Disclaimer: I don't own/ claim to own any part of Heart no Kuni no Alice, as well as any related ideas/characters/ etc. Nor do I own any song lyrics, poems, or other quotations I may sample; all rights go to their respective owners.
Characters: Nightmare X Alice.
Summary: Nightmare really grew on me. In Heart I wasn't a fan, but Clover and Joker made me love him~
Sweet Dreams
Nightmares and dreams are all the same, sweetheart, if you let them be.
x
x
When Alice first met Nightmare, she thought of him as something of an enigma: outlandish, cryptic, mysterious… Devious, but not nessasarily unkind.
But ever since the Move from Heart to Clover country, different words come to mind. Childish, sickly, and lazy, just to name a few.
"Alice," he whines, a sulk spreading like molasses over his pale face. "How rude, to think about me that way. I am the lord of Clover Tower, and therefore should be thought about with respect and-"
"Sorry, Nightmare. I'm just in a bad mood," she sighs, in no mood for his rambling. Around her, the dream realm darkens in disappointment. "If you could let me sleep…"
"But Alice, you are sleeping." He floats around her. "You're just dreaming, is all."
"Dreaming within a dream?"
"In a sense."
She can't help but huff at his answer. He stares at her for a moment, concerned, before his mouth quirks up in the beginnings of a smile. "Here; allow me to cheer you up."
Before she can protest, the realm gives a sort of sigh, and rearranges itself. Flowers spring up in blooming circles of red and blue. Trees ripe with apples sway in a nonexistent breeze, and light streams down from an unseen sun.
"Is this alright?" he asks. "If this isn't suitable to your tastes, then I can change it…"
"No, this is fine." Breathless with wonder, she goes over to inspect a daisy. "I had no idea you could do this, Nightmare."
He coughs at the flattery, and offers a small grin from behind his handkerchief. "This? This is nothing. Even so…" His gaze softens. "Do you like it?"
"I love it." She sits, and leans her head contentedly against the base of a tree. "It reminds me of the place where Lorina and I would spend our afternoons…"
Pain takes root in her eyes, but her expression is so happy, so at peace, that he can't bring himself to whisper 'Forget'. Instead he sits down beside her, rests his head against hers and murmurs, "I'm glad."
