Aconitum

Reunion

During their next game night Core was distant. It wasn't uncommon that they'd stare blankly and not pay attention to what was going on. They always won without much effort (a plus to knowing all your opponents cards). Sometimes they'd lose intentionally to make things interesting.

They didn't seem to interested in any of it though. Not helping anyone else win or even talking with them much.

"Core it's your turn," Cross gently told them. Nightmare still didn't know what to make of the man. He was friends with Dream but despite his brothers awful taste the man didn't seem half bad.

"Oh of course. Apologies," Core put down a card before zoning out again.

"Is something happening?" Nightmare asked.

"I'll tell you later in private,"

They kept putting down cards when it was their turn. The table remained silent around them for quite some time. Their usual banter gone until Horror tried to lighten the mood.

"And just like that I'm going to win," he set down his card, "take that, un-"

"Uno." Killer interrupted with a shit eating grin.

"I was about to win too," Horror pouted.

"Shouldn't have bragged," Cross said, "your hubris was your downfall."

"Shut up Cross," Killer said in a vaguely threatening way

"Shutting up," Killer and Horror burst out laughing.

"Don't bully him," Dust chastised

"Shut up Dust."

"That doesn't work when your as threatening as a kitten Killer." Dust put a red card down, "Uno."

"Core quick, what color does he have?" Cross looked hopefully at his friend.

"I'm not helping you cheat Cross." They took their turn, no where near winning.

"You're cringe." Killer said as he leaned over to try to peak at Dusts card.

"Stop cheating dude!" Dust held the card to his chest.

"Come on Dust, just a little peak?"

"Stars no!" Dust kept it to his chest until his turn. Turns out he had a wild plus four, perfect to screw Cross over one more time before the game was officially over. Horror came in second place with 2 cards left (Core had gotten him with a plus two chain that Nightmare had started after the "imma win" incident).

They were counting who had gotten third when Core dragged him outside. They couldn't literally drag him, obviously. He was a grown man and they were like 12. They did grab his and and pull him out very aggressively, and all the way to the creek as well.

"Is something amiss?" Nightmare questioned them once they seemed content with where they were.

"I'm sure you've sense it, but Ink is back." Nightmare heart flip flopped. He had felt the return but he had chopped it up to wishful thinking.

"Night... I can see it all over your face, please don't get your hopes up to high," Core nearly sounded like an adult. Nightmare ruffled their hair, "You'll only hurt yourself."

"I know he probably won't- but Dust and Killer remember things through every reset. Maybe Ink's the same." Core shook their head.

"I don't think he will. If he had I'm sure he would've come here." They pulled on his sleeve to make sure he was paying full attention to them, "he would have wanted to see you first. He trusted you."

"I'll keep my expectations down." Nightmare insisted, it didn't quell Cores worries in the slightest but he couldn't do much to fix that.

"Do you want me to see him first?"

"He would have wanted to see me first, you just said that."

"It's not fair to use my own argument against me," Core joked as Nightmare turned to leave.

"Wait- Night." He turned back, Core looked like they had something to say but they stopped themself, "be safe"

"I will," Nightmare followed his magic to Ink. To his best friend.

He was absorbed in a sketch he was making. Drawing the landscape ahead of him, with the angle he sat at the for ground of the drawing would be trees leading to a lovely image of  a cliff falling off into a sunset. Bright oranges and purples overtaking the picture. At least that's what Nightmare knew it would look like when done, for now all he could see was pencil outlines of trees with no shading.

It was like walking into a warm room. That's what seeing Ink again was. Something familiar and friendly that would never get old.

"Ink?" Nightmare startled him into dropping his pencil.

"Dude! You can't just startle me like that. I know you got to unload your whole thing on me, but I do have things I'm doing." He gestured to his sketchbook and then looked at Nightmare accusatorially. Then his face softened.

For a second Nightmare was filled with hope. Maybe Ink recognized him after all.

"Sorry. Thought you were someone else I ran into today." He picked up his pencil and put it on his sketchbook, "so who would you be?"

"I'm Nightmare," he responded flatly.

"Oh! Night! Your Dreams brother." Ink stood up, "I thought you were him at first actually. He meantioned that you guys were twins but I didn't realize how similar you guys would really look,"

Ink studied Nightmare from a distance. He hadn't bothered shifting before leaving, why would he have? Ink seemed pleased after he finally saw his true self, after the emotional stuff at least. There was also no reason to waste magic he could store instead when he was surrounded by friends before.

"It's Nightmare. Not Night."

"Okay sorry again. I just thought since Dream called you that it was what you go by."

"Only my friends can call me that."

'please say something. Anything about how you are my friend, about how you were allowed to call me that first. Only after Dream.'

"I guess that makes sense." Ink shifted his sketchbook from one had to the other, "do your powers work like your brothers?"

"I don't know how my brothers magic works."

"Oohhh. Yeah I guess that's probably a sore subject." This was no longer a warm room. It was an ice bucket to the face.

"Well I'd best be on my way. Apologies for interrupting your sketching."

"No worries!"

Nightmare left. He didn't go home, he went to outertale to calm himself. He wanted to scream. He wanted to hurt someone to feel better, but there was no one he could hurt to make it better.

Ink had mattered so much to him. Now he wouldn't shut up about Dream. It was like Dream was now in the spot that Nightmare had filled before. That's exactly what his cruel gods had wanted.

For Nightmare to gain something, Dream had to lose it,

And for Dream to gain Ink, Nightmare had to lose him.

~~~

After all these years I've finally made it to Oleander. This chapter takes place right after the very first one!