Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Tick

Tick..

Tick…

The gentle sound of the ticking clock run loudly in his ears, laying in bed with his eyes opened and focused up on the ceiling. Slowly, he reached a hand up and ran it through his bleach-blond hair, closing his eyes a moment then finally, he sat up, pushing the blanket off of himself and swinging his legs over the side of the bed. He took a moment to carefully smooth out the feathers on his wings, having to pluck a couple feathers that were sticking out irreparably weird, before he finally stood up.

Walking over to his closet, Dream opened it and looked inside, humming the tune to ‘Orange Colored Sky’ under his breath as he looked through his clothes. After a moment, he picked out a white button down shirt, brown slacks and their matching vest. He got dressed at a comfortable pace, not rushing himself but he also wasn’t exactly slow, either. And, finally, he turned to look at himself in his floor-length mirror, adjusting his orange tie to make sure it was sitting perfectly before he made his way out of his room.

The door closed behind him with a soft click before he turned and headed down the hall, eventually starting down the stairs to get to the bottom floor of his two-story home and office. He reached the bottom soon enough and went straight to the kitchen, pulling the coffee pot out slightly before getting the grounds and water in, then starting it up. He firmly believed that coffee was the most important part of the day.

While coffee brewed, Dream decided to head out and get the morning paper. He walked over to the front door, unlocking the deadbolt, then the handle, and undoing the top latch as well before opening it and looked down at the paper waiting there on the front step. He retrieved it and went back inside, locking his door back up before heading into the kitchen where he set the paper down on the bar-counter, checking on the coffee pot.

Coffee finished soon enough and Dream made himself a cup, combing his fingers through his hair again to smooth any stray hairs before taking a seat at the bar-counter and he sipped on his coffee, opening up the paper to begin his daily read.

The cover of the newspaper displayed a headline ‘local psycho robs bank and kills three people’, he read a little further and it talked about the person calling themself Error. The image on the front didn’t show this Error guy, though, it showed a picture of the inside of the bank messed up like a bomb had gone off. Dream sighed and shook his head a bit.

“What is this world coming to…” he mumbled, voice deep and smooth like honey, his accent southern but the kind of southern that came from living in the city your whole life. That neat, proper southern as the city folks liked to call it.

Dream hummed and turned the paper over to look at the back where the missing person’s reports were, looking over the photos of the people and his eyes landed on one in particular. Geno… That was someone he knew personally, his friend Reaper’s husband.

“I’ll find you, I swear it,” Dream mumbled, running his thumb lightly over the portrait of Geno, furrowing his brows a bit, “I promised Reaper that much.”

Dream drank the rest of his coffee in silence, reading through the paper up until he was done, then he stood up, setting the paper on the counter before going over to the sink and washing his cup. He set it in the drainer then headed for the door, adjusting his tie before taking his coat off the coat rack, slipping it on then he grabbed his keys and headed out, closing and locking the door behind him.

He made his way down the sidewalk and into his driveway, unlocking the door to his car before getting in the driver's seat and starting up the engine. He listened to it hum a moment before turning his head and putting the car in reverse, backing out of the driveway and beginning his drive.

It wasn’t long to Reaper’s house, about fifteen minutes give or take since he lived in the center of the city and Dream lived more on the suburban edge, preferring the lighter traffic that came with the distance from downtown. He looked at the buildings as he passed by them, taking in the people walking down the street all living their own, separate lives completely different from his own. He put his focus back on the road, though, and soon enough found himself pulling into the small downtown driveway of Reaper and Geno’s townhome.

Dream parked his car and got out, locking it before heading up to the front door, hand hovered in a fist for just a moment, inches away from the hard wood before finally, he knocked exactly thrice and lowered his hand to his side, waiting patiently.

It took a few minutes before there was a soft click of the door unlocking and it opened, revealing Reaper standing there in his pajamas with the expression of someone who had stayed up all night worrying to no end. Dream gave him a soft smile, though, an expression warm in contrast to the cold sorrow of Reaper’s.

“May I come in?” Dream asked, “I have a few questions before I start my investigation.”

“Yeah, of course,” Reaper mumbled, rubbing his good eye a moment before stepping aside to let Dream in. He was blind in one eye, his right one, the whole iris and pupil a hazy silver. His other eye was a deep, dark blue.

Dream hummed a thanks and walked past Reaper into the house, glancing briefly around at everything, noting how unlived in it seemed and he couldn’t help but wonder if Reaper was spending any time here at all since Geno went missing. He pushed that thought to the side for now, though, and turned to his friend as he shut the door, locking it back up.

“Right, follow me,” Reaper then led the way to the living room, taking a seat on the couch and motioning for Dream to sit as well. He walked around the furniture before taking a seat in an arm chair right beside the couch, though it was angled more inwards so it was still somewhat facing everything instead of being directly forwards beside the couch.

Dream kept a smile on his face as he looked over at Reaper, taking his small notepad out of the pocket of his jacket along with a good pen and he cleared his throat.

“Right, how are you doing?” Dream asked first, concern in his voice that he didn’t even try to hide. Reaper would’ve noticed it anyways, even if he had.

“I’ve barely slept since he went missing,” Reaper admitted, “between work in the graveyard to just… sitting at home alone, I can’t seem to rest even for a moment.”

“I’m sorry,” Dream frowned softly, a sympathetic look on his face that Reaper knew to be a trained response. He appreciated it nonetheless, though. Even if Dream feigned his concern more often than not; empathy was such a complicated thing, especially for someone who struggled to feel it even in the slightest, but Reaper knew it was just his way of caring in the only way he knew how.

“It’s alright,” Reaper softly sighed and crossed one leg over the other, leaning back slightly on the couch, “but you had questions, right? No need for the small talk, I know how much you hate it,” Reaper gave a tired chuckle and Dream nodded, his smile returning as he too softly laughed.

“You know me well, Reaper,” Dream mused, “but yes, I had questions. I suppose we’ll start simple; what time do you believe Geno left the house that last night you saw him?” he asked and Reaper paused to consider his answer for a moment.

“Around midnight, I know because I woke up to get some water and talked to him as he was headed out.” Reaper answered, fidgeting lightly with his robe. Dream wrote that answer down.

“Alright, and you’re certain there’s nowhere he would’ve gone? Any family?”

“Positive. He doesn’t have any family living and I can’t think of anywhere he would’ve gone and not come back home right after.”

“Right, okay. Thank you,” Dream wrote that down as he thought about his next question. “When exactly did you notice him missing?”

“Well, I thought it was odd of him leaving as late as he did, but not too odd. I figured he’d be back soon, so come morning time I waited, and it was a little afternoon that I started to worry and call around. I’d say that’s when I realized he wasn’t coming back; after those phone calls,”

“Right, and who did you call?” Dream asked and Reaper thought for a moment, reaching up and fidgeting with one of his locs, averting his gaze for just a moment before looking back at Dream.

“His job first of all, I thought maybe he’d been called in but they said he wasn’t there. Then, I called some of our friends but none of them had seen him, the cafe he frequents… I called a lot of people, I was admittedly freaking out a bit,”

“Understandable,” Dream nodded, “I’d be freaking out too. You mentioned a cafe he frequents, which one is that?”

“The Latte Night, it’s this cafe open twenty-four-seven; he likes to go to a lot, says they make the best coffee.”

“Thank you,” Dream wrote all that down before asking a few more questions, getting a lot of good answers that he hoped would help in the investigation before finally, he stood, putting his notebook and pen in his pocket and he watched as Reaper stood as well.

“I’ll find him, Reaper.” Dream assured and the other nodded, reaching out and the two shook hands,

“Just… find him quick for me, would you?” Reaper asked, a sadness in his voice that Dream knew well and he nodded.

“I’ll do my best.” and with that, Dream left Reaper’s house to begin his investigation.

Dream wasn’t a cop, in fact he rather hated the police, believing them to be useless and bad at their jobs. No, he was a private investigator, college educated with plenty of field experience. He’d been working that way for a few years now, starting fresh out of college and opening his own business of sorts only a year after. He worked out of his own home, meeting clients in his well-decorated living room or at any sort of local spot, sometimes he would even go to peoples homes, but either way he got the job done. He always got the job done.

Dream began his search by questioning the neighbors, going door to door with his little notebook asking question after question, trying to figure out if anyone had seen him leave, if someone had left with him or taken him, anything that might help with the case. In the end, though, no one had seen or heard anything and the entire search turned out to be a waste of a good couple hours. So, Dream went back to his car and got in, starting it up and driving off to continue his search.

It took some time of driving around and searching before he came upon the cafe Reaper had mentioned. The Latte Night… a funny name, made Dream chuckle as he parked his car in one of the parallel spots along the side of the road. Downtown was always such a tedious location to park in, most of the time all the spots were taken up and it took you fifteen minutes to find something several blocks away from where you’re actually trying to go. But, thankfully, Dream got lucky this time and someone was leaving right as he pulled up to the cafe, so he got a spot up front.

Dream hummed and turned off the engine of his car before opening the door and stepping out, closing and locking it behind him before pocketing his keys and heading up to the door of the cafe. He paused briefly to look up at the sign, noting one of the lights flickering slightly and he raised a brow, but soon relaxed his expression again and went inside, opening the door and a soft bell rang out to signify someone entering the building.

Dream let the door close behind him as he walked inside, looking slowly around the interior, noting the tables with people at them, cups of coffee or pastries to compliment, the person standing expectantly behind the counter… What struck him as odd, though, was one person in particular sitting at a table with a newspaper open in their hands, but they were very clearly staring over the top of it at Dream, though he did briefly doubt this assumption due to the fact the person’s eyes were entirely blacked out. It made him wary, the hair on the back of his neck standing up and he turned his head away, making a mental note to keep an eye on that.

Dream finally went up to the counter after that, humming softly as he came to a stop and faced the person standing behind, a smile on their face as they stared expectantly up at him.

“Good morning, how are you doing today, sir?” They asked and Dream smiled, taking out his notepad and pen.

“I’m well, just came to ask a few questions regarding Geno, one of your regulars?”

“Yes, of course. I heard that he was missing; are you the detective on the case?” They asked and Dream nodded.

“Private detective, but yes, I am. Do you mind if I ask you a few questions?”

“Not at all, whatever you need,” The person gave him a cheery smile and Dream nodded before pressing his pen to the paper. He asked their name and they answered, him writing it down before he began his questioning.

“When is the last time you saw Geno?”

“I believe it was about four days ago, he came in around six in the morning to get some coffee, said he was working late on a story for the paper and needed some juice,” they chuckled and Dream nodded, writing down their answer.

“And did he say anything odd to you? Any indication of planning to go somewhere?”

“Not that I can think of, though… I do seem to remember he kept looking over his shoulder like he was nervous about something, though I just figured it was jitters from pulling an all-nighter and possibly too much caffeine. Who am I to judge?”

“Fair enough,” Dream wrote that down, “and you didn’t see anyone following him?”

“No one,” they confirmed with a shake of their head.

“Right, thank you.” Dream slipped his notebook back into the pocket of his jacket alongside his pen. “That’s all the questions I have, I’ll come back if I think of any more,”

“Of course, can I get you anything for the trip?” The barista politely asked and Dream shook his head.

“No, thank you. But I will most definitely keep this place in mind next time I want some coffee,” he assured and the barista gave a chuckle and nod before waving as Dream turned and began to walk away. He paused, though, eyes flicking to the side to look at the person with the newspaper as they closed it and stood up, beginning to walk his way so he stopped walking and watched.

The person was short, probably around five-foot-one with long, curly black hair, the same kind of outfit a newspaper boy would wear even down to the suspenders, but they had a distinctive red necklace in the shape of a target and a small pin on the collar of their shirt in the shape of a crescent moon.

“Hi there,” the person greeted and Dream raised a brow, crossing his arms, “the name’s Killer. You’re Dream, right?” he asked and Dream nodded.

“How did you know?” Dream asked and Killer shrugged before putting his hands in the pockets of his pants.

“Just a hunch. But you’re looking for that Geno guy, right?” Killer asked right back and Dream nodded.

“Yes, I am. Do you have any information on where he might’ve gone?” Dream wasn’t sure why, but he had a very bad feeling about the person standing in front of him, Killer, as he called himself. An odd name, but he supposed so was Dream.

“No,” Killer chuckled, “but I might know someone who does. You got a number?”

“I do,” Dream reached into one of his other coat pockets and took out a business card, handing it over to Killer who took it, turning it over a few times in his hand before looking back up at Dream, grinning a bit.

“Perfect. I’ll be in touch, just keep an ear out for your phone… or your door,” Killer snickered a bit at Dream’s shift in expression to one of discomfort.

“Do you mind if I ask you a few questions before you go?” Dream asked as Killer turned to leave and the other paused, looking back up at him a moment.

“I do mind, got places to be, you know,” Killer grinned and gave him a two finger salute that only felt like he was mocking him. “See you soon, Dream,”

“Right, see you soon,” Dream hesitantly replied, watching as Killer turned and walked out of the building without another word, bringing his newspaper with him and Dream knew then and there this guy was going to become a problem, he couldn’t explain why, but he just had a bad feeling. He narrowed his eyes slightly and left the cafe, looking down the street in the direction Killer left in but didn’t see him anywhere and he just sighed.

“Right, back at it,” Dream muttered to himself before getting back into his car and driving off to continue his search.

Chapter Text

Dream slowly opened his eyes as he lay there in his warm bed, the blanket only half on him and he rolled over to the side, turning his gaze over to his clock and it read seven in the morning. So, he heaved himself up out of bed, getting dressed before making his bed and heading out of his room.

Dream made his way downstairs, listening to the soft creaking of some of the steps as he went down before eventually reaching the bottom and he went over to the kitchen, getting a pot of coffee started. Waiting for it to finish proved to take an annoyingly long time, leaving Dream sitting there against the counter for the next ten minutes while it brewed until, eventually, the dripping came to a stop and he turned, getting down a coffee cup and putting three spoons of sugar in before the coffee then a bit of creamer.

Dream hummed, raising the coffee cup to his lips before taking a slow, long sip of the dark drink and he closed his eyes, enjoying the flavor as it rolled across his tongue and down his throat. He finished the cup quickly and gave it a wash in the sink before making his way over to the front door, slipping on and tying his shoes before going to open the door, umbrella in hand. He paused, though, at a knock on the hard wood and he stared for a moment.

Slowly, Dream turned the handle and opened the door, turning his gaze downwards to Killer who was standing there, grinning up at him and leaned casually against a white cane.

“It’s rude to stare, you know,” Killer mused, standing up straight, “invite me in, won’t you?”

“Are you a vampire?” Dream asked, joking, and he stepped aside to let Killer in, who was giggling softly at the joke.

“No, not a vampire,” Killer mused as he stepped inside out of the rain, brushing some of his hair out of his face before turning to look back at Dream as he closed the door. “You know, running a business out of your own home is pretty dangerous,” he remarked and Dream nodded in agreement.

“It is, but having a separate office is significantly more expensive,” Dream mused in response before crossing his arms. “Did you need my help with something, or did you have information on my case?”

“The latter. Here,” Killer reached into his pocket and pulled a small photograph out before handing it over to Dream, “you can keep that one, I’ve got a copy. But Geno was spotted entering the old rail yard a couple nights ago around three in the morning, one of those people in the district apartments had a camera and snapped a picture since it was weird.”

“It’s weird that they just had a camera ready to take a picture, but, thank you,” Dream looked over the photograph, examining the fuzzy picture of Geno walking between the trains. He could swear he saw the dark shadow of someone standing behind a nearby train, but it could’ve just been a trick of the light.

“Yeah, don’t mention it,” Killer shrugged, glancing around briefly at the area around him before pausing to look back up at Dream.

“Right, I’m going to have a look,” Dream took out his notebook and wrote something down before pocketing both that and the photograph, then he opened the front door again, motioning for Killer to go outside.

“One for action, aren’t you?” Killer mused but stepped outside, Dream following after and promptly locking up the door behind him before turning to look out at Killer. He paused, though, at the sight of another car parked on the curb, the windows heavily tinted to the point he couldn’t see in and he raised a brow.

“You can drive?” He asked, confusion in his voice and Killer snorted.

“Not legally, can’t exactly see well enough for that. No, I’ve got a driver,” Killer headed down off the porch into the rain and towards his car, looking back at Dream for a moment as he opened the back door and Dream could swear someone else was sitting in the back seat, but he couldn’t make them out. “Good luck!” Killer called, then got into the car and it drove off.

Dream stood there a moment, staring at the car as it drove away from his house before finally, he stepped down off his own porch into the rain and made a run for his car, clutching his closed umbrella and quickly unlocking the car door before getting in, closing the door behind him and he sat there for a moment, beads of water dripping off his hair into his face and he took a moment to slick his hair back again since the running had gotten it a bit messy. He made a mental note to get better gel then got his car started up.

Dream backed his car out of the driveway and turned on the radio, listening to the news reports for the day as he began his drive, going around the cul-de-sac then down the street, starting towards the railyard district. As he drove, the rain began to let up until eventually, as he started seeing the more industrial buildings scattered with low income housing, the sky was blue again and the sun shone down. He felt only mildly irritated that he was still wet from the brief shower.

He pulled his car up to the actual railyard and slowed to a stop, putting the vehicle in park before turning it off and getting out, locking the car door and pocketing his keys before he began his look around.

There were a few old trains scattered around the tracks, graffiti covering them from head to toe and Dream even recognized a few of the tags from other places around the city. Slowly, he walked up to the chainlink gate and pulled it open, stepping through and looking around at the trains, beginning to walk through them.

He paused, noticing a drenched piece of red cloth hanging on the back of one of the trains and he walked over, taking it carefully off and examining it. It was a piece of Geno’s scarf, that he was sure of and he quickly pocketed the fabric, taking his notebook out instead and he wrote down his findings. As he was putting his notebook away, though, he noticed a small glint of light catch the corner of his eye and he looked up at one of the nearby buildings.

As Dream turned his head he spotted where the glint of light was coming from and his expression shifted. He wasted no time and quickly dove behind one of the trains, hearing a whistling sound before tensing as a bullet buried itself deep into the metal of the train right behind where he’d just been standing only moments before.

“Oh hell no-” Dream quickly whispered, panic evident in his tone as he peaked around the corner up at the building, seeing the light move slightly before disappearing, like they’d moved out of direct line from the sun and he tensed further, if that was even possible. “Who the fuck is trying to kill me?” He wondered aloud in a hushed tone before looking back towards his car, then the building the person was hiding atop of. He pulled his head back out of the way just as another bullet came flying and his eyes went wide.

Dream hesitated a moment, considering his options before suddenly pushing himself away from the train and he made a run for the building, running side to side in an unpredictable pattern to shake off any more attempts at shooting him, and they most certainly did try, before he practically ran into the door to the abandoned building, prying it open and rushing inside.

The building was silent, air thick and still and it gave Dream an uncomfortable feeling in his chest, but he persisted and began looking around for the stairs, narrowing his eyes and he took out his hand gun from his hip, cocking it in preparation and eventually, slowly, he started up the stairs.

Weaving through the abandoned building proved harder than he’d expected, parts of the ceiling down in areas and in some spots the steps were caved in, but he pushed on, determined to find whoever was trying to kill him since they obviously were trying to keep him away from something.

He eventually made it to the roof, pushing open the heavy metal door and stepping outside, slowly looking around him as he stepped through a few puddles, walking around but it looked like whoever had been up there definitely wasn’t anymore. He let out a frustrated growl under his breath and uncocked his gun, putting it back in its holster before cursing and going back into the building, making his way down the stairs and, eventually, out the building at the bottom floor.

As Dream stepped out of the building he looked back up, though, focusing on the roof just in time to see a gloved hand and a masked figure lean over the edge and give him a cocky wave before disappearing back out of sight and Dream swore loudly at them in response. He didn’t go back in, though, clearly that was a huge risk considering how out of sight the person had stayed while he was in there. He could’ve died and never even saw it coming. That made him uncomfortable, almost as uncomfortable as the idea of someone trying to snipe him while he searched for a missing friend. Clearly, this situation was deeper than he initially thought.

He got back into his car and made quick work of driving away, going through the main part of downtown on his way back home, irritated as he sat there in traffic on the right-hand side of the road, just trying to get to his turn for a straight shot back to his neighborhood.

It was at a red light that he noticed the woman sitting at a table next to a bookstore-cafe combination business. She was reading a newspaper, or at least pretending to, as her gaze was really on Dream sitting in his car. He recognized her, he wasn’t sure why or from where, but he recognized her. So, he did the rational thing and he took the very next turn, pulling his car into a parallel parking spot along the side of the street and he got out, walking around the corner and towards the bookshop where the woman sat.

The woman, as he approached, pulled the newspaper further up to hide her face better but Dream wasn’t having it. He walked right up to and came to a stop, crossing his arms and clearing his throat to get her attention.

“Why were you watching me?” Dream asked and watched as the woman lowered the newspaper, a warm smile spreading across her face and she reached up, twirling one of her ginger curls between her fingers.

“Is it so wrong to watch an old friend?” She asked, her voice sweet and it had that southern charm that could disarm even the toughest of men. Dream paused, it suddenly clicking in his mind who this was.

“Blue?” He asked, looking her up and down and she nodded. Blue was sat there neatly, one arm resting on the table and the other reached up to twirl at her hair, she had one leg crossed over the other, her brown skirt laying neatly over her knees and her blue woolen vest looked freshly ironed.

“The very same!” Blue hummed before standing up, lowering her hand from her hair and offering a hug instead, which Dream accepted and the two stood there a moment in gentle embrace.

“Gods, I haven’t seen you since college, how have you been?” Dream asked as he pulled away from the hug, smiling softly at her. Blue hummed and crossed her arms, thinking for a moment.

“I’ve been good! Come, have a seat,” Blue gestured to the other chair as she sat back down at the table and Dream obliged, taking a seat across from her and he clasped his hands atop the table.

“What have you been doing? Gods, I didn’t even realize you still lived in the same city as me,”

“Well, old habits die hard, I suppose. It’s my home town, hard to leave,” Blue giggled softly and smiled at him, “I’ve mostly just been working, though. I wound up not pursuing law after all, though I did try for a bit. I work in this cute little print shop now, we’re partnered with the local paper and do all their printing. What about you, though? What have you been up to?” Blue asked back, taking a sip of her coffee and Dream hummed, thinking about that for a moment.

“Well, I didn’t become a lawyer or a cop, my uh, opinions of them aren’t exactly positive. So, I became a private detective, doing the things the cops refuse to do well and all that jazz,” Dream hummed and Blue nodded a bit.

“What are you working on now?” She curiously asked.

“A case for a friend, his husband, Geno, went missing recently and the cops aren’t finding anything so he asked me to look into it instead,”

“What does this Geno look like?”

“About five-foot-seven, dark skin, curly hair he usually wears in a low ponytail, he was last seen in white pajamas with his red scarf on,” Dream told her and Blue thought about that for a moment, taking a sip of her coffee before setting the cup gently down against the glass top of the table.

“I saw someone like that in the print shop once or twice,” she hummed,

“When?” Dream asked, sitting up a little straighter,

“A few weeks ago,” Blue hummed in response before opening up her purse and rummaging around inside it for a second. She pulled out a business card and handed it over to Dream; it was for the print shop, the address, the hours and the telephone number on the card as well as a stamped crescent moon. He took note of that, glancing over at Blue for a moment on a whim and he took note of the similar crescent moon pin on the collar of her shirt; just like Killer’s. That rose alarm bells in his head, but he didn’t question it or indicate he made he connection, he just smiled and pocketed the card.

“Thank you, I’ll have to stop by and ask a few questions,” Dream hummed and Blue gave a nod.

“Of course, we’d be happy to help with whatever you need,” she hummed before standing up, pushing her chair in nicely and from inside the bookstore a man stepped out, walking up behind her. He was taller, taller than Dream was and he was already six-foot. The man wore black pants and a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up, exposing his muscular forearms. He was broad and built like a tank, a deep scar running across his right cheek over his nose. Intimidating. Blue turned and smiled at him, hooking her arm around his and the man gave her a gentle smile in response before hardening his expression again. That’s when Dream noticed the rings on both of their fingers.

“Well, it was nice catching up, see you around, Dream!” Blue hummed and Dream stood, giving her a polite nod and a smile right back.

“I’ll see you around, Blue,” he replied back before watching the two leave down the street, standing there by the bookstore with confusion on his face. What was up with this crescent theme? The print shop? He had so many questions and so little answers, turning and heading back over to where he parked his car.

Dream got into his car and headed off towards home, thinking the whole way back about everything he’d learned today, and everything he now needed to follow up on. Eventually, he pulled into his driveway and parked his car, turning off the engine and stepping out right into a deep puddle of water and he heaved a sigh, closing the car door and locking it up before heading over to his house.

Once inside with the door securely locked back up, Dream made a beeline for his office, entering the room and going over to his large corkboard he had hanging on the wall. He took a few pins and began hanging his evidence. He hung the photo first, pinning the scrap of scarf up with it, then he pinned the print shop business card up as well, making a note on a scrap of paper and pinning it beside it to follow up with any means necessary on the connection. He stared at everything for a moment, then wrote down both Killer and Blue’s names on separate pieces of paper and he hung those up as well, the connection of the crescent moon between the two making him incredibly suspicious.

Dream took a step back and examined his board so far, looking over his evidence and the things he needed to follow up on before taking a seat in his desk chair and he rested his head in his hands.

“This is irritating,” Dream muttered to himself, shaking his head a bit before sitting up straight and sighing. “Right, tomorrow is another day,” he decided, then and there, that the print shop was his next step. There was a big connection there that he just needed to uncover. Why was Geno there? And what was up with this matching jewelry? He’d find out soon enough, he was sure of it.

Chapter Text

Dream stood there beside his car parked along one of the parallel spots on the side of the road downtown, he stared up at the building before him, an old building with worn red brick and a corny sign painted onto the front; Once Upon A Printer, it made Dream chuckle.

Slowly, Dream walked up and pushed open the front door of the print shop, stepping inside with a soft ring of the bell and he looked around, noticing first and foremost Killer sitting on Blue’s desk down the way, leaning over and talking to her about something he couldn’t hear. He noticed two others after that working at one of the print machines, one of them an incredibly tall woman with a heavily scarred face, and the other was much shorter and wore a hood completely hiding their features. Dream also noticed the large man from before standing up on the balcony overlooking the work floor, standing tall and tough as he stared down at Dream with his silver and red eyes.

Dream cleared his throat and Blue looked over, finally taking notice of him and she smiled, nudging Killer who jolted and looked over before grinning a bit and hopping off of her desk, walking right over to Dream.

“What brings you by? Need something printed?” He asked and Dream shook his head.

“No, I had questions. Why didn’t you tell me Geno had been by the print shop maybe even multiple times?” Dream asked back and Killer chuckled a bit.

“Cause I forgot, duh,” He hooked his arm around Dream’s and turned him right around before pushing open the front door and going outside, pulling Dream with him, who gave no protest to the matter yet. Killer closed the door before letting go of Dream’s arm and looking up at him, keeping a smile on his face.

“Didn’t wanna interrupt everyone’s work. Geno did visit, sure. Wanted a poem he wrote printed in the paper so we fit it in for him,” Killer explained,

“Was there anything suspicious about the exchange?” Dream asked and Killer shook his head.

“Not at all, just a nice guy wanting his work published, that’s all,” He replied before pausing and looking over at Blue poked her head out the front door, holding it slightly open.

“The boss wants you, Kills,” Blue told him and Killer gave a quick nod.

“Right, tell her I’ll be right there!” Killer replied with a smile before looking back up at Dream, “Was good seeing you, let’s not have it happen again; don’t come back here,” Killer winked at him before blowing a kiss laced with mockery and he went back inside, leaving Dream standing there in front of the print shop somewhat confused, and infinitely suspicious of everything that just happened.

Slowly, Dream turned and walked back to his car, deciding this would not, in fact, be the last time he came to that print shop as he unlocked and opened the drivers side door, slipping inside and closing it behind him. He wasn’t surprised to see both Killer and Blue there, not with those odd moon pins they had that matched the print shop’s logo perfectly, but it still struck him as suspicious that both people watching him worked in the same place.

Slowly, Dream began to drive off, headed now for his next stop of the day; the bank. He was going to ask the teller a few questions regarding Geno.

The bank wasn’t too far from the print shop, Geno’s frequent stops thankfully all located downtown so it was a quick drive around. He pulled into the small parking lot and parked his car before getting out, locking the door up behind him and he headed up to the front door.

The inside of the bank was elegant and lavish, likely a hot spot for some of the city's richest, but Dream was surprised to find that Geno did his banking here, or at least that’s what Reaper told him. He hoped this conversation would clear things up.

Dream walked up to the front, waiting in line for a couple minutes before he finally got up to one of the tellers booths.

“Good morning, sir. What can I assist you with?” The teller asked and Dream took out a perfectly fake detectives badge, holding it up.

“I just had a few questions regarding a man named Geno, I believe he banked here?” Dream asked and the teller paused a moment to think, so Dream continued, “he was fond of light colored suits, about five-foot-seven, dark skin, black hair usually in a ponytail–”

“Ah, yes, I remember him,” the teller nodded, stacking some papers a little neater on their desk, “he came in frequently to either access his account or ask us questions regarding other patrons, though most of the questions we weren’t able to answer.”

“What kinds of questions were they?” Dream asked and before the teller could reply there was the sound of a gunshot and almost everyone instinctively hit the floor, ducking for cover and Dream quickly turned around to face whoever did it.

“O-o-on the g-g-ground-ound!” came a voice, loud and echoing in the grand hall of the bank. He had a heavy stutter, though it almost sounded like at some parts his voice was skipping like a record. Dream went tense, pressing his back against the counter behind him and he stared at the person before him. He looked… remarkably like Geno, only his face had deep scars running down the cheeks, his clothes were dark and faded in odd colors, his scarf was the wrong color– everything was wrong and it threw Dream off into a spiral of confusion.

“I-I-I sai-aid!” Error started walking towards Dream, pointing his gun at him, “o-o-on the g-g-ground!” He raised his voice further and Dream, on a whim, pulled his own gun, cocking it back and aiming it at Error, a stern look on his face hiding the fear he felt in his chest. It was stupid, remarkably stupid to pull a gun on the armed robber, but he did it anyway.

“Stay back! We’ve already signalled for the police!” Dream shouted back, standing protectively in front of the teller who seemed to get the idea and pressed the panic button under the edge of the counter, the alarms within the bank signalling and going off now at top volume and Error gritted his teeth, looking around for a moment before looking back at Dream and aiming his gun down, shooting him straight in the knee and Dream went down with a grunt of pain, his gun sliding a few feet away and he quickly reached for it but Error kicked it further away, kicking Dream in the knee just to rub it in and the other let out a quiet cry of pain before glaring up at him.

Error hummed and walked up to the teller, holding out his bag and demanding the money they have. The teller listened, of course, loading the money into the bag as sirens began to sound nearby, approaching quickly and Error laughed, it was a screeching laugh that hurt Dream’s ears terribly with his growing headache.

Error turned on his heel, looking into the bag before breaking into a run out of the building and around the corner out of sight. It was only moments later that the police came running in, yelling and sounding out for the robber to put their hands up as Dream slowly sat up from where he lay, gripping his bleeding knee.

“You’re a little late!” Dream called, an unamused expression on his face and the guns were lowered, one of the officers walking over, taking notice of Dream’s gun and he looked at him with a raised brow.

“You try and get the guy to back off or something?” The officer asked and Dream nodded, watching one of the other officers confiscate his gun and he sighed.

“Clearly, it didn’t work.” Dream muttered, looking up at the officer,

“You damn fool, you should’ve cooperated," the officer told him as he knelt down, shouting back for someone to get the paramedics over here and one of the other officers nodded and ran outside. Dream turned his head away as the officer before him examined his knee, paramedics running in shortly after and joining at his side, signalling for him to back off and he did, letting them do their jobs.

Dream was loaded up into the ambulance soon enough, surrounded by paramedics as he lay there in the ambulance. He was irritated, in all truth. He thought he’d really be able to stop Error, but he supposed playing hero only worked in fantasies.

“That was real stupid,” one of the paramedics told him, a young woman with short hair, “you should always just comply, when you don’t things like this happen,” she gestured to his knee and Dream nodded a bit, sighing.

“I know, I was just trying to help,” Dream muttered, turning his head away and the paramedic nodded.

“It was a valiant attempt, now remember the recovery from this gunshot wound next time you think about jumping in front of an armed robber,” she chuckled and Dream gave a dry chuckle in response before falling quiet the rest of the ride to the hospital.

Getting loaded out of the ambulance was embarrassing, Dream decided, staring upwards at the nearest above object as they rolled him into the hospital and eventually transferred him onto a real bed. He lay there for a while, waiting patiently and, eventually, a short woman with curly blond hair and glasses came in.

“H-hello, my name is Doctor Alphys, I’ll be taking care of you today. You said your name is Dream, right?” She asked and Dream nodded a bit, watching as she came over and started taking a look at his knee. “That was very brave of you, jumping in like that,” she quietly hummed and Dream chuckled.

“I’ve heard mixed responses. How bad is it?” He asked, pushing himself up so he was sitting and he watched her examine his knee.

“I’ve de-definitely seen worse, which is good, but I’ll have to fish the bullet out,” she told him and Dream grimaced, nodding.

“Okay, let’s get it over with then,” he muttered and she gave a nod, retrieving her good doctor's pliers before slipping on her gloves and turning her full attention to his knee. She rested the cold pliers against Dream’s knee first, his body tensing a bit at the cold before he tightly gripped at the sides of the bed as she carefully inserted the pliers into the bullet hole, digging into his skin and Dream had to bite back a scream as she carefully began to pull the bullet out.

“Almost got it…” Alphys mumbled before finally, pulling the bullet fully out, “there we go! Th-that wasn’t so bad, right?” She gave him a nervous smile and Dream just laid back on the bed, breathing heavily. “Right… Okay, now I just need to clean it and stitch it up,” she mumbled, gently beginning to clean the wound, which thankfully didn’t hurt as bad, and eventually she got to stitching it up. By that point Dream was hazy, exhausted from the pain of getting shot and now he just lay there on the bed as Alphys got up and left to do the necessary paperwork.

It took hours, between the initial wait to actually be taken care of and the time it took for discharge, Dream wound up there late into the afternoon. But, eventually, he was given his discharge papers and sent on his way with a crutch in hand.

Now, Dream stood one the curb at the hospital, trying desperately to wave down a taxi to bring him back to his car. He held his hand in the air as the fourth one passed by and he gritted his teeth. They slowed, though, a bit after him and he turned around, quickly limping over and climbing into the back.

“Eastwatch Bank, downtown branch, please,” he told the driver who nodded and took Dream’s money before beginning to drive. Dream looked out the window as they went, watching the scenery roll by, the cars pass, the people on the sidewalks… He felt so tired, but he forced his eyes to stay open.

The drive took probably fifteen minutes before finally they arrived, the driver slowing to a stop by the curb and the car unlocked. Dream thanked him and stepped out, leaving a tip in the cupholder jar before closing the door and looking around for his car, trying to remember where on earth he had parked.

Slowly, he began to walk down the street, heading for the parking lot and he looked past all the cars around him, his mind swimming as he searched and, eventually, he located it. His little brown Cadillac parked right there in the parking lot. He smiled a bit in relief and took out his keys, walking over and unlocking the door before climbing into the driver's seat and sitting there a moment in silence, just listening to the sound of his breathing before finally, he started the vehicle and headed home.

Finally, after a long, long day Dream slumped down on his couch in the living room, resting his leg up on the coffee table to keep it elevated and he reached over to the side table, turning on his radio and he closed his eyes, listening to the news reporting on the incident. He caught one of the reporters noting a ‘brave bystander who jumped in but unfortunately failed to prevent the robbery’ and he gave a dry chuckle.

“Gee, thanks,” he muttered before changing it to a music station, listening now as the unmistakable sound of Frank Sinatra filled the air and he breathed a sigh of relief, finally letting his body relax as best it could.

Getting up the stairs to his bedroom as nighttime rolled around proved irritating and painful, the painkillers the hospital gave him worn off by now and he was left with the clarity of someone who had been shot in the knee. Safe to say it hurt like hell. He made it to the top, though, relying heavily on his crutch and the railing of the stairs before eventually making his way into his room where he made quick work of getting into his pajamas, then into bed.
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The following week was mostly just spent around the house recovering, he’d called Reaper at one point and informed him of the situation, that he would continue his investigation as soon as he could, he just needed some time to recover and the other had been more than understanding, even going as far as to bring Dream takeout and the two spent some time talking.

Now, Dream was antsy, sitting in his car in the driveway as dusk started to roll around and he was considering his options. Sitting home alone with his thoughts for the last week had led to a spiral of paranoia and now he was trying to figure out whether or not to act on it. It was a losing battle, really, he was a man of action to his very core and that was only proven further as he put his car into drive and backed out of the driveway.

He hung close to the print shop now, parked across the street and watching through the window of his car. He watched as Killer left the building, bringing his bike with him and he waved goodbye to Blue before hopping on his bike and riding off. Dream put his car into drive and began to follow at a distance so as not to raise any alarm bells. This was just an investigation, he told himself. Killer was likely associated with Geno’s disappearance, or at least that was the justification for following the other he gave himself.

He followed Killer for several miles, eventually watching as the other slowed to a stop at a large, old apartment complex closer to the railyard district. It was worn down and he swore there were probably several safety violations present in the building, but he certainly wasn’t the one to report it, nor did he see a need to. He glanced down at his watch a moment before looking back up and pausing, seeing Killer’s bike leaned against the wall of the building but no sign of Killer with it.

Dream looked around for a moment before jolting as the door to his passenger seat opened up and he looked over, watching as Killer got in and just sat there a moment, closing the door behind him. He looked up at Dream and smiled.

“Didn’t think stalking was your style,” Killer mused and Dream squinted a bit.

“I’m not stalking you, I’m investigating, there’s a difference.”

“And where is that difference?”

“Well–”

“Exactly,” Killer snickered a bit and leaned back in the seat, kicking his legs up comfortably on the dash of Dream’s car and the other tensed a bit, trying to push his feet off the dash but Killer didn’t budge. “So, what? You think I’m involved with Geno’s disappearance or something?”

“I do,” Dream confirmed, crossing his arms now, car in park. “So you best just come clean and tell me where he is.”

“I would if I could, honest. But this guy,” Killer pointed to himself with both his thumbs, “had nothing to do with it. I knew Geno, sure, but I or the people I work with had literally no reason to see him gone– tell me, is stalking me going to become a regular thing, or…?”

“Again, I’m not stalking you. But how do I know you’re telling the truth?” Dream asked, narrowing his eyes slightly.

“You don’t, but you also don’t actually have any evidence to say I was involved, so I’d say that clears my name pretty well, don’t you think? Besides, kidnapping’s not really my style,”

“And what IS your style?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” Killer snickered and reached over, patting Dream’s cheek with his hand before opening the car door and stepping out, though he leaned back down right after to look at Dream, “do me a favor and quit the stalking, would you? It’s creepy, and someone out here will shoot you for creeping around,” he mused and Dream nodded a bit.

“I will put a pause in this for now, then. But if I find anything, and I mean anything, linking you to this case, I will look into it.”

“I would expect no less,” Killer hummed then shut the door and jogged back over to his bike. He turned and waved at Dream before disappearing into the apartment building and Dream put his car in drive before driving off.

Chapter Text

Dream had officially re-begun his investigation about a week after he was shot, thanks to his higher healing factor it was almost completely healed by now, but he was still on the crutch and his knee was still securely bandaged. It was vaguely embarrassing having to use the crutch everywhere he went, but he knew well and good that without it he would fall on his ass more times than he could count. He did try.

He found himself back in the railyard, keeping a careful eye out for whoever had tried to kill him as he began to look around, checking around trains, underneath them, even going as far as to look on top of a few with a bit of difficulty. He eventually came to the back of the railyard where he found another scrap of Geno’s scarf, then another, and another…

He followed the trail of scarf pieces forwards until he reached a cluster of bushes where there had clearly been a struggle, blood mixed in with the gravel around it and Dream grimaced and crouched down, gripping tightly onto his crutch as he looked over the scene, taking out his notebook and writing down what he’d found, formulating a theory in his mind.

Whoever had taken Geno had to be involved with the shooter, he determined. Geno was obviously violently abducted and someone was clearly trying to keep him from finding out why.

Slowly, carefully, Dream stood up and turned around, starting to walk away when his eyes landed on none other than Killer sitting on the back of a train, kicking his feet back and forth in the air and there was a cheery smile on his face.

“How did you know I was here?” Dream asked and Killer snickered.

“You’re not the only one that can stalk,” he hopped up off the back of the train and walked over, circling around Dream. “What did you find?”

“I’m almost positive you already know,”

“Humor me,” Killer smiled almost sweetly up at him and Dream raised a brow.

“Fine. I found scraps of Geno’s scarf as well as blood around some bushes where there was clearly a struggle. Geno’s always been a fighter,”

“You’re probably right with that theory,” Killer hummed and paused as Dream walked past him towards his car, so Killer followed.

“Where’s your ride? Or did you bike?” Dream asked as he looked around the entrance area where he could only see his own car sitting there parked.

“Off somewhere, I dunno. I sent him off,”

“Why?” Dream stopped to look at him, raising his brow and Killer snickered.

“Because I’m coming with you, obviously. I wanna help,” Killer stopped walking as well and crossed his arms, staring up at Dream.

“You can’t just invite yourself into someone else’s car,” Dream pointed out and Killer shrugged.

“Okay, invite me into your car,”

“Are you a vampire?”

“I feel like you’ve asked me that before,” Killer gave a quiet laugh before resuming walking towards Dream’s car, the taller man following close behind.

“You’re very focused on being invited into things,” Dream replied and Killer thought about that for a moment,

“That’s just me trying to be polite. And besides, I just got into your car the other night without needing to be invited, so, clearly I’m not a vampire,” Killer hummed in his defense and Dream shook his head a bit, a smile creeping up onto his face against his better judgement and he chuckled softly. Dream walked around his car and opened the passenger door for Killer.

“Thank you, kind sir,” Killer dramatically said in a fake British accent before climbing into the car and Dream shut the door, shaking his head in amusement and he went around to the driver’s side, getting in.

“So, where are we going?” Killer asked as Dream started up the car and he sat there a moment, considering their options.

“Back to my house, I want to cross-reference the information I have so far and see if I can figure anything out,” he hummed and turned his car around before driving out of the gate, heading back towards his house.

“Right, right, that makes sense,” Killer looked out the window, resting his arm on the small windowsill of the car as he thought for a moment. “You know, I’m surprised you actually let me come along; what if I tried to kill you?”

“Honestly, Killer, I fully expect you to try and kill me at some point,” Dream replied with a shake of his head and Killer snickered a bit.

“It’s the name, isn’t it? I get ‘you’re probably a murderer’ a lot,” Killer mused and just started laughing when Dream nodded, leaning over in his seat and he covered his mouth, fully body laughing over the confirmation.

“Well, I didn’t think it was that funny,” Dream mused, though couldn’t help but chuckle, casting a glance over to Killer just completely losing it in his passenger seat before looking ahead again, a warm smile on his face. Perhaps the other wasn’t so bad after all and his suspicions really were unfounded…

The drive back to his house took probably fifteen minutes, at some point during the drive Killer calmed down and the two started just talking about random things. It was nice, really. Dream was so used to working alone he forgot how much he enjoyed having someone else there to bounce off of. Soon enough, though, he pulled into the driveway of his house and parked his car, getting out and Killer did the same before he locked the car doors and went over to his house, unlocking the handle and the deadbolt before opening it and holding it open for Killer, who thanked him and walked inside.

Dream’s house was as tidy as ever, every surface dusted and wiped down, the rugs were all laid perfectly out along the entranceway and halls; it looked preserved, or unlived in.

Dream walked past Killer and over to his study where he entered and went over to the corkboard, ripping a page out of his notebook before pinning it up and connecting a few strings as he worked on his theory.

While he worked, Killer walked around the study, looking at the collection of bits and bobs Dream had gotten over the years, pausing to look at a picture sitting on his desk. It was of Dream and another little boy, both sitting side by side under a huge tree. They looked to be around five or six, if Killer had to guess. He reached over and rested a hand lightly on the top of the frame before pulling it down so it laid face down on the desk. He shook his head a bit and looked over at Dream, walking around to the front of the desk then just hopping up and sitting on it, resting his head lightly against his shoulder. Dream paused and looked back, staring at Killer for a moment.

“What are you doing?” Dream asked and Killer shrugged.

“Just getting comfortable,” he hummed and Dream raised a brow,

“There’s a chair, you know,”

“I know. What have you found so far?” Dream shook his head a bit and looked back at the corkboard, thinking for a moment.

“I’ve found scraps from his scarf, signs of the struggle in the railyard where he was notable spotted,” Dream tapped the photograph he had pinned up on the wall before continuing, “then I’ve got the connections at the print shop, odd transactions at the bank, and the frequent cafe visits.”

“And what do all of those have in common?” Killer curiously asked and Dream though for a moment, his back still turned to the other as he looked over his evidence.

“Nothing, just… Geno, there at some point doing something. I can’t see any real connections,”

“That’s a shame,” Killer mumbled and Dream froze as he heard a gun cock behind him, slowly turning around to look at Killer, eyes widening slightly.

“It was you,” he realized, everything clicking into place, “you were the one trying to snipe me, weren’t you?” He asked, staring into Killer’s deep, empty eyes, measuring the distance between them and considering how fast he could move.

“It was,” Killer confirmed, keeping the gun aimed at Dream as he uncrossed his legs and leaned forwards slightly, “it’s really nothing personal, I like you, honest. But the boss has orders, and who am I if not her pawn?” he gave a laugh before jolting as Dream suddenly lunged. He pulled the trigger without a second thought, but what he didn’t expect was for Dream to grab his wrist at the right moment and the shot flew over the other’s shoulder instead.

Dream was on Killer in an instant, gripping the wrist with the gun tightly as he practically pinned the other to the desk, Killer’s back hitting the hard wood and knocking several things over and he struggled, flailing around and kicking and, at one point, he bit Dream’s hand, causing his grip on Killer’s gun hand to fail and Killer used the opportunity to hit him over to head with the gun.

Dream hissed in pain, his head jerking to the side and as Killer went to hit him again, cocking the gun to fire he came down with his fist and hit Killer clear in the fair, knocking the other a bit dizzy and disoriented for a moment and Dream shoved Killer’s wrists down against the desk. He didn’t expect the laugh that came from Killer’s mouth, though, just pure, joyous laughter of a maniac.

“At least take me out to dinner first!” Killer exclaimed and Dream paused, realizing how… provocative their current position was with on of his knees pushed unintentionally between Killer’s legs and he was holding him down by the wrists, leaned over him. His face flushed and he glared at the other.

“That’s not funny,” Dream muttered, letting go of Killer’s right writing before quickly reaching over and snatching the gun out of his left hand, pressing the barrel under Killer’s chin and the other felt silent a moment before this wide smile spread across his face.

“I guess you got me,” Killer mused, breathing heavily as he laid there on the desk, “what are you gonna do now? Call the police?”

“No,” Dream muttered, slowly uncocking the gun and tossing it aside on the floor far out of Killer’s reach, “but I want you to tell your boss I’m not playing this game and to leave me the fuck alone,” his voice was laced with the anger of someone who held it in entirely too much, it made Killer’s spine tingle and his heart beat faster.

“Yeah, I guess I can do that,” Killer muttered, still just laying there with his wrists beside his head, only one currently still pinned down. “So uh, truce for now? Yeah?” He gave a grin and Dream rolled his eyes, pulling away from him and standing up straight, fixing his tie then combing his fingers through his hair as he watched Killer sit up, the guy not even bothering to fix the disaster that was his everything right now. Dream was almost positive, somehow the other’s shirt had come loose from a button in the chaos. It made his cheeks flush.

“This won’t be the last you see of me, you know that, right?” Killer asked as he slipped off the desk, standing and lightly rubbing his wrists. “She’s not gonna let up, and frankly I wanna try again, could be fun,”

“Don’t,” Dream glared at him and Killer snickered,

“You can’t tell me what to do, Dreamy, I’d suggest you get that through your head real quick.” Killer mused and went to grab his gun but Dream walked over and stepped on it, pressing his foot firmly down on it so Killer couldn’t grab it and the other huffed. “Really?”

“I’m not letting you take the gun you just tried to kill me with. Besides, I have a question, and answer me honest,”

“Fine, ask away,” Killer stood up straight to stare up at him, brushing some of his messy curly hair out of his face,

“Did your group kidnap Geno?”

“No, we’re trying to find him too,” Killer replied with a sigh, crossing his arms, “I don’t know how you haven’t realized that by now.”

“I don’t see why we can’t work together, then,” Dream crossed his arms as well, raising a brow, “we have the same goal,”

“Sure, we do. But finding Geno means finding out a lot more about us that the boss would rather you didn’t find out, so back. Off.” Killer jabbed Dream in the chest with his finger as he spoke the last couple words, staring up at him, “trust me, you’ll wanna stay out of this one.”

“I’ll do what I like, thank you very much,” Dream muttered and swore, even if he couldn’t actually see Killer’s irises, he was rolling his eyes. Killer backed up to the doorway, resting a hand on the wood as he looked over at Dream again, staring a moment.

“See you sometime,” Killer told him and Dream paused, staring back now.

“Yeah, see you sometime,” he muttered and watched as Killer disappeared through the doorway and out of his house, leaving him standing there in his study that was now a disaster. He groaned softly and got to work cleaning up. He thought back to Killer as he picked up the contents of his desk, organizing everything neatly back where it goes. He wondered if the other really would try again to kill him, or if perhaps he’d had his fill or maybe his boss would change her mind. Either way, if he wasn’t wary of the print shop before, he certainly was now.

Dream considered paying the print shop a visit, trying to talk to this boss of Killer’s, but he wasn’t sure if she’d actually come talk to him. No, she seemed to be strictly avoiding seeing him, maybe she was someone he knew? He wasn’t sure. His thoughts paused as he stared at the picture laying face down on his desk, he reached over and picked it up, looking over the slightly cracked glass that covered the delicate photograph.

“Nightmare…” he mumbled, feeling a heaviness in his chest as he set the frame back down, standing up neatly there on his desk, “you would’ve loved all this chaos,” he mumbled, shaking his head a bit before putting on a smile and resuming his work cleaning up his office. It was no time to think about his dead brother now.

It took an annoyingly long time for such a quick fight, but he eventually got his office all cleaned up and reorganized, now making his way up the stairs with the help of his crutch, reaching the top and going to his room where he opened the door and just let his body fall down onto the bed. He laid there for a while, lost in his own thoughts in the warm comfort of all his blankets, not even bothering to take his shoes off since they weren’t touching the bed.

Eventually, Dream pushed himself up so he was sitting and he looked around for a moment at his room, sliding off the bed onto the ground where he began to untie his shoes, humming the tune to Frank Sinatra’s ‘My Way’ while he did. He soon set his loafers aside and pushed himself to his feet, still humming songs as he laid fully down on his bed, curling up a bit in the blankets and he closed his eyes, not even caring if he was still dressed.
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Killer groaned long and dramatic as he left Dream’s house, looking back at the building and flipping it the bird before looking around a moment. Of course his ride wasn’t here yet… he sighed and began to walk, just heading in the general direction of his home on foot until, eventually, a car slowly pulled up beside him, rolling along the edge of the sidewalk as Killer walked and he looked over, putting on a grin and he slowed to a stop, waiting for the car to stop before going around and hopping into the back seat.

“Did you do it?” The quiet, deep voice asked from the front seat and Killer’s expression faltered.

“Uh, yeah about that…”

“So you failed?” Came the woman’s voice and Killer paused, looking over at the passenger seat where she sat, dark, messy hair scattered over her shoulders and she was staring back at him.

“Uh, yeah, this time. But I’m gonna try again, I just need a good opening since he knows I’m after him now,”

“You’ve never failed a job,” her smile was sweet but Killer knew better.

“I know.” he mumbled, looking away.

“Don’t let it start now.”

Chapter Text

The morning was fresh and cool, and Dream hummed to himself as he sat at his dining room table sipping on his coffee and reading the morning paper. He paused and looked to the side though as a letter slipped through the mail slot of his door. He raised a brow, setting his coffee cup down before standing and walking over.

The door was otherwise undisturbed when Dream got to it, all the locks firmly in place, but laying on the ground right in front of it was a letter. The envelope was a soft shade of blue and it had, in neat, elegant handwriting, his name written right there on the front.

Dream picked up the letter and examined it, turning it over in his hands a few times before finally opening it and taking the piece of paper that was inside. He looked that over too before finally, he stopped to read it.

*Dear Dream,

I am writing to you today to invite you to coffee so we can catch up on things. I would have come to ask you myself, but I am very busy this morning. I am sure you understand.

Please meet me at the coffee shop on the corner of 3rd and Monroe downtown around 3pm. I look forward to see you.

Your friend,
Blue

Dream stared at the letter for a minute, turning it over in his hands again before finally looking at his door instead. He supposed he would go, though part of him worried it would be some sort of trap laid to try and kill him again. He shook his head a bit and walked back to the kitchen, setting the letter on the table before taking a seat and resuming his coffee and reading.

Eventually, the time neared three and Dream stood from his desk where he had moved to earlier on, straightening his tie and checking his watch before walking around the desk and out of the study. He stopped at the front door and slipped on his shoes before grabbing his keys and heading out, locking the door securely behind him and he went over to his car, getting in and starting it up.

“Right, uhhh,” Dream paused for a moment, taking the letter out of his coat pocket before looking it over. “At the corner of… third and Monroe, got it,” he muttered and put the letter back in his coat pocket before putting his car in reverse and backing out of the driveway, then he drove off.

Locating the coffee shop proved a tedious process, he found Third street first, driving down it but somehow he managed to pass by Monroe and had to loop around a few blocks, but eventually he made it, parking his car in one of the roadside spots downtown loved so much and he got out, locked the door and heading over to the coffee shop just down the street from where he parked.

Blue waited patiently for him outside, standing there with her hands clasped neatly behind her back. There was no sign of Cross anywhere but Dream had a feeling he was nearby. He didn’t question it though as he walked up to Blue, a warm smile on his face.

“Hello, Blue. It’s good to see you again,” he greeted and Blue gave a cheery smile back, nodding.

“It’s good to see you too, Dream. Come,” she gestured for him to follow before stepping inside the cafe and going over to the counter to order, Dream following close behind. Once it was her turn, she ordered a chai latte and a chocolate chip muffin, then gestured to Dream. “And whatever he wants, too,” she hummed and Dream paused.

“I can pay for my own,” he mused but Blue shook her head.

“Please, it’s on me,” she told him with a smile and slowly, he nodded, stepping up to the counter and ordering a regular coffee with cream and sugar, no food. After that, Blue stepped up and paid, collecting her change and putting it straight into the tip jar before thanking the barista and going over to a table, Dream following and the both of them sat down.

“So, what have you been up to?” Blue asked, resting her hands in her lap as she stared across at Dream who thought about that for a moment.

“Mostly just investigating, though there was a period where I had to take a break due to my knee, but that’s mostly healed by now, thankfully,” he mused and shook his head a bit.

“Oh, what happened to your knee?” Blue curiously asked, though she had an odd look in her eye like she already knew.

“I got shot, Error robbed the bank I was interrogating in and I tried to defend one of the tellers, clearly that didn’t work out,”

“You know, I think I remember hearing about that on the radio last week, I believe they called you the ‘brave but foolish bystander’ no?” She giggled a bit and Dream flushed in embarrassment, averting his gaze.

“I believe that’s exactly what they called me, yes,” he muttered, chuckling a bit though as he looked back over at her. “I did try, though. It just, you know, didn’t work out too well,”

“Naturally,” Blue mused, smiling warmly at him, “how is your investigation going?”

“Well, I hardly have any leads right now, though I am interested to know more about that print shop you work at; what’s going on there?”

“Is this catching up or an interrogation?” Blue asked, but that smile never left her face and she hummed a bit, “it’s just a print shop, nothing nefarious going on, I can assure you.”

“Who’s your boss, then?” he asked, smiling at her though it didn’t reach his eyes.

“No one you would know,” Blue replied, a lie and Dream knew it, but he didn’t press it. “You look like you could really use some sleep,” she pointed out instead, thanking the barista as they set their coffees and her muffin down on the table, “honestly, you’re so obsessed with this case, are you even taking any time to take care of yourself?”

“I’m taking plenty of time, too much time if you ask me,” Dream mused, thanking the barista as well before taking a sip of his coffee. It was perfect.

“You can never take too much time to take care of yourself,” Blue replied simply, sipping on her coffee, “besides, you look like you saw the grim reaper or something; are you sure you’re alright?” She asked again and Dream nodded a bit.

“Yes, I’m fine. I appreciate your worry, but really, it’s alright. I’m just a bit tired, and it’s been stressful looking into all of this,” he told her, giving a more genuine smile and that seemed to ease Blue’s worry at least a bit.

“Well, try and get some more rest when you can, but if you want it, I had…” she seemed to hesitate a moment and Dream raised a brow,

“Had what?” he asked and Blue averted her gaze a moment before looking back at him,

“I had a job for you, but if you take it I need you to promise me you’ll only work on one case at a time,”

“I can’t promise that. What’s the job?” Dream asked and Blue sighed, a heavy sort of sigh of someone who knows this might be a mistake, but she told him anyway.

“I have this friend, his name is Ink and I think he’s been getting into some bad things recently. I want you to find out what it is and just… let me know, don’t try and stop it or anything. I just want to know what’s going on,”

“I can do that,” Dream smiled at her, “that should be easy enough, too, assuming your friend isn’t also missing?”

“No, he’s not. I can actually give you his address if you think you’ll need it,” she hummed and Dream nodded, so she took a piece of paper out of her purse and handed it over to him. Dream took it and looked over the address written on it and he nodded.

“I know where that’s at,” he hummed, glad it was somewhere familiar. That would make finding it significantly easier. “I’ll get to work on it as soon as I can,” he assured and Blue smiled at him.

“Thank you, I appreciate it,” she hummed and Dream nodded.

The two continued to talk for a while, catching up on things going on in their lives and just the last few years since they last saw each other at school. It was nice to catch up with an old friend and, eventually, the two of them stood and said their goodbyes before finally parting ways.

Dream headed now to his car as he looked over the piece of paper with Ink’s address on it. He supposed there was no time like the present, so he got into his car and started towards the address Blue had given him. As he arrived he looked over the townhomes that stretched out before him, locating Ink’s and parking his car on the opposite side of the road before he just… watched. He supposed it was a bit creepy, but he honestly didn’t really care.

The stake-out in his car wound up taking a couple hours, Dream just sitting there watching Ink’s house like a stalker and, eventually, Ink finally came out, looking around him and Dream pretended to have just gotten into his car, starting it up to leave and that seemed to shake any suspicion Ink may have had.

He watched as Ink got into his own vehicle, staring it up and driving off down the street. Dream waited a moment before pulling out and following him at a distance, making sure not to get too close to raise suspicion, and he sometimes let other cars cut between them so Ink wouldn’t start to notice him, but still he followed.

The first place Ink went was a corner store, Dream waiting out in his car and just watching and waiting, the other eventually coming out with some cleaning supplies and getting back into his car. Dream expected him to go home after that, but no he went the opposite direction, headed now towards the edge of town as Dream followed him down the streets.

Ink eventually came to a large warehouse on the outskirts of town and he parked up at the front alongside the curb, Dream parking a little ways away amidst some of the other broken down cars just abandoned in the parking lot. He watched Ink step out of his car and wait beside it until the door to the warehouse opened and…

Dream’s eyes narrowed as Error stepped out of the warehouse and walked up to Ink, looking down at him and the two seemed to be having some sort of heated conversation, Error getting angry at one point but Ink held up his hands defensively and said something that calmed him down. Dream wished he could hear, but he couldn’t.

Eventually, Ink took a paper out of his pocket and handed it over to Error, who took it and looked it over a moment before pocketing the paper and presumably thanking Ink, at least that’s what it looked like. Then, he turned and waved Ink off before going back inside the warehouse and Dream watched as Ink got back in his car and left.

Once again, Dream followed at a distance, following Ink all the way back to his house and watching as the other parked and went inside. He waited until the door had been closed for a few minutes before finally pulling out and leaving, headed back to his own house and he made sure to keep a careful eye out for any tails following him, but there was no one, thankfully.

Dream pulled into his driveway and parked before getting out of his car and heading inside, locking up the front door behind him and he went right upstairs. It was getting late now, tailing Ink had taken a lot of time out of his day, though he had suspicions now that it connected to his primary case since Error seemed to be involved in some way.

Dream heaved a sigh as he undressed, getting into his pajamas instead and he laid down in bed, not even bothering with dinner. He did pause, though, looking over at the glass of water on his bedside table and, reluctantly, he sat up and took his medication. He neglected it often, not feeling like he needed it but when he didn’t take it he felt a lot worse than he did when he was on it. So, down the hatch it went.

Slowly, Dream laid down on his bed and let his arms and legs sprawl out at his sides. He closed his eyes and heaved a sigh, just laying there for a while unable to find sleep. He figured a doctor could probably help with that, too, but the last thing he wanted was to tell some pompous prick he couldn’t sleep and find himself on even more medication. He hated medication.

Dream laid there for a while, either eyes closed imagining things that weren’t real, or he just stared up at the ceiling and tried counting sheep. Eventually, sleep found him in the late hours of the night, or very early hours of the morning, whichever you wanted to call it. He slept until his alarm went off at seven thirty and he opened his eyes, his eyelids heavy from exhaustion and he slowly sat up, turning off his alarm and staring blankly at the wall for a moment before standing and throwing on his robe.

The stairs creaked slightly as Dream walked down them, him making a mental note to have someone take a look at some point, but not today and he yawned, eventually reaching the bottom and heading straight for the kitchen.

Instead of the morning paper today, after he got his coffee he went to the living room and turned on the radio, taking a seat comfortably on the couch and he leaned back, sipping on his coffee. He paused as the news report came on, telling of an attack on the town hall, a receptionist being caught in the crossfire and she was killed. Apparently, Error had attacked and stolen several files from the mayor’s office before taking off as police got there. There were no other casualties, thankfully.

Dream frowned, thinking about what he’d just heard and he knew without a shadow of a doubt that it was connected to Ink. So, despite the early hours, he set his coffee down on the coffee table and stood up, going over to his telephone and he dialed Blue’s number, picking it up and patiently waiting right after.

“Hello?” Came Blue’s tired voice, a second more muffled voice in the background tiredly asking her who it was, a woman’s voice Dream didn’t recognize.

“It’s Dream,” he told her, his voice quiet but still able to be heard. “I followed Ink around for a while yesterday just like you asked and found him doing some sort of exchange with Error. I just heard the news report and apparently after that happened Error attacked the city hall and stole some files, I believe it’s connected.”

“Dammit,” Blue muttered, her voice suddenly muffled like she’d turned her head away from the phone, and Dream could hear her relaying what he’d just told her to someone else, a man’s voice now muttering a swear before Blue turned back to the phone. “Thank you, Dream. We can handle it from here, I’ll send over your payment, just keep an eye on your mail,” she hummed.

“Of course. But, are you sure you don’t need any more assistance?”

“I’m sure, but thank you, truly,”

“You’re welcome. I’ll see you soon?”

“See you soon,” Blue confirmed, then hung up the call. Dream stood there for a moment, head swimming with theories and confusion. Blue hadn’t been nearly as surprised as he’d expected her to be, if anything it sounded like he confirmed suspicions she already had and that made him… very suspicious. He would be looking more into this without a shadow of a doubt.

Chapter Text

It had been a week, Dream was investigating every little lead he could find and continued to do so into the current time. Now, he lay in bed as the sun rose, casting a sharp light through his window that made him squint. He hadn’t slept that night, mind full of thoughts of what could’ve happened to Geno, what Ink and Error were up to…

Slowly, Dream pushed himself up so he was sitting, looking over to the window of his bedroom, curtains drawn mostly over it but where they weren’t covering the light shone through. Slowly, he got up out of bed, feeling the cold, hard wood beneath his feet and he went over to the window, pulling the curtains fully open and he looked out at the neighborhood that stretched out before him.

Outside a couple people were walking dogs, one was out for a morning jog, he could see someone hanging their laundry up in their back yard on a clothes line. It made him smile, the normalcy of their existences, it almost made him jealous, even if just for a moment. His life was anything but simple and he was always stressed out over SOMETHING.

Slowly, Dream closed the curtains again, this time all the way and he went over to his closet, picking out some clothes and getting dressed before finally leaving his bedroom to go about his daily business.

The first floor of his house was chilly, the days finally getting colder as early Autumn continued. Dream loved the cold, not as much as he loved a warm, sunny day outside, but there was a certain sort of peacefulness that came with colder weather that he couldn’t help but admire.

Dream hummed a soft tune as he got to work on the coffee pot, pausing briefly to stretch out his leg since his knee was still a bit sore, but by now it had completely scarred over and healed for the most part thanks to his quick healing factor, so he didn’t need to worry about it other than the slight limp he now had.

He resumed with the coffee pot after his stretch, continuing to hum a melodic tune to one of the popular songs of the time, one he couldn’t remember the name of but was certain it was by the Ink Spots. He stood now, watching the coffee slowly drip into the pot with a slight smile on his face. He felt comfortable now; tired, exhausted even, but comfortable.

Eventually, Dream pulled himself away from the coffee pot, just leaving it to brew without him staring a hole into the glass, and he went to retrieve the paper instead. He opened the door and stepped outside only to pause, watching someone ride by on a bicycle and toss the news paper onto his doorstep, but he recognized them… then it clicked and he narrowed his eyes, watching as Killer flashed him this wide grin before continuing his work delivering the papers. Dream shook his head and picked his up, turning it over in his hand a few times before going inside and locking the door tightly behind him.

“Does he deliver my paper every day?” Dream asked himself, his tone quiet and vaguely irritated as he walked back into his kitchen, still gripping the newspaper tightly in his hands like he was trying to suffocate it. “...I swear I’ve never seen him doing it before…” his thoughts were spiraling, now focused on the idea that Killer was, in fact, stalking him. He wasn’t sure how true it was, but then again this could be revenge for foiling his plans to kill him, or he could be preparing to try again.

Dream took a few deep breaths and exhaled, shaking his head and taking down a coffee cup before pouring him a good, hot cup of coffee. He didn’t even bother with cream or sugar, he hadn’t slept enough for the taste to matter anyways, so he drank it black, sitting down and reading the paper with a stern expression on his face.

Eventually, Dream finished with his morning ritual and finally left the house, getting into his car and beginning the drive downtown. He was going to investigate the scene of a crime he caught wind of on the radio just before he left, apparently Error had attacked some jewelry shop downtown so he was going to see what happened. He briefly checked his pockets while he drove, using one hand on the wheel while the other felt around. He pulled something from his pocket, glancing down at it before nodding and slipping it back in. He’d need that for this.

Dream looked to the side as he passed by the print shop on his way to the crime scene, looking through the big windows out front and he could see Killer and Blue talking inside, two others crowded around them and they all seemed to be looking at something. He could see someone else walking down the stairs from the second floor but he couldn’t stay long enough to see who it was, traffic beginning to move again so he had to follow lest he get honked at and draw their attention to him staring.

The rest of the drive to the crime scene wasn’t interesting, Dream just listened to the news report on the radio, and a bit of music here and there, but otherwise just focused on driving and, eventually, he arrived, parking his car along the street and getting out. He locked the door before walking away, knowing full well downtown people would take any opportunity to steal especially if they find an unlocked car.

Dream hummed and walked down the street, slipping something out of his pocket as he confidently walked up to the crime scene, ducking under the rope and heading for the building. As he went, one of the beat cops stopped him in his tracks, stepping in front of him and holding up their hand.

“And just what do you think you’re doing?” They asked, voice stern and hard. Dream narrowed his eyes slightly, letting his irritation show through just a bit to push his act as he held up a perfectly fake detectives badly.

“I’m a detective and you’re stopping me from investigating my case. I certainly hope you have a good reason, no?” He asked, lowering his badge and putting it back in his pocket before the cop could take a closer look at it. They paused, watching Dream put the badge away before crossing their arms and stepping aside.

“Apologies, sir. We’ve had a few people try and sneak onto the crime scene, just making sure you weren’t one of them.”

“I understand, you’re doing good work, keep it up,” Dream gave them a warm smile that softened their expression before he walked past them and into the building, that smile dropped to an irritated scowl instead. He hated those overconfident assholes. Just doing their job, sure, just doing their job every time they beat down an innocent civilian or gun someone down for running after a petty theft. Oh how he hated the police department. Still, he knew he had to stay on their good side otherwise they would start recognizing him when he did this sort of thing.

Dream slowly looked around the scene, noticing the burn marks all over the walls, the missing jewelry he assumed Error likely took to sell like most people did, and he saw something else, too. Sitting there just under the edge of the counter was a small, white feather. It was just laying there, undamaged by the fire that had clearly been here, likely lost afterwards.

Dream though back a moment as he crouched down and picked up the white feather. Geno had white feathers, and not even any sort of off-white, no, they were pure, pale white feathers. He stared at the one he now held in his hand, some grey around the edges from the coals around it, but otherwise it was just… pure white. He pocketed the feather and stood up only to pause as a very firm hand placed itself on his shoulder.

“Dream,” came Undyne’s undeniable voice, deep and harsh behind him and he turned around to look at her, smiling warmly and he chuckled a bit.

“I didn’t realize you would be here, captain Undyne,” he mused, resting his hands comfortably in his pockets as he stared at her.

“And you shouldn’t be here, you’re not even on the force,”

“They just let me in, I thought it would be fine,” Dream defended, giving an innocent smile that Undyne didn’t buy for even a second.

“Like hell they did,” she held out a hand, “give me the badge, I know you have it.” she demanded and Dream’s smile faltered, his eyebrow twitching a bit.

“Ah, but I don’t have one anymore, remember? You confiscated it last time,” he met her eye and she looked thoroughly unamused, raising a brow instead and gesturing with her hand again to get him to hand it over. Dream dropped his smile after that, scowling a bit instead and he took the fake badge out of his pocket and placed it in her hand.

“Thank you,” Undyne muttered and pocketed the fake badge before pointing towards the exit, “now go, before I have you arrested,”

“Yes ma’am,” Dream muttered and walked past her, glancing back over his shoulder at her as he stepped out of the building before returning his hands to his pockets and leaving the scene, ducking under the rope again and heading straight for his car. He was surprised she didn’t check him for stealing any evidence, though he supposed her main concern was probably just preventing him from breaking onto a scene again. Like that would stop him. Though, he was a bit irritated that he now had to acquire a new badge.

Dream unlocked and got into his car before sitting there a moment, taking the feather out of his pocket and examining it. He figured the only person who could really confirm or deny if it was one of Geno’s would be Reaper, so he pocketed the feather again and started his car, pulling out and starting the drive to Reaper’s house.

It only took about ten minutes to get there, Dream soon enough pulled into the driveway and parked his car. It was still fairly early in the morning, checking his watch revealed it to be about eight-thirty. Not too bad, he supposed. So, he got out of his car and locked it before walking up to Reaper’s door and knocking. He stood there for probably five minutes, lifting his hand to knock again when he heard the lock come undone and the door slowly creaked open. He smiled as Reaper came into view, half asleep and loosely wrapped in a robe.

“Hi, sorry, did I wake you?” Dream asked and Reaper shook his head, clearly lying.

“No, no not at all-” Reaper paused to yawn as he stepped aside, “-come in, come in.” Dream smiled softly and nodded, stepping into the cold house and he looked around for a moment as Reaper closed the door. “So-” he paused to lock the door back up, “what did you uh, need?”

“I found something at a crime scene,” Dream replied, reaching into his pocket before pulling out the feather, holding it gently out to Reaper who slowly took it, looking over it for a moment. “Is it one of his?” Reaper was silent for a moment, staring blankly at the feather before a sort of sorrow filled his eyes and he nodded.

“It’s his,” Reaper practically whispered, the words practically falling from his lips with little force behind them.

“I believe Error may have something to do with his disappearance, then,” Dream told him, watching as Reaper just stood there staring at the feather, holding it gently in one hand as the other crossed his chest and rested against his other arm. He was frowning so deeply. “At first,” Dream continued, “ I thought he might BE Geno because they look remarkably similar, but I don’t think Geno is capable of doing the things Error has done,”

“You’re right, he’s not,” Reaper quietly replied, “but what do you mean they look remarkably similar?”

“Do you read the paper?” Dream asked and Reaper shook his head, so he paused to think for a moment. “Well, they published a photograph someone managed to get in the paper last week, and you can see it compared to the photograph of Geno on the back and they looked incredibly similar, right down to the hair style.” Dream paused for a moment, an idea popping into his head, “does Geno have a brother?”

“Not that I know of, not anymore at least,” Reaper replied, his frown somehow deepening.

“Right,” Dream sighed softly and watched the other for a moment before averting his gaze. “You can keep the feather, if you want,” he offered and Reaper paused, looking over at him and finally away from the feather. Slowly, he nodded.

“Thank you,” he smiled just faintly, though it was mostly forced and Dream understood that. He didn’t mind, though, nodding.

“Of course. I should get going now, though. I’ve got some more work to do,” Dream hummed and gave Reaper a warm smile, “I’ll be back soon, though,”

“Right, yeah, I’ll see you soon,” Reaper smiled a bit more back before unlocking and opening the door for Dream, and the man walked out, heading over to his car and getting in the driver's seat before driving off.

Dream settled down in his office once he was home, sorting through his papers and looking through his evidence. It was a lot to look through in truth, he even took some time to go through his notes and work on his theories. After a bit, he stood and started pacing around his study, chewing on the back of his pen and he kept stopping in front of his evidence cork board to look over everything.

He went out a couple times throughout the day, spending some time at the library looking through old newspapers from the last couple months, driving by the print shop again – though he didn’t see anything of use – and he even spent some time just sitting in a park trying to clear his head that was swimming with a billion thoughts. Eventually, though, he found himself back home as it was getting later and later into the night. He was incredibly tired now, the lack of sleep from the prior night catching up to him and he slowly climbed his stairs to get to his room, swaying a bit as he walked.

Eventually, Dream opened his bedroom door and went inside, changing into his pajamas and he laid down in bed, curling up a bit and tightly gripping one of his pillows. Sleep found him painfully slow that night, despite his exhaustion. But eventually it found him, and he drifted off into a dreamless rest.
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“This guy moves around so much,” Killer muttered under his breath as he adjusted how he was sitting in the tree, staring through his binoculars at Dream moving around his bedroom. The curtains were just open enough for Killer to see. He adjusted his grip on his gun in his other hand as he watched, getting frustrated after a moment though and he set the binoculars in his lap before taking out his glasses, resting them on his nose then looking through again.

Killer watched as Dream got into his bed, cocking back his gun and aiming it but the other disappeared under the covers of his blanket and Killer hissed in annoyance.

“This fucking guy,” he muttered, peering through the binoculars as he leaned forwards before tensing and reaching back for a branch as he began to fall forwards. He grabbed hold of one, gripping it tightly but it was too small and it snapped, falling with Killer all the way to the ground where he landed with an uncomfortable thud, groaning softly in pain and he looked up, seeing Dream’s bedroom light turn on.

Killer quickly looked around, pushing himself up so he was sitting and he uncocked his gun before pocketing it along with the binoculars and he quickly retrieved his bike from behind the neighbor’s house and he hopped on it, quickly riding off. He looked back as he started to round the corner off of Dream’s street, watching the other step out onto his porch and he stared for just a moment before riding off completely. He’d have to try again later.

Killer biked his way all the way back home, looking up as he approached the large, old, stone apartment complex in front of him, located delightfully in the railyard district tucked right behind some of the tracks still in use. It got loud sometimes, annoyingly loud and it always woke him up, but it was affordable so he stayed.

Slowly, Killer rode his bike to a stop before getting off of it, walking it the rest of the way to the building before beginning the long, slow climb up the stairs.

Chapter Text

Dream lay in bed at a time he wasn’t exactly sure of, sprawled out half mixed in with his blankets and he had a pillow resting over his face to stop the light from the window from hitting his eyes and forcing him to get up.

He paused when a knock came from the front door below and he quickly sat up, watching the pillow fall from his face into his lap before he pushed off his blankets and swung his legs over the edge of the bed, standing up right after and throwing on his robe. He hurried out of his room after that, making his way down the stairs then, finally, he stopped at the front door.

Slowly, Dream unlocked all the locks and opened the door, looking out and pausing at the sight of Blue standing right there on his porch. He looked past her for a moment and could see Cross sitting patiently in the car. He focused on Blue again.

“Good morning, Dream. I hope I didn’t wake you?” Blue smiled sweetly up at him and Dream shook his head a bit.

“No, no you didn’t, I was already awake,” he assured and stepped aside to let her in, so Blue stepped inside and walked past him, stopping and turning around to look at him once she was fully inside and out of the way of the door. “Would you like some coffee? I was just about to start a pot,” which was a lie, but Dream never minded bending the truth for little things like that.

“Ah, yes please,” Blue’s smile widened slightly as she nodded. Dream, at that, turned and went into the kitchen, getting to work on the coffee pot. Meanwhile, Blue turned and looked around the area around her, taking in the look and feel of Dream’s nice suburban house. It reminded her of her own house, only a bit smaller.

Blue slowly began to walk around, glancing back at Dream in the kitchen before looking ahead again, noticing a slightly open door down the hall and she walked over to it, slowly pushing the door more open so she could get a look inside. Opening the door revealed Dream’s study, large desk placed facing the door right by the window, there were bookshelves on either side of it, plenty of neat and orderly filing cabinets… but what caught her attention the most was the large corkboard covered in evidence from his investigation.

Slowly, Blue walked fully into the room and over to the evidence board, running her hand delicately along some of the red string that covered it, connecting pieces like a puzzle Dream had yet to solve.

Standing there in the doorway, Dream crossed his arms and leaned just slightly against the doorframe, watching Blue look over his work and he gave her a moment before clearing his throat and she quickly looked over, that smile returning to her face.

“Ah, sorry. I got a bit distracted, the door was open so I… you know,”

“Wandered in?” Dream raised a brow but stood up straight and walked over, looking up at his evidence. “This is all I’ve found out so far, nothing actually useful to finding Geno, but I have some theories on how he went missing.”

“So you really haven’t found anything out about where he could’ve gone?” She asked and Dream shook his head, sighing softly.

“Why are you here, Blue?” He asked, looking back over at her, expression calm, but it held a certain firmness to it that Blue could clearly see.

“I have a job for you,” Blue replied simply, clasping her hands neatly in front of her and she smiled up at him. “Well, sort of the same job as last time, really,” she tilted her head slightly at him, that sweet smile of hers never leaving her face, “I need you to follow Ink again, find out what he’s doing with Error. So far on my side of things I haven’t had any luck, so…” she trailed and shrugged a bit. Dream considered it a moment, glancing off to the side at his board of evidence before looking back down at Blue.

“Alright, I’ll do it,” he hummed and she perked up,

“You will?”

“I will. I won’t lie, I’ve been curious myself, and I believe he may have something to do with Geno, too. So yes, I’ll do the job.”

“Oh thank you, Dream. It truly means a lot to me! Now, I’ll have the proper compensation sent over to you as soon as you get back to me with information, every little bit helps,” she reached over and gripped Dream’s hands, holding them up slightly and squeezing. “And thank you again,”

“Of course,” Dream smiled, a soft sort of smile and he glanced briefly at their hands a moment before looking back over at her, slowly pulling his hands away and resting them comfortably in the pockets of his robe.”I’ll get started right away, was there anything else?”

“No, nothing else,” Blue glanced over to his board of evidence for a moment, “but, you know, I’ve been following along with the police progress so far as best I can, and they haven’t found nearly as much as you. They’re fixing to close the case,” she looked back up at him, expression softening into an almost sorrowful one, “I hope you find him alive. I do so miss our tea meet-ups,” she mumbled, mostly to herself only to pause at the look Dream was now giving her, a sort of intense, confused look.

“You didn’t tell me you two were close,” Dream stated, raising a brow and narrowing his eyes slightly,

“Shit-” Blue muttered, “it was just-”

“What did you meet up for?” Dream interrupted, not even meaning to but he certainly didn’t apologize for it. Blue narrowed her eyes slightly.

“We just met up to catch up over tea, we were friends and sometimes the shop printed little extras in the paper for him when he asked us to,” she explained and Dream took his hands out of his pockets and crossed his arms.

“Was that all? No other reason?”

“I don’t like what you’re implying,” Blue glowered at him and Dream narrowed his eyes again.

“What is it you think I’m implying?” He asked, cocking his head to the side and Blue held her chin up high.

“Once Upon a Printer has nothing to do with criminal affairs, this is the last time I will tell you,” she sternly replied and Dream averted his gaze, thinking for a moment before looking back at her again.

“So you swear, you have nothing, and I mean absolutely nothing to do with Geno’s disappearance?”

“Geno was my friend, Dream. I was saddened to hear he was gone and I am doing everything I can to find him, I know you’re doing the same. So cut the bullshit and let’s just work together peacefully, no more accusations, okay?” Her tone was firm and sharp and it got her point across very well. If he didn’t cut the crap their good terms would be over. So, Dream nodded, uncrossing his arms and returning them to his pockets.

“Fine, no more accusations. I’m going to trust you’re telling the truth,” he swore and Blue gave a sigh of relief, reaching up and resting a hand on his shoulder.

“Good, finally. Now get some rest, Dream. You’re too snappy lately,” she told him and Dream nodded a bit.

“I’ll try my best,” he assured with a slight smile and Blue chuckled a bit.

“Right, I’ve got to go. Cross is waiting for me in the car and I don’t want to bore him too much,” she mused but Dream paused a moment.

“Who is he, anyways?” He asked, curious. Blue giggled a bit and held up her hand for him to see the two small silver rings that adorned her finger, one of them had a silver gem embedded in it, and the other one had a deep, midnight blue gem. They looked like wedding rings.

“He’s my husband,” Blue mused, lowering her hand right after.

“You have two?” Dream asked, confusion clear in his voice and Blue snickered, nodding.

“It’s unofficial, of course. You can only legally marry one person, but yes, I am married to two people.” she hummed and Dream smiled softly.

“Well, congratulations,” he told and Blue softly thanked him before walking past him and out of the study.

“I’ll see you soon, Dream,” she told him and he nodded in agreement, walking her to the door before waving slightly.

“See you soon, Blue,” Dream smiled and watched her turn to leave before pausing, “wait- Blue, I had one more question,” she stopped to look back at him, one foot down a step and she raised a brow. “Killer, what do you know about him?”

“Well, he’s an odd fellow, talks a lot, one of the managers for the print shop. I would trust him with my life. Why?” She asked, stepping back up onto the porch.

“He tried to kill me,” Dream told her simply and Blue paused, acting as surprised as she could for someone who clearly already knew that.

“Are you sure it was him? I don’t think he’d ever do something that drastic, even if he is a bit eccentric,” she frowned softly and Dream nodded.

“I’m positive it was him, he pulled a gun on me in my study,”

“He was in your study?” She was diverting the attention, “why on earth was he there?” a smirk slowly played onto her lips and Dream paused, cheeks flushing lightly and he quickly shook his head.

“No-nono not like that, no, absolutely not. He was helping me with Geno’s case and tried shooting me down from where he was sitting on my desk, it was… rude,” he muttered and Blue’s brow raised further.

“Sitting on your desk, huh?” She asked and Dream’s cheeks went just a bit more red.

“You’re not taking this seriously whatsoever,” he pointed out and crossed his arms.

“I just find it hard to believe he was actually trying to kill you. I mean, I’d bet money it was a fake gun, he’s done that before,” she mused and Dream frowned a bit.

“It wasn’t fake,” he insisted and Blue walked over to him, resting a hand on his shoulder again.

“Tell you what, I’ll have a talk with him, see what’s going on and when you get back to me about Ink I’ll tell you what I got out of Killer, deal?” She asked and Dream slowly nodded.

“Alright, deal.”

“Now, I really must be going,” she leaned up and placed a gentle, friendly kiss on his cheek before pulling away and walking off the porch, waving to him and Dream slowly waved back, watching her get into the passenger seat of the car before driving off, leaving him standing there alone on his porch in his robe.

Dream slowly retreated back into his house, locking the door securely up before going and making himself a cup of coffee. As he stood there sipping on it he thought about things. Obviously, he was going to do Blue’s job, tail Ink again and try to figure out what’s going on. But he couldn’t help but dwell on the fact she clearly knew Killer had tried to kill him. He didn’t fully believe the print shop was uninvolved with crime, but he had no evidence so he didn’t want to push it.

Eventually, Dream got himself dressed and headed out for the day, getting into his car and starting it up before backing out of his driveway and heading off to Ink’s house where he parked across the street again and watched. He wound up spending the rest of the day following Ink around to different stores, then back to his house, then out again.

He was starting to get irritated, getting ready to leave when Ink left his house again. Only, this time he didn’t go to his own car. No, he walked down the street a bit and that’s when Dream noticed the black Cadillac parked there on the curb with the tinted windows. He watched as Ink got into the passenger seat of the car and it drove off. So, naturally, he followed at a distance.

The car took him all the way out to that warehouse again, parking on the curb by the entrance and Dream tucked his own car by a couple broken down ones, and he watched as Ink got out and so did Error from the driver’s seat, both of them looking up at the warehouse.

Dream slowly and quietly rolled down his window to hear as they began to talk.

“A-a-are you uh, a-are you sur-sure this one wi-will um, will work?” Error asked and his heavy stutter didn’t escape Dream’s ears.

“Positive!” Ink cheerfully replied, holding out both his hands towards the building and he gestured around a bit, “It’s nice and subtle, a great place to set up!”

“I thi-thi-think it’s uh, de-definitely not uh, not subtle,” Error replied, crossing his arms and raising a brow.

“Shhh trust me- you trust me, don’t you?” Ink asked and Error slowly nodded. Ink grinned at that and looked back up at the building before reaching up to the back of his neck and he paused, getting a weird feeling like they were being watched and he shushed Error, slowly looking around the parking lot before his mismatched eyes landed on Dream sitting in his dark car. “Shit–” Ink hissed and pointed Dream out.

Dream went tense, staring at Ink a moment and the two met eyes before he quickly kicked his car into reverse, backed out from between the two cars, then shoved it into drive and off he went, burning rubber as he veered out of the parking lot and back towards his house. He kept an eye out behind him for any tails as he went home, cursing under his breath that he was caught spying and he made sure to take plenty of unnecessary turns on the way to his house to shake anyone that could be following.

Eventually, Dream pulled into his driveway and parked, getting out and locking his car door before going up to his house. He unlocked everything and went inside before securely locking the door behind him and he heaved a sigh, slowly walking over to his living room where he dropped down on the couch and looked up at the ceiling.

“Gods, what are they doing…?” He muttered to himself before closing his his eyes and just frowning.

Chapter Text

It was early morning, the sun just beginning to rise over the horizon and there was a chill in the air. Around him, birds began to wake and sing their sweet tunes, a few crows stood in the street right beside the curb eating some food someone had dropped and just left. It was a beautiful morning, truly.

Killer whistled a tune to himself as he rode his bike down the street, waving to some people as he passed by on his way downtown. The buildings around him began to get larger and larger the further downtown he got, office buildings stretching high above him.

He slowed his bike to a stop as he arrived at the print shop, looking up at their silly sign above before a smile stretched across his face and he stopped his whistling.

“Another day,” he hummed and looked down at the door instead, hopping off his bicycle and digging a hand into one of his pockets, fishing out a ring of keys that he began to look through as he approached the door. Eventually, he found the one he was looking for and he inserted it into the keyhole, turning it and opening the door before stepping inside, rolling his bike in with him.

Killer walked further into the building, letting the door close behind him as he leaned his bike against the wall and turned on the lights, watching everything burst to life around him and he hummed a bit, walking around and getting started turning on all the machines for the day. The others should arrive shortly.

“Killer?” Someone called from up in the office on the second floor and Killer looked up, blinking twice in surprise at the fact someone else was already here. The voice was almost melodic, carrying across the room clear as day. Killer knew in an instant who it was.

Slowly, he stepped away from one of the printing machines and went over to the stairs, climbing up them and walking along the balcony before stopping at the partially open office door.

“If you’re already here, why’d you go and lock the door back up?” Killer asked as he pushed the door to the office fully open, “honestly,”

“We know you like to do a good job opening up the shop for the day,” Nightmare hummed, turning around in her chair to look at him. She was sitting there criss-crossed in the office chair, some of her hair covering her face and she wore distinctly dark clothes. Killer huffed.

“I feel vaguely offended by that,” he muttered but slowly took a seat in the chair opposite hers in front of the desk. “But what’s up? Did you need something?”

“Why isn’t my brother gone yet?” Nightmare asked him, resting her hands in her lap and tilting her head, “You normally get hits done much quicker than this,” she pointed out before averting her gaze, “it’s true, he normally does a much better job,” she agreed with herself and Killer huffed again, crossing his arms.

“He’s evaded me three times now, it’s ridiculous. I don’t know how he keeps doing it, he’s got this- this astronomical luck!” Killer exclaimed, rolling his eyes and resting his head on his shoulder,

“Well, let’s not make it a fourth time, okay?” Nightmare looked at him again and Killer nodded, sitting up straight again and uncrossing his arms.

“Right, I won’t,” he told her before standing up and heading over to the door, pausing to look back at her a moment before leaving. “I still don’t understand why you’re so adamant on me killing him,”

“Just get to work, ‘kay?” Nightmare smiled at him and he nodded, turning fully and leaving the office, quietly closing the door behind him before heading back across the landing and down the stairs.

“I always get the hard ass jobs,” Killer grumbled under his breath as he headed down the stairs. Once he reached the bottom, the front door opened and in came Horror and Dust, conversing with each other as they headed to their work stations. Killer grinned.

“Heya guys!” Killer greeted, throwing up his hand in a wave as he walked over to them. Dust looked over at him and waved back, Horror doing the same. “How was your night out last night?”

*It was good. We got italian* Dust signed, looking briefly up at Horror to give her a smile before looking at Killer again, expression returning to that cold, dull look they always had.

“Awesome, it’s been forever since I’ve been out,” Killer chuckled a bit and looked over at Horror, “did it go as you planned?”

“It.. di..d” Horror smiled and looked down at her partner, nudging them lightly so Dust held up their hand to show the small silver ring that adorned their finger, smiling faintly.

“Congrats!” Killer squealed excitedly and highfived Dust, “man, can’t believe you guys are finally getting hitched!” He mused and Dust nodded in agreement, walking over to their station before taking a seat.

*Me neither. I’m excited* Dust signed and Killer nodded quickly,

“I bet! Shit, you guys are soooo lucky,” he grinned and Horror nodded in agreement, taking a seat at her own station and getting her things prepared. The conversation had clearly reached its end, so Killer hummed and went over to his desk at the head of the stations, picking up a whole stack of newspapers before heading over to his bike and loading them up on the back basket.

“I’ll see y’all later, I’ve got work to do!” Killer hummed, Dust waving goodbye before Killer took his bike and headed out the front door. He biked around for a while, tossing newspapers on doorsteps as he passed them by. He rode through several neighborhoods, passing by the richer folks houses and he deliberately threw a newspaper on the back of a car. Blue, who was getting into said car, looking over at him and crossed her arms.

“Killer, you come get this newspaper off of my car,” she demanded with a huff, Cross, who was getting into the driver's seat, snickering a bit at the action.

“Nah, I think you’ve got it!” Killer chirped, giving her a wink before he quickly biked away, looking back over his shoulder at Blue who picked up the newspaper, rolled it up, and was now waving it in the air like a playful threat. Killer couldn’t help but to laugh, looking ahead again and resuming his work.

Eventually, Killer rode through a different neighborhood, getting a bit tired now as he delivered more papers. He paused as he saw Ink coming out of his house, walking up to his car and he waved at Killer as he passed by, so Killer waved back with a grin.

“Try not to eat too much paint!” Killer called to him as he passed and Ink scrunched up his face, though he was smiling.

“I’ll try!” He called back and Killer giggled to himself at the mental image of Ink eating paint. He continued through the neighborhood though, finally delivering the last paper and he headed back to the print shop, breathing heavily now and he huffed a bit as he rode.

He made a stop on his way back, slowing his bike at a gas station and he wiped some sweat from his forehead before running his fingers through his long, curly black hair. He took it out of its ponytail and slipped the tie around his wrist, pulling his hair back again and fixing it up before tying it back and he yawned right after. He paused, though, looking to the side as someone approached, slowly coming into his limited line of sight and he recognized Reaper.

“Oh, heya Reaper, how’s it going?” He asked, leaning back on his bicycle and Reaper smiled slightly.

“It’s going alright, I was just gassing up my car and saw you so… I thought I might say hi,” Reaper shrugged and Killer nodded.

“Makes sense. Well, hello!” Killer exclaimed and Reaper chuckled, putting his hands in his pockets.

“What are you doing out so early?” Reaper asked

“Well, just got done delivering a bunch of newspapers and was headed back to the shop. But, I can ask the same of you; you’re normally a sleeper, which is to say I’ve never seen you awake before noon,” Killer snickered a bit and Reaper chuckled, nodding slightly.

“Yeah, I uh, couldn’t sleep so I thought I might go for a drive, almost ran out of gas,”

“Yikes, glad you didn’t,” Killer paused to think for a moment before nodding, “anyways, how’s work going? Keeping you busy?”

“Plenty. Lots of bodies to bury in a big city like this.”

“Fair enough. Life of a grave digger I guess,” Killer mused as he got back on his bike, “by the way, is there any news about Geno yet?” He asked and Reaper shook his head, frowning softly.

“Nothing, but I have someone actually competent working on it so… fingers crossed,”

“Yeah, good luck, honestly,” Killer smiled a bit at him before kicking off the ground and heading out. “See you around, Reaper!” Killer called and waved at him, Reaper waving back before Killer looked ahead again and made for the print shop.

As Killer approached the print shop he slowed his bike and paused, squinting a bit at the two people standing out front of it and, once he was close enough, he recognized not only Blue, but Dream as well. So, he did what he does best and he hopped off his bike, walked right up to the two of them and he threw an arm over Blue’s shoulders, absolutely standing on his tippy toes.

“Heya guys. What’s he doing here?” He asked Blue, staring at her and she softly sighed, Dream’s expression shifting to a very unamused one.

“He’s filling me in on some information I asked him to get for me.” Blue explained and Killer raised a brow.

“Interesting. Suuuuper interesting,” he looked at Dream instead.

“Now, if you don’t mind, I would like to finish talking to Blue, thanks,” Dream muttered and Killer squinted a bit before grinning.

“Yeah, okay. You kids stay outta trouble,” he joked before pulling away from Blue and walking his bike inside the shop. Blue heaved a sigh as he left and looked up at Dream.

“You were saying?”

“Right, yes. So I saw Ink and Error meeting up again, or, well, they took the same car to that warehouse from before. They were talking something about it being ‘perfect to set up in’ but I didn’t hear more than that, they spotted me so I had to leave.”

“That’s odd,” Blue muttered, thinking about that for a moment as she tapped her foot on the ground, “and you’re sure they gave no indication of any actual plans?”

“Nothing,” Dream confirmed with a sigh. “And what did you find out from Killer?”

“Nothing much. His lips were sealed for the most part, but apparently someone hired him, it wasn’t just him wanting to kill you,” Blue replied vaguely and Dream slowly nodded.

“That’s not very reassuring,” he muttered, “but, thank you. I’ll let you know if I find anything else out about Ink and Error,”

“Of course. Thank you, and here,” Blue handed him an envelope and Dream took it, peaking inside to see cash, “don’t spend it all in one place, okay?” Blue grinned and bit and Dream chuckled, nodding.

“I won’t,” he assured, and with that the two parted ways.

Dream headed for his car, glancing around cautiously, paranoid, before finally unlocking it and getting in, starting up the engine and for a moment he just sat there, staring out at the city around him through the windows of his car before he finally drove off, heading for home.

Blue went back into the print shop, closing the door softly behind her before she headed straight to Killer’s desk, where he was currently sat going over some proof reads before printing.

“Killer,” Blue said to get his attention and he looked up, blinking a couple times.

“Uh, yeah?” he asked before jolting as she pressed her hands down on his desk and leaned over him, expression hardening and he gulped, sitting back in his chair to put a safe distance between them. “Woah-”

“Dream is getting bolder and bolder,” she told him, smiling, though it was the kind of smile that felt more like a warning. “He’s going to start digging into us sooner or later, and once he does you know exactly what he’ll find, and she doesn’t want that to happen. You need to take care of him.”

“I know, I know,” Killer looked away, “I’ll get him, you know I will. It’s just taking… time,” he muttered and Blue sighed, slowly standing back up straight.

“Let’s make sure it doesn’t take too much time, please? And for gods sake, Killer, don’t let him catch you again,” she told him and he nodded, looking up at her and watching as she turned and walked away, heading up the stairs and into the office above.

Killer heaved a sigh and leaned over his desk, running his fingers through his hair and he closed his eyes for a moment. This was stressful, entirely too stressful. This job was a passion of his, he’s never gotten genuinely stressed over it. But no, stupid, ugly – well, Killer supposed he wasn’t exactly ugly – Dream messing up his love of the game. He was going to get him one way or another, he swore it.

Chapter Text

It was still dark outside, the birds just beginning to wake, the storm from the night before calming down to a gentle drizzle as morning approached. Dream checked his watch for a moment, pinning the time down at just after six in the morning. The sun should be rising soon.

Slowly, Dream stood, wrapping his robe a little tighter around himself before heading over to the kitchen. He hadn’t slept at all that night, laying awake in bed thinking about the cases he had, then eventually he just migrated to the couch so he could at least listen to the radio while he failed at sleeping.

Starting the coffee pot proved an irritating task, it didn’t seem to want to start. He fiddled with it for a while, even going so far as to hit it a couple times, but the thing wouldn’t start. Dream cursed under his breath and put his hands on his hips a moment, staring at the coffee pot with this expression of irritation and exasperation that only someone who had just stayed up all night could quite pull off at a coffee pot.

“Fine, I will get coffee out,” Dream heaved a sigh and left the kitchen, making a mental note to get a new coffee pot while he was out and he headed upstairs.

Once he was dressed and ready to go, Dream made his way back downstairs where he got on his shoes by the door, grabbed an umbrella, and out he went. His foot made contact with the mostly dry porch as he stepped through the doorway and he hummed, closing and locking the door behind him with a soft click. After that, Dream made straight for his car, getting into the driver’s seat and starting it up before sitting there a moment, rubbing his hands together a bit for warmth. It was getting colder now and Dream was having to adapt, much to his dismay. He quite enjoyed being warm.

The drive to a nearby cafe was quiet except for the sound of the radio on low volume. Dream found himself lost in his thoughts more than anything, wondering to himself where Geno could be, why Ink and Error were working together… he had so many questions and so little answers at this point, it frustrated him to no end.

Dream considered his options here, trying to figure out where to go next when he got the great idea to go talk to Reaper again around lunchtime when he hoped the other would be awake. This seemed to help, as he focused more on driving now and just getting to where he was going.

The cafe was quaint and positioned neatly down one of the busier streets not downtown. Thankfully, it was King street in the off season now that late Autumn was here, so he felt a sense of relief of the availability of parking.

Slowly, Dream pulled his car into one of the street parking spots and turned it off, opening the door and getting out before locking it behind him and going up to the cafe. By now, the sun was beginning to peak just slightly over the horizon and he smiled, though it fell back to a more neutral expression right after.

The door to the cafe opened with the soft jingle of a bell and Dream hummed a bit, walking on over to the counter where a small woman stood wiping down some plates for the morning.

“Ah, good morning dear. I haven’t seen you in some time, how are you?” She asked, his voice quiet and strained with age.

“I’m doing well. I’ve been quite busy so I haven’t had a chance lately to come by, my apologies. How are you doing?”

“Oh, I’m doing fine, just the same old, dear,” she gave a hearty chuckle as she set the plate down on the stack and smiled at him, eyes creasing and cheeks rising. “What would you like?”

“Just a regular old coffee, no creamer, but two spoons of sugar, you know me,” Dream chuckled softly, “but I think I’ll get a croissant as well,”

“I’ll have that right out for you, dearie. Go on and have a seat,”

“Thank you,” Dream hummed and walked over to a table, slowly taking a seat at it and rubbing his eyes a bit. He felt exhausted, and yet still not tired enough to sleep all at the same time. It was infuriating.

The woman behind the counter worked quickly, plating a croissant and making a good cup of coffee exactly how Dream liked it before finally walking out around the counter and over to his table, setting both down in front of him.

“Ah, thank you very much. I wouldn’t have minded coming to get it, though,” Dream smiled softly at her and she chuckled.

“Oh, that’s alright. I need to walk,” she mused, “you enjoy now, it’s on the house,” she added and Dream paused, opening his mouth to do the usual protest of ‘oh but you deserve the money’ but she lifted her hand to shut him up, shaking her head. “I insist,” she added, then turned and walked back behind the counter, leaving Dream there with the food and he chuckled softly, shaking his head a bit.

The croissant was good, soft and clearly home-baked. It was exactly what Dream needed to start off his day, the coffee too. It was exactly how he liked it and it just reminded him of how much he enjoyed coming to this cafe. He made a mental note to come back more often.

Eventually, Dream finished and stood, bringing his plate up to the counter to lessen the work for the woman and she thanked him, then he was off, heading out of the cafe and back to his car. The sun was up now, the sky a soft orange and blue and Dream had to stop for just a moment to admire the colors and the way the clouds swirled. He appreciated the nature around him, always had and always would.

Slowly, Dream got into his car and went off to continue his investigation into Ink until it was time to visit Reaper. He wound up tailing Ink for a while, spending a good amount of time sitting in the parking lot at his art studio just watching him through the windows before finally, he followed Ink home again and that’s where Ink stayed right up until Dream left to visit Reaper.

It was a useless tail, he’d decided. Ink did absolutely nothing of use and only succeeded in burning up his gas. Dream made a point ot stop and refill at a gas station before finally heading for Reaper’s house, looking up and down the streets as he drove past them, subconsciously counting the houses he could see, always ending on an even number, just how he liked it.

Soon enough, Dream pulled into Reaper’s driveway where the other had his long black hearse parked, and he got out. Slowly, Dream walked up to the door and knocked exactly four times, then waited. It was around noon now, so Dream figured Reaper should be awake.

After a couple of minutes there the sound of a lock undoing on the door and afterwards, it opened to reveal none other than Reaper standing there in his pajamas staring at Dream.

“Ah, Dream, good noon,” Reaper chuckled a bit before looking away a moment and sighing.

“Good morning Reaper, er, are you okay?” Dream asked, raising a brow and Reaper nodded, looking back over at him.

“Yeah, doing fine. Just… tired. I didn’t sleep much,” he replied, running a hand through his locs before stepping aside to let Dream in, the other accepting and going inside the townhome.

“Right, well, I just wanted to ask you a few things if that’s alright with you?” Dream asked, looking back at him as he closed the door and Reaper nodded.

“Yeah, that’s fine. C’mon, let’s go sit.” And with that, Reaper let the way into the living room where the both of them took a seat and Dream smiled a bit at him.

“Well, I did want to ask first, when’s the last time you actually had any good sleep?” Dream asked, pausing when Reaper chuckled.

“Oh Dream, you’re the last person to be asking that question. Tell me, when’s the last time you slept at all?” He asked back and Dream grimaced, averting his gaze a moment.

“I slept yesterday, a bit.” He admitted,

“Thought so. You’re no better than I am with sleep, my friend,” Reaper mused and Dream heaved a sigh, but smiled and nodded.

“You’re not wrong there,” he chuckled before adjusting how he was sitting and continuing, “well, onto the question, then. Was there anywhere else that Geno liked to frequent? Another cafe, specific spots around town, parks, anything like that?”

“Well, he did most of the grocery shopping for the house at this one weird grocery store out on the edge of town. He always said it was to avoid people hounding him over his articles and to support a friend who owned the place,”

“Right, okay. So grocery store on the edge of town… you mean that one furthest from the highway past the railyard district?” He asked, raising a brow and Reaper nodded.

“The very one. Super old building I guess, but he liked to go so I never asked much about it.”

“Alright, I’ll pay it a visit then and see what I can find out,” Dream hummed and stood up, “that’s really all I needed, just looking for leads to hopefully solve this as soon as possible for you. Was there anything else you can think of to mention?”

“Not right now,” Reaper replied, standing as well and Dream gave a nod.

“Alright, I will see you soon, then,” Dream hesitated, then offered a hug and Reaper gladly accepted, stepping over to his friend and wrapping his arms around him, Dream hugging him firmly back and the two just stood there for a while, Dream slowly rubbing Reaper’s back as he began to softly shake.

Eventually, Dream left the house with a wave and Reaper waved back, then he got into his car and off he went, driving down the street and heading for the old grocery store.

Pulling up in his car, Dream could see the building stretching out in front of him. It wasn’t huge, but it was certainly big enough that, combined with the run-down appearance and blinking sign, it created an ominous effect that made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. Slowly, though, Dream parked and got out of his car, locking it up behind him and he walked up to the door, opening it and going inside.

The inside of the grocery store had an almost sour smell to it, the entire place having an almost yellow look and, as Dream walked cautiously around, he noticed the food didn’t exactly look ideal either. It seemed more like a front for something else, really, and that made him suspicious. He continued to look around, though, walking down aisles and passing by employees.

Dream came to a stop near the back of the store, somewhere between the produce and the meat. He looked to the side in time to see one of the employees looking nervously around, eyes landing on him for just a moment before they seemed to freak out and run through the double doors into the back of the grocery store. Dream raised a brow at that and looked around the general area for a moment before pausing at the sound of feedback over the intercom system and he stopped walking.

“Attention all employees of the Happy Home Grocery Chain!” The voice came. It was a male voice that sounded equal parts like an announcer for a game show and the ring leader of a carnival. Either way, not the voice one would expect for a grocery store. He noticed an employee stocking up tomatoes look up towards the nearest speaker, so he looked at it as well.

“It is with great sorrow in my heart that I inform you all that we have an intruder in the building!” The voice continued and Dream paused, an uneasy feeling in his stomach and he looked over at the employee again, who was now looking at him, a nervous expression on their face.

“Now, to you my wonderful employees, I ask that you dispose of this intruder using any means necessary! And the one who does the job and does it well will get a hundred dollar bonus!” The voice exclaimed in a cheery voice before suddenly his tone dropped low and sinister, “happy hunting.” there was a loud sound from the feedback, then the intercom cut off and Dream didn’t waist any time, he turned and ran down an aisle for the front door.

As he ran, he shoulder checked an employee who was running down a cross aisle and staggered forwards before doubling back towards Dream, carrying what looked like a kitchen knife and Dream tensed, running as fast as he could down a different aisle before spotting the front door up ahead. He paused, though, realizing there was now a whole row of shopping carts blocking the door and he cursed under his breath, booking it around a corner and down a different aisle to get to the back instead.

Getting to the back door wasn’t too hard. Thankfully, the store didn’t have very many employees so he was able to avoid them relatively easy. Soon enough, he pushed through the double doors and slowed on the other side, noticing a very prominent echo so he knew not to run too loudly.

Dream paused as he heard the echo of a second set of footsteps running nearby so he ducked behind some crates, crouching low and he could hear what he assumed to be an employee running past and the footsteps grew further and further away until Dream was confident enough to stand and start walking, looking for a back door he knew should be back here.

He considered for a moment where the nearest telephone would be. He knew there was likely one in the main office, but that was obviously a no-go so instead, he thought to the closest one in town, remembering passing a phone booth on the way about a mile down the road. So, he decided that’s exactly where he would be going.

Slowly and cautiously, Dream began to move through the warehouse area of the grocery store until he spotted the back door, standing there with that ominous red Exit sign above it. He made a run for it, reaching for the door before gasping as someone slammed into his side, standing his crashing to the ground beside the door and he looked up, eyes meeting the barrel of a gun.

“Shit–” Dream hissed, looking from the gun to the employee's face. They were crying, tears rolling down their cheeks and their hands were trembling so hard he thought they might just drop the damn thing. “Listen-listen, just put down the gun and we can just forget this happened, yeah?” He tried to reason and the employee shook their head.

“I-I can’t!” They hissed back, gripping the gun tighter and shoving it towards Dream’s head. Dream sighed at that and suddenly lunged upwards, hand connecting with the gun and he tore it from the employee’s hands before pushing himself to his feet and hitting with the barrel, watching it connect with the side of the employee’s head and they shrieked. He knew that would attract attention, to he hit again, tossed the gun, and ran right out the back door.

Dream ran for a while, not even stopping to look back as he just made for the phone booth. It took a while to get there, he probably spent around thirty minutes just running down the street, but eventually he reached the booth and shoved himself inside, quickly dialing the number for the police before lifting the phone to his ear.

“What is your emergency?” The woman on the other end asked and Dream heaved a sigh of relief.

“I was just at a grocery store out on the edge of town, Happy Home Groceries, the manager or owner or whoever they are incited the employees to attack me with promise of a bonus and they chased me with weapons through the store, blocked off the front, I had to escape through the back door.” Dream explained as quickly and efficiently as he could.

“Understood. I am sending units now. Are you injured?”

“No, no I’m not,”

“Good. Stay on the line while the police head your way.”

“Thank you, I’m standing in the phone booth about a mile down the road,”

“Understood.”

Dream wound up standing in that phone booth for a while, remaining on the line with dispatch until he saw several cop cars drive by towards the grocery store, and another stopped by the booth. He thanked the dispatcher before hanging up and stepping out. He greeted the officer, went over identity and gave his statement before the officer gave him a ride back to his car. He stepped out of the police vehicle and looked over towards the grocery store where police were now escorting employees out, one coming out last with a man flailing about and screaming about the sanctity of the grocery store and Dream couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

Slowly, he walked over and got into his car, heaving a sigh of relief and soon enough, he drove off back home. As he drove, though, he couldn’t help but wonder why the hell Geno would ever set foot in a place like that. He wondered if Geno perhaps knew the owner and therefore wasn’t an intruder. It was odd, so very odd, and it raised a lot more questions than it answered.

Chapter Text

Dream sat in the chair beside his telephone, staring down at the floor and had been for the last few minutes. Finally, after a moment of deliberation, he finally dialed a phone number and picked up the phone, holding it to his ear and he waited. The phone kept ringing for a while, until finally someone picked up on the other side and Dream cleared his throat.

“I need to schedule a meeting,” Dream told the person on the other end of the line, his tone even and calm.

“Of course, darling. Will four pm today work for you?”

“Yes, that works perfectly. I’ll see you then,”

“See you then,” there was a soft giggle on the other end of the line before Dream hung up the phone and sighed, standing up and heading over to the study. It was around noon right now, still four hours to the meeting time, so he supposed he would get some work done. He spent some time in his study going over the evidence and researching as best he could. He even went back out a few times to make other phone calls, but in the end didn’t get very far in his search.

The time rolled around soon enough and Dream now found himself sitting in his car in front of what looked to be a strip club, a large sign reading ‘Ecstacy” plastered above the building and he tugged a bit at the collar of his shirt.

“Right, this will be interesting,” Dream muttered as he got out of his car and closed the door, locking it up behind him and going over to the bouncer guarding the door.

“We’re not open,” the bouncer told him, voice stern and unwavering. Dream’s wings fluttered a bit and he cleared his throat.

“I have an appointment under Dream.” He told them and they paused, looking him up and down a moment before chuckling.

“Oh, I hardly recognized you, Dream-boat, go on in,” the bouncer stepped out of the way of the door and Dream thanked him before going inside, vaguely embarrassed by the silly nickname. Sitting over by the stage a few of the performers were talking to each other, some doing each others makeup and others were just hanging out. They looked over as Dream entered, though, and one woman raised a brow.

“Well well well, who is this hunk of meat?” She asked, a teasing edge to her voice and Dream felt his cheeks flush. He cleared his throat and let his expression rest in a more calm way.

“Someone who’s not quite interested, thank you,” he mused, but flashed a smile that made the girls giggle before heading to the backdoor, letting his expression fall to a more stern one as he turned his back, cheeks flushed a bit. He headed over to the door the backstage and slowly pushed it open, stepping inside and looking around a moment before his eyes landed on a man sat by an ornate mirror doing his makeup.

“Hello, Dreamy,” The man hummed, fixing his lipstick before turning his head over to look at the other, a playful smile on his face and he slowly stood, walking over with the sound of tapping heels and he pulled Dream into a hug.

“Ah, hello Lust,” Dream smiled a bit and slowly hugged the other back before pulling away, Lust reaching up to grip his cheeks as he looked Dream over.

“My my, have you cleaned up just for me?” He asked, a purr to his voice that made Dream chuckle.

“Perhaps. How are you doing, my friend?” He asked and Lust hummed a bit, pulling away and walking back over to his chair, sitting down and gesturing for Dream to pull up a chair and sit as well.

“I’m well, and you, my dear?”

“I’m doing good, though admittedly this case has me stumped, that’s why I need your help,”

“Naturally. Come, fill me in,” Lust resumed doing his makeup as Dream pulled up a chair and took a seat next to him.

“Well, I’m looking for a man named Geno, I believe it’s likely you knew him-”

“I did,” Lust interrupted to confirm, working on his blush now, “cranky fellow, but very nice,”

“Right, I thought you might’ve. I have a few… theories about his involvement with criminal matters that I wanted to ask you about, since you tend to know a lot about what goes on underground,”

“Well, ask away love, I’m happy to answer,” Lust hummed, glancing briefly over at him before focusing on the mirror again.

“Did Geno work with your gang?” He asked and Lust chuckled, shaking his head.

“Oh no, certainly not. I helped him with information, just like I do for a lot of people, but I believe the only group he’s officially in with is NMs,” he hummed and Dream paused, raising a brow.

“NM?” Dream asked and Lust paused, sitting up straight a moment as he considered his response.

“That’s right, NM. She leads a mafia-style gang, runs half the city, has most of the cops in her pocket, and works closely with the press.” Lust explained and Dream thought for a moment before it clicked.

“Closely with the press… is that the group in the print shop? What was it called, uh–”

“One Upon a Printer, yes,” Lust answered with a nod, “she runs it with her husband and wife, everyone who works there specializes in something; more than just a street gang,”

“So in short, they’re dangerous.” Dream frowned softly and Lust nodded.

“Very, from what I’ve heard they formally employ not one but two professional contract killers, so, do with that what you will,” Lust chuckled and set down his brush before standing and holding out a hand for Dream, who lightly took it and stood as well before softly kissing Lust’s hand. “Good boy,” Lust purred before pulling his hand away and humming.

“Well, you ought to be going. I need to make sure my girls are ready for tonight and you have investigating to do. I suggest if you want to find Geno, start at the source and talk to those he works with,”

“Thank you, Lust,” Dream smiled softly.

“Don’t mention it darling,” Lust leaned up and placed a kiss on his cheek, “if you ever need my help again in… any matter of areas, just call,” and with that, Lust turned and left the room, leaving Dream standing there with a small smile on his face. He left shortly after, though, leaving the building entirely and getting into his car back in the parking lot.

Dream sat there in his car for a moment, staring up at Lust’s building before finally, he pulled out of the parking lot and drove off, heading the long way around town to avoid the rush hour traffic. He was going to find out who this NM was, curiosity bubbling in his chest. As he drove around the town, though, a car from the other lane suddenly veered into his and he tensed, gripping the wheel tightly and turning to avoid getting hit head on by the oncoming car. His eyes shot wide as his car swerved and lost traction, then went right over the side of the road, hitting the railing and it flipped, windows crashing in and the car crumpled from the pressure. Dream’s head slammed into the side of the car, windows shattering and all of a sudden, everything went black.

Dream barely opened his eyes an unknown amount of time later, groggily turning his bleeding head just slightly as he realized he was dangling upside down in his seat. He could hear shouts nearby and assumed it was a rescue coming. Gods, his head hurt. He slowly let his eyes flutter shut and it was dark again.

He awoke a second time in a bright room, people moving around him and he could hear muffled speaking. Someone seemed to exclaim about him waking up and he felt a mask press around his mouth, breathing in an odd gas before he found himself drifting back off to sleep.

The third time he woke up he actually stayed awake, slowly opening his eye only to squint and close it again at the bright lights in the room. His best guess was a hospital. There was a muffled voice coming from beside him as he lifted a hand to shield his eyes from the light, and he felt someone’s hand push his gently back down and he finally looked over. Standing there beside him was a nurse dressed in white, a gentle smile on her face.

“Careful now, you’ll pull out your IV,” she warned and Dream looked at the arm he has lifted, noting the needle stuck into it connected to the IV.

“Right… sorry,” Dream mumbled, slowly looking back over at the woman and he blinked, realization dawning on him that he could only see out of one eye. “My eye what– what happened to my eye?”

“I’m sorry, a shard from the windshield came off in the accident and pierced through it, it’s very likely you’ll never see out of it again,” she gently broke the news to him and Dream frowned, furrowing his brow a bit and he looked down a moment.

“Shit,” he whispered, closing his good eye a moment. “Someone ran me off the road, they swerved over from the other lane, I–”

“We know. The police took statements from a couple witnesses and are looking for the car that did it right now. You just focus on recovery, alright? Thankfully, there’s no broken bones, but you did suffer a concussion and several deep cuts that had to be stitched up.”

“Right, okay… thanks,” Dream looked at her again and frowned. “When can I go? I have… I have work to do,”

‘You’re in no state to be working right now. We’re going to keep you overnight and we’ll discuss discharge in the morning, alright? You get some rest,”

“Right,” Dream sighed softly and closed his eye for a moment, just frowning to himself as the nurse left his bedside. His whole body hurt and ached, he was sure they had him on pain medication right now so he could only imagine what it really felt like. But still, he just wanted to go home.

It was about a week later and Dream slowly climbed out of a taxi in front of the print shop, expression one of irritation as he paid the driver and walked up to the building. He peaked through the window and saw Killer sitting at his desk inside, seemingly looking over some papers and Dream scoffed, opening the door and stepping inside.

“Hello hello, welcome.. To…” Killer trailed off and paused, meeting Dream’s eye and tensing as the man immediately started over to him, walking with speed. “Woahhh heya Dream, you’re looking rough, something happe–woah–!” Killer jolted as Dream suddenly stepped up right in front of him and grabbed hold of the front of his shirt, dragging him to his feet and glaring down at him.

“You ran me off the fucking road,” Dream muttered, his voice deep and dark. He was pissed, thoroughly, completely pissed.

“Woah, hey, I definitely didn’t, I can-” Killer gulped nervously as Dream lifted him slightly so his feet were barely touching the ground, “I can’t even drive! My vision is wayyy too bad, you know, honestly it could’ve been any number of people–”

“You’ve tried at least once that I know of to kill me, you were probably the sniper in the railyard–I find it hard to believe this wasn’t you too, gods, I should just–” Dream glared at him and Killer gripped at his hands, giving a nervous chuckle.

“It’s not my style! I don’t drive, honest, I like guns a lot more, wayyy more efficient and–”

“Dream,” Blue’s voice came, placing her hand lightly on Dream's shoulder and he paused, looking over at her and slightly behind her where Cross was standing, arms crossed over his chest and his expression was dark and intimidating. The man looked like a mountain of rock. He focused back on Blue. “Let Killer go. Now.”

Dream stared at her for a moment before gritting his teeth and finally loosening his grip on the front of Killer’s shirt, letting him stand normally and he quickly cleared his throat, fixing the collar of his shirt and furrowing his brows.

“He tried to run me off the road,” Dream told her with a frown and Blue shook her head.

“I can assure you, he didn’t. He can’t drive, legally or even technically, he never learned.”

“And you’re absolutely certain?” Dream raised a brow and Blue nodded.

“I’m positive.”

“Yeah so you plan on apologizing for coming in here all hot and trying to wring my neck?” Killer asked with a huff and Dream just glared at him.

“Absolutely not.”

“Damn,” Killer muttered and just crossed his arms. Dream however put his focus back on Blue.

“NM, who is she?” He asked, his expression stern and Blue heaved a sigh.

“My wife and the owner of the print shop. And no, she’s not here so you can’t talk to her,”

“Fine. But I want to speak with her soon,” he muttered and Blue nodded, smiling softly at him.

“Alright, I’ll pass along the message. But I really think you should go, you look like you need rest,” she urged, beginning to walk and Dream reluctantly followed, allowing her to lead him to the door.

“Fine, fine. But keep him,” he pointed back at Killer, “away from me.”

“I will,” Blue assured before opening the door and watching as Dream left, catching another taxi and she let the door close behind him. “Killer!” Blue suddenly raised her voice, her tone sharp and Killer paused, tensing and taking a step back as she turned and walked right back up to him, grabbing the front of his shirt and pulling him close, giving him no choice but to look her in the eye.

“You better not have tried and failed that badly at running him off the road,” she warned and he quickly shook his head.

“No! I didn’t! Just like you said, I don’t even freaking know how to drive–what’s with you people and grabbing my shirt today?” he asked with a huff and Blue let go, heaving a sigh and rubbing her nose bridge. “It was probably one of the other people he’s pissing off, because it sure as hell wasn’t me,”

“You’re probably right,” Blue muttered, glancing briefly at Cross before looking at Killer again. “You need to take care of him, Killer. Get it done soon, or I’ll give the job to someone who can,” Blue muttered, then walked away and Killer quickly nodded, watching her go with a heavy sigh of relief, slowly sitting back down at his desk.

Chapter Text

Dream was stalking Ink again, sitting in his car just outside the other’s house. It was around three in the afternoon by now, which Dream confirmed by checking his watch before looking back over at Ink’s house. He paused as the artist came out through the front door, getting into his car and backing out of the driveway, so, naturally, Dream followed.

Dream was back in his own car now, the thing finally repaired after the accident so now he was able to really get back to working. His eye was still bandaged, of course, and he assumed the nurse was probably right in that he wouldn’t be getting it back, but the bruises everywhere else seemed to be healing nicely so he supposed that was the best he could hope for.

He wound up following Ink all through town again, half worried the other knew he was there and was trying to throw his tail, but eventually, he finally came around and headed to the warehouse again. As he got there, Dream parked himself subtly by some other cars and he watched as Ink got out of his own vehicle and walked over to the back of a truck where a man in overalls was standing. The both of them exchanged some words and Ink handed over payment before the man signalled a few others to get out of the truck and the group started hauling miscellaneous building materials inside the warehouse.

It was odd, Dream had decided. It also just about doubled his curiosity. So, when Ink turned and went into the warehouse, Dream turned off his car and slipped out of it, leaving it unlocked as he jogged quickly up to the building and slipped inside after.

What Dream had failed to notice, though, in all the time, was his own tail equipped with a bicycle and an inconspicuous hat. Killer cursed as he watched Dream go inside, looking around a moment from where he stood by a different cluster of completely gutted cars. Slowly, he leaned his bike up against one of them and ran after Dream, being sure to keep an eye out for any trouble coming his way.

He slipped inside through a side door, the same one Dream had used and now he found himself standing just inside the old warehouse looking slowly around. It was large and open in the center, machines worn from time scattered around and there were offshoots of hallways leading elsewhere that he could see. There was a second floor, likely where the primary office was, but most importantly, there was no sign of Dream.

Killer cursed and slowly began to walk around, squinting a bit as he looked around, trying to locate Dream. He walked down one of the side hallways after feeling like he’d searched enough of the main room, and now found himself uncomfortably open as he walked down the wide space. There was nowhere to hide, he assumed the doors were all locked, and if they weren’t that was still going to be obvious. But, he persisted.

As he rounded a corner, his eyes landed on first a few large crates conveniently positioned in the hallway, looking like they’d just been moved in, and second, his eyes landed on Dream, slowly opening up the door at the end of the hallway only to pause and take a step back, raising his hands as someone else pushed the door more open, revealing the barrel of a gun pressed firmly to Dream’s forehead.

“Following me inside was bold!” Ink mused, cocking back the barrel of the gun and Dream gave a nervous chuckle.

“It was, probably shouldn’t have done that. But we’re here now, we should… talk, I have questions,” Dream suggested and Ink snickered a bit.

“I’m sure you do; how long have you been watching me now? Jeez, I know I caught you that one time, but that was just once!” Ink paused, then huffed, “that was a genuine question, how long have you been following me?”

“Ah, hm, a few weeks now, but I had to take a brief break due to… unforeseen events,” Dream gestured vaguely to his bandaged eye and Ink gave him a pitying look.

“If it’s any consolation, Error and I had nothing to do with the car running you off the road, though I will say I was mildly disappointed to hear it failed,”

“You ass–” Dream furrowed his brows only to tense as Ink pressed the barrel of the gun more firmly against his forehead, toying with the trigger.

“Ah ah ah, remember who has the gun here!” Ink chirped and Dream glared at him.

“It doesn’t have to be like this, Ink. You know it doesn’t,”

“I know,” Ink considered that for a moment, then smirked, “trust me, I know,” and in one swift motion he raised the gun and brought it down hard against the side of Dream’s skull and the man went down, hitting the ground with a thump, unconscious.

Killer watched for a moment, but only a moment before slowly beginning to back away, realizing now that he was in some deep shit by being here. He turned around to make a quicker escape only to gasp and stand up as he nearly bumped into Error, standing there behind him with this wild smile on his face.

“Tho-tho-thought you c-c-ould-c-could just get-et away, huh?” Error asked, cocking his head to the side as he took a step towards Killer, who slowly stepped back, bumping into one of the crates and he gulped.

“You know, really I think we’re probably on the same side here,” Killer tried to reason, “I mean, I’m just here to kill Dream, that’s it, you guys can just carry on and–”

“I-I don-I don’t care what y-y-you’re here for,” Error cut him off, taking another step towards him and Killer tensed.

“Right, makes sense,” Killer muttered, then quickly pulled his gun from its holster on his hip, but Error beat him to it, cocking back the hammer of his gun and firing it all in one swift motion and the bullet went clean through Killer’s knee, causing the smaller man to let out a shriek and stumble forwards, only to go down right after when his knee buckled under his own weight.

Killer hit the ground and frantically looked up at Error, eyes widening slightly and he reached for his gun as Error lifted his foot, and right as his hand found the handle and he tried to pull it out, Error brought his foot down on his head and it was the last thing Killer saw before his vision went black and his body fell limp, his gun falling uselessly to the floor.

It was an unknown amount of time later when Killer woke up, groggily opening his eyes and the first thing he noticed was the painful ringing in his ears, almost deafening but it seemed to ease as he woke up better. The second thing he noticed was how cold it was, realizing quickly that he was shivering and he opened his eyes fully to look around. He was laying on his side against the wall of what looked to be a working meat cooler. He assumed meat cooler specifically by the meat hanging up on hooks and on shelves.

Slowly, shakily, Killer pushed himself up so he was at least sitting and he reached up, slowly rubbing his throbbing head before pausing as his eyes landed on the blurry shape of Dream sitting across from him, the other’s knees pulled to his chest and he seemed to be just… watching him. Killer went tense, though, quickly scrambling to his feet as soon as it clicked who that was, only his knee buckled as soon as he put any weight on it and he sharply inhaled in pain, gritting his teeth as he felt his body falling again and the ground came with a very unwelcome thump.

Killer looked down at his knee, leaning himself up against the wall again and he slowly reached over, gripping the area where the bullet had gone through and he realized it was still bleeding. He supposed that explained the lightheadedness.

“F-fuck,” Killer whispered, not even noticing the way his voice shook, the way his hands trembled and the rapid beating of his heart.

“You idiot,” Dream muttered, watching him a moment and examining his movements before slowly scooting over to sit in front of him instead, reaching over to examine the wound. Killer tensed and quickly jerked his knee away as soon as Dream started reaching, shooting a glare at him.

“The fuck d-do you think you’re doing?” He was shivering horrible, having trouble keeping his words straight and Dream definitely noticed, feeling a tug at his chest and he looked away.

“Trying to help, stop being a baby and let me,” he muttered, looking at Killer again and the two held eye contact a moment before Killer very hesitantly uncurled his leg so Dream could look at his knee, wincing in pain at the motion and instead lifting his hands to his mouth, rubbing them together and trying to breathe hot air onto his frozen fingers.

“Thank you,” Dream mumbled before slowly peeling back the blood-soaked cloth on the knee of Killer’s pants, and he looked over the bullet hole. “This is bad, Killer,” he pointed out and Killer just nodded a bit, watching him like a hawk, nervous about whatever Dream was going to do next.

“Y-yeah no shit,” Killer whispered, having to physically stop his teeth from clattering and Dream paused, realization suddenly hitting him.

“Shit, I’m sure this cold is a lot worse with how much blood you’ve lost,” he mumbled and Killer just looked away, not dignifying that with a response. He did pause, though, as he felt Dream’s coat pushed around him and it did help a bit. He looked over at the other, confusion now clear on his face.

“What-what are you doing?” Killer asked, looking down at the other’s jacket now wrapped around him before looking over at the man himself, just wearing his button-up and vest now. “Aren’t you cold?”

“Yeah, but not as cold; I’m not the one with a hole in my knee,” Dream gave a dry chuckle and Killer couldn’t help but snicker a bit then pause to watch as Dream suddenly ripped one of the patches off of Killer’s pants.

“Hey!” Killer hissed, sitting up a bit straighter, “why would you do that?”

“So I can pack the wound,” Dream replied simply, glancing up at Killer’s face that quickly shifted from a vaguely annoyed expression to a wide-eyed look of someone about to be in a lot of pain.

“Woah, woah I don’t think that’s necessary–” Killer quickly started to say but Dream just pulled his leg out to be straighter and he applied pressure to keep it down. Killer immediately started to squirm and try and move away, but Dream held him firmly down.

“You’re not bleeding out on my watch,” Dream muttered as he undid his belt and folded it before handing it over to Killer, “bite down,”

“What are you, a fucking doctor?” Killer hissed, but gladly took the belt and bit down on it, curling his hands into fists and Dream got to work, not even bothering to reply to that. The pain was instant, Killer’s expression contorting and straining and he tried immediately to jerk his leg away, but when he couldn’t he just pressed himself back against the wall and squeezed his eyes shut, silent as best he could right up until Dream pushed the cloth deeper to securely stop the bleeding, and that’s when he screamed, the belt muffling the noise by a lot but the pain was still obvious enough.

Dream worked quickly, not wanting to drag it out even if he didn’t like Killer very much. He knew well and good that he could’ve just left the other to bleed out, revenge one could excuse for trying to kill him so many times. But, he couldn’t. He wasn’t sure why.

After a couple minutes, Dream finished, untucking his shirt and ripping off a section before wrapping it around Killer’s knee like a bandage that held the packing in place, and he looked up at his face, his own expression softening as he realized the other had started crying, even if Killer did try and hide it.

“I’m done,” Dream told him, hesitating a moment before scooting over to Killer’s side and wrapping an arm around him, pulling him close for warmth. Killer took the opportunity to jab him in the side with his fist, but just clung tightly to him right after, hiding his face in Dream’s side now.

“Th-that fucking hurt,” Killer whispered, his whole body shaking but Dream decided not to mention it.

“I know, but it was the best way to stop the bleeding, I don’t know how long we’re gonna be in here,”

“Yeah yeah,” Killer muttered before falling quiet, trying to focus on his breathing to calm himself down.

“I had a weird question,” Dream started, looking over to the sealed door to the freezer. Killer made a noise that sounded vaguely like ‘go ahead’ so he continued, “you said you’re blind, how does that… work with shooting guns?” He awkwardly asked and Killer paused, slowly sitting up a bit better to look up at Dream, raising a brow.

“Well, I can still see a bit. I’m legally blind, not completely and totally black vision blind. I use a lot of uh, scopes and have,” Killer paused to take his glasses out of his pocket, holding them up so Dream could see, “these, they help a bit.”

“That makes sense,” Dream muttered, looking at Killer’s glasses a moment as he slowly nodded. “Still, I’m sure that makes sniping hard,” he paused, then slowly leaned his head away from Killer before continuing, “no wonder you can’t hit me,” he softly joked and jolted a bit when Killer punched him in the shoulder and he let out a chuckle.

“Yeah, I deserve that. But still, can we… stop with the murder attempts for a bit? Truce?” He asked with a hopeful smile and Killer sighed, looking away for a moment.

“Yeah, whatever. Truce. It’s not like killing you’s going very well anyways,”

“Exactly,” Dream mused then paused at the sound of tapping on the glass, turning his attention over to the window of the large door where Error’s face could be seen peeking through. Dream narrowed his eyes.

“St-st-stay off my-y back,” Error told them, his voice heavily muffled by the door, then he shut a metal slide and, Dream assumed, left. He let out a soft groan of frustration before looking down at Killer, who was staring up at him now.

“Shit.”

Chapter Text

“So, how the f-fuck are we gonna get outta this one?” Killer asked, voice shaking a bit from the cold as he looked around the freezer. Dream, beside him, softly groaned and rested his head in his hands.

“I have no clue,” Dream muttered, rubbing his forehead for a moment before lowering his hands and pushing himself to his feet, walking slowly around the freezer to get an idea of what all was in there. There was meat, of course, some hanging from hooks, others stacked on shelves next to frozen vegetables, there were jugs of frozen water… and a butcher's knife.

“I don’t see anything that could get us out of here,” Dream looked back over to Killer who had gotten distracted examining his crudely bandaged knee. He paused to look over at Dream though when he spoke.

“Dammit,” Killer muttered and looked around for a moment, “you know, maybe this is some kind of test, like, maybe they want us to try and kill each other and the winner gets to be let out, or something,”

“I definitely don’t think that’s the case,” Dream muttered as he walked back over to Killer and sat down beside him, rubbing his hands together for a moment for warmth. “But there has to be some way out,”

“Well, so far it’s looking like we just freeze or starve to death,” Killer rolled his eyes and shifted a bit where he sat before pausing, a heavy wooziness coming over his head and his vision started to blur worse than normal, seeing double for a moment and he slumped to the side. Dream paused at that, looking down at the other now leaned up against him and he tensed, gently shaking him.

“Killer,” he spoke, shaking him a little harder, “Killer wake up!” He raised his voice and that seemed to do the trick, Killer jolting back awake as his eyes shot open wide.

“I’m alright-” KIller quickly said, slowly reaching up and gripping at the side of his head, “‘m fine,”

“No, you’re not, shit,” Dream hissed and gently leaned Killer back up against the wall before standing again, “stay put, I’m gonna try something,” he instructed.

“Not like I can go anywhere anyways,” Killer mused tiredly before watching Dream walk over to one of the racks. Dream hesitated a moment, standing there staring down at the butcher’s knife as he considered the options, then he picked it up and started walking back over, pausing at the way Killer went tense and pressed himself back against the wall.

“Woah woah woah hey reconsider, yeah? If we work together instead of you hacki–”

“I’m not hacking you to pieces, Killer,” Dream mused, a small smile tugging at his lips, “I already said I don’t think we’re supposed to kill each other, I honestly just think Ink and Error wanted to kill us slowly,” he added as he turned and came to a stop at the door, searching along the edges of it for screws.

“Right, okay, what are you doing then?” Killer furrowed his brows a bit.

“These kinds of doors should have screws in them, right? To hold them onto the wall? Well what if I just… unscrewed those screws,” he held up the butcher’s knife and Killer got the idea, nodding. “So that’s what I’m doing.” He hummed, pausing as he felt a screw under his thumb and he immediately got to work unscrewing.

After several minutes of working on exactly two screws, Dream froze he could hear someone messing with the door on the other side. So, he quickly backed up to Killer’s side and sat down, hiding the butcher’s knife behind his back.

It only took a moment for the freezer door to open, and in came Error dragging a body on the ground with him, his small black and white wings fluttering in a response to the effort he was using to drag. Dream looked at Killer who was looking at him, the smaller man gave a curt nod and Dream nodded back, then slowly stood and took a cautious step towards Error, who glared at him over his shoulder.

“Si-sit th-e-e-e fuck ba-ack down,” Error hissed, glancing briefly over at Ink, who was stood leaned against the doorframe with a gun in hand,

“Or I’ll put a bullet in your knee too,” Ink added as a threat and Dream narrowed his eyes.

“Why are you keeping us in here?”

“Ra-a-ansome, duh-uh, though s-s-so far sh-she won’t-she won’t take it,” Error grumbled, dropping the body against the wall opposite Killer and Dream, then he skipped back over to the door with Ink, grinning back at Dream. “Toodles!”

“Wait! Who is she-?” Dream quickly tried to ask, making swift few steps towards the door before it slammed shut, cutting him off completely from escape.

“Well, that went great,” Killer muttered, though his words were running together a bit and he looked a lot more out of it now. Dream stared back at him a moment and frowned.

“I’ll get us out of here,” he assured, though did take a moment to examine the body that was dragged in. It looked to be a cop, shot twice through the head and Dream shuddered a bit at how it looked. He didn’t recognize them, though, which was a relief.

Slowly, Dream returned to the door and resumed unscrewing it. It took the better part of two hours to do, but finally, as he undid the last few screws, the door began to softly groan and Dream quickly stood up, wedging his fingers between the cracks and he pulled, the door coming clean off the wall and he carefully laid it on the ground at his feet. The way was clear.

“Killer we can go–” Dream looked over at the other and paused, expression shifting to an almost unreadable one once he saw the way Killer was slumped there on his side, loosely covered by Dream’s jacket. “Killer?” He quietly asked, walking over and crouching beside him. He checked his pulse and felt relief wash over him when he could still feel one, so he did the most reasonable thing he could think of and he hooked his arms under Killer’s legs and back, and he picked him up.

Killer was surprisingly light, that was the first thing Dream noticed as he picked the other up, holding him close for both warmth and security. The second was that Killer was completely limp, out cold and he wasn’t sure how long he’d been like that. He should’ve known better by how quiet it had been for a good bit there, but he didn’t think about it.

Slowly, Dream slipped out of the freezer, abandoning the corpse of the cop and he started down the hallway. Navigating back to the side door he’d entered through proved easy enough, thankfully. Though, as he pushed through the door and stepped outside, the feathers of his wings ruffling a bit in the heavy wind, Killer shifted. He quickly looked down at him, making for his car.

“Killer? Hey, are you okay?” Dream asked him and Killer made some sort of incoherent sound in response, then buried his face in Dream’s arm. “Right, I’m taking you to the hospital,”

“...No.” Killer mumbled, voice barely above a whisper, “no hospitals…”

“You need a doctor, Killer,” Dream frowned, but Killer just shook his head again.

“I know… someone. Just… just call him if you can’t stitch, he’ll help. But no hospitals,” Killer slowly unburied his face to look up at Dream, who was frowning down at him. “Promise me,”

“I-...” Dream was quiet a moment, hesitating, but slowly, he nodded, “fine, I promise.” He opened up the passenger door to his still unlocked car and he gently set Killer inside, then he went around and got into the driver’s seat, starting up the engine and wasting no time sitting around.

The drive back to his house was quiet except for the dull sound of the radio in the background. Dream checked his watch and grimaced, it was late into the night which he could tell just by looking outside, but not only that, the glass on his watch was broken and it seemed to not be ticking properly, so he had no clue the actual time. Still, he headed for home and soon enough pulled into the driveway where he parked his car and got out, gently carrying Killer inside before laying him down on the couch.

“Heyy remember last time I was here?” Killer asked with a dry chuckle and Dream grimaced, getting some of his medical supplies out of a nearby cabinet.

“I remember quite clearly. You tried to shoot me in my study,” Dream muttered, returning to Killer’s side with the supplies as he pulled a chair with him and sat down, opening up the box. “I assume we’re past that now, right? As in, you’re not going to try and shoot me again?”

“I can’t make any promises,” Killer mused, winking at him before hissing in pain as Dream started to undo the bandage, having a look now at the bullet wound.

“Okay, well I can’t promise this won’t hurt. Stay still,” Dream warned and Killer paused before going tense as Dream carefully began to clear the cloth from the wound. Killer reached up and covered his mouth with a hand, a few tears slipping down his cheeks and he squeezed his eyes shut, a quiet whimper escaping his lips only to be muffled by his hand.
“Sorry,” Dream added, looking over Killer’s now cleared up knee and he heaved a sigh of relief. “Thankfully, the bullet went all the way through so I don’t have to dig that out. But let’s make it a point to not get shot again, yeah?”

“Yeah, I’ll definitely give it my best try not to,” Killer muttered through gritted teeth, glaring over at Dream who just calmly smiled at him.

“Good, now I’ll stitch this up,” he hummed and started preparing his needle and thread, glancing briefly over to Killer’s face. The other was looking around the area, honestly just trying to look anywhere but at Dream or his knee. He felt nauseous and lightheaded, Dream could tell just by looking at the guy, but he seemed to be doing better now that he wasn’t freezing half to death anymore.

As Dream began the stitching, Killer hid his face in the cushion of the couch beside him, clenching his fists and unclenching them over and over again and, for a moment, Dream worried he would start hitting. But Killer remained still for the most part, just laying there and letting Dream do what he needed to do.

“I’m finished,” Dream told him after a minute, getting his medical supplies packed back up while Killer sighed in relief and slowly sat up, wobbling a bit from how lightheaded he was.

“Fucking finally,” Killer whispered, mostly to himself, and he looked over at Dream, “er… thanks,” he added, looking away right after and Dream smiled softly.

“Of course. Now, I’ll be right back,” Dream hummed and stood up, taking the chair and the medical supplies with him back to the kitchen where he got it all put away, then he took a moment to wash his hands. As he cleaned all the blood, he thought about the events of what just happened. It was odd, Error and Ink just… leaving them alive. And who were they trying to get ransome from? That was raising the most questions in his head right now, but he supposed a real answer was going to have to wait.

Dream finished washing his hands and went to his linen closet instead, getting out a spare blanket and pillow before heading back over to Killer’s side, setting both down at the foot of the couch.

“You look like you could use a shower,” Dream mused and Killer chuckled a bit, nodding in agreement.

“Yeah, but there wouldn’t be much point, you know,” he gestured to his bloody, dirty clothes and Dream nodded.

“You can borrow some of my pajamas for the night, that way you can get cleaned up before any sort of infection happens,” Dream decided and Killer paused, blinking a couple times at him.

“You’re sure?” He asked, raising a brow and Dream nodded.

“Positive. There’s a shower here on the first floor,” Dream pointed it out, “go ahead and get in, I’ll grab you some clothes and a towel, just, you know, don’t leave the curtain open,”

“I dunno, I think it’d be funny if you walked in and the curtain was open,”

“I think it would be deeply embarrassing,” Dream countered, squinting and Killer snickered, nodding agreement.

“Definitely.” Slowly, though, Killer pushed his legs over the edge of the couch and very carefully stood up, nearly falling back over but he managed to stay standing well enough to catch his breath. “I’ll see you in a minute, then,” he mumbled and Dream nodded a bit before watching as Killer limped his way carefully and slowly over to the bathroom. He considered offering to help, but had the nagging feeling Killer would tell him off for coddling him.

Dream headed off upstairs while Killer got in the shower, slowly climbing up until eventually he reached the top and entered his room. He paused for a moment by his dresser, staring at it before beginning to dig through for something that would hopefully fit the much smaller man. He found some pajamas he didn’t wear anymore after bulking up a bit and decided those would probably be Killer’s best bet in terms of size, gripping the pants and shirt in one hand before retrieving a towel in the other.

Finally, Dream headed back downstairs, skipping over a squeaky step he needed to have fixed before stopping at the bathroom door.

“I’m coming in!” He warned then turned the door handle and entered, setting the neatly folded clothes and towel on the closed toilet lid for Killer once he was done. He paused a moment, though, catching a glance unintentionally to the side where Killer was peaking out at him. He blinked a couple times.

“Well, don’t just stand there,” Killer huffed and Dream’s cheeks flushed a vibrant shade of red as he quickly apologized and ducked out of the bathroom, closing the door securely behind him and he took to cleaning his couch up to occupy himself while he waited for Killer to get out.

Killer was done after a bit, limping carefully out of the bathroom now clad in Dream’s pajamas while he toweled his hair dry. He paused to look over at Dream a moment, who was sitting on the couch staring at him. Killer raised a brow.

“Take a picture, it’ll last longer,” Killer huffed and Dream paused, chuckling softly right after.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to stare. But I was going to ask, did you want to take the spare room? It’s upstairs, I don’t mind helping you out getting up there,”

“Uhh,” Killer paused, considering that for a moment, “yeah, okay. But I’m sure if I really tried I could get up there myself,” he insisted and Dream chuckled a bit, nodding.

“I’m sure you could,” he mused, then stood and walked over, holding an arm out and Killer slowly grabbed onto it, then the two of them made for the stairs.

The walk up was slow, painfully slow literally and metaphorically. Killer cursed and swore most of the way up the stairs and Dream was half tempted to just pick the guy up again as they reached about halfway, but eventually they made it and both just stood there for a moment, Killer breathing heavily and cursing and Dream just stood there patiently.

“Right, spare room is right here,” Dream hummed, gesturing towards the room before leading Killer over and he opened the door, staying in the doorway as Killer walked inside and looked around.

“Er, thanks, I guess. Yeah, thanks,” Killer felt a bit awkward, in all honesty. He looked back at Dream a moment, who smiled a bit and said his goodnights, then he closed the door and went to go take his own shower, leaving Killer there to rest.

“This is so fucking weird,” Killer whispered to himself as he limped over to the bed, climbing up onto it and settling down on top of the blanket, staring up at the ceiling now. He caught himself thinking about Dream a bit more than he should be and he felt a heat rise to his cheeks. “Ohhh this is sooo fucking weird,” he said again, then closed his eyes and tried to sleep.

Chapter Text

It was morning when Killer awoke, eyes fluttering open and he groggily reached up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. His mind felt fuzzy as he sat up, slowly but surely, and he soon enough swung his legs over the edge of the bed and he stood up. The pain was immediate, shooting up through his leg and his knee immediately gave out, sending him crashing to the ground with a loud thump, dragging a lamp over with him as he tried to grab hold of it to catch himself.

“Killer!?” Dream’s voice rang out through the house and Killer went tense, his breathing quickening and he looked quickly around. He spotted a clock hung up on the wall, the time reading eight am and his eyes snapped open wide. He was late, very, very late to work.

“Shit–” KIller quickly grabbed hold of the bed and dragged himself to his feet, pausing though to look at the door as a knock came. He fell silent, just staring now as a knock came again.

“Killer, answer or I’m going to come in,” Dream warned from the other side and Killer cursed under his breath, looking over to the window for a moment. He assumed this was the second floor, so best bet would be that fall would hurt like hell, but… He slowly limped his way open and unlatched the window, starting to slide it up as the bedroom door opened and in stepped Dream.

“Killer, are you–” Dream paused, eye landing on Killer halfway out the window and he tensed. “That’ll fuck you up worse–!” He quickly told him and ran over, Killer immediately just trying to push himself fully out of the window but Dream grabbed him and dragged him kicking and yelling back inside.

“You bastard! You can’t keep me here!” Killer yelled as he swung at Dream, nearly clocking him right in the jaw but Dream moved his head back just in time, quickly gripping Killer’s wrists to stop more attempts at hitting him.

“I’m not trying to keep you here!” He exclaimed and Killer glared, trying to pull his wrists free.

“Yes you are! You are and now I’m late, damn you!”

“Well, that’s not MY fault!” Dream hissed, furrowing his brows, “you’re the one that followed me into the damn warehouse,”

“I wouldn’t have followed you if you hadn’t avoided every damn attempt at taking you out! So, if you ask me, it’s definitely your fault,”

“Oh so you’re still on this? Seriously? I don’t much like the idea of dying, of course I’m not going to make it easy!” Dream was still wrestling to keep Killer from hitting him again, keeping a tight hold of the other’s wrists but he gasped as he received a kick to the stomach, and he quickly shoved Killer down against the ground, holding him there. “Cut it out!” He raised his voice then paused as Killer just spat in his face.

“I have never in my life failed a job,” Killer lowered his voice slightly, glaring up at Dream now, “not once, not ever. I don’t want this to be the start, it can’t be, I won’t let it,”

“Well, sucks to be you, because I don’t really want to die today, or any day for that matter,” Dream rolled his eye and Killer tried to kick him again, though this time Dream was able to stop it using his own knee. “Stop that, you’re going to tear your stitches,” he warned and received a glare in response.

“I don’t care, you shouldn’t care either, I mean honestly, why even get me out of there? Why not just leave me to die?” Killer asked, his tone exasperated and frustrated.

“Because,” Dream started, averting his gaze, “even if you’re an asshole, it doesn’t mean you deserve to die, especially not like that.”

“Wow, you couldn’t be more wrong,” Killer gave a dry laugh and tried again to free himself from Dream’s grip, though this time Dream moved off of him and let him sit up, leaving Killer somewhat surprised as he quickly pushed himself up so he was sat, preparing to stand.

“I’m not wrong, you’re just vaguely suicidal,” Dream muttered, clearly unamused and Killer rolled his eyes.

“I’m not suicidal, it’s just that shit happens and I’ve done a lot of bad,” he moved to stand up and Dream immediately pushed him back down, “hey–you can’t keep me here,”

“I can and I will. You refuse to go to a hospital so until someone gets you safely back to your house, it’s here you’ll stay,”

“You can’t do that!” Killer exclaimed and Dream just crossed his arms, clearly not budging on the subject and Killer groaned, crossing his arms and leaning his back against the bed.

“Is there someone I can call for you? I don’t mind taking you home myself, but I’d really prefer one of your friends knew,” Dream softened his tone as he spoke, a small frown on his face.

“Yeah, uh, Blue. She’ll come and get me,” Killer mumbled, looking away from him.

“Alright, I’ll give her a call. I made breakfast, by the way. It’s in the kitchen with the coffee. Do you… want my help down the stairs?” Dream asked and Killer shook his head.

“No, I’m fine, I can do it myself,” he was definitely a lot more unwilling to have help now that his could think straight, as opposed to the night before when he was out of it and helpless, much to his disdain at the memory.

“Alright, holler if you need my help,” Dream gave him a slight smile before pushing himself to his feet and brushing some floor lint off his pants. “And, please, don’t try and climb out the window again, this house is a lot higher up than it looks,” he added, then turned and left the room leaving Killer there by himself.

Dream headed down the stairs to get to the hall where he kept the telephone, humming a soft tune to himself as he reached the bottom and walked over. Dialing Blue’s number was easy, he had it written down in his contact book so the hardest part was just locating where he’d put it. But, soon enough, he stood with the telephone to his ear and he waited as it rang.

“This is Blue,” came her voice from the other end as the phone picked up and Dream nearly sighed in relief.

“Hi, Blue. This is Dream. I uh, have someone you might want to come and get,”

“Oh my god, is he with you?” Blue quickly asked, her tone just shy of appalled.

“Yes, it’s a long story. But, to make it short, he was trying to kill me again, followed me to this warehouse I was tailing someone else to, followed me inside, we both got kidnapped and he got… shot in the knee. So once we broke out I brought him back with me and patched him up– what’s with his hatred of doctors?”

“I’m not actually sure why he hates them so much, but it’s definitely a reoccurring problem. But thank you, Jesus Christ, I’m coming to get him.”

“Thank you. I believe he’s in my kitchen right now, or… still stubbornly coming down the stairs, one of the two,”

“Goodness, I’m sorry about that, Dream.”

“It’s alright, I think we might have some sort of understanding now… maybe. Hopefully. But still, it’s fine.”

‘Right, well, I’m headed out now. I’ll see you shortly,”

“See you shortly,” and with that, Dream hung up the phone and headed over to the kitchen where Killer was just arriving, his limp heavy and he kept cussing under his breath, but otherwise was doing fine.

“So,” Dream started, getting down a coffee cup to make Killer some coffee, “who exactly hired you to kill me, anyways?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” Killer slowly sat down on a stool and smirked at him. Essentially, he wouldn’t be telling him.

“Right, that’s helpful. Was it your boss? NM or whoever she is?”

“Maybe, maybe not, who knows,” Killer shrugged, then paused as Dream held up the sugar questioningly, “oh, uh, two spoons, thanks,” Dream nodded and put two spoons of sugar in the coffee. “But besides, knowing who hired me won’t stop or really change anything, you’ll just instead be trying to question them and get killed faster most likely, or I’ll get sacked for telling you, and I personally don’t want that,”

“So it IS your boss,”

“I didn’t say that,” Killer squinted, then thanked him as he handed the cup of coffee over, “I’m just saying, word comes around all the time, it’ll get BACK to my boss at the very least, and all of a sudden I’m not a competent worker,”

“So, your boss knows you’re a hitman?”

“Of course, I thought you knew that already?” Killer snorted, “I’ll tell you that much for sure. But just know, you try to go to the police it won’t work, we’ve got strings everywhereee”

“I know,” Dream sighed and sat down beside Killer on another stool, sipping on his own coffee. “Blue is on her way,”

“Oh, good, can’t wait for that conversation,” Killer muttered and took a sip of his coffee, “she’s gonna kill me,”

“Literally or metaphorically?” Dream raised a brow and Killer gave him a look.

“Either or,” he muttered in response before sighing and resting his forehead on the counter for a moment, “I’m stealing your pajamas by the way, my clothes are fucked. I’ll bring them back once I clean them,”

“You can keep them, they don’t exactly fit me anymore,”

“Oh,” Killer glanced over at him a moment, “well, thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.”

The rest of breakfast was done in mostly silence with the occasional conversation. And, eventually, Blue came around and there was a knock at the door. Dream stood, telling Killer he’d be right back before he headed over to the front door, unlocked the locks, and opened it.

“Hello, Blue,” he greeted, smiling a bit at her.

“Hi, Dream. You’ve got a bruise on your jaw,” she pointed out and Dream paused, reaching up to lightly touch it and he squinted.

“I believe that one was Killer’s doing. But, he’s in the kitchen. We just finished breakfast,”

“No more attempts on your life?”

“None so far,” Dream confirmed and Blue chuckled a bit, then walked inside and over to the kitchen where she made a beeline for Killer, who had quickly sat up straight.

“Ohhh heyyy Blue, how’s it goin–hey!” Killer hissed as Blue gave him a firm smack to the back of the head. “What was that for?”

“For being an absolute idiot. I cannot believe you, we’re going to see Sci to get your damn knee looked at,”

“I don’t really think that’s–”

“We’re going,” Blue gave him a stern look and he shut his mouth, just nodded and slowly, Blue helped him to his feet before leading him over out of the kitchen. She stopped beside Dream, though, looking up at him a moment. “Thank you again. I’ll be seeing you soon, I hope,” she smiled a little at him, then left the house with Killer and brought him over to the car, where she helped him into the backseat and got into the passenger seat right after. Cross, who was in the driver’s seat, drove off right after.

Dream sighed, slowly closing his front door and locking it back up before heading over to the stairs and going up them. He felt like he needed another shower after tussling around on the ground, his skin felt like it was crawling. So, he went and got some clothes for the day instead of his pajamas, and he went into the bathroom.

As Dream took his shower, though, scrubbing every part of himself clean, his mind wandered back to Killer at every chance it got, leaving a fluttering feeling in his stomach and he frowned, pushing his face towards the shower head to try and distract himself with the warm water. Still, though, he imagined Killer. He could see the image in his head of when he’d dropped the clothes off in the bathroom, Killer peeking around the edge of the curtain and he felt a heat rise to his cheeks, then he quickly shook his head.

“Fuck, this can’t be good,” he whispered, reaching up and running a hand through his soaked hair. He got out of the shower after that, toweling himself dry and getting his clothes on before realizing he forgot a tie. So, he left the bathroom and went to his bedroom. He looked through his assortment of ties for a moment, picking a purple one he liked before pausing to look over at his window, sitting there open like it hadn’t been when he woke up that morning. There, taped to the windowsill, was an envelope.

Slowly, cautiously, Dream walked over and picked up the envelope, turning it over in his hands a couple of times before opening it and looking through what the note said. An invitation to dinner at the… old city zoo cafe. The place had been closed down for years by now, but… he knew what spot it was talking about. It was signed “F”, which didn’t ring any bells and he frowned a bit.

“Interesting…” Dream mumbled to himself, looking out the window a moment, “very interesting.”

Chapter Text

Dream hummed a tune to himself as he cooked his eggs. It was morning, the sun just beginning to come up over the horizon. He’d been awake for some time by now before finally actually deciding he was hungry, so now he was doing something about it.

As Dream cooked his eggs, seasoning them thoroughly, there was a knock at the door and he paused, looking back a moment before turning down the heat of the stove and heading over. Slowly, Dream unlocked the front door and opened it, revealing none other than Killer stood right there in front of him, the guy grinning up at him ear to ear. Dream crossed his arms.

“I see your knee is feeling better,” he pointed out and Killer shrugged,

“Still hurts like a mother fucker, but I can walk on it now so I’ll take what I can get–can I come in?” Killer peeked past him into the house and Dream raised a brow.

“I don’t know, are you going to try and shoot me?” He asked instead and Killer shook his head.

“No, no definitely not. I actually had a bit of a proposition for you,” Killer looked up at him again, that grin never leaving his face. “I think we should work together!”

“You and I? Work together? And I assume by that you mean you’re done trying to kill me, then?” Dream was skeptical, Killer could tell just by the tone of his voice that he was skeptical. So, he continued.

“Yeah, no, I’ll stop trying to kill you, but I want in on the cases,” Killer hummed and Dream stood there a moment, a bit surprised but, slowly, he stepped out of the way and let Killer walk into his house.

“So you swear you’re done trying to shoot me?”

“Swear it!” Killer chirped, sniffing the air and pausing at the smell of cooked eggs before looking back over at Dream, following behind him as he went back into the kitchen. “So, you’re just gonna let me work with you? Just like that?”

“Why?” Dream asked instead, “why do you want to work with me?”

“Well, obviously killing you isn’t working, but I still have to make my boss think I’m trying, so I figured I’d just work with you instead to make it LOOK like I’m trying,”

“That seems like a bad idea,” Dream pointed out as he resumed his eggs, turning the heat back up. “I mean, why would working with me convince your boss you’re trying to kill me?”

“I dunno, getting close to catch you off guard or something?” Killer shrugged and Dream squinted.

“So, you honestly truly just want to work with me, then?” He glanced over his shoulder at Killer who gave a thumbs up and a nod.

“I do! I’m also bored, she won’t give me any more hits until I take you out so I’m stuck with normal work right now,”

“I bet that’s real boring,” Dream muttered sarcastically and rolled his eyes, though he did nod a bit. “But, alright. If you really want to work with me then you can, I could use the help.”

“Thanks a bunch! I won’t let you down,” Killer winked at him.

“I’m sure you won’t. Have you eaten breakfast?” Dream decided to ask and Killer paused for a moment.

“Well, no I usually don’t. Why?” Killer raised a brow and Dream lifted the pan with eggs.

“Working together doesn’t make us all buddy buddy you know,” Killer mused but Dream just chuckled and shook his head.

“I have extra, and besides, you no longer threatening my life is cause for egg celebration, I’d say,”

“I’m sure plenty of other people are threatening your life right now,” Killer pointed out, but took a seat at the counter. “I’ll have some eggs, sure,” he smiled.

“Fantastic, hold on one second,” Dream got down a second plate and he toasted a couple more slices of bread, then plated the food and walked over, setting Killer’s plate down in front of him before taking his own plate and sitting down next to him. “Enjoy, I think I put too much salt on them,” he mused.

“Oh boy,” Killer snickered a bit and took a bite of the eggs, squinting a bit as soon as he did. Still, he chewed and swallowed. “Oh, those are awful,” he snorted, looking over at Dream who had a similar expression after also taking a bite, nodding in agreement.

The two share a laugh, and for a moment it’s nice, even if Killer did stare for just a few seconds too long, and Dream couldn’t stop glancing over at him. They sat there for a while, though, taking back and forth and eating their terrible breakfast until eventually, they were both finished. Dream took the plates and gave them a wash while Killer told him a story about his first hit. It had gone terrible, and the moral was don’t shoot a gun in an aquarium, but it was a funny story, Dream had to admit.

“So, even after all of that, you still got the guy?” Dream asked, raising a brow as he dried the plates.

“I did! I wasn’t kidding when I said I’ve never failed a hit until now, honestly,”

“Wow,” Dream mused, putting the plates away and walking back over to the counter. “Well, as fun as sitting here talking is, I need to get to work. Are you coming?”

“Well, that depends, where are we going?” Killer asked, hopping off the stool.

“The grocery store,” Dream replied simply, earning a confused look from Killer as the both of them headed for the front door.

“I’m sorry, do you mean to drag me into grocery shopping with you?” Killer asked, amusement in his tone and Dream couldn’t help but to laugh a bit.

“Gods no, I think you’d judge my shopping habits or something. But no, we’re going to do detective work. Trust me,”

“I dunno…” Killer squinted a bit and Dream gave an innocent smile, so Killer just shrugged. “Okay, I guess. Lead the way,”

“Perfect,” Dream grabbed his keys and opened up the door before the both of them went outside, Dream locking it up securely behind him and the two of them got into his car afterwards and headed off.

“Man, I bet that repair was expensiveee,” Killer hummed in a sing-song tone and Dream gave a huff.

“It was. I’m still not even entirely convinced it wasn’t you,” he muttered, Killer huffing in response and he crossed his arms.

“I can’t drive. Besides, I prefer guns, much easier than a giant metal death machine,” he mused and Dream chuckled a bit.

“Well, I suppose I can’t argue with that.” he kept his eyes on the road as he drove, keeping an extra eye out for anyone coming from other lanes as he headed for the now-abandoned grocery store. The closer they got, the more fidgety Killer seemed to get, like he recognized the area and knew exactly where they were now. Dream didn’t ask about it yet, but he did keep an eye on Killer.

Slowly, Dream pulled his car into the parking lot at the front and he parked, turning off the engine and getting out, Killer followed in suit and Dream locked up the car behind them.

“Right, why are we at the creepy abandoned grocery store again?” Killer asked, Dream glancing over at him as he retrieved a crowbar from his trunk, then he headed to the boarded up front door.

“Last time I was here they tried to kill me, Geno allegedly frequented this place. So, we’re trying to find out why,”

“Because Geno was probably creepy, or into drugs. We should go,” Killer insisted, but did follow after Dream anyways.

“You’re awfully insistent, are you hiding something?” Dream casually asked as he started prying boards off the front door. Killer shook his head.

“No, definitely not. This place just gives me the major creeps, I’ve purposely avoided it like… forever,” he muttered, looking up at the large building before them before looking at Dream instead, huffing. “You’re absolutely certain we’re gonna find literally anything helpful in here?”

“Not really, but we’re gonna look anyways. Do you have a problem with that?” Dream looked over at him, raising a brow. Killer stood there a moment, squinting at him and he was clearly unamused, but slowly he shook his head.

“No, no problem. Let’s just get this over with.” he muttered and Dream gave a nod, then finished getting the boards off and in the two of them went.

The inside of the grocery store was dark, so Dream took out a flashlight and slowly began to walk around, Killer sticking very close to him just in case. Both of them stopped in their tracks as a rat came running by, and they exchanged a skeptical look before continuing on through the building.

There was food still left all over the shelves, just rotting away and the smell coming from it all was absolutely terrible. Dream could barely stand it, in all honesty. Slowly, though, he moved from the front of the store to the back, then eventually through those double doors into the back warehouse area with Killer following close at his side.

Looking around the warehouse took a while, and neither of them managed to find anything of use up until Dream located the employee breakroom. There were posters on the walls talking about obedience and doing anything for the sake of the company. There were a couple employee rights posters, though they were mostly hidden by other things. There on the table, though, as Dream got a closer look, was a small, silver, crescent moon pin.

Dream stood up straight, holding the small pin between his fingers and he turned to look at Killer, his expression extremely unamused and Killer paused, taking an awkward step back.

“That’s definitely unrelated,” he quickly said, giving a smile and Dream raised a brow, walking up to him and leaning down, their faces uncomfortably close as Dream held the pin up to the one on the collar of Killer’s shirt. A perfect match. He gave Killer another look.

“Okay, fine,” Killer groaned, shoving his hands in the pockets of his coat, “my boss was good friends with the owner, they worked together on a lot of things and NM has a partial share in the grocery store, but I meant it when I said I avoided the place like the plague, it gives me the creeps!”

“I fucking knew it!” Dream exclaimed, standing up straight and his wings stretched out a bit, ruffled up in agitation. “You need to stop lying if we’re gonna work together,” he told the other, furrowing his brows and Killer gave an awkward chuckle.

“Yeah yeah, I know. But I’m telling you, we had nothing to do with Geno going missing, we’re looking for him too.”

“I know,” Dream muttered, pocketing the pin, “but still, you have to see how suspicious this is,”

“Yeah, yeah,” Killer averted his gaze a moment and Dream sighed.

“Who is NM?” He decided to ask and Killer shook his head.

“I can’t tell you,”

“Why?”

“I just can’t,” Killer looked back up at him, a stern expression on his face. Dream was certain that was the first time he’d ever seen Killer look so serious. So, he didn’t push it.

“Was Geno involved with your… gang?” Dream decided to ask instead and Killer nodded.

“Yeah, he was. He was kind of an informant of sorts, gave us the information the press wouldn’t print; what we did with that information varied though.” Killer explained as the two of them headed back into the main part of the store, making for the entrance.

“That makes sense,” Dream nodded a bit, stepping over a knocked over mop as he headed for the front door with Killer at his side.

“Does that satisfy your need to know why Geno came here?” Killer asked and Dream shook his head.

“Definitely not. I don’t understand why anyone would ever willingly come here,” Dream muttered,

“Yeah, honestly no fucking clue,” Killer mused, stepping outside after Dream and the two of them made for the car. “Creepy ass grocery store,” he shuddered, Dream nodding in agreement and the two got into the car to continue their investigation elsewhere.

Chapter Text

It was evening now, the sun just beginning to dip over the edge of the horizon and out of sight, the sky was turning a beautiful shade of orange and red, the colors intense and almost mesmerizing. Dream was just getting home by now, pulling his car into the driveway and putting it in park. He got out and locked the car before pausing, attention being drawn over to the front door of his house that sat just barely ajar.

“Shit,” Dream whispered, taking his gun out of its holster as he approached the open door, cocking back the hammer and he pushed the door fully open, stepping inside.

“Hello?” Dream called out, “if you’re in here go ahead and come on out!” He kept his voice loud and clear, a firm warning to his tone. He was met with silence, though. So, he slowly began walking through the house, checking the living room first, then the kitchen, then… he noticed the door to his study opened and he narrowed his eyes, walking over and carefully pushing the door the rest of the way and he stepped inside, raising his gun.

“I hope you don’t mind I let myself in,” came Killer’s voice and Dream paused, staring down the barrel of his gun at Killer who was sitting on his desk with one leg crossed over the other, hands resting on the hard wood and he had this shit eating grin on his face.

“Are you kidding me?” Dream lowered his gun and uncocked it, putting it back in its holster. “You just let yourself in? Seriously?”

“Well, I mean, you weren’t exactly here to let me in yourself, were you?” Killer asked, tilting his head to the side and Dream scowled.

“That means you wait, or come back, not break into my house,”

“The door was unlocked,” Killer smiled innocently and Dream gave him an unamused look.

“You and I both know it definitely was not.” he muttered, but walked over anyway. “Why are you here?”

“Just wanted to see what you were up to tonight,” Killer hummed and Dream raised a brow.

“I have a meeting– did you mess with anything?” He started looking through his stuff and Killer snickered.

“Mayyyybe,” he shrugged, Dream shooting a glare over at him. “Who are you meeting with?”

“I’m not entirely sure, the note was just signed ‘F’” Dream muttered in response, slowly standing up straight from his desk and he watched Killer, the other hopping off the tabletop and walking over to him. He paused as Killer lifted his hands and straightened out the collar of Dream’s shirt, a focused expression on his face.

“You shouldn’t go,” Killer said simply and Dream raised a brow, watching the other fix his shirt.

“If this is your attempt at flirting, it isn’t working,” Dream pointed out

“No, it’s not me trying to flirt. I just know who F is, and I can tell you it’s definitely a death trap, or worse,” Killer muttered, pausing as Dream reached up and gently pushed his hands down from his shirt. Killer softly frowned and looked up at him.

“How can you be sure?” Dream asked, reaching over and taking the letter out of one of the drawers in his desk and he passed it over to Killer to read, the other giving it a look over before shaking his head.

“He’s just like that, violent and manipulative. You shouldn’t go,” Killer looked back up at him from the letter, furrowing his brows a bit and Dream raised one of his own.

“Well, I’m sorry to say but I am absolutely going. He may have information on Geno,”

“You’re gonna get yourself killed,” Killer muttered, setting the letter on the desk, “but fine, I’m coming too,”

“Didn’t you just say it was probably a death trap?” Dream raised his brow a little further and Killer snickered.

“I mean, yeah, definitely. But at least it’ll be interesting. And besides, I can’t be fired for failing a job if I actually just die,” Killer hummed.

“Your blatant disregard for your own life is concerning,” Dream muttered, but nodded, “alright, you can come. But we have to leave soon,”

“Sounds good to me,” Killer grinned up at him.

It was about an hour later when the two finally left, Dream getting in the driver’s seat and Killer in the passenger’s, and the two were off. The drive itself took probably half an hour, the zoo being on the other side of the city so it took them some time to get there. Eventually, though, they pulled to a stop in a parking spot in the front and both got out of the car.

“I’ve got a bad feeling about this,” Killer muttered and Dream nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, me too,” he muttered, and with that the two of them headed over to the fence blocking the entrance. Killer was up and over first, hooking his foot through the chain link and he pulled himself up, landing neatly on the other side like a cat. Dream was much less graceful, sort of tumbling over the fence and nearly falling over when he hit the ground on the other side.

“Wow, that was pretty bad,” Killer snorted and Dream shot a glare at him.

“I don’t normally climb fences so… high,” he muttered in his own defense and that just made Killer snicker more.

Inside the zoo was dark, dark enough Dream had to get his flashlight out for any hope of avoiding the debris. It was a mess, benches turned over, light posts downed, fences downed around animal enclosures. It gave Dream an uneasy feeling in his stomach. But still, they persisted.

Eventually, as the two walked aimlessly through the zoo, there was a loud noise, like feedback from a microphone, then someone began to speak through one of the nearby speakers.

“Good evening, if you would both make your way to the safari diner, it would be most appreciated,” came the meek voice of a man over the speaker. Killer and Dream both exchanged a look before heading that way, following the dirty signs to get there.

The closer they got to the Safari Diner, the more light they began to see, until eventually the building itself came into view and they could see the lights were on through the tinted windows. Dream went ahead first, opening the door and going inside the diner before looking slowly around, killer at his side. His eyes landed on a very large man sat at one of the booths and he paused.

The man sat down looked over, his black hair was combed over in a neat, gelled back hairstyle, he had a fancy suit on and a tooth pick in his mouth, but that didn’t mean Dream couldn’t see the sharp, golden tooth peaking out. The man was intimidatingly large, lifting one of his thick hands and motioning for Dream and Killer to approach, so they did.

Slowly, Dream sat down at the booth and scooted in, letting Killer sit right beside him and they both stared ahead at the man sitting before them. He grinned, taking the tooth pick from his mouth and he tipped his head politely before speaking in a deep, deep voice, tone dipped in a southern drawl that made Dream’s accent look light.

“Welcome, Dream. And, Killer, it’s good to see you again,” he dipped his head politely and Killer dipped his head back, resting his hands calmly on the table in front of him. Dream glanced between the two, but his gaze lingered on Killer who almost looked… nervous. He turned his attention back to the man. “My name is Fell. I would’ve signed it on the letter but, of course, that would ruin the surprise.” he gave a chuckle, deep and long. Dream felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.

“I will admit, I was surprised to find the letter on my windowsill. Why not deliver it normally?” Dream asked and Fell considered his response for a moment.

“It was more fun that way,” Fell answered simply, shrugging and he grinned at Dream. “I wanted to make sure I got your attention. Now, you’re looking into the disappearance of Geno, no?”

“I am,” Dream confirmed, shifting slightly where he sat and he tried to fold his wings a little more comfortably behind him. He felt squeezed into the booth, it made him feel small, trapped, and he didn’t like that one bit.

“Good. Someone ought to,” Fell mused, “I believe a scientist by the name of Sci may have something to do with his disappearance,”

“Sci?” Killer spoke up, confusion in his tone, “no, definitely not. He’s one of ours,”

“Oh please, Nightmare couldn’t control that madman even if she tried,” Fell mused, glancing at Dream who seemed to freeze.

“Nightmare?” Dream asked, staring at Fell now. “What do you mean?”

“Shit,” Killer whispered, mostly to himself and Dream quickly looked down at him.

“Oh? Don’t you know? That’s what she goes by; Killer here’s lovely boss, Nightmare,” Fell mused, clearly enjoying the discomfort that seeped into Dream’s expression. It was just a coincidence, Dream told himself. It couldn’t be his sister, she was dead and gone a long time ago. He shook his head and bit and focused back on Fell.

“Anyways,” Fell continued, “I’m certain Sci had something to do with it. The man has been experimenting for ages with… things,” he smirked, “I wouldn’t be surprised in the least if Geno turned out to be the perfect subject,”

“Interesting,” Dream mumbled, thinking about that for a moment, “and why are you telling me this?” he asked instead, “is there something you want?”

“To send a message in exchange,” Fell replied simply and Dream paused, looking to the side as Killer quickly pushed himself out of the booth and stood up. “Now now, sit back down,” Fell warned, a couple armed mean stepping out from the back room blocking Killer’s escape and Dream looked over, tensing before looking at Fell again. His expression shifted as he watched Fell put a gas mask over his face.

“Killer shit we gotta–” Dream quickly started to get up as well as gas began to pour into the room, his wings fluffing up anxiously and he quickly grabbed hold of Killer’s hand before trying to make a run for it, but it was too late, one of the armed guards shoving him back and Dream accidentally inhaled the smoke. His vision blurred almost immediately, his head growing fuzzy and his vision doubled, then it all went black and he hit the ground, the faint sound of Killer calling his name, and then nothing.

It was an unknown amount of time later when Dream slowly began to wake, eyes fluttering open and he softly groaned before leaning forwards and falling into a messy coughing fit, a bit of spit dribbling down his chin. He lifted his head quickly after, trying to move but he found himself tied securely to a chair. He looked around instead, breathing quickening as he saw Killer tied to another chair beside him, the other already staring at him with this wide-eyed expression on his face.

“We’re so fucked, Dream,” Killer whispered, coughing a bit to the side before looking at him again, “we’re fucked, I fucking told you, I told you it was a bad idea I–” he shut his mouth immediately as the door opened from up the stairs, letting a little more light bleed down into the otherwise dark basement and Dream squinted, wincing a bit as the overhead light was turned on and down came Fell, walking slowly down the steps until he reached the bottom.

“Good, you’re both awake.” Fell hummed, dragging over a small table he’d had in the corner and he stopped it beside Killer, then he looked at Dream, leaving Killer to focus on the array of tools sitting on that table, ready. “You know, I fully intended to take you to send a message, but Killer here came as a surprise. He actually knows things I want, isn’t that special?” He mused, walking over to Dream and he rested a finger under his chin, tilting his head up to look at him fully. Dream glared.

“You’ve doomed your little boyfriend because you were foolish enough to chase this lead. I do hope my information proved worth it to you,” Fell hummed, “honestly, bringing one of your sister’s little birds was the stupidest thing you could’ve done,”

“My sister?” Dream breathed out, expression shifting. His chest hurt, confusion boiling up in his mind as well as a deep, deep fear for what was going to happen next.

“Did you really, honestly think she wouldn’t be involved? That she really died all those years ago?” Fell laughed, “maybe you’re stupider than I thought.” Fell leaned down, moving his hand to Dream’s shoulder instead where he squeezed hard enough for it to hurt, to leave a mark, and Dream’s eyes went wide. “You’re a fool,” Fell lowly told him, then all of a sudden stood straight and kicked Dream’s chair, sending it slamming harshly to the ground and Dream cried out, eyes squeezing shut as he made contact with the hard ground and he winced, now struggling fully in his restraints.

Slowly, Fell walked back over to Killer and pulled a chair over, taking a seat in it directly in front of Killer and he reached over to the table, taking a small hammer off of it and he turned it around in his hands.

“So, tell me little bird, what is her next move?” Fell asked, tone even and calm. When Killer said nothing, though, he raised a brow and swung, the hammer connecting with the side of Killer’s head earning a cry of pain. Killer came back quick, though, shooting a glare at him and he spat out a bit of blood right in Fell’s face. Fell was, clearly, unamused. “So you’re going to play it like that, hm?”

Fell wiped the blood from his face and suddenly brought the hammer down on one of Killer’s hands tied to the chair, Killer’s eyes shooting wide and a scream escaped his lips before he could stop it, his body violently jerking forwards as a reaction to the harsh pain.

“Answer my question!” Fell yelled, getting his face close to Killer’s and the smaller man stared up at him, eyes wide.

“I don’t fucking know!” Killer yelled back, another quiet scream escaping his mouth as the hammer came against his head again and his ears started to ring, blood beginning to drip down the side of his face and for a moment he sat there still, trying to get his bearings again.

Dream struggled in his restraints, feeling the back of the chair coming loose from the impact. He winced with every cry of pain that escaped Killer’s lips, the sounds of the hits and the desperate attempts at convincing Fell he didn’t know anything, only making Dream try even harder to get free. Fell was yelling, now, though it came to an abrupt halt when Dream watched as Killer threw his head forwards and it connected with Fell’s in a very hard headbutt. Fell was still a moment, but only a moment, as merely seconds later he reached up and gripped Killer’s neck, squeezing hard and Dream’s eyes went wide. He was going to kill him.

Dream twisted his body around, trying desperately now to free himself and, after a moment of struggle, he did, feeling the back of the chair loosen and crack until finally the ropes fell loose. He was on his feet without even really thinking, the chair gripped tight in his hands. It was a blur as he raised it, bringing it down hard against Fell’s head over and over until the chair broke completely and Fell hit the ground.

Slowly, Fell rolled onto his back and coughed a bit, though it quickly turned to laughter.

“Guess those chairs were worse than I thought!” He laughed, lifting his head slightly to look over at Dream who was now frantically untying Killer, who immediately fell against him as soon as he was free of the binds. Dream shot a glare over at Fell, who pushed himself up so he was sitting.

“But, fine. Deliver the bird back to its nest, and tell your sister I said hi,” he spat, and with that Dream was on his feet and running up the stairs with Killer in his arms.

Fleeing the zoo wasn’t difficult, the guards were nowhere to be found so really it was just remembering the way back to the front. He found it, though, prying part of the fence open before slipping through with Killer, and into his car he went.

“This is the uh.., the… the second time you’ve had to save me…” Killer gave a dry laugh before coughing violently into Dream’s shoulder. He shushed him.

“Don’t talk, I’m taking you to the hospital,” Dream mumbled, glancing to the side at Killer leaned against him from the passenger seat. The other tried to protest but Dream wasn’t having it, he just started the vehicle and off he went to the nearest hospital. There was no way Killer was talking him out of it this time…

Chapter Text

The first thing he could hear was the quiet noises of the hospital room, then he slowly began to open his eyes so he could at least see as well. His whole body ached and hurt, though there was a fuzziness to his head that told him he was on a lot of pain medication right now. For that, he was thankful.

“You’re awake, thank the gods,” Dream muttered, staring down at Killer with a frown from where he sat beside the bed. That was when Killer realized Dream was holding onto his hand that hadn’t been crushed by a hammer, their fingers intertwined. Killer stared down at their hands for a moment, just… staring, before finally he looked up at Dream instead.

“How long was I out?” Killer decided to ask, trying to push himself up so he was sitting, but Dream very gently pushed him back down.

“Overnight, it’s about, hm,” Dream checked his watch, “it’s a little after noon now,”

“Well could be worse,” Killer coughed a bit and rested his head back against the pillow, closing his eyes a moment. “Fuck, everything hurts…”

“Do you need something for the pain?” Dream asked him, rubbing his thumb lightly over the back of Killer’s hand without even really thinking about it. Killer shook his head.

“No, no it’s fine… just hurts,” he muttered, then paused and looked over as the door to the hospital room opened. He expected to see a doctor or a nurse, but what he didn’t expect, and clearly neither did Dream, was Cross to step into the room, only he held the door after entering and in came someone else.

Nightmare slowly stepped through the doorway and looked over to Killer and Dream, eye narrowing just slightly before a smile tugged at her lips. It was an irritated smile, though. She walked over to Killer, ignoring the look of shock on Dream’s face as she carefully took a seat on the edge of the bed beside Killer.

“Killer, you absolute fool,” she told him simply, reaching over and brushing some of his hair out of his face before flicking his forehead, earning a sharp hiss of pain.

“It’s good to see you too,” Killer muttered dryly, looking from Nightmare to Dream a moment, then back up at Nightmare. “But… what are you uh, doing here?”

“I came to collect my message,” Nightmare hummed simply earning a strained chuckle from Killer.

“How did you know it was Fell?”

“He’s the one that got to you last time, too. So, natural assumption,” Nightmare mused before finally, her gaze turned to Dream, who had remained silent the entire time, though he had this wide-eyed expression that wouldn’t leave his face as he stared at her. “You look like a kicked puppy,” she muttered, squinting a bit at him before glancing back at Cross, who nodded in agreement and walked over, resting a hand comfortably on Nightmare’s shoulder. She turned her gaze back to Dream.

“Yay, reunion,” Killer muttered sarcastically, “Nightmare, this is Dream, obviously. Dream, this is my boss, Nightmare, and her husband Cross–where’s Blue?”

“She’s running the shop right now since our manager is currently laying half-dead in a hospital bed,” Nightmare hummed, tilting her head. “It’s true,” she agreed with herself, then reached up and lightly gripped Cross’s hand, rubbing it lightly. Killer nodded a bit at that.

Nightmare paused as Dream stood, watching as he walked around the hospital bed and over in front of her. Cross shifted his position slightly to be more between the two, but Nightmare nudged him and he got the idea, stepping aside.

“What are you doing?” She asked Dream, who frowned at her and just leaned down and pulled her into a tender hug, closing his eyes for a moment and Nightmare froze. “Don’t hug us–” she hissed and tried to push him away, but he was determined so, for a moment, she sat there and resigned to the hug, giving him a few seconds to enjoy it before finally giving him a good shove and he let go, taking a couple steps back.

“I thought you were dead,” Dream muttered, frowning down at her, “how did you… survive?”

“Difficultly, no thanks to you,” Nightmare looked away,

“No thanks to me? Excuse me?” There was clear offense in his tone and it made Nightmare snicker as she looked back up at him.

“You ran off and hid, and just left us there to die. So, actually, fuck you,”

“I did not just leave you there to die!” Dream furrowed his brows, raising his voice just slightly, “I tried to come back for you he- he wouldn’t let me, I mean look what you did? What were we supposed to think?”

“Excuses,” Nightmare rolled her eyes then paused as she felt Killer’s hand grip her sleeve.

“This is all well and good, but, like, can you guys maybe argue in the hallway instead of over my beaten body? Thanks.” Killer muttered, staring up at the ceiling. Nightmare looked down at him for a moment and stared before nodding, apologizing and Dream did the same, slowly walking over and sitting back down in his seat beside Killer’s bed.

“I’m not too happy with you either, you know,” Nightmare told Killer, staring down at him with a calm smile on her face. Killer nodded, gesturing vaguely at Dream.

“I did try and kill him, you know. He’s just unkillable, I guess,” he grumbled, earning a small chuckle from Dream, though he fell quiet again right after.

“Yes, well, he’s always been tough,” she rolled her eye but nodded, reaching down and gently gripping Killer's hand. “You’re on leave until you heal,” she told him simply and he paused, immediately turning his full attention to her.

“What? On leave? You can’t! I’ll just be bored at home all day I– no!”

“Yes!” Nightmare huffed, furrowing her brow. “You can’t help run the shop as fucked up as you are right now, so for the next few weeks while you heal you’re staying home, and that’s final,”

“Dammit!” Killer groaned and looked up at the ceiling, resting his head back against the pillow and he gritted his teeth. “You can’t make me stay home,”

“I know, but I can make sure you don’t come to work. I’ll make sure of it,”

“Damn you,”

“You’ll thank me later,” Nightmare rolled her eye, then sighed. “Do you want us to drive you home?”

“No, no I’m gonna make Dream do it, since it’s his fault,” Dream averted his gaze as Killer said that and Nightmare nodded.

“Fair enough,” she let go of his hand and stood up, retreating back over to the door with Cross at her side. He turned, though, as he stopped beside Nightmare, lifting a hand in a slight wave to Killer.

“Recover well,” Cross said simply, his voice deep and gravely. Killer smiled a bit at that and nodded, watching the both of them leave the room fully and the door closed, leaving him alone with Dream.

“I’m sorry, Killer,” Dream softly said and Killer sighed, turning his head to look at the other.

“I know you are.”

It was an unknown amount of time later when Killer was finally discharged from the hospital and now he found himself sitting in the passenger seat of Dream’s car, looking up at his apartment building as they approached. The building was huge and run down, clearly old and not well kept up with, but it was home and Killer was glad to see it.

Dream pulled his car to a stop up by the curb and Killer opened the door, looking over at him for a moment before getting out. He stopped, though, turning and leaning back down to look into the car.

“I’ll see you soon, yeah?” Killer smiled a bit at him and Dream nodded, giving a small smile back.

“Yeah, I’ll see you soon,” and with that, Killer shut the door and headed up to the building, making his way over to the stairs and then carefully up them until he reached the third floor. Finding his keys proved difficult, he was afraid he might have dropped them until he remembered putting them in his inside coat pocket, so he reached in and took them out.

Killer found his apartment quickly enough, fiddling with his keys a moment before finally unlocking the door and going inside. Two cats greeted him immediately, both meowing and purring and Killer couldn’t help but giggle, closing the door and petting the both of them.

“Right, let’s get you guys some food.”

Dream heaved a sigh to himself as he watched Killer leave, waiting until the other was already up the stairs and out of sight before he finally drove off, heading back for home. He felt bad, in a way. He didn’t like seeing Killer so hurt and he knew the other wouldn’t be if he hadn’t brought him along, or if he hadn’t gone to begin with. Still, he had a lot to think about now after the whole ordeal.

“Right, so who is Sci…” he muttered, making for his home now as he thought about things. Sci was one of Nightmare’s people, Killer had said that much, but clearly she didn’t have a good hold of him otherwise there wouldn’t be any reason for Fell to suspect his involvement. Or perhaps Nightmare had more to do with Geno’s disappearance than Killer thought…

Dream sighed again, focusing on driving for a bit and, eventually, pulling his car up to his house and parking. He got out and locked the car before going up to the door and inside right after. He was exhausted, having stayed up all night keeping an eye on Killer, just sitting there in that hospital chair. It was a bit silly, he realized, being so concerned over the man who had been trying to kill him over and over again. But still, he couldn’t help it.

Dream put his keys on their hook and headed towards the living room, taking off his shoes on the way before plopping down on the couch and resting his feet comfortably on the coffee table, just needing to put them up. He made a mental note to clean it later, though. He sighed and leaned over, turning on the radio before sitting back and closing his eyes, letting his mind wander as he drifted into a half sleep. He found himself thinking about Killer a whole lot more than he meant to.

“So, does this mean you’re done trying to have him killed?” Blue asked as she put a couple books back on the bookshelf at home. It was evening now, the throuple all sharing some time in the living room with Nightmare half on Cross’s lap, just resting comfortably. She looked over at Blue as she spoke, though, considering her answer.

“I suppose there’s not much point in having him killed now that he already knows, the goal was really just to prevent it,” Nightmare muttered, tapping her chin lightly as she considered that, “we could always kill him anyways, revenge for leaving,” she added, mostly talking to herself though with that one. She paused as Blue came over, taking a seat on the other side of her and Nightmare let her torso fall against Blue, pressing her face into the other’s neck, now practically draped across both her partners.

“Killing him seems unnecessary now,” Blue hummed, reaching up and running her fingers lightly through Nightmare’s shaggy black hair, a small smile on her face, “maybe the two of you can even work together, wouldn’t that be nice,”

“Ha! Like hell, I’d rather kill him than work with him,”

“It was worth a shot,” Blue chuckled and wrapped her arms around Nightmare, Cross reaching around and wrapping an arm around Blue in turn, and the three of them sat there for a while. “Still, he’s looking for Geno and so are we, perhaps he knows more than we do, or we can give him information he might not have yet,”

“I’ll consider it,” Nightmare muttered, lifting her head slightly to look up at Blue before she leaned up and placed a soft kiss on her lips, Blue gladly kissing back. Nightmare pulled away right after though and looked at Cross, smiling softly. “Don’t think I forgot about you,” she mused, noting the slightly disappointed expression on Cross’s face and he paused, only to chuckle right after as Nightmare leaned forwards and kissed him as well.

“I love you,” Cross quietly spoke, “both of you,”

“We love you too, Cross,” Blue softly hummed, leaning over and placing a tender kiss on his cheek that quickly wandered down, “we love you a lot.”

Chapter Text

It was lunchtime and Dream and Reaper were sitting at a corner table in a restaurant, sitting across from one another and talking. The seating spot wasn’t the greatest, the light from the window shining directly in both of their faces and the glare from the table was irritating, but it was away from other people just how both of them liked, so they tolerated it.

“Thank you for agreeing to meet with me,” Dream started, a small smile on his face as he stared across at Reaper, who nodded slightly and rubbed his eyes before resting his hands in his lap.

“Of course. I figured we had some things to catch up on,” he mused and Dream nodded in agreement.

“I wanted to ask, are you sleeping okay?” Dream asked and Reaper slowly shook his head. The man looked a terrible mess, locs grown out at the root, deep, dark circles around his eyes, there were a few odd feathers sticking out in his wings; he looked terrible and Dream could tell clearly he hadn’t been taking care of himself.

“No, I uh… haven’t slept much at all these last few weeks,” Reaper replied with a sigh and turned his head away for a moment before looking at Dream again. “I’ll be fine, though.”

“I’m sure you will be, but this still isn’t healthy, Reaper, you know it’s not,”

“I know,” Reaper sighed again and fidgeted with his fingers in his lap, a small frown present on his face. “So, what’s been going on with you?” he asked to change the subject.

“Well, I’m still continuing the investigation, but at this point I’ve been kidnapped twice,” he gestured vaguely to the bruise on the side of his face and Reaper paused.

“Kidnapped? Gods, are you okay?” He asked, concern clear in his voice and Dream nodded.

“Yeah, I’m alright. Killer took the brunt of the damage this time around so he’s the one in recovery, not me,”

“Killer? Why was he there?”

“He got kidnapped with me, I assume you know him?” Dream raised a brow and Reaper nodded.

“I do, he’s one of Geno’s friends; you know each other too?”

“He was sent to kill me,” Dream replied simply and bluntly, crossing his arms, “we’re working together now, but in the beginning his boss… my sister… sent him after me. I take it you didn’t know that part?” Dream asked and Reaper shook his head, his frown deepening.

“Why would they try and kill you?”

“To stop me from finding out about Nightmare, but it’s too late now, so… they’re off my back for the most part. Killer and I are sort of working together now to find Geno,”

“That… makes sense,” Reaper slowly replied, though he said it in a way that signaled he didn’t really think it made much sense. That made Dream chuckle.

“You don’t seem as surprised as I thought you might be to learn about Killer’s profession, I take it you… already knew about the print shop?” Dream raised a brow and Reaper heaved a sigh, solemnly nodding.

“I knew, I would’ve told you it’s just… she asked me not to, assured me they had nothing to do with Geno going missing so I… kept my mouth shut,”

“I understand,” Dream shifted a bit where he sat before looking down a moment, then back over at Reaper.

“So, the kidnapper, who was it?”

“His name is Fell, I guess he’s Nightmare’s enemy so to get a swipe at her, he kidnapped me and when Killer came with me it was just more exciting for him. He’s holed up in the old zoo, can you believe it?”

“The old zoo, huh?” Reaper raised a brow, “that place is a safety hazard from head to toe, who in their right mind would hole up there?”

“I’m fairly certain he’s crazy,” Dream snickered and Reaper did too, nodding in agreement.

“Yeah, that checks out,” Reaper mused, and the two continued to talk for a while about various things, catching up on their respective lives and just generally chatting. Eventually, though, the lunch was over and now Dream and Reaper both stood out front of the restaurant.

“Well, it was nice seeing you,” Reaper told him, stretching out his wings for a moment before folding them back up, smiling a little at Dream.

“It was good to see you too. We need to hang out more often,” Dream mused and Reaper nodded in agreement.

“Well, I’ll see you around,” Reaper lifted his hand in a way as he turned, spreading his wings wide this time before suddenly flapping and taking off. Dream wondered briefly as he watched Reaper fly away, what it felt like. He had his own wings, sure, but he never learned to use them as a child and now as an adult he was almost… nervous to. So, he sighed and just resigned to going over to his car, getting in and starting the engine before driving off.

The next day came with an early start, Dream laying there in bed for a couple hours though before he finally willed himself up. He hadn’t slept very much that night, but more than he normally did so he couldn’t exactly complain.

Slowly, Dream heaved himself out of bed, spending some time smoothing his feathers before standing and getting dressed for the day. He combed his hair, fixed his tie, slipped on his shoes, and downstairs he went.

Making coffee eased some of the racing thoughts in his mind, gave him something to focus on for a little bit until eventually he found himself sitting at the counter sipping on a cup with the morning paper, reading over the latest news to catch himself up. It was a good, normal morning ritual, and that was something he loved about it. It made him feel normal, whatever that even meant at this point.

Eventually, Dream left the house, getting in his car and driving off to resume his search for Geno. he decided to start today with questioning some of Geno’s coworkers, maybe investigate Geno’s desk to see if he had any indication of going somewhere left around. As he arrived at the building, though, he found it burnt to the ground, police cars and firemen swarmed out front having just put out the fire.

Dream slowed his car to a stop and parked it on the side of the road in one of the parallel parking spots, getting out shortly after, bringing with him a film camera and he approached the scene. As he got close enough to start seeing, he got out his camera and started taking pictures. He paused, though, as one of the beat cops stepped in front of him and crossed their arms.

“The scene isn’t open for photography, move along,” the cop told him and Dream raised a brow. He still needed to get a new fake badge so he couldn’t easily wiggle his way onto the scene, so, he was forced to comply, standing up straight and lowering his hands with the camera.

“My apologies, officer. I’m a journalist looking into these arson cases; you’re certain I can’t get a closer look really quickly?” he asked, putting on an innocent expression but the cop shook his head.

“No sir, move along.” So, Dream did, sighing softly and walking away. He looked at his camera as he headed back to his car, though, hoping to god he got some good pictures before he was stopped.

At a nearby studio, Dream now stood in the red room developing the photos. He looked through each one as it finished, looking for any signs of evidence until he stopped at one of them, unclipping it from the string and looking it over. It showed there in front of the building an odd mass of what looked like string and feathers, both black and white feathers. He found it odd, definitely something worth looking into.

He paused as the door to the room suddenly opened, casting a light across his other still-developing photos and he tensed.

“Agh- dammit,” he muttered, looking over at his photos before looking at the door instead where a woman stood, apologizing frantically for the mess she’d caused. “It’s fine, it’s fine. Most of them were already done, thankfully,” Dream sighed and started collecting his pictures, glancing back behind him a moment as the woman backed out of the room and closed the door. He swore he’d seen her somewhere before, searching his memory for her face… he couldn’t figure it out in the end, just collecting his photos and leaving the room right after.

The drive home was quiet, not even the radio on this time so Dream was just sitting there with his own thoughts for the next fifteen minutes. He thought over the case as he drove, trying to piece together what he had to far and form some kind of conclusion, anything, but in the end, as he pulled into his driveway and parked his car, he found nothing new.

Dream got out of his car and locked it behind him, taking his envelope of photos with him as he unlocked his house and went inside. He slipped off his shoes by the door then made straight for his study, getting to work hanging the photo with the clump of string and feathers on his evidence board and he looked over it all for a moment.

“Right… we’re getting closer, I can feel it,” he mumbled to himself, then glanced back behind him at the hallway as an idea inched its way into his brain. “Noo.. no, I can’t,” he whispered, looking down for a moment before looking at his wall again, then back at the hallway and he gave in, walking out of the study and over to the telephone.

Dream wound up standing there in front of the telephone for a good couple minutes before finally checking his phone book and dialing a number he hoped would actually work. It rung for a while, in fact he wondered if it was out of service, but eventually someone answered on the other line and he nearly sighed in relief.

“Killer, is that you?” He asked.

“Dream?” Killer’s voice came in response followed by a laugh, “how did you get my number?”

“Difficultly,” Dream mused, slowly sitting down in the chair beside the telephone, “I just wanted to ask if you’d heard about Geno’s work burning down,”

“Yeah, I heard from NM, she’s pretty pissed off. Says it’s gotta be Error coming after her contacts, she’s trying to hunt him down at this point,”

“Goodness,” Dream muttered, thinking about that for a moment, “well, I definitely agree that it’s Error. I got a photograph of the scene before the cops shooed me away, and it showed this clump of string and feathers, black and white just like Error’s,”

“Yeah, the guy does NOT know how to cover his tracks, that’s for sure,”

“Unless he’s doing it on purpose,” Dream suggested. Killer’s response was to laugh.

“I don’t think so, he doesn’t strike me as the carefully placed evidence type. But still, if he’s coming after Nightmare he’s definitely got something planned, and that’s cause for concern.”

“Agreed,” Dream hesitated a moment, glancing to the side as he held the phone there against his head, “I also wanted to ask, while I have you here… how are you doing?”

“Me? Oh, uh, I’m doing okay. Everything still hurts pretty bad, but I’m healing pretty well so I can’t really complain,”

“Right, good,” Dream smiled a little, thinking for a moment, “would you want to come to dinner sometime?” He blurted, not even really thinking about it and he paused, Killer pausing too and there was silence on the phone for a moment before Killer answered.

“Are you asking me out on a date?” There was amusement in Killer’s tone, almost a certain… hopefulness. Dream quickly shook his head.

“No! No, no, I just… thought it might be nice to take our minds off of things for a night, just you and I, I’ll pay,” his excuse was unconvincing, he didn’t even believe it himself, but Killer humored him and giggled a bit.

“Okay, yeah, sure, I’d love to go to a distraction dinner with you,” he mused, “when do you wanna go?”

“How about tomorrow night? I’ll… pick you up around, say, seven?”

“Sounds perfect,” Dream could practically hear the smile in Killer’s voice, and it made him smile too.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Killer,” Dream softly said, listening for a moment as Killer giggled, the sound making his chest and stomach flutter in a way he couldn’t explain.

“See you tomorrow, Dream.” and the phone hung up.