I didn't sign up for that shit

The calm before the storm

“We will stay by your side,” Star looked up at the children resolutely.

He had thought he would help Error. But after what he'd seen, he wasn't the only one who needed help. So he had suggested to the other Bitties to watch over these children when they were currently watching over Error together. He encountered little resistance; the only condition was that each pair of brothers could choose which of the children they wanted to be with.

“What?”, Cross looked down at the bitties, puzzled. “Why do you want to stay by our side? Error needs your help, not us.”

"You're all no less traumatized and run the risk of having a similar attack." Unimpressed, Sun looked up at the monochrome skeleton as if he were stupid not to think about it. Or maybe he was just a self-sacrificing kind. It wouldn't surprise Sun. The kid looked like he was choosing everyone else over himself. Sun will make sure he doesn't forget himself. He can easily convince his brother to shower this child with approval and affection.

“No won’t be taken for an answer?” asked the quiet hooded child. Dust, if Sun remembers correctly. He could feel the guilt seeping from him, it felt like he was walking through quicksand, so heavy was his guilt. Why does this child blame himself so much? So much guilt at such a young age... Sun doesn't want to imagine what he had to go through.

"Exactly!" his brother, Lunar, looked so proud of himself. He knew how much his brother was looking forward to finally finding the person with whom he would have his forever home. The chances had been so slim when they were still in the store. Even more so after he was singled out and his brother quickly followed.

Sighing, the child settled back on the floor, supporting his head with his hand. “Then do what you have to do.”

And that was the starting signal for all bitties. King and Rotten settled down with Error, the two of them having bonded with him since his attack. They couldn't have chosen another child.
Solar sat down on Killer's shoulder without hesitation. Sombra followed him with a small sigh. Sun hopes Sombra can endure them both. Because he can already imagine that Solar and Killer will only plan mischief.
Star and Night only seemed to hesitate for a moment before moving to the other silent child, Horror. He could see this combination well. Horror's gentle nature was perfect for the two.
Rise and Dark, the two made themselves comfortable in the folds of Dust's scarf. That… was a bit surprising. But in the end it made sense. Dark and Rise could probably handle this massive child guilt best.
He himself took his brother and brought him to Cross. He looked briefly surprised by this, but his fear of disappointment increased rapidly. But Lunar didn't let it get too big, absorbing his fear little by little, while Sun simply gave Cross a positive, warm feeling. He slowly relaxed.

"What about you?" Killer's gaze fell on Light and Eclipse, the two brothers were the only ones left. And none of the children were free anymore.

“Don’t worry about us.” Eclipse’s voice was calm, he gave off a confidence that seemed almost regal. “We can feel it. The soul we need to help is out there. And we will stay here with you until we find this soul.”

Most bitties never had the chance to find a soul meant for them. Firstly, because it was difficult for them to search without a lot of help. On the other hand, they were bound to the boundaries of their AU. If your destined soul is in another AU, then the chances are next to zero. But it was precisely because of their determination that Sun admired these two. Because they could settle down with a human or monster that came close, but they were stubborn. And that was something Sun respected and admired.

“If we can help you, say so,” Sun looked at Cross dissatisfied. He'd better not plan to search for the soul for the two of them and neglect himself in the process. Because there's no way he's going to allow something like that. Not after Star committed to stopping him from doing all the self-sacrificing things.

"I think you have other problems for now." Cross looked like he wanted to protest, but Light didn't let him speak. “We can feel it. The accumulated magic in your souls. Your mutation will show itself soon.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

The state of the multiverse was worse than Balance had expected. He felt the multiverse on the verge of collapse. Destruction and Negativity were absent. He felt that Death wasn't doing his job. Creation and Positivity cannot alone keep the multiverse in balance. Which was really ironic, considering it was these two who doomed the multiverse.

"You're back" It was more of a statement than a question when Death appeared before him. It was almost as if he had been expecting him. He didn't seem at all surprised to see him here again.

Balance looked up at the black tree. The bark had turned a pitch black. The cracks and curls seemed to have become deeper, glowed more and more and seemed to pulsate. It aroused a certain curiosity in him, an interest in whether such a concept could help his multiverse. But at the same time he was also saddened that this Nightmare ended like this. He could see his history in his code. And it wasn't a pleasant one, the good times with his boys were so short compared to the time of pain. He saw himself in Nightmare's story.

“I still have something to do here…” with a sigh, he looked away and looked at Death. He still needs some preparation time before he can fulfill this little wish. An old, never-existent part of him wanted to see how fallen apart the Council, the "leaders" of this multiverse, were. And he didn't have the mental strength to resist that known and familiar voice.

Bracing himself, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He couldn't deny that he felt a certain amount of excitement himself. He wanted to see for himself how much this council had fallen apart. Wanted to see them drowning in their own suffering.

“Take me to the council”

And someone else opens their eyes.