A pulse of terrifying, gut-clenching fear startles Dust awake as he falls out of bed, swinging with a knife that's not actually in his hand. He hits the floor with a grunt and lays there to get a hold of himself. The overwhelming fear has disappeared as fast as it came. A scowl covers Dust's face as soon as he's awake enough to realize what happened. It's been a long time since Nightmare has woken him up like that. To confirm his suspicion, Dust stumbles to his feet and opens the door of his bedroom to see Killer and Cross also pulling themselves into the hallway.

"Man, what do you think is so important to wake us all up with nightmares?" Dust groans. He's gotten used to sleeping in ever since their work assignments have slowed. Horror doesn't even show until ten.

"I hope we're going out. I'm sick of being in the mansion for days without anything to do," Killer grumbles. He doesn't really have anywhere to be but here. Out of all the bad guys, he's struggling the most over finding a new path. It doesn't help that his soul is so messed up.

"Must be pretty important. Nightmare usually warns us the night before if he wants us to wake up early," Cross says, fighting back a yawn. He's wearing a simple black tank top instead of his white jacket.

The three don't say much as they walk down the hallway. The mansion has much more room than their little group could ever use. The few bedrooms in use are all on the second floor of the east wing. The west side of the second floor sits empty. The first floor is made of a large living room, kitchen, dining room, and a sturdy gym for training. The two floors are connected by a staircase that splits in two halfway up. Instead of waiting for them at the mansion's entrance as usual, Nightmare is at the top of the stairs when the three walk around the corner. He looks agitated.

"Why-," Dust starts, but he's cut off almost immediately.

"I need you guys to find something," Nightmare says flatly. He's standing with his back to the group so that they can't see his expression.

"........... Care to elaborate?" Cross asks. "I mean, is there something in another AU that you're after?"

"It's somewhere in the mansion," Nightmare answers vaguely. "I already stole it from Dream late last night."

"And you lost this something?" Killer snorts.

"What is it?" Dust's curiosity gets the best of him. What could Dream have that Nightmare would want so badly?

"It's...... small. And purple. Or it might be black by now." Cross, Dust, and Killer share a confused look. Their confusion only grows when Nightmare adds the last part. "It might also change to look like you."

"Now it just sounds like you stole a walking  mirror!" Killer giggles a bit. Nightmare growls at him.

"We can find it better if you actually tell us what it is, Nightmare. If it's something embarrassing like a diary, I promise I won't read it," Cross tries. After several moments, Nightmare mutters something incomprehensible.

"Come again?" Dust sighs. Sometimes, Nightmare is the most stubborn of them all.

"............... It's a baby," Nightmare repeats, barely loud enough for them to hear.

Killer bursts out laughing. "R-Really? You'd rather us look for a baby than whatever you're trying to hide!? That's the worst lie you've ever told, but a pretty good joke!" He's barely able to get the words out between giggles. Dust snorts, starting to smile after thinking that Nightmare is playing a prank on them. Cross does not laugh. He freezes when Nightmare turns around with a glare that strangles all their souls.

"JUst fInD it!" Nightmare screams, his voice distorting in rage. The three members of the gang shout in fright and run off in different directions, dodging Nightmare's lashing tentacles.  Killer and Dust run into each other and fall to the ground before frantically scrambling away. Cross doesn't stop sprinting until he can't hear the commotion behind him. He hides in an alcove along the West hallway, bracing his hands on his knees to pant.

"Oh man, I'm out of shape," Cross sighs, "Haven't had to dodge Nightmare's wrath in a while." He chuckles a little at that last part. When Cross catches his breath, he stands up and looks around the hallway. He tries to ignore how much dust has accumulated on the floor. His own footsteps have left faint prints down the hallway. With all his free time, Cross decides that he should really try to clean up this wing of the castle. As he examines the dust, something stands out to him. There are two distinct drag marks in the dust along one wall.

With nothing better to do, Cross shrugs and follows the drag marks deeper into the West wing. This wing is hardly ever used. Who could have been in here? There are no other footsteps bedside Cross's in the dust, only drag marks. The hallway forms a big 'L' as it snakes around the second floor. When Cross turns the corner and looks up from the drag marks, he spots something moving at the end of the hall. Cross must have made some sort of sound in shock since they stop to turn and look at him. The baby skeleton looks barely a year old. He's wearing a purple onesie with bright purple eye lights to match. What freaks out Cross the most is the pair of black tendrils sprouting from the baby's back.

"Nightmare does have a baby!?" Cross shouts, a thousand questions running through his head. When he doesn't do anything else, Vestige decides to ignore him and continues crawling down the hallway. "W-Wait! Get back here!" Cross shakes off his shock and runs down the hallways after the baby. Vestige looks back and giggles with glee before quickening his pace. He thinks that this is all a game.

Cross rapidly closes the distance between himself and Vestige. The baby is crawling towards the end of the hall, and Cross smirks when he realizes that Vestige will be cornered. Vestige makes it to the end of the hall seconds before Cross catches up. Instead of stopping there, Vestige keeps crawling. He leans his weight against the grill of an air vent and squishes himself right through the gaps. Cross yelps in surprise, unable to stop himself before he slams into the wall.

"What just happened?" Cross mumbles, dazed and lying on the floor.

After falling down most of the stairs, Dust finds himself in the training room. His footsteps squeak against the polished wood floor in the large and empty space. Dust had kinda forgotten that his boss is the embodiment of darkness. Nightmare can be really scary when he wants to be. Dust still has no idea what he's supposed to be looking for, but he figures that as long as he isn't caught doing nothing, Nightmare won't be mad. So he hides before slacking off.

One corner of the gym is taken up by mats used for cushioning the floor. Dust shifts around the three stacks until he's created a tiny cave to hide in. Once he's crawled inside, Dust promptly pulls out his phone and starts to play some mindless game he downloaded. Dust will be able to hear anyone walking across the gym floor, and he plans to knock over the mats and claim he was looking behind them.

Dust taps at his phone for the next ten minutes. His boredom is barely being kept at bay. He sighs loudly in exasperation, but freezes when he hears a small sound. Dust hurriedly turns off his phone and almost collapses the fort. He stops after realizing what he's hearing isn't footsteps. It doesn't even sound like it's coming from the right direction. Dust pokes his head out, but sees no one. He crawls out of the fort and looks around, trying to find out where the noise is coming from. He jerks his head up after a particularly loud bang. Something is in the ceiling.

The faint shuffling and banging sounds start from above one wall but slowly move across the room. Dust walks underneath and follows the noises as his curiosity grows. Are their rats in the walls? Dust wouldn't be surprised. The noises fall silent in the middle of the ceiling. A large vent is placed there to cool the room. Dust hears the metal groan, and jumps out of the way just in time for the loose grate to crash to the ground. The sound echoes in the gym. Dust growls, annoyed now that he almost got crushed. He can hear whatever is in the vent make a small noise and scoot away from the opening. Without thinking, Dust lashes out and grabs it by the soul with his blue magic. The small creature is yanked forward and falls right out of the vent. Dust would be happy to let some rat or raccoon splatter on the floor. By the time that he realizes something is off, black splatter hits his cheek from the impact. Black goop is scattered all across the gym. Familiar black goop.

"........ Fuck," Dust mumbles. Didn't Nightmare say something about a baby? That was just a joke, right? Nightmare couldn't possibly have a kid.......

"Dust? I heard something fall-" Killer freezes in the doorways when he walks in on that looks like a murder scene.

"I didn't do it," Dust says in a dead tone.

Before Killer can reply, Dust shivers as he feels something on him move. The drops of goo on his face squirm and then jump to the floor. The splatter farthest from the main pile also start to writhe and move towards the main mass. Dust swears loudly and sprints to hide behind Killer in the doorway. The black goo converges together as a black mass forms and solidifies itself. The black pigmentation lightens into color. In less than a minute, Dust and Killer are staring at a wide-eyed baby in a purple noise with two black tentacles.

Vestige looks around the room, a soft wine starting to build up in his throat. He hiccups, tears beginning to run down his face. He's scared and confused about what just happened. Vestige is rather quiet when he's crying. He's almost scared to be heard.

"What is that? I think I just saw it die!" Dust gasps.

Killer stares for another minute before replying. "I think we found Nightmare's thingy. I want to touch it......."

During the two's exchange, Vestige has still been quietly sobbing in the middle of the gym. Neither of them have any common sense when it comes to kids. Vestige abruptly looks up and pauses his crying. He's staring right at Killer and Dust. No, behind them. The two adult monsters stiffen, slowly turning around. One bright cyan eyelight bores into them from the shadowy hallway.

"I didn't do it," Dust squeaks out again.

Nightmare had sensed Cross's surprise from the West wing, so he teleported there, only to find Cross slumped against a wall with his face almost smashed into an air vent. It took some time to get anything useful out of Cross. Nightmare felt Dust's panic moments after. Nightmare slackens his tentacles and drops Cross at Killer's feet.

Vestige wines when he sees his dad. Still with tears sliding down his face, Vestige falls onto his hands and knees before starting to crawl across the floor. Nightmare completely ignores the three members of his gang and walks farther into the gym. He uses one tentacle to grab Vestige before lifting him up into the air.

"So you really do have a baby?" Killer asks. "How did that happen?"

"Ink brought my severed limb to life. Idiot Creator," Nightmare hisses. On the outside, he seems cold and oddly detached from the situation. It's a mask that Nightmare has learned to use. Underneath his glower, Nightmare has no fucking idea what to say to his boys. Why did he even want to take Vestige in the first place? What is he supposed to do with a tiny monster that can't follow commands or even look after itself?

"Um, B-Boss?" Cross grabs Nightmare's attention and shakily points at Vestige. Nightmare turns his head to look only to see his kid melting onto the floor. Vestige's body darkens as it falls apart and hits the floor. He reforms almost immediately and crawls to Nightmare's feet, still seeking comfort.

"Are babies supposed to do that?" Dust mumbles.

"He didn't do that yesterday," Nightmare says, his frown deepening. None of them notice the strange collar that's skittered halfway across the gym from Vestige's first impact. The collar has a large crack on one side. Nightmare tries to pick Vestige up a second time only to have the same result. Nightmare huffs in annoyance, but gives in and uses two tentacles to grab Vestige. One limb goes around his chest while the other supports his legs. Nightmare then brings the baby closer and leans Vestige against his shoulder just in case. Vestige buries his head into Nightmare's chest, his quiet sobbing easing to sniffles. Vestige doesn't fall apart this time with so much support for his weight. With that settled, Nightmare turns and carries Vestige into the kitchen with the other three boys trailing behind him.

"What are you going to do with a baby, Boss? It probably shouldn't go on missions with us. The AU inhabitants would die of fright before you'd get a chance to scare them." Killer says the last part with a good bit of sarcasm.

"Right now? I should probably feed it," Nightmare side-steps the question. He deposits Vestige on the kitchen counter and opens a cupboard to rummage through it with his many limbs.

"I think he's kinda cute," Cross comments quietly.

"I...... None of us knew you even liked kids, Nightmare. It's kinda confusing me. What do you plan to do?" Dust asks, having a hard time understanding.

Nightmare is supposed to be strong and as immovable as stone. He's not supposed to let himself fall to sentimental weaknesses. Most of the Multiverse fears Nightmare, and the other few respect him because of that fear. Nightmare isn't sure if he could ever be something else. He's reluctant to make the first step. Vestige babbles something unintelligible, and Nightmare turns his head to look at the tiny creature. As much as it confuses and worries him, Nightmare knows what he wants. The King of Negativity withdraws from the cupboard and turns to face the three members of his gang.

"A few months ago, I don't think I would've even considered taking Vestige. I could've easily left him with Dream and saved myself the trouble," Nightmare starts, letting a tone of frustration enter his voice. "I don't know why, but I want this tiny creature near me. I want it to be safe and grow up strong. I want to see him grow up and do great things." Nightmare finally allows his stone cold facade to crack, and he offers up a rare smile. "I want to be as proud of Vestige as I am of the three of you."

Dust, Killer, and Cross are shocked frozen. They're used to Nightmare grumbling and taking offense at the slightest thing. Each of them knew deep down that their boss values their lives as more than just employees, but Nightmare has never once admitted it so plainly. All of their AUs have taught them not to be vulnerable enough to trust. Nightmare's open confession of his feelings crosses a line that all of them have been trying to avoid overstepping. They came close when rescuing Hearts on Horror's behalf, but they've been hesitating since. What are they if not bad? Can the worst person really change?

"Okay....." Cross breaths out, being the first to respond. "If that's what you want, then that's how it'll be. We can figure out the rest along the way."

"Dadmare," Dust mumbles. He repeats it louder to tease his boss, giggling a little, but still trying to come to terms with all that's changing. Nightmare hisses a little at the nickname.

Killer says nothing. He feels uncomfortable with crossing that line of trust. The bad guys were put together simply to have the advantage of numbers in battle. Killer's emotions are fractured and rather faint. He's not sure if he's okay with all that's changing, but has little power to stop it. Killer is distracted from his thoughts when something prickles at the edge of his senses. Killer has spent countless AU resets surrounded by dying monsters. He almost craves seeing that moment of weakness when a monster's Hp gives way. That aura of death has become familiar to him. Killer turns his head to look at Vestige. The tiny being is laying on his stomach atop the counter, eyes half lidded. Any other time Vestige has been within sight of Nightmare, he's been alert and watches Nightmare with an almost creepy level of interest. Vestige isn't paying attention to anything now. Killer can feel the sickness.

"Boss?" Killer interrupts the other's conversation. "I think your thingy is dying," he says bluntly. That certainly catches Nightmare's attention. Vestige looks rather lethargic when just minutes ago he was so worked up. Nightmare wastes no time going the direct route by CHECKing him.

"Vestige"
LV: 1
EXP: @%8&
ATK: 1
DEF: 1
HP: 03 / $#¥

*Vestige is a being made out of pure corrupted magic bound to a malformed soul.
* Destablazing

Vestige's soul looks a lot worse than the last time anyone's seen it. Fissures have formed throughout the mushy-looking soul, and a piece along one side has started to tear away under its own slight weight. Vestige's soul resembles unbaked dough as it stretches and deforms, only to try and pull itself back into position again. Monster souls aren't supposed to do that. They crack, and break into pieces, not melt. Nightmare swears that he feels his own soul ice over at the sight. He hasn't felt such debilitating fear since he ate the corrupted apples in Dreamtale.

"We have to take him to ScienceTale."