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Nightmare knew he wasn’t crazy.
The minute he stepped into the forest,he could feel a presence,that someone was watching him or rather someone was watching over him.He wasn’t naive to the knowledge of the stories passed down from the orphanage,spirits that wander the very forest near his village.
And he was certain he had met one of them.
The cobblestone street soon disappeared as his boot met the damp earth,looking at his surroundings were trees that reached to the sky as well as flowers and long grass that danced with the wind,the sound of crickets chirping was music to his ears.
Nightmare knew it wasn’t just a coincidence that the weather changed in his favour or that seemingly flowers just bloomed near him,it had to be true—that there was a spirit around him.
Though he wasn’t sure how to go around doing it—he’s never really talked to this spirit before and he was hoping it would coax them out of hiding or something.
He stood in the empty field,the cool wind blowing gently against his bones,anxiety rattled in his bones despite the perfect day.
Nightmare cleared his throat quietly,”u-um hello?”
Nothing greeted him but the wind,nevertheless he continued.
“I know you're out there” he persisted,”I-I can’t see you but I can feel your presence—“
No wonder a lot of villagers back home considered him a nutjob,sure they had tales about spirits—but no one really believed it,mostly used it to scare the living shit out of kids and keep them out of trouble—but that didn’t stop him.
He begins to take slow steps forward,glancing around the forest,trying to spot any anomaly.careful not to disturb the puddles on the ground.
“I don’t mean any harm” he tries to reassure,he could already feel the lump in his throat get bigger,”I j-just— want to know if you really exist”
His voice trembles against the swaying of the tree branches,” please ,I just w-want to know that I’m not crazy”
Still—nothing,the hope in his soul was dying as if it sunk to the bottom of his ribcage.
“Anything—maybe a small cluster of flowers blooming or—“
Maybe—maybe the village was right,that he was crazy and foolish for believing in such a tale,he was probably nothing more than a laughing stock now for thinking something like that could exist. His eyes threatened to spill tears as his vision blurred,his knees simply buckled under the weight as he slumped onto the ground,his knees getting wet from the slightly damp ground.
“—something…” his voice whispered out,lower lip trembling.
Frustrated,he desperately tried to wipe away his tears,feeling his face become all warm and puffy,he let out a few hiccuped sobs as he attempted to pull himself together.He knew that deep down the reason for this was because he was desperate to have a friend—no one liked him back at home and spent most of his times getting picked on by kids.Nightmare thought that maybe—just maybe someone in this forest might have cared about him.
He managed to wipe away a few of his tears,opening his eyes once more to the unforgiving world only to spot something on the ground each up to him.As his vision cleared he quickly realized that a flower had sprouted up from the ground and bloomed right in front of him.
How in the world…?
He glanced over to a puddle next to him and realized that not only was his reflection was looking at him but so was another person.
He saw another skeleton monster just like him,wearing a golden headband and eyes that shone like diamond,golden freckles as bright as the stars in the night sky also seemed to be present on his cheeks.
Nightmare’s eyes widened,with his mouth agape—the stranger seemed to have noticed this and quickly fled.
“W-Wait!” He chokes out,fumbling around to stand up.
Despite there being no one around him,he could feel the gust of wind pick up in the direction he assumed the Skeleton ran off to,he soon followed—weaving through trees and bushes,he followed the trail of small flowers that went in a straight line.
With determination now flowing through him,he pressed on before suddenly halting to a stop in an open field.The flower trail came to an abrupt end.
“P-please just show yourself!” He desperately called out,his voice still shaky.
Nothing—whatever chance he had left was definitely gone by now,a part of him told himself that what he was definitely real,another part of him said he was hallucinating what he saw—Nightmare felt stuck on what he truly believed in.
But in the end he decided it was best to just leave it be and head back to the village—as he was just around to turn around,his boot caught on the slippery rock and ultimately he slipped.A panicked cry came from him as his world view shifted around him,he screwed his eyes shut—awaiting for the ground to collide with the back on his skull.
Except it never came.
Instead two hands wrapped themselves under his arms,stopping him.Nightmare opened his eyes and looked down at the two golden gloves that were holding him,he then slowly looked up to be met with those two golden eyes.
“Are you Alright?” The skeleton asked,his voice was as smooth as silk as he carefully sat the other down.
Nightmare managed to turn his body around fully to face the person—it was definitely a spirit alright,as he had four golden wings curled close to him and a baby blue robe that reached the ground floor,along with flowers sprouting at his feet.
Nightmare such felt his cheeks flush,”I-I’m Alright–uh thank you ”
A smile curved onto the skeleton’s face,his eyes more relaxed than before,”my name’s Dream,yours?”
Nightmare quickly stood up,flustering badly in an attempt to say his name,”N-Nightmare!”
The other skeleton,Dream let out a small giggle,one of his hands pressed against his cheek as he smiled.Violets were blooming at his feet as his golden eyes stared at Nightmare,his chest had never felt so tight in his entire life.
“Nightmare” Dream repeats the name softly,”what a lovely name”
“I’m quite surprised that you went looking for me,for all I knew I was just an old wife’s tale” He spoke once more, melancholy in his voice.
Nightmare bit his tongue,technically he wasn’t wrong--he did become a old tale over the years,he decided not to say any on that,”well i did because e-even if we n-never talked and----stuff,i still,you know--- enjoyed your presence”
He cursed himself in his head, good to know that you’re embarrassing yourself in front of a spirit.
A small blush appeared on Dream’s cheeks,his wings puffed up slightly,”how sweet of you,perhaps now that i am here---we could finally talk”
Oh,stars
How could he say no?
“Of c-course!” He blurted out,”i’d love to”
Excitement is written in the spirit's face,all four of his wings flutter in glee,”wonderful! Let us begin!”
Dream suddenly flew off into the tree,though it wasn’t long until he came back down with a much more bashful expression on his face.
“Heh,apologises--i forgot you don’t have wings” He apologised,his wings slumped.
Nightmare waves it off,”no,no! I-it’s fine”
Soon Dream began to walk,Nightmare followed--walking next to him.The two chatted the day away,enjoying the presence of each other,every time Nightmare could make the spirit laugh,his soul flutter with absolute delight---he swore he was the luckiest skeleton on the planet,He couldn’t help it but find Dream absolutely charming.
He was super eager to get to know the spirit more.