An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Well.. I don’t know exactly where that idea came from. I was just imagining a scenario where a Mamba (an SF! Sans lamia bitty created by @vex-bittys) “falls in love” with the beauty and grace of a purple Betta fish and I imagined that such an animal would be great as a UL! Sans bitty… only I didn’t really like the combination Sf!SansxUL!Sans.
So I thought about replacing SF!Sans with HT!Sans… but I could only imagine Blood/Axe seeing the little fish as a quick snack. So the idea wasn’t working out in my head.
While I was imagining as a UL!Sans Betta would look like, I thought about the mixture of colors that it could have and somehow it turned into something that looked like the painting of a galaxy. From there it was a leap to turn Lust into Outer which immediately made me think of the adorable KillerxOuter drawings from @itsxroxannex and that was what followed.
(so I kind of know how I got here, but I swear I didn’t plan anything, just let the story come out word for word)
There is also a reference to Killer “adopting” a kitten that came from the drawings of @h0da and @rahofy-sketch.
I never thought of a story with these boys, or did I read more than a few drabbles with Killer or Outer (and I’m sure none with that particular pair).
Summary: Killer did not expect anything from that day/night, much less receive a gift from one of his “coworkers”.
Killer was sitting in his room at Nightmare Castle looking out the window, not that there was anything to look at. Outside the castle’s existence, there was only darkness surrounding the domains of the sticky skeleton, just like the monster itself.
No. This was not a good comparison. As dark, cruel and scary as Nightmare was, he was still “something”. The darkness outside was more like himself. Just a dark void, with nothing to offer or desire.
A knock on his door made him turn. Standing in the doorway was Cross, Nightmare’s newest minion, or rather, his new slave, not that Cross saw himself as either.
He stared at another version of him(one that was as “white and shiny” on the outside, but as stained and broken on the inside as everyone there) and imagined that he should be curious about the surprise visit.
Cross was not look for his other versions in the castle, in fact he rarely stayed in the shadowy castle, preferring to jump from AU to AU doing … whatever he had to do. So he wondered what he was doing there in his room .
Surely he hadn’t been there for a chat (even if between a crazy killer, a killer maddened by hunger and a sadistic megalomaniac, a murderer without feelings perhaps was the best option for a conversation … at least he wasn’t crazy) and if Nightmare wanted something to do with him, he would “summon” him and not send Cross like a errand boy.
Cross coughed and moved uneasily for be stared at in silence for so long. Killer just tilted his head, he might not be curious about what Cross was doing there, but he still remembered how to pretend to be.
Not that he was going to try too hard to fake a decent reaction. It wasn’t as if Cross didn’t know what he looked like, and he didn’t have to struggle to “please” or deceive him, so a simple gesture would do. Just a small mechanical movement, something your body did without your mind having to think too much… a conditioned response for the benefit of others and not for yourself.
-Uh… I… I… here!
Cross held out a transparent bag to him. The bag was stuffed and there was something dark about the size of a large apple floating inside. At that distance it was difficult to say what it was.
Killer wondered what he should do. He could ignore the other skeleton, but Cross had a volatile temperament, which could explode at any moment, and as much as he didn’t mind fighting, he figured Nightmare wouldn’t be happy if he ended up killing his new toy. Better to take whatever it was and get it over with.
He got up and walked over to Cross who just looked at him quickly before shifting his lights to the floor. There was a faint purple glow on his face and Killer quickly went over the feeling options he should have felt in that situation: embarrassment? Fun? Curiosity for sure. But since he didn’t feel them, he really couldn’t decide which one to express.
He held out his hand and Cross passed the bag to him. It was heavier than he expected and he held it up to see what it was. It was full of water and…
It took his mind a second to process what he was seeing. Was it… a fish? It kind of looked like a heap of blue algae floating like a drowner’s hair. He moved a little closer and the tail, if that was it, moved away with a flourish revealing the rest of the creature. A small skull attached to a tiny torso attached to a shiny ecto-tail. It was another version of them, but tiny and half attached to a fish (or some species of sea creature).
A tiny version of a Sans… something tickled his mind. There was a name for that, wasn’t there? Ah yes! A bitty! A miniature version of a monster that in many universes were considered pets. But shouldn’t they have legs?
He looked away from the creature and looked at Cross. Still without looking at him, he began to murmur.
-There was nothing useful in this world. Just… these little things… bittys. Nothing worth using… Error should end this… madness, soon.
It was almost difficult to understand the murmured words, especially when he partially sunk his face, hiding it in his robes.
Okay, so he went to an AU, but he didn’t find anything he could steal to “rebuild” his own destroyed universe. Apparently Nightmare had also found no use for it and had handed it over to Error to destroy it. Nothing new, but why the “gift”?
-And? - He lifted the bag to Cross. It’s okay to get a little souvenir, but why were giving it to him?
-Well, Nightmare killed your cat… I thought… there was nothing… feline there, and, well… that’s not quite a substitute! But maybe… you would like… it…
Cross finally answered looking at him. His speech going from shy to embarrassing and then to defensive and back for the embarrassed. Maybe because in the end he noticed the ridiculous thing he was talking about.
Killer tried to piece together this explanation with no apparent meaning.
A few weeks ago he had found a cat wandering around the castle, a thin, elusive little thing, most likely one of Ax’s “snacks”, and on a whim he picked it up. The cat stayed in his room and he just fed it mechanically, until one day he must have escaped and Killer found him dead at the feet of Nightmare
That meant nothing, he just let the animal stay there and fed it when it demanded it, not because he cared or anything, it was just another automatic reaction from his body, something he knew he should do, not what he wanted to do. And now Cross had gone to some bizarre AU and brought a small version of them to “not replace” the dead cat.
A part of his mind told him that he should laugh at “maybe he was going to like it” (or even more from the stupid notion that he might be offended by Cross’s attempt to replace the dead animal with another).
He knew it was difficult for people to understand that he didn’t feel anything (how could they when they were full of feelings? Even more so Cross, so full of pain , bitterness and hope), but he didn’t feel amused and pretending was a big effort to just tease Cross.
-Ok. - He replied before Cross continued trying to explain their motivations.
The skeleton looked at him suspiciously, looking for something in his face, which he certainly wouldn’t find. Cross shifted his weight from one foot to the other as the silence stretched on until it became too much for him, who just nodded (agreeing with what Killer had no idea,) and turned down the hall and disappeared into the shadows.
Killer stood still for a moment in front of the door, holding the bag up before lowering his arm and turning slowly. He stared at the interior of his room without really seeing it, thinking about what he should do now.
The most logical thing was to get rid of it… but how should do it? Should kill him? Throw it in the toilet (that’s what they did with dead fish, wasn’t it? Except he wasn’t dead yet, and he didn’t have a toilet).
He thought about dropping the bag on the floor. Perhaps the creature would die in the fall and it would be less of a problem. Or should he give it to Axe? It would certainly be of more use to Axe than to him.
He blinked slowly, returning to see the room. It was almost a copy of the room he had once in the Underground, only much more empty and clean. There was only the mattress, with no pillows or sheets, the broken lamp and the magical hurricane, now without trash in a corner. There was no dresser, garbage or socks lying around, much less an answer to your question.
Suddenly the hurricane jumped and moved to its mattress where it seemed to belch before sliding back into its corner. Perched in the middle of the mattress, already half filled with water, was an aquarium.
Killer shrugged at the strangeness and went over to the object. He tore the bag and let the bitty drain with the water into the container below. The creature fell with a “plop” and a protest. So the creature could speak, it was to be imagined.
He bent down to watch him.
Now that he was no longer squeezed into a bag he can see it much better. It was definitely a fish, although its fins were so wide and thin they looked like hair dancing in the water, moved almost as if they had a life of their own.
He had a vague memory of knowing what kind of fish it was, but he couldn’t remember and the effort in trying was a waste of time (even if time was something he had left over). He just remembered that it was something decorative.
And decorative he looked.
Its upper part was nothing special, smooth bones and round lights, both white, a Sans Classic like thousands of others scattered in the Multiverse. But your bottom? Oh! It was a separate show.
The ecto-body was a deep blue, in the low light of the room it looked almost black. Much darker than any magic he had ever seen in a Classic, with spots of a lighter shade, almost iridescent and full of tiny bright yellow points. Its tail and fins were long and looked so thin.
They were of the same dark blue tone, but as they approached the tips, they lightened and took on a more purplish hue. They were also splashed with yellow spots.
He thought that if he felt something he should be fascinated or even envious of something so beautiful.
The little skeleton was staring back at him through the glass, he didn’t seem to be afraid, and he even swam closer to the glass, touching with his tiny hands to the barrier and tilting his face to face him better.
He swam in a somewhat “nervous” way full of quick movements, with his fins moving as if they were floating in the water. The movement made the colors tremble and blend and Killer remembered photos in a book long seen, in another world, another life.
-Galaxies… - he spoke without thinking. The bitty swam in that agitated way to the surface, his skull breaking through the water. - Are you an Outer Sans?
He had never been to the Outer universe before (he was, after all, one of the few that Error “liked” and Nightmare hadn’t wanted to create a friction with the Multiverse Destroyer for it… yet). But he had heard reports about it and imagined that a pattern that resembled both pictures of the universe and galaxies should belong to a Sans from that universe.
-Hum… I’m a Sansy type and in my tank it said that I was a Starlaxy, it seems that I’m based on a Betta HalfMoon or something.
Betta… yes, that’s what these little fish were called. Small, showy little things… there was something else, something with puddles and fights, but he did not delve into the memory.
Starlaxy… Star+galaxy? It was a good description of its tail. Already Halfmoon didn’t say anything to him, but there were 3 spatial factors, it was enough for him to classify him as Outer (and if not, who cares?).
-Are you my new master? - the “little fish” asked.
Killer considered the question. Well… Cross had given it to him, he supposed it made him his. Even though “master” made him think of Nightmare and he couldn’t imagine giving orders to the bitty (or that the bitty could do anything useful for him). Owner, maybe it was more accurate… at least until Nightmare or Dust found it and destroyed it, or Axe found it and devoured it.
-You can say it like that… - The position was bothering him. He was supposed to get the aquarium out of bed, but it looked heavy and a useless effort. He mentally shrugged and lay on the floor beside the mattress facing the ceiling.
-And what’s your name?
Killer. - he replied without looking at him.
He thought how strange these bittie creatures were. The creature didn’t look scared of him. Maybe it was too stupid, or maybe the Outers were more like the Swap (or the bitties are) and had no sense of self-preservation. If they were like that, Error could end up “adopting” some of these little creatures before destroying their universe (and “losing” them somewhere in Anti-Void).
He wondered if he would see any of these universes, but he believed not. Nightmare was focusing on Cross and didn’t need him at the moment. What left him there, with nothing to do.
Well, he supposed that for a being that was fed by negative feelings, it was more interesting to be beside another being that he could feel than one that was just an empty vessel. Bonus point he thought. Feed on both the “victims” that Cross left behind, and Cross himself.
With nothing to do, all he had to do was wait and the only advantage of having no feelings or desire was that he did not feel bored or anxious.
-So… what’s mine?
Killer turned his head and faced the bitty who had rested his arms on the edge of the aquarium and stared at him with his head resting on his crossed arms, his tail floating lazily below him.
-Your what?
-My name. - It answered.
Was it some kind of prank?
-Starlaxy? - he tried. The other snorted looking at him with mild indignation.
-No! that’s the name of what I am. Not who I am.
When he got no response from Killer, he continued.
-You know… Bitty species, type Sansy … - he enunciated moving a one hand in the air - I need a proper name. You are my master, so you name me.
-Why don’t you name yourself? - He replied.
It made sense to name a dog or a cat, but a being who could think and communicate alone? Why didn’t you name yourself?
-Hum… well I’m a bitty… it’s tradition that the owner names us. - But he himself sounded a little uncertain of that.
-Starlaxy is fine.
Killer closed the orbits while the little fish moaned.
-I’m too lazy to think about something. - It was a standard answer, something he would say whenever asked in the past and didn’t have or didn’t want to answer, so it seemed like a good answer now. - If you don’t like, name yourself.
And turned around turning his back to the aquarium. Everything was silent and he had almost fallen asleep when Bitty spoke again.
-Outer.
Killer turned to face him again.
-That’s what you called me the first time. - The little fish replied with a sleepy smile.
-Outer is also just a “rating”. - He replied.
The then self-appointed Outer just shrugged before answering.
-Yeah, I’m also too lazy to think of anything better. - He winked before letting go and sinking back into the water. He swam to the bottom of the aquarium, where he crossed his arms and leaned his head on them, closing the orbits and seeming to fall asleep in a few seconds.
Killer watched him. The little bubbles that floated from his skull from time to time, his fins dancing softly around him, making the colors mix and the golden spots seem to blink like tiny stars. Those little things rocked him to sleep while he thought the little fish was really beaultiful.
He fell asleep with the image of that cheeky wink and the memory, long forgotten, of the feeling of his own smile.
***
I don’t know if there are betta type bitties (probably there are), but the one described here was imagined by me (both the appearance and the name) and I don’t get it from some bitty site.
I always imagined that Killer would be more difficult to write… but until it flowed very easily (and I can’t believe I wrote this and am posting it, all in one day!)
Comments, questions and criticisms are welcome and thank you for reading!