Nightmare's boys giving him Crow trash/autistic pocket wonders as gifts pt.2:
Horror brings him a snail shell from the garden.
Nightmare looks up from his book, trying not to look as startled as he is by the sudden voice and aura of excitement in such close vicinity. Horror has a way of sneaking up on people, for as big a monster as he's become by now.
"Din't mean to startle ya, boss." He only looks mildly apologetic. Still, genuine enough.
It's at this point that he realizes his tendrils are sharpened and raised over his shoulders in preparation to attack. He forces himself to relax, sighing a little. "It's quite alright, I was simply engrossed in my literature."
"Quite, but rather eloquent..." Nightmare blinks at him, observing the soil between his joints and dirtying the cuffs of his sleeves. He's holding something. Right, "did you need something?"
"Oh, yeah, I found this." Horror opens up his hand, showing off a small, round shell. It's a light brown, unassuming. "It's a snail shell."
The corpse of a small land mollusk. He recalls finding them with his brother under mossy logs or along their mother's roots
"I know," Horror says softly. "They're born with these shells, then they leave em behind. Isn't that somethin..."
"That it is. Something." He's not entirely sure what happens when he dies, you know, on account of never having done it before. Though, if he had to venture a guess, it'd be something like the death of an ordinary monster. Nothing but dust left behind. Maybe his true form would survive undamaged, maybe he'd simply pop right back up somewhere else, maybe he wouldn't dust at all. He's much more keen on testing that theory with a certain ray of sunshine than himself, however.
"The corpse of this land mollusk?"
"Uh... yeah?" Horror laughs a little. Amusement wafts off him. Nightmare doesn't understand what he finds so funny...
Night scoffs, looking at the small shell within Horror's grasp. It's... he's unsure what exactly to think about it. "Hm, fine. I'll accept it."
Horror grins at him, closing his hand and moving to turn away. Nightmare grabs him by the wrist and squints at him. Horror seems even more amused by this. "What's up?"
"Where... I thought you were offering it to me?"
"It's covered in dirt, I was just gonna wash it off fore I gave it to you."
"You act as if I've never touched a little dirt before," Mare huffs.
Horror's amusement grows by the second. It's irritating. "Kings rarely do."
Nightmare rolls his eye, "some kings. Foolish ones." He holds out his hand.
Horror places the little shell in his palm, smiling. It looks much bigger in his palm than it did in Horror's. He thinks of where he'll put it... a shadowbox, maybe? A shelf...? He can think of a few shelves...
"Only of how ridiculous you mortals are..."
Nightmare prickles, scowling at him, "that's frivolous. You forget yourself."
