While Sumi and Omission assessed the situation with the strangers, Lumen contacted his brother, Umbra. He prepared himself for a cascade of questions, then clicked the 'contact' button on his phone. The phone buzzed a few times before Umbra answered, his deep voice grumbling out a greeting.

"This had better be important, brother," Umbra hissed, cursing as sounds of combat and shouts echoed through the phone receiver. Lumen breathed a silent breath.

"We found the outcodes," he began, holding his phone away from his head when Umbra shouted in his nonexistent ear. "That was unnecessary, Umbra."

"Where are they?!" Umbra demanded. "What have you told them?!"

Lumen growled lowly. "That is not the concern, right now. My main reason for contacting you is to tell you we've found them, and to invite you to meet them. So stop being paranoid and gather your Judges. I'll be waiting in the Multi-Void."

With that, he stood up and ended the call. He could understand his brother's point of view, the fear of the Sun Kingdom acquiring more allies and outnumbering Umbra; after all, it used to be imperative that Lumen had a larger army than Umbra in order to stop his advance on the battlefield. He could sometimes get by with a few tactically gifted and battle-ready troops, but for the most part, the war was won by sheer force. Umbra knew he couldn't win, but he was too proud to surrender. Lumen had conceded to signing a truce if only to avoid more bloodshed, and he was grateful he could spare his brother from what he was sure would be outrage over the crimes Umbra and his followers had committed in the war.

Nevertheless, it was now his duty to maintain the peace and prosperity that had fallen on the multiverse. This new AU, as well as its wayward inhabitants, wouldn't interfere with the truce if he could help it, and with that in mind, he opened a portal to the Multi-Void. He sent a text to his subjects' Judges, then knocked on the door to the Multi-Void's only building. Geno, the sole inhabitant of the Multi-Void, answered with a relaxed smile.

"Hey, Lumen," he stepped aside for the king to enter. "What brings you here?"

Lumen turned a tired look to Geno. "We've got an explosive situation on our hands, Geno. It's nothing too serious, but a new AU has formed, and-"

"And you wanna use my house as a meeting place, right?" Geno laughed at Lumen's expression, then shrugged. "Go ahead. Just don't destroy anything, and no fighting!"

Lumen nodded. "Of course. You have my word we will keep things civil."

A few minutes later, Judges started arriving. Snips and Neon, the Judges of Storyshift and Underfresh respectively, arrived first. Snips dumped the armload of chocolate bars and popato chisps on one of the three lawn tables in Geno's backyard, swiping a chocolate bar for himself.

"If anybody's hungry, I've got the snacks covered," he said loftily, taking a bite out of his chocolate. Lumen nodded gratefully to him.

"I'm sure the others will thank you. Neon, I need you to make certain everyone is unarmed as they come in. I promised Geno we wouldn't start any fights."

"Ya can count on mah radical self, your majesty!" Neon saluted, then skated away on his heelies.

Lumen turned as the sound of a portal opened. He tried to suppress his smile as Stitch, Xtale Sans, stepped out with the rest of Umbra's gang. Umbra himself led them, his tendrils twitching in agitation, but his expression remained calm as he stepped up to greet his brother.

"A pleasure to see you, Umbra," Lumen extended his hand to his brother, a warm smile on his face. Umbra shook his hand as a strained, almost awkward smile decorated his own face.

"Yes, of course. The pleasure is all mine, Lumen."

The positive king ushered them to the shaded lawn tables, then sat at one end of the longest one, opposite his brother. As the other guests settled into their seats, Umbra looked for his second in command.

"Where is Omission? He's never late!"

"I sent him to help Sumi with the newcomers. It sounded like his lookalike was... well, aggressive isn't the right word. More like protective of the two kids in his charge."

"Are we sure he didn't kidnap those kids?" Umbra rolled his eyelight at Lumen's stern glare. "Don't pretend like the possibility hasn't crossed your mind, brother. There's every chance he could be using them as shields."

Lumen closed his eyes for a moment, putting a hand to his chin. "Whether that's the case or not, we will still try to be welcoming, if only to lure the Omission lookalike into a false sense of security. Until we know more about their situation, it's best we keep this between us. If Honey and Maple figure out that those kids are in any sort of danger...."

Umbra nodded. "We won't be able to stop them from unleashing hell on that copycat. Very well. We'll do things your way. Just don't expect me to hold any of my subjects back."

Lumen shook his head, but stayed silent. He didn't believe the stranger was a threat to the kids, but he couldn't dismiss Umbra's point. Those kids seemed like convenient bait for letting a dangerous monster into their midst. However, from Comic's description of the fight that drove the outcodes away from their AU, the older skeleton was willing to risk his life to save those of the kids. If the stranger was indeed a threat, why would he protect them? Well, it wasn't productive to dwell on those thoughts, right now. For the time being, he pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind, instead distracting himself with the task of directing his subjects to their respective seats.

"I heard he looks like Omission," Snips said to Slash, Killer Sans, who sat at the table across from the human. "Ya think that makes him a version of Errortale?"

Slash scoffed. "It better not. Omission is so nitpicky and overbearing, and he's got a pole up his ass. I don't need three prissy perfectionists in my life."

"Aww," Umbra remarked. "You think I'm a prissy perfectionist? I'm flattered.~"

Slash's face lit up, and he lowered his head. "I-I didn't mean anything by it, y-your majesty."

"I'm just teasing, Slash. You need not worry yourself over it."

"Y-yes sir."

Outer, the Sans from Outertale, looked between them. "I'm sure he's not that bad! Quit being so pessimistic, Slash!"

Tiberius, also known as Numeraltale Undyne, shook her head. "He's being pragmatic, Outer. I would honestly not be surprised if this new guy ends up being a fugitive from wherever he's from."

"I hope he's not hostile," Honey, Underswap Papyrus, muttered. "My bro likes meeting the new guys, and I dunno if I'll be able to stop him from trying to make friends with them."

"Heh, yeah," Ash, Dusttale Sans, chimed in. "Swap's got a heart of gold, and I swear I wasn't going to attack him."

Honey snickered. "You say that every time I bring it up."

"Can ya blame me? One nasty look from Maple, and I was makin' my peace with, uh.... Death? Who do I make my prayers to?"

Death, Reapertale Sans, perked up when his name was called. "Huh? O-oh, um.... Anyone, I guess. It doesn't really matter...."

Ash shrugged. "Whatever. All I'm sayin' is, if this newcomer is at least as powerful as Omission, let's hope he's a pacifist. I've seen a couple of Omission's fights with Sumi, and I gotta admit, I'm glad he was on our side!"

The others nodded in agreement. Death watched as they continued chatting, sighing. It wasn't often he was included in the conversations, much less when a new AU was involved. He had to remind himself it wasn't because he was one of the gods of death, but the notion never really left his mind. He knew they were afraid of him. They had every right to be, so was it any wonder why they avoided him? He could slip away anytime he wanted, and no one would notice. No one would care.

But today, he was invited specifically to meet the newest AU since the Quantumtale kids started appearing. He didn't know what possessed him to attend when he knew he would be forgotten immediately, but whatever the reason, he needed to know why he had the nagging feeling this time would be different. Perhaps it was what Life told him before he left: he should still try to make friends, in spite of the fear of accidentally touching them and killing them on contact. She was worried about him, especially after he trusted someone he shouldn't have and they almost killed her. She was no worse off for it, but Death had closed himself off from people, and she spared no effort in trying to get him to open up, again.

Everyone held their breath when a portal opened up right in front of them. Some of them prepared to summon shields, while others simply stared with wide eyes as the subject on all their minds stepped through after Sumi, Omission, and Skull.

I held the babybones close to me as we stepped out onto the soft moss in what looked like an open field. The sky was a soft blue, the trees in the distance were a dark navy, and the moss beneath my feet was a calming mint green. I stole a glance at the huge mansion that towered over the yard, to the darkened windows and the polished stone walls, then returned my attention to the shaded porch in front of me. I was grateful this place was more colorful than the Anti-Void, but it still felt too... empty.

Sumi and Omission led us to a few tables on the porch, where a small group of people were gathered. I instantly recognized Tentacles and Glowstick, who stood up from their seats and stepped toward us. I instinctively stepped back, holding Nula and Vacía closer when they gripped my coat in fear. Last I checked, Tentacles wanted me dead, but.... Something was different about him. He seemed more... mature, more royal. Like he was the ruler of a kingdom, and he knew it. What, did Inky promote him king of the multiverse or something?

"Hello," he said, bowing slightly. "My name is Umbra. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

My eyelights shot to Glowstick when he too bowed to me. "My name is Lumen. It is nice to meet you, and I hope we can be friends."

I breathed out a shaky sigh. They weren't attacking me yet. In fact, no one else had moved. I couldn't decide if it was a good thing or not, especially since I was their enemy! At least, I used to be. But, they don't seem to recognize me. Did all the AUs collapse since I was last here? That could explain why they are all acting weird. Then again, this could be a trap, and I probably walked right into another multiverse-wide assault. I unconsciously began looking for places to run, at least so I can get the girls away from danger before I would be forced to take another beating.

Umbra exchanged looks with Lumen. The stranger definitely looked like Omission, but he was covered in scars. The ones visible on his skull told of years without proper healing, something Umbra knew well. For once, he actually pitied the stranger. He knew without having to be told that the skeleton standing before them was used to enduring painful injuries, but never seeking help for them. Umbra wondered now if this wasn't a result of torture, but why would this monster be worth torturing? He used to ask the same question of himself when people treated him like dirt back in Dreamtale. He couldn't understand why people would bully someone for what they represented if they weren't actively making other's lives miserable. It wasn't like Umbra did anything to the inhabitants of their AU; they simply chose to pester him for who he was. He tried to tell Lumen about the bullying, but he wouldn't listen. In retaliation, Umbra took the black apples from the tree they guarded and ate them, which prompted Lumen to do the same for the golden ones. Umbra declared war, and they had fought ever since.

Of course, now that the fighting was over, they had no need to recruit AUs to their side. Still, Umbra couldn't help but wonder how strong this guy was. He decided it didn't matter, unless the stranger chose fight over peace. Then, he supposed it would matter how powerful the stranger was.

'And what his weaknesses are,' he thought, eyeing the kids in the stranger's arms.

I stood poised to retreat, beginning to recognize some of the faces I saw sitting at the tables. Any moment, I told myself, they would attack. This is all just a pretense to get me to lower my guard, and the second I did, they would strike. The girls would get hurt, and it would be all my fault. I jumped when Sumi stepped into the breach.

"Ooook, then. How about we introduce ourselves? We can at least try and make our new friends feel welcome, right?"

Comic nodded and stood up, strolling up to us with a smile. He held out his hand, and I stared at it. "Hey, name's Comic. Ice ta meetcha!" He held up an icepack, and I took a step away from him. He shrugged, looking vaguely disappointed and taking a seat at one of the tables.

Next up was Underfell Sans. I could easily tell who he was, but he looked a bit different. Sharp teeth, unusual red-themed outfit, and a crescent mark on his cheek, this didn't seem like the original Underfell Sans at all! He stole a glance at me, then looked down at his shoes.

"Nice ta meetcha, or whatever. I'm Fell."

I nodded, and he returned to his seat. I relaxed slightly as the next person came up to introduce himself. Underswap Papyrus waved, and I gave him a cautious smile. 

"Nice to meet you, stranger. My name's Honey." He held up his hand, chuckling slightly at my nervous look. "It's just a handshake, pal. I've got no tricks up my sleeve."

I hesitantly shifted Vacía to my other arm, then held my hand out for Honey to shake. I sucked in a breath as he took my hand, letting it out when he let go. He winked at the girls, who waved at him. That went better than I thought, especially since I kidnapped his brother. I mean, if he still remembers that, he'd probably be less... friendly.

Next up were three very familiar faces. Dusttale Sans, Killer Sans, and Horrortale Sans walked up to me, all with similar smirks on their faces. I held the girls close as they approached, scanning them for weapons, but I couldn't see any. 

"Chill out, buddy. I'm Ash, and I swear I'm not gonna attack ya." A tendril smacked him upside the head, and he raised his hands in surrender. "Dude, I said I wasn't gonna attack them!"

"Pfft," Killer Sans snickered, then held out his hand. "I'm Slash. Trust me when I say I'm the most sane between the three of us."

"No you're not!" Horrortale Sans retorted. "You have a nasty habit of luring people into trusting you before you subject them to borderline domestic terrorism!"

Slash lowered his hand when I took a step back. "Great, look what you did, Teddy. Now they don't trust me."

"You're welcome, by the way," Teddy winked at me and the girls, and only Vacía seemed to find it funny. She giggled and opened and closed her hand in an attempt at waving. "I'm glad somebody's got a sense of humor, unlike Slash!"

Slash flipped him off as they returned to their seats, and Slash pushed who I thought looked a lot like Cross out of his chair. The Cross lookalike walked up to us, grumbling about Slash being a dumbass.

"Uh, my name is Stitch. It's nice to meet you." He held out a hand, but I didn't attempt to take it. He looked away, and I noticed Lumen give him a sad look. He then returned to where he had been sitting, but Slash pointed back toward Lumen. Stitch rolled his eyelights, then sat next to Lumen. I was confused, but a commotion to my right made me whirl around. 

"Sorry we're late, your majesties," a tall, hooded skeleton surrounded by kids carefully made his way over, two mini Undynes clinging to his boots. "I couldn't get these two to let go, heh!"

An Undyne I had previously overlooked stood up and strolled over, picking the two mini versions of her up. They squealed in surprise as she set them down.

"Tiberius!" they screamed, then attached themselves to her legs. "We missed you!"

"You rascals!" she laughed, slowly making her way over with the hooded skeleton. "I missed you guys too!"

I blinked in curiosity as they all made their way over. The hooded skeleton waved to me as he followed the kids to the tables.

"Heya, I'm Maple. Alright, kids. Introduce yourselves!"

"I'm TK!" one of the kids who looked a lot like Comic yelled.

"I'm Cherry!" another, who looked like Fell, yelled just as loud.

"I'm Carrot," said a kid who resembled Honey.

"I-I'm BB," a kid who looked like Maple mumbled.

One kid, who looked like Teddy, simply waved. I waved back, but he didn't seem to want to speak. The kid who called himself TK pointed to him. "That's Tick! He doesn't talk much."

The one they called Tiberius saluted to me, as did the mini Undynes. "Captain Undyne, at your service! Everyone here calls me Tiberius though, and these two ruffians are from Quantumtale and Quantumfell. Say hi!"

They yelled the word "hi" as loud as they could, then hopped down from Tiberius' shoulders to chase each other. Tiberius simply shrugged and sat down next to Honey and Maple. The time kids sat next to them, waving at Nula and Vacía. Nula remained quiet while Vacía giggled and waved at them.

Next came a Sans I didn't recognize at all. He wore a purple jacket with teal fur trim, a black crop top with a teal heart in the middle, and black leggings. He didn't seem dangerous, nor did it seem like he recognized me. He extended his hand in greeting, his heart-shaped eyelights sparkling. 

"My name's Hearts. It's nice to meet some lovely new faces.~"

I nodded to him, and his smile grew wider. He returned to his seat, and three more people came up to greet me. I tensed when Aftertale and Outertale Sans dragged a less than enthusiastic Echotale Sans up to us. The tall skeleton huffed, then waved.

"Name's Echo." He winced when Aftertale Sans jabbed him in the ribs with his elbow, and he continued. "It's nice to meet you."

"I'm Geno, and this is Outer." I waved at them, and Geno glared at Echo, who waved back. "It's quite a pleasure to meet you, isn't it, Echo?"

Echo simply nodded, and Outer had to hold Geno back as the tall skeleton retreated back to his seat on the other side of the porch. I shook my head in total bewilderment, wondering what in the world just happened.

The next two to come up were Storyshift Chara, and... oh god, no. Oh no no no no! I backed away as the Virus himself strolled up to me beside Chara, a confused frown on his face. 

"Wassup, brah? I don't bite! Name's Neon, yo! Rizzity rad ta all up 'n make yer acquaintance!"

"Yeah," Chara chimed in. "This guy is only a threat to my rogue in D&D-"

"C'mon, lil pal! I didn't mean ta blow ya up! Dat was all da DM's fault, yo!"

"You were the DM!"

Neon's shades went blank as he contemplated that, then he smirked. "Oh yeah, forgot about dat. But yer da one who rolled a nat 5, so's it totes wasn't all my fault!"

"Ugh, anyway," Chara rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, turning to me. "My name's Snips. If you ever wanna go on an adventure with none of the risk, let us know. We've got games and games galore!"

The strange pair struck a dramatic pose, then returned to their seats. I smiled a little, grateful the Virus was occupied with someone who wasn't me. And they seemed nice enough, if a bit odd, and they may have spoken about something I know nothing about, but that's fine. They seemed very passionate about whatever it is they were talking about.

The last one to be introduced was Reapertale Sans. I gulped as the reaper approached us, holding the girls closer. His black wings dragged on the ground behind him, and his empty sockets seemed to bore into my very soul. He was very tall, taller than me, taller than everyone else present. I searched him for his signature weapon, but the scythe of death was nowhere to be seen. That made me feel a bit better about being this close to him, but it didn't stop my soul from pounding in fear. Nula whimpered as he seemed to gaze down at her, and I hugged her closer as she hid her face in my coat.

"My name is Death," his deep, hollow voice reverberated in my skull, sending chills down my spine. "What's yours?"

"E-Error," I mentally cursed myself for showing my fear, but he didn't seem too bothered by it. He simply sighed, then returned to where he had been standing. I watched him go warily, hugging the girls as the dark presence subsided. He was nothing like the Reaper I once knew. Had things changed this much?

The kid who called himself TK came up to us, twisting his shoe into the wooden floor of the porch. "Um, M-Mister Error? Can your kids come play with us?"

I looked down at Nula, who snuggled into my chest. Vacía, however, cooed at TK's goggles, marveling at how shiny they were.

"Dada!" she cried, pointing to them with a bright smile. I couldn't suppress the proud grin at her joy, as simple as it was.

"Good job, Vacía." She giggled, then wriggled her way out of my arms. I let her down, and Nula soon decided to follow her sister. I watched as Vacía crawled over to TK, smirking a bit when he knelt down to her level.

"Huh? What is it?" He yelped when she suddenly grabbed onto the straps of his goggles, but he managed to maintain his balance. Nula held her hands over her mouth, failing to keep in her giggles. TK blushed and met Nula's eyelights, but she immediately averted her gaze, stepping closer to her sister. Vacía let go of his goggles and clapped her hands in delight, and TK shrugged in helpless amusement.

In the background, Sumi was nearly crying from how cute the scene was to him. Omission glanced at him like he was crazy, sidestepping away from him. "Dude, keep your cool. Don't embarrass me!"

"I can't help it," Sumi squeaked, swooning into Omission's arms. "Help me, Omi! I think I'm dying of cuteness!"

Without missing a beat, Omission dropped Sumi, who landed on the porch with a thud. Sumi rubbed his skull and glared at Omission, who was covering up a smirk. 'Hmph,' he thought, getting up and standing next to him. 'It's so on, Glitchy!'

"Alright, now that everyone has been introduced," Lumen stated, motioning for everyone to take their seats, "why don't we get to know each other?"

I scoffed at him, not bothering to sit down. "Nice try, Glowstick. You and Tentacles should already know who I am."

Half of those present burst out laughing at the nicknames, but I didn't know why. I always called them that! Why would it be that much of surprise to them? Unless of course they weren't the same Judges. Yeah. They weren't the same Judges as before. Before... what?

Umbra glared at his subjects, while Lumen shook his head at his. Turning back to me, he continued. "What I meant was tell us a bit about yourself and your AU- er, universe. Home."

I blinked at his choice of words. Home? Does he mean the place where Caretakers lived? I barely know anything about it except that it's ruined and mostly closed off from the rest of the underground. Before I could try for an answer, the Dreamtale kings sat down at either side of the table in front of me. The shade provided by the overhang made it seem like I was staring into the mouth of a cave, fraught with dangers I couldn't possibly comprehend. They gestured for me to join them, but I held back as the girls stuck close to me. I didn't know what to do. If I revealed that I didn't die when they attacked me, if I accused Inky- Sumi, whatever, of destroying the multiverse and allowing the AUs to collapse.... Best case scenario, they'd take the girls away and kick me out of this AU. Worst case, they would attempt to kill me right in front of them. I preferred the former if I didn't have the choice, but if I did, I would just leave. I didn't have to stick around if they didn't want me to.

Noticing my hesitation, Sumi jumped up. "Y'know, there's a playground for the kids to play on. Your kids could go play while we chat! That is, if they want to."

Nula looked up at me with wide eyesockets. "Daddy? What's 'playground'? D-does it hurt?"

I knelt down and patted her head, glancing at Sumi for an explanation. He seemed to understand, and cheerfully described it.

"O-oh! It's something to play on! It doesn't hurt, I promise!"

I looked back at Nula, who gripped my hand fearfully. "It sounds... safe enough. You two go play with the others." She lowered her head, and I sighed. Gently, I put my hand on her shoulder and squeezed it. I locked eyelights with her, grabbing her full attention. "Nula, take care of Vacía. Keep her safe, no matter what."

She nodded with a serious glint her eyelights, and I returned it. Nodding in satisfaction, I stood up to watch Nula pick up her sister and follow the other kids to this playground thing. I turned back to the porch, where a host of former enemies waited. May as well get this over with.

"Now," Lumen clapped his hands together, making me flinch. He paused, looking over at me with an apologetic look, then turned back to his brother. "Shall we get started? You know all our names, and we know yours-"

"So let's hear about what your AU is like," Umbra finished, prompting Lumen to snicker at him. In spite of all their disputes, the twins still had a tendency to finish each other's sentences. It was often a source of amusement to those who knew how to trigger it, and Lumen and Umbra took it as a sign they could survive anything that tried to tear them apart.

I shifted uncomfortably. I didn't know what AU I came from. Should I lie? Maybe they would be able to tell. If I told them, what good would it do? Besides, they didn't care where I came from before. Why would they now? It doesn't make any sense!

"U-uh, wh-why don't we share what our AUs are like, first?" Sumi suggested. "Maybe he doesn't feel comfortable sharing yet!"

With that, he began explaining his AU. It was full of art and art-loving people, as well as being the place to go if one was looking for someone to build houses or cities. The mansion in the Multi-Void, for example, was designed and built by the Asgore of Sumi's AU, with help from Sumi himself, his brother, and a few others from his home. Other than that, it was a pretty peaceful AU as far as they go, and a reset hadn't occurred in over a decade.

Next, Omission explained his AU. It was a messed up place, constantly glitching out and copying or erasing code in a way that seemed nonsensical. In sharp contrast to Omission himself, who was a neat freak and liked having everything in order, his AU could only be described as the antithesis of order.

"Sometimes," Omission explained, "these glitches in the code of my universe create projections of a past or future version of me. We assumed the leftover code had somehow jumped the AU itself and made its way to a different one, which created you. Is that the case?"

I shrugged. All I'd ever known was the cold, unforgiving deadness of the Anti-Void. It was the closest thing to home I've ever known. And this AU, this Errortale, doesn't sound familiar at all!

Umbra's voice broke in on my thoughts, much to my relief. "Perhaps it is a sensitive subject. There's no need to tell us if it makes you uncomfortable."

I stared at him in disbelief. He had wanted to kill me not that long ago, and I know I deserve it! But here he was, treating me as if I wasn't a mass murderer, as if I was someone worthy of kindness! After a moment of thought, I decided to try and explain myself, for better or worse.

"I... I don't know where I came from. I woke up in an empty void, and... I dunno. I made it my home, I guess."

"An empty void, huh?" Omission mused from across the tables. "Is it like the Multi-Void? It's the only place we know of that's empty apart from the vegetation. And Geno's home, but that's a recent addition."

I shrugged, a feeling of discomfort as intense as ice cold water sweeping along my whole body. All eyes were trained on me, and I couldn't move. I felt paralyzed, and I tried to think of anything other than everyone staring at me. I heard the kids playing across the yard, and the sound calmed me, somewhat. If anything, it assured me that the girls were ok, and if they weren't, I'd be there for them in an instant.

Speaking of the girls, Nula and Vacía arrived at a small playground. There was a slide, a few swings, a set of monkey bars, and a metal dome they could climb on. Nula held her sister close as she walked over to meet the older kids. TK was the first to approach her.

"H-hey," he started, scratching the back of his skull. "My name's TK. What's yours?"

"Nula," she replied, then pointed to her sister. "This is Vacía."

"Cool. Wanna play with us?"

Nula tilted her head to the side. "P-play?"

TK chuckled awkwardly. "Y-yeah, y'know! Like, we could play a game. Like freeze tag!"

Cherry perked up from his perch up on the monkey bars. He hopped down and ran over to them, a big smile on his face. "Did somebody say freeze tag?!"

TK laughed, and Nula smiled slightly. She was getting along with these kids! She set Vacía down as TK explained the rules. 

"If you're it, all ya gotta do is touch somebody, like this!" He tapped Cherry's shoulder, earning a growl of displeasure from him. "If you're not it, ya gotta run real fast from the person that is it!"

Nula nodded eagerly as Quantumtale Undyne, Crackle, and Quantumfell Undyne, Lieutenant, joined in. The rest of the time kids gathered in a circle before TK issued some last-minute warnings. "I'll be it first, just to make it easier on everyone. Remember, no pushing or shoving, which means you too, Cherry. You guys gotta run away from me, so get ready! Three, two, one, go!"

They split up in every direction, and TK stood for a minute longer, giving them ample time to get as far from him as they could. Nula hid behind the slide with Vacía, giggling when she heard TK say he was ready. The girls watched as he chased down BB, who was just a tad too fast for him. He switched targets to Cherry, who ran right past Nula and Vacía. Nula saw the danger, and quickly picked her sister up to escape. She ran over to a tree close by, looking around for any sign of TK. She breathed out in relief when she saw him over by the metal dome, trying to tag Tick. They watched Tick evaded TK by climbing the dome, but TK wouldn't let him get away. He tried to climb after him, but he slipped and fell to the ground.

"Ow!" TK hissed in pain as he fell onto the hard ground. He looked down at the scrape on his knee just beginning to bleed, and he tried desperately not to cry. He turned around to see Nula and Vacía approach him, and he sniffled and wiped his face with his sleeve.

"Y-you guys should be running," his voice shook as held himself from crying, failing miserably. "I could tag ya, a-and then you'll be frozen."

Nula set Vacía down, and she crawled over to TK. She made grabbing motions toward him, and he leaned down to her. Before he could react, she pressed a childish kiss to his cheekbone, then Nula did the same. The other kids had gathered to watch, and Nula bravely walked up to Cherry. His cheeks also had bruises and cuts, and she gave him a kiss. He stood frozen in shock, his face turning as red as a cherry. They moved on to BB, who had the biggest smile on his face when he received his kiss.

Then, Nula walked up to Tick. The other kids were a bit wary about being near him, and he couldn't really blame them. His appearance made him seem scary to the others, so he didn't try showing them who he really was. But, Nula approached him without hesitation, as if it's the most normal thing in the world. The girls each gave him a kiss, and he stared down at them in utter disbelief.

"Wh-whadja do that for?"

"Make the hurt go away," Nula stated proudly. "And give good luck!"

The other kids exchanged amused looks. So that's why! It's a bit strange to kiss random strangers, but it was a nice sentiment to heal them and give them good luck. It must've been something they learned from their dad. Without warning, Tick snatched them both up in a tight hug, giggling quietly. TK frowned, standing up and walking over to them.

"Ya don't haveta hog them all to yourself, ya know!"

Cherry ran over and nodded. "Yeah! They aren't just yours, Tick!"

Tick growled and ran over to the metal dome, climbing inside with the girls in his hold. TK and Cherry nodded to each other and Crackle and Lieutenant. They all surrounded the dome while Carrot and BB struggled to hold in their laughter, and Tick contemplated bringing his yo-yo out. Nula was confused and a bit scared, but Vacía laughed and clapped her hands. She like this game! She wanted to keep playing it all day long!

That is, until a commotion over where the adults were caught their attention.

A few moments earlier....

Everyone began asking me more and more questions as the day dragged on. I looked up to see no sun, but I could tell it was getting later the longer I sat there.

"How did you end up in this... 'Anti-Void'?" Outer asked. I shrugged, beginning to pick at my sleeves in agitation.

"How do you recognize me?" Sumi asked. "Like, you seemed to know who I was the minute you looked at me."

I stared down at the table, trying to think of something to tell them. For one thing, what if telling them I knew them from before the multiverse collapsed triggered some memories or something? No, I can't tell them. They'll get angry at me for sure. "I thought... y-you were someone from my past. N-nothing more."

"How did you get out of the Anti-Void?" Lumen asked cautiously. "It sounds like you were... trapped, there."

I averted my gaze from his. I had left out any mention that I was hearing voices; they were responsible for driving my only friend away, after all. But they had also gotten me out of the white hell that was my home after who knows how many years I was imprisoned there. Maybe they wouldn't believe me, anyway. It won't hurt to tell them.

"Um.... I heard voices that told me how to escape. They kept screaming at me after that. Call me crazy as much as you want, but I did hear voices! They told me they owned me, that I was their puppet to control." I gritted my teeth, ripping my sleeves slightly as the mounting anger took control. "They told me that if I ever disobeyed them, they'd scream loud enough to break my ears. And they did, they screamed until I couldn't hear anymore. I tried everything to get them to shut up, I tried ignoring them, I tried blocking them out with anything I could think of, but they never shut up! Nothing worked. Except one thing...."

Everyone seemed to lean in closer, curiosity heavy in the air. Sumi voiced all their thoughts in one question. "What did you do?"

I sucked in a breath as fear overtook the anger in my soul. I looked up to glance at everyone present, my breath growing strained. So many familiar faces, so many lives I've hurt, so many enemies. If I lied to them, would that change anything? If I told them the truth, would they hurt me? The thought made me tremble, and I quickly lowered my head. 

"I-it's not... important-"

"Liar."

I snapped my head up to find Umbra glaring at me. "You can't expect us to let this slide, Error. Voices telling you how to escape a prison? Making you go deaf? Whatever the source of these voices is, it's powerful. And dangerous. I'm sure I speak for all of us when I say you should tell us what these voices wanted from you. They might target one of us, next."

I took a shaky breath, steeling myself to retreat as soon as an attack came my way. They want the truth so badly?! Fine. "I.... I destroyed AUs-"

"WHAT?!" Umbra stood up quickly from his chair, and I bolted up from mine and backed away. I took a defensive stance, scanning for the first sign of a weapon headed toward me. They were acting like they've never even heard of me before! What the hell was going on?!

_______________________________________

I'm too sober for this *sob*

Hello, I am le back from working nonstop for two months straight, Christmas chaos, and vacation! And now I have to deal with fucking college in a month! FUCKING LOVELY!!!!

Ok, it's not that bad. I'm actually looking forward to it, tbh. I put this off for way too long cuz I wanted to find the right fit for me job wise before I tried pursuing higher education, and I think it's gonna work out. Hopefully. We'll see how it goes.

For now, though, expect a lotta chapters for the next couple weeks cuz Imma try and get as many out as I can before the semester starts. 6666 words, LMAOOOO-