Corrupted Love (ErrorFresh)

Chapter 13: Blueberry meets Ink!

"I don't know about this, Sans..." Papyrus grumbled as they walked through the forest of Snowdin, his hands in the pockets of his orange hoodie.

Blueberry sat on top of his shoulders, smiling down at him. "Come on, Paps! Don't be a butt. It isn't that big of a deal"

Papyrus sighed. "I know that you see the good in everyone and I know you think of him as a friend and all, but I'm not sure if I'm comfortable with a known destroyer of universes just...popping in to say hi every once in a while!"

Blueberry crossed his arms with a hmph. He didn't understand why Error and his brother couldn't just be friends! "Well, you should at least-" The small skeleton started, but he trailed off when he noticed a figure in the distance walking towards them. He squinted through the snow, filled with confusion. Was...that Fresh?

The colorful figure stepped closer to them, and through the snow, Blue could make out the familiar bright 90's style clothes with crazy patterns on them, something that was unmistakably Fresh. But...the YOLO glasses that usually donned Fresh's face were gone, and the unfamiliar star-shaped pupils in the skeleton's eyes were filled with worry and fear. The strange skeleton froze when he noticed the brothers, immediately pulling out a large paintbrush and getting in a defensive position, but then recognition flashed in his eyes and he lowered the weapon, looking more than a little confused. "Uh...a-am I...in Underswap?" He asked after a moment.

"Uh...yeah, you are." Papyrus told him after a moment, looking just as confused.

The skeleton's eyes widened as he looked around at their surroundings, shocked. "But...I thought Error destroyed this place! How did it-"

"He brought it back!" Blueberry told him cheerfully. "It was just a misunderstanding, really. He's pretty nice."

The other skeleton blinked. "...That's...that's impossible! You have to be mistaken. Error's never reset a world before. He just destroys. He's not a good person. And he's the farthest thing from nice... I would know."

"Told you, bro." Papyrus muttered.

Blueberry merely rolled his eyes, bopping Papyrus lightly on the head before looking back at the colorful skeleton with a smile. "So...who are you? How do you know Error?"

The skeleton managed to give a shaky smile back. "Oh, sorry... I guess I should've introduced myself. I'm Ink! I created your universe, and many others. Error and I...don't exactly get along well considering his...hobbies..." Ink looked away. "If you can call cold blooded murder a hobby..." He grumbled quietly to himself before turning back to the brothers. "I was trying to stop Error from ending even more lives in another universe, but then his horrifying  90's...parasite...boyfriend possessed me..." Ink frowned at the words. It sounded ridiculous when he said it out loud.

"Oh, you mean Fresh?" Blueberry asked, tilting his head to the side.

Ink looked up at him in surprise before giving him a small nod. "Uh...yeah... How do you-"

"He's my friend!" Blueberry told him with a smile. "And so is Error. It takes a while to get to know them and you have to get past all the murdery stuff, but they're pretty nice." Blue explained. He hesitated a moment before adding. "And they're a super great couple. I ship it."

Ink just stared at him, shocked. How did the small, cheerful skeleton he created manage to gain the trust of two of the most powerful villains in the multiverse? The artist opened his mouth to say something, but broke into a loud coughing fit instead. He covered his mouth and shook as he fell to the ground, black ink splattering on the white snow as coughs racked his body. He tried to get back up again, but just fell back down into the soft powdery snow.

Blueberry's cheerful grin fell and he jumped down from Papyrus's shoulders, immediately running to Ink's side in concern. The small skeleton gasped when he saw his stats. Ink's HP was only at 0.001. A gust of wind could turn him to dust right now! "Paps, we have to-" Blue started, his eyes wide as he looked to his brother.

Papyrus didn't let Blue finish, immediately running over, grabbing Ink, picking him up, and carrying the weak skeleton under his arm. He lifted Blue up by his scarf as well before teleporting to their house. The last thing he wanted was to see any version of his brother die. He wasn't going to let that happen again. Not now, and not ever.

Ink woke up hours later, laying on a lumpy couch and covered in warm blankets. He opened his eyes in confusion, and when he saw the familiar surroundings, his eyes widened in shock. Hope filled his soul, but then he saw the television screen a few feet away, playing a show starring Napstabot, and his heart sank. Of course not... That was stupid.

He sat up with a sigh, wondering what he was doing in Underswap Sans and Papyrus's house, before the events of that day came back to him. Well, at least his HP was full again now... That was a close call. He had forgotten the bad shape he was in after Fresh's joy ride in his body, and he had no idea what he would have done if Papyrus and Sans weren't there to help him.

As the artist sat there, he noticed a small cup sitting on the coffee table in front of him and picked it up, hesitating for a moment before taking a sip of the liquid inside. He smiled widely when he realized what it was, and took another long sip of the warm hot chocolate. It always made him happy to see kindness in the worlds he created, and he was glad that Underswap was no different. As he drank the hot chocolate, he failed to notice the figure that had just walked into the room.

"Wowzers! You woke up!" A familiar voice exclaimed, causing Ink to drop the cup in surprise. He whirled around to see Blueberry watching him with sparkling eyes and a wide smile, but Blue's smile quickly fell when he saw that Ink had spilled his cocoa. "Oh no! I didn't mean to startle you!"

Ink looked down at the ruined clothes he was wearing and managed a small smile as he tried to clean the chocolatey beverage off, chuckling a bit. "No, it's fine, really! Sorry. I'm just a little...jumpy today after everything..."

Blue smiled at him. "It's alright! I'm just glad you're okay now. Me and Paps were really worried. Your health was super duper low! Are you feeling better? Do you need some more hot chocolate?"

Ink chuckled a bit at Blue's concern, giving him a small smile. "Well, I'm feeling alright now. Much better than before, at least... Some more hot chocolate would be nice though if you don't mind. Thanks."

"You're welcome, artist version of me! I'll go get you some tea. And I can make you some tacos too! The Magnificent Sans's cooking is sure to make you feel better! Mweheheh!" Blueberry said triumphantly before bouncing off towards the kitchen.

Ink watched him leave before looking down at the clothes he was wearing with a disapproving frown. He was still wearing the ridiculous outfit from when that parasite had possessed him earlier and the colors were really starting to hurt his eyes. Not to mention the fact that he was covered in hot chocolate stains now... He smiled as he got an idea, standing up, taking out his large paintbrush, and swinging it through the air. Paint flew from the bristles and whirled around him in a tornado of color, collecting on his body and forming into his normal outfit. When the paint was gone, Ink smiled down at the usual bland colors, wrapping his long scarf around his neck happily. He was glad that he'd never have to see those bright, neon colors again.

"Ink! There's someone here that wants to say hi!" Blueberry said with a smile, peeking his head out from the kitchen.

Ink smiled as he looked over to the kitchen, but then his eyes widened in horror as a terrifyingly familiar figure walked out from behind the small starry-eyed Sans.

"Yo, bro! What's all up and hangin? Are you feeling better from that hella rad time we had earlier? I know I am."