A/N: I forgot to mention in the first one-shot that POV isn't going to be exclusive to Alan, but will include Niko as well, with this chapter being the first like it. It's different than what we're used to, but I figured it'd be perfect for Aftermath. In case you're worried about it being confusing, know that chapters won't have POV changes in the middle of them, so it'll either be all Alan or all Niko and I'll be sure to make it obvious who's POV it is.

Anyways, reviews are always appreciated, and don't forget to leave a favorite/follow if you enjoyed reading!

Nightmare

It's dark.

"H-Hello?"

My voice echoed around me, but I still couldn't see anything. Where was everything? Where was Alan? Where was the sun? I stopped. The...sun? Why would I…?

"[Niko is upset.]"

I jumped at the sound of a voice appearing out of nowhere. I recognized it. It was...The World Machine. Why was it back? I thought we already saved everyone.

I blinked and I could finally see something up ahead. My whole body was shaking as I slowly made my way towards it. Something about all of this was wrong, but I just didn't know what.

"[Get the boy and child out of here N̴̥̄Ȯ̶͇W̶̮̽!̵͕͛]"

Another voice rang out. I knew this voice too. When I finally reached whatever was ahead, I gasped. Underneath a pile of rocks and rubble was...the body of a robot with red hair covered in familiar purple squares.

"S-Silver…?"

No...no, this wasn't right. We...we saved them. What was happening? Where was I?

I blinked and Silver vanished, replaced by something further up ahead. I didn't want to go there, but my body moved on its own, pushing me forward against my will.

"Calamus! Ḩ̶͌ẹ̸̇ḷ̵͛p̵͓̽!̶̞̎"

"Alula! No!"

When I finally stopped moving, Calamus and Alula's bodies were slumped in front of me, once again covered in squares. This was really starting to freak me out. Why was this happening?

Another blink and the siblings were gone and I began to move forward again. More and more voices started to grow louder as I continued to speed up through the darkness.

"I can hear them outside the door!"

"S...savior..."

"I WANNA GO BACK HOME!"

"Messiah, we're so sorry..."

Tears were starting to fall down my face. The voices were still getting louder even as shut my eyes and tried to cover my ears. Stop, please...just make it stop…

"You need...to get a-away from me, Niko…"

I gasped as one voice broke through all the rest, silencing them. My eyes flew open to see another body curled around itself, trembling.

"Why am I even h-here? All I've d-done is hurt you..."

I felt myself get closer and closer to it. The boy's trembling was getting worse and worse the closer I got.

"I'm just a monster."

No...I knew who this was...

"Alan…?"

His trembling stopped as soon as my hand reached his shoulder. Slowly, I walked around him and froze when I saw his face. His blue eyes were gone, faded into a dark grey. They were...empty.

"I'm sorry, Niko…"

Just then, a screech rang out around us and I watched in horror as squares started appearing all over Alan's body.

"No...no! Alan!"

I kept trying to reach out to him, to pull him away from the squares, but my body just...wouldn't move. I kept being pulled away from him.

"Alan! ALAN!"

The squares were swarming over him. He only stared back at me with those cold, grey eyes. I could feel tears start to run down my face as I continued to struggle. Why was this happening?! This wasn't real! This wasn't...it couldn't be! Alan...Alan…!

In a split second, the squares shot out from him and raced towards me. I barely had time to scream before they engulfed me and everything became dark again.

"Ah...!"

My body jolted awake, wrenching me away from the squares and placing me back in the safety of my room. I shot up and looked around my room. Nothing was out of place. The drawings of the people Alan and I had met were still up on my wall. I took a minute to try and calm myself down, but the nightmare still haunted me. I grabbed onto Mr. Banana Bread and hopped out of bed.

Quietly, I opened my door and looked around the dark hallway. My fear of the dark was coming back in full force and wished I had the sun in my arms again. Swallowing my fear, I creeped out of my room and made my way towards the guest room, keeping a grip on my plush and constantly shooting glances over my shoulder in fear of seeing those squares again.

I pushed open the door and peeked inside. The room was just as dark as the rest of the house, but knowing who was sleeping here already made me feel safer than my room. Inch by inch, I drew closer to the bedside and leaned closer to the person sleeping there.

"...Alan?" I whispered.

No response. I lifted one of my trembling hands and softly shook his arm, "Alan?"

His breathing became louder and the blankets rustled from his movement. I waited as he sat up, rubbing his eyes and brushing his hands against the white shirt he wore when he slept before he finally looked at me. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw his eyes were back to their normal blue color instead of...what they were just a few minutes ago. He yawned, "...Niko? What are you doing up?"

I shifted on my feet and looked away from him, "I...had a bad dream." Out of the corner of my eye, I saw his face morph into concern. I took a deep breath and looked back at him, "Could I...stay with you tonight? Please?"

His eyes scanned over my face before he scooted over and pulled back the covers with a soft smile, "...Of course."

I managed to return the smile with my own as I climbed into the bed. I took a second to set aside Mr. Banana Bread before wrapping my arms around Alan. He turned over on his side and kept his eyes on me even as he ran a hand through my hair. I buried my face in his chest to stop myself from crying.

"Hey…" I heard him whisper, "It's alright now. It was just a dream."

My hands tightened, "I-I know...but…"

I could feel myself start to tremble again as the nightmare continued to play over and over in my mind.

"It's okay. Just let it out."

At that, I couldn't stop myself from bawling into his shirt. We stayed that way, letting me cry while Alan held me tight against him. Eventually, my tears faded away, replaced only by our breathing.

"...Better?"

"A little bit..." I replied.

I looked up at him to see him still gazing down at me with concern, "Can...I ask what it was about?"

I fell silent, still scared of what I went through, but...it would be better to tell him. I knew he would listen.

"I..." I started, "I think...I was back in the World Machine and...I saw...I saw..."

Alan's hold on me tightened, "It's alright. Take your time."

I forced myself to calm down before I kept going, "I saw the people we met, like the robot lady and Calamus and Alula, c-covered in...squares."

"Oh..."

"And then...I started hearing more people before..." I looked up at him, still making sure his eyes hadn't changed, "...until I saw you."

His eyes widened, but he let me continue.

"You were...like how you were after we thought Cedric and Proto had..." I faltered, "...and...the squares...they started to..."

"It's alright," Alan stopped me, "You don't have to say anymore."

My eyes started to sting again, "...I was really scared, Alan. I thought you were..."

He pulled me closer to him, resting my head just above his heart and letting me listen to it beat. The sound of it coupled with his hand running through my hair calmed me down immensely.

"It's alright, Niko. I'm still here. I'll keep you safe."

After a while, the nightmare faded out of my mind and I felt my eyes start to fall shut again.

"Hey, Alan?"

"Yeah?"

"...I love you."

"...I love you too, Niko."

I smiled and let myself fall back to sleep, knowing I wouldn't have another nightmare tonight.