#step four twerk on a log

[bleue-flora]

my theory for why he wanted ctommy to trust him and be his weapon is because of a few things. He saw potential in ctommy, he knew ctommy was good at leading people (in pogtopia he was the one who ralleyed everyone together), ctommy could easily sway anyone to like cdream which is useful hes a social weapon, ctommy is cdreams biggest enemy at that time so getting him on side would make cdream be able to achieve his goal better, he is irritated with ctommy for ruining his life so in a way getting ctommys trust could be done out of revenge as it breaks ctommy and rebuilds him to be better and to allign with cdreams happy family goal. 'If ctommy is in order than maybe everyone else can be too.' Its interesting he chooses to fake a friendship with ctommy instead of just torturing him the entire time in exile.

A lot of his manipulative actions in exile are a result of him believing ctommy being around anyone but himself would result in ctommy reverting back to a trouble maker, even ghostbur which is why he got rid of him imo.

Hmm interesting… No offense to Tommy but of the characters I see as good at swaying a crowd or being a leader or social weapon he does not necessarily come to mind. Besides Tubbo I feel like there aren’t really any instances where Tommy was the reason people did things. A lot of people hated Schlatt for other reasons so I’m not sure Tommy really rallied together Pogtopia. Quackity certainly wasn’t happy under Schlatt, he was mistreating Niki, Eret wanted redemption, Techno wanted to tear down the government, Fundy was against Schlatt day one and acting as a spy, members of the Badlands wanted chaos and for the factors to tear themselves apart… etc. So, I’m not sure we can say he has the power to inspire and rally people into fighting for a cause like Wilbur. Even Doomsday, I don’t personally think they were really swayed by Tommy’s speech, Sapnap and Punz were already going to side against Dream regardless, the people living in L’manberg or around didn’t want their house blown up etc. I’m not sure anyone fought because Tommy asked them or gathered them together, I think they were going to regardless. And Dream would know that, I mean look how fast they turned against Tommy with the Community House being blown up. So leader? - meh. Social weapon? - if you mean by talking over everyone lol then yeah, but convincing people of things? Inspiring them to fight for something - I’m just not sure I personally see it. Within reason right. Yes, everyone believe the things about Exile and stuff, but they saw how Tommy was screwed up after. So if Tommy was being manipulated into being Dream’s social weapon I don’t think they’d side with Tommy on Dream’s side.

Also, I’m not sure Tommy was his biggest threat at that point Quackity starting plotting to kill him imediately after the war, everyone else I don’t think liked him because he sided with Schlatt, a bunch of people that weren’t Tommy went after George as the king including Technoblade, hence his dethronement. Not to mention after gaining the revive book, he became afraid of a lot bigger things or larger threats to the point of building a prison to contain such evil that can’t be killed for whatever reason. Tommy was perhaps number 1 annoying bug, and certainly a threat or a possible catalyst to another war, but I don’t think Dream saw him as the biggest threat to his plans per se.

I’m not sure I follow the logic of taking revenge on someone via making them better mannered, trust you and become your friend so that you both can make everyone be peaceful as one big happy family. I mean if you wanna really do revenge like that is the true reason - you ruined my life so I’m going to ruin you - I think you’d start with destroying L’manberg before it even is able to pick up it’s pieces, kill Tubbo, explode his house as you said torture him. What do you need trust for? How bout just kill him and then with him removed you build your happy family and then maybe revive him later. It just doesn’t make sense, and Dream may be somewhat insane and extreme and emotional, but he does things for a reason that make logical sense for his goal. That is a defining difference between them actually - Tommy does not follow logic but feelings and doesn’t do things for his motivation, while Dream follows logic over feelings and does everything or makes everything work that was emotionally caused for his motivation. His emotions leak through the cracks but he doesn’t lead them dictate his over plans, so doesn’t Dream take out revenge on Tommy - I think yes, I think his emotions pushed him to make Tommy feel exactly like he did - abandoned, trapped, having lost everything over and over, but I don’t think that was the ultimate purpose. I think that was almost more so unintentional like waking up grumpy and being a jerk to people all day, except in this scenario having your world crumble around you and starting to take it out on the person who is fairly responsible.

Because, clearly based on what we see in Daedalus Dream isn’t an idiot who thinks torturing or breaking someone is how you manipulate them/get what you want. It doesn’t work, not in the dsmp and not in the real world. And he proves in Daedalus that with the upper hand, he doesn’t need to lay a hand on someone to get them to do what he wants, yet he does lay a hand on Tommy, which is counterproductive, giving me the impression that it’s not necessarily part of his plan. In other words, I do not think Exile was intended to be the cruel punishment it ended up being, I more so get the impression that it’s almost like Dream was trying to parent him.

Like think about it… Time out: sent away from everyone by yourself, Grounded: Unable to leave, Getting something taken away: losing items of value, Spankings: hitting as punishment for disobedience. All of these things are methods used by parents to enforce the ideas of good and bad in a child who doesn’t know any better. And don’t those kinda look like exactly what Dream does in Exile? Sure it’s so an extreme but the bad things Tommy did are extreme: murder, stealing, arson, slavery, torture, destruction…. Etc so in a twisted sort of way it kinda makes sense (Do Not take this as me agreeing with Dream’s methods or anything, I’m just looking at similarities. This isn’t about deserved or saying the behavior was justified or the right thing to do or whatever. All I’m looking at is reasoning and our purpose.)

Anyways… what was I saying? I might be getting lost in my thoughts oops. Oh okay, right isolation. I think I touched upon this somewhere, I do think it was with the purpose of preventing them from pointing out how Dream’s a bad person. I don’t think that people make Tommy a trouble maker, he does just fine on his own, and I don’t get the impression most people would try do ya know like arson with him or something. I mean again they turn against Tommy in the house, believing it was him and also being upset. I don’t get the feeling that they are A-okay with Tommy’s behavior much more than Dream is, but I think they support Tommy so they’ll have his back like good friends. So not so much revert in my opinion as turn against Dream if that makes sense. But then if Dream didn’t want Tommy to turn on him and actually become like friends or whatever why would he act so cruel, and thats where the emotions leak through the cracks make perhaps what was supposed to be a lesson into more so hell.

I mean later, when Phil makes Tommy burn a precious items and burn stone over and over and over again to teach him about how items are just things, isn’t that kinda similar to what Dream was doing in Exile?… though I also think Dream was afraid Tommy was going to get stuff to then revolt against Dream and try to kill him or whatever so maybe his fear (something he was definitely being consumed by) was at play there. I don’t know… Exile is just so… I don’t interesting and weird, but I don’t think it was supposed to be cruel, or to break/make Tommy into his puppet or weapon, it just doesn’t make sense, not with what happened nor with Dream’s motivation and characteristic behavior. He says to Sam in Daedalus that Exile wasn’t “morally perfect” and I think honestly part of him believes that…