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He was enveloped in something warm… soft… sweet smelling…
This had to be the most pleasant sleep he had in centuries. Since he was a child, curled up in a soft nest made with sweet-scented plants, with his brother beside him. He wrapped his arms and tendrils around this source of warmth and pleasantness at some point during his sleep. A pleasant… feeling… emotion still emanated from it that he just could not feel disgusted about.
Just as he had wrapped himself around this warmth, it surrounded him like a warm embrace. Curled on his side, facing this warmth, he even felt a weight on his right greater trochanter. It did ache a little from the pressure pushing his femur and pelvic joint into each other, preventing magic from cushioning the bones, but it was… comforting. As warm and soft as it was, it was not some pleasant dream; it was something real…. It was there. There with weight proving its tangibility.
Nightmare nuzzled his face into the fluffy texture, feeling the softness with a calm smile. But as he breathed in that wonderful scent of fresh baked goods and exhaled a sigh of contentment, his mind started to wake. This… as wonderful as it was, is not right. Everything was… wrong.
First, this wasn't his room… this didn't feel like his bed. He didn't even remember going to his room to sleep last night.
And if this isn't his room… well, even if it was his room, he does not own anything soft and fluffy like this. Something that also breathed. What he was hugging was alive as his arms could feel the subtle movement of the rib cage as it drew in air and then forced it out. The only things in his castle that were this fluffy were Killer's cats. But none of them were this big nor smelled this wonderful.
He opened his socket and found his face against fur. Soft fur that was half black and half white. And with that, his socket opened wide as realization sunk in. That was Lyra's neck. His ally. The guardian of balance! And here he was, wrapped around her in a far too intimate position to be proper.
This caused him to start pulling away. Carefully retracting his tentacles and arms. His subtle movements must have disturbed her as she tightened her hold, pulling him closer.
"Lyra…," Nightmare said, knowing he could not justify playing dumb. His tendrils continued to pull away, and she started to wake between his voice and the movement.
"Hmmm?" She sleepily hummed while nuzzling the top of his skull. Her long fangs pushed aside the corruption and brushed against the bone beneath.
"Lyra… while I do, admittedly, enjoy this… it is… not exactly… appropriate," Nightmare stated. She seemed to wake up more as his words settled into her.
"Oh, Ah! I see, yes…," she replied as she began to release him. Oh, dear, that weight on his right hip bone was her leg.
The more they untangled themselves, the more embarrassed he felt. His face was on fire though hidden under the cool of the goop, or so he hoped. Her own face had some blush showing through her fur, though it hid most of the evidence of her own.
He really would have wanted to stay in that embrace. But, no…. Nightmare had been raised with the standards of there being a proper order to things. It was his morals, and he will hold to them. After all, making and keeping such rules kept the corruption from retaking complete control of him.
The moment he could, Nightmare got to his feet to give her space. Looking over, he saw the nests of blankets and pillows had been cleaned up, and the boys had left. Which means they saw. He rubbed at his eye socket, imagining the smug grins he was about to face. They were going to take this as confirmation they were right. And… he did like Lyra… a lot….
They had figured him out. Of course, with Dust being the one making the observation. There might have been some suspension beforehand, but something… something he said or a way that he looked at her during that last visit made them see his affection for her. There was that attraction due to her kindness to his henchmen, but there was more than that he liked. She was beautiful, intelligent, strong, and kind. One thing that was key to him was that she understood his purpose.
To her, he wasn't some evil being. He wasn't the corruption she spoke to when they talked, as it felt with many others. That seemed to be the only thing everyone else saw, but she talked to him . She noticed him, all of him, the good and the bad, and she accepted it all as a friend. A "dear friend," as she often says. That, he knew, was the one thing he liked most about her.
No, he was wrong. He didn't like Lyra a lot. He needed to be honest with himself on this. He loved her. Nightmare will admit that now, but still, should he indulge in those feelings? This affection?
She could not feel the same. At most, he was a friend. And yet, that emotion he felt last night felt more than something he would sense from a friend. What was that? He wasn't his brother and did not recognize positive emotions as easily. Especially ones he has not felt before. This was completely new to him. His own henchmen have felt a form of love for him that was somewhat similar. But that love was completely different. It was more akin to how he felt about his mother or how he felt about them. They were important to him, and he knew he was important to them as well.
That was not what he felt from her, and yet there was something about it that felt related.
"Night?" Lyra sat up and looked at him. He looked back at her, seeing the concern on her face. Now that she was awake and no longer under the influence of alcohol, she was hiding her emotions. And yet he could see it on her face, the fear.
"Yes? What is wrong?" Nightmare asked in reply, keeping his tone calm and soft.
"It is just… I enjoyed that, too, and… I have affection for you…," Lyra admitted.
To that, Nightmare had no reply as he looked at her. Those beautiful garnet eyes were looking right at him. His apple-shaped soul felt warm and soft, like a cinnamon-baked apple. Words he never thought anyone would say to him were uttered by the gorgeous being sitting on his sofa. Only one guardian had caught his interest, affection, attracted him. And now she just admitted that she did like him.
How many books had he read with something like this occurring? And yet he felt utterly unprepared. His body was unsure if he should melt or become more solid than he had been since he took that first bite. The corruption became entirely still, something it had never done in all the centuries he lived.
It was weird having that constant shifting of the corruption come to a stop. And yet, he was too focused on the beautiful being in front of him to care. Nightmare didn't even notice that his tentacles lowered to the floor as if he suddenly lost the focus to manipulate them. All he thought about were those sweet words she had just uttered to him.
"Do… you not have such feelings for me?" Lyra asked. To that, Nightmare flinched as she pulled him from his startled state of inaction. That fear was still in her eyes, and he did not want her to stay that way. He had not said anything in return to her and had left her in a state of unsurety. Leaving that confession unanswered only strengthened her fear, and he could no longer keep silent.
"No! I mean, yes! Wait.. wait… you… I… heh…" He held his skull, not sure what he meant anymore. How embarrassing. Nightmare was never left so speechless and fighting to find his words before.
"Let me try again." Looking up at her, he said in a soft tone, "What I was trying to say is that…. Feelings are a complicated thing. I do find that I am more fond of you than I ever thought I would be. There are feelings that I have for you, ones that were noticed by a group of idiots faster than myself. It… is just not something I expected to hear from you. So, I was simply taken by surprise."
"I understand," She looked relieved, thankfully. And yet… it wasn't right.
"Lyra, there is a problem, though," Nightmare started but paused as he didn't want to continue. Yet, he knew he should, for her. No matter how much it might pain him to do so, he knew that if he truly loved her, he had to do this.
"A problem?" He didn't like seeing the concern on her face again. She was apprehensive about what he was about to say, making him inwardly wince. Still, he needed to make this point known.
The words he wanted to say hurt too much, so he thought of something else quickly to hopefully turn her away. "We are trying to build this peace together. Is there a chance your feelings are brought on by the time you are forced to spend with me? For our mission?" Nightmare enquired.
"I hardly think I have been forced. After all, there was no real purpose in my visit last night," Lyra smiled softly; she seemed amused now. But he could still see that concern there in her eyes. She knew the truth. She had shown she knew him, so of course, she would. "I think there is something else there that is a reason why you are trying to deny this."
Nightmare frowned as she made it known that she had caught him in that hesitant redirection. Rightfully so, and he could not be upset. It was intriguing to him that she understood him so well, actually. No one else, except his boys, ever seemed to. Still, he knew she wanted him to get to the truth of the matter, and with that, he gave a tired sigh. It was time to admit it to her and provide the truth that tore at him for years until he chose to accept it. It became numb after a while, and he moved on with his life. Never again did he think of it until this moment when that old pain suddenly returned. "I am not exactly lovable. It would be a shame to lure you into a relationship that will not end happily."
She looked shocked, showing it was not what she expected to hear. Nightmare wished that wasn't such a surprise to her, as he had long since accepted it as obvious… shouldn't it be so for her? It hurt to think he had somehow led her to believe the opposite or that she had somehow been blind to that fact. Perhaps it was his ego, his pride, that misguided her into thinking he was someone who could be loved.
Before he could say more, her expression changed to that of concern again. This time it was clearly a concern for him, and he wished she wouldn't feel that way. He was sure that he didn't deserve concern, not from her. Nightmare had accepted that he was unlovable a long, long time ago when he was but a child. Dream was the lovable one, the golden ray of sunshine everyone wanted to be around. Even Nightmare himself.
Nightmare was never meant to be someone anyone could feel affection for. Who could feel love for the living embodiment of sadness, anger, hatred, and all other negative emotions? He even doubted his own mother truly loved him. After all, who names their child Nightmare. Though if it was such an offense, he should have shed himself of that name long ago. Instead, he embraced it and let it be a part of him, even if, at times, he was unsure what role Nightmare, that aspect of him, should have. What his mother expected him to be.
Finally, she shook her head and smiled at him. "I am not lured, as you have not made any attempts to draw me into anything beyond the alliance. What I became drawn to about you I found on my own. So, I believe it is up to me to say if you are lovable or not."
A bit of anger flared in him that she was not accepting his warning. He stepped forward, tentacles rising, preparing to strike. His cyan eye light took on a more slit-like appearance like a snake eye as he took a threatening stance while the corruption shifted into a melting state.
"I am Nightmare! Guardian and King of Negative Thoughts, Feelings, and Dreams! Do you truly feel it is wise to form a bond with one such as I? Do you not think such a thing will only lead to heartache and misery?" His aura darkened the room, casting a feeling of despair around him.
"Does it not cross your mind that maybe that is what I want? That with you admitting this weakness in yourself that I will play the part only to shatter you in the end?"
She looked at him quietly the entire time he put on his threatening display. Once he finished, she reached out and took his hand, and his tentacles drooped from threatening to listless. They lowered to the floor again, displaying a willingness to be vulnerable towards her that he didn't understand. He didn't understand any of this. Part of him wanted to pull away and scream at her that this was wrong, while the other longed for her to never let him go.
"I know who you are, my dearest friend. But I also know there is more to you than that. You have said so without knowing that your words have revealed yourself. My dear friend, to judge yourself so harshly and not me is wrong. You don't know my full past, as I have not had the heart to say it to you. I," She then paused, her voice stopping, preventing her from continuing at first. Then after one long, shuttering sigh, she forced her voice to start again. A faint quiver heard as she continued, "I fear your response... as I had abandoned many who needed me just as I know you had felt abandoned. You were right to be cross with me when I did not scold Dream for his unbalanced spread of positivity. Ink as well, I should have scolded sooner for his role in that imbalance."
She looked down and away for a moment, eyes lost in thoughts she had yet to share with him. It was something he could understand. He will also wait for her to share her past and not push her to share before she is ready. This is why he gave her time to process her reflections. After sorting her thoughts, she looked at him with a faint smile, marred by guilt, as she asked, "Is it not possible that I am the unloveable one?"
"Impossible," Nightmare stated adamantly. He took his left hand back and placed it on her cheek, his dark fingers sliding into her fur and ruffling it slightly as he settled on the right side, the side with her beautiful pale fur. His other hand then moved to her left cheek, doing the same, finding how their black colors both matched while having varying underlying hues. "You are now righting what had occurred. There may be times you will need to set me in my place just as you might with Dream. But I trust you to be fair, as you have shown yourself to be. You are also very understanding of myself and my hench-... my boys."
She hummed thoughtfully while closing her eyes. The smile She now wore hinted she enjoyed the feeling of his hands on either side of her face. "So, will you accept that I would like us to build off of our feelings for each other? That, perhaps, in time, being snuggled together will not be… inappropriate?"
"Yes, if you truly see something about me that attracts you, I will be more than happy to court you," He replied.
She then stood and, oh dear! Nightmare found that his feet were no longer on the floor. He initially tensed up and looked at her with a startled expression. "Lyra," He started, but she giggled.
"Oh, shush, and let me hug you without hurting my back," She teased, and he chuckled softly in response and accepted the embrace. His tendrils moved around her, joining his arms in hugging her.
"There are some matters I must attend to. Once they are done, we should meet for a planned evening to get to know each other better, without discussing our goals of peace," Nightmare stated.
"Hmmm, it sounds to me as though you are asking me on a date," Lyra teased as she set him back down.
Once on the floor again, Nightmare straightened out his jacket to distract himself from his flustered feelings. Looking more presentable again, he looked back up at her. "I do believe that is what I am doing."
"How long do you think it will take you to attend to those matters?" She enquired with a quiet smile.
"A month at most. I will contact you if it is sooner than that," he said, and that seemed to be all she needed to hear as she nodded.
"Then it is a plan. In about a month we will plan a date. Though I would admit, another quiet evening here would suffice for me," and with that said, she held her hand out to him. "I think I can smell breakfast cooking. Shall we go check on the boys?"
Taking her hand, he nodded, "we shall."
Oh, the looks he was about to receive. Well…, Nightmare no longer cared, and perhaps it was nice to know that they approved of this relationship. So much so that they gave him the push, to be honest with himself about his feelings. He trusted and cared about his henchmen. And as he told them, some more times than others, this is their home. He would not form a bond with someone they did not approve of or did not approve of them being here. Lyra clearly did understand this and has shown this more than he ever expected. Perhaps, in time, he may hear her utter the words "my boys" concerning them….