multiverse oneshots

inkmare - scissors

(Ink x Nightmare)

Written: Nov. 26, 2021

(art by @/pulisui on tumblr)

***

Feelings are a curious topic. Feeling something could be physical or mental, and yet they're both just as damaging or healing or interesting to play with.

Ink was a curious person. Having no feelings herself, she loved to play with the feelings of others to try and learn about them. Something to try and fine tune the correct reaction she was supposed to have in a certain interaction or situation.

One of her favorite people to toy with was Error. He was so easily angered, and so easy to tease; he was an emotional wreck. She liked to tease him, touch him, compliment him, request things from him, anything to get some sort of reaction. And 99% of the time he'd give it to her unknowingly; give her the satisfaction he didn't mean to.

But toying with people was only so available now. Especially considering Ink had only a few people she would do it with. Dream and Error were out of the picture, both no longer wanting to spend time with her. Ink wasn't sure why, but she figured they needed some space, so she'd give it to them for now.

Ink carefully cut the paper square out, her tongue absent-mindedly slipping out of her mouth as she furrowed her brows in concentration. The green paper would go well with the red paint she planned to stripe it with.

A loud crash shook the small skeleton from her thoughts, the scissors slipping and her phalange with it. Ink winced, shakily putting the scissors down and looking at her finger. A black substance trickled from inside the bone and onto her glove. She turned her hand around, her gaze questioning as the liquid ran down in whichever way she tilted her hand.

"Huh..."

...

"Is this what bleeding feels like...?" she asked herself in a hushed manner, her other fingers being stained by the same blackness now.

"INK."

Ink shoved her hand under her leg, twisting around to see someone standing behind her. She immediately recognized the disheveled skeleton, his tall looming figure coming closer and bending over her as he looked at the paper on the ground.

"Sup Gooplord! Howzzit goin?" Ink asked pleasantly. Nightmare gave her a look.

"I have a name, squidiot," he retorted somewhat playfully.

"And so do I." She grinned as he sighed and sat next to her. Ink took up her paper again, careful to keep her hand under her thigh as she tossed it off somewhere.

"So uh, are you going to tell me why you're here?" Ink asked slowly, spinning the scissors lazily around her index finger.

Nightmare waved his hand, his tentacles retracting into his back with a wince. "Nothing much... I just wanted to drop in and see how you were holding up."

"Aww you were worried about lil' ol' me?"

Nightmare rolled his eyes and snorted. "That is not the word I would use. I was just curious," he retorted. Ink only laughed at his denial. Silence didn't last much longer when Nightmare spoke again. "Why are you sitting on your hand, Ink...?"

"...I uh..." she gave a half-hearted cough and pulled out her hand, the blood now staining the back of her pants and her entire glove. Perhaps it had cut deeper than she originally thought.

Nightmare's singular glowing eye widened slightly when he saw it. He scooted closer, taking her hand in his and holding it gingerly as he turned it over. "What happened?" he finally asked, not letting go of her hand.

"I just cut myself on the scissors, no big deal," she responded.

"You cut yourself. Intentionally?"

"No, why would I do that?"

"I can never be sure with you." Nightmare let out a sigh. "Do you have a bandage or something to put on it?"

Ink shrugged.

"Do you want to fix it or not?"

Ink shrugged again. "I dunno. I kinda like watching it drip down like that."

"Wha-"

Ink grabbed the scissors. 

"Ink what are you doing-?"

Without a second thought, Ink ran the blade against her other finger, fresh black blood trickling down it. Nightmare's eye widened completely, his mouth opening and closing in confusion and concern. What in the world was she thinking??

"See?" Ink said, holding up her finger for him to see. "Doesn't it look cool? It's kinda like a little stream; 'cept it kinda hurts."

"Ink put the scissors down right now."

"Why?"

"Wha-WHAT DO YOU MEAN WHY?!" he exclaimed in exasperation. He plucked the scissors from her grasp and threw them across the Doodle-Sphere.

"Nightmare I needed those-"

"No, you don't," Nightmare said sternly. "Don't cut yourself for fun. It's hurting your body for no reason and worrying me over something that is easily preventable."

"Why are you worried though?" Ink asked, her head tipping to the side in slight confusion. "Shouldn't you like it?"

The king stared at her deadpan for a second. "Why in the name of the Multiverse would I enjoy seeing you hurt yourself?" he asked incredulously.

"When people are hurting you get negativity. You need negativity to be alive, basically, so shouldn't me feeling hurt help you to live?" she explained, as if it were obvious. "Kinda like eating a muffin in the morning; it feels good and welcome."

"Ink, I think you misunderstand how that works-"

"No, I don't!"

"Yes, you do, Ink," Nightmare growled her name, holding her wrist firmly in his grasp. "Seeing you intentionally hurt yourself out of curiosity and wanting to help me doesn't...It doesn't feel the same."

"Why not...?"

"Because I care about you, dumbass."

Ink didn't respond. A sort of cyan seemed to glow on Nightmare's cheeks, illuminated against the blacks and grays of his face and body. His eye moved from the ground, meeting hers as he gave her a hard look. Not a smile, not tears, but rather a frown and furrowed brows. He looked...genuine. He looked...like he meant it.

"Ink you have no idea how fucked up your thinking is," he said, grabbing her scarf and pulling her closer. "Because I would never take any pleasure in seeing you hurt. Got it?"

Ink nodded slowly, her hands falling to her lap and clasping themselves together nervously. "Yeah...I've got it. I won't do it anymore," she said meekly. Nightmare gave a curt nod and released his grip on her scarf.

"Good. You better not, or I'll kill you myself."

Ink looked at him with a confused smile. "You do realize that'd be worse than cutting right?"

"..."

Nightmare didn't respond, instead he stood up and grabbed her around the waist with a tentacle. "I'm taking you to Waterfall," he stated, ignoring the fact she was trying to wriggle out of his grip now.

"Why Waterfall??"

"The water heals idiots like you."

"That...doesn't make any sense, Moony."

"Well neither do you."

"...but that's just my character-"

"Shut up about your "character" nonsense."