~Y/n's POV~

I had fallen asleep a little while after Ink, my thoughts were still plagued with so many questions. I couldn't help myself even if I knew I was going to get answers. I thought I would be so much calmer now that I'm back home but I'm still just so worried about everything.

But I had eventually calmed down enough to fall into a blissful sleep. Well- what I was hoping to be blissful.

It was incredibly dark out here, but light enough for me to see that I was on an empty path surrounded by lines of dead trees on either side. It vaguely reminded me of outside the RUINS, just without any of the bright snow. It was just dark dirt and flecks of dried grass under my feet. If it was nighttime, there were no stars or moon out. The sky was just a VOID and the trees looked like they extended infinitely.

"Night?" I cried out into the silence. This was a setup to a nightmare to be sure, but what I didn't know was if this was one Nightmare caused. It was rare for me to be lucid while I slept. There were several beats of silence which made my hair raise. It was unnerving out here... As soon as I was feeling fear start to sink in, I heard something behind me.

I had a second to react but I couldn't move, like my feet had been glued to the path. All I could do was turn around and see... nothing. My shoulders tensed even more as I tried to will myself to move. I let out a small scream as I felt something abruptly tap my shoulder.

I whipped back around to see a sheepish Night rubbing the back of his neck, one eye socket squeezed shut like he was prepared for me to slap him out of instinct. All I did was let out a sigh of relief, and he untensed as well. "Sorry about that, you know how it is." He apologized quietly, now shifting to rub his arm nervously.

"I'm just happy to see you, Night. Where were you at dinner?" I asked as I put a hand to my heart to make it settle down faster.

"...I needed a bit of time to think on my own." He answered vaguely as he looked to the ground. He was acting a bit off, usually he didn't have too much trouble making eye contact with me. He perked back up as a thought seemed to cross his mind, "But! I need to finally congratulate you on your pregnancy!"

"Aw, thanks Night. Wait- how did you know? I've only told Ink, and I guess Blade as well." I decided to omit that Cross knew as well.

"I knew ever since you were a few days in Cross' captivity. Part of my abilities is to be able to sense certain people's emotions, even from far away. It all ties back to their SOUL. So I was able to sense there was another being with developing emotions within your SOUL." He explained as carefully as he could.

"Ink seemed surprised when I told him, you didn't tell anyone?"

"That's not my decision to make. It wouldn't of been right of me to take that from you." 

I pulled Night straight into a hug, catching him slightly off-guard. He sunk into it quickly though, hugging me back tightly. I knew he must've missed me almost as much as Ink. After a tiny bit, I let go of him with a smile. "Thank you."

"Of course. All I told them was that you were doing alright and weren't being harmed. It's been about as much as I could do to help..." Night was looking back towards the ground with a solemn expression.

"What's that meant to mean? I'm sure you helped out a lot, it couldn't of been easy." I put a hand on his shoulder to try and lift his spirits a bit.

"I've been... remembering. So, so many things. Ever since I laid eyes on Cross again I..." Night shook his head violently like that would clear his thoughts away. "I can't think straight anymore."

My eyebrows furrowed with concern, "Night... whatever you're remembering, it's all going to be alright. Like I've told you so many times, you aren't that person-"

"I know." He interrupted me, putting a finger over my mouth to silence me, taking a deep breath to collect himself. "I know that I'm not Nightmare anymore. But... fuck-" He put both of his hands over his skull and took a few steps away from me. Night barely ever swears, this was something that must really be bothering him.

I decided not to push him, if he wanted to tell me then he would. He took a few more calming breaths before looking back up at me, "I-I'm not sure if his emotions are still affecting me or something but..." Night was choking on his words, starting what he was going to say, then failing to make his voice work.

I took a small step towards him and put both my hands on his shoulders this time. He let me pull him gently to the ground so we could sit down across from each other. "It's alright, Night. You don't have to say if you're not ready."

He gave a small sigh, of which kind I wasn't sure of. "Thank you. It's just... hard to say. I should probably figure it out some more anyway."

"I completely understand." In a split second, I remembered I had to tell Night something. "Well, um, if you don't mind me talking about Cross... he wanted me to tell you something."

Night went rigid and his eyes went wide, but he nodded his head (was that eagerness?). "Right before he left, when Ink had found me, he told me to tell you: I miss the... M-Mal... Mal..." I was forgetting what he told me and was hitting myself in the head for it.

"The Malus?" Night's voice was quiet as he asked.

"YES!" I cleared my throat to mask that overexcited-ness, "Yes, that was it. Do you know what it means then?"

"I... do." Night put a hand over his mouth as he processed what I said, "I have to go."

"What? What does it mea-"

---

I woke up abruptly. The sudden burst of light from the room made my eyes squint as I tried to remember what exactly was happening. A small snore from underneath me brought me back to my senses.

Ink's skull was cradled in my arms, pressing him against my chest. I remembered that this was how we had fallen asleep and it brought a smile to my face to see him look so peaceful. I pet his skull for a little bit, feeling his body relax even more against me.

A silent sigh left my lips as I thought back to Night. Whatever Malus was, it was important to him. He would never leave like that unless it was. Maybe I could ask someone else if they knew what it meant.

I felt the figure under me stir as his eyes fluttered open, only to see that he was facing right into my bosom. Signature rainbow crossed his face as he looked up at me without moving, "M-Morning sunshine."

"Sunshine? That's new." I teased him as I continued to pet his skull. My heart was feeling nothing but adoration for this skeleton.

"Wanted to spice it up, keep you on your toes." He snuggled further into me and shut his eyes, forever content just staying close to me. He had to still be tired even after getting that well deserved sleep.

"Well this sunshine is craving some sunny side up eggs so I'm gonna have to ask you to move, my knight in shining scarf." 

"Five more minutes."

~~~

~Night's POV~

The Malus... how it's changed.

(Sorry for the shorter chapter and the non-stop dialogue! Conversations are the easiest for me to write despite me being terrible at them in real life)