Dream had been one to contain his feelings ever since he was a child.
Being the Guardian of Positivity, it was a heavy burden. He had to deal with Ink's antics on a constant basis, fixing everyone's problems that were originally started by his brother.
Or well, what remained of his brother. The leader of a notorious gang of sanses- Nightmare.
That stupid octopus. Tainting his brother's name by adding that damned 'mare' at the end.
It was as if it was yesterday. After biting the Apple right down to it's core, Dream could recall the sensation of being on the brink of death before being petrified into a stone statue- forced to slumber for four hundred years.
His slightly stunted growth, his somewhat pitched voice... all the signs of how his body stopped aging during his pettrificafion.
His poor, sweet brother. That goopy parasite stuck in the body of a child that it had killed.
Sometimes Dream wondered why Night never had talked to him about the bullies. Was he intimidated? In fear? Dream would never know.
His sweet, poor brother. Always carrying a book and staring off into the distance. How had he never noticed before?
Right. He was too busy being a people pleaser. Too busy putting the needs of others above family, or himself.
...
Dreamtale, it used to be an AU centered around two sanses. Those two sanses were twin brothers birthed by the Tree of Feelings, meant to bring order within one's emotional turmoil.
It wasn't all peaceful on the surface.
"Night, what's wrong?" Dream asked, voice losing it's pitch as he saw his brother crying by the Tree of Feelings. Their mother, the sacred being of the land.
Night turned over to Dream, the clear tears falling down his face and onto the fabric of his clothes or onto the vibrant green grass below the pair.
"It's nothin', Dream." Night rubbed his sockets with the cuff of his shirt, turning his skull away to hide his shame. Dream heard the way his voice had cracked. It was that small moment of vulnerability showing.
"... Brother, you know you can talk to me, right?" Dream asked, sitting next to his twin and leaning against his shoulder.
He never got an answer.
"Tell me about the book you're reading again. I liked it. I wanna hear more." Dream mumbled, deciding to change the subject as he felt the negativity forming deep in his soul.
"Ah... right. It's nice you enjoyed it." Night picked up the book next to him, letting it hit his lap as he opened the page he had book marked and explained the day away.
Dream couldn't pay attention- his soul half-there as he focused on his brother.
"... You never tell me anything." Dream muttered under his breath.
He knew his brother heard. He had a knack for hearing things directed at him. But he knew Night would never have the gall to tell him he heard.
All he could do was rest his skull on his shoulder, letting his mind wander and drift along a nonexistent current.
...
Dream couldn't do anything back then.
But now he can. For Night, at least. It was the least he could do to atone for his sins. His neglectful ways.
"The sans who would people please is no more!"
Dream wanted to tell himself that. It didn't help that he was still friends with Ink. Actually... not even friends. More like colleges who listened to the other's problems. The only difference, however, is that Dream would actually listen while Ink would space out.
Thankfully, Outertale was a sure-fire way to get rid of Ink for a bit. A place to ponder and think about posibilities! It was the perfect escape.
Deep blue shimmers, stars, endless galaxies waiting to be touched and bottled with bated breath.
Outertale was such a beauty.
Thankfully, Outer Sans had no problems letting Dream stay for extended periods of time, as long as he wasn't seen, of course.
It was reasonable, after all. Logical, even. If those other alternate universes collided... Dream wouldn't know what would happen then. Destruction.
Something Ink would say Error constantly would yell about. But Dream wasn't stupid- he knew better on why Error wanted that destruction so bad...!
Dream let out a harsh sigh as he let himself fall back against the dark, wooden bench. It made a quiet creek, the stars from above looking like quiet suggestions.
Dream wished he was a star, bright and beautiful. Not at all pure, but they had no worries except their impending death that was prolonged by millions upon billions of years. Actually- if you word it like that, Dream technically is a star.
One day, he'd burn out like that too.
Dream let his sockets close, feeling the familiar weight in his ribcage settle onto him. If he could describe it, the sensation was like someone putting an anvil atop his soul.
"Star shine? What's got you so down?~"
Dream flinched, quickly shooting up from his position and hitting his skull with... someone else's...?!
Dream groaned, moving off the bench and taking steps back.
"Wow, star shine... you're really hard headed, huh?" The voice asked, teasing and flirtatious. But also somehow menacing.
Dream opened one of his sockets, seeing a figure. His vision slowly cleared, and he swore he felt his stomach tie in knots.
Adorned in a faded blue and white jacket, with fur lining the hood. Underneath, a black turtle neck and black shorts with a single stripe on the side. The knife sheath on his leg, the glowing red and white target symbol above his chest...
"Killer... What the hell are you doing here?!" Dream yelled, summoning forth his spear into his right hand as he finally composed himself despite the pounding in his skull.
"C'mon, dream boat. You seriously don't know why?" Killer asked, holding that familiar knife in his hand. A signature, and his trademark as a sans. Then, he lifts up his arm and points the blade accusingly.
"I heard... a little birdie lost something special." Killer laughed, those tears condensed of HATE leaving those stains on his cheeks as they fell onto the grass below.
"You were spying, weren't you?" Dream scoffed, knowing the answer just from that earlier sentence alone. He held his spear up, a blue light engulfing it and transforming it into a bow.
Killer kept laughing, him knowing Dream already reached his conclusion. "Yeah, I was." Killer finally managed to say, his laughter dying down into giggles. "So what? I can't disobey the boss." Killer straighened himself up, standing straight and tugging his jacket into place.
His soul swirled, that same giggly laugh coming through from that damned spirt at his side.
"Nightmare, huh? Just trying to get in the way again?" Dream summoned an arrow, lifting up his bow and setting the arrow in place before pulling back the string.
"Hah? No, boss wouldn't dare stoop to your level, or so he says." Killer glanced over his shoulder, the stars shining bright above them.
"Hey! What the hell are you two trying to start in my AU?!" A voice- and Outer appeared. "Dream, stop, Killer had my permission." Outer leaped off the nearby lamppost, slowly landing next to Dream and using both his hands to push down his bow.
The arrow slipped, landing in the grass an inch in front of Dream's foot.
"Why? You don't know what he's trying to start!" Dream protested, staring at Outer like he grew a second skull and six new appendages.
Outer's voice dropped to a quiet whisper, glancing at Killer a moment before turning his gaze back to Dream. "He said he wanted to talk to you to negotiate a deal, I had no reason to refuse him." Outer explained, then letting go of Dream.
Dream stood there, then sighting and letting the light from his spear disintergrate, letting his weapon leave his hands shortly after.
"Fine. Killer, hurry up and give me your damn terms." Dream was suspicious, knowing if Killer was doing this it means Nightmare was behind it.
"The boss has noticed strange things appearing in the AU's we took control over. In particular, he ordered me to deliever this to you as a symbol of our pact." Killer pulled out a piece of paper, and Dream instantly recognized it.
Killer approached, shoving the paper against Dream's chest. Dream let out a quiet wince, taking the small scrap of paper before it touched the ground.
"We have five more like them. They appeared mainly in more classic oriented AU's. That one, though... we found after visiting Horrortale." Killer explained, putting his knife in the sheath strapped on his right leg.
He put up his two hands, his left hand having his five fingers held up while the right had his single index finger held up.
"What's the connection? It's what the boss wants to know, and what he believes we can base our pact on." Killer's smile seemed to have widened, almost eerily.
"... So, a mutual goal." Dream mumbled, staring at Killer's fingers before letting out a quiet sigh. He knew it was the right idea to accept. It would broaden their search, and... it would be better to keep eyes over the thing that was his brother.
"So, if you wanna accept, you take your band of rag-tags. Or, whoever is the most important. Then, you teleport your sweet ass to Dreamtale." Killer yoinked out a formal looking scroll, tied with a black ribbon and stamped with a wax seal with a clear moon symbol on it.
"'Kay! Bye!" On cue, a portal opened. Dust was on the other side, not letting Killer get another word in by grabbing him by the collar and pulling him inside.
Dream stared at the scroll in his hand. An invitation for a mutual agreement. It was oddly intriguing.
"Fuck... Ink's gonna never shut up about this." Dream sighed, pocketing the new scrap of paper in his pocket.
In Dreamtale of all places as well...!
Dream swore he'd kill that goopy black octopus.
"Dream...? You should calm down and call Ink." Outer was being his voice of reason, and Dream pulled the glove off his right hand, powering on the watch.
"Ink... we needa talk tonight." Dream spoke into the watch, shoving the invitation into his pocket.
"Why?" Ink asked, unaware.
"... Something interesting came up." Dream stared at the small scrap in his hand, feeling his soul fill with dread.