(Do you guys know how hard it is to... go back and read old oneshots? I'm talking about my old account. Who the hell authorized the publication of those oneshots? They were so cringey and just.... BLEH.)

The festival was back in town, but because it was such a special occasion, there were lots of people attending it.

As such, the festival was quite a social hotspot. It was noisy, lively, and packed with people-- both humans and monsters alike. Music blared through the speakers set up throughout the fairgrounds, but because of the different kinds of music coming from the various different carnival games and stands, it wasn't as pleasant to the group of skeleton monsters making their way along the road.

Cross lingered at the back of the trio, keeping a sharp eye out for anyone who looked dangerous. He knew Nightmare was capable of defending himself, so he didn't have to worry about him. He was more worried about Dream. Nightmare was too, even if he didn't say it. It was obvious by how he was holding Dream's hand and refused to let go. Cross hadn't been expecting them to stop without warning, and as he hadn't had his eyes on them, he walked right into their backs.

"What's wrong?" Cross asked, instinctively going to reach for his weapon.

"It's nothing," Dream quickly said. "Let's keep walking. We're supposed to meet up with Ink and Error."

Nightmare had followed Dream's gaze over to the one carnival game. It was a ring toss booth with several dolls and stuffed animals lined up on the shelves and wall. Nightmare glanced at Dream's face and recognized that longing expression he had. He used one of his tentacles to hide his grin, trying to muffle his snickers as much as possible.

"It looks like some people are playing ring toss over there," Nightmare said. "Why don't we go watch for a bit? Error said he and Ink got caught up somewhere."

"S-Sure!" Dream chirped, looking a bit surprised. "I didn't think you liked ring toss?"

"I don't, but it's the most entertaining stall here," he replied.

Nightmare shook his head, chuckling some more as Dream pulled him over to the stall. The Guardian of Positivity stood on his tiptoes to try and see over them, being on the shorter side. Nightmare grabbed Cross's arm with one of his tentacles, tugging him along. The two weren't really paying attention to the game going on, as they were both occupied with watching Dream. The shortest monster continued to stare at the various prizes out on display.

"Oh, that bear is really cute...." Dream mumbled to himself. "I want one too...."

Cross followed the little guardian's gaze over to the wall of stuffed animals. Dream's eyes were fixed on a medium-sized teddy bear, one that was white and yellow. Its head and body were white, the arms and legs yellow. The insides of the ears and the muzzle/snout were yellow, too. There was a darker yellow bow on its chest, which had polka dots along the fabric. Cross and Nightmare shared a glance, like they were having a conversation with their eyes only.

"Excuse me, ma'am," Cross said to the stall owner as he stepped up. "I'd like to participate please."

The owner of the game stall nodded and took his payment. She called out to her coworker, who went in the back and grabbed three rings for him to use. Cross turned one of them over in his hands, trying to get a feel for them. He could tell they were made from bamboo. He got it on the marker on his first try.

"Cross, you're amazing!!" Dream gasped, eyes taking the shape of stars.

"Meh... anyway...." Cross trailed off, signaling to the one Dream had been looking at. "Here. Are we ready to go now?"

Cross didn't spare the teddy bear a glance as he passed it over to Dream, who was waiting expectantly. Nightmare, however, could see the faint purplish blush that was tinting his cheeks. He reached over, tapping Cross on the arm. The ex-royal guard looked over at his boss with a questioning look. Nightmare smiled at him innocently.

"What is it, Nightmare?" He asked him. "Is that not the right one?"

"I want one too," Nightmare told him. "Pleeeeease?"

".... Which one do you want?" He questioned, glancing back at the prizes. "Tell me!"

"Any of them will do, I just want it to be from you," he replied. "..... Preferably that octopus one."

~~~~

"Nightmare? Are you awake?"

Nightmare looked up from his book when he heard Cross's voice. The ex-royal guard had opened up the bedroom door a bit, just enough to lean his upper body into the room. When he saw that the head of the castle was still awake, he welcomed himself in. Normally he would lash out at anyone who entered his bedroom without permission, but it was late at night, and he didn't feel like yelling.

"What do you want, Cross?" Nightmare asked. "You're usually in bed by now."

"I couldn't sleep. Guess you can't either?" Cross responded, then noticed Dream. "He's out like a light. Did you use that sleeping spell on him again?"

"No. I try not to do that," he sighed as he glanced over at his brother. "He's exhausted after being at the festival all day. Can't say anything about it, really. My social tolerance is drained."

Cross chuckled as he walked over to the bed. He was careful to make sure he didn't wake Dream up, moving the sleeping guardian into his lap. He had the teddy bear that Cross had won for him earlier tucked in his arms and cuddled up to his chest. Nightmare scooted over to Cross, leaning against him. Cross couldn't help but smile at him.

"Oh? Do you want some affection too?" He asked him, mostly teasing about it.

"W-What? No!" Nightmare responded, his shoulders raising a bit. "Why would I want your stupid affection!?"

Cross couldn't help but laugh at the tsundere reaction that came from the other guardian. He took notice of how the plushie that Nightmare had wanted, which was one of those invertible octopus plushies, was placed atop his head. He pulled Nightmare closer, pulling him down with him to lay on the bed. Nightmare gave him a skeptical look.

"What's that look for?" Cross asked him. "I'm not gonna do anything to you. Dream's gonna be pissed if you go another night without sleeping, though."

Nightmare groaned as he realized that was true. He momentarily glared down at Dream, who was still sleeping away. The shorter guardian cared a great deal about his brother, anyone could tell that from their basic interactions alone. He'd nearly lost it that morning when he found out Nightmare hadn't slept at all. Nightmare wrapped his tentacles around Dream and hoisted his body over to him, wrapping his arms around his protectively as he laid him down between the two of them.

Cross pulled the blanket over the three of them, resting his chin by the top of Dream's head. He mumbled a 'goodnight' to the two as he closed his eyes, one arm draped over Dream's side. Nightmare growled under his breath for a few seconds, but was quick to pipe down. He eyed Cross's other arm, which was draped across the pillows, and rested his head into his hand.

Cross internally squealed when he felt that, breaking out of his sleep-inducing trance.