Nikaro

Nikaro, who frequently goes by the nickname Painter, is a nightmare painter on Komashi who falls in love with and helps free the yoki-hijo Yumi.
== Appearance and Personality ==
Nikaro is a twenty-one year old man with long, black hair that reaches his shoulders. He keeps his hair long, thinking it takes less effort and is more impressive. He looks Veden, but with pale skin not seen much on Roshar. A lanky build, he dresses with an untucked shirt, and a long, knee-length cloak.
He tries to convince himself he is a lone hunter, and that he is happy being by himself without friends, but this isn't true, and he is hoping his old friends will ask him to join them.
== Attributes and Abilities ==
Nikaro was the single best artist in his year. Akane claims Nikaro is the best, most talented artist she's ever seen. Yumi first thought he was a lazy painter, but is later blown away at his skill when she sees the masterpieces he drew in his portfolio. After failing to join the dreamwatch, despite his skills with the brush, he spent most of his time drawing nothing but 'bamboo'. He claimed it was efficient, something that meant more to him these days.
== History ==
Nikaro is from a small town, a few hours away from Kilahito. He spent most of his life prior to heading to Kilahito, training to become a painter, practising since he could first hold a brush. His dream was to become a member of the Dreamwatch, and planned for his friends to become his companions. He trained under three different mentors and was afraid at first.
One year into his training, he applied for the Dreamwatch, but was unsuccessful. Not wanting to disappoint his friends however, he lied and told them he had been accepted. He spent most of his free time after that sitting in the library, staring at a wall, uncertain with what to do. Eventually his friends found out about his deception and the friendship ended. Nikaro continued to work as a painter, but would always work alone, though Akane continued to be friendly with him.
After work one day, Nikaro is walking home when he sees evidence of a nightmare. Though he had finished his shift, he went after the nightmare and finds a nearly full stable nightmare in the home of a young boy and his parents. After chasing away the nightmare, Nikaro faints and wakes up in a strange place with a girl named Yumi. Nikaro first assumed he was in a dream but quickly concludes that instead he came from the daystar. Nikaro discovers he seemed to have taken on Yumi's appearance, and without meaning too breaks Yumi's rituals when her attendants try to feed him, believing him to be her.
Yumi gets angry at Nikaro for his actions, and he quickly convinces her that he is not a spirit after all, but lies that he is a hero that was sent to help fix the problem with the Spirits. He tries to explain what has happened to him and Yumi to Liyun, but Liyun doesn't believe him and he instead follows Yumi's instructions and apologizes. Yumi and Nikaro discover that there is some sort of sharp electric sensation whenever they touch, as well as the fact that they can't move further than 10 feet apart. During the morning ritual bathing, they accidentally touch each other and have the same sensation, this time seeming to exchange emotions as well. Exhausted after this, he soon falls asleep and wakes up in his apartment.
Finding Yumi is now on his world, Nikaro being the incorporeal one now, but Yumi still looking like herself. The Foreman Sukishi knocked on his door and Yumi had to answer it, the foreman seemed surprised to see a girl answer the door and inquires about Nikaro's absence at work. Yumi says that he was sick and hunting a stable nightmare. He leaves and right after Akane steps out into the hallway and is also surprised to see a girl there. Yumi incorrectly first assumed Akane was one of Nikaro's concubines and addresses her as one. When Akane departs, Yumi works out that Nikaro is not actually the hero he said, and she becomes angry with him. Eventually she falls asleep and they both wake up back on Yumi's world.
With Yumi's instruction Nikaro apologizes to Liyun for collapsing the day before and Nikaro starts to get annoyed with the way Yumi is treating him. During the ritual bathing they get into a staring contest and Nikaro earns a measure of respect from Yumi. She explains her plan to try and contact the spirits, but Nikaro leaves the spring while they are still insulting each other. Afterward they arrive at the shrine in the village and Yumi gets Nikaro to say the six ritual prayers. Yumi has to poke him to keep him awake once they're finished and Nikaro attempts to stack stones, failing miserably.
After Nikaro eventually falls back asleep they arrive back in Nikaro's world and Yumi tries to explain to him what he did wrong, eventually she decides she'll have to teach him. Painter remembers the stable nightmare and the family, and argues that they should make sure it was dealt with. After Yumi showers they leave to the foreman's office and Yumi tells him but Nikaro realized the foreman wouldn't believe them and they left. They leave and go back to Nikaro's apartment but run into Akane who offers to help Yumi, Yumi accepts with grateful tears.
Yumi and Akane go shopping and Nikaro just follows behind, eventually they leave and Yumi takes up Akane's offer to hang out with her and her friends Izzy, Tojin and Masaka. They go the Noodle Pupil and Nikaro decides he doesn't want to be around his friends and goes to the front counter. Design comes out and drops a bowl of noodles in shock as she sees Nikaro and thinks he is dead. Nikaro and Yumi pretend to help clean up so that they can talk with her, they explain to Design what was happening and their theory that Yumi is from the star. Design explains how Yumi is very Invested and says she will try to help, but that it is more up Hoid's alley. Unfortunately for them, Hoid happens to currently be frozen in time. Eventually they go back to Nikaro's apartment and he tries to keep her awake with a Hion program, but she was determined to get back and do some work.
Nikaro and Yumi go back to her world and Yumi prepares Nikaro to apologize to Liyun for their failure as they do the ritual bathing. Nikaro is a little annoyed at Yumi's strictness after feeling like they were starting to connect better. Through Nikaro, Yumi explains to Liyun that they will need practice and time to restore her skills. Later at the shrine Yumi starts to teach Nikaro by picking up stones and trying to find its center of gravity and how it could be balanced. Yumi explains they will likely spend days practicing this.
Afterwards, both Yumi and Nikaro are tired from a full day of teaching, and they fall asleep and wake up back in Nikaro's world. While Yumi takes a shower, Nikaro plays around with learning to control the 'souls' of his clothing. Yumi is able to touch the Hion lines in the thermostat to heat the room, they discuss plans and Nikaro doesn't think its a good idea for Yumi to try and find the stable nightmare. Nikaro gets a letter saying he's on a month of unpaid leave for neglecting his duties. Painter starts to teach Yumi how to paint bamboo in case of an emergency. They practise for a while and Yumi tells Akane she is studying when Akane invites her out with friends.
After eleven days, Yumi decides Nikaro is ready to start stacking stones, Nikaro is able to make a few small stacks and admits Yumi's training was helpful. Yumi explains that they will need more complicated stacks to attract spirits, so they continue to practise. Yumi joins in with Painter by stacking the souls of the stones, Nikaro notices she seems very passionate about it. He also realizes how difficult the experience must have been for her and starts to empathize with her more. They soon notice a disturbance and find that the scholars of the Institute of Mechanical Solutions in Torio city have arrived with a machine that can stack rocks.
== Relationships ==
=== Yumi ===
Painter first meets Yumi when they body swap for the first time, and at first, she believes he is some sort of hero sent by the spirits to help them. Painter at first pretends that he is the hero she was looking for, but after experiencing his lifestyle when she swaps into his body, she realizes he was lying. Though she gets very annoyed with him, over time they learn to work together. Helping each other through the problems they face and growing together. Over the course of time they spend together, they fall in love as they get through challenges together and teach each other how to live in their separate worlds.
=== Akane ===
Nikaro and Akane were good friends back during their time in school. She and the other members of their group of friends were devastated when they discovered Nikaro's lie about getting into the dreamwatch, and thus their friendship was badly damaged. Years afterwards, Akane stayed somewhat friendly with Nikaro, though he chose to stay away from them, never seeking forgiveness. Eventually when the entire city of Kilahito is in danger, Nikaro begs Akane and his friends for forgiveness and to help him to save the city. They believed him and work together to save the city, forgiving Nikaro in the process.
=== Tojin ===
When in upper school Tojin and Nikaro were both in a group of friends including Akane, Izzy and Masaka. Nikaro and Tojin were friends until Tojin discovered Nikaro's lie about getting into the dreamwatch. Afterward Nikaro and Tojin never really interacted with each other, until a stable nightmare attacked them. Though Nikaro didn't have a physical form at that time he saved Tojin, Tojin later said he had felt Nikaro's presence and knew he had saved him. When Nikaro asked for his friends' help he was the first to agree, and at the battle of Kilahito he was the first after Nikaro to take up the battle cry "We are the dreamwatch now."
=== Masaka === 
Nikaro met Masaka at upper school when she joined his group of friends. She is usually anti-social and wears lots of clothing. She had once made Nikaro a hat for his birthday.. Though Nikaro did not learn until later, Masaka previously used the name Chinikdakordich, and is the sixtieth horde of the Natricatich strain of Sleepless. Masaka later helps out Nikaro and Yumi as they try to map out the outside world, though Nikaro is invisible to her at that time.
=== Izzy ===
Izzy, also known as Izumakamo, became friends with Nikaro and the others in upper school. She is an eccentric nightmare Painter and has a fascination with Hion. Along with the others she believed that Painter had joined the dreamwatch, and became very distrustful of him when they discovered he had lied. Later when Nikaro asked his friends to help him at first she was against it, but with Tojin's convincing she decided to help. During the battle of Kilahito Izzy froze at one point and was saved when Nikaro pushed her away and drew a bird to push back the nightmare.
=== Liyun ===
Nikaro first meets Liyun after he swaps with Yumi for the first time, Liyun believes that he is Yumi and treats her as so. Nikaro dislikes Liyun for a while thinking of her as too controlling. Though he does warm up to her a little over time.. Later he learns that Liyun is the stable nightmare he had met just prior to meeting Yumi. He asks her to give a picture to Yumi, and after a little convincing she said she'd try.
=== Design ===
Design is the manager of the Noodle Pupil and is a Cryptic from Roshar who bonded with Hoid. They travelled to that system and Hoid froze, and Design started the shop. She would often see Nikaro whenever he stops by after work. When Nikaro first enters the noodle pupil with Yumi is surprised as she believed Nikaro was dead. They explained to her what was happening and she was able to give them more information, she continues to help them out before eventually giving ownership of the shop to them.
=== Sukishi ===
Sukishi is an old nightmare painter foreman in Kilahito. Sukishi has a low opinion of Nikaro as he knows about Nikaro's lie of joining the dreamwatch, and he often berates him about using bamboo all the time in his paintings. Nikaro doesn't really seem to care much at all, and this led to Sukishi not believing Yumi when she said Nikaro had seen a stable nightmare.
=== Mrs. Shinja ===
Mrs. Shinja lives in the same apartment complex as Nikaro. She showers at about nine o'clock every morning and is known to be very possessive of the hot water. Nikaro has gotten used to being careful with using the hot water as well as showering at nine o'clock lest he anger her.
== Notes ==
;References
es:Nikaro
category: Viewpoint characters