"What took you so long?" Tommy asked as they left the park

"It was like two minutes-"

"Yeah yeah-"

"And to answer your question, Fundy just wanted to thank me.."

"Really? I didn't hear him speak that whole time-"

"Me neither, I guess he was just shy."

"Makes sense-"

They walked in silence for a moment, then Tommy said, "Toby, I am going to be sentimental for a moment, and I need you to promise me you won't say a word-"

He raised an eyebrow, "You know I won't- what's up..?"

Tommy took a deep breath, then said, "I- I'm proud of you"

Now that peaked his interest. "You are?"

"I mean yeah-" Tommy said, "I don't really know the whole situation, and I'm not going to press you for details if you're not comfortable, but I know you acted like a hero, helping someone out like that..."

Toby must have had some kind of expression on his face, because when Tommy glanced at him he scowled, "What?"

"Nothing, I've just never heard you say anything that...deep or mature before"

"Hey, I'm mature! I'm deep! I am a big man with many layers that women find very attractive-"

"I know I know-" Toby chuckled at the outraged look on his brother's face.

"And besides, I mean it-" he said, shrugging, "I bet you were like Tubbo, all heroic and shit"

Toby almost froze, and had to stifle a snort. "You think? You look up to the Tubbo guy huh?"

"Duh, he's a hero! He does good deeds because they're good- he helps people without expecting anything in return..."

"I suppose..."

After a moment of silence, and continued walking, Tommy asked, "You know, I always wanted to be a hero..."

Toby raised an eyebrow, "really?"

"Yeah! I mean our brother is one after all, plus you get to help people...I'd love to be a hero..."

"Tommy you don't have any powers, you could get hurt-"

"I have skills! I can fight, and defend myself- powers don't matter as long as you want to help folks-"

"They probably help though.." Toby pointed out, "Not having them would put you at a serious disadvantage. One that your enemies could use against you.

Tommy waved a hand dismissively, "it's like that lady said on television the other night. Powers are just tools. I have my own skills and abilities I can use. I could be a hero like Tubbo and Technoblade-"

"I still think you're ridiculous-" Toby chuckled

"Well I think I'm brilliant, and as everyone knows, I am always right" Tommy grinned.

"Whatever helps you sleep at night Tommy"

"Oh fuck you-"

"I'm gonna tell Techno you look up to him, he'll love it-"

"You wouldn't dare-"

"Absolutely would"

"Oh fuck you-"

"You said that already"

The two of them walked and talked, and Toby couldn't help but feel happy. Tommy didn't know it, but he looked up to two of his brothers, and Toby wanted to keep that up. He wanted to do his best for him, the rest of his family, and his friends...

"Hey, you reckon Tubbo needs a sidekick?" Tommy asked out of the blue, which made Toby let out a snort of laughter. Then he paused.

"Wait, you're serious?"

"Of course I am!" Tommy scowled, crossing his arms, "I am always serious-"

"Uh huh"

"Plus, I am a badass, I could be a good sidekick!"

"Tommy I'm pretty sure the same limitations of you being a hero apply to you being a hero's sidekick"

"Whatever- I Wanna do it"

"God you're stubborn-"

"Damn right! It's one of my many charms"

"Yeah yeah sure thing big man-"

"The hell is that supposed to mean?"

The two bickered and laughed the rest of the way home, luckily making it home safely and without any incident.

~•~

That night after dinner, and after he heard his brother's soft breathing once again, Toby got into costume (now including goggles) and slipped into the hallway and out the window. Though he felt his earlier headache getting worse, he didn't want to let it get in the way of hero work, at least not tonight. He had a bad feeling, and if Techno had taught him anything, you should never ignore your bad feelings. A little headache could wait until he made sure everyone was safe. After doing a quick perimeter search, he perched on his normal roof spot, surveying the city. Pulling down his mask a bit, he took a deep breath of cool night air. His mind started to wander to what it usually did on peaceful nights when he couldn't think of anything else.

He was...really a hero. He'd become what he and Tommy had looked up to since they were kids. He'd always pushed his ideas of heroism away since his powers manifested, thinking he could never be one with a power that many would deem villainous. And here he was... He sighed. It still felt like a dream sometimes, as if he'd wake up one morning and none of this had happened. His insecurities were still there, but he was getting better at ignoring them.

He scowled to himself, pinching the bridge of his nose. Thinking about all this was making his head worse. Ok Toby let's think of something else- He laid on his back as he often did on peaceful nights and watched the sky. It wasn't as clear as other nights, but it was still a beautiful view. He laid there for what felt like hours but in reality was probably only one at most. Then, the peace of the evening was shattered by a yelp a little ways away.

Tubbo sat bolt upright, and immediately regretted it- His head throbbed and he took a moment to slowly stand up. Part of him brought up that it probably wasn't a good idea to be crime fighting like this, and while this was a good point, Tubbo couldn't leave somebody who needed help. Techno's patrols usually took him towards the inner city, and by the time he got around this place, he might be too late. So he pulled up his bandana and started towards where he heard the yell, hopping onto the closer roofs, though being more mindful of the bigger gaps than he usually was. He could hear scuffling coming from an alley just ahead, and he ran towards it, turning the corner to see what was happening.

A boy around Niki's age was being attacked by three guys that were bigger and stronger than him. A mugging maybe? Though this seemed excessive. The older boy was skinny, with short brown hair, a blue shirt, and what looked like white rimmed, circular sunglasses, despite it being night time. Two large, honestly kind of scary looking men had him against the wall, while a third seemed to be the lookout. He spotted Toby instantly.

"Hey, we got company-" He called to his buddies, which made them (and the boy they were...mugging? Scaring?) glance in his direction.

"Right, if you gents will kindly let this guy go and be on your way, we don't have to resort to drastic measures like fighting or anything, sounds good?" Tubbo said, taking a step towards them, "We can do this the easy way or the hard way" In all honesty he wanted to get this over with as soon as possible, his head was starting to hurt like a bitch.

Instead of answering, the lookout charged. Tubbo sighed, internally groaning. Hard way it is then. Why do the bad guys always pick the hard way? He manage to gain control over the lookout's limbs, making him stop, though it was harder than usual with his headache. They'd steadily gotten worse over the last couple of weeks. He'd originally thought it was from using his power after about a decade of ignoring, but now he wasn't so sure what was causing them anymore. He'd try to figure that out later at a better time.

"Oi! Little help here!" The man called, struggling against Tubbo's power. One of the two that were holding the boy let go to go help, and while the boy tried to get free, the remaining man was large and strong and could hold him on his own.

"Alright little man, let's see what you're made of-" The large man said, menacingly towering over Toby. Ohh shit, this guy was massive-

Tubbo dodged his fist, trying to concentrate on gaining control of this guys limbs too, but between his worsening headache and trying to avoid the massive fists being thrown at him, he could barely keep the focus on controlling the first guy, let alone one or even two more. Not good- think Toby, think- That's when he heard fast approaching footsteps. Shit, were there more coming? This was a bad idea- Suddenly, two figures turned the corner into the alley. A white blur crashed into the large man that was trying to hit Tubbo, sending him staggering backwards. Another blur, this one bright green went for the one holding the guy. A flash of metal, and the man yelled in pain, stumbling away, and dropping the boy, cradling a stump where his hand used to be.

Holy shit- Tubbo thought to himself, before remembering the man whose body he still controlled. He looked at him. "Leave.." he said, glancing back at the other two, one missing a hand, the other barely conscious, face covered in bruises. A man with black hair, wearing a white bandana over his face, similar to Tubbo, stood over him. "And take your friends too."

The man's eyes were wide with fear, and he scampered to grab his half conscious buddy, the one handed one following them quickly as they left. Then Tubbo focused on the two newcomers. He'd seen the one, who he saw was also wearing a white shirt with a graphic of a fire on it. He was about average height, several inches taller than Tubbo, and he didn't seem like someone who'd be able to take on someone as big as his opponent had been, though looks were often deceiving. Then, Tubbo turned his attention to the other figure, who was helping the brown haired boy up and checking on him. They wore lime green hoodie, and black fingerless gloves, though the things that stood out the most was the circular mask that covered the top half of his face, and the axe that was by his side, the end of which had the blood of the guy who'd been holding the other boy.

Tubbo approached them cautiously. His head was still pounding, but he was curious...

"Are you ok George? They didn't hurt you too much, did they?" He heard the masked guy ask, kneeling by the boy, George.

"I- Yeah, 'm fine..." The other responded

"That..that bastard is behind those guys, isn't he?"

The other guy in white glanced at Tubbo as he approached, and spoke before the masked guy could respond, although Tubbo could see that George looked reluctant to say anything.

"You're that new hero that popped up a little while ago...Tubbo, right?" He asked, tilting his head.

"Uh, yeah. That's me..." he nodded, glancing at the guy, then at the other two, "I didn't realize there were other heroes aside from me and Technoblade..."

"That's because there aren't" The masked guy said, turning towards Tubbo, "We're just a couple of concerned citizens looking out for our friend..."

"Vigilantes helping a friend more like" The guy in white nodded, "Call me Sapnap"

"And I'm Dream" The other said, grabbing his axe to wipe off the blood.

Tubbo nodded, "Oh, uh, cool- That's cool-" he glanced at them, "You guys really saved my ass back there, so uh- thank you.."

Then he turned to George, "Are you doing alright? I'm sorry I couldn't be much help..."

"It's uh- it's fine don't worry.." George smiled weakly, adjusting his glasses, "Things might have gotten worse if you hadn't stepped in..."

"Yeah, don't be too hard on yourself kid..." Dream said, and Tubbo caught a grin from under the smiling mask, "You're still pretty new to all of this...If you stick with it, you'll get better."

Tubbo nodded, "Uh, thank you-" god his head was killing him... "Do you know who those guys were?"

"My guess is they work for Schlatt..." Dream answered, the disdain prominent when he spoke the name.

"Guess you're not a fan of his?"

"Is anyone?" Sapnap asked

"Fair point-"

"I'm gonna bring that bastard down one day...him and his entire operation..." Dream said, glancing up at the sky.

Tubbo nodded, "Pretty respectable goal..." his brain felt like it was trying to hatch from his skull- "Well uh- it was nice meeting you three...stay safe, alright?"

They nodded, and he took off. He made his way home after that, seeing as his bad feeling had gone away now. He managed to change into his pajamas before going to take some medicine for his headache, then doing his best to drift off to sleep as the pain dulled.