A little tough to write this one, but I think I got it down pat. It's getting a little hard to write this one sometimes, though I don't understand why. Then again, this was written during a pretty bad week, so it's not that bad.

Also, I posted another chapter in the Mutated Ectoplasm Side Stories series, so feel free to check it out. It's just an AU idea I had in the back of my mind, so I hope you enjoy it.

Either way, I'll see you at the end of the chapter!

The last thing Karkat remembered was being in the field, crushing the action figure to pieces in his own hands. Next, he was in the hallway of the school again, nearly stumbling over himself as he stopped. Karkat blinked away the daze that settled over him, his surroundings throwing him off.

"Wasn't I just- Where the hell am I?!" Karkat forced himself to stay quiet since he nearly shouted, gaining some unwanted attention. "Sorry, just... Just get back to your shit. Don't mind me."

Karkat didn't wait for anyone to turn back around, speed walking away. Gathering himself, he noticed he was back in the school right before the explosions Judge was responsible for. He looked around, noting that the people that had run past him the first time were calmly doing their thing, uninterrupted by whatever chaos happened before. Or did it happen at all?

"You've got to be kidding me." The teen figured he should double check something first, heading straight towards the closest window he could find. "Is there nothing there? Everything is just..."

He was able to look outside finally, squinting at the fields as it was notably undamaged. He could see Elwurd hanging out there with the goth kids like she hadn't been running for her life not that long ago.

A fear gripped him as he wondered if he made all of that up in just the few seconds it took to get from class to where he was now. If he did, that meant he was going insane after all these years like everyone thought he would. No one can go back after having a vivid hallucination like that without being-

"Karkat!"

Oh thank fuck, there was Sollux and the others. He didn't have to check himself in at the local insane asylum after all! What a relief. That means the ghost threat is real and he was face to face with a reality warping ghost.

…Goddamit, why wasn't he insane?!

"If you're wishing that you were nuts, it's a little late for that. None of us imagined that either." Aradia strolled over, looking out the window too. She looked relieved at the sight of the goth kids for once. "The Tony Stark wannabe was real, at least for a little while. I'm surprised that we got back in time. I thought she was a Space Aspect."

"It's probably interconnected or something. We somehow violate or destroy a wish, we got back to when the wish was actually made." Sollux didn't think it was that complicated, but it was certainly out there. He gave Feferi the side eye. "Looks like you weren't wrong about the French cartoon thing. Seems like a very similar concept."

"I knew it! Didn't think that would the one lesson I'd apply from my cartoon in real life, but here we are." Feferi was peppy for all of two seconds before remembering everything else. "And we still have a rampant ghost around. Honestly, still a lot like the cartoon."

"Can we stop comparing our lives to cartoons right now? It's bad enough we have to reenact Scooby Doo, of all things." Kanaya turned to Karkat, giving him a look. "I'm going to guess you finally believe us about all of this insanity?"

"Don't really have much of a choice now, I'm pretty sure." It was better than being insane, he guessed. At least by a small amount. "Look, can someone tell me who that ghost actually was? That, frankly, didn't look human."

"I think you should feel free to ask her that question yourself."

The chill of a woman's voice went down the teen's spines, and some were already putting their hands on their weapons before a small dome appeared around them, encasing them. Nobody else nearby seemed to notice, eyes glazing over whenever they happened to wash over them. It was like they knew to avoid it too, despite clearly not paying attention to it.

"I'm sure you wouldn't mind a little privacy, wouldn't you? I certainly would." Karkat felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise, nearly jumping out of his skin as at seeing the ghostly woman again. Her visage remained kind, but obviously with a hint of disapproval. "I think we need to talk about how rude it is to trample over someone's work like that."

"I'd say it's a little rude to arm a lunatic with arm cannons that could destroy the school if he wasn't careful, but here we are!" Karkat wasn't sure where that bravado was coming from, but he figured it was better than cowering in fear. "Mind explaining the logic behind that? I'd love to hear it."

This ghost wasn't going to (hurt his town).

Karkat felt himself shiver at that, the Muse giving him a weird look for a second. She didn't give it much thought, floating over all of them with visible disappointment.

"I expected some resistance, I'm not going to lie, but it wasn't like I expected it so quickly." The Muse got into Sollux's face, tilting her head. "Much less by certain people in this room."

"You're acting like that anyone would want a random guy to gain superpowers and destroy this stupid place. Like, only ten people would be okay with it." Sollux dutifully ignored the jab from the reality-warper, still gripping at one of his ghost weapons. "It's not like he isn't likely to wish for it again."

"He won't. That's the problem." The growl of frustration was surprising, but the context did warrant for it. The Muse straightened herself out, tapping her fingers on one of her hands. "The wish might be disturbed, but the memory still remains. He's not going to wish for something that failed the first time around, whether or not he remembers it."

"Well, problem solved then. Glad we had this talk." Kanaya felt herself smile as the Muse looked down at her with a deadpan expression. "I don't think you understand; that was on purpose. We don't know what you're ultimate goal is, but clearly it wasn't working."

"I'm aiming to create a better world, where everyone gets what they desire. I suppose I could've found a way that was less violent, but he was too much of a 'crusader' type." The Muse shot forward, leaning into their faces. "Now, what would you like that would get you to stop? I have a feeling this won't be the first time you try this."

"No sale. I'm already rich enough as it is." Feferi would've smiled wider at the enraged expression but held back for the sake of keeping herself alive. "What'll it take for you leave here? Today, in fact. Anyone preaching utopia rarely ever knows what they're doing to make it happen."

The ghost moved back, contemplating her words. Wise children, she supposed. She did know what she was doing, having had years upon years to think it over, but she wasn't going to be convinced.

A wager was what they wanted? A wager they'll get.

"If you're all this dead set on making sure my vision doesn't get past the initial stages, then how about this?" The Muse steepled her fingers, leaning back. It would be cruel, but anyone worth their salt would go this far if they really believed it. "If you want me to go back to my tomb, then I only require one thing; reverse the original wish that I granted when I first arrived here."

The deal made everyone go rigid, the only one not understanding being Karkat himself. He gave everyone a weird look, brushing it off a second later.

"Fine. I'll figure out what the wish was and reverse it myself." Karkat sneered. He didn't believe his own words all that much, but it wasn't like he could decline. "We all will. I'd suggest making your time out here count until then."

The woman chuckled, the sound staying in the air as she slowly vanished. "I hope you do figure it out, young man. I hope you do."

Karkat felt a shiver go down his spine, turning around to face the others.

"So, that was creepy as fuck." Karkat said, trying to keep things light. He stopped, getting a look at all of them. "You look spooked. Was it something she said?"

Everyone sent a quick glance towards each other before Aradia started off on her own. She didn't look behind her as she spoke.

"It's nothing. We'll figure out what the first wish was soon enough." Aradia patted the ecto-gun's hidden location. "We've got other wishes to disrupt first."

Karkat felt like protesting, figuring they must've known something about it already since they were near the epicenter. It honestly felt like-

(They're lying.)

Karkat shook his head, putting the thought away as he moved to catch up with everything else. It was probably fine.

Probably.

The Muse figured that was a bit cruel, but her point needed to be made. Just because some children felt strongly that she was wrong didn't mean they were qualified to go against her plan. It was a matter of making sure the world was right. That the world was balanced.

But that was neither here nor there. All she had to do was make it till tonight where everyone would be wishing for what they wanted most, and then she'd be powerful enough to not need permission to do so. Then her brother…

"Father, where's Caliborn? Isn't he coming with us?"

"I-I'm sorry dear. He can't. He's not himself right now and we need to give him space."

"Shouldn't we be there for him, though? He looked like he was in pain back there."

"Calliope… Just don't look back. Trust me on this."

…She didn't want to think about that. It wasn't right to look back into the past when she needed to make the future much better, if not perfect.

The Muse floated upwards, looking over the town that would the start of her journey. Even in such a small populace, she could feel the overwhelming desires of everyone within it. As long as they got what they wanted, they'd all be much more peaceful before the day ends.

"Alright then, children," The Muse stated, fingers cracking as they unfurled and were ready for use. She was going to see what wishes she would grant first. "Let's see which of our resolves breaks first."

It was time to get to work.

The following day aimed to be the most exhausting ordeal the group would ever have to experience.

The first fight involved an overprotective mother.

Karkat had never dodged a car thrown in his direction before, but today was an array of firsts. He could hear the woman's kids crying for her to stop, how she was hurting everyone, and it made him wish he was deaf. He gave a brief look to Feferi, realizing he had nearly run into her due to dodging.

"This is a shit show in a half." Karkat looked at the broken bat in his hands, nearly tossing it aside. He wondered if he should've grabbed the knives instead. Those usually felt right in his hands. "Got any idea how to take her down? That thing on her necklace looks promising."

"I think it might be the necklace itself. Looks like an arts and crafts project that one of the kids made when they were younger." Feferi responded, firing off a shot behind cover. The power surge had most likely gotten to her, which was why she was acting so erratic. "Probably just need to grab it and pull and we'll be back to where we started."

"Great. Time loops for the win." Karkat grabbed an ecto-gun offered by her, turning it on without a thought. "Any idea how we can break it? I know she said to find the original wish and break it, but I don't have a goddamn clue."

"It-it's probably something we'll find out soon." Feferi stood up, running off and firing shots. The mother roared again; a blast of energy blasted in all directions. "Just get the necklace before she takes me down!"

Karkat growled, ecto-gun charged as he leaped over cover, darting behind cover at every turn. He could see shots fired from various other vantage points as he got closer, grabbing a pipe when they were at their most intense.

He went straight for the cage first, despite Feferi telling him to go for the necklace. Prying the pipe into one of the cage doors, he pulled it until it flew open. The kids practically flew out, running as fast they could before they could be seen by their mother.

"Kids! Get back here to mommy before she-"

Karkat threw the pipe at the woman's head, hitting her square in the nose. The bear-like body she had maintained roared, nearly knocking him over with it. He fired the ecto-gun repeatedly, forcing her to back up, paws protecting her face.

It was much to his relief that he saw Feferi run up behind, leaping at the woman's back and grabbing at the necklace. She nearly choked the mama bear before the jewelry snapped under the combined weight, eliciting a relieved sigh from Karkat.

At least, until he heard that voice again.

(They're lying to you, you know.)

The second fight wasn't easier, but it had been a little more interesting. At least this time they weren't immediately perceived as a threat.

"I'm honored to have you brave adventurers decided to grace my hall here today. It has been surprisingly lonely as of late and I'm glad for the company." The maniac on a throne stated, legs swinging as his glee was made apparent. "It's been nearly a fortnight since I've had people last arrive here."

"I'm sure it has been. Even if this is a pretty swanky place." Karkat looked around at the castle they'd arrived in, glad that it had been obvious to track. It wasn't populated either, so that made sneaking in here way too easy. "Any idea how we deal with this one? He isn't throwing anything at us yet."

"Emphasis on yet. I'd check the dice he has in the table there." Kanaya kept her hands under the "robes" they'd put on made from bedsheets, having not much else to use for costumes. It made it easier to conceal their weapons at the very least. "We're very honored to be here, your highness. We were wondering what exactly you wanted us adventurers to do?"

It didn't take a genius to figure out what the plan was. When the lunatic was monologuing, he didn't pay any attention to the fact they moved closer until the last second. The guy had the audacity to try and swing a sword at him, forcing Karkat to lazily parry it.

"I'm going to guess his anchor is dice or something, right?" Karkat still focused on the 'king,' though it was clear he hadn't fought with a sword before. He was trying to use it like it was a bat, a fact made apparent by his wild swings. "Jesus, it's all objects for them. Every single one. What do you think the first one is? Has to be something important."

"I'm sure it's very important, whatever it may be." Kanaya grabbed the anchor off a heavily decorated table, noting that they were in fact dice. The D20 seemed to be flowing the brightest, giving away its importance. "Well, let's end this little charade, now, won't we?"

"Don't you dare, wench!" The 'king' actually did land a kick this time, causing Karkat to stumble. He went straight for Kanaya, sword held above his head. "Release that artifact before I-"

Kanaya grabbed and swung her chainsaw out, scaring the king with the noise before he could get close. He landed on his ass, scurrying backward at the sight of the weapon. At least this wish didn't turn him into a complete idiot.

"I- I- We can talk this over!" The king waved his hands in front of his face, not wishing to meet the business end of the weapon. "I can make you my queen if you'd like."

"Sorry, but no thanks." Kanaya dropped the D20 onto the floor, crushing it beneath a heel. "Unfortunately for you, I'm gay."

(They're trying to keep you in the dark "for your own good.")

The sixth fight was… exhausting.

"Megido, not that I don't trust your judgement here, but I doubt that she's going to fall for this." Karkat moved the (borderline literal) Trojan Horse they had slowly, making sure not to jostle the people inside. He hoped Sollux had the ecto-cannon charged already. "I'm pretty sure even the most historically illiterate person would know this."

"For once, you're underestimating how stupid people can be. Never thought I'd see the day." Aradia fiddled with the stuck wheel, kicking it back in. It took a lot of effort to get it ready and she was stuck to this plan, dammit! "Besides, appreciate the craftsmanship! I'm sure the history class would love to see it used like it's a historical reenactment."

"Still." Karkat heard tapping from the inside, telling them to hurry up. "Don't worry yourselves about it. If it weren't for the time limit here, we would be looking for the-"

"The first wish, right." Aradia interrupted. Karkat felt like that should offend him, but he already knew by now it was on purpose. "We'll start searching-"

"In the next loop. Yeah, I get it." Karkat's rough dismissal made Aradia feel rejected. He did stare at her for a few long seconds, making that rejection turn to a shiver. "Maybe try and find some new material?"

She didn't say anything, looking forward again to face their objective. Her grip got tight on the wooden horse before she could think to stop.

"Who dares step towards me?!"

Thank God, the bastard was focusing on them now.

The target in question had been one of the goth kids that had gained a massive jump in height, as well as the ability to fly. It was a pretty bad combination, and one that they wanted to nullify as soon as possible. The bonus of this fight was the target was obvious, being an amulet wrapped around his neck. The downside was that it was as big as he was.

"We're here to offer you a gift, good sir!" Aradia held back every ounce of sarcasm she had to make herself sound convincing. It was obviously hard for her, judging from her face. "A statue like this fits your greatness, I'd assume?"

"It might." The giant goth looked at the horse with open suspicion. "It kinda looks familiar, now that I think of it."

"Good, at least somebody's been paying attention to history class." Karkat rolled his eyes before hitting the side of the horse. "Want to see what it can do? Hit it!"

The front of the horse opened suddenly, Sollux pointing an ecto-cannon at the amulet. He shot it, the full brunt of the blast hitting the face of it instantly and breaking it apart.

Karkat gave Sollux a long look before the reset hit them all again.

(He did this…)

It was the twelfth reset when Karkat finally snapped.

So many times he tried to question someone about what the fuck was going on, and why they wanted to keep putting it off. He wasn't an idiot, but he couldn't investigate any of it on his own when there was always an unwilling partner on him at all times. But he'd figured out which one was avoiding him the most fairly quickly.

Which was why he made sure to finally get Sollux alone during a particularly rough hunt.

No Mercy was a good place to cool off, especially when the weather was starting to swelter. Some kid wished for summer to come back, which was why everything felt a touch too hot right now. Not end of the world worthy, but they couldn't let it reach night no matter what. It had been a quick decision to split up when they realized the vagueness of the wish. Karkat had, luckily gotten Sollux.

(You volunteered and almost grabbed him before anyone could speak.)

"Shut up."

"Something up KK?"

Karkat shook his head, banishing the voice from his head. He was starting to think that was getting stronger each reset, which made it all the more pertinent to him to get the loop over with. If that wasn't something good…

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just getting a little exhausting doing this over and over again." It was purposefully understating it. He wanted to strangle whoever made the wish this time. "I really do think we need to get on with this. I've been looking for clues, and I've come up with nothing. I know we're on a time limit, but have you found anything yet."

"I know a few possible leads, but nothing too much right now. We'll probably split up next round and start looking through them, though." Sollux didn't even have the guts to look at him when he lied. Just like everyone else. "Only reason we aren't doing it now is because of this stupid wish…"

Karkat sighed. "I figured you'd say that."

The teen stopped suddenly, moving back, and pulling out an ecto-gun. Sollux froze at the sound of it whirring on, turning his head to look at Karkat in surprise.

"KK," Sollux started slowly, trying not to make any sudden movements. "Mind telling me what you're doing?"

"Getting answers. I know someone's been keeping them from me since the beginning, and I think I know who's the one doing it." Karkat felt… guilty somehow. This wasn't nice, especially to someone that actually was tolerable, but he was clearly keeping things from him. "I think the others are too, but you're the one who looks the guiltiest."

"There- there's nothing I'm trying to hide, man." Sollux looked around himself, licking his lips as he heard the gun whirr louder. "I've got no reason too with Muse running around, don't I?"

"Maybe you do. I can think of a lot of reasons, actually. You guys did say that you were there near the center of the wish when it happened." Karkat sneered, the gun at full blast by now. He aimed the sights for Captor's head. "What better way to be there if you- or one of the others- made the wish in the fucking first place."

Sollux's eyes widened, and so did Karkat at realizing how his voice sounded. It sounded a lot like-

Water splashed into Karkat's face, forcing him to step back spluttering. He wiped off the moisture to see the other teen bolting down the hallway. He cursed, firing a shot that only missed due to Sollux ducking at the last second. The teen was quick to follow, swearing all the while.

"Captor, this isn't going to get any better if you keep running!" Karkat fired once again, Sollux ducking into a corner to dodge. He slid before sprinting after him again. "If you just talk to me, we can get this shit sorted instead of running like a coward."

"I'm not a coward! I just- I can't go back to how things were!" Sollux pulled out his own ecto-gun, firing it off in Karkat's direction. He was always the better shot, and that forced Karkat to stop and hide behind cover. "You can't make me either! You have no idea what it'll take to break it."

Karkat looked out when the shots stopped firing, seeing Sollux turn another corner. He didn't waste any time catching up, finding that he had slipped through a pair of large doors leading to a patient's wing. He growled, getting close before kicking the doors open.

No Mercy's patient room was built like all the ones you saw on television, rows on each side of a long hallway, with curtains around each bed. The teen kept his gun low, keeping an eye out for any shadows that could appear behind the curtains, the lack of light putting him on edge.

"You can't hide from me. You know that Captor. You know who I am." Karkat licked his teeth, baring them in a wide grin. "You and the others knew me since the beginning, and I realize that now. I can be a real stubborn bastard when I want to be, can I?"

Karkat heard shuffling, and he fired at the noise. The curtain burnt as he struck a discarded wheelchair, forcing him to readjust his sights. He aimed it higher now, speaking lower so he could hear footsteps.

"I will spend the rest of this loop, and any other that comes up, looking for you. I'm not stopping until you tell me what you did." The voice slipped out again. Karkat heard footsteps stop dead at it. "And you'd know that better than anyone, wouldn't you?"

Karkat heard him before he saw him.

Hurried footsteps behind him forced Karkat to turn around, the ecto-gun smacked out of his hands as Sollux lunged. The zap of a taser almost grazed him as Karkat dodged to the side, grabbing Sollux's arm. He pulled him close to knee him in the stomach, headbutting him in short order. As Sollux fell to the floor, he scooped up the taser and pinned him to the ground before he could so much as blink.

"Fucks sake, man. I thought you'd go a little easier on me." Sollux coughed out, Karkat sitting on his chest forcing him to breath shallow. He figured Karkat would win in a straight up fight, but this was embarrassing. "Maybe hold back a little next time?"

"There won't be a next time. Tell me what the wish was right now before I decide to ask the others." Karkat didn't want to hurt anyone, but fuck was this testing his patience. They needed to solve this now. "What was the wish?"

"You don't-"

"No excuses!" The voice sounded right to him now, eyes flashing red. Something about it felt familiar, and he didn't want to let it go. "Tell me what you wished for!"

Sollux tried to struggle then, doing his best to lift himself up. Karkat pushed him down, the taser pointed at his face. The crackle of electricity waylaid by Karkat's glowing eyes glaring down at him. It was a harsh reminder of something he didn't want to acknowledge.

"…I wished you weren't dead."

Karkat paused, letting go of the taser button. He squinted, face becoming unreadable. "Explain."

"You're dad perfected the portal and tried to show us. He forgot a part of the sequence, and you… you went inside and accidentally completed it." Sollux stated. There wasn't a point in fighting anymore. "You didn't die, but you didn't come back the same. And everything just got so much worse after that."

"How? How can it get worse?" Karkat didn't understand. He knew it was true, but he didn't understand. "I fucking died. How would it get worse for us?"

"Your dad opened a portal to the afterlife." Sollux said, eyes and tone dead. "Why are you surprised that hell followed you with it?"

Karkat didn't have an answer to that. His expression, as blank as it was, made Sollux laugh.

"I wanted to fix everything and make things normal again. I always hated change, but everything- we were all so fucking miserable." Sollux reached up, patting him on the face. "Don't you want all of us to be happy?"

"…That isn't for you to decide, Captor."

Karkat knocked Sollux out with a quick punch. He moved off of him onto unsteady feet, eyes unfocused as he took two steps back. With his heart pounding and hammering in his ears, breathing shallow, he looked at his own face in the reflection of a metal cabinet.

A boy with white hair, red eyes, and gas mask over his face glared back at him.

(You know what to do.)

…He did. And he wasn't looking forward it.

Karkat grabbed at the communicator, pressing the distress call, and placing it near Sollux's unconscious body. If things went to plan, the others would get here before they could think to head to his home.

He hoped Sollux wasn't lying to him because it would suck to die in a loop.

This time around had been going smoothly so far. That worried the Muse.

She figured it would be best to go with a more subtle wish, more specifically the one of a child, because it turns out a lot of the older crowd in this town had issues when it came to power fantasies. She was familiar with those types, but it wasn't what she was going for right now.

"Children really do have the simplest of wishes." She watched the brother and sister play around the sprinkler, the item she had tied to the wish. Wanting summer to come around once again so they could get out of school was a simple wish to grant, though only limited to the town itself for now. "Always wanting to avoid the few responsibilities they have. They should get to enjoy this time together..."

"Brother, we can't do this! Father will be angry with us if we mess with the crown."

"Oh, come on! It's not like he'll know if we're careful. He's the one that wants to keep this from us despite being our birthright."

"What birthright? Caliborn, I'm not comfortable with this. Maybe just leave it alone..."

"Oh, who cares what you think? I'm going to be prepared to take my throne, whether you like it or not."

...Yes, they really should. No one would ever be able to tell how they'd grow up. Or how they'd grow apart.

"Those children need to learn. All I have to do is wait an hour or two more before being proven right." Muse looked up at the darkening sky with interest. She could see stars form in parts of the sky from her vantage point. "Those children just need to waste a little more time."

She wondered to herself what she would change first. Other than making sure certain enemies' family don't make it out to ruin her work, she could focus on dismantling their governments so they can listen to her. Destroying their weapons would be next, and then she'd make an example out of several people with big wishes-

Pain.

That was the Muse's thought for a second as something coiled in a long dead stomach. She nearly curled in on herself before shooting out to where her instincts told her to go, feeling panic settle within her. It took her a few moments to realize what it meant when a familiar house appeared on the horizon.

The portal!

The Muse slipped in, ignoring all the alarms that blared when she did so. She flew into the lab that had housed the doorway to her world, the one that had been defunct since the first wish started. The boy from earlier (the halfa) was turning off his phone while it was ringing, tossing it aside as he adjusted the suit he wore on shoulders.

"You're doing it." The Muse said it in a hiss, nearly reaching out to stop him. The fact that he was trying- this wasn't a part of the plan. How dare he?! "Where are the others? You shouldn't be doing this by yourself."

"They're not here. They wouldn't tell me about this at all until I made them, so I figured that they wouldn't help me do this either." Karkat tugged on the gloves one last time before turning towards the portal. He didn't make any move around her when she tried to move in front of him, simply going through her. "You said you'd stop if we undid the first wish, right? I'm going to do just that."

"But- But you weren't actually supposed to do it! You're supposed to live!" The Muse reached out to his shoulder, only for it to be smacked away. Her frustration grew alongside her desperation as she attempted to swipe at him as he stepped over the threshold. "Your friend wanted you to live. You were all miserable, and he wanted to correct that. You can't take that away from him."

"It was never his fault that I died in the first place. He needs to realize that now, or he'll never get over it." Karkat knew this was what he had to do. Living under her wasn't an option, despite her intentions. "You have no idea what you're doing to these people, you know. All you've done is make things worse by giving them what they want and letting us take it."

Her power flared, though she could feel it dying little by little as his hand went over the button. "I'm doing what I think is best for the world!"

Karkat sneered at her one last time before pushing the button. "So am I."

The doors closed as the Muse screamed. She pushed herself through as much could, the ecto-resistant doors forcing her to use too much of her energy. She raised a hand, desperately trying to use her power to delay or avert the lights that flashed in her vision, the electricity turning to beam. She couldn't do anything as a great big flash caused everything to change-

(I'm sorry.)

The Muse was back at the fountain again, where everything began. Her shorted out then, forcing her to the ground as the portal above her faltered. She heard a wail then, from who she couldn't say. Maybe it was from her for her failure, or from the boy that had his wish taken from him, but it was piercing all the while.

She breathed heavily as she heard the sound of boots hit concrete, steps taken slowly towards her. Glowing white boots stopped inches from her face, forcing the Muse to look up at the boy that had ruined everything.

"Go back to your tomb. Don't ever come back here as long as we both live." Karkat spat out. He was shaking, the second death easier than the first, but still having a heavy toll. "Look at what your work did for all of us."

She didn't have to. She could hear Sollux being comforted by the panicked, devastated reassurances of Aradia a few steps away from her. Kanaya and Feferi weren't far away, and while not crying, she could hear the questions and anger from them both.

The Muse rose then, moving towards the portal she had opened in the sky. Taking one last look at Phantom and his company, she dove into it with regret that she knew would follow her for an awfully long time.

It looked like she had quite a lot to think about in the coming days.

A little abrupt for my tastes, but I'll explore the implications later. I hope this doesn't rip your heart out too much. :)

Feel free to ask about the Divide AU (the one I wrote for in the side series), as well as pitch your AU ideas again. It's always fun to talk about them, and I think it's nice.

I'll see you all in the comments and in the next chapter!