#cycleverse

[jarlshall]

Lessons From the Grand Sage: The Beasts of the Cycle

Magic suffuses the world and all things in it. Sometimes that elemental energy comes to rest in items, as we discussed last. Occasionally, those magical nodes are not metal or crystal, but living, thinking beings. There are more masters of magic in the world than just mortals.

I speak, of course, of the Natural Masters, also known as the Beasts of the Cycle. Creatures of tremendous skill that wield one of the five elements as intuitively as a wolf wields its fangs or a bear its claws.

All are intelligent, in their own fashion, and are often sought for their wisdom and ability… or as a means to test one’s own skill in the same art.

The Green – Dagfolk

(art by Dinwardo on twitter)

Also called the Firstborn of Dagma, the Dagfolk are giants that take the form of trees. They are often considered to be physical Green spirits, embodying the power of wild places. Left to their own devices, they act as shepherds to ancient forests and reclaiming sundered landscapes in the Sapfather’s name

Slow to act, but fearsome when angered, the Dagfolk are content to guard their groves against interlopers. They are most often seen in the mist shrouded forests of the Fells. Even to the Dagfolk their friendship with the Felfolk is ancient and many trace back the druidic tradition to Dagfolk tutelage.

Being tree-like, the Dagfolk focus more on the negative Green than positive. They nurture plant growth, summon mists and rains, and it is said they can even command the hills and rivers if they chose.

Body – Unicorns

(art by @ohsweetsweetie)

The mighty unicorn resembles a tall and strong war horse. One with shaggy fur complete with a beard, and a radiant horn that acts as the focus of its power. They are often found in places where life and death are balanced, and life force waxes strong – the Magoean Swamps are known to be host to many of them.

There is no greater conduit of life force than the unicorn and this makes them among the physically strongest and healthiest beings recorded. A unicorn’s horn can pierce a knight in plate clean through, or carry several of the same upon its strong back.

But it is not the ferocity of the unicorn for which it is known but its skill at the art of medicine. Short of death itself, the unicorn can cure all woes that it chooses. Most lack the power of speech, but they understand it well enough and can be persuaded to lend their healing art for a noble cause.

There exists a corruption of the unicorn, known as the nightmare. Neither living nor dead, the nightmare exists in perversion of the natural order. A sighting of a nightmare is often the prelude to an undead horde.

Mind – The Firebird

(art also by ohsweetsweetie) Little is known of the Firebird, for its unmatched skill in Mind make it more than capable of avoiding any hunters or lore seekers from ever laying eyes upon it, let alone encountering it. So muddied is its lore, that it is unknown if there are many Firebirds, or simply one immortal Firebird.

Legend has it that the Firebird will grant a gift of knowledge to any who can acquire one of its feathers. It is uncertain if it is the feather that gives the knowledge, or if this act merely impresses the Firebird. In either case, just as its skill at Mind conceals it from any it considers unworthy, free secrets are hidden from its divinations.

There are many tales of heroes questing for or finding the Firebird, but only one is known to the historical record – the Temple Knight of Lumanox turned Emperor, Aerimus of the Rainbow. In his quest, perhaps aided by the gods, he learned from the Firebird the cure to a wicked plague besetting the Empire.

If Emperor Aerimus has peers in his success, it is not known by the scholars of the Imperial library.

The Grey – The Atuins

(art by ohsweetsweetie)

Enigmatic as the Grey itself, the Atuins are turtles of titanic size and wisdom. So vast are they that entire islands fit upon their backs, carried about as they swim through the warm waters that lap at the Telent Triple Alliance.

They appear and vanish, seemingly at will. Sometimes a particular Atuin will vanish for decades or centuries at a time, only to return as if not even a day has passed. Likewise for those that they might bear upon their backs during their disappearances.

They grow larger as they age, but seldom are particularly large specimens found. It is theorized that the Mortal Realm is but their spawning grounds, and once they come of age they leave to swim the astral waters of the Cosmic Infinity.

Seeped in the Grey, the Atuins are often sought by sages and philosophers to gain their insight into the deeper machinations of the universe. What they hear is little spoken of and often troubles them.

Spirit – Dragons

(art by ohsweetsweetie)

Dragons are known to the people of the continent. As keepers of hidden lore. As mighty protectors. As blood soaked reavers. As tragic monsters.

The pinnacle of Spirit’s art, a dragon’s very words are edged with power. Dragonfire has become a byword for unavoidable damage, but they are not limited to flame. Each dragon has a preference for a element, with ice, flame, or lightning being the most common.

Despite their tremendous size, dragons are surprisingly light, and agile in the skies. Spirit infuses their very being, down to scale and bone. A hollow dragon femur will shatter steel brought against it, due solely to the Spirit energy seeped into it.

Despite this power, the dragons bear a curse, laid upon them by a long dead dark god. It is a madness that gnaws at their mind – a lust for domination, gold, and devastation. Some are born lost to the curse; others succumb to it over time. Others never fall at all. But it is felt by all their number. At its worst, it saps them of their intelligence and renders them little more than ravening beasts.

[azvlas]

hello look at my characters

very much not my art! commissioned from @necroneol go give them money 👍🏻

these two are toxic yuri that’s all you have to know for now

[ohai-here]

I'll be participating in Art Fight this year! It's my first time so please take care of me 🥺

You can find me at https://artfight.net/~ohai , my character profiles are still a bit of a WIP but you feel free to take a look around! If you have any questions, feel free to hmu~ I love yapping.

[ask-sibverse]

So I saw this dress on Twitter and it fits harem AU!Bella in very good ways. So yeah I spent like several hours drawing this. (My twitter feed is skeletons, cats, and clothes. And more skeletons) (Im currently working on updating sibverse, harem AU, and *hopefully* Flowers in Bloom, so expect updates soon!)

[cycle-verse]

Cycle!Dream - The Scales of Justice

Height: 6 foot 1 inch

LV: 9

Physical Strength: Very high

Weapons: Longbow, Dual Swords, Staff of Positivity

*Check: Secretly called the Warlord among the council

Dream is not considered a prince. He does not stand behind Nightmare as such. Rather, he stands next to Nightmare as a judge. Those who die by Dream's hand are killed for a reason, and those who are saved have a reason for redemption. This is why Dream is considered the Scales of Justice

There are a few important things about Dream, but the most important is that he will hunt you down if you have not met the justice you deserve. He's especially fond of killing abusers and the like, so make sure you watch your back if you're one of those...

When not using his weapons, Dream will use brute force. He may not look strong, but he can pick up Cross and Nightmare at the same time(plus a third person if he really tried). He trains both for strength and accuracy and feels that he can never be the best, but wants to be.

Ecto

Unfortunately, Dream has a condition where his ecto will summon neutral if he uses any form of magic. This can be summoning his bow, creating his arrows, or when he holds his staff.

It will only form neutral, but that does not stop the danger. Ecto can still be damaged, and it may hold together certain injuries, but damaging ecto can damage other things, from nerves to internal systems.

Weapons

Dream has multiple weapons, each with its own abilities.

The Staff of Positivity is a powerful weapon. It gets stronger as Dream does, and while it does have magical projections, these are only for show. Dream will make these disappear in battle and use the staff like a bo staff. It currents positivity through anyone that it hits, which can be a bad combination since it will daze someone with said positivity.

Dream's nickname for the original form of his staff is "that old stick".

Dream's Longbow is a work of art by itself. He has pinpoint accuracy with it, and there is nothing he can't strike. The type of arrow does not matter, but if someone else were to try and hold the bow without Dream's permission, they would seem clumsy with it, not hitting their target like they wish to. Even so, Dream is the only one that can split the bow into his dual short swords.

Arrows are an important pair with the bow. This is what his arrows of positivity look like, but Dream will often carve his own arrows out of wood in order to conserve magic and hope to prevent his condition kicking in.

Dream's dual short swords are very important in Dream's close-up combat. His bow splits into them, and he treats them more like daggers than swords, but they are still deadly. They have the ability to current positivity like the staff does, but Dream chooses to never do this due to his condition, and the much higher risk that close-up combat would prove.

[seertale]

As a return, I have two things!

My wonderful friend @star-gamerxox and I have an ongoing project, a multiverse called CycleVerse

Along with it, I have drawn Cycle!Nightmare. Please enjoy him.

Also remember that asks for certain characters are open, and the list is attached to the masterpost, but also feel free to ask specific things about pir characters! Just make sure we know they're pointed to us.

[jarlshall]

Itsa me, Jarl. Gonna bring this over to the OC side blog since its relevant.

The elves are divided up into cultures based on their particular expertise of the five elements of magic.

The elves of the North, the Kwaycha, are masters of Mind - divination and illusion. One grandmaster of Mind is chosen to lead them as Sapa Kwaycha, based on their spiritual might.

The western elves, the Denosan Confederacy are the old friends of the Green, the element of change. Seven tribes, each divided three more, make up their people.

The swamp elves, the Magoean, learned from their homes the balance between life and death, and are peerless healers through their expertise in Body.

Tower Elves, the Tereshi, command a peerless skill over Spirit, the magic of war. Their grand alliance - the Dodecopolis - are comprised of twelve inviolate city states.

The elves of the East, Ulkan, hidden in jungle cities, the star gazers and veil tearers. Their knowledge of the hidden ways of the Grey has kept their civilization concealed and detached for untold centuries.

Humanity has four rough groupings, uniform to an outsider, but hiding tremendous depth.

Hydris, the people of the north. Master sailors, ferocious traders, famous mercenaries. Broadly they're split into the Fjordlings, isolated valley towns and nomadic shepherds, the Painted Men, who stand in the shadow of the ancient dwarf holds and remain close to the Green, and the Trueborn, those from the city of Hydris itself and its heartlands.

Citalens, them of the great southern Republic. Primarily the people of Inras Cital, there are roughly two dozen lesser Citals formed together as the Allies. Provinces beyond the peninsula have taken on aspects of this culture, but a wealth of differences remain.

The Fells. Tattooed nature worshipers, which is about all they share in common across their twenty four historical realms, split apart by low mountains, rivers, and ancient woods. A land of druids and poetry.

Magnia, the old Sun Empire, now known as the Hundred Kingdoms. The three founding kingdoms of Angromar, Neustre, and Royal Meadth have been joined by four other kingdoms. Two mighty horse nomads tribal federations dwell across the Thundering Plains to its southern reaches

The Telent, jungle city states organized into a grand triple alliance after Citalen aggression. Little but the rain forest, fear of the west, and homage to the spirits unites them.

And, of course, the dwarves - known collectively as the Maldranak. Ever since the homeland was lost a millennium ago, the dwarves fled and put roots where they could. And where they built their new halls, they interacted with their neighbors and were changed - thus becoming the Alloys.

One branch settled near the Magnians and became the Gold Dwarves. Nobility came to them with patronage, and knights sought their skill in weapon crafting. The Gold Dwarves became renown for fine detail and filigrees, masters at working the metals that gleamed and shimmered like the sun and moon.

Another settled in the Rusty Mountains beside Cital. The plentiful iron that gave the mountains their name and hue gave them plenty of practice in the working of steel and iron. Now, the foundries of the Steel Dwarves burn hotter and their metal is the strongest of all the continent.

Wrathful and distrustful, one band headed west and settled in the Gray Sentinels. They dug deeper than any of the others and scorned the company of their Denosan neighbors who balked at their razing of woodland. With vampires to the south and burned bridges to the north, the Bronze Dwarves have turned their craft fully to the pursuit of war.

The Deep Root mountains between Magnia and Telent had promise, but more than ore and darkness dwelled in those depths. The Obsidian Dwarves were known for their work in glass and stone and architecutre, but it did not save them. Their halls stand empty, their people scattered to the other holds.

Last and newest of the Maldranak are the Reforged. A century or two ago, growing fearful of a darkening world, Gold dwarves gathered an army from the other holds and enlisted the aid of Hydris to reclaim the original homeland. Built of all other dwarf holds and influenced by Hydris, these dwarves gather the skill and wisdom of the others, surpassing them in all but their specialties.

Making every other fantasy race except for humans a monoculture isn't just lazy, but actively robbing yourself of a wealth of story depth. Give them cultures with distinct nuances about things a human would have no idea about. Elves whose invisible and extremely nuanced cultural cues are not only incredibly subtle, but vary from one elven line to another, so something that would be considered a remarkably tactful and delicate choice in one elven house would be an atrocious insult in another.

Goblin clan feuds about The Sacred Bug - they all agree that this specific species of beetle is sacred to the Goblin Gods, but the question is whether it is taboo to eat it, or whether it would be blasphemy to not eat this bug that was specifically gifted to goblinkind by the gods. Can You Eat The Bug -wars are torrid affairs that can last generations. There's a theory that there are two different goblin gods who appear as the same one, and have deliberately given their own respective clans contradictory instructions about the bug just to fuck with them. Everyone who has ever asked a goblin about this theory has been bit.

Dwarves who have different regional measures for different ground depths. There's a confusion within a construction crew digging a new tunnel with some of the foreign builders using words like "first cracks deep" for something that's not a measure that's in use in the dwarvish universal metric system. And then it turns out that different dwarves from different areas are used to different kinds of bedrock that cracks at different levels, and they also disagree with each other about how deep is "first cracks deep".

And the Mason Master of the projct throws his pickaxe in the tunnel wall in frustration and goes "alright the next one of you to say some utter fucking hillbilly bullshit gets their ass beat so bad that your mother's beard falls off."

[zu-is-here]

Update! We've changed midwife Ink into CycleVerse, and I've started work on designs for the characters

Nightmare alone has taken me over 65 hours...

Oh my! Σ੧(❛□❛✿) Please, take care of yourself (ówò) And thank you for the update, take your time here ♡

UPD:

You really did such a great work on him (both of them)! *^* And it was worth it╰(*´︶`*)╯

[ao3feed-undertale1]

Cycleverse: Kingdoms Timeline

read it on AO3 at https://archiveofourown.org/works/53947747 by NewMoonChild For some reason, the characters of sibverse/Apple Twins Council are in a timeline of continuous cycles of life, death, and rebirth. Each cycle is a new beginning, a new chance to meet and have new experiences In this time, Nox and Reve (a Night and Dream) are emperors in a somewhat chaotic time, with others vying for powers and favor across the continent. With several wars to recover from and more on the horizon, its a lot of work for the twin Emperors Words: 1616, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English Series: Part 4 of Sibverse and What Ifs Fandoms: Undertale (Video Game) Rating: Not Rated Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con Categories: Multi Characters: Sans (Undertale), Frisk (Undertale), Original Undertale Character(s) Relationships: Sans/Sans (Undertale), Frisk/Sans (Undertale), Chara/Sans (Undertale) Additional Tags: Dreamtale Nightmare Sans (Undertale), Dreamtale Sans | Dream (Undertale), _____tale Sans | Ink (Undertale), harem au, Floralverse read it on AO3 at https://archiveofourown.org/works/53947747

[jarlshall]

Lessons From the Grand Sage I: On Magic

Celdos reveal, your grace.

It has come to my attention that there have been… gaps in your study. As the Grand Sage, it is my duty to see these filled.

Today, we will start with the wheel which defines the world. The Cycle, through which all we know and are flows.

Shall we begin?

(art by @ohsweetsweetie)

Study this diagram well – friends and foes before you already have. The arrows upon the outer wheel show the flow of energy as it courses through our reality. Energy changes states as it flows, with five elements recognized by the wise.

We start, as always, with the Green. Nebulous and living. The life force of storms and mountains and oceans. This coalesces to Body.

Body, steady and true. The life force of individuals, be they animal, plant, or person. From Body springs thought and, with it, Mind.

Mind is ephemeral and formless. It is the power behind truth, imagination, and deception. The emotions born of Mind take shape in the Grey.

The Grey is power in the truest sense. Energy shaped not by physical law but by ideals and deeds. When given direction and purpose, it sharpens to Spirit.

Spirit, the motive force. The drive behind mortality, and the unbreakable inner strength. When this strength is dispersed into the mortal realm, it is reshaped into the Green.

The Cycle flows, ever and always.

Each element has a positive and negative aspect. Body, for example is split between positive Body (Life) and negative Body (Death). Remember my lord; neither is evil, and both are necessary. Like one’s hands, a mage may have a preference for one or the other. But to ignore one entirely is to court disaster.

We shall discuss these elements in depth at a later date. For now, suffice that a mage will specialize in one, but all have their place.

Each element has a relationship with the other four. The first is a harmonious relationship – its adjacent elements. One feeds the element; the other is fed by it. Body is fed by the Green; Body, in turn, feeds Mind. A mage can brush into elements adjacent to their specialty, though less skillfully than their focus.

The second is a destructive relationship. These are the elements opposites. One is the element that it counters; the other counts it. Body neutralizes the Grey, yet Body is defeated by Spirit. In this way, no one element dominates over the others. A mage cannot evoke elements that oppose their specialty.

The day grows long and its light, short. We will continue these lessons at a later date.

Celdos guide you.

- The Grand Sage

[jarlshall]

Alric and Bjorn, two of my most important main characters and brothers to boot! The story opens with Alric on the run from home, having learned at the same time as his former friends that he had become a werewolf.

Without any hesitation, Bjorn joined his brother in his flight and the story begins...

Newest commission finished for @jarl-deathwolf with their characters Bjorn (left, brown cloak) and Alric (right, blue cloak)! It was a total pleasure to work with these guys and I am honestly VERY pleased with how it turned out! The little 'windows' in the back were a fun touch!

My Commissions - keep an eye out for when I'm open, and follow @pilotdraws for all art all the time

[commonguttersnipe]

Hot Take (I think?): Bicycle Repairman is a canon alternate version of Superman

Into the Cycleverse…

[ohai-here]

😒 when u interrupt the gay boys

[ask-sibverse]

Dumb things about harem AU and the winter

The coast of their continent is plagued by horrible storms throughout the winter season, so its a time for sailors and merchants to stay home. It's also a time of very little economic activity, but most know and prepare for this time throughout the year

After taking the throne, Emperor Nox and Reve arranged with the Witch Queen to let their half brothers stay in the Apple Kingdom during the winter. Reve insists on a welcoming ball every time, which is one of Nox's only public appearances during the year.

Emperor Nox's other main public appearance is the new year's ball

New Years for the Apple Kingdom is generally mid winter, as a way to celebrate making it halfway through the season and that loved ones are safe

[monenblogi]

“Pff--please, I could hardly feel it! It was—uh—definitely not because I didn’t brace myself when I fell.” A bit of a nervous laugh, though he was all too happy to use Mydei to yank himself off. And give himself quick dust off, he had spent way too much of his first savings to get some proper armor that wasn’t going to get him yelled at for horrors against fashion. 

Something about courts needing appearances, though the longer he stayed in Castrum Kremnos the more Phainon was sure that wasn’t even close to the case here. 

“You could say my head’s a bit of a rock. Always been told that.” He even tapped the side of his head for good measure. “Back home my father was always sure if I couldn’t put my brain to good use, I could probably just headbutt my way to a proper soldier career. I guess in a way he was right.” 

He blinked at Phainon, rolling his exposed shoulder to work out some of the stiffness from losing to Phainon in the last round of sparring. It was sore but he had multiple new bruises that hurt far more beneath his scant clothing that he would probably find when he takes a bath tonight.

Something seemed wrong, he wasn't sure if he noticed anything off before they started sparring but now something just didn't seem right. He probably could try to goad Phainon into another round but instead he stepped forward, reached out his hand. A figurative olive branch.

"I didn't think I knocked you back that hard." Even as the words left his mouth he watched Phainon, expecting any inkling of hesitation or being concussed, "Do you need help up?"

[cycle-verse]

After leaving the room, Dream headed downstairs, and the first thing he heard was a voice.

“Uncle dream? How’s dad?” Gradient asked, his phone in his hand but his hands shaking.

"He'll be ok... no need to worry..."

“I’m just… if dad is hurt then papa and Stain hurt too and… PJ is driving me mad and I just want to call him but I can’t,” he didn’t say who he wanted to call but it was obvious that this person was a comfort to him.

"What makes you think you can't...? I'm here to help you guys, make sure everything stays in order..."

“Because my phone isn’t track proof and I’ve already been seen by one of HIS lackeys, entering outertale,” he frowned, “I’ve been texting him since Stain isn’t here to help me and I just… it’s getting late and Stain will probably stay with dad and…” he was rambling, panicking, but it was common knowledge how he was nearly codependent on his brother.

He sighed softly before moving to take gently Gradient's face in his hands, "Hey, hey... it's ok... do you want to go up and see Ink and Stain...? Leave me to take care of everyone...?"

“But I’m supposed to take care of them too… I’m the only one PJ listens to when they’re being mean… I…” he’d always been like this, trying to be the caretaker, and with growing suspicion of memories it would at least help it make more sense as neither parents ever put that weight on him.

"Gradient, please... it's ok to take a break... just take a deep breath, ok...?"

“I can’t take a break! I thought I could and then Dad got hurt! I need to protect my family, I can’t lose anyone else,” and that confirmed it, that he remembered the girls because he hadn’t lost anyone else. “I can’t fail again,” and may it be mentioned he was literally a baby then. “I’m the one who helps Print with their homework because they can’t read, I’m the one who Bluescreen hangs off of while they need to run around, I’m the one that stops PJ from being mean… I’m the one that helps Stain with his nightmares when he’s scared to wake up our parents… I can’t just… stop,” so much on his shoulders that his parents likely didn’t even know he did.

"And I'm right here... I can help Print, and Screen, and I can handle PJ... you need to go be with your parents and brother... know they're ok... because you deserve that pleasure..."

“I…” he hid his face against Dream. Just about then, Moku wrapped his arm around Gradient. “Don’t cry…” the kid whispered

Dream carefully hugged Gradient, "You heard the kid... don't cry... go see your parents..."

“I… okay…” he wiped at his tears before turning to find Inks room. “Why was he sad?” Moku asked once he was gone, tilting his head.

"Because he's stressed... he just needs a small break and he'll feel better..."

“Okay… I don’t like seeing them sad…”

"I know, sad is never fun..."

“Sad is yucky… Pops was always sad,” he whispered

"I know... but we just have to try our hardest to make them feel better..." He moved to scoop Moku up. "How does food sound...?

“Food sounds good!” He smiled brightly.

He nodded, walking over to the kitchen, "Good, 'cause I'm gonna finish up what Error was making."

“Yay! Papa was making good stuff!” The good stuff happened to be a taco salad with the meat already finished but left to the side half-hazardly.

He nodded, moving to start finishing it, "I might not be as good a cook as Error, but I'll try me hardest, just for you." He paused a moment to boop Moku's nose.

Moku giggled madly.

“Pops had a picture of you,” he said softly. He’s a kid with no filter, but he said it so calmly as if it was meant to be a comfort. “He said you were always so nice,”

"Ah, I... I imagine he still has it... but I try my hardest to be nice because then mean people will realize it's better than being mean."

“He talked about you a lot… I’m glad I’m here with you at least,” he continued to smile, leaning against Dream.

He nodded, "I'm glad you're here too, that way I can help take care of you."

He smiled more at him before reaching to try and grab some food while Dream worked on food

Dream jokingly pulled it away from him.

“Fooooooooood,” the kid laughed

"I know, I know, I'm almost done."

He giggled more.

"Just gimme a few more seconds."

“Okay!” He smiled brightly

He smiled a little, soon handing him a completed taco salad before calling the others

Moku squealed and moved to try and carry it into the dining room. He tripped and almost spilled it before running to the dining room and sitting down

Dream made sure it didn't before moving to carefully bring the rest to the dining table for the kids to eat.

PJ thanked him with a grumble while the blues both smiled at him, Screen trying to get Pic into a high chair.

Dream moved to assist, carefully putting him into the high chair before moving to feed him, "There we go."

“There we go!” Screen echoed before moving to sit as well. “Thank you Uncle Dreaaaaaam,”

"Of course, Screen."

Screen giggled and began to eat. Moku ate quietly as well while Print began to complain about homework again to his siblings, a common topic to the kid who struggled severely to read but they hadn’t gotten a test to get him tested for dyslexia yet.

"I can help you with your schoolwork after dinner if you like."

“Thank you, Uncle Dream,” Print smiled. Everyone seemed happy except PJ who was trying to hide a glare. It could simply be from being taken away from their time with their friend, but there was more to that.

Dream finished feeding Pic and stepped over to PJ, "Hey."

PJ looked down immediately, their fists balling.

"You're upset..."

“Why would I ever have a reason to be upset?” They snapped but their eyes softened a bit and they looked away. “They were calling Pal weird again all day before you got here,” Screen called out to Dream, “they don’t always mean it but Gradient kept telling them to stop so they didn’t make Pal sad,”

Dream didn't really pay attention to what Bluescreen said, "It's ok to be upset..."

“Upset over what? The fact that everyone else has someone who wants them if something happens? That Pal gets a parent worth it while I spent over a year in a void and I have no clue what would happen to me if my parents died!?” They snapped before looking down, “I’m a construct of magic, what happens when that magic is gone?” The whispered

"You *are* the magic... it won't just... disappear... and if anything happened... you all would stay with me... you'll never be alone again, PJ..."

“You don’t get it… I’m nothing without them and just… why does Pic get to have a childhood but I had to spend almost two years in a void? Why?” They whispered.

Dream moved to carefully kneel by them, "Sometimes the world is worse than we want it to be... but you are your own person... you can make sure of that... it may feel like it... but you don't need to depend on anyone or have anyone depend on you, to be you...:

“I just… it hurts… pal has you and that’s so strange, he’s the only one and just… why does he get three parents when I couldn’t even get two at first? And I love Dad and Papa now but just…”

"I know... I really understand how you feel... and you have them now... they won't just... up and leave... and they've also got a long time before either of them would pass..."

PJ hiccuped but they didn’t cry, crying was hard for their body to do because, you know, being made of ink

"I know... it's ok... it feels bad but I promise it'll get better..."

They reached to hug him, hiding their face against him.

He gently wrapped his arms around them, "There you go... it's ok..."

PJ continued to cry against him, even if it was just dry sobs. This day was hard on the three eldest kids but at least the littler ones were oblivious

Dream rubbed their back, trying his best to comfort them and tell them it would be alright.

After a while, they calmed down and looked at him. “Thank you…”

"Of course... I'm here if you need it..."

They nodded and hugged him again. “Seriously… I hope you know you’re really important to my family… you’re a big part of it,”

"I know... I'm not perfect... but I'm trying..."

“You don’t need to be perfect… obviously my parents don’t care,”

"Doesn't matter... no one's perfect..."

“Exactly…” PJ sighed deeply before looking at their phone. “I like the think Omni is perfect, Omni is the friend I was with,”

"That's usually how people feel in situations like this, and that's ok..."

They smiled a bit. “I think a lot of people are at least close to perfect… even my siblings.”

"Ya, and people can definitely get close... but, you know... we all try to act perfect... and it might never work because we're just not meant for that... but as long as you're trying your hardest... that's what really gets you places..."

“I know… I know…” PJ sighed and looked down at their phone. “Omni is calling me…” they whispered

"You can answer it..."

“You sure?” They asked, holding their phone to their chest.

"I'm sure... I'll take care of your siblings..."

“Okay…” they smiled a bit and picked it up.