"I don't know what to do. I honestly do not have a single clue what to do Rose. Like, my mind is blank." Dave sighed in exasperation and ran a hand through his hair. His sister sat across from him, quilting herself a new scarf that was just as dark as the last three she made. "How the fuck do I properly comfort him? I just...the look in his eyes Rose," Dave frowned and looked at the ground, remembering the pain and guilt that was clearly shown in Karkat's candy red eyes, "he's in a pretty bad spot and...and I don't know what to do to help him."

"Do everything you can do." Rose replied simply, setting her knitting needles down on top of her half finished scarf.

"Gee thanks Rose. Now I officially know what to do." The Seer rolled her eyes at her brother's sarcasm.

"Seriously Dave, there is no real way to comfort someone, especially someone like Karkat whom went through such a raging shitstorm. Just...do what you can. You must know him the best after spending three years attached to the hip with him."

"Yeah but that was six fucking years ago. He's different. He sleeps less than usual, he doesn't really eat and when he does he gets kind of sick. He doesn't go on raging about his romance novels or asinine bullshit like that...hell, he doesn't even have arbitrary speeches about how stupid I am. He's practically dead inside..."

"Listen Dave, I'd love to help you but...honestly I don't know how. I do not know how to tend to a troll that was suddenly flung into a new universe that wasn't the one he was expecting to go to, I don't know how to help you deal with his traumatic past. All I do know is that he will get better by knowing you're going to be there and help him and talk to him. Establish that connection with him, rekindle the blazing hot fire between you two that was once there six years ago. Be his friend, be his matesprit, be his moirail, be his roommate, be his caretaker. I don't care what you two are, just be there for him. Let him know you're there whenever he needs you. Let him trust you." Dave nodded stiffly and stood up, heading out Rose's home, only half-confident that he could do this.

~

Karkat sighed and rubbed his eyes before looking at his tired self in the bathroom mirror. Sleep. Karkat remembered what that was like. Getting a normal eight hours of sleep was out of the question for him. He couldn't he wasn't used to it, not anymore. At least he was getting naps now, ones longer than the normal fifteen minute ones. That's how he got his rest and energy. But full nights of sleep? Out of the question. He was trained to stay up all night and, most of the time, all day. He had to. If he didn't stay up, who else would guard the Empress whilst she slept? Who else would be her loyal knight? No one else is who. That was his job, he knew he'd have to make several sacrifices and sleep was one of those sacrifices. It was fine though, the less sleep he got the less nightmares haunted him. Dave began getting worried though. He began telling- no, scolding Karkat that he needed more sleep. Sleeping once or twice a day for about an hour or so wasn't healthy. Sure it'd be fine if it were only a thing every once in a blue moon but it wasn't okay if it was happening every day for six years.

...

Dave.

Karkat's mind wandered from sleep on over to Dave. Karkat remembered Dave. He remembered how he sneered at him as he pointed the the pearly white sword to his chest. He remembered Dave saying things, horrible horrible things, to him though he couldn't hear him. His blood was pumping so loud and he was so tired from fighting that he couldn't make out the words. He remembered the pearly white sword being painted with his freakish red, he remembered Dave grinning manically, he remembered-

No.

No. That wasn't Dave. That was some fucked up dream he was forced to have. Some sick twisted image he was forced to see. Something the godawful clown used against him. A violation of his mind. It was a crime. The clown used someone that Karkat once thought of as comforting and tainted him. He messed Karkat up. He messed Dave up for him. It was an unforgivable crime that did not go unpunished.

"What about your unforgivable crime?" Karkat froze. He could barely see him out the corner of his eye, in the mirror. Sollux. "When will that one go punished?" Karkat's heart was beating fast. He slowly looked up and looked straight into the mirror. Sollux, his Sollux, was standing there nonchalantly. It was like he never left, like her never died. Of course the massive amount of blood coming from a ring around his neck gave away his obvious death. The blood covered Sollux smirked and spoke, "Why do you look so surprised? I'm certain you did not forget about me, I haunt every dark recess of your thinkpan."

"How the hell did you get here Archi- ...Sollux?" Karkat gulped, speaking in Alternian yet again. His eyes were focused on the blood. God there was so much of it. It looked like it was still fresh, spilling down to the front of Sollux's loose fitting robe. It was making him sick.

"I never left you and you know it, Peacekeeper."

"It's Karkat..." Sollux chuckled darkly and shook his head.

"It's Peacekeeper. That's what you will always be to me. The Peacekeeper, the loyal lapdog of Her Imperial Radiance. You would do anything for her." Sollux walked closer, his expression darkening as he did. Karkat backed up as much as he could, somewhat sitting on the bathroom counter and leaning away some more as Sollux's pale-grey face hovered inches away from his own. "Even blindly murder your own matesprit. Isn't that right, Peacekeeper?"

"You...you know I didn't want to." Karkat half shouted, shaking his head. He couldn't look at the troll in front of him, his hands were tightly gripping the edge of the counter and his breathing became more difficult to control. "I never wanted to hurt you, I loved you!"

"That's right. Loved. You loved me. You stopped loving me the second it was time to defend me, to prove me innocent." Karkat shook his head, sliding away from Sollux. "You didn't love me enough to prove me innocent, but that whore you didn't even know did get to be saved? Why her? Why not me? Why not your matesprit of a sweep and a half?!" Fuck, fuck Karkat had to get rid of him. He stumbled back to Dave's room, the tears that were beginning to form in his eyes were making it increasingly difficult for him to see.

"I never wanted you to die!" Karkat screamed as he began shakily digging through a tattered bag. "I love you! I love you! I'm sorry!" Fuck, fuck it wasn't here. Karkat turned around and stumbled out the room to the small apartment's living room.

"You didn't love me enough." Sollux spat out, following the now crying troll. "You didn't love me enough to save me. It didn't matter if I spent every waking second worrying over you and taking care of you when you came back, you didn't love me enough to save me from being falsely accused and murdered. You didn't love me enough. You didn't love me enough. You didn't--"

Sollux was cut of mid-sentence, his head leaned to the right before falling off completely. Karkat didn't know what else to do. He panicked, he needed to get rid of Sollux, he needed to get rid of the guilt. He needed to get rid of--

"You didn't love us enough." No. No no no, not him too. That gruff voice, the voice that soothed him when he was having countless breakdowns. The one he went to in times of need. Karkat gripped his sickle tightly and turned around to face the blood covered Equius, trying to stop the flow of tears. "You didn't love us enough. And after all we did for you? After all I did for you... Why?" Karkat whimpered and shook his head. He couldn't do this.

"I never meant to kill you, Marksman, either of you. If I had any chance of saving you I would've taken it, but...I didn't...and the Empress--"

"I was her most loyal subject. You know that. I would've brought down an entire kingdom if she asked. I created the best weapons and most amazing machines for her. I would wait on her hand and foot if given the chance. I would do anything for her except murder my quadrantmate. I am not so foolish to do so." Equius glared at Karkat through his cracked goggles and took a step forward. "I would've fought for you to live, I would've hidden you, I would've gone against the kingdom if it meant that my palest of loves lived. But you, you didn't seem to care. I thought we were moirails, Peacekeeper. I thought we would've been pale for all of eternity. It turns out you merely became my palemate for your own sick and twisted needs." Karkat shook his head, looking down and sobbing.

"No, no Marksman- Equius you know that isn't true. I loved you both. I wanted you to live. I needed you two in my life, I tried everything!"

"But you didn't try hard enough. You used me. You used me. You used me, you filthy low blood. I hope you get what's right for that. I hope you get what you deserve." Karkat sobbed and looked up at the blue blooded troll in front of him, raising his sickle up to chest level.

"I'm sorry..." The Peacekeeper closed his eyes and his swung his weapons, not reopening them until he heard the dull thud of a head and body falling on the floor. Karkat dropped to his knees, letting out loud sobs as he stared at the decapitated heads of his previous quadrantmates.

"Look at your hands." Karkat was gasping for breath, looking about the room for the source of the voice. "You've killed us again." It was a gross fusion of Equius and Sollux's voice, bringing more pain and guilt to Karkat with every word it spoke. Karkat hesitantly looked down and saw his hands and sickle, freshly covered in blue and gold blood. The floor had a giant pool of blood around the bodies, it getting closer to Karkat with every second. "You didn't love us enough. You didn't try hard enough. You used us. You didn't love us enough. You didn't try hard enough. You used us..." The sickening voice continued repeating those phrases and Karkat continued sobbing, curling into a ball with his head between his knees and tight grip on his weapon. He could feel the warm blood soak through his pants pants, he just wanted this to stop.

"You didn't love us enough. You didn't try hard enough. You used us. You didn't love us enough. You didn't try hard enough. You used us..."

~

When Dave arrived back at his apartment, the first thing he saw was Karkat whimpering on the floor, curled up into a little ball and shaking violently. He immediately went over to him, a worried look on his face. "Karkat? Karkat. Karkat what's wrong? What happened?" The troll shook his head rapidly and refused to look up, shakily mumbling in Alternian. "Karkat I can't understand you. Speak English goddammit so I can help you!"

"I killed them...," he whispered, looking up now, "I killed them again. Their blood is everywhere..." Karkat's eyes were red and puffy from crying so much, a pink stain on his cheeks. He glanced down at his hands, which were tightly balled up into fists, and began sobbing again. "I killed them! Look, their blood is on my hands." Dave confusedly glanced down and shook his head.

"Dude...there's no blood. You didn't...nothing happened okay?" Karkat shook his head and looked at the floor besides Dave. He turned to see what the shaking troll was looking at but saw nothing. "Come on...lets just calm down okay? There's nothing here. No blood. Nothing happened, okay?" Karkat shook his head and Dave took the risk of putting his hands on Karkat's cheeks, forcing the other to look at him. "Hey, focus on me. There's no one in here but you and I. No blood. No one. Nothing happened. You're fine. Repeat after me, 'I'm fine.'"

"I'm...I'm fine." Karkat whispered and Dave nodded. The troll was shaking in fear, his eyes wide.

"Good. Now deep breaths...just relax..." Karkat did as told and took some deep breaths. Dave slowly let go of Karkat's face and went down to pry the sickle out of his hands. Once that was done he stood up and helped Karkat to his feet. He was shaking. "Let's get you to bed okay?" Karkat nodded and allowed himself to be lead. When he turned around, the bodies and blood were gone.