Killer looked around the Castle he found himself in with slight curiosity. The one who brought him here, Nightmare, appeared beside him and stepped further into the entrance foyer, heading towards the stairs. Before Killer could comment on the cliche concept of the Guardian of Negativity living in a dark and dank castle, he heard the sound of feet pattering across the floor. He snapped his head towards the stairs and summoned a knife that he threw the moment he saw something coming into view.
One of Nightmare's tentacles instantly snapped out and blocked the knife before a second lashed around him and threw him into a wall. Killer leapt to his feet the moment he landed and snarled as he snapped his attention to Nightmare, only to freeze at the sight of the Guardian standing defensively in front of a child. He blinked in surprise at the tiny baby bones and felt himself sweat slightly as he realized that he had just attacked a baby bones in Nightmare's castle. The fact he wasn't dead felt like a miracle, especially as he met the gaze of the Guardian.
Nightmare appeared completely livid, his tentacles lashing and his eye light snake-like in shape in his anger. Meanwhile the kid was hiding behind Nightmare and peeking out from under his arm with a look of fear and confusion. The sight of a fearful baby bones, especially aimed at him, instantly had Killer relaxing his stance to appear less threatening resulting in Nightmare's aggression calming a bit as well.
"Now that you appear to have calmed down. This is Ink. He is not to be hurt in any way and if any harm comes to him at your hands I will make your life a hell you didn't realize it could reach." Nightmare threatened.
Killer simply nodded and shoved his hands into his pockets as Nightmare turned his attention to Ink, who looked back up at him with a slight smile.
"I kept it safe." Ink said without prompting. Killer silently wondered if the child was referring to the castle, but when Ink held up a circlet to Nightmare, he became further confused.
"Thank you." Nightmare said, taking the circlet before scooping up the child and heading further into the castle.
Killer waited a few moments, before following them at a slower pace. He trailed behind as Ink seemed to chatter away at his Guardian. He eventually followed his new boss into what appeared to be a large kitchen and watched as his tentacles began pulling out multiple items and ingredients while he set Ink on a counter. He watched for several moments, only to eventually lock eye sockets with the baby bones who was watching him curiously.
"What?" He asked, slightly irritated at the stare.
He tensed as Nightmare sent him a glare as he moved to the stove, but his new boss made no move to reprimand him.
"What's your name?" Ink asked, pulling Killer's attention back to him.
"Uh…it's Killer." He replied, shifting uncomfortably at the immediate smile he received. Jeez this child was a ball of sunshine, how the hell had they ended up with Nightmare.
"I'm Ink, Nightmare gave me the name. Who gave you your name? Did Nightmare save you from back there too?"
And on and on he went. The child had an endless flow of questions that he asked so quickly that Killer couldn't answer. What the hell was back there? And once again how did this ball of energy end up in his boss' care?
"Slow down Ink. He can't answer if you don't give him a chance." Nightmare said sternly, making Ink snap his mouth shut before he smiled sheepishly at Killer in apology.
"Uh…" Killer said dumbly.
How was he supposed to handle a child? He didn't even remember what it was like being a brother to Papyrus anymore let alone how he had raised his little brother. Instead of answering the kid like he clearly wanted, Killer turned his attention to Nightmare with a look of panic.
"He named himself, Ink and no he is not from back there. He came from a fully developed Timeline." Nightmare answered for him, focused on the pot of what appeared to be noodles in front of him.
"Oh." Ink said, looking at Nightmare as he used a tentacle to pull down a cup while another pulled juice from the fridge.
They all fell silent as Nightmare seemed to finish making the meal and poured a cup of juice. Nightmare served the food into three bowls he pulled down while another pair picked up the cup of juice and Ink respectively. He then took all three bowls and the child to a table off to the side where he set the bowls in front of three chairs. Ink giggled as he was carried and deposited into one of the chairs. Nightmare then set the cup of juice in front of Ink before settling into a seat beside the kid and glanced to where Killer still stood in the doorway.
"Well don't just stand there. Sit and eat." Nightmare instructed, turning to his own food as Ink was digging into his bowl.
Killer cautiously stepped forward until he took a seat which was at the opposite end from his new boss and the kid, giving him distance and space from them. He glanced down at the food and realized it appeared to be spaghetti, a familiar dish that eased Killer just a bit. He had been expecting something fancy and over the top, what with the fact his boss lived in a Castle. But he supposed if he had a castle and had to cook for himself, he'd keep it simple too. He slowly began eating, his gaze flicking back to his Boss and Ink periodically.
Ink appeared to be a talker in general as he chattered away at Nightmare even as they ate. Nightmare would occasionally ask a question that would send Ink on a longer tangent about what he was talking about, but the Guardian of Negativity didn't seem to mind. They spent the rest of the meal like that, Ink being the main one to fill the silence. After they finished, Nightmare used his tentacles to remove the dishes to the sink before scooping up Ink and waving for Killer to follow him out.
He did so, tuning out the child's now tired chatter. Nightmare eventually stopped in front of a door and turned to Killer. Ink fell silent as Killer looked to his new Boss.
"This will be your room. You clean up after yourself, I am no one's maid. If you make a mess and want it cleaned, clean it yourself otherwise I don't care what you do with it. I will show you my study tomorrow and we will discuss your role here as my subordinate." Nightmare instructed, making Killer nod in understanding. Good he wouldn't have to worry about people complaining if he didn't clean then.
"You got it boss." He replied, when Nightmare seemed to be waiting for a verbal response.
"Good. For now rest, I need to put Ink to bed." The other said, turning and continuing down the hall. The hall seemed to be the main wing Nightmare used since he only went towards the end of the hall before stepping into one of the rooms.
Taking the hint, Killer stepped into his new room and looked around. It was overall plain and it clearly hadn't been cleaned beforehand, not surprising since it seemed Nightmare didn't have staff to do it for him. Nonetheless the little bit of dust could be handled quickly and Killer opened one of the windows so he didn't choke on any of it. He dragged the comforter off the bed and stuck it out the window before beating it with a bone attack to knock the dust free. Once finished he did the same with the pillows before settling into the bed with a sigh. He'd clean the rest another time, but for now this would be enough for him to sleep without dying from suffocating on dust bunnies.
Sighing, he thought over the sudden shift his life had taken and how much this changed. He quickly moved away from that thought process when he started to wonder if he could make up for what he had done and buried his face in a pillow to force himself to sleep. There was no making up for his sins, but he sure as hell wasn't going to let it show.
He sighed once more as he finally slipped off to sleep.