Archive of Our Own ^beta

Another night. Another terrifying sleep paralysis dream. No matter what you did, how consistent your sleep schedule was or how you watched what you eat before going to bed, sleep paralysis would find you. It wasn't your fault, truly. It was the monster's fault. Nightmarionne. You were still unsure if that was the name it gave itself or it was given to it.

It sat on top of your stomach, staring down at you. You move your mouth to speak, but as usual, nothing comes out but a quiver of your lips; Nightmarionne was in your head, so the inability to speak was never an issue.

"Hello to you too, my dear." It leans down until you can feel its cold breath on your face. It stunk of death. "Your heart is pounding quite fast. Do you perhaps have a little crush on me?"

It caresses your face lovingly. "You're so silly, falling for a nightmare. You know this won't end well for you." It chuckles, knowing full well that was not why your heart was racing. Okay well maybe it was a factor, but you were mainly terrified. That's just how sleep paralysis worked. You could see Nightmarionne a hundred more times, and you'd still be in this state.

It tilts its head. "You want to meet normally? That's no fun. I like to see the terror in your eyes." It stares at your lips as you talk. "Halloween… Yes, that'd be the perfect time to come see you. You might find me in the haunted houses you visit. I will be a special attraction, just for you."

It boops your nose and kisses you deeply. It was a gross, open mouthed kiss. You could only reciprocate so much when you could hardly move your mouth. Its tongue slid greedily down your throat before pulling it back, licking its teeth and squinting its eyes at you.

It chortles at your complaints. "I know, but you were just so vulnerable… I needed a taste." Its tentacles wrap around your neck and head, tilting your face upwards a little. "I want to taste your teeth next. …No, it's not gross. Stop complaining."

Its tongue sliiides across your teeth, the sharp tip wedging between a few of the gaps and picking out any pieces of food you missed. You shivered when it reached into your back molars, circling them like sharks before pushing against them like it was trying to loosen them. You try to wiggle out of its grasp, but static overtakes your body before locking you in place again. You would just have to endure this weird, invasive dentist appointment.

Nightmarionne as your dentist… That would just be a nightmare, no pun intended. You imagined greeting it in the office and laying down for it under that bright florescent light and on that loud, crinkly paper. It didn't need tools, it had all it needed in the form of its tentacles. It would rip out your wisdom teeth without offering you anesthesia. It would drill into your cavities without remorse.

Nightmarionne laughs, pulling away from your face. "You have an active imagination. Do you like imagining me in uniform?"

You glare at it and that was enough to send it into a laughing fit. Though, yes. The uniform did look cute on it. Unfortunately.

"This is why I like you so much, you're just too entertaining to leave alone!!" It wipes an imaginary tear from its eye and settles down a bit. Now, it just stares at you.

You stare back at it, uneasiness mixed with fear stirring in your belly. Silence from this surprisingly sassy nightmare is never a good sign. Whatever it did next would be completely out of left field.

"You know what I like most about you in this state?" Oh here it comes. "It is like you are dying. Like you are in rigor mortis. Even I can't move you too much."

Can this thing stop being a freaky creep for two seconds…

Its tentacles wrap around your paralyzed limbs, and it tries to bend your joints, but they wouldn't budge. Your limbs threatened to snap under the strength of its manipulating, but they held firm. If this were the real world, your bone would fracture, and your ligaments and muscle would tear. It would eat the skin off your bone if it had the chance.

It lets you go, and your arm drops beside you like a corpse. "It's… Tantalizing. Irresistible. I just have to have you."

You ask a question, and its grin widens.

"It's not the time to be thinking about your death, now. Not for you, anyway. For me…" It licks its teeth again, its eyes blowing out as it imagines your untimely demise. "I will be waiting for that time. You would never be getting rid of me then. For now, I will have you like this."

It drags its teeth against your neck and licks your jaw. Tentacles wrap around your body and squeeze tightly, robbing you of air. You were suffocating, and the room suddenly shrinking to just the two of you didn't help anything. The sound of your own heavy breaths filled your ears before you woke in a sweat, jumping out of bed and gasping for air.

You grab your throat, feeling the absence of tentacles and your own quickened pulse against your fingers. You close your eyes, just letting yourself breathe for a moment before turning and letting your legs hang off the bed. You look down at your hands and…

God damn, you just couldn't get enough of that thing. Its touch lingers, tickling the hairs on your arms. Your throat was slick and cold, like how it felt when that thing licked it. You wanted to go back to sleep again already.

Your face flushed at the thought. It would surely tease you even more if you were to go back now… It may make it even worse for you and not show up at all, just to punish you for being too greedy. That seemed like a very Nightmarionne thing to do, even if it was just as greedy as you. (It would never admit it, the bastard.)

You had the perfect haunted house picked out for this year too… It was one you were very familiar with. You went to it every year, even worked as a scare actor a few times.

You would see Nightmarionne there, and who knows what will happen then?

Though, there is something you still needed to admit.

Nightmarionne cleaned the hell out of your teeth. You spotted no plaque and no crumbs in the mirror. Maybe it really should seek out a job as a dentist.