Nia furrows her eyebrows at Dream, wondering why that is the first thing he tells her, but she accepts it with a nod.

"Why is that?" she questions, sitting on the edge of a cliff she found in the Dream SMP. It provides an amazing view of both the SMP and Manburg. "I mean, is there any context or do you just want me to forget you even said that? Or should I guess? Because I'd rather not."

Dream laughs, sitting down next to Nia. They haven't seen each other in a few days and before that, they've been apart for years . . . but Dream still feels comfortable enough to take off his mask in her presence and relax.

It makes Nia doubt everything that Wilbur told her about Dream. How come the man that's sitting next to her changed into a tyrant? He never seemed the type.

But really, right now, Nia is the only person who has known Dream before Tommy and before L'Manburg. And then she disappeared. She never witnessed everything Dream had done to hurt some of the people in the SMP.

Dream doesn't realize it himself, but the simple fact itself brings him comfort. That there is at least one person in the entire SMP that knows only the good - or, well, better - parts of him.

The blonde props himself up on his elbows, basically dropping into the grass. Luckily, his hoodie is lime green, and does in no way blend with the natural greenery. Although, admittedly, it would be funny.

"I don't know if I can tell you," Dream responds.

Nia turns her head to look at him, staring into his green eyes. She's not impressed with his secrecy, giving him a bored look.

"I know Wilbur met up with you because he needed TNT, Dream," Nia tells the man at once.

"Oh," he says, pushing himself up, sitting taller than Nia. "I thought only Tommy knew," he elaborates later on. "He wanted Wilbur to give him the TNT."

"I'm guessing you stepped in?"

"Yeah, that's when Wilbur called me Daddy Dream."

For a moment, Nia stays quiet, staring Dream in the eyes. He raises an eyebrow at her, and she bursts out laughing, clutching her stomach.

Dream starts laughing, too, a wheeze coming out of his lips. Nia laughs even more, having forgotten Dream's laugh does that. It's somehow hilarious and adorable at the same time.

"I can't decide if it's better, worse, or on the same level as Big D," Dream continues talking once they both slowly calm down.

Nia has to contain her laughs, shaking her head. "What is it with the people in this SMP?" she asks, slightly disappointed but definitely not surprised.

"I don't know," Dream chuckles, shaking his head.

The blonde lies back down on the grass, putting his hands under his head to prop it up. Nia glances at him and smiles, the thought of everything Wilbur has told her still lingering in her head.

"Can I ask you something?"

Nia has never been the kind of person to beat about the bush. She prefers being direct and straight to the point. It makes a lot of things easier that way. And it was something she wasn't exactly allowed to do as a princess before.

"Sure," Dream raises an eyebrow at the girl.

"Wilbur told me why they formed L'Manburg," she says, turning her whole body to face Dream rather than staring off into the distance. She wants to see his expressions and body language as he responds.

"Oh, that thing," Dream chuckles, waving his hand in the air. Almost like it's nothing. "They wanted to separate from the filthy Americans." He looks up at the sky, eyeing the clouds with a smile that clearly says it's ridiculous.

"But George isn't American-"

"I know!"

"But this also isn't the point . . ." Nia shakes her head. "Wilbur said you were treating them poorly after they came here and joined the Dream SMP."

"Well . . ." Dream starts, turning his head to look Nia in the eyes. "To be fair, Tommy was constantly acting like an annoying child."

"And everyone else? What about Tubbo?"

"Tubbo is Tommy's best friend. He was helping him. That was really his own fault that he got involved."

"Because he wanted to help a friend?"

"Yes."

"Okay, so . . . let's say, if you were to do something and George decided to side with you and then got hurt because the person on the opposing side doesn't care, you'd think that's okay?"

"No, of course, I wouldn't."

Nia gives Dream a look, pursing her lips. "You'd retaliate, am I right?"

"Obviously."

"So, imagine Tubbo is George in this scenario."

Dream sighs, shaking his head. "Besides Tommy's discs, Tubbo is one of the only other things Tommy cares about. I wouldn't hurt him if it wasn't necessary."

Nia cocks her head to the side. "Necessary?"

"Yes," Dream responds. "Sometimes, people need to know who's the person in control."

He really has changed, Nia realizes. This isn't something the Dream she used to know would have said. He was never intent on hurting anybody whether it was necessary or not. He never wanted power either. He just wanted a peaceful community.

Where has the idea of the peaceful land that Dream wanted gone?

"Is something wrong?" Dream asks, oblivious to the meaning behind the words he's spoken. He looks at the dark-haired woman.

So many things, Nia wants to reply. But she doesn't. She shakes her head instead and smiles.

"I tried to stop L'Manburg from forming in the first place, you know? I offered Eret the kingship to the Dream SMP in exchange for betraying them."

Nia bites her bottom lip. "I've been told you let go of trying to stop them the moment Tommy offered one of his discs to you in return for independence." Raising an eyebrow at Dream, she examines him as he looks back at her. "Why are the discs so important anyway?"

"I don't like Tommy," Dream replies. "And the discs are the one thing that gives me an advantage. They make sure that I have control over Tommy whenever he gets too annoying."

"So, it's about power."

"It's always about power, Nia."

"Dream-" Nia wants to tell him that she disagrees with his views and that power easily corrupts the best of people. Which has clearly happened to him. But she's interrupted and doesn't get to express her opinion aloud.

"Dream! Thank fuck you're here!"

Sapnap runs up to the blonde and Nia from the forest. It takes him a moment to realize that Dream isn't wearing his mask and that there's a woman sitting next to him.

The dark-haired boy cocks his head to the side and eyes Nia for a while. He examines her dark hair with the white streaks, her honey-colored skin and the dark brown eyes that stare back at him.

"I know you," Sapnap says, squinting his eyes at Nia.

"Good to see you, too, Sapnap," Nia greets him with a mock salute.

She examines the boy, seeing he looks older than when she last saw him, obviously. However, his dark hair is still the same, and so is the stupid white bandanna around his head. She wonders if Dream and George sometimes joke about the bandanna possibly being too tight and blocking the blood flow to his brain whenever he does something stupid.

She used to do it, and the two aforementioned boys always laughed.

"Queenie?"

"She goes by Nia now," says Dream, his voice nearly mocking. He doesn't even bother to sit up and look at his best friend.

"I haven't seen you in years!" Sapnap exclaims, his eyes wide. "You look older! And your hair . . . your hair's different!"

Nia laughs, shaking her head. "You look the same, Sapnap; still like a fifteen-year-old at best. But thanks."

Dream wheezes, sitting up to see Sapnap's hurt expression properly. The younger boy glares at Nia and averts his attention to Dream instead.

"Well, anyways, I saw Schlatt and his suck-ups walking on the borders of Manburg, talking about expanding the country through the Dream SMP."

"What the fuck?" Dream mumbles under his breath.

"I miss Wilbur being president," says Sapnap, shaking his head. "They just stayed behind those ugly walls of theirs and that was it."

"I guess I have to go take care of this."

Dream looks at Nia, grabbing his white mask. Standing up, he puts it on, making his presence much more ominous, especially as he unsheathes his axe and grabs a hold of his shield.

"Alright." Nia bites the inside of her cheek, still holding in the piece of her mind she was about to give him, were it not for Sapnap's interruption.

"It was nice talking to you, Nia."

"Yeah, you too."

"Why didn't you tell me she's back?" Sapnap whispers to Dream as they make their way toward Manburg and its borders, further from Nia.

"I didn't think it was that important to you."

Raising an eyebrow, Nia eyes the two men's backs, wondering how she can hear their conversation despite the volume of their voices being low and them being far. Somehow, it carries through the air and the trees, almost like they're playing it all back to her in case she ever needs the information.

"And it's important to you?" Sapnap asks his best friend.

Dream shrugs in response.