One-shots [Reqs: 5]

Treehouse - Princess

i wanted to write more of the treehouse series uwu

also, i like the idea that cross is oblivious as fuck and acts a lot younger than he really is.

also, for some context, horror is here, but at the moment, he's with some doctors to see if he can get his skull fixed.

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Cross hummed under his breath, scribbling away at his keep-out sign. Black paint speckled his cheeks and hands, the paintbrush in his hands drenched. His tongue stuck out, eyes narrowing as he added the final details.

He dropped the brush back in the paint bucket, sitting back to grin at his handmade sign triumphantly. In somewhat wonky letters, Cross had written "Stay Out!!" and just beneath it was "please!" and a smiley face. Cross wiped his hands on his shorts, making a face at the sticky paint. It stuck to his joints and knuckles, and felt weird and tingly. And kinda burny.

He wiped his hands off some more, and grabbed his sign, hopping up from the floor. His little treehouse door swung open on unsteady hinges, some coils of rope waiting for Cross at the edge of the treehouse porch. He settled on his knees, grinning wide as he started wrapping the rope around his sign. Loose threads kept clinging to the remaining paint and he had to yank it off more than once, but soon, he was done. He shuffled closer to the edge, leaning over precariously, tongue poking out in concentration. Just a little further...

"Heya Crossy!" He yelped, sign falling from his hands and thumping to the grassy floor. Cross felt his soul freeze in his chest, his eyes widening as he slipped off the side. "AH-!" Cross shrieked as something slimy grabbed his arms. It felt weirder than the paint! He squirmed, "Lemme go!" He was lowered to the ground and promptly dropped, his breath escaping him as he hit the floor. Cross sat up, rubbing his head. "Owww.."

Meanwhile, Nightmare was bent over, hands on his knees as he struggled to breathe. His tentacles were thrashing in distress, the dark teenager shaking. "Oh my god, please stop going up there, you're going to die-" Killer sighed, patting Nightmare's back. "Calm down, man. He's alright." Nightmare shook his head, eye shut tight.

Cross gasped suddenly, patting his head with stained hands. "M-my crown!" Killer abandoned Nightmare, strolling over to the panicking child. He crouched down, tilting his head. "What crown?" Cross frowned, looking around frantically, before a smile broke out across his face. He rolled onto his feet, darting away to grab something from the ground. Nightmare had wandered over by then, still shaken but mostly fine. "What's going on over here?" Killer shrugged, "Cross lost his crown."

Nightmare raised a brow. "What's he need a crown for?" Cross came back, all smiles, a tiara perched proudly on his head. "So I can be a princess!" Killer blinked. "A princess? But I thought boys couldn't-" He wheezed as Nightmare elbowed him, glaring at him with teary eyes. "Boys can be princesses if they want to, Killer."

Killer flipped him off, rubbing his sternum sourly. "Whatever. I didn't know boys could be sissie-" Nightmare slapped him, hissing like a cat. Cross's smile wilted with worry, the boy glancing between Killer and Nightmare. "H-hey, why'd you hit him?" Nightmare plastered a grin on his face, having wrapped a tentacle around Killer's head entirely. "Don't worry about it. We'll be right back, I just need to talk to Killer about something." Killer was clawing at the tentacle, his voice muffled. Nightmare dragged him away, Cross staring after them until they were gone.

He hummed in confusion, able to faintly hear Nightmare scolding Killer. Cross didn't really want to get yelled at either, so he turned around and snatched his sign off the ground, eyeing the branch he'd marked. After about ten minutes, when Killer stumbled through the hedge with Nightmare behind him, Cross was dangling from the branch, one arm hooked onto the tree and the other struggling to tie the rope.