[FGOD Error Sans] - Nature vs Nurture

The Star Sanses (Point of No Return)

Ink didn't know what to do with Dream at first.

Getting him out of the stone was not the difficult part, after a couple of years the little boy was walking out again, the evidence that Dream had also eaten Apples was clear as he saw how his eyes had changed from a simple white to gold, which gave him even more reasons to keep him away from Nightmare even without his promise to him.

The difficult part was convincing him that Nightmare truly wanted nothing to do with him.

"The abuse, the insults, all the hurt he endured because I was too blind to see... and yet he ate those apples to protect me when the villagers turned that abuse on me..." And it took everything in Ink not to break down and tell the truth in the face of how broken the boy sounded as he said this. "And you want me to believe that he wants nothing to do with me now?!"

Ink hated lying, but the truth wouldn't make Dream give up, it was clear that what happened in his Universe weighed heavily on both brothers, one was convinced that staying away was the best and the other only wanted to be together, both wanted the other to be happy.

It hurt to see how desperate Dream was to see his twin again, he could see the resentment starting to grow every day that Ink insisted that Nightmare didn't want to see him, that he hated him now, the words felt like ash in his mouth.

It seemed like the sound of crying had become the norm in his home, the silence always interrupted by it.

And then there was Erimos.

...The outcome of their first meeting after the whole incident only made him feel like even more trash.

It would have been simpler if Erimos had screamed, attacked him, anything but staring at him with such betrayal and just asking him "Why?" And everything that came out of his mouth afterward felt like an excuse, like a lie.

He knew exactly what Dreamtale's existence would look like to him, no matter the changes, the essence was the same.

(And yet, he didn't mention the other universes 'inspired' by his helpers, universes that for Erimos were just normal AUs, the words dying in his mouth before he could get them out.)

None of this was supposed to happen, Dreamtale and its inhabitants were never supposed to interact with the Multiverse, he didn't create them for that, Dream and Nightmare were never supposed to 'ascend' like Erimos and Chroma's helpers had done.

But they had, and now everyone involved was hurt in one way or another, and it was all Ink's fault because instead of focusing on helping Erimos he had believed that making copies of his loved ones would make him feel... feel how? At home?

As much as Ink wanted to, this was not Erimos' home, not yet, he had done too much too fast, and his friend still loved his abusive Creator, Ink was overstepping as much as he wanted to help.

The meeting ended with him vomiting ink from the accumulation of so many emotions and thoughts, and it felt like at the end it was Erimos comforting him instead of the other way around, his friend had been the one hurt in all this, not Ink!

And nothing seemed to improve after that.

Now his time was divided between Dream and Erimos, when a month had passed was when Ink noticed the growing resentment and couldn't help but tell his dilemma to the older one.

"Why not tell the truth? Even if he doesn't stop his attempts at contact in the future, it could put them on hold for a while, surely Dream would understand that Nightmare needs time away, an event like this leaves marks."

"That's the problem, Dream believes that the best way to heal their trauma is by being together, but Nightmare's trauma, as much as they both want to deny it, has Dream as the trigger, it's not his fault but- but you have told me how some nights end with him attacking what's closest to him with how bad his dreams can get... how do you think bringing them together would end?"