A/N: NiGHTS is not my character, and any other charaters not stated below belong to SEGA. However Mike, BLUEBERRi, Alda, and Martha are MINE.

If I get any of the "NiGHTSology" wrong, let me know please!


BLUEBERRi made sure that Alda and her Visitor felt at home of at the Dream Gate, in spite of Owl popping in and out.

"Does he do that a lot?" Alda had asked him.

"Yes," BLUEBERRi said, "but you get use to it, even though he's annoying."

Alda laughed and she undueilized with her Visitor, Martha.

"As for you, young Martha, it's time for you to wake up." BLUEBERRi waved his hand in front of her and the Visitor disappeared.

"How did you do that?"

"It's a gift, but it's not like it works on any of Wizeman's subjects, only waking up Visitors safely, and without needing help of the awakers."

"That's too bad."

"Maybe so, but I like to know my limits."

Over the next few nights, BLUEBERRi avoided looking at Alda eye to eye; he would always look down when she caught him staring at her. Why are you acting this way, BLUEBERRi? He always asked himself after such an incident. You're acting like a love struck fool! Was he really love struck? He didn't know, BLUEBERRi found it hard to understand human-like emotions. Even if they were sometimes close to that of his own kind. At times he didn't want to understand, but this was different. Perhaps he would have Mike explain it next time he visited, but until then, he was on his own, for he knew NiGHTS would not have the slightest idea about what he was feeling.

"Why do you keep looking at me?" came Alda's voice from behind him that nearly made BLUEBERRi jump out of his skin, but instead made him fall into the fountain.

"Looking at you?" BLUEBERRi wondered as he rung the water out from the tails of his coat. "Pray tell, what do you mean?" He had decided to play dumb.

"You know very well what I mean! What, do you think that I don't see you hiding behind the trees or flying above me with a look of lounging on your face? Well, I see you more than you think, a lot more!"

So he had been caught. "I'm sorry," he apologized, "it's just that I'm dealing with some emotion that I'm unsure about."

"And what 'emotion' would this be?"

He described how the only being he wants to see is her, how he wants to remain with her for eternity, how he's shy around her, and never finds the right things to say when he's with her. "how foolish of me to say all this, I know that it'll probably just chase you away, which is the last thing I want to happen."

"Martha told me about an emotion just like that. She said that it's described in books and plays all the time."

"What's a book, or play for that matter?"

"No idea."

"Umm, okay."

"She called it love."

"'Love,' what sort of name is that?"

"How should I know?"

Then he got an idea. "Why were you talking about this emotion with Martha?"
She looked down and blushed; BLUEBERRi had struck a nerve. He waited for her to reply. What do I have to lose by telling him? Certainly not my chances of being with Reala, my betray ruined that, she thought. "Let's just say that I… feel the same way about you."
BLUEBERRi grabbed her hand and was surprised when she blushed instead of jerking it away from him. He kissed her hand as any gentleman would do and she giggled.

"E-HEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHE!" Came a blood curling laugh.

"Jackle!" NiGHTS yelled as s/he came out of nowhere. "Show yourself!"

"TOOTY-FRUTY!" Came the shrieking voice. "LOVE! LOVE! LOVE! REALA SHOULD HAVE KNOWN, ALDA, THAT THERE WAS A REASON YOU LEFT HIM! BUT NOOOOO, HE WAS TOO STUPID TO THINK THAT YOU WOULD EVEN CONSIDER LIVING HIS SIDE IN DASTERLY DEEDS! WA-HEHEHEHEHEHE!"

"Jackle," Alda yelled back, "you are one to talk, you are too stupid to think about what's right! You're how Reala pictured me!"

Jackle grimaced and then took out his deck of cards. "YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT!"

Alda's eyes widened. Hoping that she could get Jackle talking again she said "Did the 'all-mighty' Wizeman send you?"

Jackle paused, "SO WHAT IF HE DID?"

"Why would he send a lower-class 'Maren like you to do something that obviously requires an upper-class Nightmaren?"

Alda, what are you doing? Thought NiGHTS, then he/she saw BLUEBERRi sneaking up on Jackle. Of course, I see what you're playing at! Clever game!

BLUEBERRi was now close enough to snatch Jackle's mantle, and even before she/he threw the first card. He yanked it off, then rolled it up to form a sort of a whip. "If I were you Jackle, I would get out of here real fast." He said as he raised the mantle and threw it backwards. "Or BLUEBERRi, the ring master, is making his way to 'crack-down' on the jackal. If you catch my drift…"

"MY CAPE!"

"Yes, your cape, and I will use it against you." He flung the cape forward then yanked back quickly making a loud pop, a warning shot.

"MAKE ME LEAVE!"

"As you say," BLUEBERRi shrugged and threw the cape forward once more, aiming at Jackle's head. It hit its intended target but did no damage.

"HEHE, MY TURN!" Jackle drew five cards and spread them in his hand. The threw them like darts at BLUEBERRi, who was hard-pressed to doge them all.

That was when BLUEBERRi got an idea, and started for the black sea off of the edge of the Dream Gate. He stopped just above the surface of the water.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Demanded Jackle, who had followed him, throwing cards all the while.

"If you want to see your precious mantle again, make the unbreakable vow that you will tell Wizeman that you failed and that any minions that he sends shall fail also, evermore."

"I CAN'T DO THAT! HE'LL KILL ME!"

"So be it," BLUEBERRi said as he let go of the cape and it touched the surface of the black body of water.

"NO! MY MANTLE!" Jackle rushed towards that water, as if to grab the cape before it disappeared. BLUEBERRi moved out of the way as fast as he could, to avoid being pushed in. He turned just in time to see his foe's feet go in, to never again be seen by and living being in the Dream World or Walking World.