Κarma gets more stable and meets one of Errors friends

——

S̷̲͗ṯ̶̇̅ringVerse

Nightmare was relaxing with a book in the library, happy to finally have some alone time. His subordinates were out causing trouble and he was enjoying the peace. It was such a rare thing that he savoured every instance he got.

He looked up as he heard footsteps come closer, unsure who was already back. He swiftly dropped his book and got up from his chair, when he spotted the babybones out of bed yet again . He reached them, just as they looked to be about to scratch their way to their SOUL and picked them up.

"I d-n't fee-l good, br-ther"

It was a good thing he had started to carry around food, ever since Horror joined, as they did not look like they would be awake much longer. He sat back in the chair with the child and took out some soup from his inventory.

"Eat up. You have been sleeping for a while"

He was glad that an items condition didn't change in his inventory, so the soup was still warm and simple enough to feed the child. Their diet had been mainly soup, as they never stayed awake long enough to get anything more solid.

"Slow down. Your body won't be able to take more, little one"

He let them finish the soup and shuddered as their negativity grew, feeling a tentacle appear, before he forcibly pushed it back. He did not need this right now.

"You should be back in bed, little one"

"St-ry"

"I don't think you are well enough fo-"

"Pls-e, br-ther?"

Nightmare felt weak whenever they called him that and started to recite the story of Fluffy Bunny. His brother used to love it, as it was one of the few books he could find in the library that the villagers didn't care if he took he would have 'infected' the rest with his evilness if he touched them.

The story easily came back to him but he stuttered as they nuzzled into his chest. He swiftly continued though, when he sensed their worry.

When he felt them go limp in his arms he hugged them tighter, letting his tentacles come out and curl around them as well. He hoped Error would come over soon, he was getting tired of not knowing what to do he was getting attached .

-

It was another two weeks before he witnessed a significant improvement to their condition. Walking behind Horror he had to abruptly stop, as they stuttered to a halt. Looking over their shoulder he spotted the babybones but this time their bones looked much healthier, even if their eyeslight was still fuzzy.

"Brother?"

"I'm glad you are up, little one"

He twitched at sensing their disappointment and knew they were finally coherent enough to realise the truth. It hurt much more than he thought it would but he quickly shook that off.

He crouched down to pick them up and took them to the kitchen for food. He would try and get a more substantial meal in them, as their bones were looking a bit too thin for his liking.

In his rush, he put them on a chair, not thinking about how they weren't fully up to strength. He thankfully grabbed them before they fell off the chair but could feel his SOUL race at the scare.

He ignored the rest of the room, as he put them on his lap and quietly thanked Horror for the plate of food.

"Eat up"

He watched them stare at the plate in suspicion and felt their anger build. He tried to absorb their negativity but when that failed he gently patted their skull.

Error had managed to text him a brief message, that the babybones' emotions could be sporadic when they woke up. He had demanded to know why but he received no response, so was resigned to having breadcrumbs of information. He had worked with less before but he was still frustrated.

He cooed at the babybones to help calm them down and wiped away their tears, feeling his SOUL ache at the discomfort and fear, he sensed from them.

"It's ok, little one. There is no need for tears. Here you go"

He gently unclenched their hand, wincing at the magic leaking from the self inflicted cuts and handed them a sandwich. Horror tended to make them with high amounts of healing magic and he knew this would be vital for the child.

When they finished eating he saw the others stiffen, as the dark magic returned, hovering over the babybones hands. He wasn't too worried about it yet but it was when their eyelight started to leak magic and their emotions took a downward turn, he panicked. He pushed more food in their mouth, knowing they were not ready for any kind of magic, let alone whatever that was.

He ignored the growling babybones, instead making sure they were physically ok after that episode. It seems the magical food was doing its job, as when he grabbed their hand again, he saw no marks from the self inflicted wounds.

"What should I call you?"

Nightmare stilled in his inspection of the other and looked down at his lap in slight panic.

"M-Moon!...call me Moon"

He glared at his subordinates, who looked close to bursting out in laughter, knowing how the name didn't really suit him anymore. It was what Dream used to call him when they were young but it was an excellent fake name.

It was too dangerous for them to know his real name and going by their fuzzy eyelight, they hopefully had no clear idea what he looked like either. Just another safe guard to keep them away from those who would use them to harm the 'Heartless Demon'.

He thouglessy finished his food and wiped the babybones mouth, as he could spot how dirty they became. They really needed a proper wash after lying in bed for so long.

Picking them up he went to do that and sighed at hearing Killer start to cluck like a chicken. He was not a mother hen!

-

It was thankfully easier looking after a child when they were awake but he still had the issue of his work. He was now able to go out more and leave them with his subordinates but his home still wasn't the best environment for a child.

Nightmare had managed to get them in better shape then when they came to him but he was still displeased at their condition. Thankfully Error was scheduled to arrive today to pick them up but he was still worried how Error would be able to handle this by themselves.

" Sorry I'm a tad early. Where is Karma? "

Nightmare jumped at the voice but before he could voice his confusion the babybones came running in the room. They adored the library and he was pleased that at least someone else in his home enjoyed the quiet as well.

" Hi Karma. You are looking much better now. Do you need to grab anything before we go? "

"..i'm good"

Nightmare had never asked the babybones their name, as he had been far too busy just making sure they survived. Karma..it suited them well.

He felt fury rise up in him, at fully observing Errors exhaustion and bandaged wounds, despising FATE even more for the pain they were causing his friend.

" See you, Night "

Nightmare stared in bafflement as Error picked up the babybones, finally realising why they were wearing gloves and more layers than usual. He knew they had a thing against touch but he was surprised they went to this much effort to provide comfort. Just who was Karma?

-

Ḁ̷͈͛n̶̜̻̳̑̎̕t̶͓̋̽ȉ̴̭͎͉V̵̧̮̫͝o̶̲̱̓̈́̕ǐ̴̭̬͜d̸̡̘̆̌̐

"Now loop again and put in under. Very good. Now you will need to do that until you finish the row"

Karma grinned at the praise and looked back at his knitting in concentration. He hadn't done this in so long but he was enjoying the challenge. He held up his finished row and was pleased how it was mostly even.

He had been staying in the AntiVoid since leaving Moon's place and so far it had been fun. Error had plenty of food and allowed him to feed from their magic, as long as they weren't directly touching of course.

WHY IS THREAD WASTING HIS TIME KNITTING? HOW LAZY CAN HE BE!

Calm down it's fine. The multiverse is stable for now

You are just jealous you have no talent!

AT LEAST I AM DOING MY JOB!

Doing what? Being as annoying as possible? You succeeded alright

So pretty! Add some purple next, babybones

No! Add pink. So much better

WHY ARE YOU FOCUSING ON COLOURS?! THAT IS NOT OUR JOB!

You are so boring...add red, babybones. Ignore the grump

Karma sighed at how distracting they were being and frowned at losing a stitch. He would probably have to restart the row at this rate.

" What's wrong? "

Karma looked over at Error, who was sitting on a separate bean bag and was impressed how they were so quick in their task.

"The voices are being too loud. How do you tune them out?"

He was unsure why that made Errors glitches multiply and them to look at him in slight terror but he soon found some clothes being thrown at him.

" Change quickly! "

Not liking the panic in their voice he did as he was told and finally looked over what he had been given. It reminded him of UnderFells styling, with the black and red striped top and black trousers. He put his usual clothes in his inventory and startled as Error gently took off his scarf as well.

" Sorry. You need to put this away as well. I have a substitute "

Karma reluctantly did so and was surprised when Error took off their own blue scarf and wound it around his neck. He didn't think it matched but Error looked satisfied with it and it did feel soft on his bones.

" Step in the portal, Karma. I'm sure you will like the monster we will meet "

S̷̲͗ṯ̶̇̅ringVerse 

Karma did so and was alarmed when he sank into a pile of snow, just as he stepped though. Thankfully Error easily pulled him out and held his hand, letting him glance around his new surroundings without worrying about walking into anything. He hummed at seeing multiple piles of dust, letting him have a clearer idea of where he was.

He chirped in confusion as he was picked up and his face hidden into Errors neck. This was surprising, as he knew how they disliked touch and he could feel the glitches multiply around them. Karma tried to push away but they held strong, so he let it be. Trusting them to know what they were doing.

Error was nice and warm, compared to the surroundings and it didn't take long before he felt it get warmer. He slightly shifted his skull to see where they were and realised they were now in a bar. His wings puffed up at the stares he was getting and he felt a snarl start to build up.

He wasn't sure why he had felt more aggressive lately but thankfully he didn't have to do anything else, as Error let out a dark growl making everyone look away.

Error took them to the bar and he was curious to see a Grillby. He never spent much time with this type but fire monsters were rather fascinating to look at. The green with purple hues was pretty, making him try to lean towards them to observe more, but Error was easily holding him back.

"L̽̀̒e̐̾̀a̽̒̕v͒̒͝è́͝.̈́̒ W̔̀̚e̒̐͛ a̐͠͝r̿̀͠e̔͌ f̐́̚u͛̈́͠l͐̀͠l̓̈́̈́"

" That is a tad harsh, Grilbs. Not even your best customer can stay? "

Grillby looked up from his cleaning and was shocked to see Error in front of him. It had been months since their last visit and he had feared that the other was dead. Seeing some of the regulars look up from their drinks his flames sparked and he slammed his hands on the counter to grab everyone's attention.

"L̒͒i͒͐s͐̔͠t͋͌̐ë́͊͌n͊͐́ u͑͐̾ṕ͊͆.̈́͆̔ I̚͠'̒͊͝m̐̾ c͛͒̀l̒͑͘ö́̒͘s̾͒͑i͘͠͠n͋̈́̕g̒̾͑, s͘͠o̿͋͝ g͒̽͛e͌͠t͐̿ o̓̈́͌u̐͋́t́̒͝"

"Aww don't be so stingy. It's not even lunch yet!"

"One more drink!"

What did you say?!"

"O͆͐̕h̽̈́?́͋ D́͐̔i͆̽͘d̈́͝ ý͛͠o̓͑͌u̐̒̔ s̈́͝ä́̽ý̿͛ y̓͘͝o͑̓͝u͐͒͌ w͑͆͠ä́́̕ń̓͠t̒̔͝e̓͒̓d̀͆͊ m͐̈́e͊͝ t̿̾̿o͌̚͠ c̀̈́̽h̓̀́a͊̾r̀̾̕g̔̓͝e͆̿̈́ y͛̒͠o͐̚͘u̿͝͝ d̽́͆o͌̐͘u͒̓́b͛͐͝l̈́̓̓è̈́͋?͒͛̀ W̓͐͋h̽̒͝ỳ͝ d̐̓͑i̔͌d͆̀͌n̿̓͛'̒̚͠t̽͆͝ y͛̓͝o̓̈́͠u͊̈́̈́ s͛̓͝á͘͝y͒̒͠ s͛̀͑ó͋̈́"

That thankfully got the rabble out and he easily kicked out the drunks. How some of them hadn't been dusted yet was a miracle but he was sure it wouldn't be long. He locked the door and turned back towards Error, silently looking them over. His flames started to go back to the usual purple, as this was one of the monsters he knew he could trust.

He had met the Destroyer years ago behind his building, looking close to dusting but still clearly dangerous enough to be able to kill him in a second. He still isn't sure why he helped the guy out but he didn't regret it, ending up making a lifelong friend and consequently learning more about the multiverse.

Just hearing about the Creator made his flame want to flare but he resigned himself to simply making sure his friend knew they had a place to stay here, if they wanted. He didn't have the power to play in the big leagues, doing so would only get him killed.

His AU taught self preservation skills rather harshly after all.

Grillby moved to sit beside Error, watching as the babybones was placed on Error's lap. His flames flickered in interest at the scarf, spotting dust and Errors magic infused in the item. It was a smart idea and one way to make sure the babybones was protected here. While not everyone knew the Destroyer, their magic felt dangerous and easily dwarfed the monsters in his AU.

"B̓̐̿a̐͋b͛͊͘y̾͊̕ s̔̕͝p̓͘͝a̽͌͘r̈́͋̀k͆͆̚.̕̕ W̓͛͠a̒̓̔n͋̚ẗ́̓̾ t͊͊͝o̐̚͝ p͊̕͠l̿̔a̓͒͌y͘͝͝ w̕͝i͋͑̕t̔̔̕h̔͋͘ t͆͐͊h͛̽͝ë́̐̽ t̐̓̈́o̽́͠y̾͐̕s̀̈́͝ ḯ̚͝ h͑̈́̕a̽̽͝v͆̈́͝e̓͛̿?̐̒͆"

He watched as the kid looked up at Error in question and they were soon put down and pointed to the corner where he kept the safer items.

" I'll be right here, Karma. Go have fun "

His AU might be a crap hole but he tried to make sure at least kids had some sort of childhood. He was a tad worried at the way they were wobbling and tripping over nothing but looking at Error he let it be. Error only looked contemplative but not worried.

"S̅o̅ a̅ k̅i̅d̅,̅ h̅u̅h̅?̅"

" He's not mine, asshole. Things just..happened "

"U͆̔h͐͘̚ǘ̓͠h̾̒͘"

Grillby knew Error had a soft spot for kids but realised it was too dangerous for them to be seen with them. Errors reputation was rather fearsome, even if some of it had been embellished by the Creator. It made this situation even more intriguing, as Error looked overwhelmed by the whole thing but most tellingly hadn't dropped the kid off somewhere else.

" I'm stuck with a kid and I have no idea what to do. Squid for brains has been even worse lately and I barely have time to feed the kid, let alone do anything else. The AntiVoid was perfect but complications arose, so now that is out "

Grillby let his friend vent and hummed as he looked over the corner at the kid. They didn't look that young and looked fairly self sufficient.

"Ḯ̈́̀ d̾͋͝o͑͐̈́n͋͠͝'͒̒t͒͆̕ m̓̀i͐̈́͆n͊̓͛d͋͑͒ b͐̈́̔a͘͝͠b̔͋̐y͆͑͑s̓͝i̔̕͝t͛̈́̿t̽̿̒i̒́̈́n͋́͋g̓̐͠"

"..you would do that?"

"S͒̈́͝u͆̔̈́r͆̽͐ë́̔͒.̒͝͝ J͋͐͘u͛̀̀s͊͒t́͘̚ m͌͠͝a͛̔̕k̈́̽̐e͋̓͛ s̒͆͠u͑̒́r̓̕͠e̕͘͝ t̓͠o͒̓ k͆́̀e̿̾̐e͛͠p̽̀ i̐͒͘n͑̔ c̈́͒͠o͒̚n̓͆͌t͑͒̓a͛͋͋c͊͛͑t̓̓͝ m̈́͌o͋͋̔r͒͘͝e̚͠.͌̈́̒ I͛̽̀ t͑͌͘h͒̾͠o͌͒͝u͆̓͝g͐͊͝h͛̓͝t̾́ ý̀͌o͛̔̚u͒̾̚ d̿̚u͑̽s͛̒͛t͑̕͝e͑͑̚d̒͐͘,̔͋͝ E͛̽̐r͆̐̚r̀̐̔o͆̽́r̔̈́͐"

He saw them about to speak up but they soon winced and grabbed their chest.

" Of course he does it now...i know you just made the offer but would you mind..? "

"J́͆u͆͐̓s͐͛͘t͒̽̿ g̓͊͝o̔͛.̓̓͋ I̓́͝ h̓̚a͠͝͠v̽͊̽è̓̕ à͘̕ s͑̐̈́p̒͝͝a̓̓͑ŕ́͝e̾͋̿ r̓̈́o͒̐͌o͊́m̿̓͝ i̐̿͠f̈́̿͝ y̐̈́͋o̓͐͠ù͆ t͒̈́a̓͋k̒̈́̕e͛͠ t͆̐͘o̓͆̚o̾́̀ l͒̾̕ò̐͘n̽͆͝g͆̈́͘"

Grillby was unsurprised they soon vanished, after they told the baby spark they were staying here with him. He decided to clean up the place, as he was not opening again today, especially with his young charge. He finished putting away the last of the glasses and glanced back at the baby spark.

They still looked occupied but content, so he walked over to get to know them more. They turned their skull towards him, when he was a few feet away and he noticed how their gaze was directed around his chest.

He had been around Error a lot and he recognised this look, as it usually occurred when they had serious skull injuries. Crouching down he studied them and was amused to see them do the same in return. At least he wouldn't need to teach them this skill but he could still feel the lack of LOVE the other had.

Innocence was such a rarity in his AU that it was always startling to experience it again.

"L̀͠͠e͑̈́͝t̽̕͝s͋̐͛ g̀̓̀e͋͐͠t͌͌ y͐͊͠ò̔͠u͑͘͠ s̽̈́̾ó͑̀m͆̿͆e̓͝͝ f̓͐̒o̓̒̽ó̈́͋d̒͆̽,͊͋͘ b̐̔̈́a͆͝b́̈́̕y͛̽̽ s̀͐͝p̓̿͝a̓̕r̈́̓͘k̿̀̕"

~~~~

Nightmare: I am not a mother hen!

Also Nightmare: *Always looks one step away from covering Karma in bubble wrap*

Killer:..whatever you say, Boss
-
Grillby: Congrats on the kid

Error: He isn't my kid!

Grillby: Can I be the godfather?

Error: Are you even listening to me?!

Grillby: *Brings out a pile of children's toy and clothes that are all brand new* Good luck parenting. I always knew this day would come. Good thing i was prepared

Error: How long have you had all this?!