Dreamcatcher

1. The (Not So) Empty Void

It wasn't uncommon for Dream to feel bursts of negativity radiating from across the Multiverse. Though this time it was more a tug at his soul than a sensation inside it.

Him and Swap had been making tacos together, Ink laying lazily on the couch, sketchbook and pencil in hand.

Jokes were thrown across the room and him and Swap made small chatter as they cooked. That was until the negativity came. It tugged at his soul, flooding his senses. 

Dream managed to put down the plate he was holding before stumbling, vision blurring slightly. Concerned, blue eye-lights gazed upon him, a feeling of recognition in Swap appearing alongside the worry.

"Is it another negativity burst in an AU?" Swap asked, holding Dream's arm in support.

Dream nodded mumbling a reply, "I'm afraid so Swap, sorry I'll have to leave. Ink might be able to help you finish making the tacos?"

They both looked at Ink who had grown bored of drawing and was now somehow balancing vertically on his broomstick (Broomie as he called it). Swap gave him an apprehensive look and they both chuckled.

"I think I'll pass...good luck! Mweheheh!" Swap replied, ending on his iconic laugh.

Dream gave a soft smile, "Tell Ink if he asks, I'll see you hopefully in a couple hours again." Swap have him a thumbs up as Dream closed his eyes to make a portal (he found them more convenient than teleporting as used less energy).

He created the portal, focusing his mind to where the source of negative energy was. And as Dream stepped through the portal, he was blinded by white.

Infront of him was an endless void of blank. He cautiously hopped through and closed his portal behind him (this wasn't the first time he'd ended up in a strange AU). Glancing around him the first thing he noticed was how eerily quiet it was. It was so quiet in fact, he could hear the steps he took echo for miles and his soft breathing felt almost too loud.

Ink would hate it here, he mused.

AU's were never this silent, even the genocide timelines would have faint sounds of wind or abandoned machinery. Dream wondered if this place was similar to Ink's Doodle Sphere, not an AU or timeline, just (like the void) something in-between them. Simply there.

However, even the Doodle Sphere wasn't as eerie as this place. The Protector's home had a warm feeling to it-buzzing with life. This place gave off an aura of emptiness, yet fragments of it seemed alive as if clinging onto a cliff edge.

The positivity guardian shivered, despite the lack of cold. He could understand Ink's phobia more as he felt his breath hitch, wanting to see any other colour than white, disturbed by the colourless surroundings.

Perhaps this was an AU like Cross's? ...He hoped not. At least if it was, he'd be able to help this time.

Dream hesitantly took some more steps until he felt the pulse of negativity increase. Blue strings were blurry in the distance, seemingly hanging there, holding things Dream couldn't make out. A strange sense of déjà vu washed over him (the strings seemed especially familiar) but he shrugged it off, having more important things to worry about.

The closer Dream got, the more scenery he could spot. There was a blue, worn down beanbag laying in the more string decorated area as well as chocolate wrappers (or so he assumed) littered across the floor. The souls hung up he chose to halfheartily ignore, his bones prickling at their faint determined glow. He didn't want to know why someone would collect them.

Although, the closer he got the more negativity he felt was crushing him. While Dream was used to feeling weak from lack of positivity, instead he worked often around gloomy aura (mostly thanks his brothers gang). These emotions felt much worse.

He almost collapsed at one point, the emotions here were like a turmoil in his soul, negativity spiked up one moment then disappeared the next, reappearing almost as quickly as it went, like his senses were malfunctioning. 

Annoyance, loneliness, anger, panic and so many more repressed emotions cluttered the air. To Dream it felt like he was on a rollercoaster making him sick and that was broken.

Very broken.

Whoever this monster or person was that repressed these feelings Dream was eager to help, noone should have to feel like this! He was grateful to have arrived before his brother.

Dream perked up as he spotted a figure close to the beanbag, trying his best to ignore the energy that clawed at his soul, draining him. He picked up his pace until he was closer to the figure.

At first glance Dream knew it was a monster, a skeleton one at that. They wore a black, stitched jacket and leggings along with a red turtleneck and deep blue scarf. Most the clothes were tattered and he wondered when the last time they'd been cleaned was.

Pity panged in Dream's soul as he saw the state they were in.

The ebony skeleton was shivering, top half of their body on the ground as if they were crouching in pain. He could hear the drips of tears (he hoped it was tears and not blood) onto the floor and the monster seemed to be hunched in on themself as if trying to hide, blue scarf tangled around their body.

Out of all this however, Dream found the most peculiar to be the strange glitches. They swarmed the skeleton frantically, almost as if attacking them, making a variety of loud beeps and electronic-like sounds. Glitches clung to the monster, Dream eyed them faltering at the amount. His sense of déjà vu only worsened.

It reminded him of Geno, he'd have to check on the Aftertale skeleton after this to make sure he wasn't getting too lonely. Although he wasn't entirely sure that Reaper's company annoyed Geno as much as he made it out to.

Shaking his head, Dream carefully stepped closer to the skeleton, keeping a distance as unsure how'd they'd react to a stranger in their...home?

As he faced their front, a loading bar was clearly visible to him, at 32%.

The red eye sockets flashing ERROR and blue tear marks permanently streaked on his ebony face were just as clear.

Dream stumbled back, eye-lights widening as he realised why the figure and place seemed so familiar, cursing himself for not realising beforehand. This was where Error lived. The Destroyer that caused the Stars so many problems and helped spread havoc with his brother...Error who had killed thousands deeming them 'glitches'.

He gulped, maybe coming here was a bad idea...he was standing close to someone who went against all his beliefs...

Yet Dream couldn't prevent the ache in his soul as he looked down at the glitching mess of the skeleton. He'd always respected Error in some way, despite the countless horrific things he'd done. Of course he couldn't respect how Error killed more or less for fun.

However, like him and Nightmare, Error and Ink were the guardians for the balance of creation and destruction. With Ink always eager to help with Creators ideas, he could admire Error for keeping the balance on the more destructive side, even if he cockily laughed about how the only reason he did was to eliminate the Multiverse of it's mistakes.

And here the so feared Destroyer was, in the most vulnerable state Dream had ever seen him in, emitting all that sorrow and pain that weighed down on his soul. Dream had never felt these emotions swarming Error, he hoped Error hadn't been blocking them away (Swap had done that at one point and it broke Dream's soul when he finally realised just how much pain the Underswap skeleton had been in, hiding it all).

Swallowing hard, he approached Error with a mixture of trepidation and hope.

Dream would not take advantage of Error in his state, Swap had told him how Error would get too overwhelmed by something and 'crash' as his blue friend worded. Dream didn't know why Swap found Error of all monsters to be bearable to hang out with, but it wasn't his place to judge.

Helping everyone was what he always did, so Error shouldn't be an exception.

He just hoped this wasn't something he'd regret once the other rebooted.