Light filled your vision.
It stretched and twisted around your eyes, and the screams faded away. You were floating, drifting through time and space. Even though your thoughts were out of your head, you could still hear a few voices.
A warm, buttery feeling rose in your chest. The light intensified, and you could hear slightly muted voices.
"Are they OK?"
"Calm down. (Y/N)'s going to be just fine."
"Hey, I think they're waking up."
The light became a chorus of fireflies. They fluttered over your eyes, and you tried to bat them away in vain.
"(Y/N)? Can you hear me?"
There was that voice again. That light, feathery voice that made your face catch fire...
You groaned, rubbing the fireflies away. Your body ached, and your mind was a muddle of thoughts and dreams and strange voices. As the light slowly but surely faded to a reasonable point, you noticed that you were back in the... Sanctuary. That was a good name for it. This room in particular had the same arched ceilings, but was longer than any other room. Light filled the room through a medium layer of leaves. There were multiple beds, some with a monster, human, or hybrid design upon their sheets. You yourself were on a bed, resting. You attempted to sit up.
Big mistake.
You immediately collapsed in pain, your middle area stinging. Dream was suddenly over you, his gloved hands resting lightly over your stomach. You had to remind yourself to breathe.
"Take it easy, (Y/N)," Ink called from across the room. His voice wasn't completely flat, but not exactly bright either. Angry? "The Darkness really did a number on you. You passed out as soon as the stuff touched you. Well, impaled you, actually—"
"IMPALED!?" You shouted, immediately yanking Dream's hands away to see for yourself. And lo and behold, there was a huge scar right above your stomach. Although it was pink and white, already healed, yup wanted to throw up.
"(Y/N), please," Dream whispered. His eyes were shining and dim, and shadowed slightly with regret. "You're already hurt. I don't want you to get hurt any more than you already are."
You couldn't help but lay back down and smile. So he does care about me. "Fortunately, all Darkness is naturally repelled by light. I think that that will be our first lesson: learning how to use light."
Dream smiled softly at you, and you felt your heart flutter. "But for now, you must rest. Ink, Blue, and I have to check up on the universe. Just to make sure that it's still sa-fe."
His eyes were beginning to water as his voice cracked. The light filtering into the room seemed to dim significantly, and the calm aura that hung around you lifted to show hopelessness. Ink bowed his head slightly, eyes turning to blue droplets. Blueberry, from his corner in the room, sighed deeply.
Even though you didn't see it happen, you could feel it in their actions.
Birdtale was no more.
You closed your eyes and exhaled hard. Although you had only known it for mere minutes, you were sure it was a wonderful world. Just thinking of people flying freely around after they were released, free as birds, made you... melancholy.
Suddenly and unexpectedly, you were pulled into a hug. The smell of (F/F) filled your senses, and you felt warm and safe. The weight of the situation crashed down on you. Wrapping your arms around Dream, you let a few tears slip from your eyes.
He ran a hand through your hair, and you froze. He stopped, feeling your mood shift. Although awkward, you felt too tense now to say that it made you feel... nice. The room was quiet as you all sat there, mourning your loss.
After about a minute more, Ink stood. His beige scarf brushed the floor as he crossed the room and snatched a vial of yellow happiness. Shooting Dream an apologetic look, he glided out of the door.
Blueberry fiddled with his scarf, swallowed hard, and got up. "I-I better go check on Paps," he whispered. You were still buried in Dream's chest. "He's probably worried about me. I'll be in Underswap until you need me!"
Even though his voice sounded happy, you could tell he was straining to stay positive. With a whoosh, the little skeleton vanished.
It was just you, Dream, and the other survivors.
Although you weren't crying anymore, you didn't let go of the golden skeleton. He didn't let go of you either, nor did he make a move to push you away. It was nice, just being in each other's company.
After a few more moments of embracing, you started to feel awkward. Dream noticed immediately, letting you go. You pulled on the sleeves of your sweater, face flaring.
"...Can we talk, (Y/N)?" He murmured without moving from his spot. "Alone?"
It didn't take long for you to agree. He breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Try not to get sick, alright?"
Dream gently grasped your hand, and you were gone. The feeling of teleportation was still slightly nauseating, but you pulled through. The two of you were now in a wide, open room. A bed was placed in between two branches, the sheets fluffy and golden. The rest of the room was mostly blank other than a small bookshelf and a long window. It showed a huge, endless space full of floating papers. I'll just ask him about that later.
Dream sat down on the bed and put his skull in his hands. You stood there, looking down at your shoes. The silence wasn't awkward, but not exactly comfortable either. The natural positive energy that usually radiated from Dream had shrunk to a thin cover on his bones. The buttery sunshine had turned dreary, like the sun was disappearing behind a thick cloud.
The guardian took a shaky breath before finally speaking. "...I can't believe it. I... I failed. I failed... again."
You could only stand in silence. "I failed them. I failed Birdtale. If only I had gotten there sooner. If only I had just payed a little closer attention—and now it's gone. All of that creator's hard work, gone, slipped through my fingers..."
His voice was small and weak. You strained to hear it, although each uttering cut to your very SOUL. Dream lifted his gaze to meet your eyes. His gold pupils were small and dim, with golden liquid edging around the bottom. There were darkish streaks leading from his eyes to his chin.
Something in your chest twinged. Guilt? Empathy?
"I'm sorry you had to see that, (Y/N). All of that carnage. This is what I meant when—when I said that this was dangerous. You'd be risking everything, and I don't want to lose another—"
His head fell back into his shaking hands. Your fingers twirled a stray string as you contemplated what to do. Then you knew.
Your arms wrapped around Dream. He jumped a little, but his shaking slowed significantly. Yellow tears spilled over his cheek bones, and he hugged you back. You inched to the side until you were on the bed too, holding him. The two of you simply say there, hugging. Being friends.
You weren't stupid: you knew that he had seen this before. But where, you had no clue. Whatever it was, he never wanted it to happen again. And that's why he felt like he failed.
Suddenly, you remembered that you had yet to learn a defense lesson from Dream. That can wait until tomorrow, you thought. Dismissing the suggestion, you rested your chin on his head/shoulder (A.N. Depending on your height, you can rest your chin on his head or shoulder).
Sighing, you let the dim light warm your face. Not that your face needed any more warming—it was already burning up.
Yeah.
Lessons could wait.
:):
This... This is true.
Surprisingly.
But it's actually really good! The new season, I mean.
At least I'm spending some time on the book..?
As your concern, I am in full power to say that you have a problem.
V—Hey! Don't say that! They're trying their best!
This is true.
That's—! I just said that—!
Doesn't mean I can't say it too, sweetheart.
Is it always me that must break up these fights?
I guess so.