multiverse oneshots

freshmare - hand

(Nightmare x Fresh)

Requested by @ukuban !

Written: Jan. 11, 2022

Warnings!! -- NONE

Fresh walked around the Doodle-Sphere, humming a sort of tune to distract himself.

Distract himself? Hah! His fashion sense was a distraction in and of itself. "90s Trash" he'd labeled himself, and indeed it couldn't be any clearer. The popped collar of his polo and oversized, brightly colored, jacket made him stick out like a sore thumb; not to mention the silly baseball hat with the spinney thing on top he wore backwards (or sometimes to the side, it depended). Yes, Fresh was a distraction just by existing; people made sure he knew that every day.

"Heh, the attention's nice though! 'Specially since CQ's been busy," he always told himself.

But...he... didn't... he didn't always believe it. The attention scared him sometimes; he had to act a certain way, look a certain way, never break his goofy smile; he had to make sure to use the same ridiculous jargon all the time (not that he didn't like to, he did, it could just be draining after a time).

But he didn't hate having to keep up the mask; the longer his "Fresh" character continued to be created for, the sooner it could completely-

"Yeesh, this guy's clothes hurt my eyes."

"He really says 'swag?' Wow that's outdated."

"Why do people like characters like this? He's just there."

"He has no personality. He's just there to be a meme."

"Fresh is just a parasite! It just took over a Sans body to have a form!"

"Fresh is emotionless, it's canon, stop making him feel, ok? It's weird."

"Oh great, another Sans OC. Eugh."

Fresh gave a shiver as he passed a particularly whinny side of the Multiverse fandom. He felt his (nonexistent) heart clench at their words.

He could feel! He wasn't just a parasite! He had a personality and a purpose! He... he did... really, he knew he did...

The skeleton sighed, slumping against a nearby tree and stretching his arms up at the never-ending sky. If it could be called a sky that is; it was white and seemed to go on forever. The tree felt softer than other trees he had encountered. Perhaps this was a result of it being the Doodle-Sphere? He wasn't sure, nor did he care all that much. The only thing he really cared about at the moment was sleeping his worries away. When he woke up, he'd forget, and everything'd be just as it had been before he overheard the voices.

\=/

"For such an active person, I shouldn't be too surprised by the odd place of choice for a nap."

Fresh almost jumped at the sudden deep voice that had seemed to rip him straight from his peaceful nap. His grin faltering, he whipped his head around to find the owner sitting directly in front of him. Abnormally tall, bulky, and black, sat another skeleton, his legs tucked beneath him as his arms were crossed, his stare seeming to try and pick apart the expression of the other. Fresh directed his attention to the newcomer's left eye - or rather, what was coming from it. A steady pulsing of the same black tar that covered his entire body told him that the eye-socket was supplying it-

"Perhaps I've been misinformed," continued the stranger, seeing as Fresh hadn't spoken. "But... are you called 'Fresh?'"

Finally getting ahold of himself and getting over the initial shock of seeing someone else there, he said "Yessir! That's me-"

"-Please don't start with the nonsense language," the other said, raising one of his clawed hands.

"Heh, sorry broski," Fresh responded, sitting up and looking to the ground for a second. "What's your name by the way?" he added quickly, determined to avoid awkward silence.

"You may call me Nightmare."

Fresh nodded, his broad toothy grin returning once more to his face. "Ahh, I getcha. You're Nightmare, the big bad dude everyone's been yapping about. Pleasure ta make your acquaintance," he added, extending his gloved hand to Nightmare.

Nightmare didn't move an inch, instead staring at Fresh's hand with mild distaste. Fresh shrugged, pulling his hand back and flipping his cap to the side casually. "So, what can lil' ol' me do for a big shot like you?" he inquired, raising a brow as Nightmare continued to sit there, obviously observing him with great interest.

"I was detecting immense negativity from here, specifically from you," Nightmare replied slowly, his head tipping to the side as Fresh leaned over, propping his head on his hand as his elbow dug into the unnaturally soft grass.

"Why's that?" Fresh asked curiously.

"You were feeling negative, so I felt inclined to see if I could...absorb some of it," Nightmare explained. "If that makes any sense," he added as Fresh's face contorted into something like curiosity.

Fresh nodded, his grin still plastered to his face despite his inner conflicts. Nightmare had felt his negative thoughts? He knew Fresh was hurting for just a second, a second ago? How was that possible?

...

"Give me your hand," Nightmare said suddenly. Fresh turned his attention from the grass to Nightmare's extended hand.

"Why?" he asked skeptically.

"Did I say you could ask questions?" Nightmare snapped.

"Lol no."

"Then do it."

"Mmk," he hummed, putting one of his hands in Nightmare's. The moment they made physical contact, Fresh felt like he was being extremely violated. He felt something in his head being tugged at, some sort of dark thought he didn't even know existed. His sockets that he didn't even know he closed snapped open, his hand retracting quickly from Nightmare's grasp. "Dude what the heckity heck was that?!"

"... What was what?" Nightmare asked, a sort of smirk dancing onto his mouth as his watched Fresh's reaction in interest.

"You- you... that f-felt-"

"Odd? Like someone was reaching into your mind and pulling?"

Fresh's smile had by now been forgotten, his back now straightened and pressed firmly against the tree. Nightmare chuckled; a deep, somewhat mysterious sound that seemed to reverberate through the entire area.

Fresh, for once, remained silent. He had noticed something. He felt... different. He felt... lighter? His chest felt like a weight he didn't know was there had been grabbed and yanked out.

Out of sheer impulse, and without a second thought, he grabbed Nightmare's hand again and managed to interlock their fingers, pulling the other onto him.

He felt it again. That strange pulling sensation in his very mind; although, this time, it spread. It spread from his head, to his chest, then lower, then to his fingertips and his toes. That very strange, yet somehow comforting, feeling of burdens being pulled from his very being.

And it had started when he touched Nightmare.

\=/

i'm not sure how this one turned out. my sincerest apologies for my inability to write. thanks for reading though, and have a great day or night ^^