⚠️iMpOrTaNt⚠️

Aha so I know I've made these warnings before where I go off on holiday and say tHeRe MiGhT bE nO sErViCe and there always is, well like this time there might not be Jdhzhsjsjxhsjsj. I'm going on some trip and every time I've gone to similar things like this, the camps never have service. Like never. There could be a chance this time, but I'm not sure.

So like seriously, if there's no updates for a week then u h, sit tight :'D

Also I just fainted watching my cat get an injection lmao--

Okie that's all sorry

❤️💜And 24k one more to my goal ahahahah💜❤️

Nightmare pushed apart bushes and branches, panting heavily as he ran. No one was following him, he was sure of that. But he still felt the need to run.

He'd left Dream crouched over Killer's dying body in the arena, physically unable to shoot his brother. He felt weak for it, having been so confident before that he'd kill him without an ounce of hesitation. But now he'd seen that he was stupid thinking such a thing.

A sudden cannon shot rang out and Nightmare winced, pausing at the sound of his Brother's frustrated scream. So Killer was dead. He knew that for sure now. Only six Tributes left... Four to kill.

Those were really nice odds.

He hoped that Reaper would go out for revenge and Kill Dust. And maybe if he was lucky, Dust or Reaper would kill Finn as well. Then there's only be Dream and Reaper left alive. Yes, those were the two Tributes he'd been worried about from the start and potentially the strongest ones left excluding himself. But with Cross back up to strength and by his side they could have a really good chance of winning.

Pushing on through the bracken, his mind started wandered to Cross and started forming panicked scenarios of him nearly reaching the cave only to hear a cannon shot sound. He'd have been late, and all because he fussed around with Dream for too long. If he'd just ran a little faster, or just left their District bag and ran without that faffle of dropping it etc.

And then as if summoned from his thoughts, a sound rang out that made Nightmare's blood turn cold. A cannon shot.

"Cross?!" He started sprinting, tripping and tumbling over brambles and ferns and his arms getting scratched to hell as he batted all the leafy obstacles out of his way. His breaths came out in harsh jagged pants and he found he couldn't swallow, his throat too dry.

He stumbled through the ashy remains of the forest in record time, his ankles got burnt to death by all the hot ash and coals but he couldn't care less, his soul thundering in his chest faster than the time he'd decided to be an absolute retard and kiss the poor boy.

Leaping over a fallen tree he nearly snapped his bloody wrist, slamming it into a branch and sending bolts of pain all through his body. He clenched his teeth together tightly, a loud hiss of pain resulting as he forced himself to keep going.

After what felt like an eternity, the silhouette of the cave and river came into view and Nightmare slowed to a jog, not wanting to trip and fuck everything up by snapping a neck or some cliché horror movie shit.

Ducking under the vines, he dropped to the floor of the cave and fell unceremoniously in a crumpled heap as his tired legs gave out beneath him. God that hurt.

"Cross?!" He whipped round to face where the he'd left the smol, his breaths coming out in panicked wheezes.

Cross was still curled up limply in the corner, the sleeping bag pulled up over his shoulders and his face contorted in pain. He was slumped over, looking like he wasn't breathing.

Nightmare dragged himself over to him, still panting heavily for breath as he shook the sleeping teen.

Much to his immense relief, a startled gasp escaped Cross and his eyes flashed open, wide and panicked. "N-Nightmare?!"

"Oh thank god." He sunk to the floor in relief, ignoring the smaller's questions. He slung the bag off over his shoulder and let it drop to the floor with a dull thump. "You have no idea how difficult that was."

Cross stared at him in confusion before his fuzzy vision rested on the bag and he gasped once more. "Nightmare! You w-went to the centre?!"

"Yeah." He let out a dry laugh, nodding and pulling it open roughly.

"Y-You promised you wouldn't go!" He cried, looking in concern at all the dirt and blood covering his partner.

"Yeah well I went anyway. And look, you didn't die so it's a win-win situation here." He raised a brow, pulling out a small syringe with some sort of translucent grey liquid in it and a scarily long needle.

Upon seeing it Cross immediately tried to scramble backwards, grunting in distress as he failed to kick his legs out of the sleeping bag. "K-Keep that away from me!"

Nightmare ignored him, gently pressing his fingertip on the point and humming. "Come here, it's your medicine."

"Wh-What if it's poison?!" Cross hissed, finally managing to fling the sleeping bag off of him and across the cave floor.

"I seriously doubt that we desperately need poison, Cross." He sighed and shook his head, standing and walking over to him.

The teen seemed to panic, his shaking pupils fixated on the long and shining needle. "I-I don't want it!"

"Bullshit. Don't be stupid Cross it'll be quick, I promise."

"Because your promises mean a lot to me right now, don't they?" He coughed, a choked gagging sound forcing its way up his throat.

Nightmare stepped closer until Cross was backed up into the corner of the cave, shaking and retching up air. "Calm down Cross, it will only hurt a little, okay?" He slowly crouched down next to the trembling smol, a hand reaching out to rub his knee softly.

"It's okay..." He whispered, easing himself down next to him. "It'll be quick and painless, and then this nasty fever will be gone and you won't die."

Cross weakly tried to make a break for it, but failed miserably as Nightmare's tentacles kept him in place. "I-I don't like needles..."

"I've realised." He rolled his eye. "But just look away and then you won't even realise it's happening, okay?"

He sniffed weakly but nodded, forcing himself to relax and not tense as Nightmare wrapped a tentacle around his waist. He let Nightmare tip his head gently to the side so that he wasn't facing him, his breathing weak and shallow. The fact that Nightmare had gone and left him alone in the cave terrified him. Either one of them could have died easily. It made his stomach churn at the thought.

The octopus rubbed his shoulders softly with his tentacles, his other hands preparing the syringe. He pressed the tip of the needle against Cross' neck, feeling the terrified smaller tense up massively in response.

"Relax..." He muttered, using one hand to rub small circles on his cheek. Cross leaned into his touch slightly, but still as tense as steel. His hands were trembling as Nightmare dropped his hand down from his cheek to curl his fingers around the smaller's and squeeze it reassuringly.

He couldn't help the muted whimper of pain that escaped him as the needle was pushed in as far as it could go, the liquid inside quickly being injected into him.

Nightmare hummed and pulled the needle out slowly, making sure every drop of liquid was used. "There we go. That wasn't so bad now, was it?"

Cross trembled and nodded his finger's digging into the palms of his partner's hand. He didn't verbally answer, his free hand slowly reaching up to feel the little bump left on his neck.

He didn't protest as Nightmare pulled him into his lap, simply letting his body slump against his chest and chin rest on his covered sternum. He made no response as Nightmare wrapped his arms around the smol and pulled him close, his tentacles pulling the unzipped sleeping bag around them loosely. "You okay...?"

Cross stared down at his chest dully, his fingers tracing the shape of Nightmare's ribs though his shirt and hoodie. He stared down at him and sighed, his hand rubbing soft circles on his skull. "We're gonna be okay Cross, Alright?"

Giving a small nod, Cross sunk into his embrace, docile. He didn't seem in the mood for talking, so Nightmare didn't make him.

He just needed to rest.

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Crossmare reunited uwu

And who do you think the cannon shot was for?

Ffffffind out in tomorrow's chapter :DDDD

Sadly we're getting close to the end now but Imma do some things at the end with unseen bits and stuff that I never got round to writing :'D

Oh well some floof next chapter hopefully

-Jess-