold the skater’s weight.
It was on the ice that Tommy found his first home.
And it was on the ice that Tommy felt the most fear.
Tommy’s new foster owned an ice rink and for that reason he almost said no, some miniscule piece of him wanting to fuck up all chances he had with this family in an attempt to put as much distance between him and the ice that had once meant so much to him. He found himself there daily, watching others skate in beautiful shapes– shapes that calmed his mind and brought him out of the fog that seemed to hang around his mind like an omnipresent cloud.
The way that the cold dulled the pain he felt, soothed the slight burn in his leg and cooled his skin to the touch.
The cold and ice introduced him to Tubbo, the happy boy with the brown hair and an obsession with bees. Tubbo found comfort on the ice in a way almost similar to Tommy, soothing pain and cooling the boy’s burned skin.
They were a perfect pair, an odd match of happy people.
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[Image Description: a traditional pencil drawing of skater!ranboo. he is wearing a dark skating costume with a deep neckline rimmed with fluffy detailing, a half and half mask, and ice skates. He is standing with his arms spread out to either side triumphantly with a happy look on his face.]
This is an au of the DreamSMP that focuses mostly on the BenchTrio and SBI. The DreamTeam will be present, along with various other cameos from other of the SMP members (Figureskater!Eret pog). This will hold some elements of canon, in au form, as well as a lot of the character dynamics present in the DreamSMP.
I am not a figure skater, but this will include many details about the beautiful sport. I have decided to model skater!Ranboo after the wonderful Yuzuru Hanyu.
This fic is the product of many hours of work alongside my good friend @astro-nautikal, who created the beautiful artwork in this post and has acted as my beta reader throughout the entire process. They are an absolute icon of an artist and fantastic at beta reading and are a big reason why this fic has become what it has.
I hope this has caught your attention! Follow for more on this AU and for when the first chapter is posted!!