He covered his mouth with his hands, shock ricocheting through him. He didn't mean to fuse, they had just fallen asleep together!

"Are you mad?" He asked.

"No, no." He responded, looking at his own eyes in the mirror. They were wide, filled with emotions that he wasn't ready to pinpoint. He saw himself relax as he said, "I'm not mad."

He looked down at his hands, "It's surprising."

Different.

"Yeah."

He stepped up to the mirror once more, inspecting his face. He looked like a normal Side. He opened his mouth and confirmed that he only had one tongue. His legs seemed normal, too. But something felt warm around him, like one of those floating donuts. He unzipped his jacket and watched as two more arms sprung out.

"Oh!" He laughed, startled by his own hands. He touched them, playing with his fingers. Four arms, that's nifty! His extra two appendages seemed content to just wrap around his middle, keeping him grounded. He zipped his jacket back up, pleased with his secret little hug.

"What should we do now?" He asked, glancing at the mirror again. He was wearing Virgil's earrings. That's cool!

He wasn't tired anymore, too excited with his new existence. He walked out of the bathroom and into the kitchen. He peered out the window, watching the clouds float past the moon.

"I guess we gotta find out our name." He told the moon. "Wonder what it is."

The moon didn't respond, and nothing popped into his head. He looked around the kitchen, searching for one of his phones. He found them in the livingroom, near their empty plates.

He grabbed Patton's and looked up 'names for fusions'.

The first link had a bunch of adjectives and the second one had Established names. He clicked the second link and waited for it to load.

Austin, Brady, Cory, Devin, Emery, Fred…

He kept scrolling until he found one he liked. He let out a pleased little gasp upon seeing the name, "What about Kyler!?"

Looking up, he was greeted with no one. He frowned, sitting down on the ground. He leaned down to look under the couch and smiled when two eyes blinked back at him.

"What do you think, Shadow?" He asked, "Do I look like a Kyler?"

Shadow stretched his arms and meowed, "Mrrw?"

"I'll take that as a yes." Kyler said, standing up. With a pleased smile, he had completed everything he had wanted to do for today. And the sun wasn't even up yet! He's such a good fusion.

Kyler walked around Virgil's apartment, looking at the few pictures he had on the wall. He knew the faces, but not well. Little snippets of memories floated to the surface, but none of them provided enough context.

While he was looking around, he distractedly cleaned; fixing the place up a little. He didn't think much about it, it just felt natural to straighten up things. He filled up Shadow's food and water as well, smiling when he trotted over to eat.

Kyler pet Shadow once, rubbing a good bit of fur free. Some bits of fur brushed against his cheek, and he scratched it distractedly.

The feeling of nails against his skin sent a shock rippling through him. He threw his hand back, stumbling away from Shadow. His heart rate skyrocketed and his breathing suddenly felt shallow.

He leaned against the counter, his knees shaking as he felt himself being ripped apart with a searing burn against his cheek. Gasping, Kyler wrapped his arms closer around himself, trying to shake off the feeling.

Eventually, it passed, and the burning in his cheek dissipated. Shadow appeared by his feet, pressing against his legs. He purred worriedly. Kyler slunk down to sit beside the kitty. He pet him with a shaky hand.

"That was scarier than last time." He mumbled, catching his breath. Shadow pushed his head into his hand. He swallowed and asked, "That- that was from the last guy?"

Deceit, yeah.

He knocked his head against the counter and whispered. "Frick."

In the silence that followed, he felt himself grow cold. His chest weighed down as if it were being compressed by a mountain of rocks. His throat constricted around the words he wanted to say.

"I'm sorry." He told himself. Shadow blinked up at him, pressed against his hands. Kyler took a deep breath. "It wouldn't be this bad without me here. I'm what's making it scary."

He shook his head, his second pair of arms wrapping tighter around himself. He whispered, "It's my fault. It was my failed fusion."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

No.

Kyler stared straight ahead, the world fading around him. Sweat stuck to his skin, growing cold in the air. The ground that felt so stable under him was now cracking to pieces. In a baited breath, he waits for his body to plummet.

Please don't leave.

I don't want to be alone.

Kyler opened his eyes in a jolt. His spine straightened as he took in his surroundings. He knew this kitchen floor. Shadow bumped his hands with a soft meow. Kyler distractedly pet him as his mind recollected itself.

He let out a deep sigh that rattled his ribcage. Slowly, he stood up, holding onto the counter as he did so.

A small headache pinched behind his eyes. He rubbed his head as he mumbled, "It's okay. I'm here."

Kyler stiffly made his way to Virgil's room, muttering, "Let's figure out who I am, huh? Doesn't that sound fun."

Looking for any distraction, Kyler picked up a stress ball and tossed it in the air. He tried to catch it, and failed.

Not a juggler.

Without much thought, he moved over to Virgil's desk.

"Can I draw?" He asked as he picked up a pencil. He quickly sketched out a puppy, his skill fairly worse than Virgil's. He smiled in surprise, pleased with what he accomplished.

Glancing around the desk, Kyler found a little, portable tattoo gun. To him, it looked like a big marker with a spike at the end. Kyler checked if it had ink in it, then pushed up his sleeve. He pressed the needle to his arm, then froze.

"Wait." He said, sitting back. He carried the pen into the kitchen, searching for something specific. Sitting there, on Virgil's counter, was a bundle of ripe bananas. Kyler bounced in excitement, snatching one of the bananas from its friends.

Trying again, he placed the needle of the gun on the banana and pressed the button. He lifted the gun up to see a little black spot. Excited with his discovery, Kyler continued drawing on the banana until a line formed.

He winced as his arm began to burn. Checking it, his pale skin remained unblemished. But when he pressed the gun back to the fruit, his muscles contracted in phantom pains. Kyler yelped and dropped the gun onto the counter. He held his arm to his chest and breathed through his teeth.

"If we didn't tattoo ourselves, why does it hurt so much?" He heard himself say. He checked his arm again, with still nothing to show. The banana looked worse off; a slanted, wiggly line stretching across its side.

Slowly, Kyler stood up and shook his arm out. The sensation faded, just slightly. He fiddled with the tattoo gun on the counter before grumbling, "Guess I can't help out at the shop."

Kyler left the kitchen to look around Virgil's apartment. Patton could knit, maybe so could he. Does Virgil have knitting supplies? ...No.

He continued his day, distractedly trying new skills until he found some he liked. Eventually, he grew hungry, and decided that was enough self-exploration for today. He heated up a frozen pizza and turned on Avatar.

Kyler watched the show until his eyes started to drift shut. His four arms wrapped around his body like his own personal blanket. The last thing he remembered before conking out was Shadow jumping up onto the couch and curling up beside him.

Kyler woke to an alarm. He groaned and rubbed his eyes as he fumbled for his phones. He picked up Virgil's first, but it was silent and still. Tossing it, he grabbed Patton's which wouldn't stop blasting a cheery pop song. Kyler turned the alarm off and stared at the phone screen.

It was Sunday. Patton had to work today. Kyler went into Virgil's room and tried to find clothes big enough to fit him. Luckily, Virge had a thing for oversized sweaters. Kyler picked a light grey one and pulled it on. The sweater only had two arm holes, but Kyler didn't mind. His second pair remained wrapped around his waist, per usual.

He found his Side's phones, wallets, and keys, before he quietly made himself some coffee. He stared at the brown liquid dripping into the pot, contemplative.

"I like being fused." He told the coffee.

The machine bubbled and let out a puff of steam. Kyler pulled a thermos out from the cabinet. He silently poured the coffee into his thermos. The warmth seeped into his skin as he held the cup.

"It's nice, being me." He said, smelling the fresh scent of ground bean juice. He put the lid on, grabbed the rest of his things, and headed out the door. He grumbled to himself as he locked the apartment, "Way better than before."

The kiddos were screaming when Kyler got there. Gender Expression was holding Chase while arguing with Rowdy. Autumn was crying, and someone had spilt glitter everywhere. Kyler sighed, feeling a small headache coming on. His arms held him tighter.

Kyler took a deep breath, then clapped his hands. The kiddos turned to look at him, "Hey, hey, hey, why are we so loud today?"

Expression looked up at him, surprise written across their face. They frowned slightly and mumbled, "Patton?"

Chase pointed at Rowdy and shouted, "He pushed me!"

Autumn ran up to Kyler and tugged on his pants. She didn't say anything, but her face was red with tears. Kyler knelt down and picked her up, gesturing for the other kiddos to gather around.

Kyler asked Rowdy, "Is that true?"

Rowdy shook his head and said, "It was an accident!"

Chase rubbed his eyes, countering with, "Nu-huh!"

"Yeah-huh!"

Kyler gave Expression a sympathetic look. He asked Rowdy, "Was it really an accident?"

Rowdy nodded, his hands pressed together. "Yes, Mr. Morality."

"Well did you apologize?" Kyler asked.

Rowdy looked down, then up to Chase. He shook his head. Expression set Chase down, glancing between the two boys. Kyler scooted closer to them, Autumn still pressed against his side.

"You should say you're sorry, Rowdy. Because you didn't mean to hurt him, and when we do bad things on accident, we say we're sorry." Kyler explained in a soothing voice. "If you were pushed by Chase, you'd want him to say sorry, right?"

"Yeah." Rowdy nodded, small and sad. He turned to Chase and said, "I'm sorry."

Kyler looked to the other boy. "Chase, do you forgive him? He didn't mean to hurt you, and he's sorry for what he did."
Chase nodded, "Okay, yes."

Unprompted, the boys hugged. Expression relaxed, a small look of amazement gracing their face.

"Good job, guys!" Kyler gestured to the various toys. "Now, go play!"

The two of them ran off, and Kyler had a moment alone with Expression. Autumn was still in his arms, but she seemed content to just stay silent. She rested her head on his shoulder.

Expression crossed their arms and said with a smirk, "So, you two finally got together."

Kyler blushed, glancing away from them. "Yeah, it was an accident."

"Did you say sorry?" Expression asked teasingly, pointing to the boys. "I hear that's important."
Laughing, Kyler said, "Yeah. Uh, we worked it out. I actually really like being fused. They work well together."

"Vogue would love to get a hold of you." Expression said, tugging on his sweater. "They need more fusion friends."

"I'd love to hang out with them." Kyler responded, an easy smile on his face.

"Mr. Morality! Mr. Morality!" A group of toddlers ran up to him.

He knelt down to be eye level with them, careful to not rustle Autumn. "Yes?"

"Why are you so tall?"

"Why is your hair funny?"

"Boys can't paint their nails!"

Kyler sat down fully, putting Autumn in his lap. She looked up at him, like she wanted to know these answers too. Kyler said gently, "Well, to start, my name isn't Mr. Morality."

"What?!"

"My name is Kyler." He said, smiling at the children, "And I'm a fusion. That's why I'm so tall, and why I look a little different."

"My uncle is a fusion!" One of the kiddos shouted.

Kyler laughed and said, "That's great! All of you will be fusions one day, too! It's part of growing up!" He looked to May and said, "And as for my nails; anyone can wear make up or nail polish. It's not just for girls."

"Really?!" A couple asked.

Kyler nodded. They asked some more questions about being a fusion (and make up), and Kyler answered them all as best he could.

"If you're a fusion, where's your extra eyes?"

"Not all fusions have extra eyes." He said, lifting his sweater up enough to reveal his hands. "Some have extra arms!"

"Whoa!"

Kyler caught Expression's gaze as the kiddos pulled on his arms. They took turns counting his fingers and playing patty cake. Autumn chose that moment to wander off.

Rowdy asked, "If you're a fusion, what's your name?"

Kyler blinked in surprise, not expecting that one. He stared at the kids playing with his hands. A little fog spread across his mind, and he found it hard to think. Then, with a spark running down his spine, it came to him.

"Empathy." Kyler said in a whisper, his wide eyes on Expression. They smiled at him, and he felt himself smile back.

"What's that mean?" Rowdy asked, his voice a tad too loud.

"It means that you know what other people are feeling. When someone else is sad, you can relate to it and understand why they're feeling that way." Kyler said, his voice growing stronger with each word. He felt giddy upon discovering his Side name.

Two of his hands began to shake back and forth. A couple of the kids copied him, interpreting his excitement as a dance. Kyler stood up and bounced with the kids, smiling at their laughter.

When he ran out of breath, he left the kids to approach Expression. He reached out and took their hands, smiling down at them. "I'm Empathy!"

Expression grinned and squeezed his hands, "Nice to meet you."

Kyler couldn't stop the excitement rushing through him. Comfortable and confident in himself, there was nothing he couldn't do. Well, except for giving tattoos.

Tell me what you think!