Rolling The Colors

Day 10: Arbor Rights

Enjoy another great piece by KattraKnit

=UnderSwap #0=

The monsters had gained a reputation for being the most kind and reasonable of being in the
thirty years they had been on the surface. In the beginning there had been a few sit ins and
other extremely peaceful protests to gain monster rights for about five years but that was then
and this was now. An entire generation had grown up with them sense then.

So when the world woke up one snowy December third to discover a group of monster children
had chained themselves to the gates of a cut your own Christmas tree farm in upstate
Massachusetts. Demanding Arbor Rights and Stop the ritual massacre of the innocent. It
unsurprisingly sent a shock wave around the world. By noon the world was watching the
tension confrontation with the local sheriff in which he tried to scold them and send them home.
The world for the most part got a giggle out of a toddler telling him he was naughty and to go
away.

Things were not really taken seriously until the adult monsters showed up bringing the kids
coco, cookies, and lunch. That is also when the multiverse slammed headfirst into the
realization of the protest because the adults providing aid and support were Nightmare and his
gang. As well as Error who showed up, threw scarves and mittens at the kids and left.

Blue was the first of the Star Sans to arrive, he came well armed with a sled loaded down with
an insulated tent, an eco-friendly heater and thermoses full of hot potato soup.

Dream and Ink were next, they came prepared to confront Nightmare and rescue kids. Ink
started a speech about interfering with the attorney of AU and not interfering in religious affairs.
It might have been a good speech if he hadn't gotten distracted when Paper Jam yelled at him.
"Hey squidiot, our side has coco and cookies!" Ink prompts abandoned Dream for snack and
protest sign painting the message may have been less coherent after that but any real change
of a battle was over.

Dream, not knowing what else to do, goes over to check on Blue. "Hey Blue, what are you
doing?"

Blue grins handing Dream a tent peg, "I the magnificent Blue am setting up a warming tent for
the protesters! This is great the kids have done a wonderful job of planning, organizing, and
recruiting! I haven't seen such well planned civil disobedience in years! They may not have
planned perfectly for the weather! Fortunately they have adults willing to help them along!"

"You sound very approving of all this? And aren't you worried about Nightmare's involvement?"
Dream looks around bewildered but automatically helped Blue with the tent.

"Dream I know you have never paid much attention to Ink's babbling about the creatures. But
sometimes kids just show up out of nowhere who's magic says they are related to people who
have never had that kind of relationship, including your brother. Several of the protesters are
his ship kids. Some of them are yours oh and Pallet is helping some of his siblings make signs."
Blue smiles and waves at one of the kids. "That one is Blue-screen, he is one of mine."

Dream abruptly sets down in the snow, "you are saying I have kids I never had and brother has
kids?"

"Mmmhmm I wanted to tell you before this but you are always so worked up when it involves
your brother. He is a real good parent and uncle very involved. Keeps insisting he is going to
be a better parent than he had." Blue nods at Nightmare where he is fishing a toddler in a puffy
lavender snow suit that makes her look like a pastel marshmallow out of a snow bank. "The
kids love him definitely the monster of choice for story time."

"Hey dad, glad you could make it!" Pallet jogs over and offers Dream a hand up. "Ink is making
signs and Brandy is supervising so I am going to hunt down the younger kids and make sure
they all put on the scarves, hats, and mittens Error threw at us. Plus someone should make
sure they are on in a way that won't trip them."

Dream looked up at Pallet stunned, "Pallet what are you doing here? You knew about all this?"
Dream makes a vague gesture.

"You mean my half siblings, cousins, and the other ship kids? Sure Error pulled me in to teach
my half siblings creation magic as soon as I was out of stripes." Pallet shrugs and grins."Speaking of siblings you have got to meet Lux! This was her idea she saw a Christmas tree
right after thanksgiving and started balling and asking why, tree cousin was dead. You can not
imagine how hard it was to explain that just because grandmother was a tree doesn't make
every tree a cousin. But it just got us all thinking. And then Tenpatch, he is a cousin, suggested
we do something. After all they might not be related but they are kind of our people to."

Dream watches Pallet babble and wave his arms about just like Ink when he is excited. He
could hardly take it in.

Nightmare walks over and puts the lavender marshmallow in Pallet's arms, "Pallet your dad and
I need to talk. Will you make sure Lux gets a jelly thumbprint cookie?"

Pallet hugs Lux, "sure uncle Nightmare I will make sure Misery gets one too." Pallet hugs his
little sister and heads towards the younger kids.

Blue grins finished with his set up, "want to use the tent for your little conference while it warms
up?"

Nightmare nods and picks Dream up with a tentacle, "thank you yes that would do nicely Blue."

Dream starts to try to get free more out of panicie habits than any real need. "What conference?
What is going on? Blue?"

"Relax Dream now that you know about the kids you need to talk about custody, and visitation,
education, living arrangements, holiday truces you know parenthood stuff." Blue holds the tent
flap open while Nightmare maneuvers them into the tent without dropping Dream or squeezing
him too much.

"Blue is right, Giftmas is around the corner and I would like to do my holiday shopping without a
battle this year. We had better talk about our balance as holidays tend to mess with it anyway."
Nightmare gently set Dream down.