Karma is scared and confused but at least he found dad!...right?

——

DreamSwap Multiverse

Karma was holding his plushy bear in a death grip, the magic coming off it felt like the only thing keeping him somewhat calm right now. He felt like he had been walking for hours but still nothing seemed to change with his surroundings. He narrowed his sockets at a tree, having a sneaking suspicion he had passed this one already.

He abruptly sat on the ground, annoyed that he had no idea where he was. His dad had taken him to so many places, surely there weren't that many multiverses? He cuddled his bear, sniffling in sadness. He wasn't enjoying his holiday anymore..

He stiffened when he felt a multitude of SOULS suddenly appear, shivering in unease. He was tempted to leave but paused as he felt a rather bright one, chirping at the familiarity of it. Hastily getting up he went straight towards the SOULS, pausing as he got to the tree line, hearing a lot of noise occurring.

His smile faltered at all the magic being thrown around and spotting so many monsters but he lit up when he saw something gold. He finally found them!

——-

Dream usually wouldn't be this expressive but he couldn't help the wide grin that came over his face. He was so close to his goal and he just needed the right opening. He scowled as his sword only skimmed Nightmares side, having to swiftly dodge when Cross swung their weapon towards him.

The Meme Squad were so pathetic and he was going to crush them like the ants they were. His perfect world would come true! His eyelights sharpened when he saw Nightmare falter and lunged, having to jump back yet again, when Blue got in his way.

He stood back and glared darkly at Blue, about to ask them what the hell they were doing but frowned as they pointed to the tree line. His skull snapped to where they pointed, just realising he could sense someone nearby. Was this a trap? It was bizarre that Nightmare was able to find yet another member, as their group wasn't really that popular to begin with.

He raised his sword, prepared to cut down the newest pest but faltered when a tiny monster made their way over. He briefly looked at Nightmare, sensing their bafflement as well, so was sure this was their idea. He grew grim when he realised it was a child, as this AU was chosen to limit the number of casualties and should have been uninhabited.

He really thought his rule had eliminated this kind of abuse but it seemed he still missed some scum that needed to be removed, which he would personally deal with. It seemed he would need to retrain his members yet again.

Dream un summoned his weapon once the child got close, discreetly checking them over for any injuries. His wings soon lowered in relief, as it thankfully looked like the child hadn't been alone for long. He crouched down to their level, trusting Ink to have his back if the other side tried anything. Before he could even say anything his jaw fell open, with what the child said.

"Dad! I found you again"

Dream was speechless at the pure happiness that came off them, still frozen when they ran over and wrapped their arms around his neck. He glared when he saw Blue smirk, giving him a rather mischievous look.

"Shut u-"

"..missed you dad"

Dream looked down at the child in bewilderment, his hands still limp by his side, completely lost on how to proceed. His eyelights widened in alarm when they pulled back, sensing their negativity start to grow.

"Dad? What's wrong?..aren't you happy to see me?"

He stuttered as he saw their wings droop, their eyelights starting to wobble in their sockets. When he heard them let out a sad whine his body moved as if on autopilot, gathering them in his arms and standing up, adjusting them to rest on his hip. When he finally realised what he had done, he now had a happily purring babybones in his arms,

Briefly looking away from the child he scowled, as he realised the Meme Squad had escaped..but he couldn't say he regretted it, with the happy chirping child in his arms. He wanted to rule to have a better world, especially for the young. He couldn't help but close his sockets, basking in the vast positivity they were producing, even if it was weird being referred to with such a title. Children had such pure emotions.

"Dad? Can we go home now?"

He looked at them, knowing the misunderstanding couldn't continue.

"I'm not your dad, little one"

He panicked as their demeanour suddenly switched, looking awfully like a kicked puppy. What did he do now?! He rarely interacted with children for this long so he was lost on how to fix this. He was briefly thankful that Blue spoke up, before their words registered in his mind.

"Don't worry, babybones. Your 'dad' is just feeling shy right now. You know what he would really like though?"

Dream was ready to rip Blue a new one when he saw them whisper something to the child, already imagining the worst but was startled when the babybones loudly exclaimed 'daddy'. When they let out a chirp straight after, he instinctively let one out in reply, much to his mortification but at least the child seemed thrilled by it.

"Congratulations on parenthood, Dream! Who knew you had it in you"

He glowered at Blue, cautiously patting the child's skull when they leaned against him.

"I've checked the perimeter, Dream. There is no one apart from us here. What are your orders?"

Dream was glad that at least Ink was still professional.

"We shall head back to headquarters. There is much to discuss"

"And the child? Should I take them to one of the childcare centres?"

Dream clenched his jaw at the suggestion, unconsciously holding the babybones closer to him, when Inks hands reached towards the child.

"No. They shall stay with me"

-

Dream was pacing in his room, occasionally looking at the bed with a conflicted expression on his face. The babybones Karma had happily come with him and was now soundly asleep on his bed but that did not help his dilemma at all.

He might have said they would stay with him but he was pretty clueless about actual child care. He really should have just let Ink take them away...but he had never been looked that way before, as if his mere presence was more than enough. Even Ink had a faint feeling of awe when near him, despite how dull their emotions usually were.

He was a leader, a role model to his people and he had accepted that. He might dislike all the attention but he knew it was the only way to achieve his goal. He knew this affected how everyone saw him and with him also making sure to keep a distance from everyone, due to his unwanted immortality, he grew used to being alone...which was why he was lost at why he felt this way now .

Standing at the end of the bed he looked down at the child, indecision warring within him.

...maybe he could wait a few weeks before he gave them up. Just to make sure they were safe and to see if anyone was looking for them. Feeling more relaxed with a plan now at hand, he sat in the chair beside the window, not planning to sleep tonight. He had far too many things to plan for, not to mention all the items he would need to obtain that a child would require.

-

Dream realised he had been far too panicked that first night and blamed it on all the negativity produced, with fighting against Nightmare. When he had left his room, he realised he could just ask his staff to take care of things, while he went back to his usual tasks. So, he had them set up the room next to his for Karma and left them to it, rarely seeing the child much, apart from dinner time.

He thought this new routine was perfect, allowing him to ignore these unwanted emotions that had begun to form...that was until he noticed their wings.

Dream personally hated when anyone touched his wings, despising the awe and jealousy that would radiate off anyone that was near him. They were the one part of himself he refused to compromise on but this just meant he was more observant to the discomfit Karma was exhibiting as the week went by.

The maids had been helping the child bathe but had reported not going near the child's wings, as they were unsure what to do. Dream had hoped that Karma would know what to do themselves but with how messy their feathers were becoming, he was getting the sinking feeling he would have to intervene.

It was at dinner time that he decided to bring it up, as it was only him and the child eating at the table tonight.

"Karma?"

"Yes, daddy?"

Dream said nothing to the title and soldiered on.

"Would you like me to preen your wings tonight?"

"Yes please"

He was surprised how easy they agreed, until he remembered that the child still thought he was their parent. He had instructed the staff to gently dissuade them of this notion but it seemed it wasn't as successful as he hoped. Keeping his expression neutral he got up when he saw they were done and carefully picked them up, heading for his own bedroom. The bathroom attached was the perfect size for the babybones wings, as he did not feel like going to the larger baths right now.

When he had to deal with his own wings it could take hours to sort them out, so he had a room specially made for him but considering how small the child was, it seemed like a bit of a waste. It also meant he could also ensure their privacy more easily and more importantly avoid Blue, who gossiped far too much for his liking.

If only they weren't so good at their job, he would never have to see them but sadly they were the best, so he would have to deal with all their annoying 'quirks'.

Dream set the child down when he reached his room, instructing them to go to the bathroom and get ready. He made sure they went through the door before removing his coat and rolling up his sleeves on his shirt. Looking around his draws he pulled out his preening kit, one he usually used in case of an emergency and headed for the bathroom.

He faltered when he saw their uncovered bones, having never seen them all before. He grabbed their shoulder, wincing at the dust that clung to his fingers but that was sadly not the most pressing issue. His fingers skimmed the black mark around their neck, never having seen anything like this before. It felt wrong and he sensed emotions coming off it, making him bare his teeth in disgust. This is why he needed to wipe disgusting negativity from his world, otherwise things like this would occur.

Karma was so happy daddy was spending time with him! They had been so busy lately but now they wanted to preen him! It had been far too long and he was bouncing in his excitement. He chirped in confusion when daddy turned him to face him, tilting his skull up to look at something. He was starting to feel worried at the look on their face but the look soon faded as they moved away and started to make a bath.

"Want to pick the soap to use, little apple?"

He nodded happily and while the soap he chose wasn't colourful, it still smelled nice when put in the water.

After he was clean he was wrapped in a fluffy white towel and put onto daddy's bed, being helped into his pyjamas. He had no clue why daddy made a face at the gold coloured clothes that had little birds scattered on them but he liked them. Miss Mary had gotten them for him and said if he was good he would get to see daddy soon. He must have been good if this was happening!

He readily spread out his wings when daddy reached for them, watching as they started to preen him, purring happily as the itchy feathers were removed.

"...Karma. Do you know how old you are?"

It took a minute to realise that daddy was talking to him, looking at them in confusion. Shouldn't they know this information already..?...come to think of it, shouldn't he? Rubbing his skull unhappily at the sharp pain that suddenly appeared, he mumbled he didn't know.

He was distracted from thinking further, when they held out his rainbow bear plush, eagerly taking it and nuzzling it happily. He was still unsure why daddy had wanted to look at it but he was glad he could keep it now.

He gradually grew sleepy as daddy continued preening his wings, whining when he was suddenly picked up, not wanting to leave them so soon.

"Can I sleep with you tonight?"

It had been so long since they last did that and he chirped in success, as they sighed but still lay him down on their bed. He cuddled into them when they also layed down, used to the way they stiffened before inevitably relaxing.

He still had no idea why they were acting so weird or wanted to be called something different but he didn't mind. He was seeing them much more than he used to, so these changes were fine with him.

~~~~~

DS Dream: I am a highly competent monster. I can deal with any situation!

*Karma latching onto them and calling them dad*

DS Dream: *Pure panic, clueless about children* What do i do?!

DS Blue: *Very amused at their panic* You are doing great Dream!
-
DS Dream: I'm rehoming the child as soon as i know they are safe

*Several weeks later*

DS Ink: So, are we still rehoming the-

DS Dream: *Holding a pile of children's toys* Do you think Karma will like the blue or red plushy?
-
*Deity Chaos watching the whole thing like a tv show*

Chaos: This was my best idea yet! I wonder how i can make it even better?