Archive of Our Own ^beta

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He feels tired, so tired. He trembles at the cold feeling. His mind is so clouded and he can't even really focus on his thoughts. It feels like he hasn't slept in years. It'll be better to go back to sleep. He slowly loses consciousness and drifts back into his slumber...

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Nightmare wakes up. Well, if you could call it that. His mind still can't grasp much, but he doesn't feel so numb.

He can hear something. Something far away... or is it right next to him? The sound seems to repeat, it's like something was beeping...What? It's so loud, but so muffled at the same time.

He tries to move, but instantly regrets it. A pain shouts through his body. He makes a groaning sound, but his throat feels so dry and sore. He tries to think, but even thinking seems to cause him a huge discomfort.

Then he hears something, something different from the repetitive sound. A voice. Was someone talking? He tries to understand, but it's like he's under water. Everything is so muffled, but loud too.

He slowly opens his eyes, but as soon as he does, an intense light immediately blinds him. He quickly closes them again. He tries to focus on the voice, but the more he tries the bigger his headache gets. He starts to feel like his head could burst from the pain. He can feel his mind slipping again. Trying to get rid of the awful agonizing feeling and trying to just go back to sleep. He cannot protest.

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Nightmare wakes up again. This time everything feels much clearer, though still he's kinda dizzy and tired. He can hear the beeping sound again. He opens his eyes, taking a minute to get used to the light. Nightmare blinks a few times and finally is able to see. His fuzzy purple eyelights look around the room, trying to take in his surroundings.

It's white a lots of white everywhere. He is in a small room. Right across him on the wall hangs a small picture of some green hills with trees. On his left he can see a door and also a table with some little bottles and something he has no idea what it is. What is this place?

He looks over to his right, from where the beeping is coming from. His neck makes a cracking sound as he does. He sees a weird box with some kind of lights... Nightmare doesn't think he has ever seen anything like this before. There is also a window and a chair. Looks comfy. This whole place feels so weird. He looks down. He's lying in bed. His body is tucked under a white sheet. Where is he? Why is he here?

Then he tries to move his arm. It takes a bit but he is able to lift it slightly. His bones are shaking. He lets his hand fall back next to him. He feels really sore and just simple movement makes him so drained. What happened?

So many questions, but no answer. Nightmare tries to remember the last thing he was doing and maybe find some logical explanation. It takes a minute for his mind to clear.

He remembers sitting under their tree. It was a beautiful sunny day, no clouds in sight and he was reading a book. It was about a wizard trying to find his lost son or something like that. It was such a nice and calm moment...Until he saw a group of people from The village walking up the hill in the direction of their tree. Then they... then. Then what? His mind is all fuzzy and blurry again, he cannot remember. Why can't he remember?

He tries to replay it in his mind all over again, but nothing. Maybe again. He was under the tree, reading a book, Dream had gone to the village, he saw people walki- wait... Dream! Where was he? Where was the tree of feelings? He is supposed to guard it! Was he kidnapped by the villagers or something?! He definitely wouldn't put it past them, it seems like something they would do, but... this place... He might not spend much time in the village, though he is pretty sure there is no place that looks like this. Also if he was kidnapped wouldn't they tie him up?

Nightmare feels so confused and frustrated. He can think of many different possibilities, but none of them seems right or they don't make sense. Also the headache that seems to be creeping on him doesn't help at all. Seriously, where is he? What happened? What is happening? Is he in danger? Where is Dream and the tree? Why can't-

He hears a muffled voice, steps and then the door opens. At that very moment he can feel his soul beating in his chest. He can feel the sweat running down his skull. Terrified, he turns his head, fearing what is going to happen.

Nothing could prepare him for what happened next.

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Dream sighed, forcing himself to stay awake. He was... tired and stressed. The two words alone fully explain how he has been lately. Everything seems to be finally after so many long years going their way. Their big plan with a ton of years long preparations had ended up being actually successful. The Star sanses with the help of a few other individuals finally won. The war between Bad sanses and Star sanses was over. The years of fighting, destruction and conflicts are over. It's time for peace.

The Bad sanses were slowly disbanded and Nightmare was left alone. Dust, Horror, Killer were placed in an asylum with special measurements made for them. Originally they were planned to be put in a very well secured prison where they would spend eternity. But he couldn't let that happen. His soul wouldn't allow it.

With the knowledge of their past, Dream knows that they are just souls that were broken to their core. They deserved a second chance. They needed help, a help they couldn't get when they were with Nightmare. He was willing to give it to them no matter how hard it would be.

And so he did. After many long and stressful conversations and many arguments he was able to convince the others. It most likely will take years of treatment and therapy before they will be able to incorporate themself into society, but he's sure that it will be worth it. A new fresh start.

Then there is his brother. He has been on his mind constantly, stressing him to no end. He still can remember very clearly the day Sci has informed him of a possible cure. It has been centuries and he already gave up on getting his brother back. He thought he was dreaming, that he would wake up any moment like he always does, but it was real. He couldn't believe it. His brother maybe wasn't a lost cost like he thought. Maybe he was still there.

He couldn't process it, he remembers crying a lot. Everything came crushing on him. All the feelings he had buried, because of all the destruction and fights, came rushing through him.

There were risks to it. There was a chance it wouldn't work, but he was willing to try it. Still, he didn't rush anything (even though he wanted to, he wanted his brother back) He let Sci perfect it as much as he was able to. Finally it was finished.

There were many attempts at imprisoning Nightmare before, though he always somehow was able to get away. After he was again captured, before he could even try escaping, they started the curing process.

Unfortunately it's not so easy to get rid of almost all of the corruption just in a blink on an eye. It's a rather lengthy process. With Nightmare's smart tactics and constant resistance he almost escaped, but thanks to his already weakened state he wasn't able to. Dream though he was gonna get a heart attack that day, even though he doesn't have a heart.

After that one incident most things seemed to be going smoothly. Well from what doctors told him, but still his mind couldn't be eased and Dream found himself stressing over his brother. Always watching over him next to his bed. He would hold his hand and talk to him like if his brother was awake.

When the black goop covering Nightmare's body started to actually melt off then it was another emotional rollercoaster for Dream. Seeing his actual brother's face after so many years brought him to tears.

He was getting his brother back. He still couldn't believe it. Seeing the fragile and innocent face that was hidden under the h̶o̶r̶r̶i̶b̶l̶e̶ black substance all along broke Dream. He looked so peaceful. His brother was here, right in front of him. His real brother. Oh dear...

His bones were all covered with thin cracks that were still oozing the negativ liquid. Slowly, after many healing treatments most of them healed, stopping the negative magic from spilling.

The curing process was finally reaching the end. He could finally have his brother back. Doctors informed him that he should wake up in a span of a few days. It had been almost three weeks and... he wasn't waking up.

The doctors started to suspect he might have been put in a coma due to the treatment or... his brother was truly gone. He didn't even want to think of that. He couldn't be. He couldn't admit to himself that the only thing left of his brother was his c̶o̶r̶p̶s̶e̶ body with the last negative apple. Not after he had let himself have so much hope again.

After his small panic attack followed many sleepless nights just waiting and watching over his brother. Hoping that he would wake up. But he started to feel so hopeless.

Until that one moment. It happened just three days ago and still feels like a dream. He was watching over Nightmare like normal. Then he saw his eyes leaking the black liquid again. So he went to wipe it off, but then he heard it. A very quiet groan. Dream at first though he was hallucinating. It wouldn't be a surprise with his lack of sleep. But still he called out to his brother. Then Nightmare's eyes twitched for a moment, like he was trying to open them. Dream instantly called out to him again, asking if his brother could hear him. The only thing he got was a very quiet noise. Dream in panic immediately pushed the button for a nurse.

Even after calling to him multiple times, his brother didn't respond at all. He wasn't really waking up yet, but... at last he now knows he is still there. His brother is still there with him.

That was three days ago. His brother hasn't made any signs of waking up since then. Still that one short moment gave him hope. The chance of Nightmare waking up became higher according to his doctors.

He just came back from another meeting with the medical professionals. Unfortunately nothing new. On his way to Nightmare's room he meets the sweet nurse that mainly takes care of his brother if needed. She asks him if he was staying over again and if he needs anything. As always he answers politely, saying he is fine.

He walks into Nightmare's room and when he looks up. He freezes. His dim yellow eyelights meet the hazy purple ones.

His brother is awake.

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Nothing could really prepare Nightmare for this.

He looks up at the stranger in the doorway. The longer he stares at them the more his fear starts to turn into confusion. They are a skeleton, just like him, but taller. Nightmare hasn't seen any skeletons other than his brother yet…

He locked eyes with the stranger. Their eyes are dim yellow, like a withered sunflowers. They look shocked. The dark eye bags under their eye sockets makes Nightmare think that they haven't slept in days.

Yet something about their eyelights makes them feel… familiar, but also wrong. He can't point out what, but the feeling won't leave him alone.

He finally breaks eye contact and sees what is on top of their head. His mind freezes. They are wearing a crown, but it's… It can't be… what? How? Nightmare feels more confused than ever. That's Dream’s crown! How do they have it?! Why? What's -

“N-Nightmare?”

His thoughts stop for a moment. The voice is shaky and it feels so.. so… desperate.
Then it hits him. No… it can't be. The eyes, The crown, the voice. But this cannot be his brother! Dream isn't this big. He is tiny, just like him. They are twins. And his eyes are yellow just like the sun. They always look so full of life. The eyelights from this skeleton don't seem much like his brother's.

Then their eyes meet again. He could see tears forming in the corners of their eye sockets. Suddenly Nightmare feels like he cannot deny it no more.

“Dr-”

Nightmare wanted to ask if they are really his brother, yet only a dry wheeze came out of his mouth. He wanted to clear his throat, but he started coughing uncontrollably. He couldn’t breath, he was choking. He put a hand in front of his mouth, ignoring the pain in his bones. Then he felt like something was actually coming out of his mouth, finally freeing his throat. He looks down at his hand. It's some kind of black liquid… Did that come out of his throat?

“H-here, I'll clean it off.”

Nightmare jumps a bit startled. He hasn't even noticed D̶r̶e̶a̶m̶  the skeleton coming close to him. They are holding him. They shakily reach out their hand to him with a tissue, holding his hand gently and wiping the black stuff off. Then they throw the dirty tissue out.

Nightmare look at the skeleton with mixed emotions. Finally he pops the question.

“D-Dream? Is t-that you?”

His throat is still very sore, but it's better than before. The familiar skeleton looks at him with teary eyes.

“Y-yeah, it's me, brother.”

Even though he got the confirmation, he still finds it so hard to believe. It didn't make sense.

“You're a lot bigger.”

That was the only thing he could muster up with his thoughts being all over the place. Dream seems to be surprised by his statement. Not really sure how to respond.

“Oh, I guess…”

“Do you not… What is the last thing you remember, Night?”

Dream looked at Nightmare concerned. Nightmare tried to think about it for a minute, but he couldn't remember anything new.

“I was reading a book under our tree. I also saw a group of villagers walking up the hill. I don't know what went on after.”

Nightmare looked away. Is he having some memory problems? Has he perhaps just casually forgotten a huge chunk of his life? There is no way for Dream to have such growth spurt just over night or whatever.

“Night?“

Nightmare snaps from his thoughts and looks up at Dream. He has a worried look on his face.

“Are you alright?” Dream asks him with a concern in his voice. Nightmare has no idea what to say.

“I-I..I just… “

He pauses to rearrange his thoughts.

“What happened? Why do you look so much older? Where are we? Why can't I remember anything?”

Dream could hear the distraught in every word his brother said. Thinking about everything Dream realized he can't give him the answers he is so desperate for. His soul aches at the sight of his brother. He cannot tell him. Nightmare is not ready yet. Even he himself is not ready yet. The realization hits hard. He feels himself tear up a bit.

“A- a lot has happened. It's a really long story. You haven't been here, awake for a quite a long t-time. S-sorry,I just-”

Dream sobs. Images of the past flash before his eyes. He feels like he cannot hold it any longer. Tears start to flow.

“D-dream?! Hey, it's okay. You can-”

“C-can I hug you?”

Dream looks at Nightmare with teary eyes. He has never seen Dream so broken like this. So messed up and desperate. He never heard his brother ask for a hug. They would always just hug, no questions needed. Somewhat this whole situation was breaking Nightmare’s soul. He can't even focus on what Dream said about him before. His priority is now Dream and get him to stop crying.

“Of course, you don't need to ask.”

Nightmare says, opening his arms for his brother. Dream immediately jumps into his arms, hugging him tightly.

“Ahh-!”

Nightmare hisses in pain not expecting the instant ache in his whole body. Dream instantly  jumps away in panic and starts apologizing.

“I am so sorry! I-I didn't mean to. I am so sorry, so sorry, I am sorry. Are you okay?! D- did I cause you a lot of pain?! Sorry. I didn’t mean to. I am so s-sorry!”

Dream starts crying even harder, still apologizing. Nightmare couldn't stand to see him like this.

“N-no, no it's fine! I am fine. It's okay. You don't have to apologize, please. You can still hug me, just not so tightly.”

Nightmare tries to reassure his brother. Dream calms down a bit, still crying. He slowly hugs Nightmare again. This time he is gentl, like if Nightmare would break into small pieces if he put just a little more pressure on him. Nightmare happily returns the hug.

His brother is warm in his arms. Nightmare lightly strokes Dream’s back. They hold each other for a while, no words needed.

After a few minutes go by and Dream stops crying and dries his wet face with his glove. He slowly lets go of Nightmare. A small smile forms on his face. That makes Nightmare happy. Even though the smile isn't so wide and excited as he remembers.

They stay in silence, both of them not fully ready to let go of the nice moment. Still soon enough Nightmare’s head starts to fill up with questions again. He isn't sure what to ask first. He doesn't want to trigger Dream like before. Finally Nightmare breaks the silence.

“Dream? Can I ask you something?”

Dream snaps from his own thoughts when he hears Nightmare’s voice.

“Y-yeah, sure. Ask away.” Dream says, still a bit shaken.

“Where are we?” This question seems to be the best choice out of the hundred others Nightmare has.

“We are in hospital” Nightmare pauses at Dream’s answer. A what?

“Erm… What is a hospital?” Nightmare asks his brother, pretty confused. Realization hits Dream immediately. Of course Nightmare with no memory of the past centuries has no idea of so much stuff that were not really a thing when they were kids. Damn, he will have to explain a lots of things…

“Oh! Well, it's like… like healers at the village! You remember? It's just more advanced and has a lot more people, better ways to do stuff, cleaner and that. Also the healers here are called doctors and then there are the nurses, who help the doctors and take care of patients.” Dream says a bit nervously. He clearly wasn't ready to explain some stuff that is pretty much basic knowledge to his brother, who has no clue. It can be hard and he definitely doesn't want to confuse Nightmare more.

Though Nightmare seems to somewhat understand and nods. Then Dream realizes something.

“Oh! I should probably inform someone that you are awake! I'll call a nurse.” Dream decides to push the button for the nurse.

Just a minute after the sweet nurse he met not so long ago walks into the room. As she asks what's going, she also stops in shock.

“Oh! Mr. Nightmare, you are awake! How do you feel?” The nurse says, snapping out of her shock.

“Oh.. erm…” Nightmare wasn't really ready for any questions from strangers. “I-I am okay, I g-guess”. He says nervously.

“Great.” The nurse notices Nightmare’s discomfort and decides it'll be better to not ask him no further. She then turns to Dream. “How long has he been awake? Did he just wake up?”

“No, he has been awake for about… about 20 minutes maybe? Sorry that I didn't inform anyone sooner, it didn't cross my mind at all. “ Dream says a bit ashamed.

“It's fine, don't worry. I understand. I'll go fetch doctor Tori now. I'll be back in a few minutes.“ The nurse then leaves the room to go look for the doctor.

Dream looks at Nightmare. He seems nervous, probably not really ready to meet new people. Not after everything that happened with the villagers. Whenever Dream remembers he feels so stupid. Extremely stupid. He never connected the dots when he was a kid. And it was so obvious. He will do his best, so nothing like that would ever happen to Nightmare again.

“Hey, no need to worry. The doctor will just check your health and ask you a few questions.”

Dream tries to ease Nightmare’s nerves. Nightmare nods, but still feels uneasy.

Not longer after that the doctor arrives. Through the doorway steps a tall monster resembling a goat and wearing a white coat. She smiles as she sees the brothers.

“Good to see you awake Mr. Nightmare. I am doctor Toriel. How are you feeling?” She asks with a smile on her face.

“…I guess I feel fine. Just a bit tired and sore.” Nightmare says, trying to not sound too nervous. The doctor nods.

“Yeah, it should be normal for you to feel that way. The medical treatment you have gone through has weakened your body a lot, now it will also have to slowly get used to the changes. It might take a while for you to fully recover, you'll most likely feel pretty tired and weakened for at least two more weeks.”

What kind of medical treatment? Nightmare wants to ask, but he can't seem to find the courage to do so. He'll ask Dream later.

“Anyway, is there anything else that feels not normal to you?” She asks.

“Hmm… One of my eyelights seem kinda clouded. I thought it was just because it didn't get used to the light very well, but it has been a while and it has not gone away. “ Nightmare tells the doctor quitely.

“Alright, let's have a look.”

The goat monster pulls a small flashlight from her pocket and comes closer to her pacient. Nightmare feels wary of her when she puts the unknown object closer to his face.

“Try not to blink now”

The doctor turns the flashlight on and inspects Nightmare’s eye. She frowns a bit.

“Hmm… I can't determine right now what exactly is the problem. We'll have to run some more tests. Though from what I can see it looks like it won't just go away on its own“

Toriel says as she goes and writes something into her papers. Dream looks at nightmare with worry.

“Alright, I'll inform my two other coworkers of the situation and we will consult it. Later on we'll come back to you to run some more tests to ensure things are the way they are supposed to be. Also a nurse should be visiting you soon to give you some medication.”

Doctor Toriel then leaves the room, leaving both brothers in silence. After a minute Nightmare snaps from his thoughts and asks:

“What was that?”

Dream curiosly looks at his brother, not sure what he is refering to. “What was what?” He asks Nightmare for clarification.

“The thingy she pointed at my eye  and then it shined intense light into it.” Nightmare says, awaiting Dream’s answer.

“That was a flashlight. You use it to see better when it's too dark.” Dream gives a short answer.

"And how does it shine? Does it have like a flame inside or perhaps fireflies? And how does it shine so brightly?" Nightmare asks in curiosity.

Dream sighs. Here we go. Then he tries to somehow explain how a flashlight works, even though he himself isn't really sure how.

It's nice to chat with his brother…

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The nurse arrived after a few minutes of Dream just trying to somehow explain to Nightmare things he himself doesn't really understand. The nurse greets both of them and brings over the medicine.

“I got some medication I need you to take.” The nurse says  and then offers Nightmare three tablets and a cup of water. “Here's also some water to help you swallow.”

Nightmare takes it from the nurse, but feels really unsure. He has never seen medicine that looked like this. He didn't really want to swallow something unknown given by a stranger.

The nurse is waiting for him to take it and he is unsure about what to do. He looks at his brother for help. Dream sees the nervousness and tries to reassure him.

“It's just some pills that will help you and make you feel better. There is no need to worry. Really.“

He might not really trust the nurse, but he trusts Dream. He looks down at his hand and sighs. He swallows the pills and ends up finishing the whole cup of water. His throat still feels sore.

Finally the nurse leaves. Dream looks over at Night worried. He knows Nightmare is uncomfortable and doesn't want to give his trust to anyone, but he will have to spend a lot of time here and he for sure doesn't want his brother to be on guard and stressed too much.

“Night? I know that everything is probably very new to you and unknown, but I want to let you know that you are safe here. These people just want to help you and no one is here to get you.” Dream gives Nightmare a small smile. Though then his expression changes to a rather sad one.

“People here aren't like in the village… I promise.”

Nightmare's mind freezes after Dream's last words. Does he… Does he know? Does he know about what the villagers did to him? He tried his best to hide it from his brother, scared of the outcome. He didn't want any of the possible nightmarish scenarios he made in his head to come to life. But… the truth must have come out at some point.

“Do you… Do you know?” Nightmare asks in a low voice.

“… yes.” Dream whispers with a heavy weight in his soul. “I am sorry, I am so sorry…” A tear forms in the corner of his socket. His voice trembles at the thought of his brother getting beat up by the people he once thought were his friends. He should have been there. He should have stopped them.

Dream wipes the tears away before they can spill. He has to compose himself. He cannot have another breakdown in front of Nightmare.

Nightmare's soul aches again at the sight of his brother. He feels like crying, spilling out all his feelings he has been holding in. Telling Dream everything the villagers had done to him. He opens his mouth, but no words come out. He just starts crying, burying his face in his hands.

Somehow a big weight is lifted from his soul. He never wanted him to know, but hearing Dream acknowledge what happened and not trying to deny it in any way or call Nightmare a liar makes his soul feel so light.

He always thought that if Dream ever knew about it, he would not believe it or try to make up excuses for his “friends”. But it was the opposite now. His brother was so apologetic and guilty. Even with his mind clouded with so many thoughts he could hear Dream apologizing to him and blaming himself.

He… never wanted that. He never wanted his brother to blame himself. It wasn't his fault. Yes, he has to admit, he sometimes felt resentful towards Dream for never really noticing… but he never wanted Dream to blame himself like this.

It took a while for both of them to fully calm down and have a normal short conversation about it. Nightmare explained his fears and the reasons why he never told him. Dream felt sad and guilty knowing that Nightmare didn't trust him enough to tell him.

After they finally talked things through, there is another important question on Nightmare’s mind. He prepares himself to ask his brother about his missing memory, but before he has a chance the door opens. He sighs, already just so tired of all these strangers around him.

Three monsters come into his room. One of them is doctor Toriel and the two others are skeletons. One of them is more similar to him and Dream, the other one is a lot taller and has two scars on his face, one on each eye.

“Good to see you awake, Mr. Nightmare. My Name is Radium and I am a part of a team that is working on your case.” The tall skeleton introduced himself.

“These are the two other main doctors. This is my colleague doctor Toriel as you probably already know and this is doctor Sci.”He refers to the smaller skeleton next to him. “We are here to do some small tests to figure out how you are doing and what is still needed to be done.”

So the doctors starts to ask him questions. They were mostly asking him about his health and stuff. Doctor Tori also had to take a sample of his blood. Nightmare feels kind of confused for what, but he shrugs it off. Though he still hopes it won't be used for some religious practices.

“Alright, I can tell you are in no position to be able to stand up or move much yourself, but we have to have a look at your back. Doctor Tori will help you turn on your stomach.” They pull off the white sheet of him and with the help of the doctor he slowly turns on his stomach. His body feels so weak and sore.

When he is lying on his stomach he winces slightly. He feels a cold breeze creeping on his back, because his hospital gown doesn't cover him there. He feels exposed. Too exposed for his comfort. He remembers what Dream told him. They are here to help him. There is no need to worry.

Though the fact that they have been staring at his back for a while makes him wonder. What is so interesting about his back. The thought is kind of scaring him, cause his back seems to hurt the most out of all of his bones.

As the doctors examine Nightmare’s back, Dream cannot help himself from looking away. He hates the sight of Nightmare’s back. He has a big hole there. The cause of that was without a question his tentacles. The hole used to be a lot bigger, but thanks to the healing treatments they were able to downsize it a little bit.

“Hm… It seems like we have done all we could, but these bones will not heal any further. Even with intense healing.” Doctor Radium said, looking over the damaged bones.

“Then that leaves us with step two.” Sci says turning to Dream. “We will have to model a prosthetic for his back to fill in the hole. The missing bones could cause him a lot of issues and his back could possibly end up in a crooked position.” Sci explains to Dream and he just nods in understanding. Meanwhile Nightmare is trying to figure out what they are actually talking about. Toriel then helps him again to turn on his back.

Finally face to face with the doctors he finds the courage to ask. “What is wrong with my back and what do you mean there is a hole in there?” Nightmare says, trying to not sound as panicked as he actually feels.

“Well… there is a hole in your back…” Dream didn't know what more to say to his brother.

“How did I get it in the first place?“ Nightmare asks and Dream feels stuck. He cannot just tell his brother that four goopy tentacles broke through his back a few hundred years ago. Still he doesn’t want to lie to Nightmare. He quickly tries to think of something, though nothing much is coming to mind.

“… It was-…eh…” He stumbled over his words. “... Something really bad happened, which caused a lot of damage to your back, but it's not that important right now.” Dream is not really happy with his answer, but it was better than lying.

“… Okay?” Nightmare says, a bit confused. Dream’s answer seems very vague and strange to him. What did really happen and why does Dream not want him to know? Is he trying to hide what happened? But why? He feels unsure. Maybe he doesn't want to say it infront of the doctors and will eventually tell him after they leave. Hopefully.

The doctors looked between them, not sure what to do. Then Sci breaks the akward silnice. “Okay, let's continue with our check up.”

Sci looks down on his papers. “We were informed by Tori you were having a trouble with your left eye. Let's have a better look at that.”

Sci grabs a small bottle of some kind of liquid. “When you're body strengthen we will check your eye with better machinery, but for right now I am just going to scan it with this small device to see what is troubling it. Alright, I will put a few drops of this,” Sci shakes the bottle a bit, “in your eye. It will disturb the magic of your eyelight, so it will feel kind of funny and tingly afterwards. Now I need you to not blink with your left eye for a minute.”

Nightmare sighs and lets the doctor do his thing. Doctor Sci puts just three drops in his eye and he can already feel it messing with his eyelight. It is really uncomfortable. Then the doctor brings this metal box to his eye. “Now I am just going to scan it with this, so don't panic if it blinds you for a moment.”

He can feel his fear rising. Then something flashes in front of his left eye. He winces and blinks a lot after that.

“Alright we'll take this, examine it and then tell you what's going on.” Sci said, making Nightmare think for a moment they were finally leaving. But no… The disappointment hits him after they started asking more questions.

Then they finally leave. Nightmare is relieved. He is getting kind of tired and he doesn't want anyone around him right now. Well, except his brother. His company is appreciated.

But even though the only thing he would like to do right now is sleep…there is still an important question lingering on his mind.

“Dream?”

“Hmm?” Dream looks at him with curiosity.

“What happened? My memory is missing and I just want to know what happened.” Nightmare says it, hoping for answers. Though Dream becomes nervous.

“... Lots of things have happened. A lot of bad things. You could say you weren't really here for a very long time.” Dream says looking into his lap, not able to face his brother.

Dream doesn't say much after that and Nightmare isn't really satisfied. Dream’s answer didn't help at all, just made him question more.

Dream then sees that Nightmare doesn't really like his answer and tries to fix the situation. “You look pretty tired. Maybe… we could talk about this later, after you rest a bit. What do you say?”

Dream offers and Nightmare slowly nods. Afterall he feels sleepy and if Dream says they can talk about it after he rests then he trusts him.

Dream closes the curtains, so the light of the sunset wouldn't disturb Nightmare. “Good night” Dream says and Nightmare replies with a  good night as well. Nightmare closes his eyes and slowly drifts into sleep.

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Dream watches as his brother slowly falls asleep. It's a nice and quiet moment. He just watches Nightmare as his chest rises with every breath. He can feel a tear roll down his face. His brother is here. He cannot stop more tears from spilling. Damn, why is he such a crybaby?

Then he hears his phone make a short sound. He dries his tears with his sleeve and pulls it out of his pocket. He got a new message. After reading it he decided to walk outside of the room to make a call. Ready to unload all his feelings to the person on the other side.

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He can hear screaming. A lot of screaming. He sees red and he feels panic… but it's not his. 

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The screaming stops. But someone is talking. He can tell they are begging, though he cannot make out the words. 

N̶i̶g̶h̶t̶m̶a̶r̶e̶,̶ p̶l̶e̶a̶s̶e̶-̶

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Then there is silence.

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Nightmare wakes up. He blinks a few times and finds himself confused. Where is he? He stared at the white wall for a minute. Then the memories of yesterday come rushing in. 

Oh…right. He remembers now. Though it still kind of feels like some kind of weird dream. Speaking of dream, he actually finds his brother sleeping in a chair next to him. Well, that seems like a really uncomfortable position to sleep in. Though Dream had some big eyebags yesterday, so Nightmare is glad that he is getting at least some sleep. 

Nightmare doesn’t know what to really do. He cannot move much and he’ll definitely not wake up his sleepy brother just because he’s bored. So he just looks around, examining the room in more detail and waiting for something to happen. 

Half hour goes by and Dream actually starts to wake up. He slowly opens his eyes and yawns. He then notices Nightmare staring at him. 

“Well, good morning sleepy head.” Nightmare says with a small smile. 

“Oh, you are already awake. For how long?” Dream asks, a little surprised. He usually doesn't get much sleep and ends up waking up super early. Old habit. For how long had he slept?

“Maybe for like 20 or 30 minutes, though I am unsure. There is no way for me in here to check the time.” Nightmare answers. 

“Oh, let me check the time.” Dream pulls out his phone from his pocket and Nightmare looks at him with curiosity. What is that?

“It's about 8 o'clock.” A lot later than he usually wakes up. Dream told himself. Then he notices how Nightmare’s eyes are fixated on his phone. “Oh right. This is a phone. You could say it's a small box that can do a lot of stuff. It shows the time. You can take photos with it and-” Dream then goes on with his explanation and it only ends up with Nightmare asking more questions about it. 

“Well, yeah it can take pictures like that camera we once got to see in the village, but it’s a lot better. Here, let me show you.” Dream takes his phone and stretches his arm to take a selfie. “Smile!” Dream says and takes a picture. Then he opens his galerie and shows the photo with both of them smiling to Nightmare. He is amazed. 

“And it does that together with all of the other stuff? All of it just in one little box?! How?!”

“Yeah, I know it's crazy. I was also shocked when I was introduced to phones for the first time.” Dream says, remembering when Ink tried to explain to him the new technology. Let's say Ink might not have been the best person to do so, because the small jokes he kept making only confused him more. Yeah…it took a while for him to get used to everything. “Unfortunately I don't think I can explain exactly how it works. That's way too complicated for me.” Nightmare just nods in understanding. 

They chat a bit more and Dream shows him more stuff with his phone. Then Nightmare remembers their conversation from yesterday. He frowns a bit. He wants to know-no, he needs to know what happened. 

“Dream?” Nightmare interrupts his brother. 

 “Yeah? Do you want to ask about something?” Dream can feel Nightmare’s anxiety. 

“Yes, I have a question. I just want to know what happened. Why is my memory missing? How many years can’t I remember? Also Where is mom? You said we would talk about this today, remember?”

Dream froze. He hoped Night would forget. He seems to forget that his twin has some pretty good memory. 

Dream sighs. “Yes, I remember… Night as I said a lot of bad things happened and I just want you to be prepared and ready for it…” Dream warns Nightmare. His brother thinks about it for a second. 

“I want to know Dream…“ Nightmare says hoping Dream will give him what he is asking for. 

Dream feels nervous, not sure where to start. “You see…mom is not really… The tree of feelings is gone…It is no more.”

“What?... “ Nightmare's voice gets quiet and shaky from the shock. He cannot believe it. What he just heard couldn't be true… The tree of feelings h̶i̶s̶ m̶o̶m̶ is… gone. His breathing quickens. Dream tries to take control of The situation and tries to comfort Nightmare. 

“What happened? B-but what about the apples? Wouldn't The balance be broken if the tree is gone?” Nightmare questions Dream, still in shock from the revelation. 

“Well… you don't have to worry about that. The balance is fine and still intact. About the apples… they are safe. They uh…” Nightmare gives him a moment.  

Dream sighs. “They are inside of our bodies.” Dream quickly answers and smiles nervously. 

Nightmare just looks at Dream in disbelief, his mouth agape. “They are what?!” Nightmare raises his voice and Dream panics a bit. 

“W-well, I didn't have a choice. If I didn't yo-” Dream stops himself and tries to correct his mistake. “It had to be done or all positivity would be gone. And in your case… I- I am a bit unsure, but I think you didn't have much of a choice either” Dream says avoiding eye contact.

 “You could say the apples kind of replaced our souls? Did we use to have souls? I am unsure right now.” The golden skeleton adds.

At that Nightmare summons his soul and again stares in shock. His soul… his soul is a negative apple now… It takes a minute for him to take that in. To accept the fact. He just stares at it, not sure what to say. Meanwhile Dream starts to get really worried about him, but tries to give Nightmare time to process. 

Nightmare’s thoughts are a mess. Well the villagers used to blame him for all the bad in the world. Though at that time he knew it wasn't really true, because he was just the guardian of negativity. But now… with the fact that what seems to be all the negativity in the world is inside him. 

“N-”

It is his soul. He feels like he can't really deny it now. He really is all the negativity in the world, isn't he?

“Nigh-”

How could anyone love or even tolerate him now? He is the worst in the world. 

E̶v̶e̶r̶y̶b̶o̶d̶y̶ h̶a̶t̶e̶s̶ y̶o̶u̶.̶ 

“Nightmare?!” 

He snaps from his thoughts when he hears his brother's panicked voice. A cold feeling resonates with him. 

“Are you alright? You zoned out for a while and when I called out to you multiple times, you didn't respond.” Dream said with a worried look. 

“I am… fine. It's just a lot to take in. I guess I just needed a moment. Nightmare looks away from Dream. Then notices the tear on his face. Oh… he didn't even relize he was crying. He wipes it away. 

“Well, I think it would be better if you took a small break and we will continue this conversation later-” “No, I am fine. I just needed a moment. I want to hear.” Nightmare interrupts his twin. He doesn't want to delay this any longer. He just wants to know. 

“Are you sure?” Dream asks in a worried tone. At first Nightmare hesitates, not knowing what’s going to be the next bad thing Dream will tell him about. He brushes off his worries. “Yes.”

“Alright, if you insist…Do you remember how I told you that it had been a long time? “ Dream says nervously. His brother just nods. Well, it's better to get it out of the way right now then later. Maybe. 

“Well, it has been about 500 years since then.” Dream told him in a worried tone. 

“You're joking right? Come on Dream this is serious.” Nightmare finds himself in denial. There is no way it has been five hundred years. That would be crazy. But Dream just sits in silence, not really looking at him. 

“You are.. you are not joking.” Nightmare realizes as he looks at Dream. “No, I am not.” His brother tells him with a hint of sadness. 

”H-how?” How could it have been so long? What happened? Why cannot he remember 500 years of his life?! He stops his inner monologue, when he feels it. A cold feeling comes over him. It feels almost uncomfortable. The keyword almost. Something about it feels welcoming… He tries to not think about it and just brushes it off. Though it doesn't really disappear. 

Meanwhile Dream wants to explain to his brother everything, but he stops himself. He can feel the desperation for answers from Nightmare, but looking at his twin's innocent face… he cannot. He cannot muster a word. He cannot tell him. He cannot tell his sweet Nighty that he became corrupted, his body overtaken by negativity, creating a new being hungry for power, that was not his brother anymore. He cannot tell him that he ended up making millions of monsters and people suffer just for power and his own enjoyment. That he killed and tortured thousands of innocent souls. It would break his brother… 

“… One day the villagers got really angry and headed right for you. You ended up eating a black apple to save yourself. Unfortunately the tree got destroyed during this interaction… I am sorry. I was not there when it happened. I arrived too late. I am so sorry.” Dream can feel his guilt crawling on his back. “Because of the tree being gone I had to consume the last golden apple to save it.” Dream then goes silent for a moment. 

“What happened after that?” Nightmare asks in a whisper. It’s a lot to take in. 

Dream thinks about what to say for a minute before he answers. “As a side effect from eating the apples we both had fallen into a long slumber. After 500 hundred years I woke up. You unfortunately hadn't woken up yet at the time. Few years after my awakening the doctors here had worked on a procedure to wake you up too and thankfully they were successful. 

Dream felt like he couldn't look Nightmare in the eyes. It was just a little lie. Nothing more. He is sure that Nightmare isn't fully ready to hear the truth. He will tell him eventually, when the time comes. Dream tells himself.

Nightmare doesn't know what to say. It feels so unreal… He looks at Dream, hoping that he'll say something that will make all of this better, but his brother just looks away. Something about that makes Nightmare's thoughts stop for a moment. A cold feeling deep down is telling him that Dream is hiding something. Something important. But why? Why would his twin hide things from him? They just had a conversation about this problem yesterday, when Dream revealed he knew about the villager's actions. Why wouldn't he tell him?

He tries to make up excuses for Dream, but somewhat he feels betrayed. Why? He is not sure. But The dark and cold feeling inside of him is growing stronger the more he thinks about it. He feels angry. Why does it make him feel so angry? 

“Good morning!” The door opened and a nurse walked in, greeting both of them. Good, that made Nightmare's thoughts shift and his anger is now slowly fading. The nurse just brought Nightmare some medication. 

After the short interaction the mood in the room is still a bit sour and awkward. Dream hates it, but can't think of much to say. Then he gets an idea. A good one. He pulls out his phone and sends a message. When he got the reply he stood up. Nightmare snaps from his thoughts. 

“Hey Night, I'll have to go do something real quick. I should be back in a few minutes. I have a small surprise for you.” 

Dream says as he slowly walks towards the door. Nightmare just nods, feeling a bit curious. Then his twin leaves the room. 

Night just waits for Dream to come back. He stares at the small picture that is hanging across him on the wall. He really tries to not think back at their conversation. Trying to ignore his problems, though it's not working much. 

Finally he hears footsteps behind the closed door and then his brother walks in. Nightmare’s eyelight becomes a bit brighter when he looks at Dream. He is holding a small stack of books. 

“Well, I know you enjoy reading and I thought I could bring some books, so you wouldn't get too bored. I tried to choose the ones that I think you would like. If you will not like them, then I can bring you different ones. Just let me know.” Dream gives Night a smile and brings the books over to him. 

The skeleton with purple eyelights feels really excited, actually forgetting about his problems. Dream feels relieved at Nightmare's happiness. 

“Thanks Dream, I cannot wait to read something new.” Nightmare says as he starts to look at the books. The only books he could read were from the village's library, which unfortunately was rather small and didn't have a lot of books, so he already read them all. It is really nice to finally go through a new story. 

He ends up picking a fantasy book with a big blue dragon on the cover and starts reading it. Dream smile widens at Nightmare's pure cheerfulness. He also then picks one of the books and sits down in his chair. He might not like reading as much as his brother, but it's still quite enjoyable. 

So they both sit in comfortable silence reading. What a nice moment to share and forget about their issues. 

Chapter Text

A few days passed and things have been fine. Nightmare is really enjoying these new books and he almost finished all of them already. He started reading the last one yesterday's evening and let's say he loves it a lot. He would have stayed up all night if it wasn't for Dream insisting for him to go to sleep.

Also the food here is actually pretty good. Some of it is kind of similar to the stuff Dream would sometimes bring from the village for them to share and some is absolutely new to him. When he had pasta for the first time, he fell in love with it. It tastes really good.

Overall he has been feeling a bit better since he woke up. The pain in his bones is not that significant anymore and his head doesn't get dizzy as often as it used to. He still has to take a suspicious amount of pills and the doctor's visits can be a bit annoying, but he actually does feel better.

He also got to meet another new person. Her name is Shyren and she is the doctor, who is in charge of his rehabilitation lessons. She is pretty nice and the time he has to spend with her is pretty quiet and enjoyable. She helps him with his movement. He is now able to sit up without a problem. He was actually able to stand  just fine during their last lesson, but it seems like his body is still not fully ready to walk. Though Shyren says that they will mostly focus on it in their next lessons. He really misses being able to freely move. He's getting tired of being stuck in bed all day.

Just a few minutes ago the doctor's paid him a visit to tell him about the actual problem with his left eye. He was told that his eyelight had suffered some bad damage in the past and he will need some kind of surgery to help with that. Help with it, not fix it. Apparently they will not be able to fully fix his eyesight in his left eye. It will be just slightly better. Well, that's at least something.

So here he is now, sitting in his bed with a book in his hands. At least Dream is keeping him company. Well, he was 3 minutes ago. He again ran off, saying that he had another little surprise for him. Nightmare can’t help, but wonder what it could be. Maybe some more books? Who knows, what his silly brother got for him.

After a minute the doors open and Dream walks in. Though he isn't holding any books. Instead he got a chair with wheels and a small bag hung over his shoulder.

“Night, look what I got! I got a wheelchair for you!” Dream says with an excited grin. “I know that you don’t really like being stuck in your bed in this small room all day, so I thought about it and got an idea. I went and talked with the doctors and actually got permission for you to go outside!” Dream says smiling.

Nightmare looks at Dream and then at the wheelchair. He can't help but admit that he would love to go outside for at least a few minutes. Excitement starts to grow inside his soul. “I can finally go outside?” Nightmare asks, just to be sure. “Yes.” Dream assures him.

Dream then helps his brother to get into the wheelchair. Nightmare let's Dream push the wheelchair, while he looks around, examining the long white halls of the hospital.

Finally they arrive at the exit of the building and venture out. The first sight isn't as exciting as he imagined. There wasn't really much nature around. Though soon after a short while they arrived at the nearby park.

As Dream slowly rolls his wheelchair on the path, Nightmare can't help but genuinely smile. The nice and fresh air, the birds singing, the nature around him… it feels freeing. He really needed to get out. This feels so calming and you can even say it's familiar. He grew up and lived in nature his whole life. Being stuck in a white room, an unknown place with strangers around him made him feel on edge. This park might not be close to what their home was like, but just being outside made him feel so much better.

“You know, I would love to take you somewhere else, somewhere better to some really nice au in the multiverse, but the doctors advised me to try and stay close to the hospital in case of some emergency. But I promise I'll show my favorite and most beautiful places, when things will be better.” Dream says with excitement. It takes Nightmare a second to register what Dream said. “What is an au and a multiverse?”

Oh, he absolutely forgot to explain the multiverse to Night! Dream then goes on to explain the multiverse as simply as he can. They both chat about it as they continue their walk in the park. The multiverse seems so interesting to Night. He never imagined the world to be bigger and beyond.

“Actually you could say I know the protector of the multiverse pretty well.” Dream mentions as they talk about the aus. “Really?” Nightmare says slightly surprised at that statement. “Yeah, I guess. We are not as close as we used to be though and we're now more like friendly coworkers. He is… a very interesting person. We got a bit different views on stuff and someone I am close with isn't really fond of them due to their history, so… yeah, not that much of friends anymore.” Dream frowns at that.

He always tried to see the best in Ink. Probably because he was the first person and friend he had after he broke out of his stone prison. He introduced him to the multiverse and helped him get used to things. But… there were just some things he couldn't overlook. It hurt, when he started to notice his carelessness. It really hurt. Ink was the first person he trusted after the incident and somehow it felt a bit like he was lied to.

Overall he still cares a lot about Ink, but things definitely aren't like they used to be. He understands why Ink is the way he is, but still he feels like he cannot fully look the other way and ignore the problem. He misses the good times, when he wasn't aware of Ink’s views.

Even though Dream tried to hide his sadness, Nightmare notices it and he decides to change the topic. “You previously mentioned that one of your favorite aus is Outertale, right? Why won't you tell me more about it?” Dream perks up at that and starts to tell him all about the beautiful starry sky of that specific au. The mood changes back to a happy one as they continue chatting.

Then they come to a stop. Dream parks Nightmare’s wheelchair next to a picnic bench with a table. Then he puts down the bag that he has been carrying on the table. “I remember that you used to like some of the baked goods from the village's bakery, so I thought you might like this as well.” Dream pulls a small box from the bag with a smile on his face. Then opens the box, revealing two slices of strawberry shortcake. Nightmare just looks at it with curiosity and excitement. It looks really tasty.

Dream puts one of the slices with a small fork in front of Nightmare and takes the other one for himself. His twin looks it over once more and then takes a small piece of it with his fork. His eyelights turn into stars when tastes the cake for the first time. It's so delicious! It is light and sweet, but not too sweet and the strawberries make it taste so fresh.

“I knew you would like it.” His brother proudly states. Though truth be told it was kind of the opposite. When Dream bought the cake, he felt very unsure and afraid Night wouldn't like it. It has been so long and he wasn't sure if he knew his brother that well anymore. He just wanted to get Nightmare something better than the hospital meals, something special. Because of that, Dream felt really relieved when saw how his twin really enjoyed the dessert.

Both of them then finished their food and decided to slowly head back to the hospital. Truthfully Nightmare really wanted to stay longer and felt a bit sad that they were already leaving. “We have to come back for your appointment with doctor Sci, but don't worry, we are going to make these small trips more often. I promise.” Dream says, trying to cheer up his brother.

They slowly make it to the hospital. They enter the building and go back to Nightmare’s room. There Dream helps his brother out of the wheelchair into bed.

The doctor should be visiting them in a few minutes, so they end up just talking about random things to pass the time.

“I see you are almost finished with all of the books I brought you. That's quite impressive.” Dream says. “Well, thank you my dear brother.” Nightmare says, adding a slightly funny tone to it. “Well, you're welcome my dear brother.” Dream adds in the same tone Nightmare used. Both of them then just laugh at their sillines. Dream then promises to bring more books for Night to read.

The doctor then finally arrives. As usually Sci does the typical routine of checking if everything is going smoothly.

“Alright, I see you are doing a lot better and healing nicely. From what I was told Shyren was really happy with your progress in rehabilitation, which is really great. With that it's the perfect time to acknowledge one of the issues that still needs fixing. Tomorrow we will be finally scanning your back to make the perfect prosthetic. This should also help you a lot further into your rehabilitation. Doctor Sci announces, happy to see things going smoothly. “ So tomorrow at 9:00 in the morning doctor Tori will visit you and in a wheelchair will help you to the specialized machine.“ With that the doctor then says goodbye and leaves.

Nightmare after that chats with Dream for a while and then picks up his book and starts reading. The time goes by and the day is turning to night. Nightmare's eye's start to get tired, so he decides that for today it is enough. He puts a bookmark in between the pages and closes the book.  He yawns and tells his brother good night. Dream turns the lights off and tells him good night as well. Then he leaves the room to not disturb him.

Night slowly zones out as he falls asleep. Though a cold feeling slowly comes over him. The next time he wakes up… he is not in his room anymore.

Chapter Text

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Nightmare opens his eyes, but he doesn't see the white walls of his hospital room… He looks around. He is outside, but the sky is bloody red, the grass looks almost dead and there is an extremely uncomfortable negative aura in the air. Way too negative. 

Where am I? Nightmare asks himself, a bit concerned. He hears voices a bit further away from him. He can tell that they are angry, very angry. This only makes the fear in his soul grow. He slowly takes a few steps back. His legs are shaking. But when he takes one more step, he bumps into something. He jumps up from how startled he felt. He quickly turns around. Then he finally realizes where he is. Oh… he's home. 

He is facing the tree of feelings. His mother. But… it is not like the beautiful tree he remembers. No… Almost all the leaves are gone, the apples are only black with no gold in seight. The tree looks dead. What happened?! 

Nightmare's panic is rising. His breath gets faster as he hears the voices get louder and closer. He turns his head around and sees a crowd coming towards the tree. There are many familiar faces he wished he would never see again. The villagers. 

He started to panic even more than he already was. Why is this happening?! Where is Dream? Why is he here? He starts to tear up. Nightmare wants to just curl up on the ground and cry. The villagers were surrounding him, yelling insults and threats. He doesn't know what to do. He cannot run anywhere and there is no way of defending himself against the whole village. He is terrified and his whole body seems to be shaking out of fear. The only reason why he is still able to stand is because of the tree of feeling’s he is leaning on. They are getting closer.

Then a familiar cold feeling runs through him. Suddenly he hears a deep voice. But… it doesn't belong to anyone around him. It's like someone was talking within his head…what? 

“You need to get stronger.” the unknown person whispears to him. What does that mean? Nightmare is confused. Then he notices it. He is holding something. He looks at his shaky hand and realizes that he has a black apple in his hand. 

“Eat it.”  Night hears the voice say. What? No! “ You need to eat the apple. It will make you stronger.” B-but… “ Do you want to die?” He freezes at that question. He looks up from the apple and finds the angry mob so much closer. They are holding axes, knives, pitchforks and pretty much anything that could be used as a weapon. Nightmare feels absolute terror. He doesn't want to die. 

“Eat the apple. If you don't, then they will kill you mercilessly. There is no one to save. You need to get stronger.” The voice is even more insistent this time. Nightmare once again looks down at the apple in his hand. It feels wrong. It feels very wrong. But… does he even have a choice. Tears are running down his face. He doesn't want to do it. But he doesn't want to die either. 

“Eat it.” And he does. He takes a bite out of the dark apple. The taste is weird at first, but then a surge of energy goes through him. It… it feels nice. He then finishes the whole apple. The feeling of his magic being stronger is somehow comforting. 

“That's not enough. You need to have more or you won't survive. You need to be stronger.” He can only agree with the voice. He is not strong enough yet. He picks up another apple. Though he stops for a second. Something deep inside him is telling him this is extremely wrong and he should stop…But the fear of getting slashed and beaten until he is just a pile of dust is stronger. He takes a bite out of the forbidden fruit. From that moment on his fate was sealed. 

He ended up in a vicious cycle. He kept eating more apples. The feeling of his magic made him feel wonderful and powerful inside. He couldn't get enough. He still needed more. He started to drown out everything around him and only listened to the encouragement of the deep voice. He already ate so many, the juice is dripping down his chin, his tears were replaced with dark liquid. Cores of black apples are liening all around him. But still he couldn't stop. He needs more. 

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He takes the last bite. There are no more of the dark fruit. He could hear the voice laugh in his head. Then he finally snaps out of his trance, when he hears someone yelling his name. But it is not just someone. 

He quickly turns around. He sees his brother trying to get through the front line of the angry crowd. Dream looks so scared. He needs to do something. 

Before he can even think about what he wants to do, there is an extreme burst of pain in his back. It is the most painful thing he ever felt in his life. It was so anguishing, that he screamed out like never before. Something destroyed a part of his spine and went through his back. Four slimy tentacles ripped through his bones. He fell on his knees, crying from the torturing pain. Something made its way up his throat. Before he knew it, he was throwing up a black substance uncontrollably. It felt like something was taking over his body. Is he dying? 

For a moment he could actually hear Dream screaming for him. With the little strength he has left, he musters up a few last words. 

“P-please, d-don't forget w-who I used to be.” His shaky voice is very quiet and he isn't sure if Dream even heard it. Then his body goes numb… 

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But he is still awake… he just cannot feel his body. Everything is very dizzy, but he is conscious. He can see how the first villagers go to attack him. His body then moves on its own. The new tentacle goes through the attackers in a blink of an eye, slicing them in half. Truly it was a gruesome sight. Suddenly the anger turns to fear and everyone starts running away. But that didn't help them. The new tentacle-like limbs are swift and fast, killing anything in sight. What followed up was a massacre. So much blood, remaines, corpses... He has no control. ‘He’ starts laughing like a maniac, but it is not truly him… 

His head turns to the tree of feelings. Night feels dread build up inside him. ‘He’ walks closer to the tree. Then the tentacle goes through the wood, chopping down the tree in an instant. Nightmare screams at that, but nothing can be heard. Why is this happening? Why is he doing this? 

“N-Night?”

He hears a very shaken up voice. His soul skips a beat. It's Dream. He is standing there crying, absolutely terrified with a few bruises on his body. Suddenly something golden in his brother’s arms catches his eye. It's a golden apple. The last one. Oh, no… 

His body springs into action. A tentacle grabs Dream by his neck and slams him into the ground. His twin yelps from pain. Nightmare screams with all his might, pleading for something, someone to stop him. He tries to move his body with all his will. Nevertheless he is powerless. His body won't listen to him. He can only watch. He can only watch as his little brother is being strangled, sobbing and begging Nightmare to stop. 

“Nightmare, please-”

_________________________________

He wakes up and sits up in his bed. His breath is stuck in his throat and cold sweat is running down his skull. He is panicking. His soul is beating so fast that it feels like it would jump out of his body at any moment. Tears start to spill. His breathing only quickens. 

“Night?”

“Night?! What's going on?!” Suddenly Dream is right in front of him. The golden twin recognizes that Night is having a panic attack and puts his own feelings aside to try and calm  his brother down. 

“Shhhh, everything’s fine, you're fine.” Dream says as he gently puts his arm around him. “You're okay. There is no need to panic.” Dream says in a calm tone. 

Dream's words actually work and Nightmare’s breathing starts to slow down and he begins to relax. A few minutes go by with Dream telling his brother soothing words for him to settle down. Nightmare finally clams down, taking in his surroundings. He realizes he is back in his room in the hospital and Dream is right by his side. Everything is fine. He sighs from relief. It wasn't real. The dream wasn't real. R̶i̶g̶h̶t̶?̶ 

“What happened? Was it a bad dream?” His brother asks him with a worried look. Nightmare just nods. 

“Do you…do you want to talk about it? Dream asks Night, worried about him. Nightmare opens his mouth, but he cannot seem to find the words. He only shakes his head. He feels too tired to talk about it. H̶e̶ d̶o̶e̶s̶n̶'̶t̶ w̶a̶n̶t̶ t̶o̶ t̶h̶i̶n̶k̶ a̶b̶o̶u̶t̶ i̶t̶.̶  

“Okay… “ Dream wishes to help Night,but he won’t push him if he doesn't want to tell him. They sit in silence for a minute.

“Did I wake you up? I am sorry if I did.” Nightmare quietly mumbles with his voice being a bit hoarse. “Oh, don't worry about it. I am just a light sleeper. Anyways I am gonna get you a cup of water, cause you seem like you need it.” Dream replies to him. Then the skeleton gets up and leaves the room. Not long after, he comes back. He offers the cup to Nightmare, who gladly drinks it. 

“You shouldn't be sleeping in that chair. It looks really uncomfortable when you do.” Dream didn't expect him to bring that up. “It's alright, really. It is not that bad and besides I can be right by you if anything  happens” Bed is for sure more comfortable, but Dream has already slept in many different and strange places, so it doesn't bother him so much. 

“Then why don't you lie next to me. The  bed is comfortable and there is enough space for both of us.” Nightmare says as he moves more to the right, making space for his twin. He is not only offering the option because he thinks it’s not good for Dream to sleep in a chair, but also because he kind of misses falling asleep and waking up with his brother by his side. 

“Well, I don’t think the nurses and doctors would like that.” Dream tells Nightmare, but in response he gets a look from his brother that clearly says: ‘do I look like I care?’ “Okay, okay…” Dream cannot argue and climbs into the bed next to Nightmare, who seems happy with him by his side. Due to it being still very late into The night, they slowly drifted back to sleep cuddled up next to each other. 

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Nightmare groans. He blinks a few times to adjust to the light that is coming from the window. His head feels heavy. Great, he is having a headache right when he wakes up. That’s just a nice way to start a day. He tells himself sarcastically. 

He tries to clear his fuzzy mind and remembers waking up the previous night… Oh, wait. Where is  Dream? Nightmare says in his head as he realizes his brother is not laying next to him. 

He then hears someone talking behind the door. Though it's way too muffled for him to understand. After a few minutes the door swings open and Dream walks in. He is looking into his phone as he is mumbling something incoherent under his breath. He looks kind of annoyed and frustrated.

“Dream?” His brother jumps from surprise, when he addresses him. O-oh! You're already awake, Night. I didn't even notice, sorry.” Dream puts on a smile, but The purple eyed skeleton can still see slight frustration underneath it. 

“Did something happen?” Nightmare asks his twin. “Huh? What do you mean?” Dream replies. “You are frustrated. What happened?” Dream hesitates a bit before he answers. “Well… you remember me talking about the protector of aus, right?” Night nods. He called me just a minute ago about some troubles with some aus and asked for my assistance. But he can be so childish sometimes and I can't tell if the situation is serious or it's just something absolutely stupid again. And your appointment for your prosthetic is just in an hour and I don't even know for how long I would be occupied and I don't want to leave you alone for such an overwhelming thing.” Dream says the last part more quietly. He knows that Night feels uncomfortable when unknown machines are used on him. He wants to be there for his brother in any way possible. He doesn't want to repeat past mistakes. 

Truthfully Nightmare would prefer his twin to stay with him during the appointment, but… He understands that Dream has his duties and other people might really need his brother more than him right now. “It's alright, Dream. I get it.” Nightmare says. “Night, I could maybe-” Dream tries to speak, but Nightmare stops him. “It is not that big of a deal. It's just an appointment and there might still be someone who really needs your help. And if not and it’s actually something stupid, then you might still arrive back on time.” Despite Night's words, Dream can still tell his brother isn't a fan of the situation. 

“I guess…” Dream sighs. “I promise I will get back as soon as possible. Sorry.” He is glad that 𝖭𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍mare is understanding, but he still feels really guilty for leaving. 

They then say their goodbyes. Dream creates a glowing golden-like portal and goes through it to the other side. Nightmare is now alone in the room. He sighs. He is not angry at Dream. Just a bit frustrated and nervous.

Half an hour later a nurse pays him a visit to check if he's awake. As the time goes by and Dream is nowhere to be seen, Nightmare figures the situation was actually something serious. At 9 o'clock doctor Toriel arrives with a wheelchair to pick him up. She helps him in and on their way they go. Nightmare fidgets with his fingers as she pushes him through the white halls. She tries to make small talk, asking him how he is doing, what he likes, etc. 

Finally they arrive at the scanning room. He can feel his anxiety riese as he sees the big machine. The other two doctors are in the room as well. They go on and explain what he needs to do and overall the process. Then Toriel again helps him on the desk that is part of the machinery. He lays down and lets the experts do their thing as he tries to calm his mind and not overthink it. After a few minutes they're done and Nightmare is relieved. 

Doctor Toriel then asks a nurse to help Nightmare to his room and give him his medication, because she needs to get to another patient. So the nurses push the wheelchair out of the door and a few steps on their way she stops and excuses herself. “Oh my, I am so sorry Mr.  Nightmare. I just remembered you got prescribed  a bit of a different medication today.” She says apologetically. “ I am going to get right across there to get it and be right back. Please just wait for a minute for me.” She says as she parks his wheelchair in a place where no one would bump into it. She then leaves to get him his pills. 

As Nightmare is waiting he can feel someone staring at him. He slowly turns his head, noticing two other nurses in The corridor not that further away. They look the other way when they notice him staring back at them. He turns his head back. But then he hears them whisper to each other. He can't help but try and listen to their conversation. 

“Do you think it's really him?” One of them whispers. “Yeah, I heard it from Nancy the other day, though it's actually crazy to see him for real.” The other one replies. “I mean he looks so different.” Are they talking about him? It kind of seems like it, but Night doesn’t really get it. 

“Why is he even here? I mean he is a horride criminal.” “Yeah I don't get it much either, but I heard it has to do something with Dream.” Wait, what do they mean criminal? Are they really talking about him? Nightmare asks himself. 

“Like I know Dream is all about trying redemption and stuff, but this is Nightmare we are talking about. He is literally The embodiment of all negativity. He murdered so many people and who knows how many suffered because of him.” … What? Nightmare body freezes. What do they mean? Why? What-how? He has so many questions and thoughts going through his head. He feels extremely confused. 

Suddenly his nurse came back with the meds, snapping him from his shocked state. “I am sorry for the inconvenience.” She apologizes to him. “Are you alright Mr. Nightmare?” She notices his expression and asks him worriedly. “I-I am fine.” He says, trying to hide his distraught feelings. So they continue their way to his room. The conversation between the two nurses replayed in his head the whole way. He couldn't get his mind off of it. 

After they got back to his room, the nurse helped him into bed, gave him his pills and left. He is now just sitting there, staring at the wall right across him. He is trying to rearrange his thoughts to help understand what just happened. After a few minutes of just associating, he remembers something. His dream… should he rather call it a nightmare? 

Dream previously said he turned to stone after he ate an apple,but is it really what happened? In his dream it was a completely different story. Yeah, it was just a dream, but why would he even dream of something like that? Was Dream telling him everything? He was acting a bit weird during their conversation about his memories. Was Dream lying to him?

…Why would his brother lie to him? Why would he hide things from him? He said he wouldn't. What would be Dream’s motive to hide things from him? Doesn't he trust him?! Why doesn't he trust- 

His inner monologue stopped, when he felt something drip down his face. He puts his hand on his cheek and when he looks at it then, he is met with black-stained fingers. Huh? It's the black liquid again… It's leaking from his eye. He sits there for a second, just staring at his hand. Then finally reaches out for the tissues that lay on the table next to his bed. He wipes the black substance off of his face and hands. 

Was this supposed to happen? Probably Not? Should he call a nurse? No…he doesn’t want to talk to anyone right now. Though there was a bit of a different question lingering in his mind. Why? Why was he feeling like this? Why does he feel so angry? 

He sits in silence, alone with his thoughts. He doesn't register the noise behind the door. Suddenly it opens and Dream walks in. 

“Hey Night, I am back! I am so sorry that it took me so long and that I didn't make it in time for your appointment. It was really important and they really needed my help, so I couldn't leave sooner. Later Ink also wanted to keep me around for longer to annoy me, but I escaped. Heh. Still I promise I make up for that time-” As Dream rambles on he notices how silent Nightmare is. As he looks at his brother, he realizes that something is really wrong. 

“Night? Did something happen?” Dream asks his brother in a very worried tone. Meanwhile Nightmare doesn't even look up at his twin, he just keeps staring into his lap. He has so many things on his mind and he cannot decide if he wants to just spill everything out or keep it all in. So he just stays silent. But something about his brother's presence makes him feel agitated. 

Dream starts to feel even more concerned for his brother. He has not seen him act like this at all. It's really scaring him. “Has something happened at the appointment?” The golden skeleton asks, hoping his brother would answer. This time Nightmare shakes his head, but doesn't elaborate. 

“Well, did someone bother you? You can tell me-” 

“Did you lie to me?” Nightmare's quiet voice stops Dream. The golden skeleton looks at the other in confusion. “What do you mean-” Dream tries to speak but Nightmare interrupts him once more. “Did you lie to me? Answer the question.” 

The coldness in his brother's voice shocks Dream to his very core. He can feel the negative feelings in the air. Fear starts to build up deep in Dream’s soul. He doesn't know how to answer. “N-Night, Can you please tell me what this is about? I might be able to answer you if you explain better…“ Dream says quietly. Nightmare clenched his fists as he hufs from frustration. 

“You said that I was turned to stone after I ate the dark apple. Is that really what happened?” Nightmare asks in an annoyed tone. Meanwhile Dream just stares at Nightmare. He figured it out. How? Dream isn't sure, but what he is sure about is that he screwed up. He stays silent for a few seconds, thinking what to say to his brother. Though Nightmare grows impatient. You lied, didn't you?! Why would you lie to me about my life ?! 

He says, almost yells angrily. Though there is something broken behind that anger. “I am sorry I was trying to protect you-” “Protect me from what, huh?! You literally hid from me a chunk of my own life! Did you lie to me about other things as well?! What part of my life is still a lie, Dream ?" Nightmare screams at his brother, tears starting to pour. Dream can feel his own tears start to build up as well. The hatred coming from his brother was suffocating. “Night, please calm down-”

“No! I am not going to calm down! I have every right to be angry ! And why would I even listen to you anymore?! You are just a filthy liar!” Nightmare screamed in anger. Now not only tears were running down his face, but a thick black liquid as well. 

Nightmare’s words were like knives stabbing his soul. But ache wasn't the only thing Dream felt… He felt fear. Something about the way Nightmare said it, struck fear into his soul. But not the fear of concern…  but the paralyzing kind. It was so long ago he felt something like that. He starts to panic on the inside even more. 

Dream tries to calm him down once more and reaches his hand out to him. “Brother, please-” Though Nightmare is having none of it. Nightmare grabs Dream’s arm tightly and yells at him. “Shut it! Just shut it. Have you not even listened to me?! You are a dirty liar.”  Dream yelps as Nightmare grabs him. A burning feeling builds up in his arm. He makes a sound out of pain and immediately asks for his brother to let go. Surprisingly, Nightmare actually loosen his grip and Dream retreats his arm. Before Dream can say anything, Nightmare starts to suddenly vomit. A black substance crawls its way out of his throat. 

At that very moment Dream freezes. He now feels like he's 6 years old again, standing in front of a dying tree and watching as his brother slowly becomes corrupted, bloodthirsty monster. 

Suffocating noises snap Dream out of his trance and he quickly grabs the small bin and calls out for a nurse. He holds his shaking brother as he vomits into the trashcan. The nurse, after coming into the room and seeing what is happening, goes and calls the doctor.

Meanwhile, Nightmare has only one thing on his mind. And that's to clear his throat. Finally, nothing is forcing itself through and the suffocating feeling is gone. He breathes as he sobs. He feels exhausted and tired. The voices around him become slowly muffled and his vision starts to get blurry. He feels so drowsy... he closes his eyes. 

Nightmare then passed out cold. 

Chapter Text

Dream sits quietly right in front of his brother’s room in the white hall. The doctor's told him to wait outside while they handle the situation and find out what was wrong. They said they will come back to him later. So he just sits there, feeling like shit. He is still shocked by what just happened. Everything was going so well… 

He nervously waits there with his head overtaken with worry and sorrow… It feels so unreal. Like a nightm- no, a bad dream that he never woke up from.

He snaps back to reality, when his phone starts ringing. He pulls it out of his pocket and looks at it. Incoming call. He stares at it for a minute and then he finally answers it. He hears a very familiar voice from the otherside. “Hey Dream.“

“… Hey Cross” He says, though his voice unexpectedly cracks up a bit. Cross picks up on the different tone. 

“Is everything alright? Did something happen? You don't sound too good.” Cross tells him with a slight worry.

Dream sighs. He knows that his partner can tell when he tries to hide or avoid something. It doesn't leave him with much of a choice. “Um… yeah, you could say something happened. I-I…” He finds his words stuck in his throat. Dream’s mind is brought back to that horrible fight he just had with his brother. The thought of it makes him tear up all over again. “I-I mess-ed up, C-Cross. I messed up r-really bad.” Dream says, sobbing. 

On the other side Cross gets really concerned. He notices the distress in Dream’s voice and tries to calm him down. Though he then decides that this shouldn't be handled over a phone call. 

“You know what, I'll be there in a minute.” Cross lets him know as he abandons whatever he was doing at that moment and goes to grab his jacket. “Cross, you don't have to-” 

“Nope, you sound like you are in need of a big hug, so I will be there as soon as possible.“ Dream wants to argue more, but he gives up in the end. “ Okay… thank you Cross.”

“No problem, sunshine.” The monochrome skeleton then ends the call and with the help of a portal gets into the Medicaltale, where Dream is staying. Not even a few minutes later he finds Dream sitting on a bench in one of the long hospital halls. 

The first thing he does is give his boyfriend a big hug. Exactly how he promised. He holds Dream as he sobs into his shoulder, offering his support in his time of need. 

“Would you like to tell me what happened?” Cross asks, trying to find out more information about the situation with Dream now being a bit more calmer. Dream nods in reply as he lets go of Cross and both of them sit down on the bench. 

“Everything was great. Nightmare was recovering well. We talked things through, we had such a great time together and it was so nice and all and I finally bonded with my brother after so long, but… I screwed it up. I screwed up…When he asked about all of what happened I panicked a bit and-and I tried to not really talk about it, but I couldn't avoid it forever and I just didn't know how to tell him.” Dream started to talk a bit faster. “My brother is nothing like him and it just felt cruel to even compare them and I just ended up lying and somehow he found out and he was so angry and and-” “Whoa, slow down. Just breathe it out, okay?” Cross says with a soft tone with a hint of worry. Dream listens and slowly breathes in and out to calm down. Then he continues. 

“I ruined it all over again. I messed up my relationship with him back then and now I am doing it again. I am scared that he won't trust me anymore…That I would always be a liar in his eyes” Dream says with a saddened voice. “He said it himself. I am just a dirty liar .”

Cross’s soul feels heavy as he hears his boyfriend say these harsh words. He hates seeing him so devastated. “Don't say that… “ Cross takes the golden guardian's hand and squeezes it gently. “You made a mistake, but you meant good… And I am sure your brother was just caught up in the moment and didn't mean it like that.” Cross tells his partner as he strokes his back. 

Well… he is not sure about the last part. He only knows the ‘corrupted version’ of Nightmare. The only thing he knows about the present Nightmare is only from what Dream told him. And as much as he trusts his love with his whole life, he… isn't really sure how much he wants to believe that this Nightmare is a completely different person. Through the years he spent with Dream, he learned that the guardian liked to sometimes make things seem a bit better than they actually were. It’s most likely some kind of comfort mechanism and truthfully he can't blame him for that. But knowing that and all the stuff past Nightmare did to Dream (and him) with now also learning about his outburst that made his partner cry, made him feel very untrustful towards the dark guardian and he cannot help, but wonder how much of Dream’s stories is true. 

Of course, he wouldn't really tell his concerns to Dream. His boyfriend is not in a good state right now and already has enough on his plate. Nevertheless he also has to admit that he has not met this new Nightmare yet, so it might be way too early to judge. He is just worried. 

There is a long pause of silence. The quiet moment with them leaning into each other is quite comforting. Dream truly feels like he doesn't deserve such a supportive and caring partner like Cross. N̶o̶t̶ a̶f̶t̶e̶r̶ e̶v̶e̶r̶y̶t̶h̶i̶n̶g̶.̶  “Thank you, Cross.”

“For what?“ Cross turns to Dream with a questioning look. “For everything.” Dream answers. He has never been so vulnerable with his feelings with nobody else before Cross. His boyfriend has been his biggest support through all of this and he is very thankful for that. 

Suddenly their sweet moment is ruined when they hear the door open next to them. Dream jumps right off the hospital bench when he sees Sci walk out of Nightmare's room. 

“Is he alright, Sci? How is he doing?” Dream asks the doctor nervously, but trying to keep himself calm. “Don't worry, he is fine. Though he is still asleep. I have to admit he scared us a bit. Almost thought that the treatment against his corruption didn't fully work.” Sci tells the guardian with a nervous chuckle.

“So… what caused him to pass out?” Dream asks to hopefully find out what exactly happened. “Ah yes, we aren't entirely sure, but we checked his stats, went over a few possibilities and we came up with a theory of what most likely went wrong.” The scientist lets him know and Dream listens carefully. 

“Well, as you know, Nightmare has been given strong magic suppressants since he started the treatment and after most of his corruption was gone we had to lower the dose. But we couldn't make a way too big of a change, because his body already got used to the magic being highly suppressed, so we had to take it slow to not cause any possible issues. So we have been giving a low dose of these pills for these past few days. But since he has been healing well, we decided to switch the strong suppressants for weaker ones. The medication was prescribed for him to take today after he had his back scanned.” Sci explained.

 “Did the change of pills somehow result in him losing consciousness?” Dream questions. “Yes and no. The new suppressants weren't supposed to cause any problems, but we had not counted on a few things. You mentioned to me that you got into an argument with him and he got really angry, am I right? Sci asks. “Yes…” Dream answers, looking at the ground. 

Sci then continues. “His magic seems to react to negative emotions and can make them even stronger. But that appears to apply not only to others, but himself too. With his magic not as suppressed, also assuming that he doesn't really know how to control it, plus something triggering a lot of negative feelings in him most likely caused him to lose temper easily, which only overwhelmed him more. That most likely was behind him throwing up his own magic and then his loss of consciousness. But as I said it's just a theory and we aren't hundred percent sure. Also could have happened because of something different and then there is still a possibility that the healing treatment was not as successful as we thought. But that right now seems least likely.” Sci finishes his explanation. 

Dream takes a minute to process everything. He sighs from relief. It seems like it is not too serious and he can stop overthinking it too much. It was a result of just very bad timing. But still that doesn't really change what happened. He thanks Sci for the explanation and his help. 

“… Can I see him?” Dream asks the scientist. “Of course.” Sci replies and lets him go into Nightmare's room. Dream steps into the room with Cross tailing behind him. His brother is lying in the hospital bed with machines attached to him to keep an eye on his well-being. He walks right up to the bed. His brother looks peaceful as he rests. 

Dream feels sad and ashamed. He can recall their argument and how angry Nightmare was. He can feel dread growing inside him as he realizes what kind of conversation they'll have to have after his twin wakes up. He will have to tell him the whole truth. Avoiding  and most importantly lying was absolutely out of the question. He learned that the hard way and he doesn't want to make the situation worse than it already is. As much as he doesn't want to talk about it, he understands that it's something very much needed. 

He snaps from his thoughts when he feels someone put a hand on his shoulder. He then turns to Cross, who gives him a reassuring smile. The golden skeleton gives his partner a small smile in return. At least he got an amazing boyfriend, who will stand with him in these tough moments. 

He will try his best to make it right, to try and repair the damage he had done. Hopefully everything turns out alright. He just has to wait for Nightmare to wake up.

Bonus art!

(I finally figured out how to put images here,so have some old sketches I drew.)

Chapter Text

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Nightmare slowly opens his eyes. He groans as the light hits him. He feels tired and dizzy. He can hear the machine next to him beeping. All that can be heard is the repetitive noise. He looks around. He is in the hospital, in his room, just with some new machinery by his side.

As his mind starts to clear up, he starts questioning his situation. What happened? Why does he feel so drowsy? Why did they attach him to some new equipment?

He tries to change his position and sit up better, but he struggles to do so. His body feels weak. He has been working so hard in his rehabilitation lessons and now it's like he is back in the beginning. He huffs in frustration.

He tries to think back to the last thing he remembers. It begins to slowly come back to him. He remembers what he heard in the hallway, then him feeling confused and betrayed and after that Dream came back and… Oh, dear.

Nightmare’s eyes widen at the realization. He snapped. At Dream. He never did something like that to his brother. He has been angry at Dream in the past, but he never yelled at him with such hatred. He would just scold him or give him silent treatment. Even at the time of his jealousy and resentment, he would sometimes just make a bit mean comment, but he never went that far. He was always the calm and collected one…

He can now clearly recall all the horrible words he threw at his twin. He regrets all of them. How did it even happen? He remembers being very angry. Why was he so angry? He knows that the idea of Dream lying really stung. He still feels a bit betrayed, though why would he snap like that? He remembers feeling THAT angry only at the villagers or the unfairness in his life, but Dream? Nightmare sighs. Guilt starts to fill his head. He was rightfully mad, but bringing his brother to tears like that was way out of line.

Suddenly the sound of the door snaps him out of his thoughts. He turns his head and is met with Doctor Toriel entering the room. “Oh, I am glad to see you awake, Nightmare.” The goat monster says with a soft smile. Nightmare also quietly greets her. Then she goes on and asks him a few questions about how he feels and all that.

“Your brother has been really worried about you. I am sure he would love to see you. But I thought it would be better if I checked with you first if you would like for him to visit.” Toriel lets him know. Nightmare looks away and thinks about it. He doesn't really want to confront the uncomfortable situation, but maybe it would be better if he had it quickly behind him then try hiding from it. He sighs and agrees to let Dream see him. Afterall he doesn't want to give his brother the impression that he is very mad at him and doesn't want to see him at all.

Toriel then leaves the room to get Dream, who is currently talking to her colleagues. A minute goes by and the door finally opens again. The golden skeleton walks in and carefully approaches Nightmare. He greets him with a nice hello and how do you feel. Then he takes a seat in the chair next to his bed. There is an uncomfortable silence between them for a moment. Both brothers feel unsure about how to approach what happened yesterday. Dream then finally finds the courage.

“I am sorry.” The golden guardian breaks the silence. Nightmare looks at him and can see remorse and regret on Dream's face. “I… I didn't mean to lie. I just didn't know how to tell you. I am so sorry.” Dream says with a quiet voice.

“... I am sorry too. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that.” Nightmare apologizes. “It's okay, Night. Your anger was justified.” Dream adds. “No, it wasn't justified. My actions went way too far. I was mad and then it got somehow out of control and I just snapped and I am sorry for that. You didn't deserve that.” The dark guardian utters. Dream feels thankful for the apology, but on the other hand he thinks he doesn't deserve it.

The golden skeleton sighs. Here comes the hard part. “...You want to hear the truth, I am guessing.” He says, getting himself ready for what he'll have to say.

“Yeah…” Nightmare answers. “Okay, but I have to warn you beforehand, that it is not pretty and I just want you to be ready for that.” Dream lets him know and he nods in response. He feels like he would rather hear the cruel truth than live a lie.

Dream takes a minute to think of what he'll say and then he starts. “On The day of the incident I was going to help a very sick child in the village. For that I have borrowed a golden apple from our mother to hopefully cure the deadly illness. While I was on my way I got an extremely bad feeling that something was very wrong. I abandoned what I was doing and ran immediately to our tree. Out of nowhere the sky darkened and a crowd of the village residents started to form around the tree. When I finally arrived, all of the apples… They all were black. I am unsure how it happened.

When I pushed a bit through the angry crowd I was able to see you standing in front of the tree. You held a black apple in your hand… then you bit into it. I tried to get closer to you through the mob, but then someone pushed me to the ground and the crowd was still going, keeping me from getting up as they stepped on me. When I was finally able to get off the ground and push myself further I was horrified. You picked more of the dark fruit and ate it. I tried to yell out to you, but you didn't hear me and kept consuming more. A black substance, the magic from the apples started dripping from your body. I tried to get closer and push through more, so you could hopefully hear me. I was able to finally get to the front and… then you started throwing up the dark liquid and screaming in pain. Four tentacles sprouted out of your back and a dark liquid started to consume you. The magic of the black apples slowly corrupted you. I tried to get to you, but was pushed back. Though I could still see what was happening. It was horrifying to watch.

Then…” Dream takes a moment to breathe. He felt like he would tear up at that very moment. It was painful to remember that incident. He brushes it off and continues. “I didn't know what got into you, but…you slaughtered everyone. Anyone getting near those tentacle-like limbs ended up dead. It was terrifying. Y̶o̶u̶ w̶e̶r̶e̶̶ t̶e̶r̶r̶e̶f̶y̶i̶n̶g̶.̶.̶.̶ “ He didn't find it in him to say the last part.

“This…” Nightmare interrupts his brother, who looks at him in surprise. Night mind is overtaken with feelings of déjà vu. “This… I've already seen this. This all happened in my dream… “ Nightmare whispered to himself with a shaky voice. He starts to remember the terrible nightmare he had. Was that… a memory. He then realizes what happened next in his dream and is praying that that part was just his mind messing with him. Meanwhile Dream looks at him with a worried expression.

“What happened after that?” Nightmare asks in a quiet voice, feeling actually scared of what comes next. “... I tried to approach you, but you immediately set your eyes on the golden apple and tried forcefully to get it from me.” Dream answers. Before he can continue his brother interrupts him. “Did I hold you with the tentacle to the ground by your neck?” Nightmare asks. “… yes. ” The golden guardian answers.

“You remember?” Dream hesitantly looked at Nightmare with a slight confusion. “No, not really. I had a bad dream in which pretty much everything you told me so far happened. I thought it was just a weird nightmare and didn't even think that it could be real…” Something that last sentence hit hard. It really started to dawn on Nightmare. All of it really happened. He… Nightmare didn't want to think about it. It didn't feel real. It didn't feel like him. But there was this horrible feeling of familiarity in the back of his mind. Though the question of what followed up afterwards and how did he get where he is right now still remains.

“W-what happened after that?” His voice sounded a lot more anxious than he expected. Per Nightmare’s request the golden skeleton continues.

“Well you were after the apple and I needed to protect it. It was the last positivity in the whole multiverse. I fused with it, making it my soul. Though there is something I didn't lie about. After the golden apple was inside of me with the high level of negativity all around me and already being in a close to death situation…I have turned to stone and stayed like that for 500 years…“ Dream says as he looks away. It was weird being trapped like that. He was switching from being conscious to falling into a deep slumber. Of course times when he was awake were the hardest. He couldn't do anything, but think of the past events. Regrets and sorrow clouded his mind constantly. He remembers begging for h̶i̶s̶ b̶r̶o̶t̶h̶e̶r̶ someone to help him.

Dream quickly pushes these memories back deep into his mind. He needs to focus now and try to not break down. “I am not sure what exactly was going on with you while I was trapped, but from what I heard it wasn't something good. You wanted more negativity to gain more power. So you didn't miss the opportunity to make others suffer. You have also decided later on to get a team to cause as much negativity as possible in the multiverse. The more souls suffered, the more power you held. You weren't even afraid to cause deaths, when it was convenient.” The golden guardian continues with anxiety and sadness visible on his face. Meanwhile Nightmare just looks defeated. He's having a really hard time processing everything. How could it ever come to this?

Dream slightly panics. “W-well I didn't and still don’t really know in what way the corruption changed you. I don’t think it was really you. At first when I broke out of the stone I just thought that it was still you deep down and maybe I could make things right again if I tried hard enough. But fight after fight, trying to save the AUs from your grasp, the image of you started to fade. With every loss and death I started to recognize you less and less to the point where I thought it wasn't even you deep down. I started to get ideas that you were really gone. That maybe you were never there and your life already ended when you ate the black apples.” Dream explains as his voice starts to get hoarse with every word. He can feel his tears slowly building up, ready to spill at any moment.

“B-but I was given hope. Now I got you back. The negative apples that caused the huge change in you, so if there was a way to separate them from you, then maybe you could be back to normal. And Sci actually found a way to do that. Well, it wasn't perfect, but we didn't have many options and we needed to at least try. There unfortunately wasn't any other way than to destroy the apples to really extract them from you. That's why they left one of them still in you, so the balance wouldn't break. But look, now you are here.” Dream said, trying to give his brother a comforting smile with tears dripping down his face. Though Nightmare just sat there with his own tears running down his cheeks, lost in thoughts. The reality of it started to really get to him.

“... I’ve k-killed people, I've hurt so many… I've hurt you. This… Why? I-I am such a h-horrible monster. H-how can you j-just… act like that? How c-can you be so kind and forgiving to something l-like me?” Nightmare says in a whisper with a broken voice. He really became what they said. But even worse… How can everyone around him act like isn't the worst being in the whole multiverse? As he looks at his hands he can only think about all the harm he has done. All the lives he must have taken. He just didn't want to die. But that wish only costed more innocent souls. Nightmare is at this point absolutely shaking and zoned out.

But sudden pressure makes him snap from his thoughts. “Please don’t talk about yourself like that. You are a kind and beautiful soul that was just dealt with so much. It wasn't really you.” Dream said as he brought Nightmare in a hug.

The dark guardian just sobbed into his brother's shoulder. He kept quietly apologizing for everything he had done while he was corrupted. Meanwhile Dream tried to explain to him how it wasn't his fault. He didn't want his twin to blame himself for something that was out of his control at the time.

After a few minutes just hugging Nightmare finally calms down. Nightmare then just lays there feeling tired and numb. His eye sockets sting from all the crying. Dream stays by his side in silence for a few minutes. Then he tries to ease the mood a bit.

Nightmare actually feels slightly thankful for that. He is too mentally exhausted to say much, but some of the light jokes made him actually have a little laugh. Though things feel different…
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At the end of the day Nightmare falls asleep. But Dream finds himself unable to. He feels drained, but has so much on his mind. He sighs as he looks at Nightmare. He had talked to the doctors. Nightmare will be assigned a therapist and also a magic professional to help with control. This was planned ahead already, but he was supposed to start after he at least was done with his rehabilitation. Though it seems for the best to start earlier.

Chapter Text

The few past days have been a bit strange for Nightmare. He cannot stop thinking about his past. Even when tries to distract himself, it always comes back. He feels like he can't even enjoy his books that much anymore. 

He remembers being quite happy that the villagers won't bother him ever again. Dream trying to spend every moment with him was also nice. Truthfully he would like to go back to that…But he just doesn't feel that great lately. It doesn't even help that Dream is tiptoeing around him. His brother might think that Nightmare doesn't notice it, but he can tell. Dream acts now so careful with him. Probably worried he'll say the wrong thing. Is his brother scared of him? Is he afraid that Nightmare will lash out again? These thoughts have been plaguing his mind a lot lately.

He now also has a therapist. They are supposed to be someone he can speak to about his problems and feelings. Though the issue is that he doesn't know how to talk about that with someone he just met. How is he supposed to trust someone he barely knows? He didn't even trust Dream with his issues back then. 

So most of the sessions are spent with a very awkward atmosphere. The therapist is clearly trying to be understanding and reassure him that they are not a threat and he can freely bring up his problems with them. But it is not that easy. 

—

Nightmare sighed from relief when his therapist finally left the room. It went like it always does. Awkward. As he already expected, a few minutes later the door opened again and Dream entered the room. The golden skeleton then greeted him with a smile and tried to initiate a conversation. 

“So how was your therapy session today?” His brother asked. 

“The same as usual. Nothing much.” Nightmare answered and Dream slightly frowned at that. “Well, maybe the next one will be better.” The golden guardian said, trying to stay positive. “Maybe” Nightmare mumbled. 

“Anyways I have been thinking. It has been a while since you've been out. We could go for a walk in the nearby park, what do you say?” Dream asked, hoping that it would lift Nightmare’s mood. The dark guardian blinked in surprise. “Yeah, that would be nice.” Night quietly answered. Dream then went right away to get the wheelchair.

A small smile crept up on Nightmare's face as his brother pushed him through the park.The fresh air, the light wind, the birds singing. He missed this. 

As they slowly went down the path he caught a glimpse of small kids. Not that further away from them were a bunch of children running around. They seem to be playing tag. As he watches them it reminds him of himself and his brother. They used to be just two little kids playing games, teasing each other, exploring the world around them. Such good memories… A small frown appeared on his face. These times are over, aren't they? They aren't children anymore. It's weird to think about it. It's like he was six years old just yesterday and now he is supposed to be a grown up and Dream as well. 

He was suddenly snapped from his thoughts when they came to a stop. He looked around and realized they arrived at their favorite spot that is in the more peaceful part of the park. Dream then sat down on the small bench that was next to his wheelchair. Both of them just sat there, enjoying nature in comfortable silence. 

“This is pretty nice, isn't it?” Dream broke the silence and looked at him. “...Yeah, it is.” Nightmare responds with a small smile. His mind has been a mess lately and having this quiet moment is just comforting. 

Dream can't help but smile at Nightmare’s happiness. His brother has been pretty down lately, so it's nice to see him so relaxed. Though there is also something else he would like to do. 

“I think I should finally give you this.” Dream said as he reached into the small bag he brought with him. Nightmare looked at him curiously. The golden skeleton pulled out a golden crown with an engraved moon. “I found it and I 

 thought that you should have it back.” Dream said as he gave it to Nightmare. 

The dark guardian carefully held it in his hands as he looked it over. He wondered where it had gone. After he heard about his past, he just figured he lost it or got rid of it. Nightmare thanks his twin and puts it on his head, where it belongs. It feels almost nostalgic. 

As they sat there, a thought crossed his mind. It's something he has been thinking about, but didn't know how to bring it up. “When you were talking about what happened in the past you said something about a team that I had. I was just wondering… what happened to them?” Nightmare asked. Dream looked at him surprised. “Well, a lot of the AU residents wished for them to go to a very secure prison and stay there for the rest of their life and I can't blame them. But considering that they came from AUs with dark backgrounds it was decided that they'll be staying in an asylum to get help and hopefully be able to have a normal life one day.” Dream answered. Nightmare just responded with oh, okay and silence followed after. 

“Nightmare, I just wanted to say that… What happened in the past might have been really bad, but there is still so much ahead of us. No matter what went down years ago, it's not the end of the road. We might not know what the future has prepared for us, but I just wanted you to know that I'll always be there for you.” Dream said with a slightly sad, but hopeful expression. 

Nightmare stared at Dream for a minute. Suddenly a small tear ran down his face. Something about what his brother said really resonated with him. Before he knew it, more tears spilled. He was now crying, but also quietly laughing. Dream also started to ball his eyes out with a small chuckle as he reached out for Nightmare. They felt somewhat relieved at that moment. Both of them now hoped for a better future. 

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—————Somewhere else—————

A portal opened in an abandoned AU. A skeleton stepped out, carrying a small plastic back. He started to slowly make his way through the ghost town. He already had made this journey many times and knew exactly which way to go. 

Soon he arrived at his destination. He stood in front of a huge building with a high security system. He made his way over to the front gate as the colorful flame burning from his broken skull moved in the wind. He walked up to the guards and handed them a piece of paper that stated he had permission to go inside. The guard looked him up and down, then checked the paper and let him through. 

Behind the gates were waiting more security measures. So he showed the paper again and then they checked if he wasn't carrying anything dangerous with a metal detector and all that. He had gone through this process many times, so he was used to it, but it was still indeed very annoying. They had also confiscated the small plastic bag and the items in it that he brought with him. He had to sit there for a few more minutes, before they finally returned it, when they figured out it was safe. 

Finally he walked through the front door. Once again he presented the document to the monster at the front desk. She had a quick look at it and then let him know which room and floor he was supposed to go to. He thanked her and made his way down the long hallway to the stairs. 

This place always gave him this uncomfortable feeling. There were security staff and a lot of cameras everywhere, watching his every move. Though any of this is not surprising, since this is an asylum for criminals. 

He went up the stairs to the second floor and walked down the corridor. Finally he arrived at room 207. He took a deep breath, lightly knocked and entered the room. 

Inside was a skeleton sitting on the bed in the corner of the small room. As he closed the door behind him, the skeleton in all white clothes turned to him. A small smile appeared on their face as they recognized him. 

“Hey Killer.” 

“Oh, hey Color. Took you long enough. Almost thought you weren't coming today.” Killer said in a joking tone. Though there was a glimpse of sadness in his words. 

“Nah, I wouldn't miss an opportunity to visit you. Just had to stay with security staff for a bit longer, because I actually brought you a small surprise.” Color announced as he showed Killer the plastic bag he brought with him. The skeleton with black tears stared at him with disbelief. “Whoa, have you brought something from like outside?! That's like super forbidden! How did you even sneak it in?” Killer questioned. “ I didn't sneak it in. I had actually requested permission about 3 weeks ago and after some arguing they approved. Color said with a slightly stern tone, feeling offended that his dear friend would just assume that. “Anyway, here.” Colour said after he pulled out a chocolate bar out of the bag and offered it to the other. 

Killer stared at it with his mouth open. “Is that real chocolate?!” Killer asked in disbelief and quickly snatched it from Color’s hand. “Yeah it totally is. Just thought you would deserve it after having such a hard time.” Color replied. Killer stiffened up at that and his heart shaped soul slightly shifted. 

The skeleton with colorful flame was immediately ‘oh shit’. “Sorry, are you alright? Should I get somebody?” Color asked, slightly panicking. “No, just give me a minute.” Killer immediately replied as curled up a bit. 

After a while his soul finally stopped shifting and Killer sighed from relief. Then he started to chat with Color like nothing happened, while he nibbled at his chocolate. 

Color felt concerned. Even if Killer was joking around and acting all happy, he knew that the other wasn't doing too well. This place was eating him up inside. The isolation wasn't doing him too good, but on the other hand Killer was way too dangerous to just let out or interact with other patients. He was very unpredictable and unstable. His soul could quickly change stages anytime he might be a bit disturbed and he could easily go from calm to bloodthirsty.

It is the reason why he couldn't visit the two previous times. Killer apparently snapped and attacked his therapist. The stages of his soul were constantly changing and it was too unsafe to let anyone around him at that time. 

Though Color still feels guilty. Killer wouldn't be here if it wasn't because of him. 

He still vividly remembers the day he actually was successful at convincing Killer to finally ditch Nightmare. Of course that goopy octopus didn't like that and tried to hunt them down a few times. Though that surprisingly didn't last that long. He heard that he was having troubles with Star sanses at the time. Well, that was one big problem out of the way. But soon the Stars started to bother them as well. They tried to get Killer to an asylum. The first times he told them to go fuck themselfs and  after that he and Killer fled. 

Then one day, when it was just him and Dream, they ended up talking in a more civil manner. The guardian tried to explain to him why it would be a good idea to get Killer into a mental hospital and again tried to persuade him to agree to it. As always he declined and left. But it stuck with him. He just kept thinking about it. Killer indeed needed help. Killer's mental stability was a mess and Color had to admit that he already found himself at least once in a near death situation because of Killer. Color was no specialist and the cruel truth was that he probably wouldn't be able to give his friend the help he needed. In the end he agreed and convinced Killer to go with it. 

Seeing Killer now, he wasn't sure of his decision anymore. Though there was not much he could do than hope that this place would actually help his friend. 

“Color?” Color snapped back to reality when he heard Killer's voice. 

“What? What were you saying?” Color nervously asked. The skeleton with black tears looked at him kind of annoyed. “I asked if you wanted a piece.” Killer said referring to his chocolate. 

“Oh. No, thanks. I can get chocolate anytime I want compared to you. Keep it, because I don't know when I'll be able to bring you something again.” Color said. “Works for me.” The other skeleton replied as he put another piece of chocolate into his mouth. 

“Anyway, will ya bring me a knife next time?” Killer casually asked. Color just stopped and stared at him. “Are you serious?” The skeleton with the colorful flame questioned in disbelief. “Yeah, I kinda miss stabbing people.” Killer responded. 

“Killer no.” Color said sternly in a warning tone. Though the other seemed unfazed. 

“Killer yes.”

Chapter Text

Nightmare slowly sat up, feeling a bit nervous, but excited as well. They finally finished the prosthetic for his back and are here to properly put it on. 

“Alright, I'll be adjusting it on your spine and ribs. I just need you to try and straighten up a bit more.” Doctor Radium said and then tried to help Nightmare to fix his posture. After that, the doctor carefully put the prosthetic in and made sure it would stay in its place.

It felt weird and kind of out of place. Though Nightmare had to admit that his back felt a lot more stable. Hopefully the strange feeling would fade away. 

“It seems to be holding up just fine, so our work is done here. It might feel a bit uncomfortable for a while, but you should get used to it soon. If you encounter any issues with it, then let us know. Also doctor Shyren will be visiting you later today for another rehabilitation lesson. With your back stabilized, it should be a lot easier from now on.” The doctor told Nightmare and left the room. 

The dark guardian then turns to Dream, who is all smiles. “So, how do you feel?” His twin asked. 

“Like always, tired.” Nightmare bluntly responded. 

“Brother, you know what I mean. How does the prosthetic feel?” Dream pouted and Night smirked.

“I guess it's fine, just a bit uncomfy.” Nightmare said as he reached his back with his hand to get a better feel of the new addition. 

Both brothers then talked with each other some more. During their conversation Dream decided to bring up something that had been on his mind for some time. “So uh… I have been thinking a bit more about the future lately and I had a talk with your doctors. If everything goes smoothly from now on, then you might be released not too long from now. That's pretty good news.” Dream said with a hopeful smile. 

Nightmare looked at his twin with a surprised expression. Will he finally be able to leave this place? “Heh, I cannot wait for that.” Nightmare told Dream as a smile crept up on his face. 

“Yeah, me too. Though I also would like to discuss with you about what will happen after your release. So because our AU is…the way it is, we cannot just go back there. But I have a small house in a place called the Omega timeline and I thought it would be perfect for you to live there with me. You'll get your own room and we can paint it whatever color you choose and decorate it in any way you want!” Dream said with an excited grin. Meanwhile, Nightmare found himself quite happy as well. It’s still sad to think that his home is gone, but living with his twin sounds like a good idea. Maybe the future could really turn out a lot better. 

“But before that I think there are a few monsters I would like for you to meet. There is someone in particular I really wanted to introduce to you for a while, but just couldn't find the right timing, I guess. It is pretty important, because they kind of live with me as well, so… you'll see each other a lot.” The golden guardian nervously explained. 

Well, that makes Nightmare not so happy anymore. Someone else would be living with them. That's just great… Nightmare is definitely not enthusiastic about sharing his living space with a complete stranger. Why is someone even living with Dream anyways? He questions.

Meanwhile Dream was trying to stay positive, but he could easily imagine all of the scenarios of how badly it could go. As much as he loves his boyfriend, he is well aware of Cross's trust issues. He knows his partner still thinks of Nightmare as a possible threat, but hopefully their meeting will fix that… or not and it will only get worse from there. Though he has been postponing this meeting long enough and it just needs to happen. 

The golden guardian pushed his thoughts back deep into his mind and tried to focus on another problem of theirs. “Anyways there is still something I need to talk to you about. So because of what happened, you kind of gained a reputation around the multiverse. A pretty bad reputation. Thankfully you now look nothing like before, but I feel like it would be for the best if you changed your name, just to be safe. Of course, you can choose whatever you would like.” Dream said. 

Nightmare doesn't know how to really feel about that. It’s true that he isn’t necessarily  fond of his name. Over time, mostly after the villagers began to bully him, he really started to dislike it. Though he would be a liar if he said he still didn't feel attached to it. After all it is his name. A name his mother gave to him. It felt kind of wrong changing it, but also illogical not to. What would he even change it to? 

“Can I have some more time to think about it?” Nightmare asked, feeling unsure. 

“Sure, don't feel pressured. Take as much time as you need. I am sure you will come up with something perfect.” Dream reassured his brother. 

“Oh! Almost forgot. I brought you a new book to read! A friend had recommended this one and I think it could be pretty nice.” Dream changed the topic and handed Nightmare the book to entertain him. The dark guardian already read so much during his stay, that some people could have thought he must be already sick of it. Though Nightmare feels the opposite. Reading is such a great and fun distraction for him. 

––––– Later in the evening ––––– 

Dream had said his goodbyes to Nightmare and left the room. He wasn't spending the evening at the hospital today. He has a meeting to arrange. 

The golden guardian made his way down the white halls to the exit of the hospital. Outside he made a glowing portal and walked right through it to the other side. His feet landed on a soft grass of a peaceful place. The Omega timeline. 

He slowly walked down a small path that was going in a direction away from the populated area. At the end stood a cozy house. He pulled out his keys and unlocked the door. As soon as he entered, a smell of food hit him and his whole body started to fully relax. Finally home. 

Quick steps echoed through the house. A monochromed skeleton walked into the small hallway. “Heya, finally made it home I see.” Cross said, a smile appearing on his face. 

“It's good to see you too, Cross.” Dream said and gave his boyfriend a small peck on the cheek. 

“You made it right on time, just finished making dinner.” Cross said and led Dream to the kitchen. There he prepared two portions of some quick pasta he made. He recently got a bit more time on his hands and decided to try and maybe learn to cook something. He is still not that great at it, but can at least make something edible.

They sat down at the table to eat. “Hm, it tastes really good.” Dream said, appreciating the work his love put into making the dish. Cross chuckled at Dream’s words. 

“Nah, you're just saying that to be nice.” Cross responded, thinking that his partner is just being kind. 

“Nuh uh, I do really like it.” Dream mumbled with food still in his mouth. 

“Thanks.” The monochromed skeleton responded, blushing lightly. Maybe he is really getting better at cooking after all. 

“So anything new at the hospital?” Cross asked in curiosity.

“Actually yeah, Nightmare finally got his prosthetic to fill in the hole in his back. After his rehabilitation session, he told me that it really makes things easier now, so that's nice.” Dream then went on talking about his day in a cheery tone and Cross listened patiently. 

“Anyways, how was your day?” The golden skeleton asked the other. 

“Nothing much. Just hung out with Epic at his place.” Cross said. Then there was silence for a moment. 

“Umm…I think I need to discuss something with you.” Dream said and Cross quickly picked up on the slight tension. He looked at Dream with a bit of concern visible on his face. 

“…Sure, what is it?” Cross asked and smiled nervously. Oh dear, what does he want to talk about?! ...Is Dream breaking up with him? 

“It’s about Nightmare.” Dream answered. Oh. Cross breathed out in relief. That might not be something he would like to talk about, but sure is better than what he first thought. 

“I think it would be great for you two to finally meet.” Dream said with a hopeful look on his face. “I know that you still don't view my brother in a good light, because of what happened in the past, but he is not that person anymore.” The golden guardian said, feeling a bit concerned about his partner's response.

“I… I am just worried, Dream. What if this is just another mind game of his? What if he is playing the ‘I am just innocent and confused’ card to get to you. I don't want you to get hurt by him again.” Cross argued, trying to prove his point. 

Dream gently took Cross’s hand. “I know that you are concerned, but please just trust me. Please, Cross. That is really my brother and not the terrible monster you know. I just need you to please give him a chance, okay?” Dream pleaded with his boyfriend. Both Cross and Nightmare are very important to him. It would be terrible if they couldn't even get along. 

Cross paused for a moment, thinking.“...Alright.” The monochromed skeleton agreed. He will not let his guard down, but he'll try to at least be friendly. 

Dream smiled happily and got up from his seat to give his love a hug and a kiss. Both of them then discussed the details of the upcoming meeting with Dream warning Cross not to try anything stupid. 

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––––Earlier that day somewhere else––––

Killer has to say he was not feeling the best today. He just felt so mentally drained. That's why he was really thankful for Color's visit. He found himself listening to the other skeleton talk and complain about something irrelevant. Truthfully it brought him some kind of comfort. Him and Color hanging out made everything seem more… normal. It made him at least for a moment forget where he was and even who he was. It felt like they were just two ordinary friends talking, joking and nothing more. But that unfortunately was not the reality. He knew that. He was a crazy murder stuck in an asylum after all. Though he still very much appreciated the few peaceful minutes of normality. 

But there is still a pretty big question on his mind. “Do you by any chance know how the others are doing?” Killer interrupted his friend. Color looked at him confused. 

“You know. Horror, Dust… Nightmare?” Killer said, though not sure if he wanted to hear about the last one. He has a lot of mixed feelings about Nightmare and he already isn't in the best mood to go through another emotional rollercoaster. But there indeed was the feeling of curiosity.

“Oh… Well, from what I heard Dust and Horror are stuck here somewhere as well, but unfortunately I don't have any information about them and I doubt the workers here would tell me anything if I asked. You know, patient privacy, safety and all that. And Nightmare… I am not really sure. Maybe he's here as well or in a prison somewhere. Who knows. They didn't release much information about him. Just that he won't be a problem anymore…” Color explained. 

“Oh, okay…” Killer responded, looking at the ground. He was hoping for something more.

Killer had to admit he kind of missed his old buddies. Sure, they were annoying assholes, but it's not like he wasn't one as well. That's also probably what brought them closer together. They would talk about stupid things, try killing each other, show off whatever they stole from their missions and stuff like that. They were just three fucked up skeletons working for a sadistic boss with huge anger issues. 

Though Cross didn't count. The monochromed skeleton was very closed off from them and didn't even stick around for long either. S̶o̶m̶e̶t̶i̶m̶e̶s̶ ̶h̶e̶ ̶w̶i̶s̶h̶e̶d̶ ̶h̶e̶ ̶g̶o̶t̶ ̶a̶w̶a̶y̶ ̶a̶s̶ ̶q̶u̶i̶c̶k̶l̶y̶ ̶a̶s̶ ̶C̶r̶o̶s̶s̶ ̶d̶i̶d̶.̶ ̶M̶a̶y̶b̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶n̶g̶s̶ ̶w̶o̶u̶l̶d̶ ̶h̶a̶v̶e̶ ̶t̶u̶r̶n̶e̶d̶ ̶o̶u̶t̶ ̶b̶e̶t̶t̶e̶r̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶h̶i̶m̶…̶

Chapter Text

Nightmare took a deep breath, firmly gripped the walker and carefully stood up. His legs still felt quite weak. Though that wasn't anything new to him. He slowly took a few steps forward, holding onto the walker for support. 

“You are doing very well.” Doctor Shyren said with a smile as she watched Nightmare walk around the room. Then with her guidance, Nightmare did a few more small exercises to hopefully strengthen his legs. 

“Would you like to try it without the walker today?” Shyren asked. She had seen the huge progress the dark guardian made so far and thinks that it might be time to move to another stage of his rehabilitation journey. 

Nightmare thought about her question for a minute, but in the end nodded in agreement. He put the walker to the side and slowly let go. His legs lightly shook as he tried to take a few steps forward. Unfortunately it didn't take too long for his legs to become too unstable that he had to stumble backwards and fall back on the chair. He cursed under his breath. He knows that rehabilitation takes time, but the progress seems so slow. He just wishes he could walk again like any other person. 

“You did good. We will focus more on walking without the crutches in our next sessions and I am sure you'll be running around in no time.” Doctor Shyren said, trying to lift Nightmare’s spirit. Then she ended their sessions. 

“Do you need me to help you to your room?” Shyren asked. 

“No, I am fine. Thank you.” Nightmare quickly answered. He got back in his wheelchair, said his goodbyes and strolled away. 

Truthfully Nightmare is starting to get sick of everyone jumping around him and sometimes treating him like he was unable to do much on his own. Sure, he still feels weak and tired, which is apparently also a side effect of some of his medications, but he is capable enough. 

Finally Nightmare arrived in his room. There, he noticed a paper note laying on the small table. It was from Dream. His brother was just letting him know that he went to pick up that person he wanted Nightmare to meet. Right, Dream talked about that the other day. He just forgot. He sighed in defeat. 

So the dark guardian waited for Dream to return. Overall Night wasn’t sure what to think of the situation and truth be told, Nightmare felt really nervous. What if Dream’s ‘friend’ is like the people back in the village? What if he finds himself in the same situation as before with Dream being blind to the schemes his friends did? Is he going to be on his own all over again? 

Nightmare tried to quickly take his mind off of that. Dream wouldn't do that again, he promised. He just needs to calm down, put a bit more faith in his brother and stop overthinking everything. So Nightmare took a few deep breaths and tried to distract himself. The keyword tried. Before he could even think about anything else, there was a knock on his door. Immediately all the anxiety from before came crashing back onto him. 

Dream then walked in with another skeleton tailing right behind him. “Hello, Brother! I am here with that special someone I told you about. I am really happy that you are finally going to get to know each other.” Dream said excitedly.

Nightmare sat up properly and stared the stranger up and down. They were wearing some casual clothing in black and white. The red and white eyelights looked directly at him with skepticism. Just from the look alone, made Nightmare fully realize that this whole meeting will not go in his favor. 

“Soooo this is Nightmare and Nightmare this is Cross… my boyfriend.” The golden skeleton announced with a nervous laugh at the end. Then strong silence overtook the room. 

Nightmare's mind went blank for a moment. “He's your what now?!” Nightmare asked in pure shock, unsure if he just heard that right.

“…My boyfriend.” Dream responded, still trying to hide his worry. 

“Since when do you have a boyfriend?!” Nightmare yelled in disbelief. That was for sure a surprise he never expected from his twin. Where did he even get this guy from? 

“I guess since a year ago. Though we knew each other for a way longer than that.” The golden skeleton told the other, who stared at him with his mouth agape. 

“You are too young to have a boyfriend!” Nightmare arguered. 

Dream sighed. “I am not… Night, remember. It's been years. I am old enough to date.” Dream said and chuckled. 

Oh, right. He forgot again. Dream is an adult now. Geez, why does it still feel so weird. Still! That doesn't change the fact that he as the ‘older’ brother should have a chance to interrogate this guy to make sure he isn't just messing with Dream! 

Nightmare looks the monochromed skeleton in the eyes and returns the same skeptic glare the other was giving him. “So Cross, I got to know of the multiverse thanks to Dream and I assume you come from a different AU than us, am I right?” Nightmare asked. 

“Yes, that's correct.” Cross bluntly answered. 

“Well would you mind telling me about your AU? Is it perhaps a peaceful place?” Nightmare questioned. Cross glare slightly intensified at that. 

“Night that’s not… Cross, you don't have to answer if-” Dream said, trying to not get into touchy subjects, but Cross interrupted him. 

“It's okay, Dream.” The monochromed skeleton told his partner and turned to the dark guardian. “As for the answer to your question, I am from Xtale and my AU is gone.” Cross said in a not so friendly tone. Cross clearly remembers all the times Nightmare tried to jab at his dead AU. It doesn't matter that he's not corrupted anymore. Cross won't just let him do that again. 

Well, that made Nightmare feel like a total jerk now. But how was he supposed to know that this guy's AU was just gone! He wouldn't have asked him so blatantly if he had known!

“Well, I guess that's something we have in common.” Nightmare told the other trying to somehow fix the situation. Though he didn't have that much success. Can you blame him? He is terrible at social interactions. 

Dream anxiously looked between the two and quickly tried to get rid of the horrible tension by changing the subject. All three of them then talked in awkwardness with Nightmare trying to get to know if Cross had any secret intentions and meanwhile Dream tried to take charge so things wouldn't go too wrong. 

Time went by and the tension between the two skeletons started to slowly thin out. Dream was now talking about some funny (and embarrassing from Nightmare’s perspective) stories from their childhood. Suddenly there was a knock on the door. A nurse opened the door. 

“I apologize for interrupting you. Dream, do you have a minute? Doctor Radium has some quick paperwork he needs to talk to you about.” The nurse said. 

“Sure.” Dream answered and got up from his chair. “I'll be back in a minute guys.” The golden skeleton let the two others know and left the room with the nurse.

Leaving them alone might not have been a smart idea, but he'll be gone just for a few minutes. There is nothing to go wrong in such a short time. Right? Dream told himself. 

Meanwhile the two other skeletons sat alone in complete silence. Until Nightmare decided to break it. 

“So what is your deal, Cross? What is that you want?” The dark guardian asked coldly. He is already tired of beating around the bush. 

“What?” Cross asked him in confusion.

“You know what I mean. It must be so great having the guardian of positivity as your boyfriend, am I right?” Nightmare asked with suspicion. 

Cross gave an exhausted sigh. Not this thing again. “Yes, Dream is indeed a great boyfriend and no, it doesn't have to do anything with him being a guardian of positivity or his aura. Dream is a kindhearted, charismatic, a very beautiful person and I love him for that. There is no other thing that you are so desperately looking for.” Cross answered, annoyed. 

Okay, truth be told, Nightmare actually cringed at someone talking about his brother like that. Nevertheless, despite Cross's words, he still wasn't giving up on his suspicions of the other. 

“Anyways, shouldn't I be asking you that? What is that you hope to achieve with this, Nightmare?” Cross said, glaring at the dark guardian. Now it was Nightmare’s turn to look confused.

“Is it really the truth that you don't remember? Or is this you playing one of your games? Are you just messing with Dream again?” Cross said with venom in his voice. 

“I-I d-don't-” Nightmare wanted to defend himself, but stumbled over his words and nothing more came out. 

“Doesn't matter what you have to say, but let me tell you something. If you hurt Dream again or try anything funny, then believe me, you won't be the one laughing.” Cross told Nightmare in a threatening voice. 

At first Nightmare wanted to defend himself and tell Cross all he thinks about him, but he stopped himself. There is something truthful about what Cross had said. He had hurt Dream in the past. Probably a lot. The topic of what happened during his corruption is something neither of the brothers wanted to talk about anymore.

But sometimes he has nightmares. They are definitely not as vivid as the one he had before their big argument. They are usually just screams, incoherent voices or quick flashes of what must be his past memories he lost. He had recognized Dream's voice in his nightmares more than he would like. 

So Nightmare stayed silent. He felt like he had no argument at the moment. He just looked away from Cross. Both of them sat in complete silence. 

A minute went by and the doors opened with Dream walking in. The golden guardian immediately sensed the extremely sour atmosphere in the room. The first thing on his mind is ‘Oh dear, what happened.’

When Dream asked what happened, he was told that it was nothing by both of them. He tried to get rid of the suffocating tension, but failed miserably. In the end he decided that it wasn't worth it and it'll be better if this meetup ends. 

He led Cross out of the room. As soon as the door closed, Dream couldn't help but ask the other. “What happened?” 

Cross sighed in defeat. He couldn't bring himself to look his partner in the eyes. “...Okay, I might have let my emotions get a bit out of control and said some stuff…” 

“Cross! I told you not to do anything stupid!” Dream yelled, but tried to keep his voice down. He felt pretty disappointed in his boyfriend. 

“I know, sorry…“ Cross apologized. Truth be told, he actually did feel sorry. Even though Nightmare seems to be in his opinion still acting suspicious, he could have been nicer. He just wanted to stand up and give Nightmare a warning to not try anything. Though thinking now about the dark guardien's reaction, he might have been not right about him. 

“We are going to talk about this later at home, okay?” Dream said and Cross nodded in response. The golden guardian just doesn't feel like discussing it more right now, because he still has to talk to Night anyway. 

Dream opened a glowing portal and let Cross leave. He then went back to Nightmare's room. As soon As he entered, Nightmare gave him a disapproving look. 

“I don't like him.” Was the first thing that came from Nightmare’s mouth. Dream frowned at that.

“Night, do you want to talk about what happened?” Dream asked, but Nightmare shook his head. 

“Okay, that's fine, though you can still tell me about it later if you change your mind. Also I am sorry that the meeting didn't go well…Though I am sure he didn't mean whatever he had said to sound so mean. He can be a bit untrusting of others and can act stupid or even harsh sometimes, but he has a good heart. Please, just try to be a bit patient with him. Though on the other hand if he ever acts mean to you, then let me know. I am going to get it through his thick skull to be nice to you.” Dream told Nightmare and chuckled at the last. 

“And don’t worry. I'll talk to him later anyway and berate him for today.” Dream reassured his brother. That made Nightmare smile. 

. 

. 

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––––– meanwhile somewhere else –––––

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. 

. 

A skeleton sat in the corner of an empty room. His arms had been strapped to his jacket and he had been trying to get his limbs free for a good while, but stopped after he calmed down a bit. Now he was just huddled up in the corner, muttering under his breath. 

Occasionally there could be heard a quiet beeping through the silent room. The sound was coming from the metal bracelets on his arms and legs. It was signaling that the skeleton tried to use his magic and could possibly act hostile.

He just sat there muttering to himself. “No…no, no, no… I won't let them. Not again. Not ever… not Paps.”

“They think they can just lock me up and take everything from me, hah. I'll make them pay for everything.” The skeleton chuckled. 

“They tell me they want to help, to fix me, but truthfully I haven't felt this mad and crazy in years.” The skeleton laughed. Then his eyes of the mix of red and blue looked up from the ground to his side. 

“Don't worry Paps, I am not going to let them take you away from me. No matter how many different tactics they'll try. It doesn't matter.”

Chapter Text

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. 

. 

Sound of something being smashed and broken could have been heard. Then there was yelling. A lot of angry yelling. Though Nightmare couldn't understand much. Everything was so mouthled and blurry. 

But there was someone standing in front of him. Unfortunately, for some reason he couldn’t make out much. They were just a blurry figure. Though he could tell that they were standing weirdly and were also staring at him. Are they hurt? Was he the one yelling? 

Before Nightmare had a chance to focus more, his eyes got tired and he reluctantly closed them. 

Then he woke up. He was back in his bed. It was just another weird nightmare. Probably just one of his lost memories as well. Another one he doesn't really understand. 

He sighed and rubbed his tired eyes. It was clearly still very dark outside, so most likely he just woke up in the middle of the night. He should just go back to sleep, otherwise he'll feel tired the next entire day. 

So he prepped up his pillow, closed his eyes and slowly drowsed off back to sleep, hoping that the rest of the night would go without a hitch. 

—

Night woke up the next day to a bright light shining right at him from the nearby window. He yawned as he stretched his arms and legs. It didn't even take too long for Dream to barge in and wish him a loud good morning. At least he brought him some breakfast. 

Things overall had been going pretty okay. He finally got the promised eye surgery. He had to wear an eye patch for four days. That was fun. Though his vision in that eyelight seems to be less distorted, so that's good. 

Dream also had arranged a meeting with a magic professional. Apparently His doctors are planning to change and lower his medication that restraints his magic. Better control of his powers would probably come in handy. He definitely doesn't want to snap like last time. 

“Are you sure you don’t want to take the wheelchair?” Dream asked, but backtracked, when Night gave him an annoyed look. 

“I mean it’s not like I think you’re not capable enough. I have seen your amazing progress, but I just don't want you to hurt yourself in case of complications.” Dream told his brother. 

Nightmare sighed. “I am sure. Don't worry, I'll be fine.” Nightmare said. He understands that Dream is worried, but he needs to stop relying on his wheelchair and stretch his legs with his walker a lot more often.

Both them slowly walked through the long white hospital halls to another part of the building. Soon they arrived in a surprisingly much more spacious room. There they were greeted by another skeleton. 

“Heya, good to see ya, Dream and nice to meet you … Nightmare, right? My name's Fia.”

This was supposedly his new magical specialist to help him get a better control of his powers. Though he seems not as professional as Nightmare expected. He actually looks quite childish. 

“I am really happy and thankful that you agreed to my offer, Fia.” Dream said with a smile. 

“No problem, my friend. Just the amount of paperwork was a bit annoying.” The skeleton complained. 

“Yeah, really sorry about that. We just need to ensure my brother's safety.” Dream explained. 

“No need for apologies, friend. Afterall, favors for favors. Am I right?” Fia said with a grin.“

Okay, the more this guy talks the more Nightmare is convinced that he is not qualified for this in any way possible, which feels slightly concerning. Dream, where did you find this guy? Nightmare questioned in his head.

Fia then actually noticed the dark guardian’s concerned expression and as if he read Nightmare's mind, he said: “Aw don't worry. I am qualified enough to teach and train you.”

Despite Fia's reassurance, Nightmare had his doubts. 

“Alright since your medication hadn't been lowered yet and there is not much we have to get under control yet, so this will be more of an introduction session. Soooo tell me now about how you feel your magic currently under the suppressants.” Fia said with a curiosity slightly showing in his voice. 

“Well, I am not really sure. I guess I can feel other's negative emotions, but I cannot seem to tell what they exactly are most of the time. Also from what I can understand some of my magic might leak out of my eyeholes, nose or mouth when I feel strongly about something in a negative way.” The dark guardian explained. 

“Good to know. Anyways, I heard about the outburst you had some time back. Wanna tell me more about it? It could really come in handy.” Fia let Nightmare know. 

The dark guardian sighed in defeat. He already had to talk about this enough in the therapist's office. He doesn't want to go through this topic again. It's something he just wants to forget, not be reminded about it. 

The next hour was then spent with Fia asking more questions that Night either didn't really want to answer or didn't know what to answer. Unfortunately for the dark guardian, their conservation was also followed by few ‘unfunny’ comments and jokes from Fia. (Dream, how dare you even chuckle at those horrible puns?!) 

Nightmare felt relieved as it finally came to an end. The brothers made their way back to Nightmare’s room. 

“Night, are you tired?” Dream asked out of nowhere.

“Not really. Why? ” Nightmare questioned. 

“Well, I thought we could go for a walk if you feel like it.” Dream answered with a slight excitement behind his voice. 

“To the park? Yeah, I think that would be nice.” Nightmare said with a smile. 

“Not to the park though.“ Dream corrected his brother. Nightmare then gave him a confused look. 

“I was thinking that I could take you to a different AU this time. What do you say?” Dream asked. 

“Yeah, that could be pretty cool.” Nightmare said, actually trying to contain the excitement building in him. He still hadn't visited any other AUs yet (well, except the one, where he is staying at right now, but that doesn't count) So it really made him curious about what everything is out there and how diverse the worlds could possibly be.

“Alright, let's go then.” Dream said and created a glowing portal. 

“You go first.” The golden guardian said and gestured towards the portal. Nightmare gazed at it with wide eyes. Even as amazing as it was, he couldn't help, but feel a bit nervous. He looked at his twin, who gave him an encouraging smile. So he took a deep breath and stepped into the portal.

Dizziness and uncomfortable tingling washed over his body as he made his way to the other side. Dream, who went right behind him, quickly caught him before he could topple over. 

“Are you alright? Sorry, I got a bit too excited and forgot to warn you about the possible side effects of going through a portal for the first time.” Dream said, apologizing. 

Night just nodded and he waited for a few seconds until the haziness went away. After that he finally could focus more on where he was. The area around him was pretty rocky and it looked like they were on a mountain maybe. Suddenly his brother tapped him on the shoulder. 

“Look up.” Dream said and Nightmare did exactly that. He couldn't believe his eyes. The sky was full of little twinkling lights. The starry sky of his AU couldn't even be compared to this. 

“It's beautiful.” Nightmare muttered. He couldn't help but gaze at it and admire its beauty. It was breathtaking. 

“Welcome to Outertale.” Dream added with a chuckle. 

After a few minutes of just standing there, they finally decided to start their walk. Nightmare would also occasionally look up to see the beautiful sky as he went. 

A while later they settled on a cliff and lay down to have a great view at the stars above them. 

“So have you thought about your new name yet?” Dream asked as they lay there. 

“I am still a bit unsure, but I guess I have a pick.” Nightmare answered honestly. 

“Oh! Tell me! I need to know!” Dream exclaimed. 

“Okay, okay, calm down.” Nightmare told his brother, who then giggled in response. 

“I have been thinking that maybe my new name could be perhaps Midnight. You know, so I could still keep the nickname Night.” The dark guardian explained. It felt a bit out of place changing his name to something completely different, so he came up with something in between.

“That's clever! I knew you would come up with something perfect! So Midnight from now on?” Dream asked his brother with a sheepish grin. 

“I guess… Though you can still call me by my nickname, Night.” Midnight said. 

“No problem, Night.” The golden guardian responded. 

Both brothers then lay there and talked some more. Dream even convinced his twin to tell him all of his other ideas for the name change. Some of them made him even laugh a little, which earned him an elbow in his ribs from Midnight. 

-------------Somewhere else--------------

Horror was alone at a table in the corner of the room that was filled with chatter. He sat there deep in thought. The feeling of loneliness seemed to be on his mind pretty often lately. Even if he is in a room full of people. 

He used to be restricted only to his room, but recently has been allowed to spend a few hours in the common spaces and join some activities for good behavior. Gardening has become his favorite so far. 

Still even with that the feeling of loneliness didn't leave him. It's true that he didn't really interact with the other patients much. Only exchanging a few words at max. He isn't really interested in making friends or something and others seem to not care about him much either. 

But he missed the old life. Well, at least some aspects of it. He missed playing stupid video games with his ‘friends’. He missed making dinner. Nightmare wasn't interested in dining at the table at dinner time, so they didn't have to eat in silence and enjoy the meal without the constant tension. As expected this freedom at the table turned into chaos sometimes. He also missed spending time with Dust. Damn, he even missed Killer being an idiot. 

He isn't sure where they are right now. Truthfully he was hoping he'll see them here in the common area. But they are not here. At least not yet. Right now he can only hope that they are somewhat okay wherever they are.

Chapter Text

Midnight felt irritated. He had this throbbing pain in his head and everything was just too much. What was the reason behind all of this discomfort? His doctors lowered his magic restraints. 

He never imagined his magic to have such an overwhelming effect on him. Doctors said that the irritation is mostly caused by him not being used to having a stronger magic. After all, they used to be young children before the incident, so their magic hadn't developed much yet at that time. 

Though he never imagined magic feeling this uncomfortable. His body was also kind of tight and itchy. He would also describe it like a lot of energy just got trapped in his body and now wanted out. But that wasn't an option. Overall he felt like he wasn't in control anymore, which made him really nervous and that made the itching only worse, because his magic seemed to respond to his emotions. The occasional mood swings didn't help either. 

Right when he thought things were getting better, it all just got a lot worse. Dream is trying to be here for him, but truthfully all he wants right now is to be left alone. 

“How are you feeling today? Did it get better or is everything still too much?” Dream asked him with a worried expression. 

“Nothing changed” Night muttered and Dream frowned. 

“I think it would be for the best if we paid a visit to Fia, your magic professional. I know you are not really fond of him, but I think it could be helpful.” Dream said. It had been a few days since Night’s magic suppressant medication had been changed and his brother was still feeling unwell. It really worried Dream. 

Midnight sighed. He really didn't wanna go. That crazy skeleton makes Night want to punch him in the face. Though this time he might actually do it. But Fia is one of the only people he knows that could possibly help him right now. As much as he didn't want to, he reluctantly agreed with Dream. His brother then scheduled an appointment for tomorrow. 

—The next day—

Dream pretty much had to drag him to the other side of the hospital to meet Fia. Thankfully Fia didn’t spend long on the pleasantries and they got straight to the point quickly. 

“So you have been getting headaches, mood swings and your body has been feeling tired and itchy?” Fia asked and Night nodded. 

“From what you have described, it sounds like your body seems to not know what to do with its own magic. Of course, that is actually common for monsters that had been on magic suppressant medication for a very long time.Though in your case these symptoms had lasted longer than they should. Might have been caused by your inexperience with magic…” Fia explained and took a minute to think about it. 

Suddenly the silly looking skeleton abruptly got up from his seat, slightly startling Night. “Alright I think the best way to help your magic is to get it out of your system and try out some moves.” Fia announced as he stretched his arms. 

Meanwhile Midnight looked at the other, a bit taken aback. “Wait-wait, do you mean -are you sure? I-I mean…” Night fumbled over his words. 

“What, you're scared to try using your magic, because of that one little incident? You lost control, but that is not the end of the world. Also we can send dreamy boi over here out of the room, so no harm to your brother.” Fia told Night. Dream looked like wanted to protest the idea of leaving, but decided not to say anything. Afterall he wasn't the professional in the room. 

Midnight still had a lot of doubts. Also how can he just look past the fact that he has no idea how to control his magic. “Are you really sure? It feels a bit too soon for this…” Midnight said, looking nervous.

“Nah, you just worry too much. Fia responded shortly, which didn't calm Night one bit. 

“So do you want me to stay or should I leave and wait for you outside? Would that make you more comfortable?” Dream chimed in. Night turned to Dream, who was waiting for his answer. The dark guardian knows his brother wants to support him, but… it really might be better if he wasn't present.

“I think it would be better if you went outside.” Night answered. Dream noded, got up and left them alone. 

“Alright, are ya ready?” Fia asked after a few seconds of awkward silence. 

“I don't know, I guess. What am I even really supposed to do?” Night asked genuinely. 

“The magic wants out, so we let it out. It's not that complicated. Just try to make, for example, an attack or a weapon. Maybe visualizing it in your head might help as well.” The other skeleton explained. 

Night nodded, but still had no idea what to do exactly. He remembered talking with Dream once about his magic and his brother showed him some of the stuff he was able to do. He remembered Dream summoning two daggers. Maybe he could try that? It's a smaller weapon and he'll try just one. 

He lifted up his hand, imagined the dagger and tried to focus. Just a few seconds after something started to form in his hands with a dark glow. It slowly began to morph itself in a knife-like shape. But right when it finally looked like it was supposed, it started to melt. But instead of it just disappearing, it dripped down on Midnight’s hand. 

It felt cold. His magic felt freezing to the touch. Night watched, lost in thought, as the dark liquid covered his hand. Something deep inside told him that he already felt like this before. Like after… 

The sudden realization snapped him back to reality. He quickly began to try and smear the black tar off of his hand as he started to panic. But even as much as he tried ,the dark liquid or the coldness wouldn't go away. Fia quickly went to calm Night down as he carefully sat him down as well. 

“Okay, let's calm down. Don't look at that, look at me.” The other skeleton said, trying to redirect Night’s attention from his hand to something else. “I just need you to breathe and settle down, okay?” Fia said in a calm town. 

Night started to calm down and as he did, the cold sensation began to slowly disappear as well. He glanced back at his hand and the tar was gone. He sighed in relief. 

“Didn’t really expect you to freak out like that. Seems like it's not just inexperience, but some extra trauma too.” The other skeleton chuckled. That comment made Night realize just how embarrassing this whole situation felt. He just had a panic attack in front of his instructor. I mean who wouldn't get upset at a remainder of the worst day of their life, but did he really need to freak out like that?! 

“Don't stress it, kid. Let's just maybe try to find a way that is a bit more simple if possible.” Fia told Night, stopping him from overthinking any further.

“Alright so as you explained to me in one of our sessions. You can sometimes identify what others around you feel if it's a strong negative emotion. Has this improved since your suppressants were lowered?” Fia asked. 

“I guess. I think I can specify it more.” Night answered. 

“Okay, well I once got to know from Dream that he can influence others feelings in a positive way. Something like a ‘positive aura’.Can you do that, but opposite?” Fia asked. 

Midnight looked at the other nervously. “Um, I am not sure. I never tried that.” Night truthfully replied.

“Then let's try it. Hit me with what you got.” The other skeleton suggested and gestured to himself. 

Yeah, Night wasn't too sure about that. 

“Do you really… want me to try to make you feel bad? “ Night questioned, feeling weird about it. 

“Yep, just go ahead.” Fia gave him the thumbs up. 

So Night indeed did try it and it sure did work. He started with something not over the top. Even though the other tried to hide it, Night noticed the discomfort. But Fia, instead of telling him to stop, encouraged him to go further instead. Is that guy not okay or just crazy? Night questioned, but still listened to his magic specialist and made his influence stronger. Soon after Fia finally let him know that it was enough.

“Are you okay?” Night asked, looking at Fia worriedly. 

“Yeah, I am totally fine, just needed a moment to process it.” The other skeleton replied. “Anyways, the important question is how do you feel?” Fia asked. 

Night at first was a bit confused, but then it dawned on him. The slight itching was gone, his head was lighter and his body overall didn't feel weird anymore. It really worked. 

“I feel better.” Night finally replied. 

“Well, that's good to hear. It might not be much now, but it's a start. I think we can end it here. If your magic starts acting up again, then come to me. If not then I'll see you one week later.” Fia said and both of them then parted ways. 

Outside was Dream anxiously waiting for Midnight. As soon as Night walked out of the room, he swarmed with questions from his brother. Dream apparently sensed the strong negativity from him and got really worried. 

Night then gave Dream a quick explanation of how it went, letting him know he was actually doing a lot better now. Dream calmed down and both made their way back to Night's room. Hopefully things will go back to normal from here. 

Chapter Text

It was finally time. Night had a hard time believing it himself too. He felt a bit hesitant, but also very excited. It was really happening. He was finally saying goodbye to this place. He was being released.

Just a few minutes ago the doctors came to do the last check up and everything went fine. It was then officially decided that he could finally leave the hospital. After all, he was able to walk just fine, his magic wasn't acting up anymore and he didn't feel sick in any way. Of course, nothing is ever so simple and he'll still have to occasionally pay a visit to the doctors, attend sessions with his magic instructor and take some pills once a week. But other than that, he was free. 

Now he just got himself out of the hospital clothes and put on the ones Dream borrowed him. Dream seems to favor more brightly colored clothing, but he was able to find Night some simple black t-shirt and sweatpants. Thankfully he didn't have to worry about the size since they are twins. 

After he got dressed, he looked around the room one last time. Truthfully it didn't seem that different from the first time he woke up here those months ago. Even as much as he was happy to leave this cramped up room, it felt weird. Afterall he had spent so much time here that it was like a temporary home for him. As much as he was excited to leave, he also feared what kind of life was waiting for him on the outside. He knows Dream will stand by him and protect him now, but he just couldn't help but be anxious. 

A soft knock on the door snapped Midnight from his thoughts. He then heard a familiar voice behind the door. “Are you ready to go?”

“Yeah, I am coming!” Night said as he quickly grabbed  the last of his books from the table. He gave the white room one last look and finally walked outside. There, his brother was already waiting for him. 

“You got everything?” Dream asked to make sure nothing was left behind. 

“Yeah, I think so.” Night answered, checking the books he took. 

“Alright, then I think we can go.” Dream said, smiling widely after sensing Night's enthusiasm. The golden guardian then made a glowing portal and gestured Midnight to go first. 

After going through, his head got dizzy again, but at this point it didn't surprise him. After a few trips with his twin it seems like the discomfort is because his and Dream's magic don't mesh very well. 

Quickly shaking off the dizziness, Night checks his surroundings. He is standing on a grassy hill overlooking a small town. 

“Welcome to the Omega timeline. A peaceful place for the survivors from broken or destroyed worlds. Thankfully some of these damaged AUs are still repairable, so it's just temporary home for them. But the rest of the poor souls aren't so lucky and have to stay here. Though that doesn't stop them from living a comfortable life. Overtime with the numbers rising a whole city was built.” Dream explained. Night then looked more in the distance to see a lot more bigger houses somewhere further behind the small town in front of them. 

“Though I live here, on the further side, that is a lot less populated. Don't get me wrong, I like socializing, helping people and all that, but after doing it for hours, it can be kind of tiring. So having a bit of privacy and quiet can be really nice.” Dream confessed. For a long time these kinds of thoughts made him think that he was being selfish, but Blue and Cross were able to convince him otherwise. He's really thankful for that. Who knows in what state his mental health would be now if he kept that mindset. 

“Anyways, my house is just a few more steps this way.” Dream said excitedly as he led Night. Soon they arrived in front of a cozy house with a small garden of colorful flowers that decorated the front. Night recognized them from one of the books he read and tried to remember what they were called as Dream got his keys out. After they got inside, Night looked around the small hall. 

Though Night’s smile soon turned into frown, when he saw who greeted them in the hall. Cross. He totally forgot about him. Even if Cross had written him an apology letter (that Dream swore that he didn't force the other to write) he still didn't like the monochrome skeleton. 

They both exchanged quick awkward hello and then thankfully Cross went to do his own thing and rather left them alone. Night was grateful for that. Dream then gave him a tour of the house. When it came to the bathroom and kitchen, Dream had some long explaining to do since Night had a lot of questions about the ‘new’ inventions. 

Finally, they made it to the second floor to Midnight’s new room. Dream with growing excitement led Night into his room. The dark skeleton looked around him in awe. The walls were painted a nice shade of purple,  there was a comfy looking bed in the corner with a lamp on the bedside table and soft chairs surrounded the big window that lightened up the room. That one seemed like a good reading spot. He also had a simple table with a chair, a wardrobe and some shelfs, which already had a few books, but were mostly empty. 

“I know it's a bit lacking at the moment, but I would like to take you shopping soon, so you could decorate it however you would like. Though it would be great if we went tomorrow to at least get you some new clothes to wear, so you don't have to borrow mine.” Dream said and Night nodded. 

Even with the room being a bit empty right now, he likes it. Quite a lot. It was a room of his own. A seemingly quiet place for him to enjoy. It also had a lot of space for books and there were some nice reading spots. Though he is kind of nervous about going shopping. It just brings him paranoia and he still doesn't know how to feel about this town. But since a lot of the people at the hospital were kind of nice, maybe it won't be that bad here either. Hopefully. 

Well, at least he'll have Dream with him… and Cross. Actually living with his brother might be a bit more awkward than he initially thought. 

—— Killer time ——

For how long has he already been in this hell hole? Killer doesn't really know. But his guess is a bit over a year. He might ask his therapist next time if he remembers. 

Color visited him two days ago and it already feels like an eternity until the next visit. He feels so l̶o̶n̶e̶l̶y̶ bored all the time. He is stuck in this room all day with most of the ‘fun objects’ being forbidden. The only interactions he gets is with his therapist or the guards and none of them are fun to talk to. Either he is ignored or pressured into talking about his feelings and all that other personal crap. 

Though today seemed to be a bit different. Two guards opened his room, which was unusual since they only do during meal time and that was already an hour ago. What was even more surprising was them leading him out of the room. Thankfully he soon got an explanation. 

“You have been permitted by your therapist to spend an hour in the shared area with a few other patients. But beforehand, let me tell you that no rule breaking will be tolerated, so listen up. There will be no provocation of the other patients, no fighting, no biting, no physical or verbal attacks, no-” One of the guards kept explaining, but Killer kind of zoned out after the first few. He gets it, no fighting. He might be a crazy murder, but he is not a child. Also he cannot use magic here anyways, thanks to the magic canceling cuffs he had been given. 

A few minutes later they arrived at a room with a few tables, occupied by other patients. Killer at first just stood there, because what is he even supposed to do? Walk up to a random table and say: ‘Oh, hey guys! Do you want to be friends?’ Hah, as if. He would make himself the target . 

But as he was just standing there, looking around, someone grabbed him. It spooked him so much that he was ready to hit back whoever decided to invade his personal space. But what he didn't expect next was…being pulled into a hug? 

Killer stood frozen, unsure of how to react. But wait a minute, he knows this tough grip from somewhere. But before he could look up to make sure his suspicions were right, the other person went from hugging him to squeezing his arm really hard. 

Shit! Killer hissed in pain. He definitely knew this grip. He quickly pulled his arm back as the other let go. Killer then finally looked up at the person in front of him. “What the hell, Horror?! What was that-” Before Killer could even finish the sentence, the big skeleton stopped him and gestured to him to shut up. He then redirected his attention to something behind him. Killer in curiosity turned around to see what it was. He was met with a guard staring at them suspiciously, ready to reach for a taser if needed. Killer quickly looked away. 

“Come.” Horror told him and Killer listened. They slowly made their way to an empty table in the corner, where they sat down. 

“What was that for before?!” Killer exclaimed in a whisper. 

“You should be happy. I would have punched you if it wouldn't get us in trouble.” Horror bluntly stated. 

“Wow, thanks. Such a warm welcome.” Killer mumbled sarcastically. “Still, that doesn't answer my question. Why?” Killer asked. 

“You left without a word.” Horror answered. 

Ohhhhhhh… right. Killer now finally realized what this was about. He should have expected that reaction. 

“L-look, Horror. I didn’t… I didn't mean to leave you guys behind. It just happened a-and I just didn't really think it through. That day I was a complete mess and-” Killer tried to explain with his soul starting to slightly act up. Horror quickly interfered. 

“Killer… I am not mad about you leaving.” The big skeleton said. Killer now looked at him confused. 

“…You're not?” Killer asked, genuinely surprised. The big skeleton nodded. 

“We were in a shitty situation and I don't blame you for trying to get away from it. I am not mad at you for trying to run away from Nightmare. After all, you used to be his favorite toy out of the three of us.” Killer winced at the last part. His favorite toy. It left a very bitter taste in his mouth. That's what Nightmare used to call him all the time. To make him feel like he is nothing but a tool. Being away from him for this long made Killer realize just how much he hates being referred to as an object. His soul slightly shifted, but he quickly got snapped back to reality by Horror. 

“I get it, I do. But… you could have said something, left us a sign, a letter or just a simple goodbye. You could have at least maybe even mentioned the guy that helped you at some point. It all just came out of nowhere and I was so confused w̶o̶r̶r̶i̶e̶d̶. ” Horror finished. He doesn't blame Killer, but cannot help feeling bitter. 

Killer sighed, when he saw the disappointed look on Horror's face. “...Look, I am sorry. It was a quick decision and I didn't think things through.” Killer apologized and Horror hummed in response. 

“Do you know anything about Dust?” Horror asked after a moment of silence. Killer just shook his head. Horror should have expected that. He doesn't know why he even hoped for a different answer.

Chapter Text

Night woke up in panic. He got so used to the white walls of the hospital, that he didn't realize he was in his new room. For a moment he got scared that someone kidnapped him or something. 

After finally realizing where he was, he slowly got up and went to get himself dressed. Midnight then made his way downstairs and quietly tiptoed down the hall to the kitchen. The closer he got, the more the sound and smell of cooking became prominent. 

Night carefully peeked into the kitchen. He saw Dream cooking something on the stove, while humming a familiar tune. To his dislike Cross was also present, doing something with the coffee machine? Is that what it was called? 

He then finally stepped into the room with Dream imidietly greeting him with a cheerful smile. Meanwhile he and Cross just exchange an awkward good morning out of politeness. 

“Come sit at the table, I made some eggs for breakfast.” Dream told Night and soon all of them sat down to enjoy their meal. 

“I think it would be a good idea to head to town later. We could get you some decorations for your room and new clothes, so you won't have to borrow mine anymore. What do you say, Night?” Dream asked after finishing his breakfast. 

Midnight stopped to think for a second. He doesn’t really like the idea, but he doesn't want to keep borrowing clothes from Dream either. So Night agreed. 

— Later —

Dream and Night arrived at the small town. Looking around, Midnight had to agree that it actually looked pretty nice. Though there was still a deep paranoia following him everywhere. He couldn't stop himself from constantly looking over his shoulder or glancing at others around him to see if anyone was looking at him weirdly. Even if he got his brother with him, he just couldn't shake off the fear. 

Back then, the old village had never been a safe place. He always had to look out for himself whenever he went there. Even if the people of this small town don't seem to pay any attention to him at all, this place still reminds him of the village.

Thankfully Night got himself distracted when Dream dragged him to the nearby clothing shop. There, he started to go through the many different pieces of clothing, trying to find something he likes. At first he didn't know what to even pick since he was so used to wearing one and the same outfit everyday. But soon he began to find some pretty neat stuff. 

In the end he got himself a black hoodie, a soft purple sweater, black pants, loose shorts, some simple t-shirts and also this cute one with ‘bookworm’ written on it, that Dream suggested. 

Later as they were on their way to get new shoes for him, Night had to stop for a moment. He caught the sight of a library. The look he gave his brother said it all. It was like a child asking their parent if they could go into the candy store. So of course they had to. 

The local library looked quite big compared to the one they had in the old village. Night didn't even know where to start looking. They had so many different choices and genres that he hadn't even heard of before. They got held back there for quite a while. 

Thankfully Midnight was able to overcome his indecisiveness and finally picked the last book he wanted to borrow. It was now time to move on somewhere else. He then got himself new shoes, a cute lamp, a small succulent plant and some other stuff. Night actually really began to enjoy this trip and stopped paying too much attention to others. But unfortunately it soon backfired for the unlucky skeleton. 

As Night was looking around in one of the shops, he accidentally bumped into something. He quickly backed off in panic and looked up. A tall monster looked down at him with an annoyed expression. 

“Watch where you're going.” Said the monster in a harsh tone. Night in response gave the other a quiet apology and immediately scrambled away. Suddenly all the paranoia came back to him. He went to find his brother right away. 

After finally getting to Dream, there was only one thing on his mind. 

“Can we go home?” Night asked, his voice quiet. 

Dream looked at him concerned as he sensed Night's distress. It was clear his brother didn't want to be here anymore, so he didn't protest. 

“Okay.” Dream answered and both made their way out of the shop. 

“Did something happen?” Dream asked as they were walking home. Night shook his head. 

“It doesn't matter.” The dark guardian said. 

“Are you sure?” Dream asked again and Midnight nodded in response. He didn't want to talk about it. He just got spooked after bumping into someone. It felt really silly and stupid. And yet, he couldn't not care. He didn't feel like being around other people right now. 

Dream wanted to ask more, but decided against it. He doesn't want to push his twin too much. So they just went home. 

____________

Back at home, Night went to unpack all the things he got, which actually improved his mood. He indeed really liked all they bought. He then got himself dressed in one of his new outfits and finally got the chance to add the new stuff to his room. It's starting to look a lot less empty. Dream also later helped him glue the little glow in the dark stars he got on the ceIling. Night thought they would be really nice and maybe even help him a little with falling asleep. The bed is comfortable, but he kind of misses watching the starry sky before falling asleep. 

Nevertheless, after a long day out he finally got a chance to sit down and enjoy a good book. 

 ——— Horror time ———

Horror sat alone in his small room. He stared at a blank piece of paper, while tapping the pen against his desk. He has been like this for a while, just thinking. In the previous session, his therapist had brought up an idea about him writing letters to people close to him or that impacted his life in a big way. He wouldn’t be giving them to anyone, but it's supposedly just some kind of exercise to write down his thoughts and understand them better. 

He already had done one for his brother, for Killer and Nightmare. But when it came to Dust… the paper stayed blank. He had so much he wanted to write down, but yet nothing ended up on the actual paper. There was simply too much on his mind. 

His and Dust's relationship was rather complicated. They in a way were kind of close friends. You could say they enjoyed each other’s company. Sure, Dust didn't really talk much, but Horror wasn't a big talker either. They didn't necessarily need words to enjoy their time together. 

It was nice to hang out in Dust's messy room and play some video games or just listen to music as they laid on the old beanbag. He also really appreciated it, when Dust started to wake up early to help him prepare breakfast. 

They were good friends, but…there was always something more. They both knew it. But it was something that they didn't talk about. He remembered that one night, when they were on the beanbag watching some stupid action movie. They were huddled up next to each other, his hand pressed into Dust's. It truly was a nice moment…He wanted to say it. He wanted to say it so bad. It was just three simple words. Though before he could even muster up the courage, the hooded skeleton pulled away from him. 

It really hurt, but he couldn't blame the other. After all, two of Nightmare’s henchmen falling in love with each other? What kind of stupid joke was that? Being in love in Nightmare’s presence? A death wish. 

Though Nightmare probably already knew since he can sense feelings and all that. The first time he realized how he felt, made him actually pretty scared of the possible consequences. But the king of negativity had never mentioned it. It seemed like Nightmare didn't really mind it that much as long as they didn't act upon it. Maybe also because their negative feelings made up a good enough meal. 

So they would just dance around each other. They liked to get close, but never too much. Crossing the line would get them punished. Yet Horror still cherished every moment with Dust. Even if it was a wild goose chase. 

Now it also made him wonder about the future. They are now away from Nightmare, but are also stuck in this facility. Will they finally get together after they leave? Will they ever be able to even leave this place? Will Dust want them to be more after this? Were they just a rebellious phase? Had he already missed his chance? Should he have tried to make it work in the past even if it would have possibly cost his life? Million questions flooded Horror's mind and every next one only made him feel worse. 

Finally, he decided to pick up the pen and wrote three simple words on the paper. I love you. 

Horror stared at the paper. He never had the chance to say it, but it still felt off. He knows that expressing it won’t get him or Dust hurt anymore, but it still felt too wrong. 

He scribbled over it. 

Chapter Text

Night yawned as he groggily got up from his bed. It was still early morning, but he didn't think that he could fall back to sleep. So he slowly made his way through the still pretty dark hall to the bathroom. 

He walked in and reluctantly turned the lights on, which immediately hit him in the face. He went to rub his eyes, but he noticed something strange as soon as his hands touched his face. Are his hands wet? Why-how? He quickly blinked a few times and finally cleared his vision. 

There was something dark on the white sink. It was dark red. Is that-? He immediately looked at his hands and stared in shock. His hands were covered in blood. Not just covered, they were dripping with dark red liquid. He stood there completely frozen. 

Then he heard something. Night quickly redirected his eyes behind him… But nobody was there. So he turned back around and looked at the mirror in front of him. Though he wasn't met with his panicked reflection. Instead a cyan eyelight stared back at him. 

Night gasped in surprise and backed away, hitting something hard in the process. Then-

… 

Then he woke up. 

Midnight took deep breaths in and out. He is home, in his bed. There is nothing on his hands. It was just a nightmare. Another of many. Nothing new and nothing to panic about. He told himself as he slowly calmed down. 

He needed to stay calm and not overthink it too much. He doesn't want to wake up Dream again. The previous week he had a horrible nightmare and woke up Dream with his immense negative emotions. He really freaked his brother out that night. He doesn't want to repeat that. 

This all also reminds of his last session with his therapist. Lately they have been a lot more interested in his bad dreams, which kind of annoys him. It’s something he doesn't want to remember. So far the majority of his nightmares are from his ‘villain years’ from what he can tell. Even though he had been keen to know more about the forgotten part of his life at first, now he doesn't want to know anything about it. Any kind of new information only makes him feel worse. 

Midnight knows that it wasn't really him doing all that bad stuff, but… he still feels guilty. Everyone says that he isn't evil. That he isn't a murder… so why does he feel like he has the blood of the innocent on his hands. 

Night groaned and rubbed his tired eyes. He looked at the clock on his bedside table and it seemed to be almost 4 o'clock in the morning. Night sighed. He should really go back to sleep. 

. 

. 

. 

. 

. 

. 

“Are you ready to go, Night?” His brother asked behind the closed door. 

“Just a minute!” Midnight replied as he put on his hoodie and checked himself in the mirror. 

Night was a bit nervous. He is supposed to be meeting Dream's friend today, but he just feels so anxious for some reason. He already changed his outfit twice and looked in the mirror numerous times. It probably doesn't even matter how he is dressed, but he just cannot stop overthinking it. 

Finally, he just left it as it was and met Dream outside the door. His brother then made a portal and they were on their way. Almost forgot, Cross went with them too. 

After stepping out of the portal, Night heard a crunching sound under his feet. It confused him at first, though he soon understood why. Looking around, they were in a coniferous forest that was completely covered in snow. Oh that's why earlier Dream told him to take something warmer.

They then made their way closer to the edge of the woods. From there, they were able to see the lights of the nearby cozy houses. But before they went any further, Dream stopped Midnight.

“Put your hood up and try to not draw any attention to yourself. Okay? Not a lot of AUs, this one included, are really aware of the multiverse, so it's better to not disturb or interact with its residents to not cause any problems.” Dream explained as he and Cross pulled their hoods over their skulls. Night did exactly the same.

They ventured into the snowy town and walked up to one of the houses. Dream knocked on the wooden door, which swung open right after. Another skeleton welcomed them with a bright smile. 

“It’s great to finally see you guys!“ The skeleton exclaimed, all excited. After Cross and Dream also happily greeted the other, the blue eyelights landed on Night. 

“Oh? Is this who I think it is?” The skeleton questioned as he stepped closer to the dark guardian with curiosity. 

“You're Nightma- Sorry! Midnight, right?” The skeleton asked. 

“Y-yeah, that's me...” Night nervously mumbled after being caught off guard.

“It's so nice to finally meet you. Dream had already told me so much about you. My name is Blue. Me and Dream have been good friends for quite some time.” Blue said, introducing himself. 

“Oh! Why are we standing outside in the cold? Come in!” Blue quickly stepped aside, inviting them inside. 

They then settled down on the couch in the living room and the trio started catching up. Meanwhile, Night mostly just sat there and looked around. The house looked kind of nice. Nothing too special, but still pretty cozy and homey. 

His eyelights then again landed on the new skeleton. Blue also seemed kind. From what Night have seen so far, Blue was energetic and very expressive (maybe a bit too loud sometimes too). Truthfully the skeleton seemed to be a bit too much for Midnight. Though thinking back to his brother, this is definitely someone Dream would get along with. His suspicions were definitely true since Dream and Blue were pretty much talking non stop to each other. Unfortunately for Night the conservation soon switched to him with Blue giving him question after question. 

“It must be really nice to be finally out of the hospital. Also how do you like it in the Omega timeline so far?” Blue continued asking the dark guardian. 

“I guess it's fine.” Night didn't elaborate further. It still felt way too early to judge his new home. He likes Dream’s house. It has a nice location a bit further away from the town center. But he hadn't really spent much time outside around the other residents (for obvious reasons). 

“That's great! Oh, wait! Has Dream already taken you to the big pretty park near the city?” 

Night looked at the other a little bit unsure. He and his brother had visited a nice park, but he isn't really sure if it is the one Blue is referring to. Thankfully Dream answered for him. 

“I have only taken Night around the local town. We have not visited or been much near the big city so far. Though I think it would be a good idea to-” A loud crash from another room interrupted Dream. Everyone looked around in confusion.

Blue immediately got up and was about to go investigate what happened. But before he had the chance, the living room door swung open. 

“Hey guys! Oh, did I miss something?” Ink, who just walked through the doorway, said after noticing everyone staring at him. 

“Also Blue, I think I accidently broke your kitchen cabinet after misplacing my portal. Anyways…” The colorful skeleton then rambled on and on. 

Night was confused as hell. Who is this? Why are they acting so… strange? The dark guardian was truly weirded out by this new skeleton. They seem to jump from one topic to another in a matter of seconds. 

Looking around, nobody seemed to be pleased with this wacky skeleton appearing out of nowhere too. Cross was staring daggers at the other, while Dream and Blue looked nervous, whispering something to each other. Night isn't really a nosy person, but couldn't help to eavesdrop a little on their conversation. 

“Blue, please tell me you didn't invite Ink without letting me know beforehand.” Dream awkwardly whispered to Blue. 

“I swear on my brother that I didn't invite him.” Blue answered in a hushed tone. 

“Though thinking about it now, I might have mentioned us meeting up the last time he was over… But I didn't invite! I promise. He must have misunderstood me or something and invited himself. You know Ink.” Blue explained. 

Dream sighed and then walked up to Ink to stop him from annoying Cross any further. After Ink finally settled down a bit, he noticed Midnight. 

“Who is this?!” Ink exclaimed, getting into Night’s personal space. 

“Ink, this is-” Suddenly Dream was interrupted by Ink. 

“Wait a minute! Is this Nightmare?! Oh man, it didn't even cross my mind. You look so not yourself now. You used to be all scary and droopy and-”

“Ink, stop.” The golden guardian quickly put an end to Ink's ramble, before it got out of hand. 

“Ink, this is Midnight. Also it would be nice if you would write that down on your scarf to remember next time” Dream added and then turned to Night. “Midnight, this is Ink, the protector of the multiverse.”

Night could only stare at the skeleton in front of him. This is the protector of the multiverse…How?! How is this the protector of the whole multiverse? He seems so unfocused and just all over the place. How is this person the one with the responsibility of taking care of all the AUs?! Midnight was just stunned.

Blue then stepped in to try and get rid of the sour atmosphere and suggested that it would be great to finally have some lunch. The young skeleton hoped that this would smooth things over a bit. 

Everyone seemed to agree, so they moved from the living room to the kitchen. Together they set the table and Blue served everyone the tacos he prepared earlier. For Midnight this was new, but he liked it. 

After lunch the previous tension kind of disappeared. Everything seemed fine, except Ink occasionally mentioning things about Nightmare’s past. That got Night a bit uneasy.  

Later on they sat down to also play some board games. It was pretty much Midnight’s first time playing as well. He didn't win much since he was still mostly learning how to play, but it was actually pretty fun. 

“Uno”

“Huh! What-how? How are you winning again!” Ink exclaimed, looking at Cross suspiciously. 

“Well, I guess I am just lucky.” Cross responded with a smirk.

Ink shook his head. “Nu-uh, you gotta be cheating.” 

“What? I am not! It's not my problem you suck at this.” Cross threw back. 

Here it is, another argument. Yet Night couldn't find it in himself to be annoyed. He just chuckled at the stupidity, while Dream tried to get them to tone it down. 

Playing some of these games had been fun, though as time went by, Night found himself getting pretty tired. His head hurt a little too. Probably because of his lack of sleep. But thankfully they were about to leave soon anyway. 

———

They finally got home. But his headache seemed to get only worse. He felt slightly dizzy as well. Was this just because he didn't get enough sleep or was it something else? A voice suddenly snapped him out of his thoughts. 

“Are you okay, Night?” Dream asked, worried. 

“I’m fine. Just a headache…” Midnight mumbled. 

“Are you sure? You don't look so good.” His twin looked at him now even more concerned. Dream then put his hand against Night’s forehead. 

“You're burning up. I don't think this is just a headache. You should go rest.” His twin then led him to his room and made sure he settled comfortably into bed. 

“I'll go get the thermometer and also make you some herbal tea, okay?” Night nodded and Dream left the room. But before his brother had the chance to come back, Midnight was already drifting to sleep.

Chapter Text

Thin bright sun rays peaked through the curtains, bringing in some of the morning light. Dream slowly opened his eyes, finally waking up from his sleep. Time to start another day. 

He turned to his left and smiled. Cross looked so cute asleep. The small moments like these reminded Dream just how great he has it. He even feels like he doesn't deserve any of this. Sometimes he is scared that this all is just a beautiful dream and he'll wake up into the hell his life used to be. 

If you told him a few years ago that this would be his life, he wouldn't have believed you. Dream remembered how he used to think that he'd one day die alone in some random AU, murdered by his own brother. But look at him now. He has a loving partner and he has his brother back. 

A soft groaning sound escaped from Cross as he also started to wake up. 

“Good morning, sweetheart.” Dream wished his boyfriend. Though in response Cross only mumbled something under his breath. Seems like his partner wasn't fully awake yet. So Dream let him be and went to get himself ready for the day. 

Right after, he made his way downstairs into the kitchen to make breakfast for everyone. Soon Cross joined him as well, giving him a small kiss on the cheek. Dream then cooked some quick scrambled eggs, while Cross made them coffee. After he finished everything, he prepared a tray aside, where he put a hot cup of tea with a plate of eggs. 

Dream carried the tray upstairs to Nightmare’s room. His brother was still asleep. Normally Dream would try to wake him up at this hour, but not now. Night has been ill these past few days. It wasn't anything to worry about, just some common nasty sickness. Though his twin at the moment definitely deserved as much rest as possible. So he left the tray on the bedside table and went back to the kitchen. 

–Later–

The day was going as usual. He did a few quick chores around the house and then he watched a movie with Night, so his twin wouldn't feel too bored while he was on bedrest. Though he got confused, when someone rang the doorbell. 

He wasn't expecting any visitors. He quickly went to open the door and was met with a familiar face. 

“Hey, Blue. What are you doing here?N-not that I am not happy to see you, I am always happy to see you, I am just a little surprised.” Dream immediately backtracked, hoping he didn't make him feel unwelcomed. 

Blue giggled at his friend. “I know you do, don't stress it too much, Dream. Anyways, I thought I would bring you this, after I found it while cleaning up. It seems like you guys left it at my place, when you visited a few days ago.” Blue handed the other a black and white scarf.

“Oh! Cross has been looking for this. It hadn't even crossed our minds that we forgot it at your house. Thank you!” The golden guardian happily took it back. 

“No problem, friend. Though there is something else I wanted to discuss with you.” Blue's expression turned more serious. That got Dream worried. 

“Are you coming today to the council meeting?” Blue asked and Dream froze. Oh. 

“Okay, before you say anything, just hear me out. I know that you finally got the chance to bond with your brother, have been busy and out of all of us you are the person that definitely deserved the biggest break, but … you have been missing a lot of meetings and others are starting to question. I have been covering and making excuses for you, but you are a pretty important figure and they're beginning to really worry and ask a lot. I promise I am not trying to push this on you, but maybe it wouldn't hurt if you just showed up this once to let everyone know that nothing shady is going on.” Blue explained. 

Dream took a moment to process. He knew he had been neglecting his job as a guardian, but has it really been that bad? Has he really pushed all of his responsibility onto his friend? He could feel the guilt clawing at him. But there was also hesitation. He doesn't want to leave Nightmare again. It feels like he is going to make the same mistake all over again. Leaving Night and helping everyone else instead… It makes it even worse now that Midnight is sick. He doesn't want his brother to feel abandoned. 

“I-I don't know. It's not that I want to make this issue bigger or push it onto you. It's just… right now isn't really great timing. Night hasn't been feeling well and I-”

“Dream?” A quiet voice interrupted him. Startled, the golden guardian quickly turned around. His brother stood behind him. 

“M-Midnight! What are you doing out of bed?! You should be resting.” Dream exclaimed, but Night ignored his question. 

“Have you been skipping work?... Is it because of me?” Night looked at his twin, awaiting his answer. 

“No! I mean… It's complicated. But you know, things have been a bit hectic sometimes and there is a lot of new stuff and I didn't really want you to go through it all alone-” Dream rambled nervously. 

“It sounds important. I think you should go to that meeting.” Night said. Yet Dream couldn't help, but feel worried. 

“Don't worry, I'll be fine on my own.” Midnight tried to reassure his brother, but his throat betrayed him and a few rough coughs came out right after he spoke. 

“Are you sure?” Dream asked and Night nodded. The golden guardian then sighed as he tried to put his worries aside.

“Okay. Blue, could you please wait here for just a few more minutes? I need to go change really quick.” He asked his friend. 

“Sure, no problem.” Blue put on a patient smile.

After that, Dream escorted Night back to his room and then went to his own. Looking in the closet, he realized just how long he hadn't worn his battle outfit. He almost forgot how much time it actually takes getting everything on. 

–––––

Cross sighed. Dream had to suddenly leave for a council meeting. He offered coming as well, but instead got stuck babysitting. Well, at least Midnight isn't too needy and isn't trying to cause any trouble for him. 

Yet he just feels uncomfortable around the dark guardian. It's not really a bad feeling, it's just rather awkward… Their first meeting wasn't the best and even though at this point he knows Midnight isn't a threat, his trust issues still linger in the back of his mind. But he is trying to not give in to his paranoia. For Dream. 

Anyways, he should really start working on making dinner. He's pretty sure that his partner would appreciate a warm meal after a long meeting.

. 

. 

. 

Cross hummed quietly as he sliced the vegetables. But he stopped, when he caught the sound of footsteps. He turned around and Midnight was staring at him from the dark hall. Not ominous at all. 

“Uh- Hey. What are you doing out of bed? Do you need something?” Cross asked, trying to sound casual. 

“…Had enough of staying in bed all day.” Night muttered. He already spent enough of it during his time at the hospital. 

Cross stared at the dark guardian for a few seconds, unsure what to say. But seriously, this is getting really awkward. “Um- do you want to continue standing there or would you rather come and sit down?” The monochrome skeleton finally said something, hoping to make things less uncomfortable. As much as he would like to ignore Midnight, he still promised Dream that he'll try to get along with his brother. And he already messed it up once. 

Night didn't say anything to his question, but slowly made his way to the dining table and sat down. Cross then tried to continue what he was doing, but couldn't brush off the weird feeling of the other staring at him from behind. Out of nowhere Night asked him: “What are you doing?”

“Making dinner.” Cross gave a quick answer. After a few minutes of silence a small idea popped up in his head while he chopped the carrots. He sliced one more into sticks instead of small pieces. Then he threw them in a cup and put it on the table in front of Midnight. The other skeleton stared at it like it was poisonous or something. 

“They're good for you.” Cross commented quietly and went back to cooking. He was starting to feel like it was a really stupid idea, but soon he heard a few crunching sounds behind him. Well, it's good to know that he earned at least some trust from the dark guardian. 

“Why are you with my brother?” 

And here we go again. Cross said to himself and slowly turned around to look at Midnight. Didn't they already clear this up? The monochrome skeleton sighed in disappointment. 

“I already told you. It's because I love him. Not anything twisted as you are always trying to imply.” Cross answered. He didn't want to sound frustrated, but this questioning of his love for his partner is starting to seriously get to him. It’s also bringing up some bad memories, he doesn't want to think about. 

Night didn't look impressed with his response. “That's not so easy to believe. I still don't know what my brother sees in you.” 

Cross wouldn’t admit it aloud, but that stung a little. What does Dream really see in him? For him, Dream always meant hope. A sign that even after everything, there are still things to look forward to and that no matter what, it is still going to be okay. But does Dream also see something that special in him? Cross quickly brushed it off. He shouldn't question it like that. He knows Dream loves him very much. If he wouldn't, Cross wouldn't be here all over again. 

“I don't think Dream would let me stick around for so long again, if he was not serious or unsure about us.” Cross confessed. 

“Wait, what do you mean again?” Midnight questioned, confused. 

“... Well, we already broke up once.” Cross answered truthfully. 

Night looked at him with shock and confusion. “When did that happen?! Why did you even break up with Dream in the first place?” The dark guardian questioned, feeling a bit protective of his brother. 

“I didn't break up with him, he broke up with me! Also it happened like four years ago, so not that big of a deal anymore.” The monochrome skeleton told the other and looked away. 

Night stared at him surprised. Even if Dream isn't exactly the same as he remembers, he still had a hard time imagining his brother breaking someone's heart. That also was one of the reasons why he was talking to Cross in the first place. Because Dream is sometimes way too kind for his own good. 

“Look, I get how it might sound, but we didn't split up in bad blood. It was… It was just not the right time.” That was the truth. 

Cross thought back to that time. Meeting Dream was a blessing. What happened to Xtale truly sent him into a spiral. He was sad, he was angry and trust was almost non-existent for him. But most importantly he was desperate. He just wanted everything to be normal again. But that wasn't an option. And true hopelessness can make a person do anything for just a speck of hope. 

Cross sighed. This either will make Midnight understand him or dislike him even more. Though it’s probably better to get this over with. “...When me and Dream met I wasn't really a good person. My AU was gone and I was just at my wits end. Got myself caught up in my own despair. Making it everyone else's problem. I made many mistakes in life. A lot I regret.”

Nightmare couldn't help his growing curiosity. “What kind of mistakes? He asked. 

Cross stood there for a minute, ashamed of what he was about to say next. “Hurting others, destroying their homes… I think one of the biggest mistakes in my life was joining you.” The monochrome skeleton finished, seemingly not even noticing that the last part came out aloud.

Night's eyes widened at that statement. A shiver ran through his spine. He was once again confronted with his past. 

Cross, now realizing his slip up, tried to backtrack on it. “Sorry, I didn't really mean you as you now. I was talking about Nightmare, you know, the previous you.” Cross wanted to bury himself at that moment. He fumbled it so much. 

“Why? Why join?” Night gathered the courage to look the other in the eyes. His voice was quiet, as tried to not cough with his sore throat.

“... I was desperate.” Cross finally answered. 

A long pause of silence followed. It was a touchy subject and neither of them wanted to ask or explain any further. Yet Cross couldn't leave it at that. 

“But then Dream got a hold of me. Even though I was at my worst, he got me back on my feet. Despite my refusal at first, he helped me get through my losses and mistakes.” The guilt and scars might never fully leave, but he can now move forward. Dream saved him from himself. 

He was beyond grateful. He wanted to repay the guardian for his help. Even if Dream refused, Cross was still able to see his troubles behind the happy facade. He insisted on joining Dream and soon enough their relationship went past just work partners. Their time together turned from something casual to more personal. It didn't take too long for them to finally admit it to each other. Dream used to be hesitant about them, but Cross proved his true love to him. It wasn't about him being happy, it was about them being happy. 

“I wanted to repay Dream for his help, so I joined him. And well, we fell in love. But that still didn't change the circumstances. Being involved in the problems of the multiverse was dangerous and not really suited for a long term relationship. So we ended up breaking up.” Cross continued. 

Despite their adoration for each other, there was still war. Ink and Error had their own ‘let’s be friends slash we are about to kill each other’ kind of relationship, while Nightmare had it out for Dream. The guardian of positivity was in quite a disadvantage compared to his opposite. Yet that didn't stop him from doing his best to help everyone around him. Something Cross always admired. But it was still an extremely dangerous job. Even if his love wouldn't admit it aloud, he was in need of some more help. It was the main reason why Cross insisted on joining. 

It was stressful, treacherous and tiring. They found themselves in many fights, they had to move from AU to AU often, they witnessed homes be destroyed, people dying. It was a lot, but they were here for each other. They protected and worried about each other. And as sweet as that might sound, it was actually what ended their relationship. 

It started to happen somewhat around the time after… his ‘proposal’. Even with the rejection, Cross didn't view it as a possible end of their relationship. Just that he may have rushed things a bit. But there was a visible shift in Dream. His partner began to hesitate and worry a lot more. He even started to push Cross off of missions. That was an immediate sign that something bad was going on between them. 

Then the confrontation came. Dream basically told Cross that he couldn't find it in himself to put him in any more danger. His boyfriend felt guilty for bringing him into his battles and problems. He explained that he lately realized that he wasn't sure if his life even had a good future and that he didn't want to drag Cross down with him.

 I̶ l̶o̶v̶e̶ y̶o̶u̶ t̶o̶o̶ m̶u̶c̶h̶ t̶o̶ d̶o̶ t̶h̶i̶s̶ t̶o̶ y̶o̶u̶.̶ 

He of course tried to argue and didn't want Dream to end it. But there was no use in convincing the guardian. His partner insisted on protecting him, but couldn't he see that Cross wanted the same for him? In the end they broke up.

After that he crashed at Epic's place. He was a total mess. He felt angery, confused and mostly sad. It took him a while to accept it and fully understand Dream's reasoning. 

He spent the next three years in the Omega timeline. He got lucky and Epic let him stay in their extra room, so there was no need to find a new place. He was grateful since he really didn't feel like rooming with a stranger or living completely alone. It would have felt wrong. 

During these years he tried to get his life together. He got a simple job. Later he even found himself helping in the refugee camps. It was quite a nostalgic place. That turned out to be a work that also then got him closer to the council. That’s how he found himself contributing to their final project. Taking down Nightmare's gang. Well, that was always what everyone wanted, but now they finally had an actual solid plan. They just needed more people to join in. Cross had now a peaceful life, he could have refused, but he already had experience fighting the gang. It would have been selfish to not offer his help. But then he ran into Dream. 

“We met again a few years later and I guess the spark reignited. We had a lot more hope for a better future for us. And here we are. A year of dating and holding up strong.” Cross smilled. 

Seeing Dream at the council building caught him off guard at that time. It shouldn't have since Dream was one of the most important parts of the whole operation. It wasn't an emotional meeting. It got him feeling slightly bittersweet, yet they just exchanged the usual hello and how are you. 

Even though their break up wasn't necessarily bad. They didn't keep in contact. It just would have been too painful. Though Cross used to write letters for Dream. He never sent any of them, but it was kind of therapeutic. It was almost like a diary to him. He would write about how life was going, his achievements, his regrets and pretty much anything. 

But then he and Dream got paired in a mission and they began talking again. They let themself get close once more. It wasn't planned, it just happened. It made him realize that they hadn't really ever fallen out of love. They just needed a reassurance that there was a future for them. With the new plan there was hope. 

And look at them now. They live peacefully in a nice house together. Nightmare healed up well, so the multiverse got itself rid of one of its biggest threats while Dream got his brother back. Despite the occasional stress, it's perfect. 

Cross finally looked at Midnight, who stared at him now without the deep frown he had just a few minutes ago. Good. 

“Look, Midnight. I am not going to try and force you to be super friendly with me or anything like that. I just don't want any bad blood between us. You don't have to like me, but it would be nice if we had at least a civil and respectful relationship with each other. After all, we have the same interest in mind. We both want Dream to be happy. So what do you say?” Cross asked, hoping for a positive response. Night then looked away, taking a moment to think about it. 

.

“… Okay.” The dark guardian agreed. 

Cross let out a sigh of relief. They could finally move past this. He picked up the knife he left on the cutting board and went back to cooking. 

“What are you making?” 

Cross jumped in surprise as he noticed Night standing right next to him. He didn't even register the other getting up. 

“Just some chicken soup. Might help you heal a bit better” Cross answered. 

“Can I help?” Cross looked at Midnight in surprise. 

“Um-Sure” The monochrome skeleton nodded and let Nightmare know what to do. They then worked together on the soup in comfortable silence.

–––––

Dream huffed as he opened a glowing portal to home. Today was tiring. Not physically, but rather mentally. The council meeting was long and… frustrating. At least the good thing is that they don't have to discuss battles and strategies since Nightmare and his gang aren't an issue and Ink has a truce with Error (that he is hoping will last longer than the previous one). Now it's mostly a political kind of stuff. Which is incredibly boring.

The discussion was mostly about the safety and reassurance that the bad sanses won't cause trouble anymore. There were also a lot of questions involving Nightmare thrown at him. For the safety of his brother he couldn't give anyone a clear answer, which earned him a few concerned and suspicious looks. Overall he just showed up, told everyone everything was fine. He couldn't wait to get home. 

He finally arrived at his house and unlocked the front door. He smiled as he felt the warmth of his home. Soon Cross came to greet him in the hall. 

“Good to see you finally home, sunshine.” Cross said and gave him a soft kiss, which Dream gladly returned. 

“How was the meeting?” His partner asked. 

“It was okay. Boring though.” Dream complained. Cross chuckled at that. 

“Are you hungry? We made chicken soup for dinner. Midnight helped as well.” Dream perked up at that. A sudden realization came to him as he imagined the two working in the kitchen together. Awww, it's good to know that they are getting along. 

“That’s nice.” Dream said with a bright smile. Then they went to the kitchen to eat. 

Before they even set the table. Dream couldn't help asking Night a series of questions about his well being until his brother cut him off, annoyed. 

“I already told you I am fine. You worry too much.” Night pouted. 

“Okay, I am just making sure.” Dream said in his defense. 

Meanwhile Cross prepared everyone a bowl of hot soup and they were ready to eat. The broth tasted nice. Not too salty or too bland. It was just right. 

After Night finished his bowl, he looked around the table. Dream, now also done with his meal, jokingly complained about the council meeting, while Cross listened as he slowly finished eating as well. 

The calm atmosphere, the warm food, the peacefulness of everything, it was nice. Midnight thought to himself. This was home. 

——————

Horror nervously waited as he played with his fingers. His whole body itched with anticipation. He didn't know how to feel. He was excited and happy, but also scared and anxious. 

This whole situation was a shock to him. He just came for a normal session with his therapist and suddenly she is telling him that they might need his assistance with something. They asked if he was willing to help with Dust. 

Apparently Dust wasn't doing well at all and he wasn't getting better. So based on some info Horror shared in therapy and his interaction with Killer, they decided that it might not be a bad idea if they let him and Dust meet. 

Horror immediately agreed. After what he heard there was no way he would let this chance slip right through his fingers. It would be just for a few minutes, but that was still something. All he needed now was to wait for them to pick him up. 

Soon enough a guard with his therapist showed up and escorted him to a different part of the asylum. Looking around, this place was equipped with a lot more security. He remembered Killer talking about this once. They stuck him in one of these very restricted cells for a while, when he was going through one of his violent episodes. Thankfully for Horror, his behavior was never considered bad enough to end up here. 

After walking through the long hallway they arrived at what seemed to be the monitoring room. There he noticed small screens on the long table with live camera footage. They then gave Horror a quick rundown on how it was gonna go. Basically he is going to enter the room with the already prepared table, where he is going to sit down and talk to Dust. No other kind of interaction. A part of him got slightly aggravated by the way they talked about Dust. 

Finally, he stood in front of the door. He tried to shake off his nervousness as he slowly opened it. He entered and there he was. In the middle of the empty room was a table with two chairs and Dust sat on one of them. 

A familiar warmth ran through Horror's bones. He so badly wanted to disobey the laid out rules to just run to the other and hug him. They haven't seen each other for so long and he had worried so much. But he held himself back. 

He slowly walked up to the table and sat down. Though Dust didn't even acknowledge him. The other just glared at the ground muttering to himself. 

“Dust?” Horror called out to him, his voice a lot quieter than he anticipated. 

The skeleton in front of him immediately raised his head, stared at him in shock. He looked terrible. Well, more than Horror remembers. Seeing Dust without the hoodie he wore pretty much everywhere was also strange. 

“… Hey.” Horror finally spoke up. But Dust didn't really say anything back, insted continued staring at him in disbelief. 

Despite the lack of reaction Horror decided to continue. “It's been a long time, I guess. I waited so much time to finally see you again.” Dust face slowly softened as Horror talked. 

“I would ask how you've been, but I don't think you even need to answer. I…” He paused. The words were on his tongue,but nothing came out. Horror wanted to tell him just how much he missed him, how happy he was to see him and so much more. But he just couldn't find his voice. 

Instead he pulled out the letter he brought with him. It was the same one he once had to write for his therapy. It was everything he ever wanted to tell Dust. 

“I would like you to read it.” Horror said as he put the letter on the table in front of the other. Dust started at it intensely. Suddenly he wiped his head to the side, looking at something next to him and murmured a few incoherent words under his breath. Then he turned back to Horror. 

“Leave.” Dust said quietly. Horror looked at him confused. 

“You need to leave.” Dust repeated. But Horror didn't understand. Has he done something wrong?

He wanted to question the other, but a guard suddenly entered the room. “Time's up.” The guard insisted and went to escort him outside. Horror was able to get at least one last glance of Dust before they left.

It was clear to him. He needed to help Dust in any way he could. 

Chapter Text

— years later —

Midnight smiled widely. At that very moment he just wanted to jump up and down in pure happiness. Though he restrained himself since he didn't want to get any weird looks from the people around him. 

He got it. He got the job! He excitedly exclaimed in his head. Just a few minutes ago he was so nervous and worried, but these feelings were now replaced by relief and happiness. He had been thinking about it for a while, but backed out the first few times. But he finally did it. He went to the library and applied for the job. Now he got it and it was an amazing feeling. 

He cheerfully walked down the busy street. To be truthful the borders of the city of the omega timeline are a bit too overcrowded for him. He can't even imagine how bustling the city center must be. Even if the amount of people around here isn't ideal, Midnight can't deny that the bookstores and the big local library are way too nice to ignore. It's pretty much the reason why he leaves the suburbs to come so near the big city.

So when he started thinking about being a lot more independent, the small help wanted flier in the library was an immediate sign. There was no better place for him to get his first job. 

He slowly walked to the nearby bus stop. He can't wait to tell Dream. Though he hopes his brother won’t freak out over it. Their relationship had some… issues recently. Dream had been a bit too much worried about him. Night has been trying to be less reliant on his family and wants to explore things more on his own. Apparently that spikes up Dream’s anxiety. You could say his twin at some point became like a real helicopter parent. Or more of a helicopter brother. Of course, that didn't sit right with Night. They used to argue a bit about it, but lately they really have been trying to communicate a bit better and find some kind of common ground. Also Dream has been really working on taming his worries about his safety. 

Finally, the bus arrived. He sat down in an empty seat and stared out of the window. He watched as the landscape changed the more the bus moved down the road. He pulled out his headphones to listen to some music. Even though at first it was kind of difficult to get used to all the new technologies, he really got the hang of it after a few years.

Minutes later, Midnight took his headphones off as he started to strongly recognize the area outside. His stop is next. He got off and made his way right to his house. 

He opened the front door. He soon noticed the silence. Huh, the house is empty. He tried to think if his brother told him anything about going out, but then an idea popped up in his head. It's a warm sunny day without any strong or cold winds. 

He headed down the hallway to the backyard door. He stepped outside and of course he found him there. Dream was hunched over, humming to himself as he worked on his garden. His twin has lately picked up gardening as his hobby and Night really has to give it to him. Their backyard never looked better. 

He greeted Dream, which actually spooked the golden guardian, making him jump a little. 

“Midnight! You have to stop sneaking behind me all the time!” His twin scolded him. Though Night chuckled at him, amused. He promised he'll never do it again, but crossed his fingers behind his back.

“So, how was the interview?” Dream finally asked the important question. 

Night smiled enthusiastically. “I got the job.” He stated and Dream gave him a proud look in return. 

“That's such great news! I knew you would.” Dream told him happily. 

“You know what, I am going to text Cross to get us some strawberry shortcake on his way from Epic's place. Just a little celebration.” Dream offered, pulling out his phone. 

“But before that, since you are going to be visiting the city more and with the winter around the corner it's going to get darker a lot sooner, I think it's time for a lesson of self defense.” Dream explained. 

Well, Night should have seen this coming. Everything was going way too smoothly. Now he'll just have to bear through Dream's lecture. 

“Brotherrrr, please…” Midnight tried to think of a way to wiggle his way out of his situation. 

“Now come, Night.” Dream said like he just ignored Midnight’s pleads. He then led him out of the garden to show him some moves. Night just uncomfortably dragged along. 

_______

Midnight was finally able to escape from Dream’s lecture to his room. At least after he got a bottle of pepper spray and enjoyed a piece of delicious cake. 

He sighed in relief as he slung against his bed. But immediately forced himself to get up since he just remembered to do something really important. He walked up to his pinboard and looked at one paper on it in particular. His wish to do list. He decided that he'll write down some things that he would like to do in the near future. Things like meeting the person who wrote his favourite book, learning how to crochet or something more serious like buying his own apartment and getting his first job. Now he can finally check that one. 

Yeah, it's corny, but he thinks it's nice to write down stuff he would love to do, try or learn. In the future he can look back at the list and see what he got checked and which ones are either forgotten wishes or things he still needs to make a reality. 

To be truthful, he has been really trying to focus more on what will come and not what was. It's important to see and learn from his past mistakes, but he cannot dwell on them forever. He needs to keep moving forward and try to be the best version of himself. As uncomfortable therapy was, it did kind of pay off. 

Remembering his origin is hard. To be honest his childhood sucked. The only part of his past that he can remember in a good way, was before the villagers showed up. While it was just him and Dream. Them playing made up games in the grass, exploring the unknown world together. It was nice

But he cannot say the same thing about what came after the village was built. Being stuck in the position of a guardian of a tree, while his tormentors came by almost everyday. That wasn't life. That was hell. He already knew that, but throughout the years he started to realize just how shitty his situation actually was. 

Though Dream in recent years really tried to make up for Night’s lost childhood. His brother wanted him to do at least some of the things any kid normally should and he is grateful for that. (However, he isn't that young anymore and Dream could maybe try to understand that more now.) 

Compared to his past, the present is way better. Sure, he still has some issues like his magic acting up, getting into some stupid arguments with his brother or just in general the fear of other people's judgment. But…It's nice to live again.

______

Killer looked around the white room. Different feelings were going through his mind. Excitement, fear, nostalgia, relief. The room was very small with only a few things that were deemed as necessary. Despite all the time he spent there, he won't miss it. 

He lay down the white clothes on top of the bed as he was instructed and looked himself up and down one more time. He was simply wearing a grey t-shirt with some raggy sweatpants. He has to thank Color later for letting him borrow his clothes. 

… He was finally leaving. Even saying it in his head feels unbelievable. He has been stuck here for so long… At a certain point in his life it looked like it would be impossible to ever get out of here. Yet here he stands. Ready to leave it all behind and start all over again. 

His therapist recently deemed him stable enough to enter society again. Of course, he'll still have to prove it out in the open. He'll have to wear a tracking device until it's decided that he really isn't a danger to anyone. 

He also isn't allowed to live by himself. Thankfully Color got his back. His friend got permission to get Killer to stay at his flat in the Omega timeline. Killer is grateful since he cannot even imagine living with some official guard or psychology professional to keep an eye on him. No, thank you. He already got enough of that. 

He gives his room one last look and walks out. His eyes glance at the closed door, the number 207 written on it. Yeah, he definitely won't miss this place.

Yet as he was walking down the hallway, a melancholic feeling crept in. Although, there was a bit of a different issue on his mind. His conservation with Horror the other day. 

– yesterday –

“Horror! You won't fucking believe this!” Killer ran up to the big skeleton in excitement. 

Horror looked up at him, curious. “What is it?” 

“Guess who is getting out of this hell hole. I am getting released!” Killer exclaimed, even laughing a bit. 

Meanwhile Horror looked at him wide eyed and gave him a light slap on the back. “For real? Well, congrats! You made it.” Horror congratulated him with a proud smile. 

“Yeah, I cannot believe it either. You know it's kind of funny. Out of us three, I thought you would be the one getting out of this pláče first. Compared to us you are like an angel. What in the goddamned hell did you tell your therapist that you are still stuck here?” Killer joked. Though Horror nervously looked away in shame. 

“Horror?” Killer called out to him, concerned. 

The big skeleton sighed, guilt visible on his face. “uh-I… I had actually already gotten an offer to be released.”

“What? Why didn't you tell me?!” Killer said in confusion.

“Cause I decided to reject it.” Horror revealed. 

“Why?” Killer immediately asked, absolutely taken aback by all of this. 

“Because I just couldn't. I can't leave Dust. I've already told you that his progress is very slow and I just can't let them mess him up once more. They’ll get rid of all the hard progress if I leave.” Horror explained and Killer understood. 

He wasn't really aware of how deep it was, but he knew there was something between Horror and Dust. However, the big guy refuses to talk about it. Doesn't matter how much he pesters the other. 

Though as he stood there, a cold realization crept in. He is supposed to leave tomorrow. Is he ditching them again? Is he abandoning them once more, because of a rash decision to grab the first opportunity to get out? 

“Killer?” Horror called to him, snapping him from his thoughts. 

“Look, I can already guess what you are thinking about right now. That’s why I didn't want to tell you in the first place. Don't stay here any longer than you need to. I am still here, only because it seems like there is no other person that could help Dust get better and out of here. So don't even think about prolonging your stay.” Horror said. Yet Killer didn't feel much better. 

“But… what if-”, he tried to argue, but the bigger skeleton stopped him. 

“It's fine, Killer. Really. And it's not like we're saying goodbye forever. We can still send each other letters and maybe you'll even get to visit if they approve it. Then, when Dust gets better, all three of us will meet outside.” Horror tried to brighten the situation. Killer nodded in response, but still felt a bit guilty. 

“...Do you think he'll hate me even more now?” He asked. 

Him leaving the gang years back, left Horror pretty angry at him, but after their first meeting he got lucky and was forgiven. But Dust… Killer at some point got the same chance as Horror to visit him. However, Dust refused to meet with him. From what little Horror told him, his old friend is still pissed at him for abandoning them. 

“No, I don't think so. In my opinion he doesn't hate you even now. He is just angry and probably sad as well. He still needs to process some things more properly. Though at least here he can't really dodge his problems anymore.” Horror answered, giving the other a small smile. Killer sighed and then nodded. 

Him and Horror then talked until they had to leave the shared area. In the end, they said to each other their final goodbyes… 

_____

He really is going to miss talking to the big guy. Well, at the very least he gets to communicate with Horror through letters. Maybe he even gets a chance to send some kind of message to Dust too. He knows his old friend doesn't really want to talk to him at the moment, but maybe he'll hear him out a little bit from a piece of paper. 

He arrived at the end of the hall at the ground floor, where two guards were already waiting for him. They led him to the front desk, where he had to sign one more paperwork. Then they checked him for the last time and made sure the tracking device worked properly.

Finally they let him go. He went on and opened the front door. The feeling of freedom rushed through his body as he stepped outside. Right away he spotted Color waiting on him there. He gave him a small wave and a bright smile. Both of them then walked away and not once he looked back.

Chapter Text

Hi guys.

So first of all, I want to thank you all. Without you I wouldn't get so far with this fanfic. It's still crazy to me that I was able to finish this. I remember starting this on a whim and thinking about not posting it at all. It might have taken almost a whole year, but here it is. Currently this fic has almost 500 kudos, which is kind of insane to me. Also all the comments I ever received really helped me out. So thank you for all the support. (o´∀`o)

Now comes the hard part. Because I am kind of an indecisive person, I need you to help me decide on how the fanfic will continue.

My absolutely original idea that I had already from the beginning for this fanfic has a lot of Killermare. Pretty much it is about a Killermare. Basically Killer and Midnight ended up meeting each other, not aware of who the other person really is and they fall in love. It would mostly just be about them dating and then secrets getting revealed and drama happening.

But I am aware that not everyone might like the idea of involving this ship. So I also propose the idea without killermare with Midnight meeting Killer (and then Dust and Horror,) and becoming just friends with the reveal later on too. This option would be probably a lot shorter as well.

I also thought of a third option, where I would write both of the ideas, but to be real with you, I don't think I have that much motivation to even attempt that. I think I'll be happy if I even finish this whole story.

So these are the options. Feel free to voice which of the ideas you are more inclined to. At the moment I like the original, but I am also very much open to the second one.

But! This is not all. I'll definitely be adding a few extra chapters to this. They will probably mostly be about what happened during the timeskip or maybe even some stuff that happened in the past and other. To be truthful I have been thinking a lot about Cream lately so be prepared for some extra chapters involving these two love birds. (￣∇￣)

Chapter Text

- 4 years ago -

Dream gave an exhausted sigh as he slowly made his way home. Today really got the better of him. Just another hard day. 

Got up early in the morning to offer his aid in the refugee camps, then traveled to a few AUs to help. But for the worst, Nightmare showed up with his gang. To his luck Blue showed up later as well to give him some back up. Though it was a rough fight and also not winning one at that. They were defeated and left to deal with the mess. Though Blue insisted on him first going to the hospital to get his wounds checked up.

In his opinion it wasn't that bad. It was just a few deeper scratches, maybe something fractured and a broken rib. He could have just quickly cleaned himself up and continued in his work as usual, then treat the injuries properly, when he got home. But Blue wouldn't let it go, so he agreed in the end. After he got patched up, he helped a few more people until it was dark. Now he was finally heading home. 

Standing in front of his house, he fetched his keys out and unlocked the door. A relief washed over him as he stepped inside. 

“I am home-...” He called out, but stopped himself. His small smile vanished as the cold realization crept in. Nobody else was here. He was alone. Cross doesn't live with him anymore… 

A lump formed in his throat. It stung. His eyes twitched. He shook his head. He has to stop thinking about it. 

He took off his shoes and went to the kitchen. He didn't feel like cooking, so he opened the fridge to see if he got anything that would be a good enough meal for dinner. He found a plastic container he didn't recognize. Then he remembered. Blue paid him a quick visit yesterday to check on him and gave him some leftovers from his cooking for dinner. Dream didn't feel too good the previous evening, so he just left it in the fridge instead. The sticky note with a few kind words from Blue was still on the container. His friend is way too sweet for him. Cares more than he should. 

Well, dinner is taken care of for today. He took off the lid and found mashed potatoes with some vegetables and meat. He quickly microwaved it and started eating. Despite being already a day old, it still tasted pretty good. Or maybe he was just way too hungry to care for any imperfections. Nevertheless, it was nice. 

After he finished, he looked up from his plate. He stared at the empty seat across from him. More thoughts poured into his head. A burning sensation overtook his throat. His stomach twisted to the point, when he felt like throwing up what he just ate. He immediately turned his attention to something else. He needs to stop overthinking it.

He got up from his chair and left the dishes in the sink. He'll wash them tomorrow. He feels too tired today. Dream told himself and slowly made his way upstairs. His footsteps echoed through the hall. The house was quiet. Too quiet. It all felt so wrong. The silence, the emptiness, the melancholic feeling that plagued his home, it wasn't right. 

He arrived in his bedroom, feeling defeated. He really tried to keep it together today, but some things cannot be helped. Tears formed in the corners of his eyes. He immediately collapsed on the bed and started silently sobbing. 

It was for the better. It needed to be done. He repeated to himself as more tears started to run down his cheekbones. He had to end it. There was no other way. 

He hugged a nearby pillow and just cried. Breaking up with Cross was the right thing to do. But damn it hurt so much. Cross meant a lot to him. He loved him to the moon and back. Cross was the one skeleton he would spend an eternity with. But truthfully… Dream didn't think he really had a future. At least not a good one as far as he could tell. He was the guardian of positivity. He owed his loyalty to the multiverse. And unless Nightmare had some magical change of heart, Dream didn't see his life heading in a good direction. He couldn't afford to drag Cross down with him. Compared to him, the monochrome skeleton had a chance at a peaceful life. He couldn't take that away from the one he loves so dearly. Even if it meant, he'll have to let go… 

His grip on the pillow tightened, when he remembered their final confrontation. The sad pleading look Cross gave him as he begged Dream to reconsider. It haunted him. He wanted to be selfish so bad. He wished to give their relationship one more try. But if he did, the heavy guilt would weigh him down for the rest of his life. Cross deserved better. Cross deserved a better life, a better future. And Dream wouldn’t be able to give it to him. The choice became clear. 

Dream couldn't abandon his duty to the multiverse, despite just how much he wanted to. He didn't get to decide on being a guardian, he was born as one. If he was more careful and observant, maybe the apple incident wouldn’t have happened in the first place. Then his job wouldn’t be so hard and complicated. Not only that. He wouldn’t have been alone. His brother would have stood by him. 

Sometimes he imagines a reality, where he never was a guardian. The idea of just being normal, sounds amazing. Him and his brother being ordinary kids growing as any other child should, going to school, getting a part time job and other stuff. Maybe he and Cross would be able to meet and fall in love in that world too. Then they wouldn’t have to worry that much and could just move forward together. Even if it isn't real at all, a feeling of jealousy bubbles up inside him any time he thinks of it. 

He knows what he did was right and necessary. He has repeated it to himself everyday since then. But he feels so lonely. The house is too empty and too quiet. The other side of the bed feels unusually cold. 

He continued to hold onto the pillow tightly until his hands went numb. He wept until he had no tears left to spill. He was just so exhausted. He couldn't find it in him

 to get up and change. So he just laid there as his eyes slowly closed shut as he fell asleep.

Yet, when he woke up, the pain of yesterday was still there.

Chapter Text

Hi guys…

so unfortunately I am here to give you some bad news about the continuation of this fanfiction.

To not go into too much detail, when I started to work on the continuation I found myself demotivated and decided to take a bit of break from it and focus on another of my ideas (my vampire au). I planned to come back to it right when I was more motivated. But recently out of nowhere another fandom piqued my interest. Unfortunately due to that my motivation for any undertale au content has been really low.

However I have decided to not discontinue this (or at least not yet) and just simply put it on hold for now. Most importantly because I just got into the new fandom recently and there is still some possibility that I will come back to undertale and continue this. I also still have a lot of love for this work and have so much planned. I have even drawn new designs of some of the characters. But unfortunately I currently don't have the motivation.

I am genuinely sorry that it had to come to this. I know you all have been waiting for Nightmare to meet his gang finally and all that…So at last I would like to thank you all for reading this, supporting me, leaving kudos, commenting and just being with me throughout the journey of writing this.

If I end up discontinuing this, then I'll let you know. With that I'll also share all I had planned for the continuation.

For now, thank you again. And I guess this is a goodbye. Hopefully just for a while.