So...

I happened to find this thing about Joku being...Well, not the nicest person, or the best friend.

Aaaaannndd...

It was a link in a comment string on Nyx's Wistfully (Dream's theme for underverse), and somebody mentioned how Dream and Nightmare were pretty much adopted by the fandom.

But somebody else pointed out that Dream and Nightmare are still technically Joku's.

And from what little I've seen about Joku I don't think they would want to be owned by her.

I don't want to say Joku is a terrible person since I've never actually interacted with her in any way, but I can say this:

Nightmare had horrible experiences in his past with people who seem nice but are actually assholes. That's the whole reason he ate those apples.

And Dream...I don't think he'd appreciate it either after what happened.

So...

​​​​​​​After brief inspiration, I decided to write this.

And I know I'm probably going to get some flack for it, but hey. It's free internet space.

*Insert 'its free real estate' meme here*

​​​​​​​Besides I like making people disproportionately evil for plot purposes. It helps when I don't know much about the person.

"Dream! Dream, wake up!"

Dream groaned and opened his eye sockets. He'd stayed up late the previous night, trying to get a gift for his brother that he wouldn't immediately toss out.

Why did Ink have to wake him up so early?

"Come on, Dream! The others are waiting!" Ink was practically vibrating in excitement. What was he up to?

"Others?" Dream murmured. "What others? Blue?"

"Yeah, and-" Ink broke off, grabbing the trashcan near Dream's bed and vomiting his namesake. Judging by the amount of residue still around his mouth, it wasn't the first time this morning. "Just- Come on!"

Dream's weak protests went unanswered as Ink pulled him out of his bed and dragged him outside. "Ink, please- I'm exhausted- Where even are we-" He stopped. "...Going...?"

They were in the Doodle Sphere.

"Could someone please tell me what the fuck is happening?" Nightmare grumbled. He and Blue were floating awkwardly between a couple of AUs.

Dream recognized one of them.

Dreamtale.

And it was changing.

"You two know about your creator, Joku?" Ink asked.

Nightmare and Dream glanced at each other.

"Sadly," Dream sighed. "I used to think she was great, but..."

"She's the reason I ended up eating those apples," Nightmare said flatly. "And technically, since I'm making everyone miserable, by extension she is the cause of everyone's suffering." He sounded gleeful at that last part; probably because he thought Joku would feel guilty about that. Having not met her in person, it was hard to say.

"Well," Ink said, "Apparently you two aren't the only ones she's hurt. And you guys have a lot of fans in the creator's realm that don't like her."

Dream blinked.

He glanced at the island for his AU. On each island, there was a little mark that denoted who created it. Sometimes it was the creator's watermark in the grass, other times it was a name.

Joku's signature was rippling and fading.

"Wh-where is this story going?" Dream asked nervously.

Ink grinned. "Don't you see? Joku isn't your guy's 'mom' anymore! The fandom is adopting you!"

Nightmare squinted at him. "Wait, what?"

A flash of light came from the island, forcing the four skeletons to look away.

When it was gone, Joku's signature was replaced with the name of a very familiar group.

The Undertale Community

A chorus of voices filled Dream's head, and by the shocked look on NIghtmare's face, he knew he wasn't the only one.

"We finally did it! We won!"

"​​​​​​​You don't deserve someone like her."

​​​​​​​"You two are such unique characters; Joku doesn't get to keep you to herself."

"You guys will be safe with us."

"​​​​​​​And now, Underverse can be finished without any problems from that trouble maker!"

"I can't wait to tell everyone the good news!"

"I just hope we don't end up messing with their characters the way UnderSwap got messed up..."

"Ok but legit common Fanon interpretations of Dream are adorable, and Nightmare is hot."

"Did you guys not understand when I said they were going to be able to hear you or nah-"

"...Oops~"

"...Senpai~"

"AAAAND WE'RE DONE HERE! Good luck, Dream and Nightmare! Just wanted you guys to know that you're no longer in the hands of Joku!"

And with that last proclamation, the voices cut off.

Ink grinned at them.

"How does it feel to have an entire fandom on your side?"

Dream didn't answer.

It felt...

Almost like freedom.

Like he could do whatever he wanted.

But of course, the rules of the multiverse still applied. He couldn't magically go back to the time before shit started and fix everything with a snap of his fingers, but...

He felt more determined.

He could help his brother.

And of course, Nightmare had to ruin the moment.

"​​​​​​​It feels like I could send a few hundred AUs into despair just by thinking about it."

"Brother!"

"No seriously. I'm going to try."

"So long as you can't turn invisible through sheer force of will," Ink laughed.

This entire time, Blue was quietly grinning in the metaphorical corner. As he watched them, his smile widened.

"Happy birthday," he told the twins. "I'm glad you two could get away from your toxic creator."

Dream and Nightmare glanced at each other. For the first time in many years, they were in agreement.

"Me too."

​​​​​​​Again I'm not really trying to say Joku is a horrible person I'm just focusing on the bad stuff I've heard-

In reality I try to be careful about trusting one thing but it works for this so I'm just going to...yeah

Happy holidays!