Karma has fun in the snow, while everyone else begins to worry.

———

WingVerse

UnderFell AU

X dusted yet another monster, annoyed at how many were just not getting the message to leave them be . That was the tenth one so far, glowering darkly when he spotted another one trying to hide behind a nearby building.

Pale readily approved of X actions, elevationing their status in his mind to a 'decent' babysitter.

He looked over where Karma was playing in the snow, suddenly lashing out his right wing and dusting the monster that had been trying to sneak up on him. Wings were far more useful then he first thought, finding them an excellent weapon in themselves. They gave a lovely extended reach and adding some magic to them, gave them a rather deadly edge, that he could easily smash into other monsters.

He initially got the idea from Karma, who had casually suggested all the interesting ways they could utilise their new wings. Karma had even demonstrated just how sharp their feathers could become if they concentrated and chirped out they could even suffuse them with his Death magic. They then went on to cheerily list increasingly more deadly ways to use the appendages, looking delighted at how interested Pale was.

That had amusingly caused X to pale dramatically and he finally realised why Oneiro said he would enjoy keeping the monster around. He was curious if X forgot that Karma wasn't totally helpless but the care they were giving to his child was still very useful, greatly approving due to how happy it made Karma.

Pale smiled when he heard happy chirps from Karma, watching as they made a snowman as he blasted yet another monster with his magic. They were like flies and if his child wasn't enjoying this place so much, he would have just eaten the whole AU. Fell type monsters could be so persistent, which is why he usually chose to avoid entering them, as it took far too much effort then just destroying the whole place at once.

X dusted two more monsters, pausing as he waited to see if anyone would come out of the woodwork. He was pretty sure they had taken out half the AU's population at this point, with them being far more aggressive than their counterparts in his old multiverse.

No more threats in the surrounding area. Objective: Protect Karma

For once he was happy to listen to his Code, desummoning his knives as he studied the babybones, using his blue magic to remove any discoloured 'snow'.

Monster dust truly did get everywhere and he wasn't happy that they were even in this AU to begin with. Taking a chance, he got closer to Pale, stiffening when their dark red eyelights zeroed on him but he refused to back down just yet.

"Why are we here? Surely there are much nicer places to take them. My Ink created thousands of AU's that were just covered in snow, so why are we here? "

X shivered as Pales magic suddenly swept over him, feeling like a bug under a microscope as they gazed at him. He really hoped he hadn't misstepped, flinching as they put a hand on his shoulder, forcibly turning him to face Karma.

"Look at them."

"I am. What exactly am i supposed to be see-"

" Look properly "

X did his best to ignore the Code flashing at him, not needing it to understand the precarious situation he was in. His eyelights threatened to extinguish as Pale let their LOVE loose, shivering at the sheer quantity. He tried to say something, perhaps an apology but he was unable to voice a thing, frozen under the gaze of a clearly more powerful predator.

Congratulations X! You angered Pale. You have a 50% chance of being dusted!~ :D

X absolutely despised The Devils sense of humour, not feeling an ounce of shame as he whimpered as his skull was forced to look back on Karma again. He stood unnaturally still, unsure if any movement would be considered an attack, when he finally did notice something.

"..t-they look very r-relaxed."

He tentatively admitted, observing Karma further as if hopeful he had been mistaken. Even with Pales heavy magic suffusing the area they looked happy, continuing to play in the snow like that had no worries.

"They are. All the books I've read have never had a situation like this before."

Pale said much calmer than before, not even glancing at X as if the previous minute hadn't even occurred. From what he had gathered children should be unsettled by LOVE but he decided to be thankful for Karma's unique quirk, as it meant his child could still be comfortable around him whenever released his magic.

X frowned at the odd situation, even knowing from before that this babybones was odd, considering they had liked The Devil but now he just felt sad.

"They have been around a lot of LOVE that they stopped seeing it as a threat. Their body is even reacting positively to it.."

He quietly observed, not wanting to consider just what other monsters Karma had been around in their life. His eyelids still wobbled from the Pales harsh magic, a summoned knife held tightly in his hand despite knowing it would be useless against them..but his body refused to listen and let go of it.

Karma, ever oblivious to the worry he caused, grinned happily as he finished his snowman. He had managed to find two good sized sticks and added some 'wings', having to cheat with magic to get the snow to stick in the shape he wanted.

His wings ruffled in the magically caused breeze, sending a quick smile to Pale when he realised it was their magic, before going back to his fun.

Fell type AU's were always so fascinating to his senses, the SOULS of the monsters here having so many differences, compared to the usual uniform pattern of most AU's. It was intriguing seeing how gaining LOVE would influence a SOUL, his impromptu 'adventures' having been very helpful in showing him plenty more places to study.

SOULS were so interesting to sense, definitely a major plus of having Death magic. He might have given up centuries ago if he hadn't had something to entertain himself, when he was stuck in his Birth multiverse.

..he was glad he hadn't though, as otherwise he never would have met brother or dad or any other of the cool monsters!

He thought he would miss this life when he died and got reborn, counting this as one of his favourite so far. He smiled warmly as Nix butted their face against his, purring as he felt the love pulse in all the bonds he had.

He really adored his new family and even though he had gone through some unpleasant experiences, he wouldn't change it for the world.

..now if only that annoying being would stop this continuous cycle. He was starting to get tired of-

"Karma? What song are you humming?"

He looked up at X in confusion, not having realised he was doing anything. He merely shrugged and went back to his snowman, giggling as Nix pounced on a large pile and almost getting stuck in the snow.

-

X may not like having to visit all these LOVE rich AU's but he couldn't argue with the results, with Karma incrementally relaxing as the weeks passed by. He still had no clue why they had been so stressed, as the last time they met they had been quite relaxed but he refused to ask.

He still remembered Pales warnings and he also felt no urge to make the babybones upset.

Objective:Protect Karma

He could do without his Code flashing all the time though, annoyed he couldn't even stop it happening....

He sadly also had a new problem, with even Pale having brought it up but neither knew what to do about it.

Karma had been humming the same tune repetitively, but never seeming to notice when they did so.

X had wondered if he was just overthinking it but had also observed that their familiars ears would flatten whenever Karma would do so, ending up doing an action to stop the babybones from making the noise.

It could have been just a cat thing but he doubted that was a mere cat. He had woken up with them watching him, seeming pleased by him twitching in alarm before scampering off as if they had done a great job.

It was far too intelligent and he was still convinced it was going to dust him in his sleep one day, despite the many reassurances by Karma that 'Nix would never do that. They are friendly!'

'Friendly' beings usually didn't take so much joy in his yelps of fear..

When he had been brave enough to ask Pale, dearly hoping he wasn't about to be dusted, they suggested Karma could have learned the song from Oneiro. He had smiled stiffly when Pale suggested that he could just ask Oneiro directly but he had quickly changed the subject, as he had no interest in ever doing that.

That was one insane Dream type that he wanted as little to do with as he could, just knowing they wouldn't give him a solid answer anyway. They were definitely the type to enjoy dragging out his stress, like a cat playing with a mouse.

..his life was filled with far too many sadistic monsters, sighing in exhaustion at how it would most likely never change. He was even starting to miss the times with XGaster, as at least he knew what he was dealing with then.

Chara would so belittle him for that thought but he would like to see them having to deal with this!

He jolted as a small hand grabbed his own but still obediently allowed them to pull them along, glad that at least one monster did not take any joy in causing him misery.

"Can we go flying again, X?"

They still stressed him out in many other ways though but he still nodded, knowing he couldn't put this off forever.

Just because he was rightfully terrified of the possibility of the babybones going splat into the ground with their 'stunts' didn't mean he would make them land bound. It wouldn't be fair and his Code for once gave him useful information, on the instincts of winged monsters and benefits of them using their wings often.

"Sure. Let's go grab Pale first though."

"Meow"

"..and inform your familiar of course."

Where they had suddenly come from was a mystery, as he swore they hadn't been anywhere near a second ago. He twitched as their tail brushed against his legs, their smugness practically pouring off their furry body as Karma picked them up and began cuddling them.

..why did he suddenly feel he was competing with a cat for Karmas attention and badly losing?

Karma was glad that Nix was having so much fun here as well, glad he could now show them places more than just the AntiVoid.

He enjoyed watching his familiar explore, still thrilled at being able to watch them play through their eyes. The bond between them was so cool and he couldn't wait to discover what other things it could do.

He thought Pale and X were getting really good at flying lately, still a tad worried at how shaky X looked after they landed. He knew some monsters were afraid of heights but X had reassured him that wasn't the issue, insisting they enjoyed it. He had asked Nix for their opinion on how weird X was acting but they merely pointed out that suddenly having new wings could be a massive change.

He knew there had to be more to it but as Nix didn't seem worried, he decided to let it be.

He looked up at the sky, smiling at how perfect it was for flying, unconsciously humming to the tune that was becoming louder in the back of his mind. His eyelight briefly flashed a mix of colours, returning to the normal white as Pale came over to him.

He couldn't wait to fly again!

~~~~~~

X: *Stressed* Ok. I can do this! This should be nice and easy. It's just a simple question. Im sure he wont overreact

*Accidentally sets off Pale, who looks very close to dusting him*

X: *Gaining an even higher level of stress*..right, i am never doing that again in my life
-
Karma: *Looking slightly worried* Do you think X is ok, Pale? He has been a tad jumpy lately..

Pale: *Often looming over X* Im sure there is nothing to worry about.

Nix: *Having just come back from jump scaring X* =^◕⩊◕^=