Chapter Text
Ink was on his bed.
Well, Dust’s bed.
His bed and Dust’s bed?
He didn’t know. It was kinda the same. They shared a bed. Ink hated it. He shut his eyes, not wanting to see anything. He fell asleep.
Ink woke up, what felt like seconds later, to the feeling of his cheek being stroked.
Dust.
Ink tried to scowl, but he didn’t have the energy to do so.
“Hello, Inkblot. You’ve been asleep for quite a while. Almost two days! Your dad’s arriving today.”
Ink struggled to glare.
“You okay? You’ve been quarantined, little prince. I’m the only one allowed in here. Well, besides your dad. We’re alone now. Your little servant boy’s been given the day off. The week off, actually! Who knows, he might have the rest of his life off.”
Ink stared.
“You’re probably confused, right? Oh wait, can you nod? What you’re feeling is poison. Probably the strongest one we- sorry, I could find!”
Ink’s glare got more intense as his cheeks were caressed.
“If you were to see yourself right now, you would see black lines coming from your mouth and spreading to the rest of your body. The first thing the poison attacks is your vocal chords. Good. Your voice is annoying anyways.”
Ink tried to reach up to his own face to smack Dust away. He was too weak to do so.
“Once that darkness reaches your heart, you’ll be gone. Dead!”
He held up a vial filled with a clear liquid. There were gold flakes at the bottom. He shook it, shooting the flakes up and watching them fall.
“You know, if you agree to beg your dad to let you take over, and then give everything to me, then maybe enough of this will make it into your mouth in order for you to survive when I smash it over your head. If you don’t survive, I’ll tell your dad what you agreed to.”
Ink’s eyes widened. He managed to shake his head.
“No? Really? Oh well, I guess I’ll just have to let you die.”
He walked over to the window and opened it.
“Oh, by the way, when you die, I’ll tell everyone about how you kissed that little servant boy you so insisted to bring along. If he’s lucky, his only punishment will be death. I have no problem saying that it happened while we’re betrothed. After all, I saw it happen.”
That got Ink’s attention.
“Oh, I see I have your attention now. Do you have an answer for me? The correct answer?”
Ink shook his head, trying to beg Dust to leave Error out of this.
“You look pathetic when you try to beg like that. You realize you can’t speak, right? You know, if you had left Error behind and just let us take care of you, this would’ve been easier.”
Ink stared in shock.
“I can almost hear your feeble, begging words. ‘Oh, Dust, please? Won’t you just leave him out of this?!’”
Dust laughed viciously. It sent chills up Ink’s spine.
“You know, I just had an epiphany! Instead of you kissing him, which is easily disprovable, I could frame him for you getting poisoned!”
Dust strode over, taking Ink’s chin in his hand. He leaned over, looking into Ink’s eyes with poison in his own.
“Wouldn’t that be a tragedy? A married prince, killed by his servant? Who knows, maybe the poison was meant for me? Maybe it was meant for the king.”
Ink shook his head, still trying to beg for mercy.
“You don’t want him to die? Hand over your kingdom.”
Ink tried to grab Dust’s hand, pleading for him to stop. It worked. Dust grabbed his hand back, pulling it away.
“You’re running out of time, Ink. You might not even live long enough for you to say goodbye to everyone you love.”
Dust pulled Ink more off the bed. He caught Ink’s chin, tilting it up again as he fell.
“Well, Prince Corpse-to-be, what do you say?”
Ink got dropped onto the floor. He tried to get up, but his arms were too weak to support him. He croaked, trying to say something as Dust practically danced to the window, opening it and holding the vial out the window.
“Last chance. Give me your kingdom and power and both you and your little wannabe boyfriend will live. If you betray me, I’ll kill him without hesitation.”
Ink shook his head.
Somehow, he managed to whisper, “please”, but not loud enough for Dust to be satisfied with the answer.
“What was that? If you mean you’ll do what I want, nod.”
Ink started crying. He tried reaching out. He was too weak.
Dust’s grip on the vial loosened.
“Three… two… one.”
The vial slipped out of his hand and flew towards the ground floor. Dust smiled, staring menacingly at Ink. He knelt down to his husband, tipping his chin up.
He purred, “Oh no, little prince, it seems like you’ve lost once again. I can’t wait to see your dad break. That’ll be so much fun. He’ll break and give in. You know Nightmare’s been subtly threatening him, right? Soon enough, he’ll give us power. We’re taking everything he loves away.”
Ink tried to shout. He tried to scream.
“I can’t wait to see your servant boy’s face when he sees his boyfriend die!”
Ink broke. He fell completely onto the floor. He sobbed, but nothing came out. He cried. There were no tears coming out.
The door opened. Dust’s act changed. He picked up Ink in his arms, hugging him and sitting on the bed with him.
“Oh, you poor thing, do you hurt? We’ll find whoever did this, alright? You should stay in bed for now.”
The door was closed and whoever was there called, “Sorry, wrong room!”
Dust rolled his eyes, sighing, “Did they not read the sign? Where the hell’d the guard go?”
He picked up Ink, walking over to the door.
“Now, Ink,” Dust pinched Prince Corpse-to-be’s cheek, continuing, “would you like me to drop you here, or right next to the bed? Or would you like me to bring you out to the gardens so you have to cling to me until we’re back in here?”
Dust laughed, watching Ink fill with fear once again.
“I’m kidding, Corpse-to-be, you’re not allowed to leave the room!”
Ink panicked. He wanted to throw up on Dust.
He could barely muster the energy to express what he felt.
Dust dropped Ink on the floor in front of the entrance, storming away to go find the guard. He slammed the door, almost hitting Ink.
Error was in his temporary room. He kept calling it that, but it looked like it was turning out to be permanent. He couldn’t wait to get back to the castle. He had had the day before off, and the current day. He didn’t know why. He guessed Dust had gotten sick of him.
He had no idea what was going on in Ink’s room.
He had decided to go out, exploring the town that surrounded the castle. It was cloudy, so he was trying to decide if it was going to rain. He saw a couple of drops, so he stuck his hand out the window, trying to see if it was actually raining.
He caught something.
“What…?”
He looked at it. It was a little container, filled with crystal clear liquid and golden flakes. He glared at it, trying to figure out what it was.
It sort of reminded him of Ink.
He shrugged it off, putting it in his pocket, thinking he’d figure it out later.
He went out, deciding he’d see what’s happening everywhere else.
The circus was in town.
“Huh, maybe I should go check in with them.”
Error didn’t like this place. People kept staring at him.
Error was at the circus, looking around. It was almost exactly how he had remembered it.
“Oh, goodness, Error, is that you?”
Error looked up. It was Aster.
“It is! Hey kiddo, how’re you doing? Do you wanna talk after the show? Just to catch up?”
Error shrugged, smiling a bit. “I’m not doing so well. I don’t think I- his highness is either.”
“Are you talking about Ink?”
Error nodded.
“I thought he hated being called ‘your highness’?”
“He does, I just… people keep making me call him that.”
“Is everyone calling him that?”
“Yeah, why?”
“I’ve heard rumors about someone in the castle getting sick from poison.”
Error paled. Is that why he had gotten all these days off?
“Oh god.”
“Wait, did you not hear?”
Error grabbed the vial, looking at it.
“What is that?”
“He was poisoned, right?”
“Yeah, why?”
“This fell from Ink’s window.”
The pieces were slowly coming together. The puzzle was being solved.
“I gotta go, I think. I think this is important.”
Aster didn’t get a chance to say anything before Error ran away, off to the castle again.
Dream was in the carriage. Once again, he was breaking. He was sitting next to Pale, who was rubbing his back.
“P-Pale, is… is he- my son- is he g-gonna die?”
“No, he’s not.”
“But he…”
“He’s not gonna die.”
“But!”
“No.”
The door opened. It was Nightmare.
“Dream.”
“Nightmare! Oh god, where’s my little Inkblot?! Is he okay?!”
“He’s in Dust’s room. Dust’ll show you.”
Dust was next to Nightmare. He smiled. “Of course! Come this way!”
Dream ran into the room, looking for Ink.
He was on the floor. He got hit by the door. He groaned. Or, at least, tried to. It was a quiet groan.
“Ink! Oh my god, are you okay?!”
Dream picked Ink up.
“I’m so sorry, Ink, I…”
Dream broke down in tears, sitting on the floor.
Ink couldn’t move. He tried. He was too weak to do anything.
“Uh, your majesty, might I ask you to put him on the bed?”
It was Dust. He went over, taking Ink from Dream and putting him on the bed.
“Oh, you poor thing.” Dust brushed Ink’s hair behind his ear and pushed his chin up. Ink looked emotionless and Dust kissed his cheek.
Pale tried to walk in. He was blocked by the guard.
Dream didn’t notice. He was sitting next to Ink, cuddling him.
Dust was whispering things to Ink, who was now too weak to do anything but barely move his head. The darkness was spreading faster. It was almost to his heart.
“Oh, you poor thing, you probably hurt a lot, right?”
“Dust, could I have a moment alone with Ink?”
“But of course, your majesty.”
Dust bowed and walked out of the room, waiting just outside.
“My little Inkblot, my little boy, I…”
Dream started to break down.
“I’m so sorry. It’s all my fault, I. I should’ve taken care of you better or had you stay with me or not let this happen at all, I’m… I’m so- hic- sorry.”
Dream continued to ramble on, trying to apologize over and over. Ink stared at him. He tried saying something.
Ink grew desperate. He tried shouting.
Nothing happened.
Ink started crying. Somehow, tears rolled down his face.
“I’m sorry, Inkblot, I’m so, so sorry.”
“Dad…”
Ink was shocked at himself. He wasn’t expecting himself to make a noise.
Dream looked up.
“Ink, did you…?”
Ink started crying more. He shook, trying to hug his dad. It didn’t work. He was too weak.
Dust was still outside. He had ordered both Pale and the guard to leave. Pale had to be dragged away.
Error ran up. He stopped, hiding the vial.
“Oh, uh, hello, Prince Dust, may I go in? I have something for In- his highness.”
“I’m afraid not. Also, please don’t refer to my husband by his first name. If you have something for my darling, give it to me. How do I know you’re not going to kill him?”
“It’s a personal gift! From uh, Aster and Gaster.”
“Really? Let me see it.”
“I was told not to let anyone else see it.”
Dust growled.
“Give it to me.”
“They, uh, requested I give it to him myself!”
“Your lies are weak, servant boy. Give it to me. I saw it. What you have is mine.”
Error backed up. He tried to run.
Guards came out from nowhere. They took the vial and gave it back to Dust.
“Thank you.”
Dust opened the door to the room again, waltzing in. He shut the door.
“Excuse me, your majesty?”
Ink quaked. He looked at Dust. Dream looked too.
“I have an offer I think you might be interested in.”
Dust held up the vial, smirking.
Dream’s face darkened.
“You see, your majesty, Ink was poisoned. By me. I poisoned him! I’ll make you the same offer I made him! If you refuse, I’ll make sure you don’t ever speak of your son or this event again.”
Dream glared.
“Who the hell do you think you’re messing with, Dust?”
“Oh, I know who I’m messing with! But listen to my offer! Ink’s dying, right? And the second the poison reaches his heart, he dies! Simple. However, this,” He shook the vial, “is the cure! What I want is also simple! If you give me and my dad your entire kingdom and all of your power, I’ll give it to you! Oh, and, if you don’t, I’ll tell the whole world about how you and Pale, while marrying off your son, were kissing! A king, whose wife has died, kissing the head servant? I can almost see the headlines!”
“Why are you doing this?”
“Isn’t it obvious? I wanted power. I’m getting power! You better hurry up, though, Ink’s running out of time! And, if I smash this, you won’t have time to get him the cure!”
“Dust, don’t do this.”
Dust smiled, raising the hand that held the held the vial.
“Time’s running out!”
The door burst open just as Dust threw the vial. Error caught it and ran over to Dream, handing it to him.
Ink healed. The darkness went away.
He lived.
Dust got in trouble. Nightmare had started to make an even more powerful enemy.
Years passed after this. Dust and Ink had gotten a divorce right after the event (luckily).
The first thing Ink had done when he was fully healed was run through the halls and find Error with tears in his eyes. He picked up Error and spun him around.
They kissed.
Around a year later, they kissed again, this time in front of the whole kingdom.
They got married.
Ink woke up every day happy and healthy. The kingdom was happy.
Killer ended up taking over for Nightmare. He made their kingdom better. He fixed the relationships with all the other kingdoms. He made it up to everyone. He stopped the experiments.
Frisk grew up. They were still Ink’s best enby at his wedding. They helped their siblings rule. They were happy.
Ink’s proudest achievement was how happy his dad ended up. They made up. Dream made an effort to be a better dad.
Pale made an effort to be a supportive husband in this endeavor. It worked.
In the end, no matter how much Ink had told Error (jokingly) he hated the phrase, Error always said they lived happily ever after.
It was true.
They did.
They lived happily ever after.