#I think it was more a nightmare than a dream

[shomatoriashi]

01/22/25; 09:30pm

sylus x fem.reader

obligatory tags: @voidsylus | @milkandstarlight | @madam8

what was going on?

why was there so much blood staining against your skin?

the air felt hot-

so hot-

you felt as though there were burning flames surrounding you, choking you as the smoke travels to your lungs. coughs escapes from your parted lips-

yet perhaps more than the smoke was a warm sensation felt dripping against the palm of your hands. the scent of copper remains thick in the air, and you struggled to breathe.

“it’s alright… this is how it was meant to be.”

that voice, you recognized that voice…

you trail your gaze forward to see sylus kneeling before you, his crimson gaze full of love even as they stared into your eyes. yet… something was wrong. you gasp while taking a step back, noticing the thin trail of blood that escapes from the corner of sylus’s lips. it was only then that you noticed a sword was lodged between his chest, piercing through him as you cried out to him.

“NO! who did this to you?!”

tears stream down your face, yet sylus only lets out a bitter laugh, eyes going darker as what appeared to be horns grew from the top of his silvery locks of hair.

“look down.”

you follow his command and let out a scream, seeing your hands wrapped around the hilt of the sword, unconsciously moving it deeper into him, piercing straight through his heart.

“you killed me… but you knew that i would rather die for you than have you be slain by me.”

your cries of despair echoes throughout the world, shattering all of your hopes and dreams as you watched your soulmate die, the light leaving his eyes, leaving you alone for the rest of eternity-

you woke up with a start, heart still racing in response from the nightmare that threatens to consume you. tears were streaming down your face, and before you could even reach out to him-

a powerful pair of arms encircle themselves around the back of your waist, pulling you closer to a warm chest while you whimpered. a sleepy murmur of your name coupled along with the sensation of his lips trailing kisses on your bare shoulder calms you immediately.

“what is it, little dove?” sylus’s rich voice whispers within your ear, soothing you when you felt his lips press even more kisses down the side of your neck. basking in his warmth, you held on to his large hand and pressed your own shuddering kiss against his knuckles, “i had a bad dream, i think i lost you… you-“

a choked sob escapes from your parted lips, earning a series of soft coos from sylus. “whatever happened in your dream was just that: a simple dream, sweetie.”

your body begins to tremble as hot tears cascades down your cheek, “y-yes, but it felt so real, and i was so miserable at the thought of hurting you-“

letting out a sigh of your name, sylus sits up in bed while settling you on his lap. he sees the tears in your eyes and wipes each and every one of them away, “sweetie, now do you really think a man of my caliber would be weak enough to die because of a dream?”

sylus’s cocky words manages to make you smile despite your tears, “w-well, no.”

“and do you think a man who’s the proud leader of onychinus would die so easily after many failed assassination attempts have been made on me?”

you think back to his evol and how it practically made him invincible. “n-no.” you manage to answer him with a shake of your head.

“then it’s settled.” he smirks at you, leaning forward to capture your lips in a loving kiss. tasting the saltiness of your tears against his lips causes his heart to melt even further for you, with the powerful man further deepening the kiss in hopes of relieving your fears. when the need for air proved to be too much, sylus was the first to pull away, murmuring against your lips, “i’m afraid you’re stuck with me forever, sweetie. and nothing is going to change that. not even dreams of death.”

the fear caused by your nightmare was but a distant memory now, and truthfully, you barely remembered it the moment sylus wraps his arms around you, laying back down in bed while allowing you to rest your head on his chest. with a content sigh, you press your ear directly over his heart, basking in the sound of his steady heartbeat.

with the proof that he was still alive echoing within your ear, you slowly drift off into a peaceful slumber, a slow smile spreading across your lips the moment you felt something soft pressing against the top of your hair.

end notes: even after spending an hour with caleb with the new update, i still very much love sylus so much and had to write another fluffy fic for him. with all these caleb girlies dedicating stories for him, i’m still by your side sylus, my bbygirl 😭🙌🏻

all stories are written by rei; please do not repost, plagiarize, or translate my works!!

[imliterallyf7ckin9crazy]

“𝔐𝔶 𝔤𝔯𝔞𝔰𝔰 𝔦𝔰 𝔯𝔢𝔞𝔩𝔩𝔶 𝔤𝔯𝔢𝔢𝔫 𝔞𝔫𝔡… 𝔥𝔬𝔫𝔢𝔰𝔱𝔩𝔶 ℑ 𝔠𝔞𝔫’𝔱 𝔢𝔳𝔢𝔫 𝔣𝔲𝔠𝔨𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔠𝔞𝔭 𝔫𝔬 𝔪𝔬𝔯𝔢 𝔱𝔥𝔦𝔰 𝔦𝔰 𝔞 𝔯𝔢𝔞𝔩𝔩𝔶 𝔡𝔞𝔯𝔨 𝔱𝔦𝔪𝔢 𝔣𝔬𝔯 𝔪𝔢… ℑ’𝔪 𝔤𝔬𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔱𝔥𝔯𝔬𝔲𝔤𝔥 𝔞 𝔩𝔬𝔱” (hope yall get this ref)

Nam gyu x reader x thanos

Smoking weed with thangyu :3

Warnings: weed, smoking it, I don’t think they are crazy toxic in this one actually, kind of a poly relationship but not like officially in words? Idk, pre game/ no game AU bitch I have no clue. If you don’t like weed/aren’t comfortable pls don’t read and pls don’t judge 🙏

A/N: this is for me basically. I just thought this would be funny and I haven’t written in like 2 or 3 days and I wanna get back into it bc I miss it IDK😭 and these two are my favorites. America is geeking out and I’m stuck with it for 4 years so to cope imma write abt smoking zaza w squid game characters.

Also these are head cannons I just wanted to have that lyric as the title lol

_______

- dream and nightmare rotation somehow.

- I feel like smoking with them starts out chill ASF. Maybe yall start back at home and roll up, the three of yall cramped together on the couch.

- thanos is chilling at the arm rest end of the couch, eyebrows furrowed in concentration as he meticulously distributes the goods evenly on the paper and rolling it to perfection. He even knows how to make those cute pattern filters. He repeats this process a few more times

- you are in the middle, crushed between him and nam gyu. Your head is nestled right on his shoulder blade as he works, and your right arm is looped through his left. No matter how many times he does it, you still always comment on how he’s “faster than last time” or that he’s done a great job. If he had a tail he’d be wagging it

- and then nam gyu is PRESSED up against you. One arm is clutching your torso as he practically lays on you, and the other is reached all the way behind you to rest on thanos’ back. His hands are never ever still so he’d be lightly tapping a rhythm on your skin as he waits impatiently

- once thanos is all done it’s time to smoke 🙏 now here’s some actual stoner HCs. I’ll make it short

Thanos: I wouldn’t say he’s a light weight bc he can get super high and be SET. But he just gets super high every time. Somehow he glitched out of high tolerance hell. Also he is a joint hog >:( ik it’s infuriating to try and get him to pass the fucking joint. Prolly uses it as a mic. Smh.

Nam gyu: has to smoke a lot to get high. Like eventually he gets there but he has to smoke one together with yall (bc he wants to be included) and one for himself. Bro gets sleepy, HELLA. Don’t matter indica or stativa. Honk shoo mimimi. I would say it makes him not keep his hands to himself but when has he ever??? Be prepared.

Together: world’s most stoppable duo. Literally whatever brain cells they had die. They are hanging off each other, laughing at genuinely anything, they don’t make any fucking sense, and to make it all worse they reek but tell each other they don’t. Once they’ve smoked they like to hit the streets together, maybe go clubbing :3 ends in 14 arrests idek

- they don’t skip you in a rotation EVER. They take their system serious asf. It’s always been thanos, you, nam gyu, repeat. And they will be dammed if you don’t get your hits in. They insist on shot gunning it to you (and each other but you ain’t hear that from me)

- they will never say no to more, three joints is just TO START. They got bongs, pipes, carts, brah everything

- they are extra sweet to you when smoking weed. Very cuddly, keeping you between them and then holding each other. You are literally trapped that way. And they keep looking at you with hazy eyes…

- hungry bastards. Usually they get food to eat before and then they can partake after. Sometimes they take you out to like a street vender for a cheap munchie session.

- not often tho. They like you keep you inside and away from other people. They like having you curled up between them, looking at them with glassy eyes, smoking the weed THEY bring you. Thanos and nam gyu are really possessive guys so they like moments where it’s literally just you three chilling.

- they be talking about the most random shit if all time. If yall remember the shower thoughts trend, that’s just the shit they say.

- they the typa guys when high to ask if you’d still love them if they were worms

- (you said yes and that you’d make a little compost bin for them to live in. They liked it)

- compliment city!! “Baby you’re so pretty” from nam gyu and a “don’t look away señorita, i wanna see you” from thanos.

- they hold hands with you.

- if you happen to green out they are with you in the bathroom. Nam gyu will hold your hair if you throw up and thanos is getting water and setting up for bed.

- tbh not all smoke seshs end in getting freaky, but it’s high in likelihood. Bc like cmon. They are freaky. And sometimes the weed be weeding. And they love you, and each other.

- but sometimes they end in just yall cozied up together in bed, rambling abt random shit, holding each other tightly as smoke clings in the air.

_______

Idk I just thought this was funny. I think the world would be much better if politicians talked shit out over a fresh J imma be real. America is hell.

[zenruu]

A Needlessly Thorough Analysis of What Hardening Actually Means for Alistair

You can also read this analysis in a Google Doc if you find that format more palatable: here.

(I do recommend desktop for the comfiest viewing in either case, but both should be serviceable.)

Disclaimer: If critical discussion of a character’s feelings, motivations, and reactions to certain in-game choices could be personally upsetting to you, maybe don’t read this. None of this analysis is me judging you/your choices as a player, I am simply looking through the lens of Alistair’s characterization and the in-universe consequences of choices. Of course this analysis will be colored by my own bias, it’s inevitable. I can’t realistically include every potentially relevant line of dialogue, but I’m always happy to discuss if you think there’s something crucial I left out.

Hardened Alistair is often described as learning to stand up for himself and becoming more assertive, but why? Is it an accurate assessment? Even Alistair himself reacts to the hardening dialogue by saying he’s going to start thinking for himself and looking out for himself more, so surely it’s true… right?

To the contrary, I would actually argue that hardened Alistair tends to put others before himself more than unhardened Alistair. Let’s start by looking at how he becomes hardened.

The Hardening Process

After meeting Goldanna, Alistair is understandably devastated to find that the family he’s been dreaming of his whole life is not what he had hoped. He’s just been yelled at and turned away by the sister he’s never met, the only family he’s ever had a chance of knowing. He’s lost his hope at finding that sense of connection and belonging he’s always been looking for.

If the Warden wants to harden Alistair, they need to tell him, “Everyone is out for themselves. You should learn that.”

The message being sent is basically: suck it up, move on, grow up. This is the way the world is. Stop being so idealistic.

The message Alistair seems to receive, however, is a bit more complicated. In the follow-up conversation after meeting Goldanna, Alistair tells you that his takeaway from the hardening dialogue was that he needs to look out for himself more. This is, obviously, perfectly in line with the common belief that hardened Alistair is more assertive and more willing to stand up for himself.

But is that the reality that we see reflected in hardened Alistair’s choices?

Pre-hardening, Alistair tells you many times that he feels like no one cares what he wants; he believes it’s unfair and openly complains about it. Hardened Alistair, however, knows that no one cares what he wants and he accepts that as the way things are and must be. Unhardened Alistair will freely say he doesn’t want to be king and fights against it until he can fight it no more, while hardened Alistair will accept it, even going as far as to say he wants it.

Why would he change so suddenly from saying it’s his worst nightmare to saying he wants it? Does he mean it fully? Is this truly him seeking to fulfill his own wants and meet his own needs?

What actually changes if he’s hardened?

he is seemingly less reluctant about becoming king

if romanced, he will agree to a threesome with Isabela

he will agree to make you his mistress if you push the topic

if not married to Anora and chosen to fight Loghain, he will execute Loghain and take the throne

if not chosen to fight Loghain, he will insist on being made king

if married to Anora, he will become king instead of being exiled if Loghain is spared (Alistair will still leave your party, however)

he will approve of executing Jowan in Redcliffe

With the idea of “hardened Alistair putting his own wants/needs first” in mind let’s break them down one by one:

Note: some lines of dialogue have flags for “hardened”/“changed”, alternatively referred to as Alistair’s motivation being changed from “good to glory” or “Alistair 2”. These all refer to the hardening mechanic. The screenshots do have text that’s a bit small, because I wanted to be sure that I included the flags that show when lines are exclusive to hardened Alistair.

Less reluctance about becoming king

All along he’s said he doesn’t want it. You could potentially make a case that he didn’t truly feel that way and was only saying it because he’s insecure (which he is), but I don’t find this to be a terribly compelling argument. 

This is hardened Alistair’s response to being told he would be a good king after he’s decided to sacrifice himself. There are several lines like this that I feel contradict the theory that unhardened Alistair only says he doesn’t want to be king because he’s insecure in his abilities. It’s not that his insecurities are not a factor, it’s that hardening him doesn’t get rid of those things, meaning that this factor alone would not change his attitude about accepting potential kingship. In fact, he still believes that realistically Anora is better suited.

I’d argue that someone who has consistently said one thing without fail and is now only changing the tune after basically being told to shut up and grow up may not be expressing their truest desires. He is going along with what Eamon is telling him, with what the Warden is telling him, with what he’s told is his duty and responsibility. For the greater good, not for himself.

And you might be saying that can’t be true, hardened Alistair says he wants to be king!

Personally, I’d argue that Alistair saying he wants to be king is much the same as your average person saying they want a job. Do most people want to go to work every day? No, not really, but you have to because it’s just what you need to do. So when asked, you’d say you want a job. Of course you would, because you have to have one. But removed from that necessity, would you still say the same? Likely not. I believe the same holds true for Alistair. If he wasn’t being told at every turn that him being king is what must be done, he wouldn’t feel a need to bow to that.

Hardened Alistair confidently wanting to be king is often accepted as plain fact, when it’s really not so cut and dry. We can dig into some of his dialogue and really look at his feelings on the matter.

Hardened Alistair is saying he wants to be king. Even he’s surprised by it. But what is the context of this line? He’s about to sacrifice himself. He believes that his sacrifice–not living to rule–is the single best thing he can do as king.

But is it pure happiness and willingness, or is it a man simply trying to make the best of a situation he’s locked into? I vote for the latter.

I often see the argument that having a Warden queen would make him happier with the idea of being king, but by all evidence it really doesn’t seem to be the case. Here is his response to the Warden confirming that she does want to be queen. Alistair still doesn’t like the idea of ruling. This isn’t a line exclusive to hardened Alistair, he will always have this line available.

“I wouldn’t be in this position if it weren’t for you” … “you owe me” … Even hardened, Alistair seems to see being king as something negative being thrust upon him. A punishment, perhaps? What would his response be to being told that being king is not a punishment?

On the surface, he agrees, but take a look at that VO comment for his actual feelings on it. He does consider it a punishment. This is indeed a line for hardened Alistair, as it occurs during the mistress conversation, which is a hardened Alistair exclusive.

Even if hardened, Alistair would prefer to stay a Warden if he can.

And if you don’t make hardened Alistair king? He’s grateful. Happy. Happier.

Agreeing to a threesome

Unhardened or hardened, he will push back when you suggest this. However, only hardened Alistair will relent and agree to it. Unhardened Alistair will simply refuse. Which one sounds more like someone standing up for his own wants?

This is the path the conversation goes if Alistair is hardened. His initial refusal and discomfort with the situation remains, but if you tell him to go along, he will.

He is, regardless, clearly not as comfortable with the situation as one should be. It certainly isn’t the kind of enthusiastic consent one would look for when asking someone to engage in a particular sex act. But he had fun, so it’s okay, right?

Well… did he have fun? Isabela jokes about borrowing him in the future and it seems quite clear that he isn’t interested in a repeat occurrence. Not only is he not interested, he’s awkward, uncomfortable. “Oh, but he makes a joke about wet frocks right after this!” He does. But it’s Alistair. He’s constantly making jokes to mask his discomfort.

Agreeing to making the Warden his mistress

Again, he will push back on this at first, only relenting if he’s hardened and you push the issue. If unhardened, he’ll stand by his original statement that he feels it would be wrong. Is he just saying he believes it’s wrong, or is that what he truly believes? Based on what we know of Alistair, I’d say it’s far more likely that he truly does find the idea of making the Warden his mistress to be disrespectful both to the Warden and to his wife, and that he is somewhat disregarding his own beliefs on that to bend to the Warden’s insistence that he take a mistress.

Whether he’s marrying Anora or not, his views on the matter are the same. He intends to be loyal to whoever he marries, and he knows he cannot do so if he continues the relationship with the Warden.

It’s clear that he finds the entire idea distasteful.

Much like the threesome, you do have to press him to get him to agree. He’s quite set in his beliefs on the matter, but he will acquiesce if the Warden pushes it.

Insisting on becoming king in the context of dealing with Loghain

These are the choices where I’d say there is potentially a case to be made that Alistair is making the decision he wants to make. However, I wouldn’t say that the decision being made is that he wants to be king. I would argue that becoming king is simply a means to an end to give him the power to get revenge in the way he wants.

In the first potential scenario here, Alistair will insist on being made king if he is not chosen to fight Loghain. Why? He wants Loghain dead, and he isn’t being given the choice to make that happen. He wants the power to make that choice, all else be damned.

Here you can see that hardened Alistair insists on taking the throne while making it abundantly clear that the reason for doing so is to take care of Loghain in the manner he wants.

Unhardened Alistair does the same. Why? Because the motivation remains the same whether he’s hardened or not. Unhardened Alistair simply hasn’t become so resigned as to pretend he’s any less displeased with it than he is.

In the second potential scenario, Alistair is chosen to fight Loghain and kills him. He finally achieves the goal he’s been working towards all along: getting his revenge on Loghain. He’s running on that high when Eamon immediately suggests he take the throne, he says yes, he’ll do it. There’s not really anything to break down dialogue-wise in this scenario, as his acceptance of the throne is the exact same dialogue as it would be in any other case. He simply says he accepts when it’s proposed.

Is it what he truly wants? Maybe. You could make a case for it. However, I interpret it more as running on that adrenaline high, feeling powerful and not fully thinking it over in the moment.

Accepting being king & marrying Anora if Loghain is spared

Alistair has been tunnel visioned on getting his revenge on Loghain the entire time, and this is the only circumstance in which sparing Loghain will not result in Alistair leaving and becoming a drunk. He both accepts marrying Anora (which he isn’t happy about) and sparing Loghain (which is very counter to his wishes).

He doesn’t like Anora and doesn’t want to marry her, but he does anyway. Hardened Alistair knows that marrying Anora is politically advantageous and prioritizes that over his personal desire to enact his vengeance, though he makes it clear to the Warden that his personal feelings on the matter have absolutely not changed.

Hardened Alistair goes along with marrying Anora after Loghain is spared and leaves the party, unhappy with the Warden’s choice to spare Loghain. If this line alone didn’t make his displeasure clear enough, there’s also this one:

He refers to the Warden’s actions as a betrayal. He’s obviously not happy.

Unhardened Alistair, however, stands his ground and refuses.

Approving of executing Jowan

Another case of a changed tune to go along with what the Warden is doing. Unhardened Alistair actively disapproves of the Warden executing Jowan. We could assume that hardened Alistair is just more pragmatic, or perhaps simply more willing to accept it when the Warden tells him this is what must be done.

There is no Alistair specific dialogue to look at here, just the approval points, so it’s really just a matter of looking at what we know of him and the situation. I would say in general Alistair values life and values mercy. Are there exceptions? Yes. Loghain, for example, whose crimes Alistair has judged worthy of death. Clearly unhardened Alistair does not feel that way about Jowan. Hardened Alistair though? He approves of his execution, but is it because he personally thinks it’s best or is it because he accepts the Warden’s judgment?

I would argue that it’s the latter primarily because it’s completely in line with everything else we’ve seen from hardened Alistair. There really are just no solid cases of hardened Alistair asserting his own will when compared to unhardened Alistair, so I don’t see this case as being any different.

In Review

In each case of behaviors changed by hardening Alistair, we see him putting his own wants and needs on the backburner in favor of an externally imposed sense of duty or to bend to another’s will because he accepts that his personal feelings are irrelevant. I’d go as far as to say that hardening is really a misnomer, because what we’re really looking at would be better called resignation.

I actually didn’t include every single line I found of hardened Alistair expressing the sentiments I’ve laid out in this analysis because I didn’t want it to be too long, but there is more in the game. Now I will get into less concrete analysis and a bit more of an explanation of my own personal opinions on hardening.

Aside from looking at what hardening actually means for Alistair, we can also question its necessity. Do you need to do it if you want to do certain things in Origins (threesome, mistress ending, etc.)? Yes. But I often see people argue that hardening Alistair is necessary for him to grow or mature as a person, and I completely disagree.

My personal opinion is that hardening Alistair is neither necessary nor kind.

In terms of helping Alistair to grow as a person, I maintain that Alistair will become more naturally “hardened”, or more accurately, he will mature on his own if you give him the chance to do so. Why do I say so? Look at Alistair in Inquisition. That is not the same idealistic young man we see in Origins, and this remains true regardless of hardening status. Whether it’s Warden Alistair or King Alistair, he’s clearly grown and changed.

Sure, you can mod the game to make the hardening dialogue more palatable, but that’s an entirely different discussion. As is, you’re required to essentially kick him when he’s down, and I simply do not find it to be necessary for his own personal development.

If it’s not already completely obvious by me doing all of this in the first place, I really, really love Alistair. Of course I’m quite settled and happy as an unhardened Warden Alistair truther, but I’m always happy to discuss and debate. I’m very interested in any thoughts you might have, whether you agree with my assessment or not (as long as you’re nice).

Thank you for reading my (almost sickeningly thorough) little analysis if you made it this far!

As a treat (or unhardened Warden Ali propaganda depending on your perspective), here's my Warden, miss Neria Surana with her very happy unhardened Warden husband:

[spideyanakin]

dancing, with tears in my eyes (c.s)

summary - district twelve! reader, when corionalus goes back to panem from the districts he has a simple rule, forget his past. But the universe does not seem to wish that, no when you get chosen for the 11th hunger games. [w.c 1.4k]

a/n - this is short I know!! and Im so sorry--but more will come if you guys like it hihi

coryo masterlist

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Coriolanus could describe himself as a lot of things.

Ambitious. He knew his need for success only grew stronger with each breath he took. Fully conscious that his constant search to climb higher up the ladder of Panem was yet to reach a stalemate.

Handsome, or so he heard. He had lines of girls ready to bend their knees upon any requests, and his looks only grew with the momentum he was gaining.

He would also like to describe himself as powerful, at least becoming. His place in the university, Dr Gaul's recent request that he joins as game master for the 11th hunger games, and let's not forget the cash-in of the plinth fortune. All of those things managed to open a door or two that he was more than willing to go through.

But forgetful wasn’t a word he would choose to fit in his autobiography.

And it pained him that as he was looking at the line of soldiers parading across the streets of the Capitol, he started to believe that 'forgetful' wouldn't be such a bad choice of adjective to add to his collection.

Maybe he started to believe the lies he had fed to the sergeant and his grandma'am when they both asked about his dog tag.

'I must have misplaced it back in the district', the simple answer that he had started to believe was slowly picking at his gut--haunting with ghostly images of its true location.

Everything in his life was finally taking its rightful place. He was proud of what he had come back to, and he would be a fool to even think of letting any crumbs of it go. He would be a fool to let himself get distracted by fantasies of what now felt like a distant, other lifetime of his.

And he surely couldn't let something as silly as affection, love--distance him from glory. Let alone love stolen from the districts.

And that was the lie that had been repeating in his mind for the past year. What he had spoken to himself every day since he had left District Twelve and the memories that accompanied the journey.

And yet, even if he had hammered it in his mind. When his eyes closed for the final time tonight--like every night as of late; the thoughts of you haunted him.

The memories of his hand in yours as you dragged him across fields. His head resting against the plush of your thighs as you both rested beneath a tree. The way your lips felt against his as you leaned for a kiss, feeling you smile when he lifted a hand to your hair, gently cupping the back of your head to pull you further in.

God, he almost wished he was back there right now, in the haven of the forest, lodged in your embrace. A place where nightmares were laughed at, where paperwork and infantile gossip did not exist.

And like every time, the dream turned into a nightmare.

Coriolanus pressing chaste kisses to your lips before pulling his dog-tag over his head, your giggles and melodic voice as you questioned him. Wondering what he was doing before he placed the item securely around your own neck, muttering a promise.

Now Coriolanus was known to be a man of his word, and as he kissed your lips for the last time, hand firmly gripping your waist and the other brushing the stray tear away from your cheek, he meant it. He truly meant it with every fiber of his being.

He would be back for you.

As his touch became stronger, hungrier than usual as he attempted to remember every shape of you, every scent, everything that he could grasp as to remember you, he promised he would do anything he could to get back to you. That once he had finished his training in District Two, he would find a way to be with you again.

But the train led him back to Panem, not to district two, and when he gazed at the passing trees--it seemed that his promise was coming to a compromise.

So Coriolanus woke up with a cold sweat, again. Like most mornings he attempted to calm his jumping heart, trying to drain the panic from his lungs.

A cold shower. A cup of coffee, single, no sugar, and the sweetness of your lips faded into distant bitterness again. He was ready, ready to live by his ambition, charm, newfound power, and now more so, forgetfulness.

~

The reaping.

Your last year eligible.

You had made it this far, you thought as you twisted the hem of your dress. A fine pink summer dress; Coryo's favorite, you remembered as you ironed it this morning.

You hadn't worn it since. The color had seemed less bright after he left... All colors did. It pained you to remove the wrinkles on the skirt, as if yet another part of him was disappearing. As if the memory of him crawling on top of you, kissing you silly as he fisted your skirt would vanish. Like the ghost of his fingers would sizzle out of your bones.

But when you looked at yourself in the mirror, you realized that maybe you were grasping at straws.

It would be ok.

He would be back, and he would be more than happy to wrinkle all your dresses again.

So you breathed a big puff of air, closed your eyes, and took the last ounces of courage left in your bones.

You felt suffocated as you stepped foot outside of your home--your body taking through the dingy pathways towards the square as if you were on autopilot.

The crowd felt different and yet somehow similar. Just like every year, the new wave of youngest children, finally of age were there, shoved towards the front as the eldest fell back further away in the crowd; tired and finally soothed from the years of nerves.

This would be your last year of it all. Of anxiously washing and scrubbing every last inch of you, finding the perfect dress and the perfect pins for your hair. Your last year of twisting the hem of your dress as you waited amidst the tight crowd. As your mother held your arm while she bit the inside of her cheek--relieved every time it wasn't your name.

You could not say that the years made you use to it.

You watched as a women, dressed in a fine crisp blue suit, freshly shipped from the capital itself walked over the stage.

Everyone realised things would be different this year. She announced it in all her perfectly manicured glory. Everyone would be chosen by someone from the capital.

She introduced herself. Perky voice floating in an echo of anxious vibrations. You barely noticed the man beside her, wickedly grinning just as much.

Her perfect, long blue nails reached towards the bowl of names.

You looked down. The pebble on the floor felt more interesting. Sighing, your eyes closed by themselves, and suddenly the smell of flowers and the sound of pebbles being thrown in the lake flooded your senses.

Your shoulders relaxed, and suddenly Coryo’s eyes were staring back at you. His hands were grazing your arms, grasping at you, pulling you forward. His lips were on your forehead, and a smile pulled over your mouth.

peace.

soon, you thought. very soon.

"Y/n L/n"

Your head shot up, breath stuck in your lungs.

Everyone was staring.

"Y/n L/n! Come on now here darling."

You heard a scream; your brother maybe, you couldn’t make it out through the ringing in your ears.

You held your head high, trying to blink out the sting in your eyes. But maybe that wasn’t enough because you felt a hot streak cross your cheek, vision blurring.

The crowd had moved around you, and suddenly you felt a push on your shoulder. Peacekeepers.

Their hands latched around your shoulder and your legs followed their movements as they accompanied you to the stage, not as graceful as Lucy Grey. It was a miracle your knees didn’t buckle under their movements.

Your eyes caught the one of your left, and suddenly the grayish blue suits made a whole new other world collapse under your eyes.

Coriolanus.

He promised he’d be back for you. Promised you’d spend the rest of your days together, wherever it was that would allow the two of you to be.

Maybe he was just as terrified as you. Watching you get pulled away from the large tv as he attended another district’s reaping.

District 2, you remembered.

[notdotspot]

DP x DC Dreaming

Tim was a dreamer. He had life goals and all, but he was a dreamer. His mind came alive as he slept. Sometimes they were short, bursts of images that passed from one memory to another. Other times, Tim's dreams became whole movies in which he starred as the main character. Dreams so vivid and lucid that the memories from his brain's creations could leach into reality. A conversation he had with Dick discussing a new tactic to track Joker's goons only to mention it while working in the Batcave and realize their talk had never happened. Like any Wayne, some dreams bloomed into nightmares of past traumas and horrific what-if scenarios. Tonight's dream, fortunately, had yet to take that turn.

Currently banned from patrols, the Bat computer, and caffeine by Alfred because of his recent concussion, though he tried to argue four days was enough recovery time for a "minor head injury", Tim lay in his bed dead asleep unusually early. From the door where Bruce checks on him, he is sleeping calmly, but inside Tim's mind is conjuring its newest story.

Tim is running, not just running, chasing. Chasing a shadow. The dark forest is only lit by a half-full moon, making the blur of movement he is pursuing even harder to track. He is not in Red Robin gear so no help from his tech. Tim is pretty sure he is still barefooted in only his pajama pants but his interest in this creature steals too much of his attention. Whatever he is chasing, it is evasive and smart. The slight glow it gives off may be the only thing keeping Tim from losing track of it completely. It whips between and around trees faster than physically possible. It seems to float off the ground instead of running. Tim only stops his pursuit at the edge of a clearing where the being has stilled in the center. The space is too perfect to be natural. Trees line the grass in a perfect circle and not a single plant pokes out from the grass. Too clean and crisp. Tim can see his breath fog in the cold air. It only seems to get colder and colder. He can now make out the figure facing away from him. The slight tinge of blue and green radiating off of the figure is so intriguing. Tim takes a careful step forward into the circle and the beings head whips around. Glowing green eyes are the last thing he sees before he is ripped from the dream. Tim is left heavy breathing and heart pounding, attempting to shake off the sheer terror he experienced upon making eye contact with the visitor in his dream.

He was eventually lulled back to sleep by exhaustion, waking without another dream. Now he has to go to school and work still thinking about those green eyes.

----------------

this is kinda super random but i have been getting so much dp x dc and this idea came to me at 2 am while scrolling between here and tik tok

I have more ideas for this so more to come

[howi99]

Circus Light chapter 6

(skip in time, around 7 months before the event of book of circus)

"I'm sorry..."

"Hey wait, stop, STOP, PLEASE! Pyrrha don't do this!"

"..."

Jaune: *sitting up in a panic* SHE'S GONNA- *realising it was just a nightmare, as the cart he was sleeping in still continued along the way to the next town* A dream... *Sigh, wiping the sweat from his forehead* Just a stupid dream, again...

Dagger: *looking back at him* We're almost there, mate. The road is bumpy, sorry to have woken ya.

Jaune: *sitting up, looking back at him* It's fine, i was going to wake up anyway, with the kind of nightmare i was having.

Dagger: *worried* Again? Shine, you've been having nightmares since we left Manchester and it's already been what, 5 months?

Jaune: *sigh* I guess leaving before being able to find those kids is hitting me a lot harder than it should, huh?

Dagger: *sad smile* You're still upset about that, eh? Can't blame ya... At least, those disparitions seem to have stopped, right?

Jaune: Maybe for now, but that might not last. *Get up, walking up to the front of the cart* But i guess it can't be helped. *Take a seat next to Dagger* So, what's the next town name again?

Dagger: Colchester, the oldest city of England built by Rome... or so they say.

Jaune: What was it with you british using -chester at the end of every town and city name?

Dagger: *laughing* Your guess is as good as mine.

Jumbo: *Who is sitting at the back of the cart* It means camp... or fortress.

Jaune: Ah... So what would that make the next town?

Jumbo: Since it was named after the river... Probably the Fortress of Colne.

Jaune: Huh, nice. *Looking up, seeing clouds gathering over them* Do we have anything else besides rain and mist?

Dagger: *shrug* Snow and hail.

Jaune: *chuckle* Don't remind me that! I had to share a room with both Snake and Fr- i mean Doll. *Sigh* I'm fine with reptiles, but it's something else to wake up with a danger noodle inside my shirt.

Dagger: *disgusted* Urgh, i would have died of fright far before that happened! I don't understand how both you and her can be fine with these things. They don't even have legs!

_ _ _

After making camp near the city

Jaune: *sitting in the medical tent* There's only been minor cuts and scratches today. *Sigh* If only it was as easy every time.

Doctor: *looking worried*

Jaune: Doc, is everything fine?

Doctor: *nervous* Y-yes, but we are quite low on porcelain.

Jaune: Oh yeah, your "special brand", right? *Shaking his head* I don't understand why you keep using that instead of metal. It would be more durable, even if a bit less comfortable.

Doctor: *glaring at Jaune's back* I can't have more because of you.

Jaune: What?

Doctor: *sigh* Nothing...

Jaune: *scratching the back of his head* I know you want the best prosthetic there is. Why don't you use material like plastic, rubber and all that?

Doctor: It wouldn't be as beautiful, and not as solid either.

Jaune: *shrug* Make the "skeleton" with iron and the finer details using those materials. Heck, if you incorporated rubber to Joker's hand, he could have a better grip for juggling.

Doctor: ... *Sigh* I'll think about it.

[noise-misato-boy-destroyer]

when i see u and other transfems who are cool and hot it makes me want to kill myself because i dont know how to be like that and idk what to do about it

i know you'll say shit like 'oh just strive to be the person u wanna be/be yourself/estrogen' etcb ut it doesnt feel like enough

Okay sooooo unfortunately for us broken dolls even getting to where I am won't make those thoughts go away, I still deal with them constantly because there's always a doll out there that'll give you that much dysphoria and gender envy and also life is terrifying but I promise promise promise it's light years better than anything I ever went through pretransition.

I couldn't act like myself in the beginning either because until you get like six months in you may not know who you even are yet, personally I emulated a bunch of girls I looked up to until I found myself n then as it turns out I wasn't too different from them to begin with. There's gonna be struggling, there's gonna be tears, you're gonna wonder why you did this and if it was even worth. This isn't easy by any definition of the word even under the best circumstances, but it's so far beyond anything I could have dreamed that I can't imagine going back. Again, it WILL be hard, there's just no way around that. I think of it like a pact with the devil; there will be a price but the rewards... Oh babygirl the rewards are worth every dysphoric sob session and every second guess and then some.

Don't get discouraged looking at dolls like me either because literally you can just be one, all the makeup looks you need are on here, all the fashion inspo, the community, the attitudes. Girl you're literally at the gender store right now, what looks good to you? I had a bunch of dolls tagged with like a fashion inspo tag for months before I finally took my first steps and that really helped me to find who I wanted to be.

Oh and estrogen will absolutely drive you crazy btw especially if you're already in this mental state, those first six months are a nightmare lowkey. I wouldn't have been able to transition without the support of the community on here.

People aren't just shitposting when they talk about how we're capable of anything. You gotta give yourself more credit <3

[the-fyre-flie]

Bruce can't wake up alone. AKA the batkids prefer sleeping in their dad's bed cuz of various reasons:

Dick started the trend cuz he was a little kid, he was scared, and he was desperate for the connections he had lost. The first time he found himself in Bruce's bed was after a nightmare. He had tugged on Bruce's sheets, sniffling and asking for any comfort the man could give. It was awkward and sad but eventually Dick would crawl into the bed and Bruce would instictivly hold him.

Then Jason showed up and filled that void that older Dick left when the boy grew into a man. Even more hesitant than before, but little sunshine Jason was so warm in his new dad's arms and Bruce was more than happy to shield him from the night. Post death/revival, those nights stopped. The bed was cold again and all those hours of trying to protect his little boy had been wasted.

Tim was different. He was a replacement, a coping mechanism, a mimicry of what Jason once was. Bruce had to be forcibly reminded that Tim was just a kid, too, a traumatized kid who wanted more than anything to be that perfect fit in his arms. When Bruce finally opened up again, Tim was more than happy to fall into his bed at night and feel safe in his embrace.

Damian took months before he willingly let Bruce touch him, let alone nighttime cuddles. Like with Dick, it was nightmares that pushed Damian into his fathers room. Relentless horrible dreams fueled by paranoia. Bruce's bed was his safe space after that, a place he could retreat to for queit and comfort away from his own fears.

Cass never fully expressed why she would climb into Bruce's bed, but it wasn't hard to imagine that a traumatized girl wanted someone to protect her. Even if it's hard to say out loud or even put on a page, warmth and safety is important to her and Bruce is the epitome of that to 90% of Gotham. Even if she's gone by morning, Bruce is glad she's doing what makes her comfortable.

Barbara never really needed Bruce, she has her own father she loves thank you very much, but post patrol sleed deprived delirium does a number on the body and so what if Bruce's bed is the biggest and the comfiest in the manor? Plus, Bruce is a massive heated pillow. He'll never argue with her or send her off because what's he's supposed to say to one of his kids? No? Absolutely not.

Stephanie's own dad wasn't too great of a dad, and Bruce isn't exactly perfect either, but she doesn't hate him. When guilt and anxiety get too much, when thoughts of what could have been swamp her, he's been pretty reliable. A dead asleep Bruce can't complain about her sleep habits anyways.

Sadly Duke is the only mainstream bat kid that i can't think of anything for. He just doesn't seen like the type to ever engage with Bruce as familial-ly as that. Perhaps I need to read more...

[thewinter-eden]

psycho | han jisung (17/20)

17 : master of levity

Pairings: HAN JISUNG x OC | LEE MINHO x 2nd OC

Rating: mature

cross posted on AO3 under the_winter_eden and wattpad under alone-at-last.

Warnings: discussions of murder, torture, rape, pregnancy

psycho masterlist Comment a request to be tagged!

< last chapter | next chapter >

pov : anna

Like most mornings in a busy hospital, Anna wakes up to soft voices in the doorway of her hospital room. There’s always someone in close proximity to her, either the security guards or the police officers or the nurses or the psychiatrists—any number of the entire village that it takes to attempt to rehabilitate five victims of torture and captivity. They’re always hovering, always checking in, always on guard.

She shifts around stiffly and tries to coax her eyes open, the squeaking of her uncomfortable bed catching the attention of the two men, their voices hushing immediately. Her vision is a blur, refusing to help her identify them across the short distance.

After just over a week in that sanitary room, on a constant drip of nutrition and medication, her brain has finally stopped trying to convince her that when she opens her eyes she’ll be back in that hell. She wakes from her warm and fitful sleep to the sound of machinery and chatting voices, the smell of coffee and clean floors, and knows she’s as far away from those tunnels as she can be.

But unfortunately, just because she’s grown used to the comfort and safety of the hospital, doesn’t mean the nightmares have stopped. She didn’t expect any different, of course, and neither do the therapists and psychiatrists who visit her every other day. It’s all normal, it’s natural to be tormented by those dreams, it’s expected to have to give her subconscious more time to recover.

That’s what they tell her while she’s sitting in memories that threaten to drown her.

They tell her it’s normal that Han visits her every night.

Every night, he pulls her into his arms and takes her life, and every morning she wakes with violent ire in her bones.

But that’s all okay, because they expect it.

If one more person responds to her cries for help with words like ‘don’t worry, that’s normal’ she thinks she may scream.

“Oh, hey.” Seungmin’s voice brings her back to the present as he steps closer to her bed, smiling with the warmth of an old friend. He always does that—greet her like he’s been waiting to see her again. She wishes she could just enjoy his kindness without being reminded of the way Han used to do the same thing.

“How do you feel?” He asks, reaching toward a table and grabs a lidded plastic cup with a handle and a straw. “You want some water?” When she nods in response, he brings the straw to her lips. He’s careful with his movements, careful not to overwhelm her, and when he cups the back of her head to help her sit up and drink, she gratefully accepts the assistance.

He’s spent a lot of time with her over the past week, enough that he’s comfortable sitting on the edge of her bed when they talk, which he does now. He doesn’t encroach, he doesn’t pry, he doesn’t try to take on the role of therapist or parent, he just sits and keeps her company.

After letting her get her bearings for a moment, Seungmin gestures for the other man to enter the room. The guy, who has been leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed over his chest, now straightens and dusts off his jacket.

Anna looks up to find a young man, obviously strong and lean, well manicured and formally dressed, approaching her with a nervous smile. His shiny shoes tap softly against the floor. He adjusts his watch, and then adjusts his tie. “Hi, Anna,” He greets in a low voice. “You look much better than the last time I saw you.”

She blinks, confused. As far as she knows, she’s never seen this man before in her life. She would have remembered his objectively exquisite features. She can’t believe he’s bizarrely commenting on how she looks when he shows up as yet another unfairly gorgeous friend of Seungmin and Minho.

The most stunning men she’s ever met keep floating in and out of her room, and she looks like a skeleton with scars.

Life isn’t fair.

Seungmin scoffs and rolls his eyes at the man’s words, leaning over her to put the cup back on the table. “Anna, this is Park Jimin. He’s the one who found you in the chair and brought you to the ambulance. And, yeah, he’s just as rich as he looks.”

Oh.

Jimin’s eyebrows shoot up at Seungmin’s statement and he cocks his head at the younger man. There’s an enjoyable second of brotherly tension as he reaches out and clamps a hand to the police officer’s shoulder, a dangerous saccharine smile curling his lips, threats in his posture but no malice in his eyes.

“You mean when I was dead?”

She looks a lot better than the last time he saw her.

Jimin lets out a breath and drops his hand away from Seungmin’s shoulder, this time turning his shocked gaze on the young woman in the bed. It’s like his brain resets to allow him to properly process her blunt question, and when he does, disbelief washes over his expression. “You laugh now, but my god.” His hand lifts to grip his own chest anxiously. “My clients never die when I’m protecting them. That was a new and horrible experience for me.”

Anna glances from him to Seungmin. “Clients?” He’s dressed in a suit and tie, hair perfectly coiffed, looking like the last person who would be fishing dead bodies out of the sewer. And to Seungmin’s comment, he did look rich. Filthy rich.

“He runs a private security company.” Seungmin explains. “Bodyguards. You were the first one we found down there that day. Jimin was the one who found you, actually, and luckily for us, he was fast enough to get you help in time to bring you back to us.”

She lets her gaze return to Jimin, who awkwardly smooths his tie down with one hand. He doesn’t look that much older than herself, and she can see the relief in his expression that tells her he was fairly shaken by her rescue. She can’t imagine what must have been going through his mind to suddenly find himself wading through the hellscape that was those tunnels and end the night by hauling a dead person out of it.

Jimin clears his throat. His eyes flash nervously around the room before he finally manages to settle them on her face, that awkward smile returning to his lips. “Ah, yes, I—uh, I’m very glad to see you—uh…” He scratches the back of his neck.

“Breathing?” She can’t help the dry smile, especially when he huffs out another unbelieving laugh.

It breaks the tension.

“Yes, breathing.” He squeezes his eyes shut for a second, and then cracks a grin. It’s painfully clear that the last thing he was expecting was for her to be treating her own death like something to joke about—he doesn’t know that it’s the least traumatizing part about her miserable experience in the tunnels. “Damn, girl, you’re a master of levity.” He shakes his head. “I’m here to make sure everything’s good with my boys. The guards outside your door belong to my company, not the police, so don’t worry.”

Seungmin picks up her hand and gives it a squeeze, running a thumb over her puffy burn scars like they’re not even there. “All the girls have 24/7 guard details. You’re completely safe.”

Anna bites her tongue at that.

She wasn’t completely safe when the Chief of Police held her captive in a torture chamber.

She wasn’t completely safe with the boy she trusted more than anyone else.

There’s no such thing as completely safe.

Before another wave of fury can drown her, Anna shifts her eyes back to Jimin, the man who had found her, unresponsive, dead, already gone, and decided to try to save her anyway.

What if someone else had found her?

What if someone else had determined her a lost cause and left her there in the name of rescuing a living prisoner?

“Thank you for getting me out of there.” She says quietly.

Jimin stares for a second, apparently suffering emotional whiplash, and then shakes his head. “You don’t have to thank me for that. I’m just glad you’re okay.”

Her head cocks the same way his had only a few moments before as she watches him grow flustered under her intense gaze. “If pulling my body out of a dungeon so that I may be brought back to life isn’t grounds for thanks, then what is?” It’s absurd to her, that he would shrug off what he did as though it doesn’t make literally all the difference in the world to her.

Like, she’s expected to say thank you when a waiter brings her a soda (that she ordered), but when a random man (who had no business rescuing captured women in the first place) makes an uncomfortable judgement call that grants her her life, she’s not allowed to thank him?

It doesn’t really matter, he’s just being humble, but it bothers her.

She doesn’t know why, but it bothers her.

Jimin nods with a small smile. “You’re right, good point. And I really am glad you made it back. I’ll be around the hospital for about another hour or so, checking in on the guards. Is there anything I can get for you while I’m here?” He hooks a thumb over his shoulder towards the door.

Another bizarre sentiment from the fancy security guy.

Anna finds herself blinking blankly once again. “Uh, I think I’ve used up all my favors from you. Like, for life.”

Seungmin breaks into laughter, thoroughly enjoying the flustered/frustrated duo performance in front of him. “She’s right, dude, carrying her dead body up three flights of stairs pretty much earns you all the credit you want.”

Jimin’s cheeks burn bright red as his eyes dart between the two people before him. Finally, too overwhelmed by the completely wrong energy in the room, he practically spontaneously combusts into whining complaints. “Would the two of you quit it?” His hand scrubs the back of his neck again. “Honestly, this room is so exhausting. I come in here to make sure you guys are okay and safe and get abused for my trouble.” There’s a very Han-like pout on his lips that makes Anna’s amused smile freeze.

Jimin doesn’t notice. “I’m gonna go next door and check on Ruby. At least she doesn’t glare at me.” He flashes Anna a pointed look, but his eyes are twinkling in the gentle light.

She just shrugs, still reeling. She’s not really in the mood to joke and tease, but the bafflement she keeps trading back and forth with Jimin had at least distracted her for a moment from her rage. At least, before he had looked at her with those perfectly rounded eyes and pouty mouth and struck her with heavy-handed memories of Han.

After the older man leaves, Seungmin raises his eyebrows at her, completely oblivious to the sour taste in her mouth and the concrete in her gut. “Unbelievable.”

Trying desperately to regain that levity that had abused Jimin so badly, she snatches her hand back from him, falling into the sibling-like rivalry that they’ve developed since she regained consciousness. “What?”

“You can barely get up to use the bathroom by yourself and here you are, flirting like you got game.”

She launches her water cup at him, which he catches easily without spilling a drop. “I was not flirting. All I did was talk to the man.”

The young police officer practically snickers. “Yeah, sure. I, personally, always banter with hot people the first time I meet them.”

“You think he’s hot?”

“You don’t?”

“That, apparently, wasn’t the first time I’ve met him, anyway.”

“You were dead, that doesn’t count.”

“Yeah, I think we’re both a little too facetious about that.” Anna scrunches herself down in her bed until her blanket comes up to her nose. It does little to hide the flush on her cheeks, but he doesn’t need to know that it’s not caused by his remarks about his friend. “Especially since it seems to have traumatized Jimin.”

Seungmin shakes his head. “And here I thought you already had a boyfriend.”

The joke falls flat immediately.

He sees it kill the mood, watches the shadow fall over her expression, notices the way her fists clench. “Shit, Anna, I’m sorry.” It’s too late to take it back.

Her eyes slide away from him. She can’t hide her reaction this time.

“I’m sure Han is alright, Anna, we’ll find him.” Seungmin finds her hand again. “I’m sorry, it was a dumb thing to say.”

The truth is on the tip of her tongue. She’s bursting with it, just aching to scream and rant about the boy who betrayed her and poisoned her and killed those other girls, and yet the words don’t come.

Her cheeks heat with embarrassment, heart clenching with hurt. It’s too raw to put into words.

All she can think about are all the days he treated her wounds with gentle hands, all the nights he held her in his arms, all the sweet words he spoke to her.

When she opens her mouth, instead of the truth, a sob comes out.

It hurts too much to explain. There’s physical, stabbing pain in her heart at the memory of his cruelty, and if she recounts it out loud she knows she’ll shatter.

She already feels herself falling into a million pieces, so many that she knows she’ll never be whole again.

Seungmin puts his arms around her, kicking himself. “It’s okay,” He whispers as she cries. “I’m sorry, Anna, we’ll find him.”

“We found him.”

Anna’s heart is exploding in her ears, and Seungmin can’t meet her eyes. She doesn’t even notice.

It’s the day after she met Jimin, and her room is packed full of people. Seungmin, Minho, Ruby, Cass, Kara, Jo, and police commissioner Min Yoongi.

It had started out as such a good day, too. The hospital had given her fresh fruit and eggs for breakfast, which, as with anything, was infinitely better than broth and bread twice a day.

Then Felix had come by, bringing her a heavenly cup of coffee and a 1930s binding of one of the Nancy Drew books missing from her collection, and he and Seungmin had joined her on her very slow and very clumsy walk down the halls. She’d felt stronger than yesterday and happier about her prospects in terms of healing than she had yet.

By the time they got back to her room, there were fresh flowers on her bedside table, and her parents had come to see her, laden with a bag of her own clothes from home.

After that came the wheelchair parade, and Min Yoongi’s ominous announcement.

We found him.

The girls that she’d spent varying lengths of time in captivity with all sit around her bed in their wheelchairs, watching her reaction. They’re staring at her like she has the right to hear it first, like she’s the only one who has the right to care.

They found Han.

Yoongi had planned the meeting to debrief the girls, to start collecting their accounts of captivity, but evidently the discovery of Han was the first thing on his agenda.

Anna can’t breathe as the commissioner turns to her.

“I understand you were closest to him?”

She can’t respond. She’s choking on dread and apprehension, and the words she needs to tell them that Han can’t be trusted, that he’d killed just like Cain had, that he—

“I’m very sorry, Anna, but we found him this morning. He was left in an old farmhouse just outside of town. There was nothing we could do.”

Conflicted feelings crush her heart. The girls around her are reacting in their own ways, devastated by the news, eyes filling with tears for the boy they think they knew. “He’s dead?” Anna’s crying, tears falling freely, and she doesn’t want to know why.

Is she grieving the boy who gave her hope?

Is she relieved that the boy who betrayed her is gone?

Is it both?

She doesn’t want to know.

Yoongi nods. “He’s dead. It looks like, probably, Cain couldn’t manage both hostages on his own, on the run. Maybe Han tried to take advantage, tried to get the upper hand—”

Jo is crying loudly, but Anna can only wonder about the details.

“Cain killed him?”

Seungmin silently grabs her hand and holds it against her thigh. She feels his thumb caress her scars like he always does, but it doesn’t make her feel any better.

Yoongi nods again. “Cause of death was one of Cain’s signatures. I’m sorry.”

It doesn’t make sense.

It’s too awful.

It’s too good to be true.

“Are you sure it was him?” Her voice is almost too broken to catch.

“Our last photographs of him are quite old, from when he was much younger, but based on those and your descriptions of him, yes. We’re sure.” Yoongi says gently.

She can barely hear anything, can barely feel Seungmin’s hand wrapped around hers. He’s gone.

Han’s gone.

“What about his little brother?” Cass asks. “His name is Jeongin. Have you found him?”

Anna’s eyes snap shut.

The bones from the pantry flash to mind and her stomach flips.

It’s all so screwed up.

Han’s little brother was dead the whole time.

Han was a killer the whole time.

She thinks she might throw up.

There’s hesitation in Yoongi’s voice as he answers. “Ah, right. It seems…that is, we found Jeongin’s body in the tunnels.”

Shock falls over the room once more, all except for Anna’s little corner, but she’s too deep in her own mind to notice.

…God, I fell in love with you…

She loved him, too.

She loved him so much it was a part of who she was.

She’s so angry she can’t see her own hands.

“He’s dead?” Jo squeaks. “We knew he was sick, that he was getting worse and worse—”

“You don’t understand.” Yoongi interrupts carefully. “We found his bones. We had to get them tested to identify him. We’ve only just gotten the results back. I’m very sorry, girls, but Jeongin appears to have died years ago. He’s been gone for a long time.”

All eyes turn to Anna.

She’s barraged with questions, but she doesn’t hear any of them.

Yoongi quiets the room. “It’s likely that the trauma of being held captive, isolated, tortured, and then losing his little brother caused Han to have experienced a kind of psychological regression. He likely believed Jeongin was still alive because he couldn’t cope with the truth.”

The girls around Anna seem to crumble under the weight of the information.

She wonders if it was ever true, or if Jeongin was always one of Han’s lies for sympathy.

She wonders how much he used the little brother story on Heather and Jackie before he killed them.

…they fell so hard, so fast…

Had he kissed them before he poisoned them, too?

Had he told them he loved them?

Anna blinks away tears and tries to escape Seungmin’s pitying gaze, focusing instead on the roses on her side table, a pretty bouquet wrapped in gray ribbon.

How many girls had he betrayed and poisoned?

What kind of deal had he made with Cain?

How many girls was he allowed to poach from Cain’s test subjects?

How had they worked out their methods—that Cain did the torturing and stabbing, and Han did the manipulating and poisoning?

Anna’s eyes fall to the gray ribbon.

There’s something about the texture of it that she can’t stop staring at.

…one of Cain’s signatures…

Wasn’t that what Yoongi had said?

Han’s cause of death was one of Cain’s signatures.

The familiar texture and color of the ribbon suddenly clicks in Anna’s mind and her heart drops.

“How did Han die?” She hears herself ask, and all the other voices in the room go quiet.

Yoongi gives her his full attention. “Ingested cyanide. Like Heather and Jackie and some of Cain’s older victims. Like you.” When she says nothing, only turning deathly pale, Yoongi goes on. “There was cyanide mixed into some of the water pitchers in the tunnels. Cain probably gave you water to drink; you wouldn’t have known what hit you until it was too late.”

Anna can’t meet his eyes.

She’s staring at those flowers, knowing that Cain wasn’t the one who gave her that water, that Cain wasn’t the one who killed Heather or Jackie.

She’s staring at the roses, ignoring Seungmin’s comforting words, knowing that Cain didn’t have multiple signatures.

She’s staring at those flowers that were delivered just this morning, and at that familiar piece of gray cloth.

Of course she would recognize it, after seeing it nearly every day for a year.

Beautiful, blood red roses bound by a strip of Han’s gray sweater.

tag list : @mysterysold

[badxsshottiexllie]

@spoocys-glade-of-dreams

As Ellie ate her trail mix and drank her water bottle, she listened to her lover describe what Tily actually looked like. Apparently, she was taller than a small human child and had wings! Talk about unique! Not to mention cute! Sounds like she would also be really tall when she grew up and be skilled in magic!

Then there was the talk about Mona's dangerous relative. It sounds like she wouldn't be able to stand a chance against him with her mecha suit. Well that was rather disappointing. Looks like she couldn't fight him even if she tried. However, the redhead would feel more at ease as Rayman placed his hand over hers.

"I'm looking forward to seeing Floyd again, as well as meeting your father too." But then, when Murfy was mentioned, her hear sank. "Oh my god...it's coming back to me now. I...remember that day. To think that I previously thought that it was a nightmare."

"Your right, he told me to go hide, which I did at first but changed my mind once I saw how badly those people were beating Murfy. I couldn't just hide like a coward, I had to do something. That's...all I remember from that day. I was unaware that I got hit over the head until now. If only...if only I had been stronger. Otherwise none of this wouldn't have happened...."

"Ellie, please don't beat yourself up over this. It wasn't your fault. It was that damn Emperors. He's a monster." Cliff reassured.

"Your father is right. Don't blame yourself for what bad people have done. The important thing is that your with the people that love you very much and your safe. You can go back to living your real, normal life again. Living in Utopia will be like your fresh new start."

Rayman reached into the cooler and pulled out a can of soda and a bag of chips. He would sip the soda and munch on the chips as they conversed together. He let out a chuckle when she asked about Tily.

"Well she is small and does have wings, but she's the size of a small human child, if not a little taller. Wild ones are tall fairies when they reach adulthood. She could grow to be about seven feet. They are also incredibly strong, agile, and their expertise in magic is ancient and powerful. You saw how Mona was able to cause a full scale blackout? The raw power of a wild one is not easily matched.

This is why I need you to be careful around that relative of Mona. He would be just as powerful, and magic can easily overpower technology. Even with your mecha-suit, you'd be in great danger if you fought him."

Rayman reached his hand over to place it on the top of hers, holding it gently while giving her a reassuring smile.

"When we get to Utopia, we'll take you to see Floyd have get you a check up. After that, we'll talk to my father about getting you that extended lifespan boon.

There is one more thing:

Murfy tried his hardest to protect you when the safehouse was raided, but he couldn't stop them from taking you. They hit you over the head and he said you may have been unconscious as they took you. He got hurt pretty bad in that raid. He has a couple scars that are very noticeable. He has worried about you so much, and I know he's going to want to see how you're doing too."

[malarkgirlypop]

Ok so I had the most bizarre dream about David Webster! And it was kinda fucking gruesome. So just be warned, don’t read on if you don’t want too.

Ok so here’s the dream:

I am at this water park, it has a big tank, kinda like the tank in Jurassic world that holds that big dino fish thing. Anyway I’m watching this water show I guess idk. The announcer says like we gonna have a performance from a diver and a fish. The person doesn’t specifically say it’s Webster but I know it’s him. Webster comes out like full scuba gear and gets in the tank. He swims a lap of the edge so around the circle. Then from the fucking depths of the tank comes this huge and I mean fucking huge hammer head shark. Like it is massive. And the hammerhead starts following Webster around the tank, everything is normal, i assume that you know this is all part of the act. Then out of nowhere the shark just bites him in half. Doesn’t eat him, just chomps him. And then there just the two halves of him floating in the water. And for some reason the dream just kept replaying that exact moment and I was freaking out like I didn’t want to watch it but I couldn’t look away. But everyone else around me in the stand didn’t do anything no one reacted. Idk weird weird dream.

[somegrumpynerd]

A little animation I made of Dream and Nightmare for fun, it's pretty short and simple but not bad for my second go at animation I think ^^

The music is from here, I highly recommend listening to the full thing cause it's so beautiful!

Quick explanation for the song and a gif version under the cut

So when I was first dipping my toes into utmv stuff like a year ago, I made a slideshow for my sister with a bunch of au Sanses, let her guess what kinda vibe she thought they had and then gave her a list of names/ aus to see if she could figure out who was who (she did surprisingly well and I'm proud of her).

Well, when I first showed her pictures of Dream her immediate reaction was "this guy looks like he's from zelda" and it's just always stuck with me. Somewhere along the way I started headcanoning Dream playing some kind of instrument when they were kids and when I heard the pan flute version of zelda's lullaby everything kind of fell into place.

So here they are, having a little moment of peace finally, brothers together again c:

[pinkd3mon]

Kirby deals with existential crisis and Bandana is a good friend

[cent-scratchnsniff]

something bad did indeed happen to that man. spent abt 25 minutes trying to find a better picture of that one (1) offical piece with his eyes open that wasnt compressed or tiny

[spotaus]

Woah what? I'm drawing? I'm sketching? I was... I was just staring at my photo assignment. Huh?

Oh well, I needed to draw Nightmare in his full glory anyways- (for a king he dresses very simply. The fabric is just the highest quality you've ever felt-)

*cough* @ancha-aus *cough*

[ancha-aus]

RealAgeAu - On the other side

:3 :3 :3

Guess who is back already?!

Not with the normal cast though :3

No I had an idea for the another person in this AU.

Anyone wondering how Dream is going? :D

So this one is a bit different then all the other installments and don't expect these often as the main focus is on the gang and their now babybones boss. But this one I thought would be fun.

Welcome. To Dream dealing with this (the sometiny changes to the multiverse. A God can't lose his status without it affecting those around him after all :3)

First: here Prev: here Next: here

We good? We good. We are unedited and unbeta'ed as always.

oh shit @spotaus I actually forgot you that time. sorry fam (they gave me the original prompt which is why they keep getting added every update. They are stuck with me now)

*----------*

The sun feels so warm on his bones. Dream lays by the roots of his mother. Enjoying the warm light of the never ending late spring sun which warms his bones. His mother's voice, always loving and so proud of him.

The only thing that would make this moment better would be his brother near him. But he went to wash up a while ago.

Which is okay It isn't. where is nightmare? He will just wait right here for when he comes back.

Nightmare always joins him again. except that one time. The time when it mattered.

Dream loves his brother so much, and Nightmare loves him! Not anymore, not after everything

Dream sighs in the warm light and looks to the side. The village lays in the distance. Beautiful and lively and so so welcome of him!

Rememver your duty my son. You are meant for great things. Never forget that.

Dream hums happily as he looks back up at the branches "I know mom! I will be like you and be a great warrior and bringer of hope!" he smiles up.

A laugh in the air that sounds like a bell A bringer of balance my dear son. Remeber. Too much of one will always spell the end for one.

Dream hums as he enjoys the soft sunlight and happiness he feels in his soul.

He just wishes his brother was here. he wants his brother back, that is all he wants.

oh. I think Nightmare is back from washing himself

Dream blinks his sockets open and looks over. Near the forest edge stands Nightmare. In his purple clothes and with a small silver crown on his skull. Dream smiles and waves from his spot "Nighty! Over here!"

But Nightmare doens't move. He just watches him.

Dream frowns as he sits up "Nighty?"

The sunlight is gone as an ominious rumble is heard overhead. The light feeling in him disappears as he looks back at Nightmare "Nighty! i know it is scary but you need to get over here!" Normal trees can't protect them from thunder and lightning! Their mother can.

Nightmare just continues to stare at him from a distance. Even now Dream thinks he looks tired.

Drema raises to his feet.

His mother's voice fills his skull Dream don't go. It isn't worth the risk.

Dream shakes his skull and leaves the save shadow and cover of his mother. Running towards his brother. He needs to get to him. He can't be too late again. Not when he has this chance to reach him in time.

Dream watches as Nightmare remains rooted in place. Lightning flashes overhead and loud thunder follows right away. Drema flinches but keeps running "Nighty!" his voice lost in the loud rumble and thunder.

Dream is right by him and reaches for him. But another flash of lightning and Dream is blinded. Once he opens his sockets he is no longer by the forest. No, he is in the village. People are screaming. He searches for Nightmare only to see his mother burning in the distance. Her branches ablaze in bright orange light.

Dream rushes towards her. Panic. Why can't he stop this? Why did it happen?

He reaches her but it is already too late. His mother is gone. HIs friends are gone. His brother...

His brother...

Staring at him with betrayal. Dream can feel the hurt and betrayal in the other and Dream realises his has his hand out.

He had hit him. He had attacked him.

Dream reaches for his brother but Nightmare flinches back, away from him.

Because he had hurt him.

Dream can't speak. He can't move.

Nightmare glares at him "Nothing to say for yourself?"

Dream tries but no words leave him. Please Nighty. He is sorry.

Nightmare just continues to glare at him "After everything?! You only came because of those stupid villagers?!"

Dream shakes and tries to shake his skull. tries to deny it. But he can't. His body isn't moving. Nightmare is right, dream had always only cared about the village and what they wanted.

Nightmare turns and walks away. Away from him. Away from their ruined home.

Dream wants to follow but can't move. He is locked in place. just like he had been when he had been turned to stone.

He tries to reach for Nightmare but he is already gone and everything goes dark. Just dark dark dark dark-

Dream gasps as he sits up and checks himself. He can move! He is fine! he... he...

He looks around and sees that he fell asleep on his couch again... in his own living room... again...

He sighs as he sits normally on the couch and puts his skull between his hands. That same dream again. it had been haunting him ever since he had first faced Nightmare. But the dream kept coming back more often lately, for almost two months now...

He is so tired. He can't deal with everyone needing his help today. He can't deal with everyone demanding his attention and support today...

Dream glances at his phone and grabs it. So many numbers in there and many many texts and missed calls already. He ignores them all and finds the right number. He calls it and waits.

"Hey Dream! How are you?"

Drema feels apart of him relax "Blue..."

"... What is wrong?"

Dream feels bad for asking this off him "... can... can i please come over?" he is suposed to be strong. a bringer of hope and light. Yet he keeps failing. He tries so hard but keeps messing up or not being enough.

"Of course. I will clear my own schedule. Can you get here okay?"

Dream smiles and nods "yeah... be there in a bit." Honestly thank everything for Blue.

--

Dream sits on the couch in a different living room. Still feelign exhausted but a bit better. He had told Blue all about the dream he had had... The way it had been bothering him more and more lately and just how exhausting he had been lately.

Blue sits by him as he eats his bowl of cereal, Dream's own bowl untouched. Blue hums as he takes a bite "Seems to me that you are getting burned out." and he eats another bite.

Dream frowns "no? That is for people who do stuff they don't like. I like helping people!" generally... sometimes...

He is the guardian of positivity! He is suposed to like helping others! That is hiw whole purpose!

He wishes he could ask his mother... He wishes he could ask Nightmare, Nightmare had always been better at listening and hearing what their mother said.

Blue hums as he eats more of his breakfast "Everyone can get burned out by everything. It is why Ink can get an artblock. It is why Sci can get overwhelmed and annoyed with his own work. Jsut because you like soemthing doesn't mean you can't get stressed or overwhelmed by it."

Dream blinks confused at Blue and Blue smiles "My bro has it more often than me. Said it like that too much of one thing is always bad, no matter what it is."

Dream... Dream suddenly has a strong sense of dejavu.

Blue nods "Even stuff you like! Say... I love taco's. It is my favourite! But... if i had to cook it everyday and only eat taco's? I would get sick of it. It doesn't mean i don't like them any less. Just, even too much of a good thing is bad. you know?"

Dream gives a slow nod as he stares at Blue "what... what should i do?"

Blue shrugs as he finishes his meal "Take a break? Don't do the guardian stuff for a bit?"

Dream frowns "I can't take a day off!"

Blue tilts hsi skull "Why not? Having a good work ethic is important, I myself have one too, but i know i need breaks. Obviously not as much as some people!" Blue looks over his shoulder with a glare.

Stretch chuckles in the distance "guilty as charged!"

Blue huffs but turns back "But breaks are important. It is why there are rules nad laws about days off and having breaks every so many hours. It sounds to me that you have not been using your vacation days and you should at this point." he puts his empty bowl away and quickly washes it before joining his said again.

Dream already feels anxious. PEople like and listen to him because he helps them. If he stops doing that they may dislike him or not listen and then what does he do?!

Blue sits next to him and keeps waiting for a reply.

Dream rubs his arm "what.. what about... work? What about spreading positivity?"

Blue thinks it over "I mean... It should be fine right? The gang and your brother have been very quiet for the last... what... month? two months?"

Dream nods as he looks at his hands. the anxiety returns "He must be planning somethign big..." something gigantic. And dream has no idea and doesn't even know where to start with getting information or anything-

Blue snaps his fingers and Drema blinks out of his own thoguhts before shooting Blue a confused look.Blue grins at him "I honestly didn't expect that to work. Stop worrying about stuff that hasn't happened yet. Think about the here and now. Your friends are doing okay. The omega timeline doesn't need your help with anything they cna't do themselves. The gang hasn't done anything yet and Errir and Ink still have their third cease fire."

Blue pokes Dream "What will help you right now."

Dream stares at Blue for a moment before looking away. He thinks before he speaks "I think... I think I would like to go... home..." Blue frowns so Dream tries to explain "YOu know... home home... I haven't been there in ages... my... my magic has been... shifting... it is strange... I don't bring as much positivity to others as i used to anymore. Me just being there doesn't make others happy anymore. I... I was hoping... maybe i can find answers there?"

Blue blinks before smiling "That sounds like a wonderful idea! If you give me ten minutes I can get ready to join you."

Dream blinsk confused "You will join me?"

Blue grins and nods "Of course! what are friends for?"

Dream feels lighter and smiles "Thank you blue."

--

not even fifteen minutes later and they had arrived in Dreamtale. Dream... Dream isn't sure what he had been expecting. but it was the same as he remembered. no colours. everythign is grey and frozen. lacking anytype of magic.

It hurt.

They had arrived at the village and blue looks around "oh.. i... i am sorry..." he holds his hand and gives it a reassuring squeeze.

They walk around the village together and that same bittersweet feeling returns to Dream. He remembers playing games here. the little marktes he would visit. How everyone would always be happy to see him.

It had been a beautiful place.

And now it is gone and-

Dream freezes. Blue doens't notice as he keeps walking but dream can't look away. because there in the distance... in another building... that... that looks like...

"Nighty?"

The mirage, or vision, or hallucination looks up in shock. before pure fear overtakes the expression.

He looks so young... had they been that young?

Dream feels himself take a step closer. his soul is pulsing madly and his sockets starts to itch with tears. is he going insane?

The tiny form disappears from view as it disappears behind a wall and out of the view of the window.

Dream doesn't think and starts sprinting.

"Dream?! What is wrong?!"

Dream doesn't stop to explain. He runs through the empty streets. please. please. just a moment longer. just bring that vision back. He just wants to see his brother one more time.

Please.

A crack much like a thunder fills the air and Dream rushes into the house he had originally seen the vision in.

Nothing.

Dream sobs as he falls to his knees.

He was too late again.

Blue joins his side a moment later but Dream can't even begin to explain.

Why did it feel like he lost his brother all over again?

Why did his soul hurt this badly?

Blue holds him and continues to hold him until Drema calms down again.

Dream sobs "Maybe... maybe this was a mistake..." he can't admit he jsut saw a vision of his own brother but as a child... He can't admit he is actually going insane.

Blue just continues his hug "Or maybe this is exactly what you needed. You have been holding in this grieve for a long time Dream. Maybe it needs to be released?"

Maybe he has a point. Dream leans heavily into the hug.

Blue holds them both up easily "Any place you want to visit?"

Dream holds it tightly before looking around "Maybe... maybe my friend is still here? It has only been about two years since a left." she had given him tea and let him sleep on her couch... Later she had broken him out of his stone prison and helped him as he grew up to be who he is today.

He wants to be sure she is okay.

Blue nods as he looks around the village "where to?"

Dream points in a direction "Her house should be over there..." They walk together in silence and Dream finally spots the old house. But it looks old and broken. As if no one had lived there for centuries.

Dream feels himself shake "That can't be right." he rushes inside and freezes as he finds a pile of dust.

oh... how?

Dream sits next to the pile and sobs. Blue joins his side and hugs him.

Time passes and Dream ends up carefully collecting the dust and putting it in a jar. He will have to figure out what her favourite things were and-

"euh... Dream? What is this?"

Dream blinks and looks over to see Blue holding an old beautiful book. Dream frowns as he walks over and reads the title.

'Dreamtale'

Dream feels himself freeze "I... I don't know... where did you find it?"

Blue points towards the room. Dream frowns "I... i was told to never enter that as that had been her personal room. I didn't want to breka the trust..."

Blue hums before just opening the book. Dream hisses "Blue!"

Blue doesn't even look apologetic "Dream. If i have learned one thing about the multiverse, is having an universe named after one person spells trouble for everyone else in that universe. Why would she hide this from you?"

Dream can't help but agree and the two sit together at the table and start reading the story.

--

Dream wants to throw up. He is going to throw up. He just sits with his skull in his hands.

How... how often had nightmare asked him not to leave... to leave him alone? How often had Nightmare told him that the villagers didn't like him.

Dream... Dream never listened.

Dream sobs as he lays fully on the table.

The person he thought had been his friend... the person who gave him tea and a place to sit and rest. drugged him... all to make sure he couldn't interfere when they went to... when they had planned to murder... to murder...

dying...

all those years again.. Nightmare had accused him of not even caring that he had been dying. dream had thought it had been the corruption somehow talking to him, mocking him. Trying to make him feel horrible...

It had been Nightmare himself... accusing him of leaving him to be hurt and die alone.

And he had been right.

Dream sobs as tears leave his sockets. His sight finds the jar with dust of that... that... woman! That! Rage burns through him but two arms keep him in place.

"It is okay Dream. Let it all out."

Dream shakes his skull as he pushes closer to Blue "It isn't okay!! I am a fucking idiot! I was too fucking blind and now! Now I-" more sobs.

Blue jsut holds him tighter "You were a kid dream"

Dream sobs as he tightens his hold on blue "So was nighty..."

His dreams... his dreams and even that hallucination must have been trying to tell him all along there was more than he saw. That something had been going on. But dream was too busy. Always too busy. Before he had been too busy wiht the village and villagers... and now he was too busy with the multiverse.

eventually the tears dry as Blue just keeps holding him.

Dream sniffs "How do i fix this?"

Blue pauses his movement and clearly thinks for a while. Dream feels worse the longer Blue doesn't answer.

Blue sighs as he leans his own skull against Dream "I don't know. I would say you could try to talk with Nightmare but... well..."

Dream tightens his hold on Blue. every time him and Nightmare met they never spoke. Dream had for a while tried to tell Ngihtmare he could do better nad make up for the wrongs he did...

No wonder Nightmare doesn't want to speak to him anymore. Dream pretty much said that Nightmare should feel bad for fighting for his own survival... that he should feel bad for killing those who tried to kill him.

Dream feels sick all over again as he pushes closer to Blue. Being near blue helps.

Blue keeps a tighter hold on him "For now... you can take the book with you at least... keep your story with you you know? And maybe try and approach the subject if you see him again?"

Dream nods before anxiety reaches him "How will i tell everyone this?"

Blue pulls back and stares him in the socket "Stop. YOu dont have to tell them."

Dream looks away "They deserve an explanation and-"

Blue shakes his skull and looks at Dream "They don't. Just because they think they do deosn't mean they actually do. You don't have to hurt yourself to please them. You don't have to share this just opened hurt with those who won't support you dream."

Dream still feels sick "won't that be selfish?"

Blue shakes his skull "people demanding you share your trauma with them are entitled. You don't have to tell anything if you aren't comfortable."

Dream sniffs before nodding.

Blue nods and slowly helps him too his feet "Now. We came here with a mission and that was to find out what was up with your magic... the book didn't hold the answer so i am going to assume it may have to do with adult you. is there any other place you could learn more of yourself?"

Dream frowns. his head still a bit foggy "maybe... mom would know... but she never told us much... and she is gone... and i haven't been there since... well. i turned to stone." even after he got broken out he hadn't been brave enough to return.

Blue nods "How about.... we walk around first... see if we find anymore... clues" he eyes the book before looking back at him "And once you are ready go see your mom?"

Dream thinks for a moment before nodding.

Dream and Blue end up going to the hill after a quick walk around the village. All the good memories that Dream had had had already turned bittersweet after them dying. Now? They just burned him. Made Dream angry in a way he couldn't put into words. He had helped those unthankful assholes! He helped them day after day after day! Adn they hurt... they hurt... They killer his mother! They tried to kill Nightmare!

They walk up the hill silently and dream is dragging is feet.

Dream didn't think he could feel worse but he was wrong.

Because right by the dead stump of his mother.

Are two old graves.

One saying Nim. One saying Dream.

The worst part is that they looked well maintained and there are fresh flowers on them.

After that Blue calls it a day and helps him home. Saying that they will ask other people in the multiuniverse about gods changing powers later. and with a crack like thunder they teleport away and out of that universe again.

*-----------------*

... *coughs* did someone say brother complex? Also this ended up a lot longer than planned? Woops? Look it was just suposed to be about Dream seeing tiny NIghtmare in their old AU but then a lot happened and I figured Dream also had a lot of trauma and well... tada?

Look. I never said Dream was dealing well with the changes... If i am being honest Nightmare took his own slight body horror better than Dream took the slight changes around him and the vision of his younger brother :3

First: here Prev: here Next: here

anyway. Love you all. You are fun and nice to hang out with! See you next drabble. also i can't believe this account that i just had to give little extra information abut my main AU just... has a second AU living here now.... guess that happened...