Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

There. Horror was there, below on the battlefield. Cross caught a glimpse of him from the corner of his eye. The broken skeleton was grappling with Ink as Dream flanked him. This recurring night terror he had refused to go away no matter what he did, and he hated it. Every single time it happened, Horror died, and there was nothing he could do to stop it. The cruel thing was that he swore it was something certain to happen in the future, but he couldn’t let it happen. He wouldn’t let it happen. Cross could feel his SOUL twist as he watched what went down.

He jolted out of the thoughts that gathered in his mind as the deafening noise of a Gaster blaster sounded through the air. He was in a battle of his own. Swap, or Blue, as everyone called the optimistic skeleton, was giving it all he had against Cross. He dodged the blaster even though he knew it wouldn't be able to hurt him, turning just in time to see the weapon Ink materialized out of thin air pierce Horror through the SOUL. Cross watched Horror stagger for a few seconds before crumpling to the ground. He watched Dream stare at Ink uncertainly, and the other looked up to meet Cross’ eyes. He couldn't teleport in this hellscape. He was unable to get to him. He understood it was a nightmare, but it was still infuriating thinking about it. He was on a ledge overlooking the battlefield, and he felt Blue come to a halt beside him.

He was panting as his gaze followed Cross’, his eyes widening when Cross, without warning, threw himself off of the ledge to go and help Horror. He couldn’t leave that spot in the nightmare until Horror fell. Cross felt himself hitting the ground with a loud thud, and pain shot up his right leg. Sprained ankle? Broken leg? He didn’t know and was more or less apathetic toward his own injuries at this time. He had to get to Horror no matter if he knew the ending was the same or not.

Ink and Dream were arguing near the place where they left Horror on the ground, and Cross shoved past them to get to him. Getting around the two was like shoving past nothing, however, because they weren’t really there. He lost his balance because of it, but he was on his knees next to Horror in the next second. Ink and Dream seemed to have stopped their quarrel behind him. He could never make out what they were saying. Cross shook his head, looking down at Horror. His tears threatened to spill every time he was put back into this. He always took the nightmare so seriously since something inside him knew it might be real someday. Everything else afterward was blurry, and he felt himself being ripped away from the projection.

“Cross.” Nightmare was above him, and it scared Cross so bad that he jerked back and almost slammed his head into the wall behind him. The ‘almost’ being if Nightmare’s tentacle hadn't been there to soften the blow. His eyes were screwed shut for a moment, and when he opened them again, Nightmare was staring at him with a concerned look. This was real… It had to be. He’d rarely ever seen Nightmare look so concerned. He supposed that Nightmare only liked negative feelings when they weren’t from his team.

The other blinked and moved back from him once Cross seemed to be awake. “Apologies if I scared you, but you seemed to be having a nightmare...” Nightmare murmured, his voice hitching on the last word. His tentacle was still separating Cross’ head from hitting the wall. Cross just groaned and pushed himself up, giving Nightmare an apologetic look. For a moment, he contemplated wanting to tell Nightmare, and he opened his mouth to speak. Nightmare was faster, however. “Cross, it’s okay. Don’t apologize.” He told him, straightening as he pulled his tentacle away from him. “I won’t make you talk about it now, but stop by my office when you’re fully awake. Okay?” Before Cross could even give any sort of response, Nightmare left the room, leaving Cross confused as he stared at the wall where the other had been.

After Nightmare left, Cross sighed, pushing his legs out from underneath the covers and onto the ground. He made a relieved noise at the cold, tiled floor under his bones. It was far better than the heat he'd trapped under the covers. Standing up, Cross walked around to the other side of his bed and put his slippers on. Killer always made fun of him for having slippers on in the house, but it was better than wearing shoes all of the time and tracking mud all over Nightmare’s carpet.

Cross seemed to lighten up as he thought about the others, and he made his way into his bathroom, heading straight for the mirror. His mood quickly worsened as he saw how disheveled he looked. It was weird for a skeleton to look that way, but it happened on occasion, especially after nightmares. Cross assumed he had time before he went up to speak to his boss, so cleaning up wouldn't be an issue. Unless Nightmare specified otherwise, he could show up any time between now and three hours if he really wanted to. That was good for him because he had some stuff to do first, depending on the time.

After bathing, Cross felt like he was clean enough to exit his room. He’d passed the time by at least 20 minutes. Cross wasn’t wearing all of what he usually wore, mainly because he didn’t want to put everything on right now. Stepping out of his bathroom, he noticed that nearly all of his sheets were nearly drenched in sweat. He sighed and bunched most of his covers up. He gave a soft, annoyed smile as he looked down at them. “Looks like it’s laundry day again.” He murmured, chuckling to himself as he finally left his room. He would’ve stayed in his room longer, but he decided against it.

Treading out into the hallway, Cross made his way down the west wing with blankets piled up to where he could barely see. The washing machines were, annoyingly, in one area. nobody except for Nightmare got their own washing and drying machines. That never stopped Killer from using Nightmare’s, though. He rolled his eyelights and continued on downstairs, making sure he was careful to not trip and fall. He could just teleport, but he doesn’t want to. He’d get there one way or another, and he had time to spare anyways. Cross usually was the first to come whenever he called them, alone or not, but he was still trying to wake up.

Cross made it downstairs quietly, his slippers soundless as he made his way over to the kitchen. That was one perk of wearing slippers, but he guessed Killer could do the same while wearing shoes. The other was stealthy when he wanted to be. As he rounded the corner, he could hear Horror humming a tune. His voice was gravelly, but he wouldn’t have it any other way. Was it time for breakfast? He seemed to perk up at the thought of breakfast, and also because Horror wasn't dead. He thought about what had happened again briefly. Even if it had been a nightmare, he was unable to shake the uneasy feeling that it would become real. He quivered at the thought as he entered the kitchen. His thoughts and thought process was messed up because of the recent events, and he was worried the others may have noticed. Horror looked up from what he was doing.

“Hey… Cross…” The broken skeleton met his eyes and gave a tremor of acknowledgment towards him, grinning as Cross nodded and returned the greeting. Horror took note that Cross was carrying his laundry. He shrugged and turned back to what he was doing when he realized Cross probably wasn't going to stick around. When Cross turned away to walk through the kitchen, Horror turned back on his heel and stared at him as he walked away. Something about Cross was strange this morning. His brow furrowed.

Chapter Text

Down in the laundry room, Cross was finishing up putting his things into the washing machine. He sighed, losing himself in thought again as he remembered feeling Horror watching him as he left the kitchen. Was it that obvious that something was bothering him? He assumed that he probably looked too excited to see him or something because Cross didn’t think he was *that* obvious. Maybe he was, he didn’t know.

Cross was trying to think outside of the box of what the nightmares meant. Did they really mean Horror would die, or was it something else? Maybe it simply meant he needed to train harder so that wouldn’t happen to *any* of his teammates. As basically Nightmare’s second in command, he swore to protect all of his teammates with everything he had. He wasn’t Nightmare’s second in command, but he thought of himself to be. All Killer does as second in command is not listen and piss everybody off on purpose, and it was very tiresome. He scowled, blinking as a sudden snapping pushed his thoughts away.

“Multiverse to Cross…” Killer hummed out in a singsong tune. Cross jumped as he looked up to see Killer standing directly in front of him. How long had the other been there?? Killer only grinned in response, reaching out and grabbing Cross by the chin. He squirmed, but Killer didn’t care. He never did. “Whatcha thinkin’ about?” He squished Cross’ face and jerked him toward him, their faces inches apart. Cross growled and shoved Killer away from him.

“None of your damn business,” Cross replied impassively, only frowning as Killer’s smile got wider. “Don’t you have anything better to do? You don’t need to be here since you always use Nightmare’s laundry room.” He pointed out. He guessed that Killer was here solely to annoy him, and he hated that the other had already succeeded. Killer seemed to frown at Cross’ observation, but there were no rings in Killer’s eyes. He couldn’t feel anything, so anything he said wouldn’t affect the other anyway.

“That hurts, Cross. It really does,” Killer whined pitifully, straightening as he glanced over at Cross again. “I wanted to see you. I do miss you, contrary to your belief. Y’were gone for three days and I was beginning to think that you fucking died or something.” He chuckled to himself, it being funnier that Cross did not find it funny at all. He was trying his best to keep maintaining his poker face. “If anything, I would’ve thought you were thinking of me, too.” He teased him.

Cross sighed and Killer smirked as he finally gave in. “Oh, well, what if I *was* thinking about you? What would you do then?” Cross tried joking back at him, but Killer thought differently. If Cross was on the receiving end, he also would’ve thought what it was that Killer assumed he meant. He looked confused when he noticed the other staring at him. He looked confused.

“What?” Killer asked him, looking dumbfounded. Cross tended to be blunt, so it left Killer to wonder if he actually meant it or not.

Cross was staring back at Killer, looking just as confused. “What?” He echoed Killer.

“Nothing. Just didn’t know you think about me, Criss-Cross Applesauce.” He chuckled, elbowing the other playfully. Of course, he knew the other thought about him, but it was priceless to hear him admit it. He loved embarrassing him. He didn’t fully understand why he second-guessed himself like that. He sneered at Cross as the other didn’t seem to understand what was so bad about that, and he only seemed to frown at the nickname he was given.

“I can’t not think about you. After all, you’re the one always nearly jeopardizing our missions,” He growled out scornfully. “I have to think about you to make sure you’re not doing anything stupid.” He added, muttering about how he didn’t know why Killer was Nightmare’s chosen right hand.

Killer sighed, his breath felt against Cross’ neck as he wrapped an arm around him. The other flinched at his touch, not seeing him close the distance between them. That only delighted Killer further, and Cross watched him move in front of him again, cupping his cheeks in his hands. “My, my. How rude you are.” He didn’t care. As long as they got the mission done, both Killer and Nightmare could care less. “Since you don’t seem to be too fond of me for some reason, I guess I’ll take my leave…” Killer hummed, taking his hands off Cross’ face as he left the room slowly. Killer’s absence left Cross to wonder what that had just been.

Outstretching his hand, he touched his face where Killer’s hand had previously been, a faint heat coming to his cheeks. As much as he hated to admit it, Killer’s touch didn’t feel terrible to him. He couldn’t say he wanted more, though. He’d just been too stunned to do much of anything after Killer was shoved the first time. Maybe he was just tired. After all, he barely slept last night and the nights before that. The thought of Horror dying didn’t leave his mind, and maybe thinking about it made it worse. he seemed to give up the feud in his mind, deciding it was no use to linger any further on it right now. He knew for a fact that Nightmare was feeding off of his negativity, and he didn’t want his boss to come find him and drag him up to his office early. He came to a subconscious decision that he wasn’t going to stick around and wait for his blankets to finish.

Cross took his things out of the washer and transferred them over to the dryer. At least they’d be finished when he came back down later unless somebody decides to fuck with him. Killer, probably. He rolled his eyelights and slammed the dryer door shut, turning around and exiting the room. The showers were also down here, but Cross was blessed with one of his own, thankfully. He began to make his trek up the stairs again, and he was able to hear quiet chatter above. One of the voices was Killer.

“—if he—“ Was all Cross heard before Killer cut himself off as Cross came up the stairs. They were both staring at him and it made Cross anxious. “Hey, Cross.” He grinned, obviously changing the subject. Cross furrowed his brow, but decided that it wasn’t any of his business. He sighed and greeted Killer in return, though they’d just talked. Cross noticed that Horror and Killer shared a glance before the broken skeleton moseyed off to the fridge. He knew better than to ask questions, but he had to admit that he was curious.

“Hungry?” Horror asked Cross from the fridge. Cross looked over at him and nodded, but he murmured that he could get it himself. Horror seemed to frown, but he understood. Cross noticed Horror watching Killer and him intensely before turning away when he met the other’s gaze. He laughed weakly and mumbled something to himself before dipping his head back down into the fridge and digging around in it.

Behind him, Killer scoffed. Cross blinked and turned back to look at him, only for his eyes to slightly widen as he was dragged over the room beside the kitchen. “Cross.” Killer’s voice made his head snap toward his direction. His eyes met Killer’s eyes, taking note that they were still hollow-looking. “What the fuck’s going on with you? You’re actin’ different.” The other asked, managing to sound concerned in his emotionless state. Cross knew that he wasn’t concerned for him, however. Maybe when he actually had feelings, but certainly not now. Some part of him felt comforted by the fact that Killer cared enough to say something. The other part of him was seething with anxiety because he didn’t think it was that obvious.

“I…” Cross started carefully, desperately thinking around for what he had to say to that. “I told you to mind your own.” He repeated, same as he did down in the laundry room. He didn’t want to talk to Killer about it, and the other seemed to back off.

“Alright, alright.” The smaller skeleton looked mockingly annoyed. “Geez. Guess I’ll bug you later.” He remarked in a lighter tone as Cross pushed past him. Killer watched as Cross soon stopped in his tracks.

“Where’s Dust, Killer?” Cross risked a glance back at Killer, only to look much more satisfied as his face contorted into a puzzled glare.

“Why’s he my responsibility??” He asked him, his hands on either side of his hips as he stared Cross down. Their civil quarrel seemed to get Horror’s attention. He could see him poking his head out into the hallway.

“You were the last one to see him is all. You know, on the mission that Boss sent you two on.” He wrinkled his nonexistent nose. “Being boss’ right hand and all, I thought you’d know where he was after you came back.”

What he said made Killer frown. “S’Probably here somewhere… I don’t keep track after we come back.” His tone went flat and he turned around, slinking into the kitchen and out through the other exit, presumably to go find Dust. Horror and Cross shared a glance when Killer left. All Cross did was shrug.

Chapter Text

Killer inhaled as he encroached on the floor of the castle that Dust was on. The third floor. The other usually had this floor all to himself because of how destructive he often got. The air was heavy and he felt a new weight to him. He felt a pang of concern as he inched closer to Dust’s room. Was this the effect of Dust’s magic? The change in the atmosphere left him in his third stage, his SOUL shifting out of his control. 

“Dust,” Killer called out from the hallway, still multiple feet away from reaching Dust’s room. He’d begun to wonder if he caused this for a moment, but he knew deep down that it wasn’t him. “It’s me, Killer.” He called out to him again, finally closing the distance between him and the door. Besides the heavy pressure he felt all around him, it was dead silent. He nearly jumped as the door opened, seemingly with magic, because he didn’t see anybody there. He assumed that was an invitation inside. 

“Dust?” He called out again as he pushed the door open gently. He wasn’t used to feeling slight emotions like this, but he was sure that comforting Dust was what he needed to do. The air in the hallway was foggy with Dust’s magic, but inside his room… It was drastically different. He was momentarily shocked and he squinted, trying to see inside. His entire room seemed to be filled with a thick mist, and it seemed to be creating a barrier along a good length of the floor they were on. No wonder Nightmare couldn’t sense it. 

Killer stumbled around for a moment before catching himself on the foot of Dust’s bed. He looked up, noticing a dark spot on the bed. He reached out to shake what he assumed was Dust, and the misty magic barrier seemed to disperse. Through the mist, he could see the outline of the ghostly Papyrus that Dust always talked to. “You,” Killer growled, his tone sounding a bit less forced than it would’ve been while emotionless. “You did this.” Killer came to a realization. “You didn’t want anybody to find out about this.” He knew it wouldn’t be of use to try listening to Papyrus, and it wasn’t like he could hear him anyways. Only Dust seemed to.

Killer stared into Paps’ eyes. There was nothing but malice behind them, and he mumbled to Dust that he was going to get Nightmare, turning away swiftly. Dust couldn’t hear Killer. He seemed to be passed out. The door clicked closed as Killer left the room to retrieve their boss.

‘ Brother…. ‘ Papyrus hissed through his teeth at Dust. ‘ Get up, brother. ‘ He glowered down at the hooded skeleton, who seemed to be stirring. His haunting eyes seemed to burn into the side of Dust’s skull. ‘ You will make us look bad. ‘ 

As Dust pushed himself up onto his arms shakily, he could feel Papyrus’ scornful gaze. He shivered and nodded at his request, snapping his fingers as the room cleared. He seemed to be badly injured, Papyrus using his magic to mute the pain so Dust’s boss wouldn’t come to investigate while he rested. Behind his hood, a crack spiderwebbed from the back of his head and it went all the way down to his shoulders. He stiffened as he heard the doorknob jiggle. He didn’t say anything for a moment. 

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Cross looked up from what he was doing after Nightmare passed him in the kitchen. The other was walking quite briskly, not seeming to notice the two. He shared a glance with Horror. They’d been eating breakfast together since Nightmare had dismissed him for the time being. 

“…Just Ignore it. We’ll find out later.” Horror spoke first, his voice raspy as his legs dangled from his seat. Cross was more reluctant to nod, but he eventually gave in and continued eating.

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After a short conversation with Killer, Nightmare was convinced that he should go check on Dust. The hooded skeleton usually had these problems, and it was better to not intervene when he was like this. He was only persuaded because it was Killer, and Killer *never* did things like this. He usually steered clear from his usual shenanigans, but he didn’t this time. He was right outside Dust’s door now, and after knocking without any answer after a few seconds, he pushed his way through the door. Dust was sitting on the bed. He looked fine, and he couldn’t feel any pain radiating off of him. If he did, he was likely to get a burst of energy, but that never came.

“Dust, are you okay?” Nightmare asked, his tentacles curled around himself passively. He waited for Dust’s response, knowing that the other might take a while. It felt like minutes before Dust finally lifted his head and nodded shakily. 

“F-Fine, boss.” Dust’s breathing seemed to be erratic, but it was normal for him after he’d just had a breakdown. Nightmare didn’t seem to believe him and asked if he could check him for any injuries, to which Dust only hugged himself and shook his head. He was usually like this, so he wasn’t surprised. Dust kept his head ducked down after he spoke, trembling as he stopped speaking. If Papyrus said he didn’t need help, he was probably right. It was weak to ask for help, let alone receive help. He nodded to himself, dismissing Nightmare. This wasn't anything new to him.

“Dust, you can’t get rid of me that easy. Just come down to the infirmary, okay? That’s an order.” Nightmare told him firmly. Dust seemed very hesitant for multiple seconds on end, but gave in and nodded, pulling his hood further over his head.

Papyrus hissed at Dust as he complied with Nightmare. ‘ You’re a FOOL. ‘ He berated him. ‘ He’s going to think we’re WEAK… ‘ He continued his jeering. ‘ You could have easily fixed it. Could’ve been PREVENTED. You’re slow, brother… sloppy… ‘ His voice faded as Dust chose to turn a blind eye to the rest of what Paps said, but he seemed to wince anyways. He looked upset from what Paps was screaming at him, and he couldn’t shake the feeling that his brother was right. He couldn’t refuse a direct order, however.

“Good,” Nightmare murmured, turning his back on him. “Killer, leave.” He said. He wasn’t looking at him, but he was sure as fuck talking to him. Killer seemed to roll his eyes, slinking away. He was back to stage two. He grinned as he thought of bothering Cross again. 

After Killer left, Nightmare turned to Dust. “As for you,” Nightmare started, straightening as he stared levelly at the other. “We’re going to the infirmary. I’m going to check you for injuries myself.” His voice sounded harsh, but it was evident that he at least somewhat cared about Dust. He watched as Dust pushed himself off of his bed. He moved slowly towards the door, disappearing out into the hallway. Nightmare waited a few moments before following behind him to give him space.

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In the infirmary, Nightmare had Dust sit on one of the cots as he inspected him. “Take your jacket off.” He ordered, watching Dust carefully as the other stiffened. He didn’t want to. Nightmare’s gaze hardened and Dust looked down to avoid it. “I’m not asking. If you’re hurt, I can help you.” He stated, his tentacles flicking behind him. 

Dust didn’t say anything as per usual, but he complied after thinking about it for a few seconds. Nightmare didn’t watch him do it. Dust knew that Nightmare wouldn’t tell the others the specifics, but he remembered the concerned look that Killer had given him. He shivered uncomfortably and shed his jacket. The sight made Nightmare audibly gasp as he turned back over to him.

Dust’s shoulders were true to his name. They were covered in dust and blood, and he looked down. The crack in the back of his skull hurt tenfold as it was exposed to air, and he trembled as Nightmare stood in front of him. “You… are not well.” He rumbled, though his voice was grave. Nightmare told him to stay in the infirmary for now, and he’d figure out the rest. “You’re not going to be going on any missions for a while. I’m going to have a word… with the others.” His tentacles flicked behind him and he seemed hesitant for a moment. Nightmare made sure that Dust was as okay as he could be before he stepped out of the room to go inform the others.

Chapter Text

Cross blinked as Nightmare told him to head down to their meeting room as soon as possible. He’d just finished breakfast and was heading up to go see Nightmare, but he guessed that he now had another change of plans. “Boss,” Cross caught him before he left the room. The darker turned to stare at him for a moment, his cyan eyelight fixing on him. He looked like he was in a rush, and a tentacle lashed behind him impatiently.

“Yes?” Nightmare asked rather quickly, but he took another step closer to him. Cross’ face went purple as his boss looked at him. He was intimidated by how fast the other had answered. Nightmare only seemed to smile in response as he felt Cross suddenly become anxious. He didn’t know why, since Cross had been the one to stop him in his tracks in the first place. Cross was so strange. 

“Are you free later? Did you still want to talk to me about…” Cross seemed to trail off as Nightmare looked puzzled. Did Nightmare forget? He then looks amused as Nightmare stares at him with a dumbfounded look. “Boss?” He asked again. He now understood how it was like to be on the receiving end to somebody who was lost in thought. The other looked spaced out before he’d said anything the second time.

“Huh?” Nightmare furrowed his ‘brow’, before seeming to remember. He didn’t say anything about it though. He nodded instead, beckoning Cross to follow him with the flick of a tentacle. “You need to do anything quick before I go over the mission brief?” Without waiting for a response from Cross, he starts speaking again. “If not, come with me.”

Cross opened his mouth to speak but realizes he doesn’t have anything to say as he follows behind Nightmare. Apparently ‘as soon as possible’ meant ‘right now at this very second’, which was odd for him to do. Whenever Nightmare usually said that, it meant a little later in the day. Very rarely was it this urgent, but he wasn’t that concerned right now. Was this a direct result of what happened earlier with Dust? He could only assume it was Dust that Nightmare had gone to see, anyway.

Nightmare was watching Cross with an amused stare. The other had been so lost in thought that he was unresponsive to the two times he’d snapped his fingers in front of his face. They were going down a long corridor, the meeting room just around the bend. “Cross.” Nightmare stopped the other in his tracks with his tentacle. His voice was firm as if he was angry with him. He wasn’t angry, though, he’d just wanted to get the other’s attention. Cross lifted his head and looked at Nightmare. He only laughed once he felt something bordering embarrassment coming from Cross. The feeling only got stronger the longer he was silent.

“Yes, boss?” Cross asked, dipping his head in respect. He murmured a soft apology before he spoke. “Is this about the meeting?” The monochrome skeleton watched in confusion as Nightmare shook his head.

“No,” Nightmare turned away from him as he pushed open the door to the meeting room. “Stay here when I’m done with this. We can discuss what’s going on with you after.” He replied, stepping inside the room. Cross nodded, but Nightmare had already disappeared into the room. 

As Cross entered the room, he immediately took note of Horror. The other was dozing off in his chair, and Nightmare brought his tentacle down hard on the table to wake him up. Horror woke with a jolt and his eyes widened, but other than that he didn’t give much reaction. He seemed to be trying to adjust to the new light in the room since it was dark before Nightmare came in. Even though they had windows, curtains were blocking them unless it was raining outside since Nightmare hated the sun. He sighed as he looked around the room. He was already getting annoyed, which usually wasn’t a good sign. It was normal for him to get annoyed, but the sense of urgency with this meeting gave him an uneasy feeling.

“Where’s Killer? Thought he was with you.” Nightmare asked Horror, who blinked and also seemed confused. Even though Cross and Horror couldn’t feel emotions, both of them could practically feel their boss’ irritation. Killer always set him off on purpose and it annoyed him to all hell. One day he’d learn, and he’d make sure of it.

“He was… right behind me..” Horror furrowed his ‘brow’, reaching his hand up and hooking his fingers inside his empty eye socket. He looked back up at Nightmare, noticing his tentacles flicking with annoyance. “Ten minutes ago..” He added sheepishly, his statement quieter than the first one.

“He’s SUPPOSED to be—“ Nightmare was cut off from his fury as the door swung open, Killer stepping inside the room. His tentacles were raised in pure agitation as he spun around to glare at his subordinate.

“Right here, boss.” Killer grinned, finishing his sentence for him. Nightmare inhaled before letting out a long sigh that sounded more like a growl than anything. Killer was holding an icee, presumably from another universe. He appeared to be abusing Nightmare’s ability to teleport again.

“Killer. What the FUCK.” Nightmare watched him angrily as he took a seat. THAT’S what he was late for? An icee. “You’re five minutes late.” Nightmare growled as he watched Killer’s smirk grow wider.

“So you’re saying I could’ve come in later? Alright, want me to leave and come—“ Killer was forcibly cut off as one of Nightmare’s tentacles pierced through the wall, mere inches from his throat. “—back later…” Killer chuckled as he trailed off. You couldn’t tell if he was looking at the tentacle or not since he didn’t have any eyelights, but he seemed to get the idea anyways. Good.

“Believe it or not, there was a reason I called you all down here so soon. So sit down, Killer.” His gaze hardened into a glare as he stared at the other. He continued standing for a moment until Nightmare got up, his other three tentacles lashing behind him. “Now.” He commanded, retracting his tentacle as Killer put his hands up and went to find a seat. Nightmare seemed satisfied and looked over at Cross, who was quick to meet his gaze. He stiffened, seeming to already be awaiting an order. “Sit next to me.”

Cross blinked in surprise before getting up. Both Horror and Killer cast a glance at Cross, and Horror let his gaze wander to Nightmare afterward. He tipped his head before getting up as well and moving closer to the two of them. Killer, annoyingly, was sitting across from Nightmare, which was further than he’d wanted him to sit. Killer grinned at Nightmare’s scowl when he propped his feet up against the table. He only managed to tear his gaze away from him once he heard Horror chime in.

“Boss? Where’s Dust?” He asked him. Cross seemed to have the same question as he glanced back at Nightmare, who was holding up a hand to signal that he was about to speak. Horror’s confusion only grew as he tapped his fingers alongside his boney cheek.

“I was going to start with that,” He started, his voice low. It was enough to catch Killer’s attention, who seemed to finally catch on that this was serious. With a long sigh, he got up and moved closer to them, Nightmare continuing to glare at him. “Dust is debilitated and in the infirmary.” He spoke again once everyone’s eyes were on him.

“Shit.” He tapped his fingers against the table, producing an insufferable clicking noise. “Oh well. He’ll get better, right? He always does.” Killer added quickly afterward, shrugging it off like kt was nothing. Nightmare could feel that Killer was on edge, but he decided to let it be. His gaze remained on Killer for a few moments longer, acknowledging that his usual target shaped soul was shaking and twisting out of control. He relaxed a little and sat up straighter than he had before in his chair. His chair was much fancier and larger than the other three’s, it was like a mini throne. Nightmare was a king, after all. He needed something besides the old crown he had to let it be known. Even if the others knew he held authority over them, he couldn’t let them forget it for a second.

“Yes, he will, but that leads to your assignment.” Nightmare rumbled out, catching the three’s attention again. “You three are going on a mission tomorrow to get medical supplies. Magic will suffice, for now… but he needs a little more help than that.” He said quickly, narrowing his visible eye at Killer before he had the chance to speak. “I couldn’t find any in the easily accessible universes, however, I think you three will find great luck where Dream resides.” He murmured, looking down at his fingers as he let what he said sink in. He noticed Cross nod, but hie head was down. He was staring at his hands that were folded neatly in his lap. “Good boy,” He praised the monochrome skeleton, only for the other’s face to heat up noticeably. Cross looked up for a moment before forcing himself to look back down at his hands. Nightmare has an amused smile as he tore his gaze away from the flustered Cross. He watched Horror and Killer make knowing eye contact out of the corner of his eye.

“Okay…” Nightmare trailed off, his voice a low rumble. He was always satisfied when he made Cross feel that way. “Meeting dismissed…” He told them, but he sounded unsure in a way as he said that. Nightmare was thinking about Cross’ shocked expression. It was kind of cute. He forced those thoughts away and exhaled, standing up from his chair. He put his hands on the table as he stared at the three, leaning down on them with all of his weight. The table creaked from all of the weight, but gave no indication of breaking. “Cross, go up and wait in my office. I need to have a word with Killer.”

As Cross nodded and got up, Nightmare’s eye was on him. He watched him exit the room and felt something warm bubble up inside of him. Pride. The feeling quickly subsided once he heard Horror snickering behind him in the room. He growled and turned to stare at him, once again bewildered at what was so funny. Horror grinned and quickly shut himself up as he met Nightmare’s gaze. He decided to ignore it and turned to Killer, taking him in his tentacles as he teleported them to the library. Killer looked confused as he looked at his boss. “Killer,” Nightmare suddenly turned to him, and the other met his gaze.

“What is it, boss?” Killer tipped his head, soon breaking his eye contact with Nightmare so he could stare around at the library in awe. He’d never been in here for long, nor had he cared about its existence. He didn’t even read, for fucks sake. He couldn’t understand how some monsters didn’t get bored of it. Killer had to admit, however, that Nightmare’s library was magnificent.

“Look at me.” He commanded, and Killer’s gaze snapped back to meet his once more. He rumbled in appreciation before continuing. “Regarding the mission tomorrow, I’m giving you a secret task. I trust that you won’t tell the others about this.” He went on, turning away from Killer as his tentacles flicked in disapproval. It was as if they’d already expected Killer to fail. “You will find the one who goes by ‘Swap Sans’ for me. Keep him alive with minimal injuries. I believe he’s the one who knows what happened to Dust. Do you understand?” Nightmare seemed to be staring through Killer. The other nodded, grinning as he mumbled that it couldn’t be that hard to find him.

“Good,” Nightmare seemed pleased with himself. “Now that that’s settled, I need to meet with Cross.” He murmured again, stopping in his tracks as he heard Killer clear his throat behind him. He turned around, noticing that the other wanted to speak. He wanted to hear what he had to say, so he let him.

“Whatever you’re planning on doing, make sure you put in a good word or two for Cross, okay?” He let his grin turn sinister. “He told me he feels… undervalued as a soldier for you.” He looked at his nails, turning on his heel and grinning wickedly as he knew Nightmare was letting what he said sink in. He looked back at him. “I’m not telling you what to do or anything, he just felt the need to confide in me, you know? I don’t know how to deal with the emotional things, so I’m telling you.” He shrugged, seeming to emphasize with his hand that he had one more thing to say before Nightmare could open his mouth to speak. “That’s all, right boss?” He asked, keeping his voice as innocent as it sounded before. He was bullshitting him, but it wasn’t like Nightmare knew any better. Some part of what he said was most likely true, but Cross sure as fuck wasn’t coming to him about how he felt any time soon.

Nightmare thought for a moment, before deciding that was a reasonable question from Killer. He nodded, murmuring that Killer better have understood what he was supposed to do with his mission before dismissing him. When Killer left, he thought deeply about what he’d been told about Cross. He furrowed his brow, supposing that he’d have to ask him about it during their meeting. He turned towards the library’s doors and slipped out, heading for his office.

Chapter Text

Cross was up waiting patiently in Nightmare’s office, rapping his fingers against the arm of the chair he’d chosen to sit on. This place wasn’t linked to Nightmare’s room, but it technically did still serve as a room. It had a bed and everything, and it felt cozy in there. The only downside was that it was freezing, but he just chalked that up to Nightmare’s goop being hot. 

He heard something and looked up, jumping in surprise as he watched Nightmare materialize into the room. It was as if he was built up from the floor of his very office. He watched in interest, and Nightmare straightened up when it’d stopped. Cross’ face tinted negligibly when he noticed how welcoming the darker was trying to look. He relaxed a little, thinking about how it was almost as if someone had told him something that gave him a change of heart. Cross just shrugged it off. Nah. It was foolish of him to have even thought of it. 

Nightmare felt some of Cross’ anxiety leave him as soon as he appeared in the room. He seemed pleased with himself and beckoned Cross to sit on a chair that was across from his own. He couldn’t help but suddenly feel uneasy, as this was the most considerate Nightmare had been in a long time. Even then, this was scarcely bordering the standard of being kind. Cross quickly shuffled over to the chair and sat in it, soon realizing how comfortable it was. He leaned into it, and Nightmare gave a low rumble as he sat on a chair that resembled his throne. 

“Cross,” Nightmare’s low tone broke the silence, and the other looked up at him. They were no more than three feet apart, and something about this felt sacred. “What ails you?” He asked, his voice soft. When Cross looked down in hopes to find an answer, Nightmare’s tentacle was quick to gently lift his chin so that he could look at Cross. The touch was so gentle. It was… He felt himself losing his thought process as he stared into the darker’s eye for longer than he should’ve. 

“Boss, I..” Cross grew restless as he tried to get the words out, but Nightmare quickly shut him up. He’d already told him he wouldn’t force him to tell him anything, and that he just wanted to comfort his soldier. Cross only nodded in response. “I do want to tell you, but I feel that it would be a waste of energy to say anything.” He told him, ducking his head in respect after he spoke. Nightmare stared at him, leaning down to look him in the eyes. His gaze wasn’t sympathetic or anything, but he did seem to be trying to assist.

“This has been on your mind for a while, has it not?” Nightmare extends a tentacle forward and it curls around Cross’ chair before yanking it in front of him. His physical gestures and movements weren’t gentle in the slightest, and the abrupt tug on his chair made him jump a little. He figured that the eye contact was making him nervous with what he’d just tried. “After all, I don’t remember you getting this…. sweaty….” He paused and looked down at Cross, grabbing his face to make him stare at him. “…Making simple eye contact.” He rumbled in a teasing manner, but Cross’ face seemed to go true to his suspicions. Nightmare grinned, blinking as the other pulled back from his rough hold on him. He didn’t seem to be having any of it.

“It’s because you never used to do THAT.” Cross folded his arms and huffed, but Nightmare could feel that he was still thinking about whatever was bothering him. He stopped his playful jabbing and sighed, quickly relaxing. Messing with him like that should have no place in the conversation they were trying to have, but… there was something that told him it was the right thing to do. After all, the others used humor to get through the rough patches.

Nightmare moved his arms to the front of his desk, resting on it and leaving Cross to stare at his back. “This has troubled you for a while… I know.” He began, his tone serious once more. “I couldn’t let it eat away at you anymore, even though it was delicious.” He told him quietly, hesitating before saying the next part. “I’m not going to be your therapist, but…” He trails off once more, trying to find the right words. “..I’m here for you.” He assured Cross. To his surprise, the monochrome skeleton took him by the arm and turned him back around so they faced each other again. Usually, he’d be angry being touched, especially without permission like that, but it was Cross that made the gesture. The other seemed to need the extra emotional reassurance anyways. Getting angry at him would do him no good.

Cross took a deep breath and looked up at Nightmare, seemingly ready to talk about whatever was bothering him. He nodded and took a deep breath, clasping his hands together in front of him as he opened his mouth to speak. 

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

When was he supposed to carry out Nightmare’s secret mission? Tomorrow? Why was it even secret in the first place? He didn’t know, but he assumed that he had to do it during the mission that was going to be carried out tomorrow. He couldn’t have that. He already had a plan for tomorrow, and he didn’t want to ruin it. Killer was going to find him now. While Nightmare was romancing Cross or whatever he was doing, he’d decided to be productive. It was rare when this happened, but he did want to know what happened to Dust. He considered Dust a friend of his, even if it was vague. The scarf from Papyrus that Dust had around his neck all of the time made him uncomfortable. He didn’t feel like he actually clicked with anybody in the castle in a more than friends way, so he messed around in the same way with all of them. 

He spotted Swap in the distance. The sunlight made it harder to see, but he knew it was him. Underswap had just recently broken the barrier to the surface, and it looked like he was helping set things up right now. He didn’t know why Nightmare assigned him out of everyone else to go and talk to Swap because he was fucking clueless about what he had to do. He didn't know how to strike up a conversation, which was why Killer just wanted to get this over with. He figured he was in luck because Swap seemed to spot him, the other immediately paling as they made eye contact. Killer waved at him, which confused the other. He tried to get his beckon him over in the least suspicious way, but Swap knew what he was notorious for. 

Swap was out helping the other monsters get settled on the surface when he noticed it. The glinting of a metal object in the sunlight. He had to squint to see what it was, and he soon regretted looking over because what he saw…. His thoughts trailed off as Killer appeared to be staring through his very soul. He had a knife that he noticed was being slipped back into the pocket it came from. He stiffened and told the monsters around him that he’d be back to help them soon, setting off in the direction that Killer had just disappeared in. If Killer was there to put anybody in danger, he would put an end to it. He followed Killer to the edge of the town. knowing that following him might end horribly. Swap finally caught up to him and stood a few feet from him, a blue bone summoned in his gloved hand.

“Hey.” The murderer's grin was eerie as he stared at Swap with those blank eyes. “I was ordered to ask you what you know about Dust.” He stepped forward, the air growing still around them. Swap took a step backward and kept his defensive position. He'd kept his mouth shut the entire time. “I was told I wasn’t supposed to hurt you.” He took another step closer as the other narrowed his eyes at him. “..Too bad I don’t play by the rules.” Killer said dangerously, his grin menacing as he lunged toward the royal guardsman.

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

Cross scoffed to himself. He didn’t know how he’d gotten into this situation, but he was now accompanying Nightmare while he did something at his desk. He assumed it was paperwork. He wasn’t paying attention. The other had developed slight arthritis, and it was becoming a slight issue for him if he wanted to write anything. He noticed that Nightmare occasionally glanced at him to see if he was still in the room with him. A few hours had passed and Nightmare allowed him to stay in his office and keep him company. He didn’t say much about what Cross had told him, but he did tell him that he’d keep an eye out which wasn’t really all that comforting to him. Nightmare didn’t seem too shocked or concerned with what Cross had told him, but he could tell that the monochrome skeleton needed desperately to say something. It was just a nightmare, after all. Not all nightmares came true.

“Why do you even need to do paperwork anyways?” Cross broke the silence with his question and met Nightmare’s eye. He just sighed and glanced over at him, looking ever so slightly annoyed. 

“It’s not paperwork.” He growled out. He beckoned Cross to get a good look at what he was doing. He looked puzzled after a moment. It was a book. Surely one of the ones Nightmare had pulled from the huge library they had. He was… reading a book. Nightmare had told him it was paperwork that he had to do. Cross looked up at Nightmare for any sign of explanation. “I know what I said,” He rumbled out slowly, turning to look at Cross. “But you looked like you needed the company.” He was quieter the second time he spoke, and one of his tentacles slid over his desk to flick where Cross’ nose would be. “Maybe if you actually paid attention to details, you’d know.” He teased Cross, but he also seemed to be annoyed with the fact that he didn’t pay attention to details often. 

Cross blinked as he felt Nightmare’s tentacle flick him. When it pulled back, he had time to examine his boss thoroughly. He let the last thing Nightmare had said sink in, and he didn’t know if he was doing it on purpose or subconsciously now. The other looked a little bigger and his aura felt more powerful. It was probably from Cross’ negativity. Nightmare was feeding off of him. He grinned as he stared at his monochrome subordinate. “See?” He asked Cross, his voice low. “The more observant you are, the more you’ll notice.” He crooned, reaching out to the other and hooking his fingers underneath his chin once more. He is grin grew sinister when he noticed Cross’ face go purple at his gesture. Nightmare wanted the other to be like this more often. He was cute... in his own way. He never made a fuss about rule-following, but as soon as Cross did anything that didn't require him to follow orders, he seemed to fall apart. How could someone so cold in battle be so fragile outside of it?

Cross didn’t know what was happening. He couldn’t stop himself from blushing deeply as Nightmare grabbed him by the lower jaw again. He felt humiliated like this, and Nightmare’s tentacles flicked. He knew exactly how he was feeling. He gulped as the darker suddenly let him go, and he dropped back onto his chair. Cross rubbed his cheek unappreciatively and shook himself out. He had his back turned to his boss when he heard him rumble again. He stiffened and risked a glance back at him. The other was watching him with an expression that he didn’t recognize right away, but his gaze quickly turned bitter when Cross met his glowing eye.

“You’re free to leave now,” Nightmare told him, turning back to his work as he dismissed the other with a flick of his tentacle. Cross nodded and turned to leave the room, but Nightmare spoke once more. “Go find Killer and train with him, will you?” He asked of him, looking down at his phalanges and flexing them. Despite finding pleasure in the situation, Nightmare was no longer interested in looking at Cross. “You need to work on your magic use and unpredictability. Both are… not very well coordinated.” He snorted in amusement as Cross nodded again, quickly opening the door and stepping out of the room. Nightmare heard the other take a breath of relief when he left the room, and his tentacles twitched in admiration. His willingness to take criticism and improve as fast as he did was something he respected and held in high regard. He didn’t understand him, but that was okay. Cross was an exception. He knew that Cross never hurt him, and he would try his best to do the same.

As Nightmare sank into his seat, he released a satisfying breath and his thoughts drifted towards Cross. He was set on getting Cross to realize how much he appreciated him, no matter how challenging it may be to articulate. With his tentacles coiled around him, he opened his book and continued to read.

Chapter Text

When Killer finally came back, it was nearing the evening. The light was casting long shadows against the trees and it was beautiful. He staggered up against a tree, leaning on it for balance. He and Swap had fought. They’d fought until Killer could get him to speak. He didn’t specialize in talking. He straightened up and looked behind him, glancing at Swap as he followed him through the forest. Killer had bested him, and the royal guardsman was shocked to hear that all he wanted was for Swap to come back with him to the castle. He was more or less a prisoner, however. As long as he didn’t hurt anybody else from his AU, it was okay. As long as Killer stayed true to what he was told…

Killer decided enough was enough with walking and teleported them the rest of the way. He teleported into the kitchen, while Swap was probably teleported into the dungeons. Cross looked up from where he was sitting and immediately grimaced at the sight of Killer. He looked like shit. “Where have you been?” Cross asked him, his tone being near-demanding. His statement made Killer’s eyes widen in surprise and he chuckled. Cross had never lost his composure like that unless he was really annoyed. It looked like he’d finally cracked him.

“That’s not how you speak to your higher-ups, is it, Cross?” Killer stepped forward and shoved the other up against the wall, pinning his arms above his head. The tall chair he was sitting on had fallen over, and he thrashed in Killer’s grasp. He was sick of Killer doing this to him every time they saw each other now. He relaxed as the other let him go, but he immediately yelped as Killer grabbed him by the shirt and smelled it. He inhaled deeply. “Hm.” The smaller skeleton tipped his head to the side. “You smell like boss, but not as strong as I thought you would.” He observed, releasing him completely and stepping away. Cross growled and brushed himself off. He folded his arms and huffed once he was done.

“What’s wrong with you?” Cross snapped at Killer, but the other only laughed. He turned on his heel to face him, his shit-eating grin only widening. 

“I thought Nightmare was romancing you.” He said nonchalantly, the statement making Cross’ face go bright purple. He grinned even harder as Cross sputtered out something incoherent and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. That was NOT what he’d been doing at all, but his gestures and embarrassment showed otherwise. He regained his composure and stepped closer to the smaller skeleton. Killer was smaller than Cross by a foot or more, and that made him feel even more humiliated about how he treated him. 

“Why would he do that? He’s my boss.” He snapped at Killer, seeming to reprimand him for even getting that idea. He squinted as the other responded in a laugh and leaned forward to flick Cross on the nose. When he stepped backward to try and avoid him, Killer only moved closer, taking his hands into his own. This was interesting to him. He thought the two constantly showed obvious signs of a crush on each other. He sighed, that grin still evident as he seemed to get an idea. That was the face Cross always hated to see. “So… does this mean I have a chance?” Killer teased. It was one of his favorite things to do to him. “Since you’re not, you know, like… seeking out our boss?” He could tell that the smaller was joking, and he chuckled himself before turning away. Cross took his hands away from Killer’s and scoffed.

“Fat chance, Killer.” He growls out, huffing as he trails off. For a brief moment, he’s taken back to the battlefield where Horror takes his last breath. It was long enough for Killer to notice, and the other’s loud snort brought him back to reality. The visions (was that what they were???) were getting stronger and he didn’t know how to feel about that. He wasn’t one for details, but he noticed that Dust wasn’t accounted for. That played into current events since Dust was in the infirmary. How even was Dust??? He should go visit him. “Yeah, Killer?” He tips his head as he glances over at him. 

“What the fuck was that all about?” Killer raised a brow, poking his sternum through the rip in his shirt. Cross quickly grabbed his hand and shoved it away, his gaze hardening on Killer as he laughed and raised his hands. “No, but seriously, if this is going to hinder our training, you’d better tell me now.” Killer scoffs, resting against the island counter. His hands supported his head as he stared at Cross with those blank eyes of his. Looking twice, he could’ve sworn he saw the white rings in his eyes. They were rare. He did look twice, and he was met with another flirt. He sighed. Killer was impossible. 

“You heard anything about Horror dying lately?” He decides to start, Killer immediately answering his question with his confused-as-hell expression. “I’m guessing not,” He trails off, shrugging as he continues. “I keep having these visions about him dying. They won’t go away. We don’t even have a connection besides friends or anything like that, so it’s really weird.” He noticed Killer staring at him like he had two heads, and to that, he sighed. “Before you say anything, no, I haven’t lost my mind.” *Not yet, at least….* Cross straightens up. “It’s the same thing every time, and Dust isn’t there. It’s… I don’t know, Killer. I know you’re going to think I’ve lost my mind… but I’m telling you that I really think I’m far from crazy with this.” He finally stopped talking, and it looked like Killer was giving what he said a chance. He nearly sighed in relief, but he held it in.

“…Well, I’m no expert on this, but why don’t you let me handle it. Okay?” He sounded more thoughtful than usual, which may have been a direct cause of the rings in his eyes showing. He was feeling. “You out of anybody else here should know that we don’t take our teammates' injuries lightly, especially if they aren’t inflicted by us.” His tone went dangerous. “Anything happens to him, we’ll be right there. Horror’s tough, the guy can handle most of anything…” He seemed to be reminiscing on past battles and missions from before Cross joined. “You, being a newbie, shouldn’t intervene too much.” He grinned once more, knowing the term set Cross off. He knew that Cross wouldn’t complain, however, because he’d joined a little over a year ago. “You told boss, correct? I don’t see why you did, but your little baby thoughts must’ve been tough to keep to yourself.” Killer shrugs. “Despite barely even knowing the guy, your need to protect is admirable. Guess that’s why boss has his eye on you…” 

As Killer trails off, Cross scoffs and rolls his eyes at his statement. “For the last time, boss doesn’t like me.” He snorts, glaring at Killer. He seemed to be telling himself that more than he was telling Killer that, and he didn’t know how that settled with him. He saw more chemistry between Nightmare and Killer, but the majority of that was because Nightmare didn’t seem to care for Killer’s constant flirting. Sometimes he’d even see him lean into it as if he were embracing the other, which was something he didn’t see often, but still… He shook the thoughts aside.

“Come on. Boss said we have to train before we go on tomorrow’s mission.” Cross murmured, his gaze flicking back to Killer as he started for the door. He noticed that the other had laughed again, and came up beside Cross. Without any explanation, he stopped him in his tracks as he stood in front of him. He leered at Cross before leering at him, pushing himself up on his tiptoes while using Cross to rebalance himself. He stared Cross in the face as his tone went back to being innocent again. “You’re horrible at lying to yourself.” He cooed next to Cross’ nonexistent ear. Killer’s arms snaked up around his neck and hung around him loosely as he went flat on the ground and pulled Cross down to his face. He knew that Killer was talking about Nightmare’s apparent love for him. He wasn’t an idiot. “But, since you’re so adamant on training…” He pulls away from Cross, looking disappointed as he looked back at him. “Let’s go.” 

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

Swap was freaking out. Killer had sent him to the infirmary instead of the dungeons. In a way, he felt that this was more of a punishment than being locked up for questioning. He was in the room with Dust instead. Dust! He gave a tremor when the hooded skeleton stopped his muttering and met Swap’s gaze. As Dust stared at him, Swap was sure he saw a twinge of humiliation in those magnificent eyes. It was the way they faltered when Dust saw him. That wasn’t something he’d ever thought he’d see. He shook himself from his thoughts and cleared his throat. “I was forced to come here with little to no say, mwehehe..” He musters a gentle laugh. “They know I was there when you got hurt and they want me to tell them!” He exclaimed, causing Dust to stiffen. 

“…I see.” Dust’s voice was scratchy as he spoke. He looked a little agitated at the news he’d just received, but he was actually more anxious than anything. “..You won’t tell them.” He sounds like he’s asking a question, but it’s also a very clear demand. A desperate plea, even. They were both in the wrong place at the wrong time. They crossed paths and not too long after, a powerful monster had attacked Swap. Since there hadn’t been a battle between the opposing sides in a while, Dust decided to help. He took a pretty bad hit from the monster, but that wasn’t what caused half of the damage, oh no. Paps had begun to scream at him for helping the enemy out, telling him that he had the chance to kill both of them. Swap fled the scene once Dust attacked, but Dust could still sense him watching. With Paps screaming at him and digging his hands into his shoulders, Dust had a mental breakdown. He was left on the earthy floor of the AU for what felt like minutes until Swap decided to come out again and help him. He was the reason he’d made it home. 

“I-I won’t tell anyone! Promise!!” He tells him softly, awkwardly approaching him until he was stopped by Dust, who snarled at him. “Stay away from me.” He was stressed out and it was evident. Swap watched as Dust was pushed back into his thoughts, presumably Paps, and began shaking again. Paps hissed to him that everyone else knew what he did. How he was a traitor for helping the enemy. That it wouldn’t hurt for Swap to spill the beans because he’d already stained his reputation. He watches in dismay as Dust pulls his hood over his head and begins to let out muffled sobs against his hands. 

‘ You’re SCUM for helping the enemy. Look where you are now… ‘ He hissed. With every insult that came at him, his magic would flare up even more, until… Swap’s hand breaks into Dust’s line of sight and the hooded skeleton stiffens. He was looking down at the ground. ‘ Weak. HELPLESS… ‘ His voice was grating and he flinched at his tone. He knew it was weak to make connections, but he had to admit that he felt lonely. He forced himself to look up at Swap, no longer crying. He inhaled shakily when Swap outstretched his arms to him in a friendly embrace. Dust stared at him for a few moments before shaking his head and leaning against the infirmary bed. 

“You saved me.” Swap’s voice broke Dust away from his mind. He looked over to him again and nodded feverishly. He avoided direct eye contact with him as he smiled softly. He knew one thing, and that was to never make eye contact with Dust if he could help it. Swap didn’t know what to say next, but the other was still nodding after a few seconds and beginning to mutter to himself. Swap sighed and waited until Dust was finished to speak with him again. “…What do you want me to tell the others?” He asked the other, who didn’t respond for a good minute or two. 

When Swap was about to go and sit down somewhere, he responded. “Nothing.” He spoke quietly, but his voice was firm. “You’re going to leave right… right now, and if it comes up again…” He trails off, almost as if thinking about what to say. It was multiple seconds later when he finally finished his sentence. “We got in a fight.” His eyes were unfocused as he stared out of the window. The longer Swap stayed, the more humiliated Dust felt. It felt like a punishment to be stuck this long with somebody like Swap. He couldn’t even handle the others being in here, so why would Swap be any different?? He furrowed his brow in anger as he thought. Killer. He was the only one that would do this shit on purpose. “He stopped by earlier… and told me he had to find you.” He spoke again, his voice slightly louder than before. He sounded irritated. “Told him not to, but it was bosses’ order.” He twitched as leaned down to hold his head in his hands. Swap seemed to understand and nodded, and by the time Dust looked up again, he was gone. Dust sighed as he leaned back against the infirmary bed. Ignoring Papyrus, he finally had some peace again. He knew Nightmare could feel his humiliation, but he probably wasn’t going to come down anytime soon.

He turned his head as he heard heavy footsteps approaching the room. Horror. He tensed a little as he realized why he was coming down into the infirmary. Not because he cared or anything, but because he’d made him upset. The door swung open and Horror stepped into the room, his eyes blazing as he stared at Dust. “Horror—“ Dust rasped out and sat up in his bed as the other took a step closer to him. “I’m sorry,” He whispered. Horror didn’t stop approaching him until he was right next to him. “Really. I am.” He lifts his head to stare at Horror, looking startled as he reached out and grabbed him by the shoulder. His grip was crushing and he winced a little. It hurt, but it soon softened as Horror stopped what he was doing.

“…Promise me.” Horror hissed out, glaring at him. He was staring through him. Dust didn’t respond for a few seconds, but Horror’s tightening death grip brought him back to the room. He murmured that he promised, and Horror sighed. “I know y’hate apologizin’. Not going to make you say it again. I know y’aren’t afraid of me, but if it happens again… I will hurt you.” He said firmly, taking his hand off Dust. After a few more seconds of staring, Horror seemed to soften and leaned down to him. “…Get well soon.” His voice was gruff as he turned away from him and left the room. Dust’s eyes were on him the entire time.

Once he left, Dust grunted in frustration. “Told you it was a bad idea…” He muttered to Papyrus, and the whispering from the other got louder. He knew that if he did it again that Horror would be true to his word, and even with his magic, it would not be pretty. Horror was the strongest out of them physically besides maybe Nightmare. He sighed and looked out of the window, watching the sky dim for a considerable amount of time. Two hours had passed when he finally looked away. It had to be around 8 or 9 pm. Dust let out another sigh before looking up at the ceiling. Though he barely slept, Nightmare had told him that sleeping would help him feel better. Maybe he was right. He decided to try, closing his eyes. He knew Papyrus would alert him if somebody was nearby. The whispering quieted as he drifted off to sleep. 

It was around 3 in the morning when Dust was jolted awake by Papyrus’ agitated whispering. The figure in the door jumped a little at his sudden reaction, but he didn’t say anything. It took Dust a few seconds to realize that it was Killer. He groaned and gave a small wave, to which Killer waved back. “Hey…” He said quietly, seeming uncertain as he walked into the room. He held a bowl of soup to his chest as he carried it over to the hooded skeleton on the infirmary bed. One thing that Dust noticed immediately was the bright white rings in his eyes. He didn’t mention it since he knew it usually meant he’d just had a mental breakdown. He sat up as Killer set it down on a side table for him and then sat down in a random chair next to him. “Can I turn this fucking lamp on?” He asked. Dust was listening to how his voice sounded rather than the fact that he’d just been asked a question. He definitely sounded like he’d just been crying. Dust made a noise that sounded like he was thinking about his question before nodding and leaning over to turn the lamp on. As soon as he turned the lamp on, he noticed that the lines of goop that ran down his face looked smudged and he looked a little more unkempt than usual. Again, he didn’t mention it, but it didn’t hurt to make an observation. 

“Thanks.” Dust said, rubbing the side of his face as he leaned down and grabbed the spoon to his soup with twitching fingers. He knew that eating this would probably help so he decided not to protest this time. He usually felt weak and helpless whenever he couldn’t do anything for himself, but he assumed that this was the exception. He began eating quietly, closing his eyes as he felt the warmth from it spread across his bones. Killer was still sitting in the chair beside the lamp. “Y’eat anything yet?” Dust asked him quietly, which got his attention. Killer unsurprisingly shook his head which made Dust mutter something under his breath. He didn’t even ask about what he said. 

“Nah,” Killer responded a few seconds later, shrugging. He was never really seen eating by the others, and Dust was the first to catch on that he didn’t even eat much in the first place. It wasn’t like he did either, but he found it surprising. “I’m not hungry, but I figured you might’ve been.” He sighed, resting against the chair. Dust chuckled lowly and glanced over at him, tipping his head as he watched Killer yawn. He knew the other probably hadn’t slept either. He probably hadn’t slept in days, but Dust couldn’t blame him for that since he did the same thing. The two of them were probably the worst off in the group. They had similar habits. He just sighed and settled down into his bed after he finished his soup. Killer stood up when Dust finished, stretching as he yawned again. “I’m gonna.. try n’ sleep.” Killer trailed off as he waltzed out of the room. “And take a shower….” He added, although it sounded half to himself. Dust looked amused as Killer looked at him for one last time. “G’night, Dust.”

With one more noise of amusement, Dust reached over the table to turn the lamp off. 

“Goodnight, Killer.”

Chapter Text

Killer (2) add-on

(The previous night)

It was around 1 in the morning when Nightmare woke up. He stretched, his tentacles curling up behind him slowly as his gaze adjusted to the moonlight coming in through his curtains. He pushed himself off of his bed with a growl and approached the window, pulling up his chair so he could sit by it. Nightmare yawned and pushed the window open, immediately sighing in relief as he was met with chilly air that bit his bones. As he leaned his head out of the window, he spotted movement in the corner of his eye. Upon further inspection, he recognized the skeleton below as Killer. He let himself stare at him for a few moments longer before turning his head away once Killer left the area. He felt irritation, but it wasn’t from Killer. It was from Dust and he was sleeping from as far as he could tell. Nightmare sighs and pushes himself up to his feet, stretching again and feeling his spine pop this time. There’s relief heard in his groan afterward, but it didn’t last for long. He had to admit it. Nightmare felt it. There was a tingle of death in the air.

After Cross had come and talked to him about his nightmares, he’d felt it. Somebody was going to die. Pushing himself out of his chair, he exits his room with haste and materializes into Horror’s room. The broken skeleton is sleeping. Nightmare watches silently as the other twitches and grunts in his sleep. He lets out a heavy sigh. This could be his last living night here. Unfortunate as it was, he could’ve imagined it even before Cross had said anything. In a multiverse full of magic, having no magic was, well… weak. It was weak no matter how strong you were without it. Nightmare stares at him for a few seconds longer before materializing in Cross’ room. He… wasn’t here? Maybe he fell asleep in the training room. Yes, that was probably it. Chasing after Cross wasn’t his first priority at the moment, but he did have questions about his nightmares. How could he tell? It puzzled even himself. He wanted to know how. His tentacles curled up behind him in frustration and he growled to himself. His tentacles lashed and he swung Cross’ door open before he left. Nightmare then forced himself to regain composure, his gaze softening as he thought of his loyal Cross. The tentacles behind him that twisted in anger a few moments before were now flicking in a soft adoration for his soldier. Those feelings, however, quickly subsided as he trudged up back to his room.

Taking a deep breath, Nightmare sat on his bed as he thought about what would happen next. He didn’t know entirely what to do, but it would all be okay. He… wanted *him* to be okay. He’d find a way to figure this out. He always did.

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

SMACK!

Cross’ eyes flew open as he felt somebody smack him across the face. He jumped and looked around for a moment before he was met with Killer’s blank yet mischievous eyes. He lifts him up a few inches off of the ground by the collar of his shirt. “Good moooorning, sleepyhead!” He grins, leaning forward and dropping Cross onto the ground again. The other groaned and held his cheek, still half-processing what had even just happened. Cross could kind of understand, however. He was the heaviest sleeper in the group and Killer decided that smacking him would be the best way to wake him up effectively. The monochrome skeleton only groaned further as Killer told him that he needed to get up. “We have our mission today!” Killer exclaimed, though he just seemed to feign excitement for Cross. He stepped back as Cross stood up, growling at him to ‘get out’ before he blushed in embarrassment as he realized where he was. He was in the training room. He’d… fallen asleep there. Killer only laughed, giving Cross a playful nudge as he stepped away from him. “Oh, and, by the way…” He twitched as he got up and turned his back to Cross. “Dust wants to see you,” He paused in between sentences. “Don’t know why, he wouldn’t tell me.” Killer shrugs before telling him to get up again, leaving the room afterward.

Cheeks still tinted purple from embarrassment, Cross gets up and shakes himself out. He takes a moment to try and recollect what had happened last night after training. He remembers exiting the room to get some chocolate and also spotting Nightmare in the kitchen, but other than that? His memory was foggy. He gives a shrug of his own and brushes himself off, his posture perfect as he exits the room to go and see Dust. He wonders what he wants from him.

Cross soon rounds the corner that leads to the infirmary. He’s mildly interested to hear about what Dust wanted from him now. When he enters the room, Dust is sitting up and staring straight at him. He’s not surprised. “Hey,” He greets the hooded skeleton, who nodded slightly in return. Cross tips his head in confusion and approaches him, kneeling right next to his bed. Dust only stares at him still, his gaze unreadable as he reaches out and presses his hand to Cross’ cheek. It’s cold. He tries his best to not flinch at how cold he was and instead leans into his touch. Dust made a pleased sound and stared into his eyes. It sent shivers down Cross’ spine. “..You’ll protect Horror, won’t you?” Dust asks in a whisper, sitting up straight again with his hand still cupping the other’s cheek. He rubbed soft circles in it. At that, Cross immediately paled. Dust knew about what he’d told Killer and Nightmare? Was it just intuition? He didn’t know, but he was now sure that he’d let Dust down. He glanced to the side, pulling away from Dust’s hand as he stood up straight again. The soldier hesitated. “I’ll try my damn hardest, Dust. You have my word.” He reaches out his pinky to the injured skeleton. A pinky promise. Dust looked somewhere between offended and confused and he pushed Cross’ hand away, dismissing him as he mumbled that he knew he would. Cross sighs in relief. As he turns away to leave, he finds himself longing for that touch again, however, the hand he was imagining caressing his cheek was much warmer…. He pushes the thought away immediately, a blush threatening to show as he shakes his head and leaves the room after waving goodbye to Dust. How could he possibly think like that? He was so embarrassed. Cross walked briskly to the kitchen, chalking it up to Killer messing with his head. He couldn’t think like that! It felt so wrong. He shuddered.

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

Killer was outside waiting for Cross with Horror. He gave a loud huff and kicked up dirt before turning to Horror, who was pacing silently. He watched him for a few moments before the castle doors were pushed open, Cross barreling out of them. “Fuck. Sorry,” He mumbled as he leaned down to stretch. There was no way his back didn’t hurt from sleeping on the floor. He was in his new attire. He always had it on during missions, so the holdup was probably him changing. He hadn’t expected to have woken up so late, especially since somebody usually woke him up earlier whenever they went out on missions. Usually Horror. “Why didn’t you wake me up earlier?” Cross asks nonchalantly, which made Killer glance over at him. The look he gave him was somewhere in between annoyed and amused. “We fucking tried.” He snorted, staring at Cross with those blank eyes as the other stretched upward, his arms reaching toward the sky. He growled at Killer’s smirk. He knew that he was observing him quite closely. “What?” Killer asked innocently, walking up to him until they were mere inches away from each other. He made a gesture that looked like he was clearing his throat. “Our first stop is Lusttale.” Killer was staring at Cross, but he was talking to Horror as well. Cross and Horror exchanged confused glances. Since when was this the plan? “Killer, wha—“ Cross was quickly shushed by Killer. He glared as he was cut off. “Listen, we got fuckin’ time to kill, n’ I gotta pay a visit to someone.” With that being said, Horror spoke up.

“What about Dust..?” He spoke in a slow, hoarse voice. He thought that the mission was important and therefore needed to be carried out immediately. Horror glanced over at Cross, who nodded. The two were both examined by Killer for a few seconds before he chuckled. “You really think he won’t be able to hold out for two more hours? I think those ‘special healing supplies’ can wait, but since you’re that persistent… why don’t you go first? I can always catch up.” He made air quotations as he spoke, along with other various other sayings with his hands. He always spoke with his hands, and he’d noticed that Dream did it too. It was odd, but he assumed that it was just a quirk they both had. Cross noticed that what Killer said had the hint of a challenge and he growled. “I’m not sticking around for some porno, and I’m sure Horror isn’t either.” His statement was met with a growl from an unhappy Horror, but the other nodded regardless. He hated when somebody else put words in his mouth. “Do what ya’ got to do.” Horror just mumbled, turning to Cross as he slunk towards him, his axe making a horrible grinding noise as it was dragged across the ground. “Make us a portal,” Cross told Killer, the other actually obliging as he did just that. He looked relatively surprised for a moment before shaking it off as he thanked him, stepping into the portal that led directly to Dream’s castle. Horror stood there contemplating where he wanted to go a few more times before following Cross into the portal. It closed behind him as soon as he stepped into it and came out the other side. Killer sighs before making his own portal to Lusttale. He needs to visit him.

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

Killer steps through the portal, a cold gust of air immediately biting at his bones. He’s in Snowdin. He’d almost forgotten what it looked like if it weren’t for the fact he visited here every once in a while. He was barely even seen as a threat here anyways, which kind of stunk. Sacrifices had to be made to come here. The snow crunched underneath his shoes as he made his way through Snowdin in the direction of Grillby’s. The soft crunching of snow was as peaceful as it was a reminder of his past life. Unusually, there were no other prints in the snow besides his own. Killer keeps his hood up here. He hated drawing lustful attention to him from monsters he didn’t even know. His breath billowed out into a white cloud every time he exhaled. It was… peaceful. There were no monsters out right now, which was a huge plus considering there were usually always a few monsters out. Whatever he needed to ask could wait, he wasn’t sure when he’d ever get this chance again. Sighing, Killer sits down next to a cliff’s edge. His legs dangle off of it as he tips his head back, about to close his eyes until he felt a hand on his shoulder. He knows how it is just from the way his hand feels. “Am I interrupting something, pretty boy?” Lust. Killer turns around and shakes his head. He chooses his next words carefully. “I was… looking for you.” He murmured in a half-yawn. He needed something from him. Lust tipped his head, looking a little shocked after he processed what Killer had said to him. “Looking for me?” He manages a soft grin, shuffling to sit down next to Killer. His cheeks are now tinted purple as he looks down into the chasm below. “What ever do you need from me?” Lust lifts his head to stare into the endless abyss that was Killer’s blank eye sockets. The nothingness inside felt far more dark and lonely than whatever was waiting at the bottom of the cliff. He already knew that he was not here for intimacy. The question made Killer think for a moment as if he wasn’t quite sure himself.

“You have gifts other than… the obvious, right?” He asked Lust as he tipped his head to the side, the obvious being sex toys. Lust noticed how Killer’s target soul began to twist and contort into something that no longer resembled a target. It wasn’t recognizable as anything right now. He was awaiting Lust’s answer. “I… yes, we do!” Killer’s question dumbfounded him for a moment. That wasn’t what he’d been expecting at all. “I didn’t take you for a gift-giver.” He chuckles in amusement as he begins to stand up. After all of this time they’ve spent together, Killer was always surprising him. It was like he still barely even knew him at all, which was more likely than he thought. Not that he was expecting much different, but it still felt odd to him. “We have to go to Hotland, I hope that’s not too much of an issue,” Lust told him, his voice soft as ever. The way Lust spoke sometimes and how he acted was drastically different. Killer paused for a moment to process his question before nodding. His soul wavered again, but nothing was bringing out his dim eyelights anytime soon. “Can we go through Waterfall? I haven’t seen it in a fucking while.” He’s nearly mumbling, but his voice is loud enough for Lust to hear. The two’s relationship was very strange. Killer came into Lust’s life looking for something that would keep him grounded. Sex. And it worked, for a little while. As horrible a coping mechanism it was, Lust could say he understood. After all, it was his own nature to be vulgar. He assumed that at least half of it was just Killer’s personality, too. Lust finally answers his question with a soft nod, offering his hand to the other before he realizes that he’s already walking away. Lust hurries over to catch up with Killer.

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

Cross and Horror aren’t doing too well back at the Dream’s castle. While Killer went off to do fuck knows what at Lusttale (who was he kidding, it was probably sex related), Cross was sneaking around in the lower levels of the positive guardian’s castle. Horror went off somewhere upstairs, so Cross had no choice but to search alone. It wasn’t too bad, actually. Aside from Swap occasionally being at the castle, nobody besides Dream was ever here. Some thought that Ink was with the two, but he wasn’t for any reason other than battles.

In a way, this was peaceful. The sunlight filtered through the winding corridors and it made him want to stay put right here forever. He missed the sun. He loved how it felt and he didn’t want the feeling to end. He couldn’t let it end. Not right now.

Cross was standing there with teary eyes, enveloped in the warm embrace of the sun. Oh, how he missed it. He could very well be botching this mission for all of them, but it would be Killer’s fault for leaving them regardless. He’s so at peace right now that he forgets about the nightmare that’s been eating at him for the past few weeks. Forgets about Horror. He's unable to stop himself from thinking about his old au. Cross is unable to pull himself together and the first tear slides down his cheek and he kneels, his hands resting delicately along the edge of the window sill. He can’t believe he’s crying in somebody else’s castle, but he can’t help it. He’s remembering his old AU. How it used to be. Who he used to be. He hears soft footsteps turn the corner and he stiffens. It’s Dream.

As Dream rounds the corner to the source of the negative feelings, he pauses. It’s… Cross? He’s bent down and staring out of the window at the sunrise. As much as he’s confused, he wants to help him. “Cross? Are you… what happened?” He’s about to ask if Cross is okay, but he obviously isn’t. He comes over and kneels next to him, outstretching his arms to him in a friendly gesture. As suspected, he didn’t take his offer. He only whimpered a soft apology as he pulled back from the window. Dream made a soft noise of dismay, bringing his hands back to his lap as he stared up at Cross. The monochrome skeleton was taller than Dream. Once he regained his composure, he turns to Dream and sighs. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to come here uninvited.” He lies, scrunching up his shoulders in shame. Dream’s aura had helped calm him down, even if the difference it made was slight. There was nothing he could use to cover the back of his head and it made him feel even more vulnerable. The guardian seemed to notice and teleported a hoodie to him, handing it to Cross. It was a friendly gesture, and it made him feel warm inside. He cracked the first slight of a smile, but his shoulders were still tense.

“Here, come with me. I can get you some tea, and maybe you can tell me why you came here..” Dream’s voice was soft and he stood up, outstretching his hand out to him. Cross hesitated for a moment before sighing and taking Dream’s hand, the other jumping in surprise as he actually took his gesture. He had the hoodie on, but it was way too small for him. It came up to his waist as if it were some kind of crop top hoodie. He couldn’t believe he was in Dream’s clothing right now. He felt like this was a new low for him, but he felt oddly at peace knowing that the other was there to help him. He sniffled as Dream squeezed his hand, following behind him as he lead them up into his kitchen. It didn’t look like the guardian had seen Horror yet.

“Why are you being so nice to me right now?” Cross croaked out as he stood in the kitchen awkwardly. He asked that as if he weren’t talking to one of the nicest monsters in the entire multiverse. The question made Dream pause. “Well, you were crying… What else was I supposed to do? I couldn’t just leave you there, could I?” He answered to the best of his ability. Even though he’d trespassed without his knowledge, his hospitality was still there. “Even if you arrived uninvited..” Dream trails off. Cross shrugged, murmuring that he guessed he had a point. His cheeks were tinted a soft purple, and Dream stared at him in dismay after Cross had occupied himself by staring outside of the window again. He couldn’t help himself thinking this, but he didn’t see how Cross fit in with the other bad guys. He wasn’t inherently evil at all, he’d just wanted a second chance. He felt him get upset again and watched as Cross pressed his forehead against the glass. Dream felt that observing that he missed his old au would be rude, so he didn’t say anything. Instead, he came up to him and stood beside him quietly. Cross was trembling. “I-I….” He was desperately searching for something to say. “We need medical supplies.” He finally told Dream. “Dust’s injured, and… magic won’t help all of him.” He thought that saying something else would distract him from his longing to go back to the way things were, but it only made him feel worse. He covered his face by pulling down the hoodie that Dream had given him, the embarrassment rising as the rest of the hoodie lifted at the action. “I-I can give you that!” The Guardian spoke quickly, though his voice was soft to not startle him. Soft as always. Cross just nodded, keeping his head ducked in shame. He was eternally grateful that Dream didn’t turn him away, but if the others caught word of this…. It might not be so good for him. When Dream turned away and disappeared upstairs, the idea of what the others might do to him was eating him alive. They thought of each other as family, but they did not take betrayal lightly. Betrayal. Was that what he was doing? Was he betraying his team by talking to Dream? He shook just thinking about it. He couldn’t be a letdown to his team. Nightmare was counting on him to get these supplies. The thought of letting down Nightmare scared him, but he just felt so helpless around his brother. He didn’t know what to do.

When Dream came back with the medical supplies, he noticed that Cross was in an even worse state than he’d left him in. He was crouched down and hyperventilating near the window, his fingers digging into the windowsill. “Oh, Cross…” Dream whispered in dismay, putting the medical supplies down and kneeling in front of Cross. He seemed to be having some sort of anxiety attack. That was no good. Dream reached out to him hesitantly before pulling him into a big hug. Cross froze before hugging him back, his soul pounding as he held Dream against him. The guardian reached up and softly curled his fingers into the hem of Cross’ shirt. As bad as he was supposed to be, he trusted that Cross wouldn’t hurt him right now. He was vulnerable right now.

When Cross pulled back, Dream reached his hands up to his face and gently cupped both of his cheeks in his hands. “You… like this, right?” He asked him quietly. Cross didn’t even need to respond. His eyes softened and he leaned into his touch gently. This wasn’t unprompted, he’d done this to calm Cross down before. He was afraid of betraying Nightmare by simply talking with Dream, but he didn’t think about it when he found it hard to resist his touch. For the positive guardian, it was easier to calm someone down when he was touching them. So cute! Dream thinks to himself, smiling as he rubs soft circles on his cheekbones. Cross immediately pushes his head further into Dream’s hands, bowing his head to the guardian’s chest as he let Dream take care of him like this. It reminded him of his recent interaction with Nightmare. He couldn’t help but imagine his hands instead, letting out a soft little moan of relief as Dream rubbed circles into his cheekbones again. Physical touch is his love language, but he doesn’t love dream like that.

“Uhm… Cross?” The two were both interrupted by Horror’s awkward tone. Cross immediately looked up, his face flushing a deep purple as he glanced back at Dream in fear. Horror was standing in the doorway, his face also slightly red. He sputtered and tried to string a sentence together, but Horror had already murmured that he didn’t want to know. “I-I— Sorry, I have to go.” He squeaked out to Dream and hurriedly grabbed the medical supplies. He followed Horror out of the kitchen, stiff with embarrassment. It wasn’t even something inherently bad, but it didn’t stop him from leaving like a hurt puppy with his tail tucked between his legs. By the time they left, Dream was still trying to process what had just happened. Part of him wanted Cross to come back.

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

Killer held the gift in his hands, grinning sadistically as he opened it. “This’ll show him, don’t you think?” He asked Lust, who was peering into the box with him. He shrugged. “It depends on what you’re trying to do… Is your lover-“ He yelps as he’s cut off by Killer, who’s shaking his head as he took the item back into his hands. “He’s not my lover. I’m fucking giving this to him so he can stop whining about how his love interest wouldn’t love him.” He grins, seeming proud of himself. “He’s indecisive, so this’ll work great.” Killer is confident that this will be the push he needs. Lust is now uncertain as he stares at the object. “Relationships aren’t meant to be forced— you can’t push somebody to open up faster.” He reminds Killer, who dismisses him. He gasps shortly after as he realizes how late he is. It’s sort of a theatrical gasp, but he genuinely is running late. He was so infatuated by the peaceful nature of Waterfall that he’d completely lost track of time. “I have to go.” He says without warning as he created a portal and disappears into it. Lust hadn’t even had the time to speak. “Okay—! Bye..” He mumbles to himself by the time Killer had already left.

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

When Cross exits the castle with Horror, he’s nervous as fuck. Horror hasn’t uttered a word since he’d caught Dream calming him down. He inhales, deciding to finally speak. “Horror, I—“ He scrunches up his shoulders as Horror raises a hand. He doesn’t want him to speak. “..Whatever weird dog kink you have can wait til’ later.” He sighed in his usual scratchy tone. Dog kink?? DOG KINK? The look of embarrassment on his face quickly subsides and turns into offense. He stares at Horror. “What?” He sounds mad. Horror just shrugs. “Dogs like being petted like that. Dogs whimper, too.” Petted??? Horror called THAT petting? Killer was the one that liked being pet. Cross is too tired to argue. He doesn’t say anything else after that. Neither of them do. Not until Killer appears, casually stepping out of the portal with a gift box.

“What the FUCK, KILLER.” Cross is the first to speak, his frustration boiling over into a rage as Killer stops in his tracks. Cross rarely ever gets mad if he can help it. His fingers are curled into fists and he begins to shake again. He simply just raises his fists in the air and walks off before Killer could answer. “Yo, what the fuck’s his problem?” He turns to Horror, who shrugs a little too fast to actually be clueless. Killer just shakes his head and sighs, mumbling that he had to give something to Cross before he hurries to catch up to him. Horror’s all alone now. He hadn’t been the one to find the stuff they’d needed, but he did find something that was of around one hundred times more in value. It was worth that much to him, at least. It was originally his, after all. He was just taking back what had been stolen from him. Maybe that was why Ink could be seen in the distance. He didn’t know, he wasn’t that smart. What he did know, however, was that it wouldn’t be pretty if Ink found him first. His mindset has been altered to make him believe that anyone who isn’t his friend was out to get him. He decides that he wants to ambush Ink before he even knew what hit him.

Chapter Text

Swap is back in his AU and sitting on his bed. He’s had a few hours to again process the situation with Dust. He had to admit that it was super strange and not even he knew how to react to it. Dust had always been so secluded and psychotic to him, but after he saved him like that? He didn’t know. He was scouting out some presumably empty AU for Dream while he was away when all of a sudden this monster came out of nowhere. He couldn’t exactly tell what it was, but what he did recall was that it was half-melted. Swap had since assumed that he’d been seconds late to an extermination of the au, thanks to Dust. It was all odd to him. Even his interaction with Killer rubbed him the wrong way. Not that it usually didn’t, but he felt more on edge than before.

He leans backward and falls back onto his soft bed, clutching some sort of cellular device loosely to his chest. It’d only been a few weeks since everyone had evacuated the underground, so he still had to get used to this technology and, well, everything around him. It was all so exhilarating, but he often found himself overwhelmed with all of the new things. The warm sunlight filtered in through the window. One thing that he could never see himself adjusting to was the sun. Since his eyes were technically blue, it made them more sensitive to the sun’s rays. As much as he loved the sun, he didn’t appreciate it that he couldn’t stare in its direction for long.

Swap sighs and tries to get himself comfortable on his bed, though the impending feeling of danger still lingered. There was no way he could relax like this. If a threat was real, then he’d do everything in his power to prevent it from happening. Swap immediately pushes himself out of his bed, urgently getting redressed before opening his window. He contemplates jumping out of it for a moment but immediately decides against it since it wouldn’t be any good if he got injured from the jump, even though he’d land on his feet. Swap has no more second thoughts and is already halfway out of the door before he gets stopped by Papyrus’ voice. “Bro?” Papyrus calls out from the living room. Swap pauses in his tracks and walks backward to see his brother. As usual, he was sprawled out on the couch, cigarette in his hand. “Brother, what have I told you about smoking in the house?” Swap remarked sharply as he marched over to him, attempting to grab the cigarette out of his hand. Paps just sighed and sat up, murmuring that he knew. “You can do better than this, brother!” The way he said it was a little harsh, but he needed his brother to understand how much he hated the smell of cigarettes. His brother just shrugs, standing up slowly and going outside to put it out so he doesn’t make the house smell. Swap watches him go, standing still for a few moments before he follows him out the door.

“What’s up, Lil' bro?” Papyrus asks him once they’re outside. Swap scratches his head and looks around. Nobody else in the surrounding area looked on edge, so why was he? Was there really danger nearby? Paps probably wouldn’t take him seriously anyway. Even if he did, he couldn’t tell him that he thought something horrible was about to happen.

“I’m training with Alphys today!” Swap forces his posture to be perfect as he tells his brother what he is about to do. That wasn’t what he was about to do, but he didn’t want to worry him. He’d feel awful if he worried him, especially since it could just be his nerves after what had happened. Papyrus just raises a ‘brow’. “Well… alright,” He chuckles and pulls his brother into a hug, grazing his knuckles against his skull roughly in some sort of display of affection. “Oh, by the way, Underfell Paps is coming over later with his bro.” He says, but Swap can tell there’s something else in his tone as he mentions Underfell papyrus. Edge and Fell? Did they have business here or something?? He just shrugged. Besides Edge coming over to see his brother, he didn’t see why Fell would come over as well. They were friends, but not close ones. He was 90% sure that his brother and Edge had some sort of relationship that went beyond friendship, but they weren’t that open about it yet if they were.

“Well, I have to go. Bye, Paps!” Swap made it look like he was in a hurry as he waved goodbye to his brother. Papyrus knew something was up, but he didn’t care enough to pry further. It didn’t seem like he was in any danger. That was good enough for him. He took the cigarette out of his mouth and exhaled, a cloud of smog billowing out from his mouth. “Bye, bro,” Swap Paps calls out to him a few moments after he’s already left.

After inspecting the area, he’d decided that he was going to kill time by doing whatever in the human city. Well, he *was*. He’d gotten to do whatever in the general area for a mere 30 minutes before he was interrupted by a glitchy portal appearing in the middle of the alleyway he was passing through. *’Error?’* Swap tipped his head, walking towards it cautiously. It most likely was; He could recognize that portal from anywhere. Before he could even stop in front of it to further inspect it, he was ensnared with blue strings and dragged into it. The portal closed behind him once he was through and he was flung into a spiderweb-looking thing made of blue strings. When he recovered from his shock, he climbed down from the web and fell onto a beanbag that was conveniently placed underneath him. He can’t say that didn’t hurt. “Error?” Swap looked up as he held a hand to his head, meeting his all too familiar annoyed stare. Why was Error in his AU right now? Swap moved to sit on the floor beside the beanbag, crisscrossing his legs and folding his arms in front of him. If the other wanted to hang out, he usually just found him in his room or something. He asked him, the other thinking for a moment.

“I-I-I came h-here for y-y-y-your chocolate.” His glitchy voice stuttered. “K-K-Know how I u-usually go to Underfell for that?” Error didn’t wait for an answer, he just growled under his breath and continued. “S-S-So-Something bad happened t-t-there.” He told him simply, flexing his fingers and looking down at them. “Ever-y-Y-yone is evacuating. Wasn’t any chocolate in si-i-i-ight.” He cleared his throat, watching Swap’s eyes go wide with shock. Error chuckled in slight amusement, speaking again before Swap could even open his mouth. “D-Don’t-t worry, y-your-r friend is fine.” He tells him, examining his features closely. He looked displeased as he called Fell Swap’s friend, like the word left a bitter taste in his mouth. Swap ignores it and immediately begins to bombard him with questions after he finishes.

“What do you mean something bad happened there?? Do you know who did it? How bad is it??? Can I—“ Error cuts Swap off with a shake of his head. He didn’t know. He looks off to the side for a moment, seemingly thinking about what to say to soothe his concerned friend. He hadn’t expected a sudden meet-up with him right now, but he didn’t mind all that much. He just sighed and turned back to Swap again. He knew the other was just trying to help, but there wasn’t much of any use in trying. “It-It-It’ll be okay.” He reassures Swap, but the other keeps his worried face. He doesn’t seem too sure, but he wants to trust Error’s word. Error watches Swap take a deep breath and try to calm himself down for a moment. He knows that at least Fell and his Papyrus are okay since they're still coming over today. After a little while of thinking, he concludes that it was why they’d decided to come over on such short notice. Maybe… Did Papyrus know too? The thought didn’t make him feel too good inside. He tended not to tell him the bad things that were happening to protect him, but he didn’t NEED to be protected. He just sighed helplessly and settled back down onto the ground again. He noticed Error eying him curiously.

“S-S-Sit and stay a while.” He tells Swap calmly, who just nods and goes to sit on the beanbag chair that Error made for him. “Do you… think he knows?” Swap stammers a little, making Error glance back at him. Was he talking about his Papyrus? He thought for a moment. He knew without a doubt that his Papyrus knew about what happened. “…Yes.” He watches Swap’s demeanor shift a little. His shoulders droop ever so slightly and he keeps his frown. “F-F-For the record….” Error thinks again, trying to get what he wants to say out. “I think you deserved to k-k-k-know. I know the things you-you’re capable of.” He trailed off, making Swap stare at him in shock. He really thought that? Everybody else always babied him because they thought he was incapable of knowing about all of the hurt in the multiverse (and even in his own), but that’s why he’s training hard to become a royal guard. He knows that Papyrus has his doubts, but he’s so going to prove him wrong. He’ll prove them all wrong. “Thanks, Error…” He tells him quietly. All Error did was sigh. He knew Swap was strong-minded. He was just telling the truth, and a little bit of what Swap had needed to hear. He nodded a few moments later. He could still tell that what he’d told him was eating Swap alive, so he told him he could go and see his friend if he was that worried about him. Swap just shook his head, murmuring that he could stay a while longer. He believed Error when he said Fell was okay.

After around what seemed an eternity of silence, Swap spoke up. “Uh… Do you remember Dust?” He starts sheepishly, averting his gaze from Error as the other lifts his head. The look on his face didn’t look very pleased. “…C-c-Course’ I do.” He mumbles flatly, his eyelights fixating on Swap now. He watched Swap shiver as he felt his gaze on him. “Why?” He asked him, furrowing his brow as the question came out. Swap knew that Error didn’t like Fell. He hated Dust even more than he hated Fell, but he also seemed to hate everyone besides Swap and maybe Ink sometimes, but that was complicated. “W-Well….. uh…. he “saved” my life….. the other day.” Swap trails off, turning his head and leaving Error to stare at him in concern.

“Blue.” Error suddenly says firmly, making Swap turn his head quickly back around to stare at him. That nickname was something only Error called him. “Are you delusional? Dust? S-S-S-Saving your life?” He narrowed his eyes at him, strings retracting from his eyes as he hoisted himself up into the air, settling on some sort of makeshift hammock made of his strings. “He’s f-f-fucking psychotic. He didn’t save you from the kindness of h-hi-his own soul.” He sounded a little mad, and maybe even slightly jealous? It wasn’t the “love” kind of jealousy. Maybe mad wasn't the right word. “I… I know, but… I just thought I’d tell you. It’s weird. Killer took me over to Nightmare’s and, er…. was trying to get me to fess up about what happened to him, and…” He looks away. “I can’t remember everything that happened, but, um. I think he was having some sort of psychotic breakdown? He was seeing some huge and scary monster, b-but…” He shivered. He could remember it vividly now. He’d been talking to some AU’s Papyrus when all of a sudden, Dust came out of nowhere and shoved him behind him. He’d killed another universe’s Papyrus in his breakdown. There was no battle before that. No fight. “He…. recognized me.” Swap just shrugs helplessly, gazing ahead at the endless void around them.

“That’s more…. be-believable.” Error murmured before suddenly getting up. “You-Your friend…. should be arriving soon.” The glitch looks at an imaginary watch before opening up another portal in Swap’s universe. “If you g-go now, you should be able to catch him right when he comes i-in.” Swap gave him a curious look, but nodded anyway. He didn’t want to doubt one of his only real friends. He pushed himself to his feet and waved goodbye to Error before exiting the portal, it closing up behind him. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone to check the time since, inconveniently, it didn’t work there. Stars, it was two hours later! He’d forgotten that time was different in the anti-void. Exiting the alleyway, he saw Queen Toriel and a few other officials in the distance standing around a portal with a few curious onlookers already beginning to crowd around them. Error was right. Maybe if he hurried he’d be able to greet Fell and his brother when they come through.