Quin woke with the first rays of sun, rubbing the sleep from his face. He almost forgot the teenager in the room until he glanced at the other mattress and saw Sy, bundled in a blanket with pewter hair splayed across the pillow. Quin snickered, ruffled Sy's head, and headed for the shower.

Sy woke to running water, stretched, and padded into the bathroom. With a yawn, he stripped and joined Quin in the shower, the quiet camaraderie between them easy and unhurried.

"Mornin'," The Nightmare greeted as he scratched his tummy sleepily.

"Whoa!" The Unicorn jumped back, hitting the shower wall clumsily. "Good morning? I would have given you a turn in the shower, you know..." He half groaned.

He finished rinsing himself off and handed the glycerin soap to Sy, intending to leave.

"It's all good," Sy said in a sleepy manner as he started to soap up. "I'm used to the public bath houses. I can't remember the last time I bathed alone."

Quin inwardly winced. "Do you...need me to stay, then?" If the Nightmare was uncomfortable bathing alone, then he didn't want to cause him that kind of discomfort.

Sy blinked at the Unicorn, his brain finally waking up. He paused his lathering and stared at Quin.

"Shit," the Nightmare swore as he finally realized it. "You wanted to shower by yourself, didn’t you? Damn, I'm sorry. I wasn't even thinking." He groaned. "I should not be allowed around normal people," he muttered under his breath.

The Nightmare reached for the shower curtain so Sy could leave Quin to finish his shower in peace. He would wipe any leftover soap off himself with his shirt. It needed to be washed anyway.

"Hey, no. Wait," Quin called out as he gently held one of Sy's elbows. "I'm all done." He placed a hand on the Nightmare's hip and carefully maneuvered him until he was back in the spray of the water. He then leaned down to whisper in his ear. "All yours." The blond gave Sy a kiss on the cheek and then gingerly stepped out of the shower to dry himself. "Stay there. I'm going to find you a clean towel." He said as he opened the drawers beneath the sink and retrieved the fluffiest towel he could find, placing it on top of the toilet seat for him.

Sy finished quickly, pushing damp hair from his eyes as he peeked out of the shower.

He was alone.

Sy found the fresh towel and nuzzled his face into its softness for a moment. He smiled, dried himself off, and noticed his clothes missing from the sink. He wrapped the thick towel around his waist.

The Nightmare found Quin in the other room and scooted the mattress so it was no longer in the way.

"Umm, hey." Sy pushed pewter-hued hair out of his eyes again, the towel slipping low on his hips. "My clothes? I don't have anything else. I was going to wash them in the sink and then use what little magic I have to dry them."

"Oh, I put them in the wash," Quin replied. He ended up doing a double take when he saw the state of young Nightmare. Averting his gaze, he handed Sy a set of the smallest clothes he had. "Try these on. If you don't like them, you can always wear your clothes when they've dried."

The Nightmare carelessly dropped the towel and pulled on the clean clothes. They were loose but comfortable. He just had to roll up the pants and sleeves a little.

"These were yours?" Sy asked as he ducked into the bathroom to hang up the towel. "You weren't always a big beefcake?"

Sy perched on the edge of Quin's bed, pulling on socks. Quin tried not to stare, the moment passing between them with an easy familiarity.

"No..." The Unicorn responded. "I was always tall, but skinny."

“You really muscled up,” Sy complimented before patting the bed next to him, inviting the blond to sit.

Quin walked over and sat down beside him. "I had no choice." He admitted. "There were...reasons that I had to learn how to physically defend myself."

"Reasons?" Sy asked, leaning back on his hands.

"Reasons I don't entirely want to talk about right now. Come on, let's get something to eat in the cafeteria and then I'm going to ask around about dream traveling." Quin suggested as he stood back up and headed towards the door.

“Alright,” Sy conceded as he pulled on his boots and stood, still surprised the Unicorn hadn’t tried to jump him yet.

Sy tried to hang back in the cafeteria, but Quin insisted, dragging him along and filling a tray for him. Out of breath, Sy sat down and wondered how he’d pay Quin back.

“The food is cheap and it all just gets added to my college bill.” The Unicorn explained. “It’s fine. Eat.”

Sy awkwardly started in on some crisp meat and eggs. He wondered how he was going to pay the Unicorn back for all of this. It made it hard to swallow, though his stomach continued to grumble in hunger.

After their meal, Quin found a few of his Nightmare friends and asked them which books explained, in detail, everything about dream traveling. His friends were eager to let him borrow three different volumes.

"This is the beginner basics, this one is for manipulating the dreamscape, and this one is for more personal connections." One of the Nightmares said as he handed the books to Quin.

"No rush in returning them, we know them inside and out." Another one piped up.

"Yeah, dream traveling's the best!" The third one agreed.

Quin thanked them all and walked back over to Sy, a broad grin on his face. "Ready to start?"

"Y-yeah," Sy answered, a sick feeling settling in his stomach. His debt to the Unicorn just kept increasing, but he didn't know what else he could do. So, he followed Quin obediently back to the man's room.

They sat cross-legged on Sy’s mattress while Quin flipped through the book of basics. "Alright... I'm remembering now," he murmured, then offered both hands to Sy. "First, I'll pull you into my dream so you can get used to it. That's how we learned. Trust me?"

"Okay..." Sy took Quin's hands, trying not to think too hard about the comforting warmth of the larger hands arounds his.

When the two of them closed their eyes, Quin used his magic to gently tug Sy's subconscious mind into his dreamscape. The two of them were standing on the rocky waterfront of a crystal clear lake surrounded by undisturbed trees.

"Take it all in, five minutes to adjust to the feeling. Feel free to explore or touch the water." The blond stated as he sat down on a boulder.

Dizzy but determined, Sy eased himself down near the lake, sneaking a glance at Quin as the dreamscape settled around them.

The Nightmare still felt a little disoriented.

Sy rolled his eyes at himself. He was supposed to be naturally adept at this. It was just another reminder for Sy that there was really only one thing he was good at, a single marketable skill. He sighed softly as he looked into the clear water.

Quin carefully observed the Nightmare, remembering fully well how queasy it felt to dream travel for the first time. He tried to give Sy some space to recover, but in the end, he walked over and dipped his hands in the cold water and then pressed them to the Nightmare's forehead.

"How are you feeling, little one?" He asked softly as his silvery blue eyes carefully observed the teen.

"Better now." Sy closed his eyes, enjoying the cool hands on his brow. "Thanks." He blinked his color-changing eyes up at the Unicorn, not realizing how endearing he looked. "What now, boss?"

Unable to help himself, the Unicorn leaned down to press a gentle kiss on Sy's lips. "Now, we go back." He whispered against them. A shift was felt as they opened their eyes in their home world. Quin quickly reached out to tug Sy's body snuggly against his to stabilize him. "Are you ok?"

"Just a little... fuck..." The Nightmare slumped in Quin's arms. He looked up at the Unicorn, a blush staining his cheeks. "My arms and legs apparently need a moment." He blew his silvery-dark hair out of his eyes.

A deep chuckle resonated from Quin's chest as he reached down to rake the strands away from the Nightmare's face. "Take all the time that you need. The first few times are always tough. That's why it's easier when you are guided into the dreamscape with help first."

"Sorry, I'm not very good at it." Sy sighed and rested his cheek on Quin's chest. "I'm not much of a Nightmare."

"You're doing fine, Sy," Quin countered. "I really did throw up the first time, and I was limp on the ground for half an hour if I remember correctly."

"You aren't a Nightmare, though," Sy reminded quietly. He forced his legs to hold him and his arms to lift. "Alright, what's next? I'm ready."

This time, the Unicorn gently wrapped his arms around Sy's waist and cradled his head at the nook of his neck and shoulder.

"Here we go." He warned as they once again traveled into his dreamscape.

They were on a cloud near a castle in the sky. The ground was as soft as cotton balls.

"Damn, nice." Sy poked the poofy ground with a toe. "Have you ever fucked on here? It looks like it would be amazing."

Quin let out a snort of amusement. "No, though perhaps I might try to someday. How are you feeling? Can you stand?"

Sy held his arms out for balance as Quin gingerly released him. Though a little wobbly, he managed without nausea and smiled up at his teacher.

"Got it!" the Nightmare said with a grin.

"Well done," The blond replied with a smile of his own. He tugged the Nightmare against him and gave him another kiss, a slightly deeper one, as they traveled back home. "How about now?" He asked as he waited for Sy to assess his limbs.

Sy looked up wonderingly at the Unicorn. He reached up and touched his lips. The blond had kissed Sy before, but the Nightmare had thought it was just a fluke. It was becoming a regular pattern, one that the teenager was enjoying much more than he ought to. Quin was supposed to be his competition, but it was becoming more and more difficult to remember that when the big blond held him.

"I'm, uh... What?" Sy blinked stupidly. "Legs, yes. Good." He stood on his own, but didn't pull away.

"Ready for the last dream travel for today?" Quin questioned. Three was always the max for beginners. He didn't want to push it, seeing as how the two of them would still have to cross over to visit the maiden and his kin.

"Bring it." Sy tried not to let the tremble in his limbs show.

The Unicorn gave him a genuine smile. He once again aligned the both of them in a comfortable manner before sending them both through to the dreamscape. The two of them were then on a shaded beach with white sand and clean waves rolling to the edge.

"Feel free to explore," he said, standing up and helping the Nightmare to his feet. "But don't go too far yet."

Growing steadier, Sy wandered down the beach, curiosity brightening his pace.

"The water should be lukewarm," The Unicorn added as he walked along behind him. "The beaches in our world and the human world rarely have extended shade like this. So, I dreamed an ideal beach up."

Sy smiled, peeking to the side to look at Quin. "You mean we can swim?"

"If you want, you should be stable enough to." The blond replied with a smile.

The Nightmare gave a little happy wiggle before stripping out of his clothes in seconds flat and stowing them on top of a dry rock. He streaked past the Unicorn to bound, splashing into the warm water.

"Gods," Sy said with a laugh. "I haven't been swimming since I was a little kid!"

Quin should have expected the young Nightmare to rush into the water naked, but he still felt a bit of shock seeing Sy rush past without any of his clothing. Feeling a bit defeated, the Unicorn decided to strip, as well, walking until he was waist deep in the water. "Remind me to take you swimming for real in either world." He noted.

Sy splashed, laughter ringing out as he sent a plume of seawater at Quin, playfulness sparking between them.

"Oh, it's on now, little one!" Quin called out as he splashed the Nightmare back playfully.

Sy whooped loudly then dove under the water. He kicked hard, circling behind Quin. He popped up a few feet behind him and began splashing him mercilessly as he crowed in victory.

The taller Unicorn couldn't help but laugh at the Nightmare's antics. He swam up to him and grabbed him around the waist to tug him flush against him.

"Are you quite done, Sy?" He prompted, a smile still on his face.

Sy shook his head slowly, a little smirk on his lips, before spraying a mouthful of water directly into the Unicorn's face.

"If it's like that," Quin responded after backing up a bit. He then dove for the Nightmare and effortlessly lifted him by the hips and tossed him into the water.

Sy squeaked as he was thrown backward, eyes wide. Water went up his nose, and he came up sputtering but laughing.

"Big bully!" Sy called as he paddled away from the Unicorn. "I was just helping you wash your face!"

Startled, Quin swam after him. "Hey, I'm sorry. Did I throw you too hard? I didn't mean to toss you that far..."

The Nightmare let a wave pull him under and swam sneakily toward Quin. The Unicorn was treading water, looking around in distress. He became overcome with worry. Had Sy been too tired to fight the current? The teenager did say that it had been years since he'd last been swimming. Perhaps the little Nightmare just wasn't a strong swimmer. Quin's eyes scanned the water, panic blooming in his gut.