#and with lucienne he went back to dreaming - to home

[dragon-kazansky]

Heart of the Dreaming

Morpheus x Female Reader

Soulmate AU

You are the daughter of Rodrick Burgess. You find out about the "demon" in the basement and decide you want to see it. Things take an unexpected turn when your soulmate connection is made with the man you find down there. You are the one he has been waiting for, and you're being taken away from. Not for long. Dream will protect his soulmate.

{Masterlist}

{Previous Chapter} - {Next Chapter}

Chapter Three - Mr Sandman

☆☆☆

Dream woke up in his realm. He was home at last. He had been away for far too long, and he had missed his home. Not only that, a familiar face was here to greet him. Lucienne. She was always so loyal to him.

"Lucienne."

"My lord, you're home!"

She helps him up to his feet, and he turns to look at the grand gates of his realm. Home.

Lucienne and Dream walk toward the gates. Before he can open the gates, Lucienne speaks to him. She looks rather forlorn. "Forgive me, sir, but the realm, the palace, they are not as you left them."

The gates open, and he can see what she means. His realm was falling apart. The sight pained him. "What happened here? Who did this?"

"My lord, you are The Dreaming. The Dreaming is you. With you gone as long as you were, the realm began to decay and crumble."

"And the residents?" He asks softly. "The palace staff?"

"I'm afraid most are gone."

"Gone?"

"Some went looking for you." Lucienne tells him.

"And the others?"

"They thought, perhaps, you had grown weary of your duties, and..."

"What? Abandoned them? Had they had so little faith in me? Had my own subjects not known me?" He asks. He didn't want to believe his people would abandon their realm, their home. He certainly hadn't meant to.

Morpheus and Lucienne headed toward the palace. There was debris everywhere. His kingdom was crumbling around him, and he hated it.

He stood in his throne room. There wasn't much left of it. This room had once been so beautiful and put together, designed by his hand. Now, it was a ghost of what it used to be. Shattered glass and stone covered the floor, crunching under his feet as he walked.

Lucienne watched her lord as he took it all in. Though she had stayed to look after the kingdom, there was only so much she could do. Without Dream, the kingdom couldn't last. If an Endless abandoned their realm, it would fall apart and eventually fade.

Morpheus picked up a shard of glass from beneath his feet and held it in his hand. He raised his hand and tried to summon enough power to rebuild his throne room. The debris began to rise from the ground, but it was taking all his strength to even do that. Eventually, he felt go and collapsed to the ground. He was too weak.

"You need rest and food, and perhaps a bit more rest, and then you'll be at full strength."

"No. Not without my tools." He picks himself back up.

"Your tools?"

"My sand, my helm, my ruby," he lists.

"What happened to them?"

"They were taken from me. By my captors. And then taken from them. I know not where. Nor what I am without them."

He sits down on the steps of his throne and looks up at Lucienne. He needed to update her on you. He reaches for his wrist and rubs his scar gently.

"Lucienne, there is something I need to tell you about."

"Yes, sir?" She stands there and gives him her full attention.

"There was someone in that house. Where I was trapped. Someone I need to get to." He looks down at the star scar.

"What do you mean?"

"What do you know of soulmate bonds?" He asks her quietly.

"Soulmate bonds?" She sounds rather surprised by his questions. He's never really brought up anything like this before. "I understand that some humans believe their soulmates to be the one they connect with the most. A special connection is made between two people. Something special."

"What do you know of soulmates regardless the Endless?" He asks her.

"Sir?"

"It's rare. It's so rare that only I have one." He tells her. "This scar," he rubs his thumb over it, "is my bond with her."

Lucienne listens with great interest. She wasn't aware such things were real, just a feeling some people got.

"She is down there now. In that house. I saw her." His voice has softened. He seems to be away with his thoughts. "She came down to see me, and something happened. She relieved her scar. It burned into our flesh, and I knew who she was immediately. It would seem she stopped ageing and her brother kept her locked up in her room, much like I was locked up in that basement."

Dream felt angry. Angry for being trapped for so long. Angry that the people who kept him caged had gone and done the same thing to you. Angry that he couldn't have stayed to convince you to take his hand in that one moment. Not that he could blame you. You didn't know him. He saw your fear.

He would make it up to you, he promised.

"I need enough power to return to the waking world so I may get her and my tools."

"You need rest."

"I have little time for that. Please, Lucienne. Is there anything lf mine in the Dreaming? Something I created."

"There is one thing."

☆☆☆

What he did to Gregory was not something he wanted to do, but it had to be done. He would forever be sorry for what he did. He would make it up to Cain and Abel for taking their friend from them.

Next, he needed to summon the Fates. They were not easy to summon, but Dream knew exactly what he needed to do.

Three questions. Three answers.

"My first question. I had a leather pouch filled with sand. Where is it?" He asks.

"It was sold. In London. Last purchased by a magic user called Joanna Constantine."

"Constatine. I knew a Constantine, but that was 300 years ago. Does she still have the sand?"

"Dream. You know better than that. You get one question and one answer."

"My apologies. My second question. My helm. What happened to it?"

"It was traded away to a demon. For the amulet of protection."

"To which demon was it traded?"

"One question. One answer, love."

"Last question. My ruby. Who holds it now?"

"Your gem was passed from a mother to a son."

"Where are they now?"

"You have asked your questions!" The Fates disappear. Morpheus is left standing alone with all the answers he was given.

The egg he picked up was the only thing not taken by the Fates, mainly because it was not for them. He left they with Cain and Abel as his apology for Gregory.

Now that he knew where his tools were, to an extent, he could leave. His tools could wait a little longer. He had one more trip to make before them.

You.

He needed to find you, and there was only one way he could do that. He returned to the dock and looked back down into the waters of dreams. This was how he found what he needed for the Fates, and it also how he will find you.

"Please, sir, be careful." Lucienne looked at him with concern.

"I shall. I will not let myself be captured again."

"I mean... can you trust this woman? She is one of them."

Dream looked at Lucienne over his shoulder. "All will be well."

Lucienne had nothing else to say. She watched him disappear into the waters again.

The waters were still rough and dangerous, but he still had a portion of his power within him, which he would use to find you. You should be asleep by now. He needs to find your dreams.

You were the clearest thing in those waters.

☆☆☆

You hadn't slept in hours. The dream man had been gone an entire day already. You had spent the whole day in your room just thinking everything over.

Paul had spent the entire beside Alex.

Sleeping sickness. That's what he called it. The eternal sleep. Alex wouldn't ever wake up again. You couldn't bring yourself to care too much. Alex hadn't been your brother in many years. You had long since learnt to stop caring.

You felt tired. Your mind was tired.

How long had you been staring at your ceiling? You had lost count. Your eyelids were staring to feel heavy, that much you knew. You had tuned out the rest of the house.

Before you knew it, you were dosing off.

You gave in and fell asleep.

You were dreaming. Not of the basement this time. No. Now that he was free and gone, you should have known he probably wouldn't appear in your dreams again.

This time you're in a garden. Your garden. You're 11 years old again. Your father is about to start his ritual. However, this time, you're not in your room. You're down there with him. The men in robes surround the circle. Rodrick looks down at you, his haze stern and cold.

"Watch."

You do watch. You keep your eyes on the summoning circles. Tonight, your father was going to try and bring your brother back by bargaining with death. It sounded crazy. Of course it did. No one comes back from the dead. No one.

You're afraid. The ritual had begun, and you hate it. Your father doesn't even try and comfort you. Of course he doesn't. He doesn't love you.

A figure appears in the circle, and you have to force yourself not to scream in fright. The figure is wearing a long cloak that covers him fully, and on his head is a strange mask. At least, you hope it's a mask.

Your father has the mask removed after taking its things. Is this death? You can't see his face clearly. It looks like a man, though. He doesn't move or make a sound.

You run. You have to run. Whatever it is, you don't want to be around it anymore. You run as fast as you can. The house seems so much bigger than you remember it being. You go round corners and don't seem to be any closer to your room.

You run straight into someone. You scream. You no longer sound like a child. You look up and see the man standing there. He's wearing a black coat now.

"Wake up."

His voice is deep. Unlike anything you'd heard before. Your heart was racing and you had frozen.

"Wake up."

"I can't."

The man lifts his hand up toward you, hand out like the night he escaped. You remember it all because this is a dream. He takes a step closer and you move back, tripping over nothing and falling to the ground.

You gasp and sit up in your bed. Your breathing is uneven, and your heart is racing. Sweat clings to your skin.

You freeze.

Slowly, you move your eyes to the left and then find yourself scrambling off the bed and as far away from him as possible. You keep your back to the wall as you stare at the man in your room.

"Who are you? How did you get in here?" You ask, panic definitely setting in.

"I am not here to hurt you."

"Why are you here? Why did you come back?" You ask quickly.

"I am Lord Morpheus, but you can call me Dream. That is my true name."

"Dream?"

"Yes. I came back here for you," he says quite firmly.

"Me? Why? I wasn't the one that kept you trapped down there. I didn't hurt you. I had nothing to do with anything!" You sound quite urgent. Desperate. You're clearly frightened.

"I know."

"Then why? Why are you here?"

"I came for you." He puts it so simply.

"Why?" You ask again.

"Your wrist. Let me see it."

You automatically cradle your wrist to your chest and look at him with a wary expression. You know exactly what he wants to see.

You hear him exhale quietly and watch as he lifts his arm up. He pulls up his sleeve and shows you his wrist. You gasp softly at the sight. Slowly, you bring your wrist up to his and look at the matching scar.

"What is it?" You ask softly.

"Our bond. You are rare."

"Rare?" You look up and meet his eyes. They're so blue.

"You are the soulmate of an Endless," he tells you. "My soulmate."

You can't help it. You burst out into laughter. Dream looks very confused by your reaction. Of all things that could happen, he didn't think you would start laughing.

"That's insane."

"I do not understand," be watches you curiously. His confusion only deepened.

"What the heck is an Endless?" You ask.

"I am. I am one of seven. We exist because you know deep down we exist. I am the king of dreams and nightmares. The Sandman, if you like."

"The Sandman?" You scoff softly. "He's a fairytale."

"Perhaps." He looks almost amused.

"And, what? I'm your destined partner or something?"

"In a sense."

"Absolutely not," you tell him, inching along the wall carefully. If you could reach the door you could find Paul.

"You are rejecting me?"

"Sure, if that's how you want to put it. I don't want anything to do with any of this."

"You came down to the basement," he says, though of course you already knew that. It was you, after all. "Were you not curious?"

"Well, yes. My father had summoned something, and it was living under our house. I wanted to see, but I wasn't expecting you. Then you looked at me and I was scared. What did you do to me?"

"Nothing."

"You must have!" You exclaim. "Look at me! I should be about 85 now. Do I look 85 to you?"

Dream doesn't move from where he stands as you slowly inch around the room toward the door. If you run, he'll let you, but if he can keep you in here, he will try.

"No."

"You did this to me!"

"Not intentionally. This happened because of our bond. I cannot stay here. I need to find my tools. I want you to come with me."

"Why should I? I don't understand any of this. Please." You look sad. Afraid. He doesn't want you to be afraid.

"I will not hurt you. I want to take you to my realm."

"Your realm?"

"The Dreaming," he clarifies.

"I'm so confused..."

"I understand. Everything will become clear if you come with me. You must know. You must feel it. That burn."

You look down at your wrist and run your fingers over the star softly. "Yeah. I feel it. You really mean everything you said? That we're fated or something?"

"Yes. It is unfair, I understand. You haven't been given a choice."

"Why me?" You ask.

"I do not know. I cannot question Destiny. I can only hear what he has to say, and I believe this is part of it."

"Destiny? You speak like that's a person."

"He is. My brother."

"Dream. Destiny. Death?"

"Yes. My sister."

"Oh... So, Father really was trying to summon Death. He got you instead." Some things were starting to make sense.

"Yes."

You look at him, less frightened now, but still full of questions. He could see it in your eyes. If you wanted to ask them, he would answer, but not here.

He raises his hand.

"Come with me."

"Where?"

"To London. I must get my sand."

"Sand? You really are the Sandman?"

He nods his head subtly.

"If you come with me, you'll never be locked away in a room again. You can come and go as you please."

Freedom. He is offering you freedom.

"In your realm?"

"You will be safe there," he assures you.

You close your eyes and think about it all. Alex wouldn't be a problem either way now, but you could be free of this house. Free of any trace of your father and all the things he had done. Free from your past, your imprisonment in this room.

Dream holds his hand out again. You stare at it. He is your one chance to get away from the Burgess name.

You take his hand.

☆☆☆

@deniixlovezelda - @missdreamofendless - @kpopgirlbtssvt - @meganlpie - @thoughtsfromlayla - @ladyjbrekker

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@permanentlyexhaustedpigeon88 - @hopshusushi -

[lis-likes-fics]

At Long Last (Revised)

Pairings: Dream of the Endless x goddess!Reader Word Count: 13.8k words Warnings: Captivity, murder, torture, slight maiming, swearing… A/N: This used to be 9.8k words but...here we are now. I posted this a year ago and decided I didn't do it enough justice. You can still find the first post here if you wanted to compare it. I hope you enjoy this, happy reading!

"Must you leave for so much time?"

You smiled gently at your Dream, taking his hands and stepping closer. You kiss the spot between his brows, "I will be back before you know it. The humans need me right now, and I must aid them. That is our purpose, isn't it?" 

The world had been thrust into a war. The humans were struggling, and, as the Goddess of Hope and Transformation, it was your job to aid them in their struggles. Dream knew this well, it was one of the reasons he loved you so.

He merely breathed a sigh and nodded as he looked down at you, "Very well, then. Be safe."

"I always am," you smiled, pressing your hand to his cheek. "Don't go anywhere while I'm gone." It was a joke, gentle teasing as you tried to pull a smile from his lips. You managed a ghost of one and nothing more. You sighed and leaned forward, kissing his lips gently as you savored the taste of him before you were off. You didn't know how long you would be gone. "I love you, Morpheus."

"And I, you," he said.

~

The war lasted four long years. Four years full of grueling work; taking care of the injured and the dead, healing the sick… You stayed behind another two years to help those of the mortal plane to begin to settle and recover after the chaos and bloodshed came to an end.

You spent most days and nights as a medic for injured soldiers, some days you were doing charity work for the families at home. Work was busy—answering prayers, granting hope to those without, helping in any way that you could to ease the troubles of war.

By the time you returned to the Dreaming, all you wished to do was hold your husband in your arms and dream with him for a little while. But as you crossed the threshold of dream and slumber, felt yourself returning home for the first time in six years, you knew something was wrong. Things had changed. You would not return to the Dreaming the way you left it.

You stood at the gates for a very long time, staring at the carvings and the art of the entrance, lost in the careful contemplation of what you would be returning to. Your arms were crossed tightly over your chest. You were afraid to move any closer. You chewed on your lip and tapped your foot, shaking your head as the worry ate at you.

Just go, you thought to yourself. He'll be waiting on the other side for you. Surely, he will.

You took in a slow, deep breath…and then took a step.

"My lady?"

You turned your head and found your loyal librarian approaching you. You smiled and held your arms out to your dear friend. "Lucienne," you breathed as you took her in your arms. "It's been so long."

She smiled, a type of relief in your eyes you knew like the back of your hand. Hope. She held tight.

You sighed, "Where's Morpheus?"

You felt her muscles tense as she pulled back with a frown. "I was hoping…" her relief turned to dread, "he'd gone to you while you were away."

Your smile fell and a concern slipped over your face that Lucienne briefly mistook as anger. "What does that mean?" you asked.

She took a slight step back, holding a journal in her arms as she looked down at her feet for just a moment. She peaked up at you over the top of her glasses as she frowned. "I'm afraid…Lord Morpheus has been gone for four years. He went to the Waking World two years after you left in search of the Corinthian, and…he hasn't been seen since."

Your heart sparked with pain at the news of your dear husband's disappearance. Everything was fine when you left, and now he was gone? How could this happen?

"Show me the kingdom," you said.

Lucienne nodded hesitantly as you both made your way to the grand entrance of the Dreaming. They opened for their queen without hesitation, your long white robes flowing behind.

The realm seemed…okay. Most of the same magic, just lacking in a bit of luster. But it was just okay. The Dreaming was grand, magnificent, the reflection of the fantasies and hopes and fears and loves of all of humanity and inhumanity. If Morpheus didn't return soon, it would begin to crumble. You would not see his realm turn to ash, not if you could help it.

You went to the castle with Lucienne at your side, waving to the residents who smiled and waved their greetings to their returning queen, delighted and enchanted that you were home again. Happy as you were to see them again, you had more pressing matters on your mind.

The inside of the castle—the heart of the realm—was stronger as you ventured within, but there were cracks in the walls that carved themselves into your heart. Morpheus lack of presence in the realm was breaking, even you could only feel so much of him here…

You pressed your hand against one of the cracks, so shallow they could be passed on as marble-like design. You frowned, peeling your hand away into somewhat of a fist.

"I have to go find my husband."

"My lady," Lucienne gave a gentle interjection as a voice of reason. "If I may… I think it would be best if you stayed. Without Dream, the realm will begin to fade. Your presence might be the only thing keeping this place from ruin."

"But if he's missing and he doesn't return, my presence won't do a thing," you told her. You could see her sigh at your response, not unreasonable but certainly not her favorite. "I need to find him and bring him back. Do you know where he went?"

She shook her head regrettably, "No, I don't. But perhaps you could ask one of his siblings?"

You hesitated at the idea. "Perhaps if it comes to that, but… you know how the Endless are." She sighed and nodded.

You softened at the sight of her despondency, walking over to her as you set your hands on her shoulders. She looked up at you again, and you offered a smile. "I will return soon."

She tilted her head. "He said the same thing."

Your reassuring smile faltered and you let out a breath. "I promise. Have hope, dear friend."

She smiled sentimentally. She set a hand over yours. "I did miss you, my lady," she said.

"And I, you." You blinked a couple of times. They were the last words Morpheus had said to you before you left. "I will be back, and I'll be back with Dream."

It was more to reassure yourself than her. You let out a long breath and stepped away. "Stay safe," Lucienne bid softly.

You smiled. "I always am."

You grasped the edges of your white robes, feeling them between your fingers before sweeping them over your form like billowing sheets in the wind. They enveloped you in magic as you took flight in a blur of feathers of white.

He was somewhere in the Waking World. That was what you knew. You would find him one way or another.

~

You searched the world, wings and magic carrying you across the vast realm. You searched over land and sea and mountain and countryside. You searched the sky and you searched the caves. The more you searched, the more you wondered, the more you doubted. You couldn't find him, not in the trees, not in the sand. He was being kept from you, a deliberate shield of your senses. When you finished, you swept the Earth again for the ethereal being you could not find.

And then again over.

It was about a month before you finally returned to the Dreaming. You collapsed on the throne, barren of the king it belonged to, exhausted and dismayed.

As if on cue, Lucienne was standing there again. Her face was full of worry and concern as she looked upon you for the first time in a while.

"I can't find him, Lucienne," you lamented. "I searched over the Earth five times, and he was nowhere. I'm worried."

She took a step, "We will find him, my queen."

You nodded gently, looking around as if the answer would present itself. It seemed like it did when your eyes found a depiction of his mask on a carving in the wall. You stood and began descending the steps. "I will ask his siblings. Surely one of them will have an answer—Death, Destiny, even possibly Desire."

As you took the first few steps, you faltered for a moment, your legs weak and your tired arms sore as you caught yourself. Your robe splayed over the floor, dark skies inside of your cloak filled with clouds of grey. Lucienne rushed to your side, helping you stay steady on your feet as she caught of glimpse of the gloomy weather hidden within your cloak. Her brows creased in worry. "You need to rest, my lady. You cannot go out there like this."

You shook your head in protest, dusting yourself off. "I need to find my husband."

"Ma'am, please," she begged. She adjusted the glasses on the tip of her nose, furrowed brows pulled tight with her worry. "You put yourself at risk by leaving as you are. You can't help him if you, yourself, are hurt."

You pressed the meat of your palm to your temple, staving off a headache forming there. You couldn't sleep, without Dream, it was far and few and unpleasantly empty. You sighed, thinking for a moment before resigning with the nod of your head. "Alright," you said, choosing to ease your dear friend's worry. "I'll rest, but then I go straight to them."

She licked her lips, looking down at the ground for a moment. "My lady—if I may," she trailed off, thinking before she spoke again, "the realm needs you."

"The realm has you." You trusted Lucienne to take your place while you were away. She was more than capable of holding the realm together, as far as the residents go.

"I'm just a dream," she shook her head, adjusting her glasses and placing her arms behind her back again, still gripping her journal. "You're his wife. Lord Morpheus is the heart of the Dreaming, you are the heart of Lord Morpheus. The realm needs you." She tilted her head, looking away to organize her thoughts again, careful of her words as though she were speaking to a tempered Dream.

"Some of the dreams are beginning to doubt Lord Morpheus will return," she began slowly. "Some believe that, if you find him…you will abandon them, too."

Your lips parted as you listened to the news. "They think we will leave them behind?" you wondered. "Have they no faith in us?"

"It's not a matter of faith as much as it is a matter of uncertainty. One of the Endless has abandoned their duties before,” her words were guarded. She did not look at you as easily as she said it, uncertain of what your response would be.

Instead you merely sighed and clenched your jaw, looking down as you took her words into consideration. You straightened your back again, “What will you have me do, Lucienne? Leave him?” The thought of it made your blood run cold.

Lucienne sighed. “The walls are cracking. The residents are wavering. I think he would want you to keep the realm safe first.” There was a long pause before she continued, “Perhaps you should assure everyone, mend the damage, then search for him when you have any idea as to where he actually is.” It did not come out as an insult, more as a plea for your ear.

You thought in silence for a while, trying to see if there was another way. Another way to restore the realm’s calm without the expense of leaving your husband to fend for himself, wherever he was. He could be in danger for all you knew. But if he was not in the realm, it would suffer. If you were not in the realm, it would suffer. Lucienne was right, you were the only one who could keep the Dreaming intact, even if only for a little while, until you were certain you knew where Morpheus was. Until you were certain you could find him again.

You looked down at your feet and sighed, defeated by Lucienne's better judgment to your love-rotten mind. You nodded your head and agreed. “Very well. I will,” you swallowed hard before looking up again. “But as soon as I have anything, I find Morpheus.”

She did not argue. “Of course, my lady.”

~

Without Morpheus' magic, it took three years for your presence alone to heal the cracks in the foundation. When you returned, the residents of the Dreaming eased their worries and allowed you liberty not to be too concerned about their loyalty.

It was tiring—lonesome—to have no clue as to where your husband could've been. Lucienne passed on any information she could, but she had her own responsibilities to the library.

You'd hoped to find him in sleep, as all people did—but even there, your wishes were not answered. Nevertheless, you resigned to bed for the first time in over a week. You, admittedly, did not require much sleep, but without Dream, sleep was much harder to acquire anyway.

Your hand brushed against the empty spot beside you. His pillow was cold, his sheets colder. You laid back gently against your own with a heavy sigh and felt the tears before they were even a thought in your mind. The sobs shook more gently from you, having grown used to the feeling over the past few years. Part of you feels guilty for grieving so much. It's one of the reasons it took so long, your heart was hurting and hope was always wavering because of it. Sleep did not ease you for a long time that night, when you slept and dreamt the first dream in a long time.

A dream through the vision of another's eyes.

High over the expanse of trees. The sounds of other birds, flapping wings. Blue skies, green fields. Then a house, a mansion.

A strange air. A dark presence.

You woke up with a start, breath heavy and loud as your pulse roared in your ears. Raising a hand to ease your thumping heart, you calmed yourself enough to recount the dream that had whispered in your ear.

Jessamy, that beautiful bird.

In the next second, you were dressed in your robes and off to the library. Upon turning the corner to see her stocking shelves, you rushed toward her with a quiet exclamation. "Lucienne!"

She turned to you in a heartbeat, attentive and alert, "What is it?"

You smiled, one of the first genuine smiles she'd seen on you in years. "Jessamy. She showed me where he is. I didn't see him, but I saw a house."

"Are you going there?" she wondered, immediately concerned for your welfare.

"I have to," you take Lucienne's hands. "If there's any chance she's right, I have to take it. You're in charge until I return, and I will be back soon."

Lucienne nodded dutifully, though you could see her hesitance to let her go. But you are the queen, and she is your humble servant. "Be safe, my queen."

"I always am."

And then you were flying into the Waking World, a white crow's wings carrying you across the skies. You searched for her, which was a lot easier than searching for your husband's mysterious location.

You found her perched under a tree, and you shifted upon arrival to greet her. Her wings spread wide in greeting and you smiled. "Jessamy! I've missed you," you held out a hand for her and she stood on your wrist as you brought her up to your level. "Where is he?"

She turned her head in the direction of the large manor she'd shown you in your dreams. Flying away again, Jessamy bid you to take her lead. You transformed in a lunge, chasing after her on nimble paws.

You came up on the manor, watched as she perched on a tree. She turned her head to you, giving a slight bow. You continued on, slowing as you came up on a stray entrance to the house, a tiny hole in the foundation at the side just big enough for you to slip in.

As you squeezed through, you looked around at the grand place. It was an old manor, very traditional and belonging to a family of high standing. You padded along the halls, looking at the architecture and furniture, the vases and paintings.

The sound of voices down the hall had you rushing to find a corner to hide in. You crouched under a chair in the hall just as a tall man dressed in expensive clothes and white hair combed from his face. He had a beard of white, a cane to help him walk. As he passed by you, you followed after, staying low to the ground as you traveled along the wall to remain hidden.

His swift steps resounded along the halls as you followed. He stopped. You stilled. As he turned around, you hid behind a vase on the floor. The fur along your back stood on end, and you crouched low to the ground. His eyes swept the corridor, he hesitated, and then he continued walking once more.

You came up to a door. Turning the handles, he opened it and walked into a room. It was dark, a cellar guarded by two men armed with guns and bored-looking faces—two men who quickly stood to their feet upon his arrival.

So he was the boss. You slipped in just before the door closed, staying close to the wall as you ducked underneath the table both the guards had been sitting. You turned.

And you saw him.

You stared and gawked and gazed at Morpheus, trapped in a globe of glass without a strip of clothing to protect himself. Anger flared within you as the older man stood in front of the glass. He had a stern look on his face as he stood there, hands clasped behind his back as he balanced the cane between his fingers.

He stood there for a while, staring at your dream lord like an ant under his boot. "We've been here before," he sighed, already exhausted of the conversation. "I've asked a thousand times, and I'll ask a thousand more," he said. "Can you return my son to me?"

Morpheus said nothing as he stared with a gaze that would penetrate souls and turn men to boys. The coldness in his eyes, the chill of the silent rage in them made the room freeze.

"No?" he jabbed. "Money? Power? Anything?"

No response.

He hummed, tapping the cane behind his back. He knew the drill. "Very well then."

He left without another word.

As he walked away, you began moving again. You crawled forward, coming from underneath the table in a slow crawl to keep from being so conspicuous, your white fur making you obvious in the darkness.

As Dream stared down at his lap, his brows furrowed. He looked around slowly, sensing the presence of something nonhuman and searching for it. His eyes lifted and found you immediately. No matter who or what you were, he would sense you anywhere.

His eyes found yours, deep and sorrowful and filled with the depths of his love for you. His empty face slowly shifted, lifting in a tiny little smile as he found light in the sight of you.

Your heart cried out for him. He looked so ethereal. To others, he would be a strange creature with strange powers to behold.

But to you, he was your husband. And you loved your husband.

You took a few steps forward, quick and light on your feet. His face shifted again, and he shook his head, the movement miniscule but enough.

You stopped and tilted your head at him. Why?

You tried to step forward again. Another protest.

His eyes pleaded for your heed, teary and regretful. He opened his mouth just a crack and mouthed a simple "no".

You huffed and ignored his words. There was no way you would come this far after spending so much time searching for him, only to leave him behind once you have him in your sights again.

You bounded toward the glass. His lips parted and his eyes filled with regret. You ran across the expanse of the room, jumping over the water that lined the cage as you grew closer to the man who had been trapped here for the last five years.

As you jumped toward the glass, you hit a barrier surrounding the dome. You bounded off of it and landed on your feet, crouched still as you stared frustratedly at the glass. Shit.

The guards looked up as they caught sight of you out of the corner of their eyes. "Oi!" He turned to his friend, patting him roughly on the chest. "Where'd a fucking cat come from?"

"I don't know. Get it!"

You looked at Morpheus again, staring anxiously. He shook his head and looked toward the exit again. You mewled weakly, hesitating as you kept watching him. It had been so long…

You felt fingers brush your backside as you slipped out of the man's grip, skidding away before starting off for the door. He cursed under his breath.

You sprinted toward the closest exit you could find. You slipped through with ease, leaving the complaining man behind as you broke out into the corridor. You kept running and running, stopping only once to glance behind you to see if the halfwits were still after you.

"Hey!"

Your ears perked and you turned quickly as you stared at the man who had imprisoned your husband. He glared at you, bringing his cane up with every intention of smacking you with it.

You hissed violently, arching your back as you backed away with the swat of your paw. He swung at you, just narrowly missing. You bounded in the other direction. He walked after you quickly, just as you broke out through the front door, taking off like a bullet toward the trees.

You heard his exclamation behind you. A loud "fuck!" in the distance as you continued on into the woods surrounding the manor. He watched Jessamy fly down from the trees to fly after you. And then he watched you jump into flight with her. You heard him curse again.

Out into the woods, you stopped to catch your breath. Leaning against a tree on your own two legs now, eyes full of tears and heart full of rage, you cried. Jessamy perched in front of you, hanging her head mournfully.

"He's been in there for five years?"

She bobbed her head in confirmation. You huffed. "We have to save him," you sighed. "But they have a shield against me, I can't get to him myself."

She stared thoughtfully.

You stood straight, dusting off your robes and letting out a heavy breath. You closed your eyes for a moment, steadying yourself and wiping at your face to be rid of your tears. Jessamy flew up to a tree limb, watching and waiting for an order.

You turned toward her, running a hand through your hair to think. "Keep watch, be safe. I will return soon."

She bowed her head again, and you smiled at her as you pet her feathers. She nestled her head into your palm. She'd missed you. Wishing her farewell, you flew off again to the Dreaming.

~

Roderick Burgess stormed back down to the cellar, clutching his cane tightly in his grip. The last thing he needed to deal with was some bloody bird and a magical cat.

He approached the prison and stood there silently as Dream glared at him with more rage than he'd seen in him since he arrived, even more rage than they'd held when he was first captured.

Voice tight, Burgess watched Dream intently. He grit his teeth. "Who was the cat that came to visit you today?"

As expected, Dream said nothing. What surprised Burgess, however, was the clench of his jaw as he glared at the old man with a burning rage.

"Oh, is it someone important?" he asked, raising a brow. He thought briefly over who it could be that would pull a reaction from this stubborn god after five years of silence. He recalled the warnings he received after first capturing the Endless.

"Well, you'll have to deal with that one." They watched a raven fly off, disgruntled after being struck from a tree. The strange man who'd appeared in Burgess' house turned to him, passing caution. "Her name is Jessamy. She belongs to him."

Burgess' eyes flicked in the direction the bird had escaped. The man turned to leave before stopping abruptly, looking over his shoulder.

"Ah, how could I forget?" he spoke. "There's someone else you'll have to watch for. Much more powerful than a pesky bird."

Roderick tilted his chin, "Who?"

"His wife," he smiled, snapping the word. "The divine Y/N."

Burgess noted the sense of reverence in his voice as he spoke, such high respect for this mystery girl. He furrowed his brow, "Why would I care about his little wife?"

He almost looked offended at the phrasing as he licked his teeth, nearly scowling at the bitter old man. "Because she's the queen. The Goddess of Hope and Transformation, beloved in his realm and this one alike. She'd gone to war for your kind a few years ago." He said it with a hint of distaste.

Burgess stared thoughtfully. The man smiled a little, "Let's just say…she's not one known for letting things go." He tipped his hat, "Best of luck…to the both of us."

"Will I see you again?"

"You should hope not."

Dream's hard eyes were harder still. Roderick's lips turned into a malicious smirk that only curled Dream's anger. "Is it, perhaps…someone special?" He raised a brow. "Your goddess wife?"

Dream tilted his chin slightly, declining his gaze until his dangerous gaze looked deadly. Burgess could have sworn he saw his lip twitch. Progress.

"Perhaps I should catch her next," he suggested, treading dangerous waters. "Maybe she can give me what I want. Or motivate you."

His fists clenched until his pale knuckles were white as pearls. "Oh," he raised his brow, amused. "Have I angered you?" he asked. "Does my suggestion make you upset?"

He tapped his cane sharply against the hard, thinking to himself. "I don't think imprisonment would work on her or you. A broken heart bleeds more than a wounded one."

He didn't break his gaze away from Morpheus as he called the guards' attention. They sat up quickly as he addressed them. "If you see the cat again…"

Dream's glare challenged Roderick as his chest heaved with heavy, rageful breaths. He didn't seem to care. He turned away and started walking.

"Kill it."

~

You and Lucienne tore through the library in search of any spell that could break the one keeping Morpheus in and you out. You searched public archives, private archives, you searched books even you had only just discovered existed. You found nothing.

You continued back and forth between the Dreaming and the Waking World. Jessamy reported anything new that she could with each visit. Sometimes you snuck in yourself to make sure he was not hurt. Every time he laid eyes on you, you could see the sorrow in the depths of his soul.

Soon, my love.

Over the course of the next five years, even your own rule in the Dreaming was beginning to waver. The cracks were returning, the residents were doubting your search.

You needed Morpheus back. Jessamy seemed to feel the same.

One day, you went to visit her and your husband again. She flew back to the manor with you in tow. You walked after her silently as she made her way into the house. You followed closely, hiding when you needed.

You heard Burgess' steps as he came down the hall, bolting quickly as you hid underneath a chair. Jessamy posed on a lion taxidermy, still as the thing itself as she watched the man. You kept track of his footsteps, heard the sound of a match lighting into a flame, and then saw his shoes leave the room again after a du thump on the seat from something being thrown onto it. You came out of hiding as he left. Jessamy grabbed a match, lighting it flying away and returning with it lit as she dropped it onto a newspaper on the chair. Clever bird.

She returned to your side moments later as the fire caught and flew with you away. Two men, more guards, burst from a room to see what was happening. You saw your chance and took it, entering the cellar with Jessamy about you.

She went straight for him, and you followed as you allowed your magic to grant her more strength to break through the glass when you couldn't. She tapped her beak against the glass, a rapid peck in an attempt to get through. Morpheus watched the both of you and smiled, his eyes full of pride for his girls. It made your heart soar. You were so close to freedom, to him.

You leaned up against the barrier. Jessamy's wings and beak continued to beat against the glass. Dream reached out for the both of you, enthralled in his saviors.

Your ears rang as a loud crack sounded through the air.

You stilled as you felt warm, crimson blood against your snowy fur.

You flinched when Jessamy's mangled and bloodied body landed next to you.

There was another cock of the gun. You turned to see Burgess with it. You bent to take Jessamy in your maw, but Dream's hand tapping insistently against the glass stopped you. His tearful eyes pleaded for you, for you to leave, to flee, to save yourself and never return. He would not see you dead, too.

You faltered and looked back at Burgess, who was aiming the gun at you with a greedy scowl. You moved away just in time for the bullet to pass you. You ran toward them, heading for the open entrance as you tried to get through.

He cocked the gun and shot again, narrowly missing your fleeing body. The guards blocked your way as you tried to weave through. Burgess bent down and picked you up in a steel grip by the nape of your neck, pinching painfully as you hissed and clawed and squirmed.

He glared as he brought you up to his face, ignoring the way you scratched and bit at his wrist. Dream leaned against the glass, hands pressing against the cold material as he watched you struggle to break free.

He brought you up to his face, which proved to be a mistake as you clawed at him. As he granted you a smile, one full of malice and taunting, your ears peeled back as you hissed. Your sharp claws dug into his brow and raked down his face, scraping against his eye as he groaned loudly. He dropped you to the ground as he turned away to cover his eye. You landed on your feet and rushed away as the other guards chased after you.

"Get the damn thing!" You heard Roderick yell from the cellar.

Your heart pounded in your chest, imprinting its shape into your ribcage. As you glanced behind to see if you were being pursued, you missed the person walking around the corner. You screamed again when you were being picked up once more, squirming as a man's hands clamped around your body to keep you still as he held your arms tightly.

You yowled and hissed and screamed, trying to break free but finding it impossible to. Burgess and the guards approached, murderous intent in his eyes and frustrated exhaustion in theirs. "Bring her here."

The man holding you still, some other guard you recognized. You hissed as Burgess came to stand before you. He sneered and looked at you like a pest. You hissed again.

"Come." He turned and made his way back to the cellar, the guard holding you still as he followed. Upon re-entering the cellar, you saw Morpheus again as he sighed deeply and leaned away from the glass. You could see the fear in his eyes.

It was silent as you all just stared, watching one another with a variety of emotions. Burgess spoke.

"Now I have you and your little pet." He seemed to be proud of his achievement. He reached over and grabbed you roughly by your neck and you hissed at the pain. He turned you to face him, scoffing again before dropping you down and kicking you away from him with his expensive leather shoes. The painful sound you let out as you landed roughly on your side pained Dream as he watched you.

You looked at him, whining and trying to stand again. Burgess took quite a bit of joy in kicking you again, striking you roughly and sending you flying again.

"Father!" Alex, Burgess' son, exclaimed.

Burgess turned quickly toward him, raising his cane in his direction in a sharp warning. "Do you want to be next?"

Alex stepped back and bowed his head, staring at the floor regretfully and wincing as he heard his father strike you once more.

You didn't try to stand again. If you did, you would only hurt Morpheus by making him suffer through seeing you hit again. You stayed down.

Burgess huffed and turned to Dream. "Let's see how much you love your little wife."

There were no words to describe the look in your husband's eyes as he glared at Burgess. It was like watching an entire universe fill with blackness, a darkness that consumes galaxies, devours supernovas, destroys black holes from the inside, out. His jaw clenched, his breath heaved, vengeful tears rolled down the tip of his nose and dropped down from his chin.

Burgess huffed. "Keep her here. We shall teach them both a lesson."

He began to leave before turning toward Alex, "And clean that damn thing up." He stormed out of the cellar, leaving you, Alex, and the guards behind.

Slowly, Alex took Jessamy into his hands and stood back to his feet, staring sorrowfully at you and Morpheus before turning and taking his leave.

You sighed and laid on the cold floor, defeated for the moment as the weakness and exhaustion in your muscles crept in. Maybe just a little bit of sleep would do you good. Just a few minutes…

"Oi!"

Your eyes opened again, heavy as you looked at the guards again. "Don't let it sleep," he said to one of the guards. Give it a tablet or something."

Another guard pulled a bottle from his pocket as he rolled his eyes, walking over to you and bending down to grab you. You mewled as he grabbed your sore neck and forces your mouth open to shove a pill inside. You tried to force it out, but he was very thorough in ensuring it went down.

And once the pillow was swallowed, he groaned as he walked away. "Have to go wash my fucking hands now. That's disgusting," he mumbled. "Watch 'em."

"Yeah, yeah." He kicked his feet up as he sat at the desk and sighed. "Hate this fucking job."

You laid there, weak eyes watching Morpheus. He was so beautiful. You could stare at him for hours…

~

You didn't know how long you spent trapped in that cellar—at least a month, if you were thinking correctly with the passing of time. Burgess kept you weak and awake, a metal collar chained around your neck tight enough so you couldn't slip out. It was bolted to the floor, you wouldn't be escaping anytime soon as you were too hurt to shift out of them.

Burgess would come to the cellar every day and ask things of Dream that he could and would not give. When he gave silence to the man's pesky questions, he would turn to you and have the guards kick you around to encourage Morpheus. You hated it, being the center of his torment.

And what of Lucienne? You hadn't returned when you said and now you were trapped too. How were you to help if you couldn't even get out of your own chains?

You didn't know how long you spent down there with your husband, you held on for the sole purpose of ensuring him that you would both make it out okay. You were his hope, you would not break.

Burgess was angry when he came to the cellar one day. You sighed as you adjusted yourself to sit, ignoring the ache in your bone and muscle as you stared at him. Your fur was grimy, still stained with the blood of dear Jessamy and darkened by dirt and blood of your own.

Your ear flicked as you just stared at Burgess, who didn't regard you as he made his way to Dream. He came up and leaned on the glass, watching him through one eye as the other scarred shut after your defilement. It was a great look on him.

He was silent for a while, he liked to relish in the power of his own silence but despised the silence of others after he'd demanded a reply.

He finally spoke, stressed and annoyed as ever. "The woman who lives with me has gone and robbed me of my fortune," he said.

You remembered this woman. She was kind to you, at least—Ethel Cripps. She used to keep out food for you. On the occasion that she could, she'd even allow you a moment of comfort and a scratch behind the ears. You hadn't seen her since you were captured.

"She's also robbed you," he continued. You tilted your head. "She's taken your helm, your sand, and your ruby." As if you needed another problem to solve…

"Now, I can unlock this, you can go after her, I can let your little thing go…if you give me what I've been asking for. Wealth, youth, immortality." There was a long pause, frustration at Morpheus' silence. "Oh, you're a god. These things are nothing to you."

Another pause. "Don't you want your weapons and your freedom? To see your wife as something other than a bloody cat being thrown around like a ragdoll?"

Dream tilted his head but gave no other response. Burgess' anger got the better of him as he grew impatient, frustrated.

"Speak to me! Speak to me! Speak to me!" He punctuated each word with a sharp strike at the glass with his cane. You watched silently, intently. Your ear twitched and the movement caught his eye as he turned toward you. As he stepped forward, you stood to start backing away, stopped by the chain as you pulled on it to move away some more.

Dream practically jumped to the glass, the rage flaring.

Burgess raised his cane high. "Speak!"

You crouched in anticipation of the strike.

Alex's hand took hold of the cane just before it came down on you. You stared, frozen with fear as your wide eyes went unblinking.

"It's all right, Father."

He turned quickly, dropping his pursuits to glare offended at his son. "Get away from me! If you were any kind of son to me…" He swung his cane at the boy.

Alex struggled not to be hit, moving out of the way as the cane swung and he flailed his arms to catch it. Your heart pounded in your chest, recovering still from such a close encounter. 

"If Randall were alive today–"

Alex grabbed it once more, firmly halting his father's attempts to strike him once more. "If Randall were alive, he would hate you as much as I do!"

Burgess stopped and huffed, forcing Alex away and not anticipating him to push back. The force was too harsh for the both of them as Burgess stumbled back, losing grip of his cane after being knocked off balance.

With a sickening smack and a surprised grunt, Burgess fell back against and hit his head against the glass. He brought a hand back to see the blood smeared on his fingers, slumping to the ground as you just watched.

Alex and the guards rushed to him. He wheezed as his blood leaked out over the cold, hard floors. He turned weakly to Morpheus as his eyes fluttered and his breath became labored with the loom of death. "You're never getting out of there," he said, eyes drifting. "Never."

His eyes found you, hooded and fading. You stared at him, your own eyes wide as you watched him. A heavy, cold hand reached out toward you, wanting so desperately to feel one last shred of hope before he left his mortal coil forever.

You stood and turned your back to him.

You heard his hand fall to the floor, a dull thump. You sighed, relief flooding you now that the source of the cruelty was gone…

Alex backed away from his father's body, disoriented and dazed as he stared. He shook his head and looked around with a face etched in confusion and fear.

As you turned around, standing to your feet, Alex's gaze found your thoughtful eyes. You blinked and turned your head to your husband.

Morpheus stood in his cage, his lean body stretching tall as he reached out toward the glass. Your tail and ears twitched, wide eyes watching Alex's gaze hold strong to Morpheus in all his power. He looked hypnotized by your husband's glory as he held his hand out. Just a little more, and you could leave this place forever.

"Don't do it, sir." You hissed at the guard, who ignored you as he continued to plead with Alex. "He'll kill us."

Alex didn't listen, a dopey grin spreading over his lips as he brought Morpheus closer to freedom.

"What would your father say?"

Alex stopped, returning his hand to his side as he returned to his sullen manner. He backed away from the glass, gripping onto reality once more. He tore his gaze from Dream, finding yours shortly after. "I need to think."

He began to walk away, headed toward the door to leave it all behind. A tiny huff left you as you sat, bowing your head in defeat.

~

It was late that night when Alex returned. You hardly realized it was him, laying limply on the ground as you mourned sleep. You didn't remember the last time you shut your eyes and dreamt.

Quiet, slow footsteps approached you, and you perked your ears slightly at the sound. When you felt cold fingers on your fur, you jumped to your feet and backed away, hissing and arching your back violently. Alex sat before you and frowned, his constant sorrow clear on his face as you swatted.

He knelt in front of you, his hands turned up in his lap to show surrender. "I won't hurt you…"

You stayed away but he watched your stance change as you watched him carefully. He moved slowly, his hands reaching toward you. You backed up as far as you could, once again tugging on the chains around your neck as you looked between him and Morpheus rapidly. "I'm not going to hurt you," Alex bid gently as he finally took the chain in his hand.

"Alex," one of the guards tried.

He just shook his head. "Please." The guard went quiet.

You froze and closed your eyes shut, your breath huffing out of your lungs in a fast, thick rhythm.

You heard the click of a lock.

You felt the weight around your neck lessen until it was no more.

Opening your eyes again, you looked over at Alex to see him holding the heavy metal collar in his hands.

You stayed there, still frozen in place as you stared, wide-eyed.

Alex took in the sight of you, grimy with dirt and blood, the fur around your neck thinner and slightly discolored with the rust of the chains. Snow white fur was now mud brown and copper red and mold green. Alex sighed.

He held his hand out again, and you flinched away from him as he tried to set his hands on your head. He dropped it back into his lap.

"I'm sorry…" he breathed. "For all of this. You don't deserve this—neither of you deserves this."

Still, you stayed. Alex could mistake you for a statue if he didn't know better.

"You can go."

"Alex–"

"Please," he said sternly. He turned to you again, "You're free to leave… I'm sorry."

You looked toward Dream, who watched closely. As you stood up straighter, testing the waters with movements slow and measured, you took a small step away. Then another. And then another.

When Alex made no move to stop you, you moved, to the best of your ability, away and toward your dear husband once more. You stared at him, mewing meekly.

You turned to Alex, who gave a regretful frown. You set a paw on the barrier. He shook his head.

"I'm sorry…" he said. "I'm sorry, I can't… I can't let him free, he'll kill us."

You propped up against the barrier, more insistent that time as flares of gold and white kept you from your beloved. You mewled.

Alex took a dragging step backward, shaking his head reluctantly. "No, I… I can't. I can't do it." He swallowed thickly as you got off the barrier and looked at him, meowing again in an attempt to persuade him again. To no avail.

"I'm sorry, I can't," he breathed. He looked down at his feet, avoiding Morpheus' dangerous gaze. "You should leave." Stepping back again, he turned around and left briskly with the shake of his head.

You huffed silently, turning to face your husband again with a sorrowful gaze. He leaned toward you, resting his forehead to the glass as he sighed. His eyes darted to the door and then back at you. You folded your ears back. He did it again, more insistent this time.

Leave, before you get hurt again.

You mewled, sitting to stare at him.

You heard the guards shift behind you, standing from their chairs as they groaned. One of the men spoke, muttering under his breath as though you could not hear him. "Fuck this. He's going to get us all killed." Then, in a lower voice, he whispered, "The Magus said kill it, so I'm going to kill it."

You heard him step forward, and then a protest from the other man. "It's a goddess."

"It's a cat." He scoffed, "Man up."

Dream gave the approaching man a hard glare, hoping to deter him and merely receiving a pause before he was walking again, trying to sneak up on you. Dream gave you a pleading look as you stayed there, staring at him remorsefully.

His lips cracked open and formed a single, silent word coming from deep within his soul as his eyes welled with tears.

Go.

Just as the guard came up behind you, lunging forward in an attempt to bring you into his clutches, you darted away. You ran and you ran and you ran, both men in pursuit as you escaped them with as much speed and strength as your weak body could muster, running on nothing but pain and adrenaline.

As you broke out into the world for the first time in a month, you had no time to smell the fresh air or feel the night sky on your fur. You ran and ran and kept running until you found yourself crossing the threshold of the Waking World and the Dreaming.

~

"My lady…"

A mumble sounded in your ears, a far away feeling fluttering over you as if your soul and your mind were not attached to your body.

"My lady."

Your awakening was violent, like being awoken by a gunshot or a million trumpets blaring in your ears. You shot up and tried to find steady ground in a world without. You kept slipping, not quite finding a grip on the plane you found yourself in.

"Calm, my lady," a voice beckoned. "Calm."

You looked over to see Lucienne, kneeling beside you with a face deep with worry. You hadn't seen her smile in some time.

You caught your breath, which you only just now realized was aching your lungs. A warm hand grabbed yours and you held on tight as you looked around yourself. Upon setting your sights on a world of black sand and sea, you sighed. Home. You were home.

"My lady," Lucienne's voice called your attention again. You turned toward her again, moving to stand, to brush the sand from your robes.

"What happened to you?"

You followed her gaze to your robes where you met the source of much of her concern. You were covered in dried blood and grime, your skin was discolored from the bruising…

You met her eyes again. "I…"

She sighed and offered a kind smile. "We should get you back to the castle. You've been missed…"

You nodded and walked with her toward the grand entrance of the kingdom. The doors opened, and you stepped through to see the kingdom far darker and far more desolate than you last left it.

You swallowed thickly as you walked with Lucienne, immediately noticing how much the population had dwindled. There were still plenty of Dreams and Nightmares running around, but there were also plenty you were missing.

Upon seeing you, faces lit up all around, deterred only when they soon noticed the tarnishing of your white robes. You kept waking, holding Lucienne's hand as you went.

Once in the shelter of the throne room, you collapsed at the foot of the stairs. You were still recovering, the wound was so fresh…

"My lady!" Lucienne exclaimed, coming to your side once more to sit next to you.

"I'm okay," you assured her, holding out a steady hand.

"What happened?" she asked again, more desperate this time for her queen.

"I…" You sighed to gather your thoughts, closing your eyes for a moment before finally replying. You were not used to talking much.

"I went to the manor again with… with Jessamy." You swallowed thickly. "We had come so close to freeing him but… but they killed her." Your fists clenched as the memory invaded your mind. She watched your face as you recalled it, far off and angry, your fingers brushing blood on your cheek. "They slaughtered her."

Lucienne looked away, the wheels turning in her head as she processed what you'd just told her. Jessamy was gone. She was dead. Lucienne would never see her again…

"I tried to run but they caught me…locked me in the cellar with him and," your eyes shut and you shook your head gently to be rid of the memory, "and abused me to hurt him."

"I'm sorry, my queen," Lucienne spoke gently, bowing her head.

"Burgess is dead."

She looked at you again, her gaze snapping toward you. "Is Lord Morpheus–"

"No." You cleared your throat. "His son let me go but is too afraid of Dream to set him free. I only barely got out before the guards were after me again."

Lucienne looked away thoughtfully, shaking her head in an attempt to take everything in. "My lady…" she sighed. "You should rest. You've been through…a lot."

You cleared your throat, looking at yourself again as you nodded. "Yes, you're right. I should." Again you nodded. "Alright."

You stood to your feet, peeling your robe off of you and standing in your gown. You turned to leave, stopping just at the beginning of a hall before turning toward her again. "Thank you, Lucienne… I missed you deeply."

"Of course, my lady," she smiled gently. You bowed your head in a gentle nod. She softened some more. "I missed you, too, Y/N."

A soft smile widened your lips just a smudge and you nodded again before turning to leave. You locked yourself in your bedroom and prepared your bath, sinking into the hot water and letting it remove the filth from your skin.

It wasn't until you were washed clean that you began to cry again.

~

It amazed you how quickly war could befall the world of man. How quickly human squabbles could grow into something so devastating.

You would have to leave again. Humanity could not survive without hope; and in a war, you were detrimental to that spark of life.

After taking time to recover—attempting and failing to mend some of the cracks in the Dreaming—you began to go back to the manor again to persuade Alex to set your husband free, to no avail. The guards still tried to hurt you and Morpheus still tried to get you to stop coming back for him.

You wept alone in the woods for a long time as you considered your choice, your duty.  You would have to leave him, and you don't know when you'd be back.

You just wanted to see him before you left, to look upon his face without the danger of being shot while you were in a vulnerable form.

As you walked into the house, dodging the residents who walked the halls for work or leisure, your steps were quick and silent as they always had been.

You found him in his study, the door cracked open as if beckoning you. You nudged the door with your body and ventured inside. His back was turned, hunched over his work.

You called his attention with a gentle mewl, looking up with more narrowed eyes. Alex turned and laid eyes on you. For a moment, you could see the flash of fear as he saw you, afraid you were going to hurt him.

But you just stared at him, unblinking and still.

"Hello," he said tentatively. "Um… if this is about him, I… Look, I don't want him here anymore than you do. But if I let him go… he could come after us. He could hurt me or-or Paul. I can't let him." He swallowed thickly. "I'm sorry."

You did nothing in response. Alex watched you stare at him. He sighed, "I don't know how to help you."

You turned your attention to a newspaper discarded somewhere in the room. The headline read "SECOND WORLD WAR BREAKS" in big, bold lettering.

His brows furrowed and he set down the pen he'd been holding in his hand. "What?" he asked. "I don't understand."

He heard a tiny huff come from you, frustrated that he hadn't put it together yet. You walked over to the paper, dragged it over to where you were sitting, and tapped on it repeatedly.

"Oh," he mumbled. "Oh."

Now he'd gotten it.

"I…I can't enlist. I wouldn't know the first thing."

You huffed louder this time. You shoved the paper closer and sat on it. You tilted your head expectantly, the closest you could get to a brow raise in this form.

"Oh, you have to go?" You curled your tail. "Of course… It's your job." You laid down, practically sighing your relief.

"Well," he mumbled, "you can go… I'm certainly not keeping you."

You yowled at him, losing your patience with his thick-headedness. You stood and circled your spot, pacing the entirety of the room with senseless noise before stopping at the door and sitting next to it. He felt like a toddler being scolded by a cross mother with the way you "spoke" to him.

He seemed to put it together, at least. "Oh… you want to see him."

You answered his question by walking out of the door. He stood and followed you, walking behind as you led the way to the cellar where your husband was being kept. He opened the creaking door to let you in.

The guards stood quickly at the sight of you, pointing their guns. You paid them no mind as you continued walking. Alex was quick to stop them. "No, don't shoot!" he exclaimed. "It's alright. Let her through."

They were confused by the order, but obeyed nonetheless. They sat back down, half-heartedly continuing their games and light chatter as Alex closed the door and sat by it, watching.

You locked eyes with Morpheus, continuing closer until you were forced to stop by the boundary spell set against you. You sat down and looked up at your husband, taking in the sight of him with sad eyes.

He looked back, seeming to read every single intent in your eyes as you watched one another. After a while, you saw a stray tear slipping down the apple of his cheek as his wet gaze bore into yours.

Your own fur was damp now as a tear slipped from your own eye, a mirror of him. You hated to leave him here, to go to aid in humanity's problems when it was humanity who stole your husband from you. But you knew you couldn't look at it that way. You were hope, and if you lost that in yourself, they would all be doomed.

So for hours you sat and stared at one another silently. For hours you memorized every little detail in Dream's face and imprinted it in your mind.

And all those hours would never be enough as you walked out of that room for the last time in the next ten years of war and recovery.

~

"How many are there?"

Lucienne walked at your side as you ventured slowly down the bridge leading to the palace. The realm's various colors and lusters had dulled. The stoney bridge was dark and desolate, cracking at the edges with patches of eroded rock. The fingers which curled around the bridge were deformed, a couple have fallen off and descended into the waters below.

You ran your hand over one with a sigh and the shake of your head. "Nearly half the residents have left since last you were here, ma'am," Lucienne reported.

"Half?" You turned to her with wide eyes, "Half the residents are gone?"

She nodded, "They feared you weren't returning either. If the Queen Mother leaves and the King isn't here to rule, there's no reason to stay. They felt as though the Dreaming was…an abandoned kingdom."

"They know about the war," you argued feebly. "They know it is my duty to tend to the humans in their times of need."

"And some went looking for you to aid so that they might bring you back when the job is done," she said. She blinked a few times and turned her gaze to the floor. "But…" 

"But?" you urged.

"Others weren't so sure."

You shook your head and sighed, continuing to walk faster down the bridge to get to the palace. The closer to the palace you got, the more Dreams and Nightmares you spotted. They must have been fleeing the outskirts of the crumbling realm where it was most dangerous. Upon your entry, you saw how much had been destroyed by their king and queen's absence.

"And what of the realm?" You said, going to some of the residents who approached you, relief in their faces. You gave a kind smile and cradled their grasps.

"The palace is the most intact thing there is. But the cracks are larger and many of the rooms have been closed off or have completely disappeared. Half the books in the library are either empty or their words are dissolving off the pages. Towns and villages have been abandoned. It's hardly safe for anyone anymore."

You set your hand against the castle doors, bowing your head and sighing before turning back to your faithful librarian. "Move the Dreams who have lost their homes into the palace. Those remaining may come as well at their leisure."

"Of course, my lady. Shall I gather the remaining books and search for any spells to free–"

"Magic won't work," you said, pushing open the doors to get to the throne room. You sat on the steps leading up to Dream's throne, your robe splaying out over the stairs. Lucienne could see the blue skies replaced with grey clouds darker than she last saw them.

"I've tried a hundred times and then another hundred times over." You set your face in your hands, "I have no power in that house, much less that cellar, while he's locked up as he is. He's trapped in, and I'm trapped out."

Lucienne thought for a moment, reaching a hand out in offering. "Well, hope–"

"Hope took three years last time. It will take longer this time. I can't do another gods-knows-how-long away from him," you said. You swallowed hard, wiping your face in your hand and urging the frustration out of you. "I haven't even seen him yet. I came straight here."

Lucienne tried to say something to help, but she had nothing. She shook her head, taking a step back. "I don't know what to do, my lady."

"Neither do I."

There was a long silence between the both of you as you thought about your next course of action. Your mind was slow, hazy from a decade of nonstop work. You could hardly think straight with ten years of no real sleep… well, longer than that without your Dream.

You sighed and stood to your feet. "I will rest for now. I need my strength. Tomorrow… I will call forth the Fates."

Lucienne's eyes widened in protest as she heard your plan. She stepped forward again, "The Fates? Are you sure that is a wise decision?"

"It's my last hope, Lucienne."

She paused at the desperation in her voice, bowing her head again as she let a sigh pass through her lips. She straightened her back and nodded once, her worry clear across her face. "Very well."

~

You walked through a meadow of flowers and fields, looking over the rising sun as the golden light gleamed against your skin. You stood there for another moment, taking in a deep breath of the fresh dew-filled air.

You shed your robe and began to shake it, wishing away the grey skies and dark clouds to bag the rising sun in your cloak with one grand sweep across the sky. As you set the robe back over your shoulders, you examined the symphony of pinks and yellows and blues with a gentle smile.

Sunrises and sets were promises of rebirth and new beginnings for every day and for every night, a promise of new hope. It was what the Fates required.

You swept your robes again and took to the skies, appearing upon a little cottage where wind chimes rang peacefully in the gusts of morning air. Since one could call upon the Fates with the coming of the wind, you could pluck the chimes from the porch to offer to them. It was what the Fates required.

With two of three items collected, you could move on to the final prize.

You stood in another meadow, one erupting with more colorful growth than the last as a cacophony of flowers fluttered with the kisses of butterfly wings. You looked over the creatures with smiles before opening your robes. They swarmed around you in moments, disappearing in flocks of color into the sunrise in your cloak. Butterflies were symbols of transformation and hope throughout time. It was what the Fates required.

You let your robes fall over your form again, turning toward one of the trees. There are chrysalises hanging onto a branch, cocooned in their catalysts. You wrapped your fingers around it, filling it with a piece of your magic before breaking it off the tree. You brushed your finger over one of the leaves and set the branch back in your coat.

And again, you were gone. As you set your feet over the growth of a field of black grass, you looked around for a moment.

"I, Lady Y/N, Goddess of Hope and Transformation, summon The Fates...the Three-Who-Are-One, the One-Who-Is-Three. The Hecate."

A rumble of thunder rolled in the sky as you directed your gaze. A strike of lightning flashed before you saw them. You could still hear the faint melody of the wood chimes as you laid eyes upon the Maiden, the Mother, and the Crone.

They descended their gazes upon you as they took you in for the first time in many, many years.

"Y/N…" the Mother began, "How have you been, luvvy?"

The Maiden added, "How're the humans treating you?"

"How's the husband treating you?" the Crone asked.

"Now, sister-self," the Mother scolded with a smile on her face. "You know the answer to that."

The Crone chuckled lightly, turning back to you as she tilted her head, "I suppose you've come for your husband?"

You smiled, despite the annoyance you felt for her jest. "Surprise," you said. "Ever the wisest."

"What is it, dear?" the Maiden kindly inquiried.

You nodded gently. "I do hope you can offer the help I require."

"Well, what are we here for?" The Mother grinned, holding her hands out between her sister-selves.

"We do, it seems," the Maiden began, "hold a debt…"

"But you brought us gifts anyway." The Crone's smile seemed always shifty to you as she pointed her eyes toward your cloak.

You directed your smile toward her, opening your robes and allowing your gifts to jump out, offering them up to the Fates. The butterflies swarmed chaotically around the women, curling around the forms, until they settled in the Maiden's skin with their butterfly kisses.

The sunrise slipped from your robes and seeped into the sky like a great painting. The last butterfly landed against the Maiden's nose, fluttering its wings before laying them flat against her face. It seeped into her cheeks, the patterns of its wings turning into freckles against her skin.

The Mother smiled, "You may ask us three questions, and you shall have one answer from each of us."

"Thank you, ladies," you smiled. "My first question. My husband has been trapped for 33 years, will he be free?"

A vision of Dream in his captivity flashed before you as the Maiden's voice filled your ears.

"Lord Morpheus will walk freely again upon the Dreaming and the Earth." You watched Dream's eyes open, his intense gaze glinting back at you. "You will see your husband free again, his captivity is not an eternal one."

You turned back to her, desperation filling you all-too suddenly. "When?"

"Come now, dear," she chuckled. "One question. You know this."

"Of course," you sighed, offering a smile. "My apologies. For my second question, I need to know: is there a spell that I could use to set him free?"

You saw visions of the gold bindings trapping your husband, the spell you analyzed over and over again to try and come up with a counter-spell, all in vain.

The Mother spoke, "The magic set against you is strong. Unfortunately, it's strong enough to thwart your temperament, even with how powerful you are."

You sighed and shook your head. "Of course," you mumbled. You straightened your back again, "For my last question… The Dreaming is crumbling, how can I save it without my husband's power?"

The meadow you had just come from combined with the sunrise you collected in your robe. Butterflies flew around you as they perched on the flowers in the field.

"You are a symbol of hope and change," the Crone said. "To maintain the Dreaming's powers, hearts must have hope and minds must be changed."

Straight to the point, as always.

You offered a smile, nodding gently. "Thank you, dear Fates."

They tilted their heads, chuckling lightly. "Until next time, lady goddess."

They left you to a sunset, a couple of butterflies flitting around the space as you pulled the branch from your robes. "That was helpful," you muttered, cradling the branch.

"Well," Lucienne walked forward, her hands behind her back, "the Fates have never been the most helpful beings." You sighed, handing the cocoons to Lucienne. "What about these?" she questioned as she held them in a tender grip.

"Those were not for the Fates." You walked with her by your side. "These are for the Dreaming. The people need hope." You looked at her, "If they survive as the Dreaming falls, we shall have it."

~

Too many years had passed since your husband was captured. Alex still refused to let him go until he promised not to do them harm. You could not do anything to help. You just stalled around the house in hopes of stumbling upon an answer. It was the only thing that seemed to be worth it.

Nearly all the residents of the Dreaming were gone. As the world crumbled, so did their last hope that you or Dream would come through.

The cocoons never hatched. They sat idly by in the castle. You were clinging to the words the Fates had told you as a century without Morpheus passed.

"You will see your husband free again…"

It was the last hope you had left. You couldn't give up.

You sat under the crumbling ceiling of the castle, your head resting against your arms as you pulled your legs to your chest.

It had been a particularly hard day for you. You walked along the Dreaming, taking in the new damage and found that your decaying garden had disappeared completely. It was one of the only things that had remained mostly intact, something you and Morpheus had built together after you were married. Now it was gone.

You were fading, your last ounce of hope shriveling up like your garden. Your tears stained your sleeves as you wiped your face, sniffling quietly.

But then you felt a strange shift in the air that made you feel… something. A feeling akin to pure elation.

You flew back to the Waking World with a speed you hadn't breached in a very long time. You nearly stumbled onto your feet when you shifted again, taking off running toward the manor as you felt the pull growing quickly.

The humans who spotted you in the hall weren't paid nearly as much to care, it seemed, as they let you pass without more protest than a little call of annoyance.

You rushed into the cellar, hissing at the guns pointed at you. Their attention was stolen as glass shattered, a bright shine blinding the guards as they shielded their hands, shouting over the howling of the wind.

Morpheus climbed out of the remains of the dome, lean body maneuvering easily. "Oi! Show me your hand!" One of the guards yelled as Dream balled his fist.

He raised his hand to his face and took a deep breath. A gust of sand flew out from his hand, surrounding the guards in his magic. They fell to the ground as sleep overtook them.

You stood there, eyes wide, chest rising and falling out of breath as you gazed at him. You shifted, a soft glow emanating from your body as your white robes settled over your body once more.

"Morpheus," you whispered, eyes glistening with tears full of rejoice.

The smile that took his face was utterly breathtaking. He held a hand to you, beckoning you closer with his own tear-filled eyes.

"My love."

You rushed into his arms. As soon as your bodies collided, his own dark robes materialized over his. He held you closely, practically crushing you to his chest as you buried your face in the crook of his neck. His hand cradled the back of your head as you huffed out a long, shuddering breath at the feeling of finally holding your husband again.

He pulled you closer still, swaying gently as you enveloped him in all your warmth and love. "At long last," he breathed, nestling deeper into your neck.

"My husband," you sighed as you allowed your tears to freely spill. "I missed you so much. I'm sorry I could not set you free. I tried so hard, it never worked."

"Shh," he whispered. He pulled you back to look at you. "Do not fret anymore, my darling wife." His voice washed over you like honey, soothing you as you finally heard it for the first time in over a century. You melted against him.

"I have something I must do before we return," he breathed, cradling your head still before leaning in and pressing his lips to your forehead, his eyes closed shut and his heart full. "Wait for me?"

You nodded, pulling away from him and cradling his face in your hands. You brushed your thumbs over his cheeks, under his bottom lashes. How wonderful it felt to have him in your hands again. You brought him back down to your forehead and nodded a second time. "Always."

His tangible form slipped in your hands, and you turned to look at the cellar you would soon be abandoning forever. You knelt down next to the two guards lying on the floor, lost in a terrible dream, you assumed. Laying your fingers against their foreheads, you pressed against their temples as you exercised your will, a will you would soon place upon the rest of the house.

You would not kill those who worked under Burgess, but you could not let them roam free for what they did to you, to your husband. They'd stripped you of so much over the last century, the very fiber of your being brought into question with the creeping slivers of doubt that you would never see Morpheus free again.

That was what you would do. Replicate the hurt, the lost, the pain and suffering. As you let the heartbreak of the last century consume you, it embedded itself in the house like a plague, seeping into every corner and taking over every life that they would be cursed to be without hope for as long as they lived.

And when Morpheus returned to his last deal of business with Alexander Burgess, he took your hand and returned with you to the Dreaming.

~

"Morpheus," you whispered, cradling his head in your lap as he lay in the black sand. "My love, wake up."

You heard shuffling in the sand and looked up as you saw Lucienne rushing over. "Sir!" She exclaimed. "Sir!"

You beamed as you beckoned her closer. She knelt down in the sand beside him. She offered her hand as he took in a breath, his eyes slowly cracking open to reveal the both of you.

"Sir, it's me," she smiled. "It's Lucienne."

He smiled, slow and soft as he saw her, his faithful librarian. "Lucienne."

"You're home," she beamed, looking between the two of you as you lay there, finally reunited.

"I am." He grabbed her hand as the both of you helped him to his feet. He looked toward the doors which lead to his kingdom, his realm of dreams. He raised his hand, willing them to open and reveal what lay beyond them.

You could feel a pit in your stomach rising at the idea of him seeing what his realm had become. You took his hand, squeezing it gently and looking at him with pleading eyes. "Dream…"

He tilted his head, turning to you as he placed his free hand against your cheek. "What is it?" he asked gently.

Before you could reply, Lucienne was speaking for you. "Forgive me, sir, but… the realm, the palace," she said, "...they are not as you left them."

He turned his head and looked upon his desolate realm as the gates finally opened to reveal it to him, a kingdom turned to ash and rubble. Silence and despair stuck to every corner, every dark shadow cast over the land.

"What happened here?" he breathed sorrowfully. "Who did this?"

You sighed heavily, shaking your head as you stared at the perishing castle. "We tried. I tried to stop it, but I wasn't strong enough…"

Lucienne spoke up again, "My lord, you are the Dreaming, the Dreaming is you. With you gone as long as you were, the realm began to… decay and crumble."

"When I first returned two years after you'd been taken, there were only a few cracks in the foundation. It took three years to mend myself," you began, kneeling down beside a few stray blades of grass that drooped low with scarce life. "When I left for the second time… nearly half the realm had been destroyed."

He took in this information with a frown, his eyes pricking with tears at what he learned. "And the residents? The palace staff?"

Lucienne sighed, "I'm afraid most have gone."

"Gone?"

"Some went looking for you, sir. Some looked for your lady while she was away at war, and then off again when she was caught by Burgess."

"And the others?"

"They thought, perhaps," she tread lightly with her words, "you'd grown weary of your duties and–"

"What?" Morpheus questioned, unbelieving of such an idea. "Abandoned them? Had they so little faith in me, even with my wife here to uphold it? Do my own subjects not know me?"

Lucienne jumped in, adjusting the glasses on the tip of her nose to sit further on the bridge. "If I may, sir. It wouldn't be the first time one of the Endless had just–"

"Enough."

"Morpheus," you whispered, taking his hand again.

"I will not have Dreams and Nightmares preying on the Waking World," he declared. "I will bring them all back. I made this realm once, Lucienne. I will make it again."

He began his trek through the realm as the both of you lingered at the door. You shared a look with your librarian, taking her offered arm and walking with her behind him.

During the walk, you watched as Morpheus' hand flexed at his side, like it was hurting him. He glanced over his shoulder at you, a gleam in his eyes that made your heart jump in your chest. You stepped forward again and took his hand, pressing yourself into his side. Oh, how good it felt to be within his embrace.

~

You finally managed to steal him away for a moment to have him to yourself. You pulled him into the hall, holding his hand tightly. Despite the grimness of his surroundings, your presence alone seemed to put a smile on his face—a sad smile, but a smile nevertheless.

You looked back at him over your shoulder, seeing his lovestruck grin as he watched you. You paused in front of a door, hand on the handle, and chuckled lightly. The kingdom was crumbling, but you would always be as radiant as the sun.

"What?" you wondered aloud.

He stepped forward and into your personal space—not that it ever existed with him. He took your face in his hands and stroked his thumbs over your cheeks. You grabbed his wrists, returning the favor over his pulse. You smiled longingly at him.

"I've missed you dearly," he breathed against your lips.

You sighed, "And I, you." Your smile fell slightly as you stared into his star-filled eyes. "I'm sorry for not taking better care of the Dreaming. I could have avoided this."

He shook his head to silence you, leaning in even closer without yet pressing his lips to yours. "You did not disappoint me. You had nothing to do with any of this. I know you did everything within your power with Lucienne to fix this. Do not place blame where none is due. You are alright, my Y/N."

How you've missed his voice as he spoke to you in his low, velvety tones. His eyes glistened like magical waters, as if they were ponds swimming with stars.

"Will you kiss me, Dream?" you asked, gaze glued to his own.

He smiled, his eyes shifting between yours and your parted lips. "I thought you'd never ask."

He leaned forward and pressed his lips to your own, cradling the back of your head as he pulled you close. His lips molded against yours and consumed you with love and care and hope. Your heart fluttered in your chest as you tasted his kiss for the first time in over a century.

The both of you pulled away, lingering so close that all it would take was a little nudge, and you'd be kissing him again. Your lips tingled as you slowly allowed your eyes to open. He stared at you longingly.

"I love you," he spoke breathlessly, as if it was taking his entire soul to say those words to you, and even that wasn't enough.

You beamed, and it was like an arrow to the heart as he watched your beauty unfold. "I love you, too," you told him. "More than you truly know."

He leaned in to kiss you once again, only giving pause when you both heard the sound of the door clicking open. You turned your head toward the door next to you, setting your hand on the knob. While he would normally stop you, afraid of you being hurt, this was his realm. Broken or not, nothing here would harm you.

You pushed it open slowly, only to yelp when a strange swarm burst from the door. You looked around you at the kaleidoscope of butterflies surrounding the two of you as he held you close. You both stared in awe as the beautiful creatures flapped their gorgeous wings about you.

"They hatched," you gasped. "They've been dormant for nearly eighty years, and they hatched." You sighed, watching them. "They're beautiful." You stared at the butterflies, eyes wide with wonder. Morpheus' gaze turned back to you, gluing onto the star-struck smile on your face.

Never, throughout all his lives, had he ever seen anything with more beauty than his darling wife. Sometimes he felt like a thief when he thought of you, like he'd stolen you all for himself so he would never have to share with the rest of the world. Never once did he ever feel ashamed by it. Because you were his, and he was yours, and he loved you more than anything in every world.

His face softened, and his eyes glittered with gentle tears. "Yes," he breathed. "Beautiful."

The Sandman taglist: @poetic-fiasco @the-nerdy-goddess @life-on-needs @fanreader @jamiethenerdymonster @sarahbullet235 @majestyjade @melinoe-the-rat @katsukis1wife @sugakookieswithacupoftae16 @hatterripper31 @kplatzman Dreamers taglist: @meg-the-second-greatest @killerqueen-ofwillowgreen @gortycs @octo-octopie @damianodavidhands @alexxavicry @rosaren2498 @sayumiht @jaritzaflores94 @evabalexeeva @cl-0-vr

[dyns33]

Split

A little silly Morpheus x female reader 

No one knew how or why this happened at the time. Those who knew said nothing, and did not come to help.

But one day the Dreaming split in two. It happened so fast that the inhabitants didn't immediately understand what had just happened, only noticing that one side of the kingdom had blue skies, while the other was stormy.

The castle also had changed. One side white, one side black.

"The boss is making changes ? He's pissed off ?" Matthew asked Lucienne, whose library had also been cut in half.

"I don't know. Yesterday it was still raining, but I didn't notice any change in our lord's mood."

"Still sad because of Y/N ? He's the one who left her, right ? I don't understand why he's sad, and now this."

"You'll have to ask him. If we can find him."

Outside it was no longer raining, and the balcony where Morpheus had stayed for days was empty.

The throne room was out of place. Neither did his private room.

It was as if he was no longer there. Or not totally. Not fully.

"Hello, dear Lucienne. Loyal Matthew. It's good to see you."

The voice was calmer, softer, but it was Morpheus' voice. Except he wore white clothes, his hair was white too, he was totally white. Only his starry eyes remained, staring at them as he smiled.

Smiled ! 

"... My Lord, are you all right? The palace...have you made any changes?"

"There have indeed been some changes, Lucienne. Sorry to have worried you. We didn't think before we acted. From now on, I, Lord Dream, would rule over this part of the castle, while Lord Nightmare will be in charge of the other half. You will have to see with him what he wants to do, that's not my problem."

"Lord... Nightmare ?"

"Yes. Excuse me, I have to go check on the dreamers."

Dreamers obviously meant those who had sweet dreams. Those visited by bad dreams were the domain of the other half, Lord Nightmare, who remained untraceable, hidden in the shadows of the palace.

Among the "good" dreamers, Matthew noticed that there was Y/N.

A lot.

Whenever he had time, Dream watched her with a smile, making sure she was fine and that her nights weren't restless. Since the big change, she hadn't had a single nightmare.

Maybe the raven wasn't wrong when he said it had to do with her and their breakup.

He needed to know more.

First, he asked the new boss. Because even though he had changed, he knew the old boss didn't like things being done behind his back.

Dream didn't seem upset by his request. He no longer seemed able to feel any negative emotion, still smiling and thanking Matthew for his concern.

"I miss my sweet Y/N, I admit it. I was stupid to let her go, when she had done nothing wrong. I would like to see her again, but I don't know if she would be happy. She has every good reason in the world to be mad at us."

Matthew had noted that the white boss sometimes talked about him saying "I", then saying "we". He often said "we" to refer to actions he was not proud of, in reference to when he was a single entity ruling over dreams and nightmares.

The little raven tried to talk to the master of bad dreams, but he did not come out of his hiding place.

So he went to ask Lucienne if it was a good idea to talk to Y/N. She wasn't sure, so Matthew decided on his own that it was a good idea.

Calm, patient, kind, Y/N let him into her home, offering him a small bowl of water and agreeing to listen to what he had to say.

She would have had every right not to open the door to him, yelling at him to leave her alone, after the horrible breakup with Morpheus.

"Why did you break up, if I may ask ?"

"You'll have to ask him. Everything was fine and one day he told me he didn't think we were meant to be together."

"Ouch. Not cool, boss. Not cool, and weird, because he's been very sad for weeks, and now this. You... Could you talk to him ? Talk to them?  I don't know about Nightmare, but Dream seems to want it."

"I'll think about it."

Since she was calm, patient, and very kind, Y/N didn't think long and the same evening, she found herself in the Dreaming, following Matthew in the strange new corridors of the palace.

As the raven had said, Dream seemed happy to see her. He smiled, even more than he had since he appeared, the stars in his eyes dancing and twinkling as he walked towards her.

"Y/N... My love... I cannot express the joy that embraces me to welcome you here again. Aren't you angry with me ? With us ? I will kneel before you and kiss your feet until you forgive me if you have to."

"That won't be necessary."

"Noble heart. You are so kind to me, I..."

"What is she doing here ?!"

The walls shook and Matthew really tried not to be afraid as he saw the creature coming out of the shadows, its eyes blank, its face cruel, its long hooked fingers hanging down its scrawny body, covered in dark clothes.

A real Nightmare, without a doubt, which stared at Y/N with a look full of hatred.

"She's not welcome here ! Not after what she did ! She hates us."

"No, you are the only culprit, and the only one concerned." Dream replies by standing in front of Y/N. "So go back to your lair, and leave us in peace."

Nightmare stopped short, grimacing as it showed its sharp teeth, but there was a sadness in the back of its eyes, pain. He groaned but said nothing, stepping back into the darkness that seemed to move.

This dissuaded Matthew from following him, too frightened, and the little raven stood in front of Y/N when she moved in the direction of the dark corridor.

"Nope, nope. Bad idea, kid. Better leave him alone, he'll probably calm down."

"Matthew is right, dear heart." Dream said taking her hand. "Nightmare doesn't deserve your attention anyway, nor does he want it. We could walk in the gardens, or visit the two brothers."

Maybe it was because the sun was rising in the waking world, or because she was confused because he had just happened, or because she didn't feel like spending time with him, but Y/N didn't have time to answer, disappearing from the Dreaming and opening her eyes in her bed.

Almost immediately, Matthew visited her, to see if she was okay.

"I mean, I was worried, Nightmare is really scary and he seems to be really mad at you. Dream is worried too, he was glad I came to see you. He promised you wouldn't have any bad dreams, they have some sort of arrangement, I didn't understand everything. Anyway, are you alright ?"

"Yes. Nightmare has returned ?"

"No sign of him, but I'm scared as soon as I see a dark spot. He might be hiding in there."

"Why is he mad at me ?"

"No idea, Dream says it's his fault and we should just ignore him. Oh, he wanted to know if you wanted to feed the pigeons with him."

"... Not today."

Neither that day nor the following days obviously, Y/N avoiding Dream like the plague and asking lots of questions about Nightmare.

This ended up hurting the master of sweet dreams who continued to smile anyway, but displaying a sad smile and remaining alone under a fine rain, just like Morpheus before the change.

This greatly annoyed the Master of Nightmares, who again came out of hiding to yell at Lucienne and Matthew, ordering them to banish Y/N and not let her near Dream again.

"That idiot is fragile and innocent. He thinks she loves him, and hates me, but he's wrong. She doesn't love us. She proved it, again."

"Boss... Well, second boss... Well... It's nonsense! "

"Obey, Matthew ! Don't let her come back here !"

Matthew obeyed, and he didn't bring Y/N back, but he went back to see her to tell her what had happened.

Dream's words and Nightmare's words intrigued her even more, as she couldn't understand why one was so furious saying she didn't love him, and the other replied that he deserved it.

Because Y/N had loved Morpheus deeply, she still had a lot of affection for him despite their breakup, and she worried about this split in two.

That was why she wasn't interested in Dream, who wasn't totally him, and she wanted to understand what was happening to Nightmare.

To find a way to bring Morpheus back.

"Oh ? Maybe we should tell him. The boss wasn't good with people, so the two bosses ? They must be even worse !"

"I don't think Nightmare will want to listen to me. And Dream... I didn't mean to hurt him, really. It's just weird, I can't explain."

"Nah, I understand. I'm going to ask him if he accepts an audience."

Dream gladly accepted, although he seemed disappointed that she wasn't coming just for him and only him. He listened to what she had to say, sighing sadly when she was done.

"It's not your fault, my love. We should have warned you, asked your permission. We understood your fear and your disgust. We tried to accept it, but it was too hard. To know that you couldn't love us entirely. But we couldn't live without you either, so we came up with this idea. Nightmare won't terrorize you anymore, I promise, and I'll love you in a conventional mortal way."

"... What ?" was Y/N's only response.

“Don't you remember ? That night, that tragic night. We wanted to love you, totally. Like an Endless can love. You found yourself in us, and we in you. only one. But you were scared. You panicked, you begged, you woke up... You were crying in your bed. Oh, my love, I'm so sorry."

"That dream... I was floating naked in a dark void. There was a voice, and I felt... I felt so many things. Was it you ? I mean, Morpheus?  I thought it was a kind of nightmare."

"In a sense, yes, since our primary essence is partly made up of nightmares. We should have known you wouldn't like that."

"I didn't say I didn't like that."

"You were scared." Dream noted, smiling slightly. "You cried."

"I told you, I felt a lot. Too much. It was intense. Scary, yes, but also exciting. I felt full, and empty, and good, and lost. And when I I woke up, there was nothing left, and I didn't know if it was worse or not. I suddenly had a feeling of lack. I couldn't wait to see you. You left me the next day. "

"… My love ? You… don't hate us ?"

"Of course not, I love Morpheus. I didn't know it was him, otherwise I would have been less scared. I know he spoke to me, but everything is a blur. There was so much . Matthew is right, he's really not good, I wish he'd talked to me."

"And you're not happy with the changes ? I need to find Nightmare."

It was not so easy to find Nightmare. You couldn't find a nightmare, it was the nightmares that found you, and obviously their master didn't want to be located.

Lucienne asked all the dreams present in the castle to help them, while Matthew flew over the surrounding gardens and plains.

Y/N was the only one to go further, to the caves.

There, deep in a dark cave where whispers and moans echoed, she found Nightmare, lurking in a corner, her back to him.

"... What do you want ?"

"Morpheus thought I didn't fully accept him. That I didn't accept you, and that's why we're in this situation. But that's not true."

"... How could that be wrong ? No one loves me. I am a monster. All creatures fear me and only wish to have sweet dreams. Dream is the lord of all, stories, cats,  hope. He doesn't need me, and you'll be happy with him. I belong here."

"Even though Dream is very nice, he's...too nice. I love Morpheus, and Morpheus is partly nightmarish, torturous and difficult. I love his smiles, his poems and his starry eyes, but I also love his fury, his impatience and his emptiness. That night... It was him, totally him, and I didn't see that. But I loved that moment. I loved you. Now, I miss him. Will you let me have him again, dear Nightmare, or do you hate me too much ?"

The Nightmare slowly turned towards her, growing until it engulfed the entire cave, leaning towards her with an indescribable expression.

"I don't hate you. I never hated you. I would torment you until the end of time if I could, and if you wanted to. But since you don't just want Dream, you don't just want of me."

"No, I want Morpheus, my beautiful, my tender, my dangerous and stupid Morpheus."

"Very well then."

The earth shook slightly, the clouds swirled in the sky and the inhabitants of Dreaming were very afraid when they saw their kingdom split in two, reforming to form one, as before.

Y/N returned to the castle, where she found Lucienne and Matthew, unsure whether to enter the throne room.

Indeed, Lord Morpheus was there, reading a book, as if everything was perfectly normal.

So Y/N came in, approached him and greeted him, kissing him on the cheek, like she did before, before they broke up, before all of this.

"Hello Morpheus."

"Good morning, my love." he replied, continuing to read.

"I had a weird dream where you were split in two."

"I had a weird dream where you said I was stupid."

"Oh, I didn't say that !" laughed Y/N while shaking head. "I have said many things, and so have your parts. Your parts I love, as I love the whole, in whatever form. And the next time you visit me in your most pure on, please tell me, so I could prepare myself. I am only a mortal, my little heart is fragile and I have a hard time with emotions. Kind of like you, but differently."

"... I see. I'll let you know, love."

"Thank you, my stupid darling."

He said nothing, let her sit beside him on the throne, and observed what he read. Absolutely as if nothing had happened, except for a moment of bewilderment on the part of the king of dreams and nightmares, too little self-confident to believe that we could totally love him, and too proud to talk about it with his dear lover.

Luckily he was wrong and she loved him.

And luckily Matthew rarely obeyed orders.

[unpredictable-probabilities]

A Dream Companion

Part 2 of The Home That Waits Outside the Spotlight

Summary:

After some time away, Morpheus finds Hob waiting for him at The White Horse. As they begin to spend more time together, they start to discover what they truly want and what makes them happy.

Rating: Explicit

Word Count: 5,311

Notes:

For Sandmanniversary 2024 | Prompt: Domesticity

It's not necessary to read the first part in order to understand this one. They do make a few references to the first part, but those aren't super relevant to the plot~

Enjoy reading!

[Read on AO3]

———

Hob took a sip of his beer while reading the latest reviews about The White Horse on his tablet. They had a lot of new customers just in the first week after Morpheus posted about it on his social media, and now that it had been over a month, Hob had to hire new staff just to keep up with how busy the place had been.

Right now, though, it was that stretch of time between lunch and dinner when there weren't so many customers, and so Hob was sitting at his usual table at the back while he looked over that week's profits as he usually did every Friday.

He checked his phone; still no new messages from Morpheus. Their last conversation was a short one from this morning, when they updated each other about their schedules for the day. That was normal, though, especially when they were both busy. Hob’s just glad they still find time to talk to each other every day.

They hadn’t seen each other since Blysse’s birthday party, more than a month ago. 33 days to be exact. Hob didn’t really intend to keep count, but he could remember. Morpheus had said that his press tour would last for about two months, and in the first few weeks of them texting each other every day like giddy teenagers, Morpheus had told Hob a handful of times that he didn’t have to wait, that Morpheus had no expectations of him. Hob had playfully replied that Morpheus wasn’t getting rid of him that easily, though privately he wondered what Morpheus could have experienced back then that made him feel like he had to tell Hob that.

Hob heard soft footsteps, and while still looking down at his tablet he glimpsed the hem of a black coat approaching his table. Maybe he didn’t notice that the customers were pouring in again and someone wanted to ask if they could take a chair from his table. Hob looked up, planning to say that he was just leaving and they could take the table.

The man was standing right in front of him, a warm and playful smile on his fair face, his raven hair sticking up in places.

Hob’s face went slack with surprise, then he could feel himself practically beaming with a smile. “You’re early.”

“I wished to surprise you,” Morpheus said, his soft deep voice sounding so much better without the filter of a phone’s speaker. “I hope it is a pleasant one?”

“Of course it is! Sit down, hold on—” Hob cleared the paperwork from the table and stacked them all to the side with his tablet.

Morpheus took the seat across from him and leaned back, just as comfortable in Hob’s presence as a month ago, Hob happily noticed.

“What happened? I thought you wouldn’t be back until next month?” Hob didn’t bother to keep the excitement out of his voice. “Not that I’m complaining, though.”

“My new manager Lucienne is much more efficient; she was able to come up with a schedule that gave the entire team more free time. I still have some work to do this month, but I will be able to visit here more often. After all, it would be the responsible thing to do as an investor to check on this establishment frequently,” Morpheus said playfully.

Hob grinned. “Well said, Mr. Evermoore. And how do you find the place?” he gestured around the pub, more than a little proud of the small changes he had made over the past month. Like the cushioned seats and extra booths, and an old-fashioned jukebox playing music in the corner that the younger customers were always fascinated by.

“As lovely as ever,” Morpheus said, looking around. “The modifications are impeccable, but my favourite is still the owner,” he met Hob’s gaze with a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

God, Morpheus flirting in person was an entirely different thing than when he did it on text. Hob was grateful that he’d just finished his paperwork for this week, because his brain wouldn’t be able to think of anything else now that this man was suddenly here.

“No modifications with me, though. Still the same as ever,” Hob winked.

Morpheus chuckled, then he glanced at the paperwork stacked at the side. “Ah, I hope I have not intruded on your work. If there’s anything I can do to help, just let me know.”

“Nah, I’ve just wrapped it up for tonight, don’t worry.” Hob noticed that more people were coming in through the doors now; the dinner crowd was beginning to come in. Speaking of which. “Have you eaten yet?” Hob was aware of how difficult it could be for Morpheus to have proper meals on work days. The first time they met, it was already lunchtime and Morpheus had only eaten one chocolate chip cookie the entire day.

Morpheus blinked. “I had a sandwich in the car before the photoshoot earlier.”

Hob remembered the schedule that Morpheus texted him and frowned. “The photoshoot at 11 AM? You hadn’t eaten anything after that?”

Morpheus smiled sheepishly. “I wanted to get all my work done quickly so I could get here before it got too late in the evening.”

“Ohhh no,” Hob shook his head. “You’re not using your cute smile to distract me from the fact that you hadn’t eaten in hours. You should get another manager whose only job is to make sure you eat!”

Unfortunately, that just made Morpheus give a smile that was even more distracting. “Worry not, I know the owner of this place. Perhaps he can recommend something to order.”

Hob was about to say that he would recommend the entire main course menu, but then he noticed that several of the customers were looking their way and whispering excitedly. He remembered that much of the new crowd they got after Morpheus’ social media post were those who hoped to run into him. So some of these customers might just be living their dream come true.

“You look rather murderous there, love.” Morpheus said with a knowing smirk. “Not very fond of crowds?”

Hob felt his face warm, he didn’t think he was that obvious. “Can you blame me? It’s your first day back and the entire pub already wants your attention. If they start to queue up for photos I’m gonna be charging them.”

Morpheus chuckled, and Hob felt instantly better just getting to see it. “You have my word that my attention is entirely yours.” His expression mellowed and he lowered his voice a little. “Though can we perhaps go somewhere else? Getting noticed like this by a crowd makes me feel like I’m still working, and I’d rather spend a relaxing evening with you.”

“Yeah, of course,” Hob nodded, already putting away the papers and his tablet in his messenger bag, his mind running through a list of the best food places in the city. “And you’re gonna be eating hours’ worth of food, you menace.”

After a quick stop to his flat upstairs for Hob to leave his work bag and change into a fresh shirt, Hob got some garlic bread from the pub and insisted that Morpheus eat it in the cab on their way to a small diner that he had recently discovered. They had great homecooked meals, and there was always a cozy feeling to the place even at their peak hours.

“Oh, is this that place you mentioned last week?” Morpheus asked as they got out of the cab, garlic bread fully consumed. “I’m surprised you didn’t suggest walking here, I seem to remember you prefer it instead of taking a cab.”

Hob smiled at the fact that Morpheus remembered those things he just mentioned in passing. “Normally I would, yeah, but you needed a meal 3 hours ago, so we can have a stroll some other time.”

“You worry too much about me,” Morpheus said lightly as they walked through the doorway.

“I worry the normal amount for my friend who eats like a bird,” Hob said pointedly.

They sat at a table beside the wall decorated with framed pictures of how the diner looked when it was first established, and some funny quotes about food and kitchens.

“Mr. Gadling,” the waiter greeted as he approached their table with a notepad. “Welcome back. I see you’ve brought a friend—” his eyes widened at Morpheus.

“Hello, Justin,” Morpheus smiled, reading the waiter’s nametag. “What would you recommend for someone who unfortunately skipped lunch today?”

“I— Um—” Justin cleared his throat and straightened up. “Uh, the chicken pot pie is one of our heavier dishes, and the cream of spinach soup is nutritious and also filling.”

Morpheus nodded and looked at Hob. “Perhaps we can order both, then?”

“Sounds good.” Hob turned to Justin. “And a pitcher of lemon iced tea.”

“Right away, Mr. Gadling,” Justin wrote in his notepad. “Will there be anything else?”

Hob looked at Morpheus questioningly, who shook his head. “That’s it for now, Justin. Thank you.”

Justin nodded at Morpheus, “Sir Dream,” and walked off to the kitchen.

Hob narrowed his eyes at Morpheus. “How do you get ‘Sir’ and me only ‘Mr.’? I’ve been here more times than you have.”

“It’s still better than a queue for photos, isn’t it?” Morpheus raised an eyebrow.

“Much,” Hob grinned.

Their food arrived, and Hob was glad to see that Morpheus was eating heartily. They talked about how well The White Horse was doing, and how Morpheus might be taking a break for an entire year soon to spend more time with his sisters.

After their meal, Hob asked if Morpheus wanted to go anywhere else, and that was how he found out that Morpheus had a friend that was now working as a bartender in a nearby club. They hadn’t seen each other in years, and Morpheus had been planning to drop by and say hello some time this week. Hob hadn’t met any of Morpheus’ friends before, so he suggested that they go there tonight since it was still pretty early.

They took another cab and Morpheus insisted on paying since Hob had paid for the first cab that night and their dinner.

The club looked pretty high-end, the type that had a queue outside waiting to get in because the place was probably packed. When the bouncer saw them approaching, though, he immediately stepped aside.

“Mr. Dream Evermoore, welcome.”

“Good evening. He’s with me,” Morpheus gestured to Hob.

“Of course, sir. Go right in.”

Morpheus pushed the door open and they stepped inside; music sounded from speakers somewhere and there were some strobe lights, but surprisingly it wasn’t nearly as noisy or visually overwhelming as some clubs that Hob had been to in his younger years.

“So people just let you in at any club?” Hob asked curiously.

“It’s not my preferred place of leisure, but yes,” Morpheus said as they wove through a crowd of people too preoccupied with themselves to pay them any attention. “There are times when I go to places like these to maintain connections. That was how I met Johanna,” he nodded towards the bar where a woman wearing a ponytail and an apron over her shirt was mixing drinks. “She was a bouncer at another club, and she intervened when one of the other actors there was getting too touchy with me.”

“What happened? Were you hurt or…?” Hob frowned in concern.

Morpheus shook his head. “He was drunk and he cornered me against a wall, but Johanna stepped in before anything else could happen. He was twice her size but you wouldn’t have known it from the way she twisted his arm.”

“Wow,” Hob said, impressed. “Then I’m really glad I’m meeting her.”

They reached the bar, and Johanna’s eyes landed on them.

“Well, well,” she smirked at Morpheus after handing a customer his drink. “Look what the cat coughed up.”

“It’s lovely to see you too,” Morpheus smiled and momentarily placed a hand on Hob’s back. “This is my friend, Hob.”

“Hey,” Hob raised a hand in greeting. “He was just telling me how you two met.”

Johanna whistled. “That feels like forever ago. How long has it been, 2 years? Nearly 3?”

Morpheus nodded. “Blysse still speaks fondly of it. Back then she would ask me to retell the story of the ‘badass female bouncer’ as if it were a bedtime story. She has been asking to meet you.”

“Well she’s too young to go here, but I have the next weekend off if you all wanna hang out at the shiny new pub of your friend here,” she jerked her head towards Hob. “I’ve seen the posts. Owner of The White Horse, right?”

“Yeah,” Hob nodded. “And it’d be great to have you over, though I don’t recommend going during the peak hours, more people have been packing in and hoping to run into Morpheus there.”

Johanna raised an eyebrow. “‘Morpheus’, huh? Not Dream? He must really like you.”

“I don’t think that was ever in question,” Morpheus said evenly.

“I wouldn’t mind hearing it again,” Hob quipped.

Morpheus smiled and leaned against the bar. “Perhaps I should buy you a drink first.”

“Oh no,” Johanna said. “You’re not gonna be flirting in front of me, are you? I don’t get paid enough to see this.”

Hob’s phone rang in his pocket; he checked it and saw that Merv was calling. “Hang on a tick, love,” he told Morpheus. “I just need to see if something’s going on in the pub. I’ll be back for more flirting later,” he winked at Morpheus, who playfully smirked at him.

“Ugh,” Johanna said in disgust and rolled her eyes.

Hob walked over to the fire exit where the crowd was thinner and the music wasn’t as loud.

He answered his phone. “Merv, is everything alright over there?”

“Yeah, boss. Just asking about that thing you said back then, keeping the pub running for you and your friend after closing time when he gets back? Are we doing that tonight?”

“Ah,” Hob remembered telling Merv and Lou about that a week ago, when he’d been thinking of different plans to do when Morpheus returned. “No, we won’t be returning to the pub tonight. You all go home and lock up after closing time.”

“You got it, boss,” Merv said.

Hob ended the call and pocketed his phone again, making his way back to the bar.

He could see that Johanna was mixing drinks for a few customers, and some guy with a leather jacket had just sidled up next to Morpheus.

“Hey,” said Leather Jacket. “You’re that actor, right? Can I buy you a drink?” he flashed a smile.

“No, thank you,” Morpheus said politely. “I’m here with my boyfriend.”

Hob froze in his tracks a few steps away from them.

“Ah, my bad,” Leather Jacket said and turned around, almost bumping into Hob. “Woah,” he staggered.

“Hob,” Morpheus straightened up, a panicked look in his eyes.

“Oh,” Leather Jacket looked at Morpheus and then at Hob. “You must be the boyfriend. You two have fun.” He clapped Hob on the shoulder and melted back into the crowd.

“Hob,” Morpheus said again. “I’m sorry, I just didn’t know what else to say,” he fidgeted with the stem of the glass on the bar that Johanna must have prepared for him. He cleared his throat. “Anyway, I wasn’t sure if you wanted alcohol so I just asked Johanna to prepare a drink without one. I believe this is soda and some kind of fruit syrup.” He slid the glass over to Hob.

“Morpheus.” Hob wasn’t thinking about drinks right now. He stepped closer. “What you told that guy…”

Morpheus drummed his fingers on the bar. “I know we haven’t established anything, and we don’t have to yet. It was just the simplest explanation I could think of to tell him. I haven’t been going around telling people we’re dating, if that’s what you’re worried about,” he added playfully, but Hob could see he looked nervous.

“I haven’t either but…” Hob placed his hand on the bar, inches away from Morpheus’. “I kinda liked the sound of it, when I heard you call me your boyfriend,” he smiled sheepishly, feeling nervous too. “So, if you want…” God, why was this so nerve-wracking? It was like he suddenly forgot how to use words, and he couldn’t even blame it on alcohol.

Morpheus was looking at him in surprise, a smile appearing slowly on his face as he realised what Hob was trying to say.

“Oh for fuck’s sake,” Johanna cut in and turned to Morpheus. “Just take him home. I don’t wanna be watching this all night,” she gestured vaguely to the both of them.

“My ‘home’ is hours away,” Morpheus said. “And I haven’t checked into any hotel yet.”

“We can go to my flat,” Hob said. “Why didn’t you say you don’t have a place to stay yet?”

“I didn’t want to impose, especially since I had surprised you with my early return.”

“I’m your boyfriend, Morpheus,” Hob grinned. “Of course you can stay over.”

Morpheus’ answering smile was brighter than the sun, and Hob could have kissed him right there.

“Please leave,” Johanna said.

“Gladly,” Morpheus said without looking away from Hob.

Morpheus paid for the drink that neither of them even tried, and they got out of there as fast as they could.

After another cab ride that felt much longer than it probably was, Hob was being kissed against his own front door two seconds after locking it behind them.

Hob clutched at the front of Morpheus’ coat, pulling him even closer as they explored each other's mouths.

“I have missed you,” Morpheus breathed against his lips, and Hob shivered at the adoration in Morpheus’ voice.

“I missed you too,” Hob whispered, closing his eyes as emotions welled up in his chest, nearly overwhelmed by the feeling of finally, finally having Morpheus in his arms.

Morpheus cupped his face and tilted his head back, deepening the kiss. The soft slide of their tongues was quickly making heat pool low in Hob’s belly, and he couldn't stop the moan that escaped him when Morpheus shoved a knee between his thighs.

“Hob,” Morpheus’ voice trembled. “I will take you to bed if you allow it.”

Hob groaned and tightened his hold on Morpheus. “Yes,” he said breathlessly. “I don't have any condoms but… do we need any…?”

Morpheus’ arms wrapped around his waist. “I have not been with anyone since my last test came out clean.”

“Me too.” Impatience was clawing in Hob’s ribcage and he all but dragged Morpheus down the hall.

Their coats and shirts were flung on the bedroom floor, and Hob fell backwards on his bed with Morpheus on top of him, kissing him like his life depended on it. Morpheus shifted and his cock pressed down on Hob’s through layers of denim, eliciting a moan from them both.

Morpheus moved to Hob’s neck, lavishing the sensitive skin with his lips and tongue. Hob was breathing heavily, his fingers clutching at Morpheus’ hair, his hips twitching in search of friction.

Morpheus put a hand on Hob’s hip, his thumb moving back and forth on the skin just above the waistband of his jeans. He pulled back enough to gaze down on Hob. “I wish to be inside you.”

“Fuck,” Hob gasped, already squirming beneath Morpheus. “Yes, Morpheus.” He blindly reached for his nightstand and managed to get the lube out of the drawer, knocking a few items down in the process.

Hob gave Morpheus the bottle with a trembling hand, and they practically tore the rest of their clothes off.

Morpheus smoothly crawled down, and before Hob knew what was happening, Morpheus took him in his mouth.

Hob yelled and just barely stopped himself from thrusting, wanting to chase that soft molten heat.

“Morpheus…” he groaned low in his chest, eyes squeezed shut as Morpheus worked him from root to tip. A slick finger prodded at his rim, and Hob made a wounded sound as Morpheus slipped one then two fingers inside him, all the while lapping at the slit of his cock.

Hob grinded down on Morpheus’ perfect fingers, gasping and whimpering when a third one stretched him deliciously for what seemed like an eternity. “I'm ready… Morpheus…” he arched his back and dug his blunt nails into Morpheus’ shoulders.

All at once Morpheus withdrew his fingers and released Hob’s cock from his mouth. Hob whined at the loss but it was cut off by Morpheus’ lips against his, kissing and nipping at him as he lined himself up.

It was a slow slide in, and Hob fought to keep his eyes open so he could watch every minute expression on Morpheus’ face; the crease on his forehead, the fluttering eyelashes, the parted lips.

Morpheus buried himself to the hilt and pressed his face into the crook of Hob's neck, breathing heavily.

Hob moaned and rolled his hips encouragingly, drawing a soft whimper from Morpheus.

Morpheus began to move, and Hob didn't bother to stop the noises coming out of him, doubting he'd be able to even if he tried.

They tried to keep kissing, but they just panted in each other's mouths as they found their rhythm and increased the pace.

“Not gonna last,” Morpheus gasped. He reached between them and wrapped a hand around Hob’s cock, stroking it in time with his thrusts.

Hob clawed desperately at Morpheus’ back, sobbing through his moans as he felt his peak fast approaching. “Close,” he said through gritted teeth.

Morpheus sped up inside and around him; a particularly hard thrust sent lightning up Hob’s spine and he screamed, spilling between them as he felt Morpheus’ release fill him.

Hob reached up to the back of Morpheus’ neck and pulled him down for a kiss that was more sighs and soft gasps than anything else.

They held each other through the last of the aftershocks, and Hob could feel Morpheus’ heartbeat thumping against his own.

After a while, Morpheus gently slipped out of him and grabbed his black shirt off the floor, wiping them both down with such tenderness that it made Hob's chest ache with fondness.

“You'll have to borrow my clothes again in the morning,” Hob smiled lazily.

“If you have no objections,” Morpheus returned the smile before tossing the shirt back down on the floor and lying down beside him.

Hob turned and wrapped an arm around Morpheus, pressing his face into the crook of his slender neck. “Until when are you staying?” he mumbled.

Morpheus faced him and pulled him closer, resting his chin on Hob’s head. “I am free for the entire week.”

“Wait, really?” Hob pulled back a little to look at Morpheus.

“That’s the second part of the surprise,” Morpheus smiled.

“I think I like your surprises.” Hob reached up and rested his hand on Morpheus’ face, tracing small circles on the cheekbone with his thumb. “You'll be staying here, then?”

“If you'll have me,” Morpheus said softly.

Hob looked him right in the eyes. “Always.” He leaned forward and pressed a kiss on Morpheus’ lips, smiling at the contented sigh it drew out of him.

***

Sunlight streamed in through the gap in the curtain, and Hob instinctively reached up to close it, squinting against the glare.

He realised that there was an arm wrapped around his stomach, and a head resting on his chest, soft black hair tickling his chin.

Hob felt himself smile, memories of last night coming back to him as he fully woke up. He carded his fingers through Morpheus’ hair, marvelling at the fact that he was allowed.

Morpheus stirred and hugged him tighter. “G'morning,” he mumbled sleepily.

“Morning, love,” Hob planted a kiss in his hair. “Breakfast?”

Morpheus hummed in agreement.

“I do need to stand up to make it,” Hob pointed out, smiling fondly.

Morpheus yawned and rolled off him, propping himself up on his elbow. “I would like to help.” He tilted his head to the side thoughtfully. “After we shower.”

“We?” Hob blinked a few times, suddenly fully awake.

“If you wish,” Morpheus said with hooded eyes, his fingers trailing down Hob’s chest.

Hob had never gotten out of bed so quickly.

***

“What are we cooking?” Hob asked as they rummaged around in his kitchen to see what ingredients were available.

“How about baked potatoes and some steak and vegetables?”

“For breakfast? Though I suppose it’s closer to brunch now.” Hob turned around and saw that Morpheus had already laid the ingredients out on the counter; seeing them sparked something in Hob’s memory. “It’s what we cooked together on the day we met,” he realised.

Morpheus smiled softly. “You remember.”

“Of course I do. Now come on, we gotta get you used to a regular mealtime schedule.”

***

Hob sighed and leaned into Morpheus’ touch as the long slender fingers combed through his hair. He was lying down on Morpheus’ lap on the couch while listening to him read aloud from a detective novel. Jazz music was playing softly on the speakers in the background, and it was all so relaxing that Hob’s eyes had fallen closed about one chapter ago.

Morpheus paused in his reading and hummed thoughtfully. “I must say I am quite at a loss for this case. What do you think?”

“Hm?” Hob blinked his eyes open and looked up at Morpheus.

“Who do you think robbed the museum? At first I thought it was The Cheshire Brothers but they had just proven that they weren’t even in the country. And the position of the artefact's display case suggests that it was taken by someone with impressive acrobatic skills. So now it’s more likely that the trapeze artist Natasha could have done it.”

“Uh…” Some of those details definitely sounded familiar to Hob, but he didn’t think he should be blamed for not piecing together the clues, especially not when Morpheus was currently caressing the shell of his ear.

Morpheus raised an eyebrow, his fingers moving to Hob’s hair again. “Were you paying attention at all, Mr. Gadling?”

“I know The Cheshire Brothers and Natasha!” Hob said defensively. “And the artefact that was stolen was a ruby necklace, right? Or was it a crown?” he frowned.

Morpheus sighed dramatically and closed the novel. “You make for an awful detective,” he lightly traced a finger down Hob’s nose.

Hob smiled at the touch. “That’s what we have you for. You’re the brains and I can be your feisty assistant who makes snarky side comments and carries around a magnifying glass.”

Morpheus chuckled. “A pause on the reading for now, then? What would you have us do, my love?”

Hob felt a warmth bloom in his chest at how easily Morpheus called him that. He realised the music was still playing, and it gave him an idea. He got up from the couch and stood facing Morpheus, holding out his hand like a proper gentleman. “How about a dance?”

Morpheus blinked at him. “What?”

“We already have the music,” Hob pointed out.

Morpheus placed the book down on the coffee table, but he looked hesitant. “I am not a good dancer.”

“Dancing isn’t meant to be good, it’s meant to be fun.” Hob stepped closer and smiled. “Come on.”

Morpheus looked at Hob’s hand, seeming to relax a little before taking it.

Hob led them to the middle of the living room where they attempted what could generously be called a waltz before they began stepping on each other’s toes and dissolved into fits of giggles.

When they calmed down enough, Morpheus wrapped his arms around Hob’s waist, and Hob wound his around Morpheus’ neck. They just swayed from side to side along with the music, finding comfort in each other’s embrace.

“Hob…” Morpheus said after a moment, eyes to the floor.

“What’s wrong, love?” Hob asked in concern, wrangling his brain back from coming up with a hundred worst-case scenarios about what Morpheus wanted to say.

“Nothing,” Morpheus quickly reassured him, meeting his gaze again. “Nothing’s wrong. I’ve just been thinking… Well, The White Horse is quite popular now. And I did say back then that once the pub can stand on its own again, I would withdraw my investment so you can be the sole owner.”

“I remember,” Hob nodded. “I don’t mind you owning part of the pub, though. Is that what you’re worried about?”

Morpheus seemed to be having trouble finding the words. “I… do not want you to feel indebted to me in any way. Our relationship is important to me, and at no point do I wish for you to feel like you can’t bring up any grievances you have with me because I’m putting money in your business. Nor do I want you to hesitate in… in ending our relationship should you ever wish to, because it would be messy to have an ex as a business partner.”

Hob’s eyes widened, and for a few seconds he felt at a loss for words himself. Then he held Morpheus’ face in his hands, looking right into his eyes. “Morpheus. I’m with you because you make me happy, because you understand me so well and I know I can always be myself when we’re together. Your money or my pub have nothing to do with it. But if it matters to you, then yes, you can withdraw your investment anytime. It’s not gonna change anything.”

Morpheus let out a breath of relief and pressed his forehead against Hob’s. “Johanna was right. I really like you a lot.”

Hob smiled and closed his eyes, already pretty sure he feels much more than that for Morpheus. “I really like you a lot too, in case it wasn’t already obvious. And Morpheus?” he pulled away so they could look at each other. “You don’t have to talk about it now, but I hope someday you’d feel comfortable enough with me to tell me what happened…? Why you kept telling me that I didn’t have to wait for you, or why you’re thinking that I might wanna break up with you when we just got together.”

Shame appeared on Morpheus’ face and he looked down again.

“Hey, hey,” Hob said gently, tipping Morpheus’ face upwards to encourage him to meet his eyes again. When he did, Hob continued. “I wanna know because I wanna be able to reassure you properly, so I can have a chance to prove to you that what we have now is different from whatever happened to you back then. Our relationship is important to me too, you’re important to me. And I wanna make sure I can keep reminding you of that.”

Morpheus’ eyes misted over, and he caught Hob’s lips in his, a soft gentle kiss that made Hob tear up too.

“I will tell you, eventually,” Morpheus said. “Soon,” he added more firmly. “I just need a bit of time…”

“Of course, love. There’s no rush.” Hob placed his hands on Morpheus’ shoulders soothingly.

Morpheus gently took Hob’s hand and pressed a kiss on the palm before letting it drop back on his shoulder. “You make me happy too. You make me want to take better care of myself, and… I’m not usually fond of dancing but… I like dancing with you.” He smiled then, and it was the most beautiful thing that Hob had ever seen.

“Good, because I definitely plan to dance with you every chance we get.”

Morpheus closed the remaining distance between them to embrace Hob, resting his chin on Hob’s shoulder and pressing their bodies together.

Hob gladly melted into it, a smile on his face as they continued swaying together to the soft music.

———

<- Part 1

(Sandmanniversary 2024 Masterpost)

(Masterlist)

[bi-bard]

We Ain't Angry at You, Love, You're the Greatest Thing We've Lost - Dream of the Endless Imagine [The Sandman]

Title: We Ain't Angry at You, Love, You're the Greatest Thing We've Lost

Pairing: Morpheus | Dream of the Endless X Dream!Reader

Based On: You're Gonna Go Far

Word Count: 1,638 words

Warning(s): Morpheus being a dick, mention of bullying/mistreatment

Summary: After the events with the Corinthian and the Dream Vortex, many thought that Morpheus may have run out of any remaining kindness and leniency. However, they were gravely mistaken. It simply took a well-intentioned dream to prove it.

Author's Note: I think I've changed this song's story about four times. I'm sorry. Everything just felt repetitive.

STICK SEASON [WE'LL ALL BE HERE FOREVER] - NOAH KAHAN WRITING CHALLENGE MASTERLIST

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

After Morpheus went missing, I had been consumed by a deep fear that I would never be able to find a sense of purpose for myself.

It wasn't until a few years later that I finally allowed myself to leave the Dreaming behind me. It was terrifying at first. It was still largely unknown to me. I had to adjust and learn. However, once I started to do that, it was as if all of the puzzle pieces snapped into place.

I had never known peace like I did during my time on Earth.

For nearly a century, I had crafted myself a perfect home. I had established relationships and connections. I had become a fixture.

For the first time, there was a purpose for me that did not feel forced. One that did not leave me feeling burnt out or angry. I was able to merely exist and be enough for those around me.

Yes, there were hard times. I didn't age like humans did. There were times when I would need to move in order to avoid them figuring that out, but then I got to find a new web of people to connect myself to.

It was everything to me.

I had thought about what my life would have been like if I hadn't been confined to the Dreaming, but getting to actually experience it was... perfect.

It was a shame that my perfection was so cruelly interrupted.

I had no indication that anything was wrong as I walked into the small place that I had grown to call my own.

Maybe that was my fault. Maybe I hadn't been paying enough attention. Maybe spending my time in this realm had left me blind to the signs of my old one.

That was the only explanation I had for not being prepared to see Morpheus standing in my living room.

I jumped when I saw him. It had been a century. I had been under the impression that he wasn't coming back. I had convinced myself that I was perfectly safe here because Lucienne hadn't tried to stop me and I had spent so much time here.

It may have sounded foolish, but I wanted to believe it.

"Morpheus," I said quietly, still trying to grapple with the fact that he was alive and standing before me.

"Hello, (Y/n)," he replied.

I stepped inside quickly, shutting and locking the door behind me. "What are you doing here?"

"You abandoned the Dreaming."

"So did the Corinthian," I countered as I set my stuff on the dining room table. "Surely, he is of more importance than I am."

Morpheus's jaw clenched. "I have a plan to take care of the Corinthian and the harm that he has caused."

"The Corinthian has done nothing short of living up to the limits and purpose that you defined for him," I continued. "His work extended to the world of the waking, but you are the reason that he has been able to do such a thing."

"He is not important at this moment. You returning to the Dreaming is."

"Did you not also abandon the Dreaming," I asked, ignoring his statement almost entirely. Delaying the inevitable, but I had no interest in calling it that at the time.

"I was imprisoned," he corrected. "I had no escape for a century. You chose to run out of selfishness."

"Yours was due to imprisonment, mine was out of necessity,"

"Lucienne was watching over the realm. You were safe there."

"I was not when you were in power. Your absence did not change that for better or worse. All that changed was the crumbling of buildings."

He paused for a moment. "I do not understand."

"You never wanted to," I muttered. I crossed my arms and stood in front of him.

"Explain it to me. Tell me why you felt it was so necessary to abandon any and all responsibility that you had."

"Your other dreams and nightmares tormented me as much as they tormented the humans that they had been assigned to," I said bluntly, stepping forward as I did so. "Are you truly shocked that I decided to leave when I knew that it would be safe for me to do so?"

Morpheus had no answer to my question. His jaw merely clenched and his back straightened, as if making himself taller would cause me to step down from this argument.

I shook my head. "You need to go-"

"Regardless of the reason, you have a purpose in the Dreaming," he replied. "You will not abandon it."

"You have been gone for a hundred years, you have no right to demand things of me-"

"It would be wise of you to remember your place," he cut me off. I felt as if the blood in my veins ran cold. "You may return on your own or I will ensure that you do."

"Lord Morpheus," I scoffed. "How could you possibly be so selfish-"

My words were cut off as a cloud of sand surrounded me. It felt as if I had no opportunity to realize what was happening before I was suddenly standing back in the Dreaming.

It was darker than I remembered. Colder. It was clear that some work had been done since it had started to crumble to pieces years ago, but something was still very clearly wrong.

I would have been more worried about the state of the realm if I had not been so consumed by my anger.

I still had a million things to say to Morpheus. Explanations and accusations and pleas. All of them equally important... and all of them going equally unheard.

I had relented to bothering him and Lucienne. I had been told over and over that there was no time. That I needed to get back to what I had been created for.

But I had experienced so much beyond that now. I couldn't just let it go.

I was upsetting them. I knew it. It was a shame that I didn't feel any guilt over that.

It wasn't until the dust settled around the Corinthian's actions and the Vortex that Morpheus ever decided to speak with me.

I walked into the main hall with my heart almost in my throat. I tried to calm myself down. It wasn't going well. I had been so angry before this. So focused on his refusal that now that I would be able to talk to him, I lost every argument that I wanted to make.

Terrified felt like both a word that was too intense and not intense enough.

When I made it there, he was standing at the top of his stairs, staring up at the large stained-glass windows in the room. I took a deep breath.

"You asked to see me, sir," I called.

Morpheus turned around and began walking down the steps. "Yes. There is a discussion that needs to be had."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "What about, sir?"

"About your place here in the Dreaming," he replied.

"Oh?"

"When I sent you back to the Dreaming, I was focused on rebuilding the realm," he explained. "It had fallen apart during my absence, and I knew that returning the dreams that had escaped would aid in returning it to where it was meant to be.

"I understand now that my actions were selfish. My assumption that the world would be the same as it was before my imprisonment led me to ignore the wishes and knowledge of those who cared for me and the realm as a whole. The results were heartless. Blind."

I didn't respond. I was still uneasy about the meeting. He stepped forward a bit.

"The Dreaming was never as kind to you as I wished it to be," he muttered. "I am sorry for not addressing that. For not protecting you as I always should have."

"Thank you," I murmured. Having him acknowledge it would have been enough for the time being. However, that was not the only thing that Morpheus had to say.

"I wish to send you back," he continued. "Back to that life that you had made for yourself in the waking world. If you will allow me to do so."

I felt tears fill my eyes. "Sir, are you being serious?"

A small grin formed on his face. "Yes."

I let out a breathy, shocked laugh before quickly moving forward and hugging him as tightly as I could. I had forgotten any formal behavior or respectful actions in that moment. I almost pulled back and apologized but was stopped by him hugging me back and chuckling to himself.

"Thank you," I murmured.

"You have nothing to thank me for."

I stepped back slowly, smiling fully at him. "When can I leave?"

"Whenever you are ready."

"Now?"

"Are you ready now?"

"Yes."

He reached into his pocket, pulling out a handful of sand. "Well, then I believe that the only thing left is to wish you good luck."

"Thank you, Lord Morpheus."

He nodded to me once before holding out his hand and blowing a handful of sand at me.

I closed my eyes as the sand swept up around me. As the wind died down, I opened my eyes again. I found myself in the hall of my apartment building.

I smiled again before rushing to the door. I found my spare key under the welcome mat and quickly made it inside.

I let out a sigh as I looked around. Everything was exactly how I'd left it. It was all perfect. Not a speck out of place.

I chuckled to myself as my tears filled my eyes.

I had never known peace like that before.

And I would never be more grateful that I was finally given the chance to experience it.

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

Navigation Guide

What I Write For

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[thethreeeyed-raven]

🐺 Reader decides to snuggle with Dream when they decide to spend time together and relax after a long day.

the dream lord doesn’t cuddle

navigation | warnings : use of the word ‘you’ a lot lmao | a/n : i’m sorry if this isn’t what you wanted, but here you go :) | morpheus, dream of the endless playlist

You couldn't wait for the excruciating day to to end so you can climb into bed and be held by the warm hands of your lover.

All you could think about during work was Morpheus, and you hoped it would've been the same for him.

And it was. As Morpheus created new dreams and nightmares, his thoughts always trailed back to you.

In fact, he thought of you so much he must've created thousands of dreams with at least one of your features or one of your personality traits.

"My lord, you look...tired." Lucienne came up to him with a look of concern, a book clutched tightly in her arms.

It was rare for Morpheus to be tired, he was the king of dreams and nightmares after all.

"Lucienne-"

"I think you should get some rest my lord, Y/n is already here looking for you." She cut him off with a smile.

Everyone who resided in the dream realm knew of your existence, and the daily cuddle sessions you had with their master.

The dream lord doesn’t cuddle, is what he would tell his subjects, but that was obviously a lie.

You unlocked the door to your apartment with a sigh, already missing your bed.

You stepped into the dark hallway, locking your door back up now you had arrived home.

You threw your keys on the counter and your coat over a chair.

Swiftly taking off your work uniform, you rummaged through your wardrobe looking for something to act as pajamas. You grabbed a simple T-shirt and some shorts and put them on, collapsing on your bed and drifting into a deep sleep.

"Y/n? I was wondering when you were going to arrive." The cheerful librarian greeted you with a smile.

"Lucienne! Have you seen Morpheus anywhere?" You asked her, your fatigue evident.

"Yes, he is currently creating some new nightmares. I'll go fetch him for you."

"Thank you Lucienne."

As she went, you explored the library for a few minutes then stalked off to the bedroom Morpheus had added to the palace just for you.

"My love." You heard your lovers deep voice as you lifted your head above the white sheets.

Your black haired beauty had finally come to lay with you.

"Morpheus, finally!" You blessed him with your beautiful smile as he climbed next to you, his black coat long gone.

You wrapped your arms around his neck and he wrapped his arms around your waist.

"I can sense you've had a hard day sweetheart." He teased you with a slight smirk.

"I don't want to talk about that now, okay? I just want to be with you." You said as you kissed the end of his nose.

"Anything for you my love." Morpheus captured your lips into a kiss, before leaving you to rest in his arms.

[thepaintedlady00]

Can I request Morpheus and witch!reader? (One of my faves in sandman fanfic) fluff angst whatever you desire! 💗

Morpheus x Witch!reader is one of my favorite pairings! I went the fluffy route because I love a good fluff piece!

"I trust your rituals have gone well," Dream said from the doorway as he watched you blow out the last of the candles.

You smiled back at him, smug but no less sweet. "Don't sound so jealous Dream of the Endless."

He took a few steps into the room, eyes running over the dried plants that hung on your walls and the tiny trinkets that cluttered almost every space in your home. He enjoyed looking through your many charms and leafing through your books while you cleaned up after rituals or just did things around your quaint home. It had been hard for him at first, after being trapped by amateur witches before, but you were no amateur. You'd taken great care learning new spells and done extensive research before even attempting things you did not quite understand.

Having an immortal boyfriend made studying easy. Not only was he alive during every time period where witchcraft was practiced and honed, but he also had an entire library filled with the collective knowledge of the world. You spent many nights with Lucienne, searching for books and tomes and discussing the techniques of certain magics.

Dream finally stopped in front of you, lovingly looking down at you. "I am hardly jealous."

"No?" You asked. "Because to me, it seems like you only ever show up when I've been doing a ritual involving another deity. Seems rather, jealous does it not?"

It was partially true and both of you knew it. Dream was proud of all you accomplished but of course, he still enjoyed having you all to himself. "Perhaps I simply wished to be in your company."

You smiled and pushed yourself up on the tips of your toes to press a kiss on his cheek. "Don't worry, dear, you'll always be my favorite immortal being."

"That is relieving," he answered, reaching out to hold you. "Now, perhaps we could try another ritual of sorts."

[undiscovered-horizon]

Hey could I please request Dream's s/o laying down on the couch after a long day, and him carrying her to bed.

A/N: doing small things for the person you love is a louder confession than yelling 'i love you' and you can not change my mind

[Sandman-inspired playlist] || [MASTERLIST] || 🫀REQUESTS ARE OPEN🫀

Being one of the Endless, the concept of time or schedules was a little lost on Morpheus. To be clear, it wasn't that he didn't understand it, he simply didn't experience the passing of time as people did. Entire centuries could go by and he'd feel as if it was a mere blink of an eye. Because of that, he tended to show up 'at your doorstep' at the most random times during the day. If he had to wait for a few hours, he was okay with that - Morpheus always managed to find something to busy himself with. On that day, he found himself at your home at the perfect time, just not the best day.

He stood in your living room, staring at you lying on the couch. You were curled up, clearly cold, but too tired to actually grab a blanket. Old or unworn clothes were scattered on the armchair and its vicinity. There was a watering can on the coffee table - either misplaced or put there on purpose because it was so hard to miss it. Right, he did remember you tended to forget about it. Next to it was an empty mug so dark with tea residue it had to be used unwashed for at least two days. A strange aroma of both laundry detergent and takeaway filled the air. Your face was strangely dark, greyish as if you had lived an entire month in the span of 24 hours. Was this normal for humans?

"I love you and all that," your raspy voice was muffled against the cushions, "I'd do anything for you but that will have to wait until tomorrow if you don't mind."

"I did not come here to ask for favours." For a moment, Morpheus wondered whether that's how you perceived him. If he had to be completely honest with himself, and that wasn't going to happen any time soon, he'd admit that the only thing he could ask of you was your affection. So far, in his opinion, you were giving it to him willingly.

"Good," you groaned against the pillow. Maybe you were going to say something else but a yawn prohibited you from doing so.

Without wasting his breath, Morpheus effortlessly lifted you off the couch. To him, it was the least he could do for you. Your cheek nuzzled against his chest and he felt his breath suddenly become a little ragged. So much time had passed since someone was so close to him... Dream's old, tired bones were only remembering what intimacy felt like. In any case, he carefully walked towards your bedroom, making sure not to shake you too much.

"You really don't have to," you said in an absent, raspy voice. It sounded as if you were going to fall asleep before he can actually put you to bed.

"I want to." Morpheus had a habit of ending discussions with those words when he was adamant about doing something for you. Most of the time you simply sighed and accepted his expression of love knowing that sometimes it was more important to let him do something for you.

The bed sheets were unpleasantly cold compared to the warmth Morpheus provided. "Don't go," you groaned feeling his arms withdraw. He took in a deep breath, suddenly realizing just how far he was willing to go to fulfil that promise. Even before meeting you, he needed Lucienne to stop him multiple times but now, when you so effortlessly asked him, the imperative that fueled all of his actions was set alight; 'too far' no longer existed. Despite that, Morpheus knew that it was a matter of minutes before you fall asleep. On the other hand, maybe he was simply afraid that giving in even once would turn into a devastating habit. Part of him welcomed that possible ruin with open arms but Morpheus tried to silence that voice as much as he could.

"I shall see you in a moment," he said quietly.

Morpheus left your bedroom and went back to the living room. With hesitation befitting a creature unfamiliar with the mundane, he took the watering can. Walking through your home, he watered every plant there was, passing the time until you fall asleep and he can finally have you all to himself. Morpheus wondered whether this is what life as a human was. In some other life, he'd very much like watering plants for you every day while you take a nap.

[jiliansky-blog]

The Nightmare and the Dreamer. Chapter 9. Confusing feelings

Pairing: Morpheus x FemaleReader

Rating: PG

Words: 1920

That night, you saw how three women came to the palace and cursed Morpheus to be a real nightmare. And you saw how he became more closed, angrier and lonely. How everyone stopped talking to him.

You knew that he was wrong, but you feel sorry for him. He was punished for the things he didn’t fully understand. They didn’t understand that he closed up, because his grief could destroy him and the dream.

But when you opened your eyes, you were alone. Morpheus was probably already busy. But he left you a beautiful red flower on the pillow. Such a romantic gesture. You hope that he will join you for breakfast. You picked up a white dress and went to the castle. The way was easy. Morpheus didn’t want you to get lost.

“My lady," you heard Lucienne’s voice as soon as you got into the castle. “Are you alright? Were you not in the castle?”

“No, Morpheus made a place for me, and we spent the night there," you said. “He must be working right now.”.

"Spent the night together?” she asked.

“We were sleeping”, you smiled. “But it was very sweet of him to make such a place for me and stay with me.”.

“Yes, indeed," she replied calmly.

“Is he going to join me for breakfast?” you asked.

“I suppose so," Lucienne replied. “He didn’t say anything to me about your date, and I didn’t see him yet.”.

It makes sense. You nodded and followed her to the dining room. And he was there.

“Good morning”, you said, smiling at him.

“Good morning," he smiled back at me. “Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, thank you," you replied. “When did you leave the house?”

"Early," he said. “I have a work to do, and I didn’t want to wake you up. I hope you weren’t upset by my absence.”.

“A little bit," you smiled. “But thank you for the flower.”.

“Do you like it?” he asked.

“Of course," you replied.

"Good," he said, and he continued to eat in the silence.

You were thinking about what he was going to prepare for you today. Or maybe he will be too busy courting you.

“Do you have a lot of work to do today?” you asked.

“I’m still working on clearing my kingdom from darkness, she said. “Do you wish to join me? If you don’t have other things to do”.

“I will be happy to join you”, you smiled.

“Very well”, he said, looking glad.

After breakfast, you were watching how he tried to call the light in his kingdom. Until you decided to help him.

“I need to do it myself”, he said firstly, but didn’t take back his hand.

“And you will, soon”, you smiled, and this went easier.

“Thank you”, he whispered lately. “I did so much faster. Do you want to know what I was working on?”

“Yes”, you nodded.

“Very well”, Morpheus replied, taking my hand, and then we appeared in the field of poppies. It was so beautiful.

“This place is so wonderful”, you said, amazed. “Just like it should be”.

“I’m glad you like it”, he said. “There are a lot of places like this in the Dreaming. Or there were…before”.

“It will be beautiful again”, you smiled. “I believe in it. I believe in you. I believe that only someone with a beautiful heart can make it.”.

He suddenly blushed, and it was very cute. He quickly turned away, but you saw it anyway. And I decided to pretend that you didn’t notice it.

“Can we stay here a little longer?” you asked.

“Very well”, he suddenly, creating a blanket on the grass and a picnic basket. “I remember you liked our picnic”.

“Oh, I won’t say no to this”, you said and sat on the blanket.

He sat in front of you and took out different sweets, fruits and even wine. It was very thoughtful of him to prepare this.

“You made my time here pleasant”, you confessed. “I couldn’t even imagine that I would be in a place like this”.

“I’m glad”, he said. “Do you think you can stay here forever?”

“I don’t know…” you sighed. “I’m sleeping in my world right now, right?”

“Yes”, he nodded.

You imagined that your father was worried about you at home. And you are sleeping months, years like Sleeping beauty.

“Do you miss home?” he asked.

“A little bit”, you smiled. “But I like to be here too”.

“I saw your dreams”, he said. “You dreamt of different places and worlds. About travels and adventures. And love”.

“Yes”, you said.

“I suppose the other girl in your place would successfully escape”, Morpheus admitted. “The one who doesn’t dream about adventures”.

“Perhaps”, you smiled.

“It’s a miracle that it was you, who…”, he stopped talking.

“Who came to rescue her father from your sleepy sickness?” you asked. “I’m glad I met you, too. Even though you scared me in the beginning”.

You spend some time together. Until you tasted everything. And you wished that every day could be like this day. Perhaps, once Morpheus is free of the curse, he will return to his duties fully and stop paying attention to you.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, noticing your worry.

“Nothing”, you replied.

“No, something is troubling you”, Morpheus insisted.

“What if we can break the curse?" you said carefully. “What happened then?”

“What do you mean?” he frowned.

“What will happen to us?” you asked.

“You can stay here if you wish”, he said.

But you both understand that you need to die or stay asleep in the real world, if you are going to live in the Dreaming.

“I know that you want to travel”, he said. “And I prepared something special for you tomorrow. I hope you will like it”.

“I am sure that I will like it”, you smiled.

“Tell me what else you are dreaming of," he asked.

"Maybe a ball?” you suggested.

“A ball?” he frowned. “If only for two of us. I doubt someone wants to attend my ball right now. Only my sister”.

“Yes”, you smiled. “For two of us”.

“Very well, I can make it”, he nodded.

“Really?” You took his hand. “It would be great”.

He almost smiled. There was something incredible in the fact that he wanted to do everything for you. But you didn’t want to use it. You don’t want to use him.

“You are so gentleman”, you admitted.

“Do you like it?” he asked.

“Why do you ask?” It confused you. “Do you want to please me? Would you like to please me at this point? Because your opinion should matter”.

"I like the fact that my attention pleases you”, he said. “That’s better than you being scared of me. I always wonder why people are scared of me, but not of my sister. Even before the curse”.

“Perhaps it’s your attitude or dark clothes”, you smiled. “You looked like the antagonist of one of the urban stories”.

“I am neither antagonist nor a protagonist," he declined.

“I didn’t say that you are”, you said. “Just that you made that impression.”.

“Hm…” he said.

“I don’t say that you need to change your style or something else”, you admitted. “Just saying the possible answered”.

“I see”, Morpheus replied.

You returned to the castle. You said that you wanted to be with him in the cabin, but he said that he had work to do. Furthermore, you felt disappointed and preferred to stay in the castle.

“You don’t like the cabin?” he asked.

“I just don’t want to feel alone there”, you shrugged. “I have the whole castle for this”.

And he frowned. You felt like you said something wrong. You don’t want to consume his all-time. And you sighed.

“I’m sorry”, you said. “I didn’t mean to offend you or distract you from your work. It’s just that the castle is so big, and I feel so small there”.

“You can sleep in my room while I am working," he said. “I didn’t mean to make you feel alone”.

“Really?” you asked.

“Of course”, he nodded. “I know too well how it feels now”.

Your heart almost breaks at the thought.

"So, are you going to join me in my room?” Morpheus asked.

And you followed him. You didn’t want to imagine what you can do in his room. He will be busy. That’s not something else.

“Do you still see dreams?” Morpheus asked suddenly.

“Yes”, you replied carefully, because you don’t understand what dreams he meant.

“What exactly did you see?” he asked.

"Promise that you won’t be angry”, you said.

“Why should I be angry?” he asked.

“I saw you from behind,” you said. “And Calliope. And…”

"Orpheus," he whispered.

“Yes”, you said.

“And what exactly did you see?” he asked.

“Not much”, you replied. “Some of your conversations”.

“So you should see what brought me to my state”, he wasn’t looking at me. “And my downfall”.

“Yes”, you replied.

“And you still want to stay in my presence and don’t hate me”, he sighed. “Why?”

“Because it wasn’t you”, you said. “It was your grief”.

“What do you know about grief?” he asked, looking at you.

“I lost my mother”, you said. “So I know something. I don’t say that our grief is the same. But I understand your pain”.

“I need to work." You were sure that his eyes shone from tears, and he quickly came onto the terrace. You lied on his bed. Likewise, you didn’t want to push him to tell you about it. These things are too painful to handle, and you don’t want to destroy his trust. You started to feel something else for him. Something tender and fragile.

And with that thought, you started to fall asleep.

Morpheus

She knew what I did. She knew why I was cursed. And it’s a marvel that she's still here. I should work on my surprises, because that is how I want to thank her.

“So, how is everything going on?” Matthew joined me.

“It goes well”, I replied.

“I feel the curse will break soon”, he said. “You even spent the last night in the cabin. How was it? Did she like it?”

“Matthew, we were talking and sleeping”, I replied.

“I mean, did she like your gift?” he asked.

“Yes, but she doesn’t want to be there alone”, I replied.

“So what’s stopping you from spending all day there together, boss?” he asked. “As far as I know, it can make you closer to each other”.

“I will consider this”, I said. “Tomorrow we will have a trip and the ball”.

“The ball?” he asked. “Is this a wedding ball?”

“For two of us”, I replied. “It is her wish”.

“You really like her, aren’t you, boss?” he noticed.

"Yes… She knows. Why I became a nightmare and am still here. She still wants me to be with her. It’s a miracle”.

“We have a real hope now”, the raven flied around in excitement. “I really hope nothing is going to mess it up”.

“Do you mean me?” I narrowed my eyes.

“No, I know that you are gentle with her”, he said. “But something made her run away. I would like her to stay”.

“It’s her decision to make”, I sighed. “Now you can fly away. I need to work”.

“Alright, alright”, he mumbled, and he flew away.

And I continued to work on the place I wanted to show her tomorrow. I wanted to make the proposal after the ball. And I want everything to be perfect.

@shadowqueen1318 @mypsychoticlove @justathirstyhoe​ @ladymoztaza @sapphireonline @deniixlovezelda

[dragon-kazansky]

When the raven calls

Morpheus x Female Reader

You, his raven, die protecting Jessamy while rescuing the Dream Lord. When Morpheus returns to his realm, he mourns your loss, only to find a stranger waiting for him in his throne room. The stranger claims to be you, now in human form. He doesn't understand, but his raven will always watch over him.

{Masterlist}

{Next Chapter}

Notes: This story will follow the series on Netflix. This is separate from my other fic that I wrote. This plot was given to me by @missdreamofendless 💕

Chapter One - Loyal little raven

☆☆☆

You are perched on the steps looking up at your king. Lord Morpheus was about to leave the Dreaming in search of a Rogue nightmare. It was very rare this happened, and he didn't often visit the waking world. There were many dangers in doing so.

However, you knew your king and knew he could handle this. You just wished he would permit you to go with him. You look up at him with your beady raven eyes.

"You are coming back, aren't you?" You ask.

"Why would I not return?"

"I don't know... I just have a bad feeling about this. You know what he's like. Wouldn't it be better if I went with you? Just to keep an eye on things?"

"No. I won't be long. Wait for me here." Morpheus gazes at you. You sigh and nod your head once.

"Fine."

Lucienne looks concerned, too, but doesn't voice it. She stands with her hands clasped together, looking up at him. You fly from the stairs and land on her shoulder.

Lord Morpheus put his helm on. He leaves for the waking world, surrounded by his sand. He's gone just like that.

Lucienne looks at you. "Come join me in the library while we wait."

"Yeah, okay..."

You fly on ahead. You knew Lord Morpheus could more than handle himself, but you're just not sure today was the best day. You've had a bad feeling from the start. Just the terrible thought something would go wrong.

You wanted to be proven wrong.

In an hour or so, you were certain he would return with The Corianthian in tow. All would be well again.

Lucienne took a seat at her desk and began to go through her books. You landed on the edge and decided to help the best you could. Jessamy even came by to help, too. Lucienne was adamant about keeping you both busy until Dream's return. She was good like that.

So good, in fact, that several hours passed before you were done. It was only when the last book was on the shelf that you realised a whole day passed and your king had yet to make an appearance.

Lucienne realised too.

"Why hasn't he come back yet?" You ask, looking up at her.

"I don't know. I'll go search for him."

"I'm coming too."

Lucienne knows there is little sense in arguing with you. With you flying over her, she makes her way around the palace. She asks residents and staff if they have seen any sign of their king. No one had an affirmative response.

The fact that if he had returned and not immediately came in search for you was the biggest worry. Lucienne knew you were his most trusted confidant.

You were very clearly worried about him. She could hear Jessamy trying to come up with reasons why he may be late. They weren't helping much, but you also didn't seem to mind her doing so.

The throne room is the last place you both check. By then, you have lost all hope. You land on his throne. The librarian can see from your behaviour how dejected you are.

"I'm sure he's fine."

Her reassurance is appreciated, but not quite enough to cheer you up. Your king was still gone and worry had settled within your feathers.

All you could do was wait.

☆☆☆

Days turned into weeks. Weeks turned into months. Months turned into years. Lord Morpheus had not returned to his kingdom. The residents of the Dreaming had become divided by his disappearance. A majority of them left, either to search for their lost king, or because they believed he had abandoned them.

You never thought such a thing. He would not abandon his home, his people, his responsibility. He took pride in being the dream lord.

You waited every single day.

The mkre time that passed, the more you wondered what coukd have happened. Something had clearly gone very wrong. Had The Corianthian hurt him? No. Despite being a nightmare who ran away, you didn't believe he would be Dream's demise.

"Where are you, sir?" You curl up in your wings, just wanting him to be safe.

Sleepy sickness set in among the mortals. Some either could no longer sleep or would not wake up from sleeping. They were suffering now that the Sandman was gone.

Lucienne stayed in the Dreaming. She was loyal as anything. Jessamy also stayed, wishing her beloved king would return.

Then there was you. You would never abandon your beloved Dreaming. Your home was here. All the centuries spent serving Lord Morpheus meant more to you than anything. You were his loyal raven.

Sleep eluded you. You could not rest without his presence in the kingdom. Lucienne had noticed from the day he disappeared that you could no longer sleep. She worried about you. Most of your days were spent in the throne room waiting.

Jessamy would do daily tours around the now crumbling kingdom to search for any signs he might be back. So far, nothing.

Your hope was dwindling.

A few more years pass, and there is still no sign of him. You had been badly affected by his absence. Lucienne was even more worried about you. The bond you shared with Lord Morpheus was much more than just two companions working together. There was clearly an invisible bond that tied you both together, and it was breaking the longer he was gone.

Jessamy started to visit the waking world. Lucienne wasn't so sure about letting her go, but she eventually caved in. Jessamy was doing this for your sake. She was worried about you too.

For the longest time, she came back with no news. Then, one day, in England, she caught wind of an interesting conversation. A supposed demon trapped in a basement.

Rodrick Burgess. A magic user, apparently. Insanely rich and powerful. Jessamy had gone to investigate where he lived.

She could feel him. She could feel Lord Morpheus close by. She had never flown home so fast before. She immediately went to Lucienne, who no longer had a library. It had vanished over the years along with most of the Dreaming.

"Lucienne! Lucienne!"

The librarian looks up and sees Jessamy flying in at high speeds. She goes in for a landing and stumbles. She's too excited to slow down right now.

"I've found him!"

"What?" Lucienne looks at the raven in confusion. Her mind went straight to her finding something on their king, but that can't possibly be true.

"I've found him!" Jessamy says, her voice full of hope.

"You have found the Dream lord?"

"Yes!" Jessamy flaps her wings.

"Are you certain?"

"Absolutely certain. I felt him. He's being trapped in a basement under a manorhouse." Jessamy explains.

Lucienne looks up. "We must tell her."

Jessamy nods her little head and takes flight again. She flies right toward the throne room. Lucienne does her best to keep up with the raven.

The throne room doors open, and Jessamy flies in, heading right for the throne. You lift your head to look at her as she comes over. She seems happy.

"I've found him!" She tells you.

You stare at her. Lucienne approaches the stairs and looks up at you. "Jessamy believes she has found Lord Morpheus."

You look back at Jessamy, who nods at you. "He's being kept prisoner."

You stand up and stretch your wings. "Then what are we waiting for?"

"Are you sure you wish to go?" Lucienne asks.

"At the very least, I need to know where he is. Jessamy can come with me. If we can free him, we shall."

"Very well. Return soon. I do want to lose either of you as well."

Both you and Jessamy nod and take flight. You follow her. Lucienne watches you both go, wishing that all goes well.

☆☆☆

You land in the tree with Jessamy and look down at the fancy house. It's huge. Clearly, this Rodrick Burgess is wealthy. However, you hate the man with a passion.

Just like Jessamy could, you sense the presence of your king. He is here. You are certain it is him. You try and seek that connection you share with him, but it's weak. Still, you hope he felt you trying to get through to him.

"He's definitely here." You say.

"Yes. I'm certain of it."

"What do you know of this house?"

"Not a lot. Many people come and go. There are guards everywhere. However, I think if we can get inside, we can definitely work out a plan and get in there. I am certain he is being kept below the house."

"So we just need to find a way to him." You take a good look at the house.

"Should we go back and make a plan with Lucienne?" Jessamy asks.

"No." You look at the door of the house. "If he's here, I want to rescue him as soon as we can. I say we go for it."

"Are you sure?" She asks, uncertainty in her voice.

"I've never been more of anything. We can do this together. Let us go and see what they have done to him."

Jessamy nods and lets you take the lead into the house. You fly down and through the front doors. You find somewhere to land and examine the house.

There aren't that many people inside, it seems. Jesssamy comes up with a plan to start a fire. You watch her fly into the office. She sets the room ablaze. Jessamy rejoins you, and you wait. You follow her gaze to what you assume is the basement door. It's got its own security system. The door opens, and two people come out. Both you and Jessamy instantly fly through it.

The door leads to some dark stairs. You both go in and land on the rungs of the gate inside.

You almost can't believe it.

There he is. Lord Morpheus. He's completely naked and trapped in a class cage. His eyes find yours, and he slowly stands. You feel relief as you see him. You and Jessamy fly over to the glass cage. Morpheus raises his hand to where you fly above him. You would cry if you could.

Jessamy starts tapping into the glass as hard as she can. You realise she's trying to break it. You snap back to reality and join her. Both of you fly into the glass as hard as you can. Dream watches you. If you can break the glass, he can tell you what to do from there.

The sound of a pair of footsteps echoes behind you, and you stop tapping the glass to see a young man with a shotgun. You panic as he aims for Jessamy.

"No!" You gasp. You fly into Jessamy, who loses her balance and tumbles out of the way. The gun goes off.

Dream is left heartbroken at what remains of you. Jessamy gets out of there as fast as she can, leaving her beloved king behind.

There is barely anything left of you on the ground. Morpheus can't tear his eyes away as they fill with tears. There's a deep searing pain in his chest that takes hold of his heart. He kneels down and delicately reaches out as if he could touch your body.

Rodrick orders Alex to dispose of your body, and then he leaves. Morpheus watches as Alex picks up what remains of your body and drops it into a wastepaper bin.

He can't even bury you like you deserve.

Alex looks at Dream and then leaves quietly.

Morpheus curls up in his prison and stares blankly ahead. He won't let his tears fall. Alex Burgess would get what's coming to him. One day.

Morpheus will get his revenge.

☆☆☆

@missdreamofendless - @kpopgirlbtssvt - @sitkafay - @snowsatsu - @ladyofketterdam - @thoughtsfromlayla -

[stellerssong]

5 and 29 please?

5—what’s a fic idea you’ve had that you will never write?

having given the matter a great deal of thought, i’ve come to the conclusion that i have no interest in writing a corinthian/lucienne femdom hatesex on the beach fic, on the grounds that i’m personally not compelled by the fantasy it presents. apologies to everyone who read the middle section of that sentence and immediately went AWOOGA AWOOGA BARK BARK BARK BARK AWOOOOO like a cartoon character. i know you are out there and i heard you do it.

the real bummer of this whole affair, though, is the fact that “beg me to spare thee the back of my hand” would have been a kickass title. free to a good home, friends!

29—share a bit from a fic you’ll never post OR from a scene that was cut from an already posted fic.

i don’t work in drafts, so everything that’s been cut from existing fics has been sent to hell already. but what i CAN offer you is this (probably obnoxiously long) snippet from a portion of wereverse that i will probably never actually post about, lovingly nicknamed, “the bath time fic”:

The tub isn’t quite wide enough for them to sit side-by-side, and he moves toward the tap a little so Lucienne can lower herself into the water, angles himself so his cheek is to her, rather than his back. A dark glitter as his gaze flicks over her body. She knows it’s ridiculous to have an attack of modesty right now, but she brings her arms up to cover her breasts. “There,” she says, too cheerful even for her own ears. “Does that help?” Dream makes a small noise in his throat. Maybe assent. Hard to tell. But he does reach out with one hand and rest his knuckles gently against Lucienne’s knee. You can tell he’s getting keyed when he starts grabbing and clinging and clawing at you. Light touches are a good sign. They mean he’s present enough to be careful. (Well. They mean something’s present enough, says a voice in her head that sounds a lot like Cori. She ignores that, as best she can.) “Is the water warm enough?” A nod. Better and better. “Do you need me to soap you, or…?” Silence for a moment. Dream’s throat works, like there’s a reply stuck in there trying to get out, but in the end he just unfolds one slim arm and picks up the bar of soap himself. “All right. Well…” Lucienne settles herself a little uncomfortably against the back of the tub. “Just—let me know. If you need anything.” His white lashes go up like a pair of dove’s wings. Luminous dark underneath, whites visible only at the corners. A creature’s eyes, an animal’s eyes, for all that he’s being so good about holding onto his human shape. That’s going to be…difficult to explain to people not in the know about his condition, at some point, but Lucienne’s not thinking about that yet, she’s just thinking about immediate concerns, practicalities— He shifts position slightly so the tips of his toes are resting against hers. A faint line works its way in between his brows. He still doesn’t speak, but that expression is plain as black ink on white paper: is this okay? Lucienne has to smile at that. Her face aches, like she’s lost the muscle memory sometime in the past however-many weeks. Footsie. Aren’t the two of them fucking adorable.

[lady-pug]

while I'm alone and blue as can be

Chapter III of Dream a Little Dream of Me

Summary: You’d been feeling tired, even in the Dreaming. You’d wake up even more tired than when you went to bed. Why couldn’t you just stay there? Stay there forever and forget all your problems back home? Maybe if you asked Dream he’d let you stay. That would be nice.

Pairing: Morpheus | Dream of the Endless x Reader

Word count: 1,7k

Warnings: allusions to depression and wanting to give up, descriptions of almost drowning (if that’s something you’re uncomfortable with, or you feel could be potentially triggering to you, please feel free to skip this part)

Notes: I really liked writing this part, even though it's kinda dark and heavy. Again, please please, for your own comfort and safety, heed the warnings above.

I’m finally gonna catch a break, so I intend to have the next part out by the end of next week, at the latest by the end of the month (I’m super motivated to keep this promise).

Anyway, I really really hope you, whoever is reading this, enjoys this part of the story, and thank you so much for the lovely feedback this story has received.

(I also just remembered the existence of the word ‘perhaps’ while writing this at 1 am., so thank you sleep deprived brain).

Reader's gender not specified

Next part | Previous part | Masterlist | Read on AO3

The sky was completely dark when you arrived. Clouds were hiding the soft blue hue you had grown accustomed to, only a sliver of moonlight escaping through them. 

How fitting, you thought. 

It had been an awful day. Actually it had been an awful couple of months as of late. Many terrible things had happened to you, too many to count actually. Your financial situation was awful, your job having let you go under the guise of a budget cut. Some people you cared about had walked away from your life; you could agree you hadn’t handled the situation in the best of ways and now you didn’t know how to fix things. And the straw that finally broke the camel’s back was a sudden loss in the family, a relative you were very close with as a kid, and you couldn’t even mourn them properly as you couldn’t afford to travel all the way to your hometown right now.

Your only respite through all of this was this place. This little quaint town in the Dreaming. The café owner was lovely as always, often offering you a cup of coffee (which you always declined, given the fact that you probably couldn’t taste it). The old man at the bar still winked at you when you walked past him. It was strangely calming being here. 

After your encounter with Lucienne and Dream, you now knew where you were. Knowing made you feel safer, comfortable. You even started seeing Mervyn walking around, although he was usually a little bit rude to you. Being here felt cozy, like a breath of fresh air after an incredibly long day. You often longed for the day to end, so you could finally go to bed, fall asleep and come here, leaving all your responsibilities and problems behind for a few hours.

But in the past few days even that hadn’t been enough.

You’d been feeling tired, even here. You’d wake up even more tired than when you went to bed, to the point your eyes started to look slightly sunk in.

Why couldn’t you just stay here? Stay here forever and forget all your problems back home? 

Home.

It didn’t feel like a home. Not anymore. This place felt more like a home than anything else. Maybe if you asked Dream he’d let you stay here. Perhaps Lucienne could help you get a hold of him so you could ask. That would be nice.

With a heavy sigh you decided to take a walk. Long walks usually helped you calm your mind and left you feeling better afterwards. Giving the lady at the café a small nod in passing, her usual beaming face crumpled in a concerned frown, you set off towards the riverbank. Right as you arrived at the edge of the low stone wall that separated the town from the shore below, an idea struck you.

Toeing off your shoes, you carefully, ever so slowly, sat down on the wall, the hard rocks digging into the skin of your thighs over your clothes, and jumped down the small distance onto the sand. It was still warm from where the sun had probably shone onto it. Strangely, in all the months you had been coming here, you’d never caught this place in the daytime. You could bet it was beautiful, maybe just as beautiful as during nighttime. Maybe an afternoon nap was the solution.

As the sand seeped in between your toes, you set off on your track through the shore, the water a short distance away from you, softly lapping at the damp sand. It was a nice feeling, the cool breeze licking your skin as you walked.

You walked. And walked. And walked. Until you stopped. Abruptly coming to a halt on the sand, you paused your walk, noticing something just on the edge of your vision. Turning your head in search of it, you finally noticed what had caught your attention. An old wooden bench sat facing the river, its backrest almost touching the stone wall. Come to think of it, you were actually quite tired, probably having been worn down by your endless walking (or not, as you were already tired when you got here earlier). You slowly walked over to the bench, running a hand over the damp wood, before sitting down.

As you breathed in deeply, you let your weight sink down on the bench. This is nice, you thought, staring at the water ahead of you as your eyes slowly lost focus. Maybe I can stay here from now on. Maybe I can just… exist.

You had no idea how long you sat there, could have been minutes, could have been hours, you weren’t sure. You simply existed in that moment. 

“Hey!” a voice called from your left, one you recognized belonged to Mervyn, but you didn’t really have it in you to see what he wanted right now “What are you doing here?” he asked as he walked closer to where you were sitting.

You only shrugged, as you didn’t have an answer for that.

“Amanda told Matthew who then told me that you looked a little down in the dumps today. So I came to ensure that you weren’t up to no good and causing trouble.” he chuckled at himself, amusement filling his voice as he joked at your expense.

When you didn’t answer yet again, he stepped closer again.

“Are you oka- woah.” he ran up to you, his voice acquiring a worried tune “When did those get there?”

Your eyes followed where his finger was pointing, all the way down to your feet, and that’s when you noticed. Vines- no, roots were wrapped around your ankles, slowly crawling their way up your leg. Only now were you noticing the small pressure on your skin, but it wasn’t painful. It was barely uncomfortable either. If you had to describe it, you’d say it was almost… welcoming.

“Let’s get this off, shall we?” Mervyn smiled awkwardly at you, his smile crooked in concern as he lowered himself to his knees and started trying to remove the roots from you. His gloved fingers tried to rip the roots away from you, but they only kept growing more.

A rumbling sound caught his attention, making him snap his head to look at the water, which he now noticed was rising, and rising fast.

“Uh-oh.” he gulped, jumping to his feet “That’s not supposed to happen.” he mumbled to himself “I’ll go get help, okay? I’ll come back with someone who can help.” he exclaimed as he walked away.

As you watched the water climbing through the shore, slowly coming towards you, one thought crossed your mind.

No one can help.

The roots were already past your knees by the time the water reached you, soaking your bare feet. As the roots held you in place, the water level started rising, covering first your shins, then your bent knees, then your waist. You didn’t have the energy to fight it, nor to try and escape, so you just let the water engulf you. 

The temperature of the water felt nice against your skin as it kept going up, up, up. By the time it hit your chin you weren’t thinking much of anything really, content on just letting go. Once the water was over your nose, you closed your eyes.

Just as the water was about to submerge you fully, you felt something, akin to a giant hand, grab the back of your shirt. The roots, which had been curled tightly around your legs, finally loosened, breaking as you were pulled out of the water and onto the street over the stone wall.

Coughing, you spit out some of the water that had managed to infiltrate your lungs. As you laid on the cobblestone path, you turned your head to stare at your savior, your eyes making contact with the hem of a black overcoat. 

“Why did-” you wheezed as he helped you sit up, your legs dangling from the wall. The water was back in its original place, as if nothing had ever happened, and the bench was gone. “Why did you do that?”

Dream eyed you with disbelief as he sat down next to you. The way he looked at you, as if you were crazy to ever ask such a question, made you feel truly seen for the first time in a long while.

“You didn’t finish your book.” 

That… was not what you were expecting. 

“To be honest you barely even started it.” he smiled the most discreet of grins, like he was teasing you.

“What?” you asked, dumbfounded.

“You need to finish writing your book.”

You deflated.

“I don’t need to.” you shrugged, your wet clothes clinging uncomfortably to your body “You already have a finished copy in your castle’s library.”

He turned his eyes to stare at the river ahead, avoiding your gaze.

“Perhaps.” it was his turn to shrug “But others don’t.” 

He turned back to look at you, his light eyes so full of warmth as he smiled, actually smiled, at you.

“Go back. Tell your story.” his hand fleetingly brushed against yours “You still have so much ahead of you.”

A warm, tightening feeling started growing in your chest. You had a feeling he wasn’t talking only about the book.

He stood up, dusting himself off, before offering you a hand to pull you up as well, which you promptly accepted. As he was about to snap his fingers, which you knew would send you back, you quickly held onto his opposite wrist.

“Wait!” he paused, his eyes searching your own with barely concealed concern “Will I see you again?”

At your question, he smiled one again, hand sliding up to intertwine his fingers with your yours.

“If you wish.”

He waited until you smiled at him in confirmation, his hand squeezing yours briefly, before he snapped his fingers.

As you sat up in bed, you quickly threw the sheets aside and practically stumbled over to your desk, turning your computer on, inspiration running hot through your veins, and immediately started typing.

[b-plot-butch]

if you have QPR Lucienne n Dream takes I'd love to hear them out 👀 consider me intrigued

OMG THANK YOU FOR THE ASK BUCKLE UP

(a minor comics spoiler incoming—no plotline or events or anything like that, just a detail about Lucien/Lucienne’s past)

SO. Lucienne was actually Dream’s first raven!!! First EVER. And when she didn’t want to be his raven anymore, she chose to be his royal librarian. And Dream is, yknow, billions of years old, and we don’t know how old he was when he first started having raven companions—but we can safely assume it’s been a long-ass time. Lucienne is the person Dream has spent the most time with over more years than you or I can easily imagine. We know Dream is close with Death, and we know Dream considers Hob a friend, but he does not see either of them often.

He trusts Lucienne. Take what Dream says in Chapter 6 of Brief Lives (Vol. 7 of the comics), for example: “When I was held captive, and the castle crumbled, Lucien stayed here, and did his duty as best he saw it, while the rest of you fled. Who else here can make that claim?” + “Lucien demonstrated loyalty and faith. I see nothing strange about placing my trust in him.” (I went and checked the comics to get this exactly right because I am such a nerd about The Sandman.)

The Dreaming is a part of Dream and he a part of it. He quite literally trusts Lucien/Lucienne with himself. And for a being such as Dream, that is no small matter.

Pivoting back to the show…I love how Lucienne deals with Dream’s shit. Like, she has known him too long to fall over herself trying to be subservient to him. She advises him. She’s not afraid to push back. When he’s a dick to her, she doesn’t just pretend it didn’t happen. The way she says “oh?” when he tries to apologise to her is my favorite thing ever btw.

Change is such a massive theme of both the comics and the show, and I think Lucienne bears witness to and is impacted by the largest portion of it!! The significance of that drives me insane!! Dream APOLOGISES to her. He tells her SHE WAS RIGHT. (As he should. The bare minimum etc etc). He’s TRYING TO LISTEN MORE. That’s HUGE for Dream, the enormous asswad!!! They are such important people in each other’s lives.

Also, sorry, the way the Corinthian says “you can’t change him. You can’t save him, either” MURDERS MEEEEEE. He kind of read Lucienne to filth right there, I gotta say. She believes Dream to be worthy of saving and worthy of changing even when he does not believe that of himself.

Lucienne said she never felt abandoned. For a century, as her home rotted around her, as her friends and neighbors fled one by one until only she remained, she never felt abandoned. The incredible trust between herself and Dream goes both ways. She is in fact (as Vivienne herself has pointed out) loyal to a fault. That unshakability…wow.

ALSO THE WAY SHE HOLDS HIS HAND WHEN HE COMES HOME. THE WAY HE REVERENTLY MURMURS HER NAME LIKE A PRAYER. HELLO????

In conclusion: they are life partners your honour

(Tagging @lucienne-thee-librarian in case she has anything to add!)

[honeybeezgobzzzzz]

𓅨 Dreamswept: Chapter Fourteen

Dreamswept: In which Dream’s imprisonment brings out his darker side. Y/N’s mother works for the Burgess’s as a nurse, and after stumbling across what is hidden beneath Fawny Rig’s mortars one summer, Y/N’s life will never be the same. A darkness has attached itself to her and no matter how long she is kept from the Endless in the basement, he has not forgotten her kindness and brief moments of comfort. No, he has not forgotten, and now he craves it. 

Warnings: Explicit Language, Dubious Explicit Content (Unprotected Sex is a No No), Manipulated Reader, Major Mind Fuckery.

To Note: Dark!Morpheus/Dream x Female!Reader, Inspired by 'Claiming His Queen' by @moonmaiden1996 (Go Read It!).

Word Count: ~2.4k

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You were sitting in the gardens, staring blankly out into the distance with your hands in your lap. The entire point of you being out in the gardens was to enjoy the view, but you had stopped paying attention to the incredible views the moment your mind had a chance to wander. It had been nine days since you had tried to escape from your home and you were… confused, to say the least. What had convinced you to try and run away from your home, from Morpheus? Did you not love your husband and home? Your confusion was confusing. For the first time since you had sat down, emotion crossed your face in the form of a frown. The Dreaming was your home, was it not? You felt something shift in your mind, like tendrils wrapping around that thought of doubt and evaporating it from your mind. Your head hurt for the briefest moments as those tendrils clawed at your uncertainty… then nothing. You blinked rapidly, your mind now empty. 

“What am I doing in the garden?” You questioned, looking around in curiosity. The flowers were in full bloom, perfuming the air with their lovely scent, and the mountains in the background always provided a breathtaking view. You must have come to enjoy the views. “I really should stop forgetting things.” You mused to yourself, rising from your seat and clutching the shawl that was draped around your shoulders, closer to your body. It was cold out and you were chilled. You had clearly spent an extended time outside off in your own little world to have gotten this cold. Stepping away from the vacated bench, you wandered back towards the palace, seeking the warm and comforting environment of your home. 

Upon entering the palace, the temperature change was immediately more comfortable, but it would be a long time before you warmed back up. A perfect excuse to head to the library, find a book and sit in front of the fireplace in your sitting room. That brought a happy smile to your face and you picked up your pace, eager to see what new books now graced the shelves of the library. You swept into the library, the skirts of your lavish dress sailing across white marble as you walked. Your eyes started searching for Lucienne, surely she was somewhere within the library, she always was. “Lucienne? Are you here?” No answer. Apparently, she wasn’t around this time. You would have to go in search of a book to read by yourself. 

A daunting task since the bookshelves seemed to be endless, constantly shifting and growing, rearranging themselves and even playing tricks. You had gotten lost the last time you went in search of a book by yourself… but in your defense, you got entirely turned around when the shelves started changing and they didn’t seem to want to let you leave. Standing in front of a line of shelves, you gave the aisles a wary look. 

“Are you going to play nice with me today?” You questioned, eyeing the dark shelves scrupulously. The library creaked and shivered, reacting to your words. For a second you felt as if you were being mocked. You huffed and wrinkled your nose, stepping forwards in refusal to be intimidated by wood. You stalked forwards, determined to be unflappable while running your fingers along the spines of the books. Most of the books in this section were books of dreams and while it was interesting to read about what people dreamed about, you felt this was an invasion of privacy. You finally wandered to the section of books written by human hands. You pulled out a few books and checked the covers, tabbing through the first few pages of a couple. Nothing particular was standing out to you. A shiver went up your spine and you trembled. Your hands clutched your shawl closer. You really needed to pick a book and warm up. You spotted a book higher on the shelf, The Secret Garden, and reached up to retrieve it. It was just out of your reach. Then an arm appeared over yours and plucked the book for you. 

You stopped stretching up on your toes, feeling the warmth from Morpheus’s body behind you. Leaning your head back, you looked up into Morpheus’s face, once again caught up in his intense gaze. He placed the book down on the edge of the bookshelf and wrapped his arms around your body. A noise of appreciation bubbled in the back of your throat as you bathed in the sudden warmth surrounding you. 

“Aren’t you supposed to be working?” You questioned softly, confusion once again running through your mind. Your mysterious husband was a very busy man, even you knew that, so why was he here with you? Morpheus leaned down and pressed his face into your neck, nuzzling your skin. You sighed as the heat from his lips and breath caressed your skin, heating it from its chilled state.

“I will always have time to spend with my beloved wife,” Morpheus spoke into your skin, further nuzzling your throat. The hands at your waist followed your arms to trail across your wrists, then he slipped his long fingers between yours in a comforting grasp. “Your skin is cold and you shiver, my dream. What reason does my queen have to be cold?” Morpheus was far from happy to find that you were chilled to the bone, what had led you to be in such an undesirable state? You leaned further into his arms, blinking at him with innocent eyes. 

“I was out in the garden,” You explained, a troubled look crossing your face. Morpheus felt your confusion. “I think I might have fallen asleep, I can’t remember why I was out there.” You tried to think harder about what you had been doing in the garden, your eyebrows pinching together. A headache bloomed at your temple and your face scrunched. Your hand left Morpheus’s and you rubbed your forehead. “I think I—“ Morpheus cut you off, sliding his hand up to cover the one you had at your temple. You felt a shiver of magic rush through your body and your headache disappeared, along with your thoughts of the garden. “Sorry, what were we talking about?” Morpheus smiled at you, gently pulling your fingers away from your forehead. 

“You are cold, my dream.” Morpheus prompted, directing the conversation and delicately maneuvering your body in a semicircle so you were facing him. His arm slid around your back and pulled you against his chest. “Shall I see to warming your body?” As Morpheus spoke to you, you felt heat start to simmer beneath your skin. You squirmed in place, feeling a desire nip at your veins. You softly moaned when Morpheus began nipping at the column of your throat, teasing you with biting kisses that made your heart speed up in your chest. Then you were pressed back against the bookshelves with Morpheus’s pelvis pressing into yours. Your stomach twisted and you felt a throbbing sensation between your legs. A soft whimper escaped your parted lips. That was all it took for Morpheus to decide to chase after his desire for you. You were far too irresistible in this state with the sweetest sounds escaping from your parted lips. He had to have you. 

Morpheus’s hands dropped to your waist and he effortlessly lifted you. You found yourself precariously perched on a ledge of the bookshelf, hard book spines along with wood pressed into your back. But you didn’t have time to notice what was pressing into your back. Morpheus quickly had his mouth on yours, greedily running his lips over yours in a repetitive motion as if he couldn’t get enough of the sensation. He couldn’t. With one hand gripping the bookshelf, you lifted your other to press your fingers against his jaw. Your thumb stroked the sharp bone softly before Morpheus tugged on your lower lip. You gasped and he drank that sweet sound until it consumed him. He wanted more. Needed more. So he took it. On your next breath of air, he dove in, drawing his tongue across yours and making hungry sounds in the back of his throat. You tasted better than the nectar of the gods. Morpheus continued to kiss you, devouring as much of you as he could get while you clung to him, oblivious to his true desires. Oblivious to his obsession to have you and never let go. 

His hands dug into your skirts, roughly pushing them up as he caressed your skin and imprinted his touch on your body. Your body jolted and tingled against his touches and lips breaking apart, you breathily moaned while trying to catch your breath. The departure of your mouth from his led Morpheus to descend back to the flesh of your throat. He started roughly laving at your skin, eager to leave behind his touch and presence. You moaned deep in your throat when fingers pushed up your inner thigh and curled around the band of your underwear. 

“Morpheus,” You breathed, your eyes fluttering and the hand in his hair tugging the strands. “We’re in the library!” Morpheus bit your neck in retaliation to your words. You cried out, your grip on his hair sharp. “We can’t just—“ You sputtered to a stop when his lips began kissing all the right places on his way up your neck. Then you squirmed once more as he pressed his jean-clad body father against yours. Without the thick fabric of your dress between your bodies, you could feel just how hard his cock was through his jeans and your body only burned that much brighter. You were fighting a losing battle. “Morpheus, Lucienne—“ 

“Will not meddle in the affairs of her king and queen,” Morpheus stated firmly between the kisses he pressed along your jaw. “And I will have you wherever I so choose,” His fingers tugged at your underwear once more and you felt the fabric dissolve to nothing. Then his hand seared your flesh, stroking your cunt and teasing you to an almost unbearable state. Already you were ready for him, your body reacted instinctively to his touch. Good, as much as he loved to taste your nectar and watch as you fell apart beneath him, he had to be in you. Now. With a rustle of jeans and a zipper, Morpheus freed his cock and ever so easily sank into your cunt, watching as pleasure ricocheted across your face and your eyes rolled. You never looked more beautiful than when you were filled with his cock, save for when you were lost in the rapture of orgasm with Morpheus’s seed dripping from your body. 

Just like the previous times, he had taken you, your body welcomed his cock with velvet softness that Morpheus would never tire of. He withdrew from you at a torturous pace before thrusting forwards once more, his hips bumping into yours and pressing your body further into the bookshelf. A hiss slipped from your lips at the first raw strokes, then the sounds coming from your honeyed lips turned sweeter, addicting. Letting your head fall back, you focused on your breathing as hands gripped your body in a bruising grip. Morpheus pressed his face against your bared neck once more, teasing the skin with his lips, then teeth. He nibbled, explored, and drank in the feeling of the blood excitedly rushing beneath your skin. Oh, how your cunt flexed and clenched around his cock as he thrust into your body over and over again. 

The library was spinning as you felt the most incredible pleasure. Even with wood and book digging into your back and the uncomfortable position you were pressed in, you could only feel pleasure. You whimpered in pain when Morpheus struck a sore spot within your body, tensing in his hold with a quiver. Morpheus was quick to purr words of calming reassurances in your ear, his face rising to nuzzle yours. 

“Relax my dream,” His words curled across your skin in a gentle urge. You hiked one of your legs over his waist and held him closer, your back arching as electric pleasure rolled through your body like a tidal wave. “You are an enchantress that has locked me in your spell, do you not see how much I desire you? How much I crave you?” Harsh kisses were pressed against your lips, and your tongue was instantly busied by Morpheus’s as he kissed the oxygen from your lungs. Your hand dragged through his scalp to cup the side of his face. You had to break the voracious lip lock to suck in much-needed air and while you did so silver eyes seared into yours. “I have never wanted anything in my entire existent as I want you.” 

You would have flushed if you weren’t already drowning in heat, but your walls did constrict around Morpheus’s cock. He smirked at you as your noses brushed together. Morpheus knew that he was bringing your body close to ultimate pleasure, he could feel it boiling beneath your skin, threatening to take over. You always looked so lovely blissed out when he brought you to an orgasm and he knew that this one would be no different. 

“Come for me my queen,” Morpheus demanded, pressing his forehead against yours as you dug your fingernails into the hardwood beneath your body. You let out a tormented moan, your thighs quivering under hand. “Revel in the pleasure I bring you, show me how you were sculpted to perfection just for me, show your king your devotion to your marital duty.” Your body did as commanded, arching and twisting in ultimate pleasure. 

The mewling keen that poured from your mouth as you came hard around his cock was loud enough to echo through the library. Even the palace shuddered as you became undone with a gush. Morpheus himself shuddered, basking in your ecstasy and growling out his pleasure. His seed filled your cunt, filling you with all his desires and wants in one virile action that left you twitching. You whimpered in his arms, your face burrowing to his neck as you weakly grasped onto him. Morpheus placed a trail of kisses along your jaw, then to your lips. He kissed you slowly, repeatedly, enjoying the softness of your lips and the taste of your mouth. You were his ecstasy. 

Date Published: 12/21/22

Last Edit: 4/3/23

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[arlaina28]

Dream A Little Dream For Me Chapter 4

Fandom- The Sandman Relationship- Dream Of The Endless/ Female Reader Warnings- None Rated PG

CHAPTER 4

I don’t know how long I stay cooped up in my room but eventually I realise I have to get up. I go for a shower and when I walk back into my room, wrapped in a towel, I hear something by the door. I figure it must be Lucienne bringing more food so I open the door. I gasp and freeze as I see not Lucienne but Morpheus, putting a tray of food down on the floor by the door.

“What are you doing here?” I ask in a croaky, unused voice.

“Bringing you food. You need to eat.” He says softly, standing up straight.

“Why? Have you poisoned it?” I snap, frowning at him.

“Why would I do that?” He asks, frowning in confusion.

“Because you hate me and want rid of me.” I state, wrapping my arms around myself.

“You are the one who declared her hate for me, not the other way around.” He snaps, jaw clenching.

“I’m sorry for saying that, it’s not true. I was just upset.” I sigh, wincing as I remember my actions.

“You had no reason to be upset. I retrieved you.” He says softly, eyes roaming from my head to my toes.

“Yeah, after abandoning me in the middle of nowhere with nothing!” I cry, throwing my hands up in frustration.

“Don’t be so childish.” He sighs.

“Childish! Me?! I’m so sorry that I was chosen to be your soulmate! Do you think this is what I would have chosen?! To be stuck with some heartless, uncaring jerk that hates me?!” I shout, turning away from him.

 He reaches for me and accidentally grabs my towel, causing it to come undone and fall.  I yelp and try to cover myself with my hands. He stares at me, eyes darkening. Suddenly he steps close to me, cupping my face in his hands. His lips land on mine and I stiffen. After a few seconds I sink against him, opening my lips to his probing tongue. He hums as his tongue twirls against mine. I moan, hands moving to card through his hair. His hands wrap around my back, pulling me closer to him. I tug his hair and he growls into my mouth. His hands move to my hips and he lifts me slightly, carrying me towards my bed.

“Lord Morpheus?!” Matthew’s vices cries out from somewhere down the hall.

It breaks whatever spell we seem to be under and we pull apart, staring into each other’s eyes. I gasp as I find myself flung onto my bed as Morpheus turns and strides away, slamming my door behind him. I lay there, stunned, gasping for breath. I can still feel his hands and mouth on me. I reach up and touch my lips, shivering with arousal as I remember his kiss.

I get up and get dressed, deciding to find Morpheus so we can talk. I wander the halls, heading towards the library. I smile at Lucienne as I see her. I grin even more when I see my cat friend wandering away from her.

“You’re friends with the cat too?” I smile at Lucienne.

“Cat? That’s Lord Morpheus.” She frowns in confusion.

“What?!” I squeak, eyes widening in horror.

“Did you not know he can change his form?” She asks softly.

 “I’m going to kill him!” I snarl, storming off towards the direction he went.

I find him sitting on the steps leading to his throne.

“How could you?!” I shout at him.

Matthew squawks as I scare him and he falls from his perch on a shelf.

“Excuse me?” Morpheus asks, looking at me with a bemused look.

“You were the cat?! The one that has been sleeping in my room every night?! How could you do that?!” I scream, tears filling my eyes at his betrayal.

“It seemed to comfort you.” He frowns, looking confused.

“Oh, boss, no.” Matthew groans.

 “I can’t believe you did that?! That you betrayed me like that?!” I shout, tears running down my cheeks.

“Betrayed you?” Dream frowns, standing up and walking towards me.

“Yes! I thought that cat was a friend! That my secrets were safe with it!” I cry out, through a sob.

He tilts his head slightly, looking confused.

“I want to go home.” I gasp out through my tears.

“What?” He growls, eyes narrowing at me.

“Destiny said I didn’t have to be your soul mate if I didn’t want to be. Well, I want to go home. I don’t want to be with you.” I choke out.

“You cannot leave.” Morpheus snaps, looking furious.

“What is wrong with you?! You treat me as if you hate me! Then you abandon me in the waking world! Then you act like a sweet little cat friend! Then you kiss me and now you’re saying I can’t leave?! What do you want?!” I scream at him in complete frustration.

He just frowns at me without answering and I let out a frustrated growl, storming from the palace. I hear Matthew saying something to Dream but I don’t pay attention. I stride along the dreaming, not paying attention to where I’m going. I find myself in a little graveyard and a creature lands in front of me, a little baby creature.

“Goldie!” I hear a man calling.

The creature in front of me coos and lifts into the air with his little wings. I follow him and see him fly towards two men.

“Hello.” One of them says with a friendly smile.

“Who are you?” The other says with a suspicious frown.

“Hi. I’m…” I start.

“You’re Lord Morpheus’ Queen!” The friendly one cries happily, grabbing my hand and shaking it.

“Uh, I’m not a Queen.” I gasp but find myself smiling to him.

“Oh please, we all know how much you mean to him. I’m Abel and this is my brother Cain.” The friendly one says.

My jaw drops as I realise who they are but I find myself being led into their cottage. I spend hours there, laughing and chatting with the brothers and their gargoyle Goldie. When I head back to the palace, I’m feeling happier than I have in months. I ignore Morpheus as I walk past him, heading to my room but I feel his eyes on me the whole time.

“Do you still wish to return to the waking?” He calls after me.

“Nope. I made some friends.” I smile at him and continue on my way.

“Who?” He calls, walking after me.

“Why? Jealous?” I smirks at him, hearing Matthew choke on a laugh. Dream frowns as I walk away.

[thepaintedlady00]

Hi again! I hope it doesn’t bother you for me to drop here again, if so feel free to ignore this. I saw this amazing art

https://at.tumblr.com/yoolkon/700705536213221376/uqrmu2klc7nt

And I keep laughing just thinking on how dream would struggle with technology. I know you have already done something similar, but I need more about reader trying to teach him to use new things

I absolutely do not mind getting sent amazing art! I totally didn't just spend the last 30 minutes consuming every single thing they have on their blog. Dream learning the ways of technology will never not be funny! 😂

Since you and Dream had begun courting one another keeping in touch between realms had been a bit of an adjustment. You saw one another every night when you went to sleep, oftentimes even before then, but during the day's Dream of the Endless had duties to see to which left you missing him. You'd expressed this feeling to him a few times, to which the immortal being made a suggestion you hadn't expected.

"I could get one of those devices humans use. Cell phones I believe you call them."

"You could?" You asked, looking at him over the library table. "Would that even work here?"

Dream looked to Lucienne, who shrugged her shoulders. "There's only one way to find out for certain."

Matthew chuckled. "This is going to be hilarious."

"I am eons old," Dream replied bitterly. "I am quite sure I am capable of figuring out a measly piece of human technology."

Both you and Matthew shared a look. "Of course, you can. It's not really that hard once you get the hang of the basics. I can help you!"

He smiled at you. "Thank you for the offer my love, should I need such I will come to you."

At first, you thought he would forget, he was quite busy ruling over the entire unconscious collective of the world, but the very next night he appeared in your apartment with a cell phone. You helped him put your number in and went over a few basics with him, calling, text messages, and so on. As the days passed he'd sent you messages, either far too long or far too short, during the days. At night you showed him emojis, which he had yet to figure out.

What was perhaps the most entertaining was the phone calls. Dream's cloak could hold any object he wished, including the phone he'd forgotten to hang up. You listened to the white noise of his star-filled coat as well as the sound of his muffled voice until he realized he'd forgotten to hang up. "My love? How is this still on?"

You laughed quietly. "Hi! Sounds like you're having a busy day."

"How is this happening?"

"You forgot to hit the big red button after you were done," you said, giggling even more when the call abruptly ended as he'd tested the truth behind your words.

Dream was already waiting for you when you got home, looking at the phone with narrow eyes. "I dislike this human nonsense."

You set your things down and joined him on the couch, curling into his side and kissing his cheek. "It can be a lot."

"I do not understand why your kind insist on such things. Would it not be better to simply go to whomever you wished to speak to?"

"It would be, but not everyone can teleport with magic sand, dear." You held your hand out to the phone and quickly opened his camera. "Smile."

He didn't, but that only made the photo look better in your eyes. You showed your picture to him and watched the corners of his mouth twitch upward. Dream was stoic by nature and so he'd never admit it, but he loved pictures of the two of you together. "I suppose that is a useful function."

"You don't have to keep it if you don't want to," you told him.

"You wished to speak with me more," he answered.

With a smile, you nodded. "Of course, I want to talk to you more. I love you. But I don't want you to have to worry about figuring a dumb phone out on top of all your other duties. Seeing you every night is enough for me."

Dream hummed quietly, pulling you into his arms and lounging back on your couch. "I shall keep it. I'll not be as fluent in this odd form of communication as you, but it is nice to have the option should I need it."

"You, Dream of the Endless, are amazing."

"As are you." He kissed your head and then asked, "What do these images mean? Matthew told me to "text" them to you." You looked down at the screen and clamped your hand over your mouth to conceal your fit of laughter. "How is an eggplant humorous?"