Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Huh?

What do you mean it's been over a year since I've uploaded anything related to Avid Adopter? Surely, you must be-

March 2022.

..Wha-

That can't be...but I-

Man..that's a long time. 

Welp, it's time for a sequel!

Hope you guys enjoy this! ^v^

Headcanon list:

1. Anyone can open portals if they learn.

2. Nightmare adopted and raised his gang members.

3. Everything from Avid Adopter is canon.

4. The multiverse is sentient..sorta. You'll see.

5. Don't look at the title..noo, that doesn't have any relevance to the storyyy! Haha..totally..

6. Age reference: Killer is half a year older than Horror is a year older than Dust is a year older than Cross is half a year older than Error. (Erry = 0; Crossy = a half; Dust = 1 and a half; Horror = 2 and a half; Killer = 3). I didn't make age references for the adults because they're irrelevant. More will come here.

7. Haha children go brr

Credits for characters~

Nightmare and Dream ~ Jokublog 

Ink ~ Myebi/Comyet 

Error and Aftertale ~ loverofpiggies 

Dust ~ ask-Dusttale blog

Killer ~ Rahafwabas 

Horror ~ Sour-Apple-Studios

Cross ~ Jakei

Underswap ~ PopcornPr1nce 

Underfell ~ Vic the Underfella

Outertale ~ 2mi27

Yes I finally did it I put their names instead of community

Dancetale ~ Teandstars

Reapertale ~ Ren

Shattered Dream ~ ShatteredDreamsAU

Birdtale ~ Greyscales (I think)

Asylumtale ~ Furgemancs

Insanity ~ UTF

King Multiverse and Error 404 ~ SHADIKALY

Ccino ~ Black-Nyanko

~~~~~

Started: April 23, 2023.

Ended: 

Cover:

Chapter Text

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. . .

System scan complete.

One threat detected.

Threat type: ruptured universe - backd-

Warning!

Emotional balance tip!

Deploy Guardians of Emotion?

Yes.

Return to scan?

Not necessary - continue.

Are you sure?

Yes.

Chapter Text

"Okay, I just want you to ease out...be very careful." Blue suggested.

"Why are we doing this?" I wondered, reflecting on my past choices.

"Just relax, Night; it's all part of the plan.."

"I see no good ending to this."

"Let him focus! Error, ease out; you can do this.."

"Okay.." Error took a deep breath, pressing down on the pedal slightly.

The contraption moved. It was moving now.

"That's good." Blue smiled; did he not know that we were facing death?! "Now just get out on the main road, and we can put all your training to the test."

"Can you drive?" I requested, not feeling great about this.

"Nightmare, calm down; it's fine."

I buckled my seatbelt, holding on for dear life as the machine moved onto a large road..a very large, intimidating road! 

"Good." Blue encouraged this reckless behavior. "Now, let's go a little faster."

"Okay.." Error nodded, making it move faster; we were going to die here!

Well..it had been a while. The state of the multiverse was much as it had been several years ago, when the opposition against my family had nearly ceased. The balances were stable, and for the most part, all was well. My boys had grown up..and it was a lot to deal with. We weren't often all together in the house, with our jobs taking us to and fro, but when we were, we made it count. Cross was out the most, of course, with his role in the multiverse guiding him to join the Star Sanses, while the rest of my boys had less frequent trips out. It was rather rewarding, I supposed, to see that my little boys had turned into such good adults..but I couldn't deny that I missed their childish antics. Gone were the days of forts in the living room and small hands patting my face to wake me up; here were the days of my boys waking up before me and tending to heir own breakfasts before heading off to work. I couldn't say I enjoyed every part of this life, but it was inevitable, I supposed. My youngest son was now eighteen years old..and for some reason that escaped me, he wanted to learn how to pilot an automobile. None of my others had even thought about it, but Error had always been the one with the crazy ideas. It was fine..as long as he didn't crash this vehicle! I should have known better than to come for the ride, but I had gotten into the car, and there was no escaping now.

"Okay." Blue nodded. "Now you're going to take this exit."

"Uh-huh." Error followed the instructions, taking the vehicle off the large road and onto a significantly quieter one.

"Is this almost over?" I hoped, from the backseat.

"Just a few more minutes, Nighty!" Blue chuckled. "Error's doing great! You should have seen my first driving lesson!"

I held my seatbelt tighter; I didn't like this - not at all.

Anyway..ever since Dream had found out about the real state of things, he had ensured that our family wasn't going to be separated as we had been before ever again, even if he had to schedule secret sleepovers to accomplish his goals. My boys had spent a lot of time with their uncle in the past few years, and everything had been..really nice. Life was peaceful, for the most part, and I was content with it. Except..it did make the small ounces of chaos a bit more noticeable.

"Error!" Blue shouted, casusing an instant reaction from Error.

My youngest yelped, quickly activating the emergency brake of the vehicle. The automobile swerved, turning around as Error did..whatever he was trying to accomplish. I simply stayed put in the backseat, not moving at all - that was easy when one was frozen in fear. When the car finally stopped, Error slowly removed his trembling hands from the wheel, breathing slowly, while Blue slumped in his seat. 

"That..was close." Blue exhaled, unbuckling his seatbelt.

"Wh-what..was that..?" I stuttered, regretting my past decisions more than ever; I followed Blue's example, ridding myself of my seatbelt and beginning to slowly slide out of the vehicle. At this point, I couldn't care less about civilians seeing me; they could run in fear, for all I cared.

"..An unexpected consequence of driving in a populated area." 

"I'm so sorry!" Error exclaimed, exiting the automobile and..running in front of it? "I didn't mean to!"

I took a deep breath before going to see what the near-crash had been about, walking to the front of the vehicle to find..

Children.

There were three little ones huddled together in the road; had Error nearly run them over?! Two were standing behind a taller one, who was currently shielding them from Error. Immediately, I came closer, gently grabbing Error's arm and  giving him a soft nod; he wasn't quite acquainted with dealing with children, since he had never had a younger sibling to care for. I knelt down in front of the little ones smiling softly while also giving them plenty of space; they seemed afraid.

"Hello, there." I said softly, lowering my aura to trace amounts; they didn't need that. "We're very sorry for that; are you three okay?"

Hesitantly, the tallest one nodded. "Y-yes.."

"That's good; I'm glad to hear it." 

With my close proximity, I had a fairly good look at the youngsters. The tallest one was clearly the oldest one, and..he seemed very interesting. All three of the children were skeletons, as my family were, but this one had a concentrated spot on his face covered in glitches..I wondered where he had come from. He was wearing worn, dirty clothes..it reminded me of Horror's attire when I had first met him. The two in the back were shielded from my view, but I could see that they were skeletons, and they both had a very distinguishing feature about them: they both had black wings. 

"Do you have a home, little ones?" I inquired.

"Uh, Dad?" Error addressed, from behind me. "What're you doing?" 

"..Yes." The tallest one nodded slowly; he didn't know that I could see right through him.

"That's good; I'm sure your parents would want you back home about now." I hummed.

"..Uh-huh.." 

"Dad?" Error tried again, to no avail.

"Are you hungry?" I wondered. "You look as if you haven't eaten in days.."

"Dad, this isn't funny.." 

"I'm hungry.." One of the smaller ones whispered, causing the taller to look down.

"We...we're fine." He affirmed. 

"Are you sure?" I questioned, pulling out what would have been my lunch today. "I just so happen to have a bit of food here with me; I wouldn't be opposed to helping you out."

"Dad.." Error whined.

"..." The tallest scrutinized the food, examining the two sandwiches thoroughly. "Is this a trick?"

"I would never hurt a child." I shook my skull, still smiling softly. "I only want to help."

The child slowly reached out, before accepting the food in one quick motion. 

"..Thank you." He said, before grabbing the smaller children's hands and running off into an alleyway.

"Dad..you were going to take them home, weren't you?" Error knew me so well.

"Only if they wanted to come along." I defended. "I wouldn't force them."

Error sighed. "Sorry, Blue, I should have paid more attention.."

"It's fine." Blue assured. "Let's just take a small break from driving; besides, your dad probably wants to get home."

"All right. Thanks for the lessons, Blue.."

"Anytime." Blue smiled.

Blue got into the driver's seat of his vehicle and sped away, while Error and I went through a portal back home; we didn't want to attract any more undue attention. We entered the house through the downstairs living room, finding Dust and Cross. Dust was working on making our coffee table a bit more pleasing to look at, while Cross was reading; his love for reading had never faded, and that was one thing I was happy to encourage further.

"Hey, Dad." Dust smiled, giving a quick wave before focusing on his work once more; he seemed thoroughly invested.

"Hello, Dad." Cross greeted me with a smile, as well, before returning to his reading.

"Cross, Dad tried adopting someone else." Error sighed, sitting down next to his older brother.

"Error, it's in his nature." Cross informed. "He adopted all of us, remember?"

"Yeah, but that was different! He didn't have adult children when he adopted us!"

"Sounds to me like someone's jealous." Killer teased, popping into the room.

"I am not!" Error refuted. 

"But you totally are." Killer smirked, before looking over to me. "How was the driving lesson, Dad?" 

"It was..an experience." I admitted. "One that I do not wish to replicate."

Killer chuckled. "So, who'd you try to take home this time?"

"Three little ones in Underswap..I don't think they have a home or parents to care for them. They seemed hungry..I couldn't let them go without giving them something."

"Huh..that doesn't sound very good." Killer frowned, humming. "Are you sure?"

"I know children..and I am almost certain that they do not have a home..but I doubt I could find them again."

"Hm..well, we'll just have to hope for the best, then. Horror's making lunch, since I assume you don't have what you packed earlier."

"You know me too well." I smiled. 

Ah, my oldest..he had grown so much from the little five year old I had found while walking one day. He was responsible, hardworking, and a joy to be around; I was so proud of him. Whenever he put his mind to something, he typically ended up doing it, and I was often amazed by just what he could accomplish..or I may have been somewhat biased; that was excusable, however - he was my son, after all! All of my boys amazed me, really; they were simply the best sons I could have ever hoped to have.

"Come on!" Killer grabbed my arm, dragging me toward the kitchen.

"I'm coming!" I chuckled fondly; I had to enjoy these moments, for there weren't as many of them as there once had been.

Killer took me to the kitchen, where the delicious scent of lunch greeted us. Horror was the second to greet us.

"Hey, Dad." He gave me a smile. "How was it?"

"Terrifying." I replied. "We never had anything like that contraption when I was a child."

"You were a child, like..five hundred years ago, Dad." Horror reminded. 

"That doesn't change the fact that we never had motor vehicles."

"Dad gave his lunch to some orphans." Killer informed.

"Again?" Horror smiled, rolling his eyelight.

"Again." Killer nodded. 

"Well, I have extra."

"Thank you, Horror." I sighed, wondering how I had gotten to this point.

"No problem, Dad." 

"So, how are those new dishes of yours coming along?"

Horror, Killer, and I began to have a casual conversation, chatting about recent events and hobbies. I enjoyed these talks; they were nice to have, and I could catch up with my boys' busy lives. Much had happened since they had started going out for their own jobs. For one, Horror had started up several food drives and homeless shelters in lesser-known universes (he was too infamous to try that in the more popular ones, unfortunately), while Dust frequently saved and endangered lives. Cross had adjusted to being in the spotlight as a hero of the multiverse, although he had only been at it for a year and a half; he was somewhat of a natural - he had been destined for it, after all! Error had unfortunately gained infamy throughout the multiverse, but we had known that it was inevitable..the Guardian of Destruction didn't get to have many friends. He was rather isolated, associating only with close friends and family, but there was nothing we could do; he would have only been in danger if he tried to branch out. I wished there were a better way; Error was becoming more and more reserved as time went on..he had used to be so outgoing and playful, but now..it was difficult to get him out of the house for anything but his job. The desire for driving lessons had been a surprise to all of us, but at least it got him outside; that was something.

Killer, my eldest..was having somewhat of the same problem. His infamy wasn't as widespread as Error's, and he didn't have to destroy universes, but his only interactions outside of the family and close friends were emotionless beings - Floweys and the like. As the saying went, misery loved company, and although those emotionless beings couldn't feel misery, they certainly knew how to inflict it. Killer didn't often return from his job with a smile on his face; the more common outcome was borderline crying, to which one of us always tried to respond with a hug. It didn't always work..

The rest of my boys did have interactions, whether good or bad, and they had made a few friends along the way..I wished my oldest and youngest could have had the same. 

I supposed all I could do was wish, really.

~~~chapter end woot~~~

Bean family is back! Woo!

Thanks for reading my beany writing!

Bye!

Chapter Text

Killer.

~~~~~

"I've been thinking." I prefaced.

"What do you desire, Guardian of the Emotionless?" It asked.

"Well..you know that my work has been a bit...inefficient..lately."

"This is true."

"And..well..it's because I'm lonely."

"You have a parental figure and five sibling figures to spend your days with; it is illogical that you should be desirous of companionship."

"That's true, I do have a family..but there is something about us sentient creatures that seems to escape your understanding, multiverse."

"What data would that entail?"

"We're fickle. I've spent over a decade with my family and only my family, and while that may seem fine to you, it's unhealthy for beings like me. It breeds insanity and loneliness..and it's getting to me. It's affecting my work performance, and it will continue to do so unless something is done to resolve it.."

"And what exactly would resolve this situation, Guardian of the Emotionless?"

"..Companionship. New companionship."

"..Allow us to process this information. This may take several minutes."

"Understood, multiverse." I nodded.

I waited for three minutes before receiving my answer.

"The data has been processed." It decided. "Your request will be granted."

"Are there any stipulations?" I inquired.

"That is yet to be decided."

"..Understood. I assume you know my plan?"

"Your mission is clear; you may go about it as you wish."

"Thank you, multiverse." I smiled.

"We expect greater work performance, Guardian of the Emotionless."

"And you shall have it." 

I woke up.

It was still nighttime; an hour had elapsed, as with every meeting with the multiverse, and I had the option to go back to sleep. I decided to, if only to be better prepared for the day ahead of me. When I woke up again, it was morning, and I was ready. I slid out of bed, dressed in appropriate clothing, and left my room with a goal. I first went to the nearest kitchen, grabbing some fruits and snacks and packing the food in a bag. After that, I opened a portal to Underswap. My dad had told me all about his previous encounter with a trio of children here, and I was determined to help them. My dad typically didn't bring little ones home anymore, since the multiverse wouldn't let him keep them (he had tried, and he had failed), but he loved to care for them whenever it was possible. I..wanted that. I wanted to feel like I could do good in this world..I wanted to prove that I wasn't some freak pretending that I could change the world..I wasn't what they said I was, and I would show them that. My dad had raised five boys..I could handle three, right? I had helped out with my little brothers, and they had been a handful at times; I could do this! I just had to find them, first..two skeletons with wings and another one with glitches..that shouldn't have been too difficult to manage!

Well..maybe it was going to be a bit harder than just looking for them; I was a known criminal in the multiverse, which eliminated the method of walking through the town in search of them..instead, I tried looking down from the rooftops of buildings. It was a bit harder to search this way, especially without teleportation (I wished I could teleport, but, alas, that wasn't in my 'genetic makeup'), but I was agile enough to make my way around. It took four hours to find whom I was looking for, but they were soon in sight, sitting in a damp alleyway; Dad was right about their not having a home, it seemed. Now..how was I going to approach them? Dad had just..rescued me from childhood bullies. Horror was the one who had approached him. He had found Dust in a prison..and Cross in a laboratory. Error had been handed to us. 

Had Dad ever actually intentionally tried to adopt any of us except me?

Without a precedent, I had to think of something on my own; this wasn't going to be easy. If I just walked up to them, I could frighten them..but I did have the multiverse on my side. It would have been awkward to just greet them and explain that I wanted to take them home with me..and it probably would have caused them to run away. What had made me want to go home with Dad? He had..become my friend first. He had visited the orphanage often and told me all about the multiverse, which had intrigued me. But..would that work with these little ones? Was there a way to get through this without an unbearably awkward moment? Or several? What if they thought I was a kidnapper? 

"Are you a kidnapper?" What?

I looked behind me, finding..one of the winged children. Right, wings..they could fly.

"No." I replied, shaking my skull. 

"Then why're you afraid we'll think you're one?" The little one giggled.

"..Um.." I hadn't planned this far..what was I supposed to say?!

"You're weird!" More giggles.

"..M-my name is Killer."

What a great start..my name. Somehow, my name wasn't as cool as five-year-old me had thought it would be. 

"I'm Raven! Did you wanna talk to us or just watch us? 'Cause watching people is weird! My brother said that!"

"Guess I'll come talk to you..sorry, I'm..not good with people.."

"Ooh, I understand that! Reaper's not, either! That's why Geno and I talk to people instead! Come on, it's cold up here!"

"All right.." 

I found a couple ledges to make use of in my descent, reaching the ground soon enough; the winged child simply flew down, likely having good use of his wings..I wondered how he had them. When I reached the ground, I got a good look at the children. The tallest, and likely oldest, was wearing a tattered jacket and pants; he was the one with glitches on his face. The other was wrapped in a blanket over clothes that looked much the same, except a darker shade; he had black wings just like the other, Raven, who was wearing torn clothes with a lighter shade. That..wasn't a good sign. 

"This is Killer!" Raven announced happily, running over to the others.

"Why were you watching us?" The tallest wondered, glaring at me. "Tell the truth, or else!" 

"..." I supposed honesty would have been the best option. "I want to adopt you."

The three were surprised by that statement, and they couldn't find anything to say for several moments, until the tallest spoke again.

"You..wanna take us home with you?" He tilted his skull, his glare replaced with confusion. "Why?"

"..Because..I'm lonely. I heard my dad talking about you the other day, and I felt bad for you, so..I came here to look for you. I'd do my best to care for you..and probably fail a lot, but..I'll try. My family would love to have you around, and I'm sure you'd enjoy it, too.."

"...You're not a kidnapper, right?"

"Ooh.." Raven nodded in realization. "I heard him say he's not! I know he's not! He said so!"

"If..if it would make you feel better, we could start slowly..I wouldn't want to force you into something you aren't comfortable with." I said, before we could get any further. "I want to really try, but I've never done anything quite like this before, and I'll probably be really bad at it at first.."

"..Okay." The tallest hummed. "My name is Geno..I'm five years old. These are Raven and Reaper, my little brothers..they're four."

"We're twins!" Raven added, with a grin. 

I smiled, sitting down. "My name is Killer, and I'm twenty-one. I'm formally known as the Guardian of the Emotionless, and I have four brothers, a dad, and an uncle."

"Wowie!" Raven hopped. "That's a big family! If you adopt us, can we have a big family, too?"

I chuckled. "Yeah, you can have all of my family, too."

"Yay!" Raven tackled his twin into a hug, knocking the other off balance with a yelp.

"Raven!" Reaper whined, trying to break free of the hug.

"We're gonna have a family, Reaps!"

"Families are loud.."

"Uh-huh! It's gonna be great!"

"My family isn't that loud.." I smiled, before humming. "Let me tell you about them. First, there's my dad, who loves children; he actually adopted all of us! He loves reading, and he's a good cook, too, but my little brother Horror is better. Dust is shy at first, but he warms up to new people after a while; he's gotten a lot better with it recently. Cross is probably the smartest out of all of us, since he knows a lot about science and stuff like astrophysics. Error is the youngest, and he's..he's kind of reserved..he used to be a lot more eager, but..he isn't, anymore. Well..he sometimes is; he was after that driving lesson the other day - by the way, he's really sorry about almost running you guys over.."

"Wait..that was your brother?" Geno asked. 

"Yep..that was Error."

"..He's glitchy, like me.."

"Yeah..he's dealt with it his entire life. It doesn't hurt him; do yours hurt?"

"Only a little..sometimes."

"I'm sorry to hear that. Anyway, how about we continue this talk over some food? I brought some stuff for us all to share."

"Food?" Reaper perked up a little, looking over at me expectantly. 

"Yeah, I have some fruits and stuff." I nodded, opening up my bag and showing the children the food.

"..You wouldn't poison us, right?" Reaper wanted to be sure.

"Of course not." I shook my skull. "Why would I poison you when I want to adopt you?"

"Do you have peaches?" Raven wondered, looking inside my bag.

"Raven!" Geno scolded softly, coming over and pulling Raven back. "We don't know if we can trust him.."

"But his dad gave us good food!" Raven pouted.

"His dad didn't have time to prepare; he just gave it to us..he has had days."

"Well, look..I can prove that I don't want to poison you; you pick something, and I'll eat it." I promised.

"..." Geno considered it. "Okay."

Geno selected for me to eat one of the several apples in the bag, and I did so without any hesitation. When the children were content that I wasn't going to poison them, they also grabbed some food and began to eat it hungrily; they must have been starving. Before long, my small bag of food was gone, and the children seemed more comfortable with my presence. However, they weren't ready to let me take them home.

"We aren't gonna go with you." Geno decided. "At least..not yet. We still don't trust you."

"I trust him.." Raven sighed.

"Well, Reaper and I don't." Geno informed. "And it's gonna take a lot to change our minds!"

"I understand." I nodded. "I'll do my best, though."

"..You'd better."

"I want a home.." Raven crossed his arms, looking down. 

"He could be lying about wanting to help us, Raven, and I'm not gonna take that chance until I'm satisfied. You aren't gonna, either."

Raven sighed, walking away several feet..there wasn't enough space for him to storm off.

"Well..good bye." I said, opening a portal. "I'll be back soon, though..I'm serious about wanting to help you."

"Good bye." Geno nodded, moving to join his little brothers.

With a soft sigh, I walked through my portal home, ending up in my room in the downstairs house. I lay down on my bed, staring at the ceiling. This was going to be harder than I had first thought. Geno was a good kid; he wanted to look out for his little brothers, something I understood..I understood it more than I should have. I wondered what had happened for those little ones to end up on the streets; they were too young to have decided to run away without their parents looking for them. While I had talked a great deal about myself and my family during the visit, I had heard little to nothing about the children themselves. Geno was the older brother of Raven and Reaper, twins. He was the one who made the decisions. Reaper was reserved and preferred to listen rather than to speak, while Raven was outgoing and eager. That..was all I knew about them. I would need to know more before I could take them in; I would have to make it a point to learn about their interests and other assorted facts about them, including, I hoped, their past. I believed I could do it, though.

I knew I could do it.

~~~chpater end woot~~~

Killer bean meets the baby beans!

Thank you for reading my (not) kidnapping writing!

Bye!

Chapter Text

Killer.

~~~~~

It had been about two weeks since I had met Geno, Reaper, and Raven, and I believed that they were seriously considering coming home with me. Geno had been the most hesitant of the trio, obviously, but even he was coming around to my offer. Reaper and Raven had opened up to me a great deal, and I had learned much about them in that time. The twins and Geno had been orphaned several months ago, when their parents had passed in an accident; Geno had been making do with what he could to protect his little brothers, but they had constantly been hungry and in need until I found them. Now, they were comfortable; I had gotten them some proper clothing and visited daily to ensure they had food. I was convinced that it was only a matter of days before I would be bringing them home to meet the family, and I was ready for it. Dad was going to be so excited to learn that he was a grandfather! Today was a brand new day, and I had just entered Underswap in the usual spot, knocking softly on the bricks of the alleyway outside the boys' makeshift home. 

"Killer?" An eager voice addressed, followed by Raven's hopping into view. "Hi!"

"Hey, Raven." I smiled, giving the little one a hug. "How've you been doing?"

"I'm fine! Reaper found a rat!"

"Oh? Did it hurt any of you?"

"No, Geno scared it off with his magic; it was really big, though!"

"I can imagine. Where are your brothers?" 

"Geno, Reaper!" Raven called out. "Killer's back!"

"Oh, hello!" Geno walked onto the scene from a corner, smiling at me. "You don't usually come two days in a row.."

"Well, I have some time; the rest of my family's busy today, so I figured I'd visit you guys." I explained. "How are you?"

"We're okay. Are you?"

"I'm great, as always!" I nodded. "Are you guys hungry? I know I brought food yesterday, but I figured I'd bring some more just in case."

"I'm hungry!" Reaper informed, coming into view. "Hi, Killer!"

"Hey, Reaper." I greeted, pulling out a backpack full of food for the boys.

And so another visit began. The boys ate their food, while I talked to them about my family; that was what we normally did at first during our visits, and I enjoyed it a lot. We went on in that fashion until the boys finished eating, at which point, they started talking more. For about an hour, we spoke about family, dreams, and possibilities for the future. Unfortunately, the visit couldn't last forever, and I had to leave to get back home before the others started wondering where I was; I couldn't always tell them I was working, since they would have started asking the multiverse why I was working overtime so much. 

"Ah, I've got to go in a few minutes." I informed, not wanting to just leave the boys.

"Aw, okay.." Reaper sighed. 

"Do you have to?" Raven pouted. "I want you to stay!"

"Sorry, bud." I shook my skull. "Wish I could, but I've got to get home before they start wondering where I am."

"..They sound like they really care about you." Geno spoke up, looking down.

"They do. And I care about them, too; I wouldn't want to worry them..so I should get going."

I picked up my backpack once more, standing up and raising my hand to wave to the children, but..a small hand gripped my other hand.

"Wait!" Geno shouted, holding me back.

"Uh, what is it, squirt?" I asked, looking down at him.

"Um..would..would you take us with you?"

I stared at the little one in surprise for a moment, hardly believing the words; he..he was ready to come home with me? All of them were?

"Please?" He whispered, looking up at me with teary eyesockets.

"Of course." I assured, kneeling down to his level and hugging him. "I'll take you home..I will."

"Thank you.."

"We're getting a home?!" Raven gasped, grinning as he dragged his twin over to join the hug. "Yay! We're gonna get a dad!"

"And uncles and a grandpa." I added, chuckling; this was going to be so awesome! I was going to be a dad! "..Shall we go, then? Together?"

"Yeah!" Raven nodded eagerly, bouncing in my arms.

"All right."

"Th-thank you.." Geno smiled at me as he wiped his tears away.

"Of course, buddy." I nodded, opening a portal home. 

I hadn't expected the decision so soon, but I wasn't going to argue! I led the boys through the door, finding no one in the upper house; that was fine.

"This is house number one." I introduced. "There's play stuff in the backyard, and there's a bunch of normal everyday stuff..everywhere. We'll see about getting you a room here in the future..I'm not sure if we have the space right now."

"Where do we sleep, then?" Geno wondered.

"House number two." I replied.

"We get two homes?!" Raven gasped eagerly.

"Heh, yep! Follow me to the stairs."

As I led the boys to the stairs down to the lower house, I felt..great. My soul was beginning to realize that I had made a few bonds with others, and I felt tingly inside..I liked it. I was going to be a dad, just like my own dad! I was going to raise children and teach them everything they needed to know! I was going to watch three brilliant little ones as they traversed through life, finding out just what it really meant to be part of a family! I couldn't wait!

"What..is that?" Reaper stared in surprise at the doorway to the lower house.

"Oh, that's a hidden passageway to the lower house." I answered. "I'll teach you how to use it later so you can come up and down whenever you want, okay?"

"Okay!" Raven liked the sound of that!

"For now, though, let's just go down. Watch your step, guys." 

The boys and I walked down the stairs to the lower house, where we found some of my brothers in the living room. Horror and Error, to be exact; Dust and Cross must have been somewhere else. Horror was watching a movie, while Error seemed occupied with sewing something; he was getting better with his work all the time! 

"Wow!" Raven gasped, looking around the large living room with excitement. "This is huge!"

"Yeah, I guess it is." I nodded, smiling. 

"..Kills?" Error's attention had been grabbed, as well as Horror's. 

"Yeah, bro?" 

"Why..are there kids here?"

"I'm adopting them!" I announced proudly. 

"..." Error put his sewing supplies to the side, before getting up and running out the room. "Dad!"

"..Huh." I shrugged. "He'll warm up to you, probably.."

"Thought you'd tell us before doing something like this, but..okay." Horror was much more accepting; I knew he would be! "Cute kids."

"I'm not cute!" Reaper glared at his new uncle. "I'm..um.."

"Edgy?" Horror snorted.

"Yeah!" Reaper ran with it. "I'm edgy!"

"What does edgy mean?" Raven whispered.

"I don't know..but it sounds cool!" Reaper whispered back.

"So, what are your names?" Horror asked, getting up and coming over slowly. 

"I'm Geno.." The oldest introduced. "And..these are Reaper and Raven.."

"I'm Raven!" Raven clarified. 

"Nice to meet you." Horror smiled calmly. "My name is Horror."

"Nice to meet you, too.." Geno nodded. 

"What's this I hear about children?" Dad walked into the room, being dragged along by Error.

"Tell him he can't, Dad!" Error begged. "Tell him!"

"Error, calm down.." Dad sighed. "How about you go get Dust and Cross?"

"Fine.." Error walked off, clearly unhappy. 

"Ah..I believe we've met, haven't we?" Dad came closer, kneeling in front of the children to get down to their level. "It's very nice to see you again."

"Um..you, too.." Geno nodded; Dad could always calm little ones..

"So, is it true that my son has offered to take you in with us?" 

"Uh..yes..b-but we'll leave if you want us to; we don't want to annoy you.."

"Ah, there will be no such thing." Dad shook his skull. "If my son has decided to adopt you, and you agree to it, you will stay here, and that is the end of it."

"..Thank you." Geno smiled meekly. "Y-you're really nice.."

"I'm only doing what I am meant to do. Now, are you hungry?"

"We just ate, but thank you.."

"All right. Has Killer shown you around yet?"

"He showed us house one!" Raven nodded. "Why do you have two houses? Are you rich?"

Dad chuckled. "Not quite..but we do get by fine in that department."

"What's going on?" Cross asked, coming into the room with Dust and Error. 

"It seems Killer has found a few children to bond with." Dad informed. "It will be nice to have little ones in the house again.."

"What?!" Error groaned. "But..but you were supposed to tell him no!"

"Error, Killer is an adult, and as such, I cannot constantly dictate rules to him; he needs to make his own decisions, just as everyone else. If he wants to do this, I see no reason not to let him."

"But.." Error let out a whine, before growling to himself and stomping off; that..was a bit unexpected.

"He'll be fine." Dad assured. "It's just a phase."

"Really?" Dust asked, coming over with Cross. "Were we like that?"

"No, but not everyone is the same. I'll talk with him later. For now, how about you three get acquainted with the little ones while I speak to Killer?"

"Okay, Dad." Cross nodded, smiling at the brothers. "Hey, kids! What are your names?" 

"Killer?" Dad smiled as he held out a hand for me, and I took it, smiling back; he probably just wanted to talk about rooms and such. "We'll be back soon."

"Okay." Horror nodded with the others.

Dad led me out fo the room, down the hall, and a bit farther away until we reached Dad's personal study; he used this room mainly for document forging and the like when he needed to spread negativity without direct attacks. He let go of my hand and walked over to the desk, taking a deep breath before speaking.

"Are you insane?!" He..shouted?

"Uh..what?" I blinked; what had I done? Dad didn't shout..he just..didn't..

"Killer, you're practically still a child; what possessed you to go out to adopt three others?!"

"I..I just..I thought you'd be happy.."

"Killer.." Dad sighed, shaking his skull and bringing his voice down. "You're twenty-one. You have lived in this world for twenty-one years..do you even know what is involved in parenting?"

"Well, there's food, clothes..that kind of stuff? I can do that.."

"There is so much more than food and clothes, Killer. There's a reason most people don't have children until they're ready - it's hard. Children require attention, supervision, discipline, praise, and, quite honestly, they will change your life into something entirely different! There's a reason I never considered having children for over five centuries..I would have been a horrible parent at twenty-one!"

"But..I helped with the others; I knew how to take care of them when I was little..I have experience!"

"You have a little experience. Killer, parenting is something that I don't think you're ready for..I wish you had at least consulted me before taking this step."

"What's so hard about it?" I didn't understand.

"My son..parenting is spending every waking moment thinking about education, food, clothing, shelter, sickness, and so much more. When those children fall ill, they will need you. When they have bad dreams, they will need you. When they have a bad day, they will need you. When they start learning magic, they will need you. When they get annoyed at small things, they will need you. Tantrums, grades, friends, and everything else..you just can't become a parent overnight. And, Killer..did you consider your role in the multiverse? You have a job that you cannot get out of; those children will impact how much you can do, and you may have to let them down because of your work..I know I did many times to you boys.."

"But this is different, Dad!" I reasoned. "I can do my job and care for them!"

"You may think so now, but you will find that you simply cannot." Dad informed. "You will be called to work at the most inopportune times, Killer, and you cannot put off your job if a little one is ill or if they need you;  you will only hurt them and yourself if you try. And..I assume that you brought this up with the multiverse..you would not have been permitted to bring them here if you hadn't..just tell me you didn't promise anything."

"I just..said I'd do my job better.."

Dad let out a long sigh. "That was a mistake. I will do my best to ensure that you remain safe in your endeavors, but I must warn you that I can't do everything. Those children will be harmed at some point, Killer, either by the fact that you can't be there every time they need you or some other reason. Did you think to ask if they would be sentenced to the same type of life you have?"

"I..no.." I hadn't thought of it..

"Then we can only assume they will be..great job, Killer."

"..I'm sorry.."

"I'm sure you will find yourself saying that a lot; you have three children now, Killer, and I have to warn you..your life is about to change very much. You can say goodbye to your free time and hobbies, because you won't have them anymore; your children will end up being your priority now. Everything you do will be affected by them, and you'll likely end up getting less sleep at night; I would hope they don't have nightmares, but that's always a worry. It will also fall upon you to ensure that they are properly affiliated with the fact that they will be unable to have many friends due to the fact that they are now part of our family, just as you learned..and they will have to be taught about the balances, because we have to assume that they will become Guardians at some point, since you never asked. However, I am not going to let my new grandchildren be completely your responsibility; I will ensure that they get what they need if they are lacking, and I will arrange their education. Despite this major blunder, in my opinion..you have a family to help you out. We will help you..just don't expect that we will do everything for you."

"..U-understood.."

"Now, I'd like to properly meet my grandchildren; let's go see them, shall we?"

"..Okay.."

As we walked, I had only one thought in my mind.

I had messed up.

~~~chapter break woot~~~

Killer bean is a parent now!

At first I was gonna make Nihgtmare just happy with it but then I realized he's far too good of a parent to let Killer go without knowing what he's getting into. So yeah.

Thanks for reading my blundering writing!

B-

But wait, there's more?!

~~~chapter continue woot~~~

Third person.

~~~~~

A five year old sat in a field, picking flowers. She hummed a tune that was common in her universe - one that most knew. She didn't notice the presence behind her until it spoke.

"Well, hello, child.." The presence - the adult - startled the little one, but she calmed quickly. 

"Um..hello!" She offered a light smile. "Who are you?"

"..You can call me Multiverse."

"That's a weird name.." 

"It is, isn't it? I suppose I should skip the intriductions, however. I have a problem."

"Um..what kind of problem?"

"I need help, my dear..and I want you to help me."

"Oh..I probably shouldn't.."

"Nonsense - you should help me. If you do, I'll help you back."

"..Well..what do you want me to do? I'm not special.."

"Ah, but you are..I sense great power in you, child; I want to help you use it..but you will have to trust me. You see, I am in the process of making worlds, but I need people to live in them..it would be a great help to me if you could arrange that."

"But..I can't do that.."

"Of course you can. But we'll start small, so you get used to it. I have a garden, with flowers much prettier than these here..you can help me take care of it."

"..Really?"

"Really. So tell me, child.."

The adult came down to her level.

"Will you help me grow my garden?"

~~~chapter end woot~~~

Bye!